Chapter 259: Chapter 258: Passing on Responsibilities_1 Lu Hui’s corpse was first sent to the Taoist Court in Tongxian City, where an Enforcement Leader went to report to Court Leader Zhou. Upon hearing the news, Court Leader Zhou furrowed her brows, and upon seeing Lu Hui’s body, she furrowed them even more, unable to resist saying, “Zhang Lan, that kid, has caused me trouble again.” This Court Leader Lu came to Tongxian City intact, but after entering a mountain with Zhang Lan, he turned into a corpse in the blink of an eye. Moreover, missing arms and legs, he did not even die a whole corpse. How was she supposed to explain this to the people in Qingxuan City? Could this matter be unrelated to Zhang Lan? Who would believe that if it were said aloud? Court Leader Zhou asked the Enforcement Leader, “What exactly happened?” The Enforcement Leader bowed and said, “According to Court Leader Zhang, Court Leader Lu was pursuing Bald Tuo and was ambushed by him, sustaining severe injuries. On the way to transport Bald Tuo, they encountered Monster Beasts and, unfortunately, Lu died at the jaws of the beasts, dying in the line of duty.” “Dying in the line of duty?” Court Leader Zhou scoffed, “He sure clears himself neatly. The man died in an undignified manner but found himself a dignified excuse.” “But does he take everyone else for fools? With the body right here, how can any discerning person not see how Lu really died?” Court Leader Zhou thought to herself, shook her head, and took another look at Lu Hui’s body, her Divine Sense scanning it briefly, her eyes suddenly lighting up. That technique… quite clean. There were only two fatal wounds on Lu Hui’s body. One was caused by a Cultivator, with faint white traces of Wind-System Spiritual Power residue at the wound. The person who wounded him was clearly Bald Tuo. Wind-based Spiritual Roots are quite rare, and in their Taoist Court, they could not find a single Cultivator with such a Spiritual Root. Nor did any of the Cultivators on this mission have Wind-based Spiritual Roots. This kind of Spiritual Power couldn’t be faked. The other was the bite marks of Monster Beasts. At the wounds were the residual stench of the beasts’ saliva, as well as crimson demonic power, he was indeed killed by Monster Beasts. This was even less fakeable. Court Leader Zhou felt reassured and began to see Zhang Lan as someone who could be taught. Some things he could do, but he should not leave any traces, nor should he cause trouble for the Taoist Court. If he turned a blind eye, as if nothing had happened, there would be an explanation for the outside world. Since there was an explanation and no more trouble, Court Leader Zhou felt relieved. She took another look at Lu Hui’s body and thought to herself, “Died well!” The Taoist Court in Qingxuan City… from top to bottom, foul and murky, all corrupt? What are they really? Court Leader Zhou didn’t voice it, but in her heart, she held them in utmost contempt. Although she couldn’t claim to be paragon of virtue, she did have some conscience. At most, she took some kickbacks but never went so far as to bleed people dry, bones and all. However, she was only the Court Leader of Tongxian City and could only manage matters within her own jurisdiction; she had no say in Qingxuan City’s affairs. Court Leader Zhou sighed, then felt something odd. How exactly did Zhang Lan manage to kill Lu Hui? 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎 Looking at Lu Hui’s injuries, they were indeed inflicted by Bald Tuo and then by Monster Beasts. But things surely weren’t that simple. Court Leader Lu was full of tricks; he couldn’t have been that foolish… Lu Hui was at the Qi Refining Ninth Level, and so was Zhang Lan; his strength was a bit higher, but it wasn’t possible for him to have killed Lu Hui without leaving any traces. There must have been someone who helped. Court Leader Zhou silently pondered. Those who entered the mountain with Zhang Lan, Mo Shan and Ji Qingbai, were likely to lend a hand. Who else could there be? In her mind, the sly look in Mo Hua’s eyes flashed by. Court Leader Zhou’s action of stroking her beard halted, and she paused, slightly startled, “Could it be that kid Mo Hua took action as well…” The more Court Leader Zhou thought about it, the more likely it seemed. After getting to know Mo Hua, she realized that despite his youth, he could not be judged by common standards. Meticulous in thought, moving after planning, his methods clean, leaving no traces. Court Leader Zhou nodded her head and looked at Lu Hui again, expressing