This debt must also be settled!

"Hurry up! Don't dawdle!"

The dark-faced butler gave him a hard shove from behind.

Zhou Lingxuan staggered forward two steps and crossed the high black threshold of the Law Enforcement Hall.

The moment he stepped inside, an extremely cold array fluctuation swept over his entire body.

Zhou Lingxuan immediately concealed his aura, suppressing his Qi Refining Stage 9 cultivation deep within his dantian, revealing only his declining blood and qi.

The main hall was extremely spacious, with eerie blue flames burning on the bronze pillars on both sides. The flames flickered, casting long shadows.

The air was filled with a lingering, indelible smell of blood.

A gaunt old man sat on a large rosewood chair directly in front of him.

The old man was dressed in a gray cloth robe, his eyes closed, and he was holding two jade dantians in his hands.

He didn't speak, but the air in the entire hall seemed to freeze, making it hard to breathe.

This is the Second Elder of the Heavenly Sword Pavilion, a powerful cultivator in the Nascent Soul stage.

On the armchairs on both sides sat the Third Elder Liu Quan, the Fourth Elder, the Fifth Elder, and several managers from the inner sects.

Liu Quan held his teacup, slowly skimming off the foam, his smugness impossible to hide.

Behind him stood a middle-aged man dressed as the deputy head of the Qi Hall.

Li Yuan.

When Zhou Lingxuan saw Li Yuan's submissive appearance, he immediately understood the situation perfectly.

This treacherous and ungrateful bastard has indeed become the sharpest knife in Liu Quan's hand.

On the bluestone slab in the very center of the main hall, a person lay sprawled.

Chen Baichuan.

His dark gold robe, which symbolized his status as an elder of the Weapon Hall, was now tattered and stained with black ash and dark red blood.

Her hair was disheveled, and she was limp and lying on the ground, her breathing so weak that it was almost inaudible.

Zhou Lingxuan glanced at him and immediately judged that the old man was seriously injured.

When the meridians flow in reverse, the vital energy dissipates.

It was absolutely at the most crucial moment of starting the furnace to forge the weapon that someone forcibly broke through the formation and abruptly interrupted it.

The backlash from refining the weapon, coupled with the suppression from a Nascent Soul stage expert, has left Chen Baichuan worse off than a mortal.

What's most dangerous is his energy and spirit.

The old elder of the Weapon Hall, who used to pound his chest and exude confidence in the ruined hall, is now ashen-faced and unable to even lift his head.

My mental state completely collapsed.

"Reporting to the Second Elder, Zhou Lingxuan, the steward of the abandoned hall, has been brought here."

The dark-faced deacon knelt on one knee and loudly reported back.

The Second Elder stopped holding the jade gall bladder.

He slowly opened his eyes.

The pressure from the Nascent Soul stage directly slammed into Zhou Lingxuan.

Zhou Lingxuan secretly circulated his physical strength and withstood the attack, outwardly feigning a shaky appearance with his legs trembling.

"So you're the steward of that abandoned hall?" the Second Elder asked, his voice not loud, but it made the hall reverberate.

"Zhou Lingxuan, the steward of the abandoned hall, greets the Second Elder." Zhou Lingxuan cupped his hands, his voice trembling.

The Second Elder ignored him and turned to look at Chen Baichuan on the ground.

"Chen Baichuan".

The Second Elder threw a jade slip on the ground, making a crisp sound.

"You overstepped your authority by allocating the Law Enforcement Hall's quota, privately withheld the sect's top-grade spirit ore, and formed cliques for personal gain."

"Li Yuan has already handed over all your account books."

"Liu Quan also confirmed that you transferred all the embezzled spirit mines to the abandoned hall."

The second elder pointed at Zhou Lingxuan.

"This old janitor with no cultivation is just a puppet you pushed to the forefront to dispose of your stolen goods."

"Will you admit it or not?"

Chen Baichuan had been lying lifelessly on the ground.

Upon hearing this, he convulsed violently.

He struggled to lift his head, his once-stern face contorted in pain, veins bulging on his forehead.

He glanced at Zhou Lingxuan beside him, and his eyes instantly reddened.

"fart!"

Chen Baichuan suddenly let out a loud shout, his voice hoarse and cracking.

Everyone in the hall was stunned for a moment.

"Liu Quan, you old bastard! Come at me! Don't you dare drag others into this!"

Chen Baichuan struggled to stand up, but a disciple from the Enforcement Hall next to him kicked him in the back of the knee, causing him to kneel down heavily again.

He ignored the pain and stared intently at the Second Elder above.

"Second Elder! I, Chen Baichuan, will take full responsibility for my actions!"

"I was the one who allocated the quotas! I was also the one who formed cliques for personal gain!"

"But this matter has absolutely nothing to do with Zhou Lingxuan, not even a single spirit stone!"

Chen Baichuan was panting heavily, spittle flying everywhere.

"He's just a gatekeeper! These past few days when I've gone to the abandoned hall, he hasn't even let me in the door!"

"He advised me several times to tone it down and told me to go into seclusion to refine weapons, but I was blinded by greed and wouldn't listen!"

"If you want to kill or torture me, come at me! Don't try to use an old man as a scapegoat!"

Liu Quan sneered from the side.

"Elder Chen, even at a time like this, you're still protecting your accomplices?"

