"As for this traitor, deal with him as you see fit. I won't interfere," Wei Zhao said flatly.

"This..." Ye Qingguo hesitated. Qiu Mingchong was his personal disciple; only if there were truly no other way would he cast him aside. But now Qiu Mingchong had publicly admitted his identity as a mole, and with two unfathomable creatures like Wei Zhao and Bing Wushuang eyeing them like hawks at their side, he dared not play any political tricks at such a moment. He could only grit his teeth and say, "Someone! Take this traitor Qiu Mingchong, who bites the hand that feeds him, into custody! His specific punishment will be decided later!"

Wei Zhao had no objection to this. He had dragged Qiu Mingchong out purely to help Duanmu Yu out of her predicament; whether Qiu Mingchong lived or died was of no concern to him whatsoever.

Besides, looking at it from the Ye Ling Sect's standpoint, discovering such a traitor was of course infuriating, but they could not simply execute him on the spot either. There were still many things that had to be clarified—for instance, why had the Xuejian Sect wanted to buy off Qiu Mingchong in the first place?

Watching the utterly despondent Qiu Mingchong being led away, Wei Zhao swept his gaze over Ye Qingguo and the others and said, "Is there anyone here who still believes Qiu Mingchong's slander against Miss Duanmu?"

"No, no, of course not—you jest, Senior. How could we possibly believe the words of a traitor?" Ye Qingguo hurriedly put on a fawning smile, adopting an exceedingly humble posture. The others might mainly be wary of Bing Wushuang, that old monster of the Nascent Soul stage, but in his eyes Wei Zhao was the most terrifying existence of all—this creature was absolutely far more dreadful than any ordinary Nascent Soul old monster!

"Is that so? Then what about the matter of the Spirit Perception Grass?" Wei Zhao raised an eyebrow and remarked casually.

"..." Ye Qingguo and the others were drenched in cold sweat. Recalling their earlier conduct in pressing Wei Zhao and Bing Wushuang for the Spirit Perception Grass, they felt as though ten thousand stampeding horses were thundering through their hearts. Thinking about it now, that had been nothing short of courting death in every conceivable fashion!

"A natural treasure like the Spirit Perception Grass naturally belongs to those with the ability to claim it—only someone with the strength of you two gentlemen is worthy. We were rude and presumptuous before; on behalf of the Ye Ling Sect, I offer you both my solemn apologies!" Ye Qingguo said hurriedly and respectfully.

Hearing this, Wei Zhao glanced at Duanmu Yu. He had come here purely to visit a friend; whether to seize upon the matter and exact a little revenge was entirely up to Duanmu Yu. As for himself, he did not much care—at his level, he would not take such a trifle to heart—and Bing Wushuang cared even less.

Duanmu Yu returned a look tinged with pleading. The grievances she had suffered during this time had been considerable, but after all, her feelings for the Ye Ling Sect ran deep. Since Qiu Mingchong, the chief culprit, had already been taken into custody, the matter should end there; otherwise, it was the Ye Ling Sect that would ultimately suffer the loss.

"Very well. For Miss Duanmu's sake, I will accept this utterly insincere apology of yours for now. But let me say this plainly upfront: I am not a man of good temper. If there is a next time, I won't be so easy to talk to." Wei Zhao took the opportunity to administer a warning shot to everyone present, so that if Ye Qingguo and the others later thought of settling scores with Duanmu Yu, they would have to weigh the consequences very carefully.

"Yes, yes, yes—thank you, Senior, for your magnanimity. We are endlessly grateful." Ye Qingguo did not dare offer the slightest rebuttal. For all that he was a sect leader, and for all that the difference between Golden Core perfection and a Nascent Soul old monster was but a hair's breadth, that hair's breadth meant he had no right to speak before Wei Zhao and Bing Wushuang whatsoever. A single casual thought from either of them could kill him—how was he supposed to contend with that?

At that moment, Ye Qingguo's sole thought was to hurry Wei Zhao and Bing Wushuang out the door. This time, lured by the Spirit Perception Grass and incited by Qiu Mingchong, he had been bewitched into setting his sights on the two of them—and now look. It was easy to invite a god in and hard to send one away: the classic case of one riding a tiger and unable to get off.

The crux was that he could not simply come right out and ask them to leave. His eyes darted about, and in desperation he hit upon a plan: "You two Seniors are both masters of the highest order, while the rest of us are of meager strength and poor hospitality. Perhaps I should go report to our sect's Supreme Elder and have His Eminence come receive you two in person?"

Having a Nascent Soul old monster receive Nascent Soul old monsters—that was jianghu etiquette—so making such a proposal was entirely reasonable and proper, and at least it could prevent them from being casually and unilaterally bullied. Otherwise, with only him and the gathering of Golden Core-stage higher-ups present, speaking to these two would have been truly crushing pressure.

"Whatever." Wei Zhao waved a hand noncommittally. He himself had not the slightest interest in the Ye Ling Sect's Supreme Elder, but since he was here, meeting him once in passing would do no harm—and it would earn Duanmu Yu a bit of face as well.

"Very good, very good. Please wait a moment, you two Seniors—I will go report to the Supreme Elder right away." Ye Qingguo promptly bustled off.

Honestly speaking, at a time like this, even to petition the Supreme Elder there was no need for him to go in person as sect leader, but he could not have wished for anything more. After all, Qiu Mingchong was his personal disciple, and as for the Spirit Perception Grass affair, though Qiu Mingchong had been behind the incitement, it had chiefly been his own idea. At this moment he dared not remain a single moment longer in the presence of Wei Zhao and Bing Wushuang—the pressure was simply too great.

Moments later, an old man in blue robes entered the Divine Leaf Hall at a brisk pace, accompanied by Ye Qingguo. His aura was wholly restrained, yet it gave one a sense of unfathomable depths. The assembled Ye Ling Sect higher-ups—Ye Tongwei and Duanmu Yu among them—hurriedly bowed in unison. Without question, this was the Ye Ling Sect's Supreme Elder, Ye Yihang.

He was not merely the Supreme Elder; he was also the master of both Ye Qingguo and Ye Tongwei—which is to say, he was Duanmu Yu's grandmaster.

"Two fellow Daoists have come to visit, and this old man has failed to welcome you from afar. Pray forgive me, forgive me." Ye Yihang cupped his hands in greeting and smiled. For years he had remained in a state of half-seclusion; had such an incident not arisen, he normally would not have appeared.

Bing Wushuang studied him with a somewhat appraising look. A bit stronger than himself—mid Nascent Soul stage. But it was obvious this fellow carried hidden injuries. Ordinary people could not see it, but it could not escape the observation of a peak early-stage Nascent Soul expert like him.

"You are too kind. To trouble Your Eminence to appear despite your injuries on behalf of two such unrelated idlers as ourselves—if anything, it is we who have been discourteous," Wei Zhao said mildly. Bing Wushuang had only vaguely perceived that the other party bore hidden injuries, but Wei Zhao saw directly that the injuries were no ordinary wounds. Amid the other's deep, restrained aura there were unmistakable traces of qi deviation; from the look of it, the backlash at the time had been quite severe, and it had evidently dragged on for a very long time without healing to this day. (To be continued.)