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"Damn it, can't you people report this yourselves?! Why are you all looking at me?!"
Feeling all the gazes around him, the chubby man cursed every ancestor his colleagues had up to eighteen generations. But among the ones who messed up, he had the highest status. If he didn't step up now, he couldn't justify it.
So, he could only grit his teeth, step forward, cup his hands, and say, "Big Brother, everyone already did their best, but those robbers this time… it's like each of them knew Hall of Souls inside and out."
"Every division that was attacked had its Protector perfectly suppressed by their precise matching strength. There really wasn't anything we could do!"
Speaking up to this point, he suddenly shifted the topic and continued, "Besides, during this incident, several of our men said they saw someone among the assailants use a very powerful palm print-type Dou Technique. I suspect most of those culprits came from that clan."
After finishing, he even shot a quick glance at the three Tian Zuns beside him. Those three—Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Tian Zuns —caught his look. They couldn't keep acting like turtles hiding in their shells. So they also stepped forward and cupped their hands.
"Sixth Brother is right. Our plan was going perfectly. We were just about to capture Xiao Yan when an unfamiliar powerhouse suddenly intervened. Not only did he rescue Xiao Yan, he even let Yao Chen escape too."
"And the Dou Technique that mysterious powerhouse used was an extremely potent Crystal Palm print!"
As they got to the end, the tone of the three Tian Zuns grew emotional.
They had been inches away from catching Xiao Yan and earning massive merit, yet because that stranger interfered, they not only returned empty-handed but became scapegoats.
How the hell could they swallow that!
"First Tian Zun, the division I was guarding was also attacked by a mid-level Dou Zun who used a Crystal Palm print Dou Technique. And when he attacked, he accidentally said something like, 'Since you offended Miss Xun'er, how could we possibly let you off.'"
"After that, relying on strength far above mine, he flattened the entire division I was guarding."
Just as one finished speaking, a purple-robed Dou Zun stepped out and started complaining with tears in his voice.
"Yes, First Tian Zun, those people…"
With the first few opening the floodgates, all the Hall of Souls elders rushed up one after another to complain. They said how hard they fought, how they resisted with everything they had, and how they were forced to retreat only when they truly had no other choice.
In short, their core point was: all of this was the fault of those attackers, not them.
"Silence!"
Seeing the entire hall turning into a noisy marketplace, the First Tian Zun's expression sank, and he released a cold shout.
"Swish!"
Seeing that he was angry, every elder instantly shut their mouths in unison, not daring to make a sound.
After quieting everyone down, the First Tian Zun began to think. These people were indeed trying to excuse themselves, but the general flow of events should match their descriptions.
Judging from the "Miss Xun'er" mentioned repeatedly, as well as that frequently appearing Crystal Palm print Dou Technique…it really did seem like that clan was involved in this operation.
"Could it be that slut Gu Xun'er saw us attacking Xiao Yan and deliberately sent people to retaliate?"
After all, Gu Xun'er had never bothered to hide her relationship with Xiao Yan.
The First Tian Zun had also heard about those two's relationship. Now, seeing that Hall of Souls attacked Xiao Yan only to immediately get a wave of people showing up to take revenge… it was almost impossible for him not to suspect Gu Xun'er.
What made it even more believable was that he had heard others say Xiao Yan once stole the Fallen Heart Flame from Lei Clan's Mang Tianchi back when he was at Jia Nan Academy.
He vaguely remembered reading in some ancient books that Fallen Heart Flame possessed a miraculous effect—it could refine souls and extract pure origin energy.
If that was true, then a woman like Gu Xun'er, who adored Xiao Yan, sending people to ambush Hall of Souls to seize souls… was perfectly reasonable.
"Our Hall of Souls is infamous across the continent, and most forces avoid us like the plague. But this time, counting all the Dou Zun who attacked us, the number is at least twenty, and many were quite powerful. One of them even crushed Sixth Tian Zun, who is a One-Change Dou Zun, without giving him any chance to fight back."
"A normal faction could never send that many strong experts to cause trouble for our Hall of Souls. Looks like this time, it's basically confirmed—the Gu Clan made their move."
Thinking about everything the elders described about these attackers, the First Tian Zun felt his heart sink slightly.
His strength had already stepped into the realm of Dou Sheng. Among the entire Dou Qi Continent, he could rank among the top experts. But when facing that clan… he still had to be extremely cautious.
After all, they also had Dou Sheng… and not just one or two, but a double-digit number!
Considering how big this matter was, he needed to discuss it with the Hall Master immediately. Thus, he no longer continued pursuing the elders' responsibility for losing the souls.
Black mist rose around him once again. As the smoke coiled, his old voice slowly echoed through the hall, "You will replenish the souls you lost within ten years. If you do that, this Venerable will overlook this matter. Otherwise… hehe."
With that stiff, chilling laugh, the First Tian Zun vanished from everyone's sight.
"Thank you, First Tian Zun!"
Hearing that they only needed to replenish the lost souls within the time limit to avoid punishment, the elders quickly bowed in gratitude. Their hearts finally relaxed, thankful to still be alive.
No matter what, replenishing souls was better than being executed on the spot. With the First Tian Zun gone, the originally terrified elders quietly dispersed as well. Although their lives were safe for now, if they failed to replenish the souls in time…
The punishment waiting for them would definitely be far worse. Among these people, the happiest was Ninth Tian Zun, Mo Yu. Because the souls he had lost earlier weren't fully replenished yet. The recent attack gave him the perfect opening.
During the chaos, he simply reported all the souls he had previously lost as well and pinned everything on the Gu Clan.
Most importantly… the higher-ups hadn't discovered it yet. Heh heh…
However, while some were celebrating, others were miserable. Ninth Tian Zun Mo Yu was thrilled, but far away, Old Mu Gu was still furious to the point of exploding. Right now, he wished he could capture Gu Xun'er, ruin her first, kill her, then ruin her again a hundred times.
Because if it hadn't been for the Gu Clan interfering that day, he might have already obtained the Flame Mantra and the Heavenly Flames Xiao Yan carried.
Thinking about the Heavenly Flames and the Flame Mantra he had coveted for decades slipping through his fingers, Old Mu Gu felt so angry he could vomit blood.
"Damn Gu Clan, just you wait!"
His hands clenched uncontrollably, his nails piercing straight into his palms. But he acted as if he didn't feel a thing and tightened his fists even more.
"Right, that Pill Gathering champion, Lin Feng—he seems to have a grudge with Xiao Yan too. Maybe I can work with him to deal with Xiao Yan…"
Remembering that Lin Feng had once been ambushed by Xiao Yan, a sharp glint flashed through Old Mu Gu's eyes.
To him, it didn't matter who he cooperated with. As long as he could get the Flame Mantra and the several Heavenly Flames on Xiao Yan…he was willing to work with anyone!
**
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