Chapter 45

After Ju Yuan had sorted out his speech, he waved aside the barrier and walked towards the Square table, where the quantities of spiritual items obtained by disciples from various sects were being recorded.

A group of people was debating how to calculate the points for items obtained from the ancient city. When they saw that the True Person from the Supreme Sect had arrived, they threw the question at him.

Ju Yuan still maintained his gentlemanly and dignified demeanor. Upon hearing the question, he asked only one thing: “Who discovered the ancient city first?”

“Naturally, it was the four disciples of your Supreme Sect.”

“Besides them, did anyone else make an effort?”

Some cultivators wanted to argue that searching for and collecting items also required effort, given the ancient times and the need for keen eyes to identify valuable items. Ordinary cultivators also faced restrictions and formations to prevent theft.

However, they had to admit that without the four disciples of the Supreme Sect, or rather, without Lin Du arranging the formations, the ancient city would not have reappeared in the world.

“Lin Du should be considered the first.”

The speaker was an elder from the Gui Yuan Sect. He had already learned that Lin Du had saved a disciple who was almost possessed by the vengeful spirits of the ancient city. Although the method was somewhat rough, it was the most effective approach for low-level cultivators.

Even the elder from the Lianheng Sect agreed, noting that the large formations set up were something she herself could only achieve after many years of study.

When the Ghost Gate opened, Lin Du’s ability to adapt and adjust several formations was even more remarkable.

Even cultivators who had studied formations for many years would not have done better in that situation.

Hearing the praise, Ju Yuan’s eyes flashed with a hint of a smile. “You’re overestimating my junior sister. She’s still young and doesn’t deserve such praise.”

“However, my point is that today’s points should be calculated according to the usual method, not including the items from the ancient city. What do you think?”

After a moment of contemplation, the others responded, “This might be too unfriendly to your sect’s disciples.”

After all, they were the first to reach the desert and spent much time setting up formations, unlike others who only moved after noticing the commotion.

Ju Yuan waved his hand. “Lin Du is first because her contributions were groundbreaking. As for the other three, you can use the original rules.”

After all, even without counting the items from the ancient city, those three had still obtained a considerable amount of valuable items.

As expected, when the elders reviewed the points recorded for the three disciples of the Supreme Sect, Ni Jinxuan, with her five rare spirit herbs, accumulated a terrifyingly high score, leading by a wide margin. Yuan Ye and Yan Qing, with their numerous precious pearls and beast pills, followed closely behind, still far ahead of the disciples from other sects.

Points were calculated based on the quality and age of the items, and since it was rare to obtain Heaven-grade spirit herbs, having five millennium-old Heaven-grade herbs naturally resulted in the highest points.

Elder Jun Qian of the Jishi Sect looked at the results with reddened eyes. “Your Supreme Sect’s disciples are truly impressive.”

Impressive indeed, and he was tempted to recruit them.

During the elders’ discussion, Lin Du walked to the Square table to register her items. She glanced at the platform and asked, “Do the items obtained from the ancient city need to be displayed as well?”

The registration work was indeed very complicated. The elders in charge were sweating profusely. They casually replied, “Just put everything on the platform.”

Lin Du responded with an “oh” and then heard a series of loud crashes.

Soon, with a thundering sound, the wooden table of the Square table collapsed.

“Sorry… I forgot there were two iron lions too.”

Lin Du scratched her head, put the two iron lions back, and then asked quietly, “Since these are just scrap metal, how will you register them?”

A group of elders stared at the pile of “scrap metal,” momentarily speechless.

Besides that, why was there even a beam column? Who would dismantle a beam column?

Even if it was the rare Golden ebony nowadays, it didn’t justify such excessive scavenging!

The elders discussing whether to follow the previous rules for calculating points or not looked over at the commotion.

The thin young man looked a bit embarrassed. “I didn’t expect to collapse the table. Should I pay for the damages?”

Ju Yuan raised his hand to his forehead. “Junior sister, just put your things away. There’s no need for further inspection.”

