What if one is the one who guards the heart meridian?

"have no idea."

Youyue shook her head:

"The protective array around Hundred Flowers Valley is very strong, and I dare not approach it. However, I have learned that Hundred Flowers Valley has secretly recruited a group of disciples, including a female cultivator who uses a sword technique, and her origins are unknown."

Li Tu opened his mouth wide:

"Qin Shuang has betrayed the righteous path?!"

The hall was silent for three seconds.

Li Tu scratched his head:

"No, what's in it for her? Isn't it good to be in the Xuan Tian Sect? She's a direct disciple guarding the heart meridian, with plenty of resources. Why would she betray the righteous path and become someone else's lackey?"

Qianji said calmly:

"What if someone offered her an even greater benefit?"

Li Tu refused to accept this:

"What advantage could compare to being a direct descendant of the Xuan Tian Sect?"

Qianji didn't speak, but only glanced at Chu Yuan.

Chu Yuan understood what he meant.

for example......

Breaking through the Nascent Soul stage.

Although the Xuantian Sect is powerful, the allocation of resources must still be done according to the rules.

Qin Shuang is in the late stage of the Golden Core realm. If she wants to break through to the Nascent Soul realm, she needs to wait for the right opportunity and accumulate merit.

But what if someone were willing to give her a Nascent Soul Pill directly?

Youyue's face turned ashen:

"If she truly defectes... I will be held responsible!"

Chu Yuan didn't respond to that question, but instead asked:

"What about Zhou Fang? Have you found her?"

Youyue nodded:

"We found it. Zhou Fang did go to Blackwind Town three months ago, saying he was there to purchase a batch of materials for Xue Lie. He stayed in Blackwind Town for five days, which coincided with Qin Shuang's trip."

"Purchase materials?"

Qianji sneered:

"Does Xue Lie, a Tribulation Transcending Elder, really need his personal disciple to travel to a place like Black Wind Town to purchase materials?"

Li Tu slapped his thigh:

"So he went to see Qin Shuang!"

Chu Yuan didn't speak, but tapped the armrest lightly with his fingers.

If Qin Shuang truly betrayed the righteous path, then her motive for robbing supplies would make sense.

They used the resources of the Xuantian Sect to pledge allegiance to the righteous path.

Here comes the problem.

Was Xue Lie's appearance in Blackwind Town a coincidence, or was he behind it all?

Qianji suddenly said:

"If Xue Lie wants to use someone else to do his dirty work, the best way is to force Youyue's disciples to rebel. Once Qin Shuang defectes, the reputation of the Guardian of the Heart Meridian will be damaged, and Youyue will also be suspected. The theft of the supplies will only confirm the rumors that there are problems with the Guardian of the Heart Meridian."

Youyue's face turned even paler.

Chu Yuan looked at her:

Do you believe Qin Shuang will betray us?

Youyue raised her head, her gaze resolute:

"I don't believe it! I raised that child from a baby. If she wanted to rebel, she should have done so three years ago, not now."

Chu Yuan nodded:

"I don't believe that either."

Li Tu scratched his head:

"But she's in Hundred Flowers Valley right now, and she even used swordsmanship. Isn't that proof enough?"

Chu Yuan glanced at him:

"Does being in Hundred Flowers Valley necessarily mean one is a defector?"

Li Tu was stunned:

"What else could it be? Were they kidnapped?"

Chu Yuan didn't answer, but only looked at Qianji:

"Has anything unusual happened in Hundred Flowers Valley recently?"

Qianji thought for a moment:

"There is one thing. Hundred Flowers Valley has suddenly strengthened the defenses of its mountain-protecting array. They say it's a routine reinforcement, but according to my informant who's planted inside, the atmosphere in the valley is a bit off, as if they're on guard against someone."

"Who are you guarding against?"

Li Tu was even more bewildered:

"Who are we defending against?"

Qianji said calmly:

"What if Qin Shuang wasn't defecting, but instead trapped in Hundred Flowers Valley?"

The hall was silent for three seconds.

Youyue's eyes lit up:

"Does the cult leader mean that Qin Shuang was forced?"

Chu Yuan neither nodded nor shook his head:

"Let's find out the truth first."