"The Enforcement Hall searched the abandoned hall, and although they didn't find any spirit ore, who knows if it was destroyed beforehand?"

Liu Quan put down his teacup and stood up.

"It's illogical for a dignified elder of the Weaponry Hall to risk his life to protect a lowly outer disciple."

"Moreover, Li Yuan personally witnessed you loading those top-grade spirit ores onto carts and sending them to the abandoned hall."

Liu Quan turned to look at Li Yuan.

"Vice Hall Master Li, don't you agree?"

Li Yuan stepped forward, knelt down with a thud, and pulled out a warrant stamped with the seal of the Qitang from his bosom.

"I report to the Second Elder and the Third Elder that everything they said is true."

"This is a warrant issued by Master, which clearly states that the batch of Blue Nether Gold and Crimson Flame Marrow should be transported to the ruined hall."

"I saw with my own eyes that Master loaded the materials onto the cart and handed them over to the people from the abandoned hall."

"My disciple tried to persuade him, but Master insisted on his own way and even threatened me not to make a sound."

"Your disciple simply couldn't bear to see the sect's foundation destroyed, which is why I had to sacrifice my own family for the greater good!"

Chen Baichuan looked at Li Yuan kneeling on the ground and trembled with anger.

"You beast! You treacherous and disloyal beast!"

Chen Baichuan pointed at Li Yuan, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

"I've taught you for thirty years! And you actually conspired with outsiders to frame me!"

"You're the one who covered up those spirit ore transactions! And you even secretly stamped the warrant while I was drunk!"

"Now you're turning around and accusing me!"

Li Yuan raised his head, his face full of grievance.

"Master, I'm doing this for the sect. I can't stand by and watch you embezzle military supplies."

"Shut up!"

Chen Baichuan lunged at Li Yuan, but was pinned to the ground by the disciples of the Enforcement Hall.

He turned to look at Liu Quan, gritting his teeth.

"Liu Quan! Do you dare say you didn't release the fire poison into the Cold Sound Iron?"

"You deliberately gave me the Ten-Thousand-Year Frost Soul just to trick me during the weapon forging process!"

"You broke through my formation and destroyed my foundation! You will die a horrible death!"

Zhou Lingxuan stood to the side, looking at Chen Baichuan's miserable state, and sighed inwardly.

That old bastard is incredibly stupid.

At this point, to take all the blame upon oneself without even offering a defense is tantamount to courting death.

But Zhou Lingxuan felt a strange emotion stirring within him.

In the world of cultivation, what despicable means wouldn't people use to survive?

It's commonplace for people to take someone down with them before they die.

Chen Baichuan was usually arrogant and conceited, but in this situation, he actually took all the blame and tried his best to push Zhou Lingxuan away.

He's a man with principles.

Because of this sense of justice, I'm determined to help with this today.

Liu Quan's face turned ashen from Chen Baichuan's scolding, and he let out a cold snort.

"Even on the verge of death, they still dare to make baseless accusations!"

"Second Elder, Chen Baichuan has gone mad; his words are not credible at all."

Liu Quan turned to look at Zhou Lingxuan, his gaze sinister.

"Zhou Lingxuan, don't think you can get away with it just because Chen Baichuan took the blame."

"I have already sent people to check the accounts of the abandoned hall."

"How dare you, a lowly servant with no cultivation, become a supervisor? It's all because Chen Baichuan is backing you up!"

Zhou Lingxuan feigned a look of fear and waved his hands repeatedly.

"Third Elder, please be wise! This old man has only been in office for a few days and knows nothing."

"Old Sun manages all the accounts; I've hardly ever even seen what spirit stones look like."

"As for being appointed as the manager, that was approved by Elder Li of the administrative office. How could this old man dare to ask any more questions?"

Liu Quan sneered.

"Old Sun? He's been detained by the Enforcement Hall and is being subjected to severe torture."

"Once he admits it, let's see how you try to deny it then!"

Zhou Lingxuan's heart sank.

Old Sun's old bones couldn't withstand the methods of the Enforcement Hall.

However, as long as he doesn't give a clear answer and there's no physical evidence, Liu Quan can't completely pin the crime of embezzlement on Chen Baichuan.

Just then, the Fourth Elder, who had been silent until now, spoke up.

"Second Elder, although Chen Baichuan made mistakes, he did quell the subterranean fire crisis and made a contribution to the sect."

"Should we investigate this matter further?"

The Fifth Elder echoed this sentiment.

"Yes, Chen Baichuan may be a bit arrogant, but he has never embezzled military supplies before."

"The warrant that Li Yuan produced may not be entirely unforgeable."

Liu Quan's expression changed, and he was about to retort when the Second Elder raised his hand.

The hall fell silent instantly.

The Second Elder stared at Chen Baichuan, his face extremely gloomy.

"presumptuous!"

The Second Elder slammed his hand on the table.

"Bang!"

The entire hall shook violently, and the spiritual fire on the bronze pillars instantly surged three feet.

Chen Baichuan was so shocked that he coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed to the ground, unable to get up.

The Second Elder stood up and looked down at Chen Baichuan.

"Even if he's not your accomplice, you still need to give me an explanation today!"

The Second Elder pointed at Zhou Lingxuan, his voice echoing throughout the hall.

"You also need to settle the score for forcibly promoting him to the position of steward of the abandoned hall!"