Lin Du responded with an “oh” and obediently collected her pile of items, then stood to the side.

Ju Yuan casually asked, “By the way, has anyone here been to this secret realm before? Why didn’t anyone discover the ancient city buried in the desert?”

The elders from Gui Yuan Sect and Jishi Sect both shook their heads. “We don’t know. We haven’t been in.”

“However, I remember that among the elders who came to see us off this time, some of them had been there, right?”

Ju Yuan lowered his gaze. “Is that so? Which ones?”

Jun Qian, sensing that Ju Yuan had a deeper meaning, pointed out a few cultivators and then transmitted a message to Ju Yuan, “Is there something going on?”

“A little. Are there any people from the three sects, six schools, or ten gates here?”

Jun Qian nodded. “Yes, there’s one, the one from the Feixing Sect, Yin Zhong. I heard him laughing and talking about it earlier.”

Ju Yuan’s gaze fell thoughtfully on Yin Zhong. The Feixing Sect primarily practices weapon refinement, which means this person probably understands the formations Lin Du set up in the desert.

Although cultivators live for a long time, and disciples from the Supreme Sect dabble in divination, body techniques, righteousness, Daoist skills, talismans, and even music, they usually only specialize in one or two areas.

Since weapon refinement involves formations, if Yin Zhong is one of the 197 individuals…

Ju Yuan pondered for a moment, calculating the ages of the elders from the Jishi Sect and the Gui Yuan Sect, confirming that they could not have been in the Nascent Soul stage back then. He then gave the two of them a meaningful glance.

Elder Pei Qin from the Gui Yuan Sect looked puzzled. “Ju Yuan, is your eyelid twitching? Let me see, left eyelid twitches for wealth, right eyelid twitches for disaster. Is something going on with you today?”

Ju Yuan rolled his eyes and transmitted a message to him. “Be quiet. If there’s a disaster today, it’s going to be a disaster for the entire Zhong Zhou.”

Pei Qin chuckled. “What’s going on? Explain.”

Ju Yuan, being the highest-ranked cultivator present, was straightforward. He raised his hand to set up a barrier and quickly explained the situation.

After listening, Pei Qin covered his right eye. “Oh no, my right eyelid is starting to twitch.”

Jun Qian pondered for a moment. “Do you really believe we’re not involved? What if I’m deceiving you?”

Ju Yuan laughed. “Think about it. At your age, entering the second-level small secret realm only now is embarrassing, isn’t it?”

Jun Qian’s face darkened. “Don’t think you can mock us just because you’re younger. Who was it that cried and challenged others at the Chong Xiao Platform?”

“Alright, can you both act a bit more mature? We’re discussing serious matters,” Pei Qin said, glancing at Lin Du. “That child…”

“She’s from our Supreme Sect. Who would dare to touch her?” Ju Yuan’s expression turned serious. “Although our Supreme Sect has few members…”

“Enough with the grandstanding,” Jun Qian interrupted, irritated by the Supreme Sect’s habit of boasting about being few in number while being capable of annihilating entire mountain ranges. “Let’s focus on the matter at hand.”

“We need to investigate, but we need a plan for how to investigate and what to do afterward. I’ll report to the Sect Leader. Then, the three sects, six schools, and ten gates should hold a meeting.”

Jun Qian and Pei Qin did not doubt the authenticity of the information. The Supreme Sect’s resolve and actions in eliminating evil and upholding righteousness were beyond question. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have remained one of the oldest sects, surviving multiple near-extinctions to reach its current 100th generation.

Although the new disciples seemed unreliable, not everyone dared to deplete their Yang soul’s vitality to eliminate the vengeful spirits.

As the three were talking, a sudden thunderclap shattered the clear sky.

“What’s that noise? Who is undergoing tribulation?”

“It’s impossible. There are no robbery clouds.”

“Is it a heavenly oath?”

Lin Du and the three looked up at the direction where the thunderbolt descended.

It seemed the person who had just sworn was Li Dong?

It looked like the hint method mentioned in the miscellaneous books was somewhat effective after all.