He stood up and walked to Youyue:

"Continue investigating Zhou Fang and see if he has been in contact with anyone else recently. Especially with Xue Lie, report to me immediately if anything seems amiss."

Youyue knelt on one knee:

"yes!"

Chu Yuan then looked at Qianji:

"Send men to infiltrate Hundred Flowers Valley and find Qin Shuang. We need to see her alive or dead."

Qianji nodded:

"Understood."

Li Tu watched expectantly:

"Master, what about me?"

Chu Yuan remained silent for two seconds.

To be honest, he hadn't yet figured out what Li Tu could do.

But saying "You should rest" directly seems a bit hurtful.

So he patted Li Tu on the shoulder:

"You stay by my side. If anyone tries to cause trouble in the chaos, you'll take their place."

Li Tu immediately straightened his chest:

"Rest assured, Master! With me here, no one will be able to harm a single hair on your head!"

Youyue and Qianji exchanged a glance and silently looked away.

This Li Tu has really lost his mind.

The cult leader still needs your protection!

Two days later, Qianji brought back news:

"Master, the people we sent to Hundred Flowers Valley have returned."

Chu Yuan was flipping through the regulations submitted by the Three Departments, without even looking up:

"explain."

Qianji's expression was strange:

"They found Qin Shuang. But she... is no longer Qin Shuang."

Chu Yuan looked up and raised an eyebrow:

"What do you mean?"

A thousand machines, one word at a time:

"The female cultivator recruited by Hundred Flowers Valley in the past three months does indeed use swordsmanship, and her name is indeed Qin Shuang. But her soul has completely changed."

Chu Yuan narrowed his eyes:

"soul?"

Qianji nodded:

"Yes. My people risked exposure to observe her up close, and her soul aura is completely different from the soul tablet Qin Shuang left in the sect."

He paused, then glanced at Chu Yuan:

"Moreover, her cultivation level is at the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm."

The hall fell silent.

Li Tu scratched his head:

"Soul tablets? Those things can be compared?"

Qianji ignored him and continued:

"Three months ago, Qin Shuang was in the late stage of the Golden Core realm. Three months later, she's in the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm. This speed is abnormally fast."

Youyue's voice was filled with shock:

"How did she break through? Even with the Nascent Soul Pill, it's impossible to do it so quickly."

Chu Yuan didn't speak, tapping his fingers on the armrest.

Qianji took a deep breath:

"Unless... she didn't break through on her own at all."

He looked at Chu Yuan:

"Has the cult leader ever heard of 'body snatching'?"

Chu Yuan's heart skipped a beat.

Possession!

He's familiar with this stuff; isn't time travel just another form of possession?

Qianji nodded:

"I suspect that the real Qin Shuang is already dead. The current 'Qin Shuang' is just a body possessed by some Nascent Soul stage monster."

Youyue hurriedly said:

"But my cultivation technique for guarding my heart meridian is essentially equivalent to losing all my cultivation after possession, and I have to start all over again. How could she still be a Nascent Soul cultivator?"

Qianji calmly said:

"What if the person who possessed Qin Shuang's body was also someone who guarded her heart meridian?"

Youyue was stunned.

If an old fellow who is proficient in the art of guarding the heart meridian were to possess a disciple, it would be very easy to imitate his techniques.

The hall was silent for three seconds.

Li Tu opened his mouth wide:

"What do you mean? You mean someone within our Heart Vein Guardian has possessed Qin Shuang?"

Qianji ignored him and continued:

"Use the identity of a Xuan Tian Sect disciple to rob supplies, and then use her face to betray the Hundred Flowers Valley. In this way, the reputation of the Guardian of the Heart Meridian will be completely ruined, You Yue will be suspected, and the righteous path will gain a disciple who 'abandons darkness and embraces light,' and incidentally plant spies."

He paused:

"Killing three birds with one stone."

Youyue's face turned deathly pale.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

The person guarding the heart meridian?

That was her direct disciple whom she personally trained!

Li Tu also spoke up:

"Master! I have news from my side too!"

P.S.: I had a class reunion this afternoon, and I finished writing this chapter around 1 a.m. this morning. I'm exhausted.

But I was still very excited to see my good friends.