her approval: “Well killed!” At that moment, Mo Hua, Zhang Lan, and others were still in the valley where the Sin Cultivators hid. This valley served as Bald Tuo and his accomplices’ refuge, a place to dwell and hide their ill-gotten gains. The valley was dotted with numerous caves, both large and small, adding up to around a dozen. Inside the caves were beds, pills, spiritual artifacts, food, and other various necessities for the cultivators’ daily living and Tao cultivation, indicating that this group of sin cultivators had been hiding here for quite some time. All the sin cultivators in the valley, those who should be killed were killed, and those who should be captured were captured, not a single one was missed. What remained was the confiscation of the stolen goods. This group of sin cultivators had committed murder and plundered many things, a wide array of items, mostly hidden within this valley. Some less valuable items were not so carefully regarded by the sin cultivators, and were basically strewn everywhere. The Taoist Court’s cultivators searched each cave one by one, tallying the confiscated goods, recording them, and then placing them in the center of the valley. There was already quite a pile of items amassed in the valley. Spiritual artifacts, pills, books, and all sorts of miscellaneous items, everything one could think of. But it was clear that this was not everything. Bald Tuo had been robbing Big Black Mountain for so long, it couldn’t just be these items. “Where are they hidden?” With a frown, Zhang Lan continued searching the valley, releasing his divine sense while looking for any secret chambers or mechanisms. Then, he saw Mo Hua standing in front of a rock wall, concentrating hard on something. Zhang Lan approached and knocked on the rock wall with his hand. The sound was normal, with no abnormalities. Zhang Lan asked, “Is it hollow?” Mo Hua nodded his head. After scanning with his divine sense several times and discovering nothing, to Zhang Lan, it seemed like just an ordinary rock wall. So, he asked, “How did you figure it out?” “I swept it with my divine sense and could see,” Mo Hua said nonchalantly. “Alright,” Zhang Lan sighed. Even though he didn’t want to admit it, he had to acknowledge it. This kid’s divine sense has already become stronger than his own. It was a relief that he was not the only one whose divine sense was weaker than Mo Hua’s; among cultivators at the Qi Refining Ninth Level, there were scarcely a few whose divine sense could compare to Mo Hua’s. “Can we break it open?” Mo Hua shook his head, “There is a formation inside, and trying to break it forcefully would be very difficult, and we don’t know if there are any traps.” “Do you have a way?” Zhang Lan asked. Mo Hua nodded, “I’ll try to break the formation.” Zhang Lan’s eyelid twitched, “Break the formation?” “Right, Uncle Zhang, you know about it too?” Mo Hua asked curiously as he glanced at Zhang Lan. “Of course,” Zhang Lan said, feigning nonchalance, but couldn’t help feeling a tremble inside. This kid, how did he even know how to break formations? He had only heard the term “breaking the formation” mentioned in passing by the formation instructor at the Zhang Family’s clan school, and even then, it was vaguely put. The intricacies of breaking formations were unclear to that instructor as well; he had said that it wasn’t something ordinary formation masters could learn, let alone master. It was one thing to set up compound formations, and now, breaking formations was coming into play. Is this really something a first-rate formation master should know? Zhang Lan coughed and asked cautiously, “This breaking of the formation… it’s not that easy, right? If you can’t break it, never mind, I’ll get someone to smash it open even if it takes some effort.” Mo Hua scratched his head. He had just been observing which formation might be used on this rock wall and considering what formation patterns to use to break it. After watching for a while, he figured out some clues. Mo Hua said, “It’s fine, let me do it. The formation isn’t complex, it’s probably not first-rate, so it should be easy to break.” Mo Hua used a rather modest expression. Formations below the first rate were actually quite easy to break, but one shouldn’t speak too confidently to avoid any mishaps. If he failed to break the formation, it would be rather embarrassing. “Below first-rate, easy to break…” Zhang Lan sighed. Alright then, there’s nothing like comparing oneself to make one feel hopeless. Zhang Lan patted Mo Hua’s shoulder, “We’re counting on you.”