Cheng Yuan finally heaved a sigh of relief once he was in the courtroom. Never had he been so glad to be here. However, his mood soon turned sour once he noticed that Wen Chang was still enclosed in the black blob.
"Mmmh, you might be in luck, Sect Master Cheng Yuan. Wen Chang may very well pull through from this. The spell has shrunk. This means there's been an improvement in her state. We may not have to wait long. Maybe before Feng Xin makes it back, she'll have already woken up a new cow," Yang Qing said as he moved closer to examine the blob. Moments later, an interesting smile appeared on his face.
It was only when Yang Qing mentioned the shrinkage that Cheng Yuan noticed just how much the black blob had reduced in circumference. The change was so drastic that he even began to wonder if Wen Chang was still inside. The blob's current size was smaller than her regular body size. No matter how much he thought it over, he couldn't figure out why, so he assumed the spell had some spatial features at work.
Yang Qing went over to his podium as Mao Yunru and Yi Jie took their respective positions—Yi Jie remained by Yang Qing's side, while Mao Yunru sat at the desk below his podium. Cheng Yuan, meanwhile, moved to where the defendants stood, positioned to the left of Wen Chang.
"I wonder if we should call in people from the other cases to save time," Yang Qing mused, resting his chin in his hand as he debated.
"I think it may be best. We don't know when Feng Xin will arrive. It's already been over an hour, and he isn't back yet. I hope he didn't get into trouble over there, especially with the recent attacks on members of the Order while conducting their duties. I can't help but feel a tumultuous undercurrent brewing," Mao Yunru said, concern showing on her face.
"What do you think, Yi Jie?" Yang Qing asked solemnly.
"If it were anyone else, I would be worried, but it's Feng Xin. Not many inquisitors at his level can best him in a duel—at least, not when he hasn't activated his physique. If he were at the same level as me, I would be hard-pressed to secure a victory over him, just as I am now. Who knows, he may even beat me," Yi Jie said coolly.
"Isn't that pretty modest of you, Yi Jie, seeing as you're one of the few people in the Order known to have defeated a purple core formation expert despite being a gold core yourself? But I have faith in Feng Xin too. He did manage to last ninety seconds against me when I broke through to the palace realm—albeit, I held back—but his skills, and especially his reaction speed, have been refined to the very limit.
He also still has the talismans I made for him and the others after my recent breakthrough. Even at eighty percent of my full strength, they should be enough to buy him an escape against someone in the early stages of the palace realm. And if he decides to spam them… who knows? Killing or fatally wounding one might not be out of the question," Yang Qing said.
Even though both he and Yi Jie had full confidence in Feng Xin, they couldn't help but feel a lingering worry. Over the past ten months, several members of the Order had been attacked, with some sustaining grievous injuries, putting the entire Order on high alert.
On the surface, their investigations pointed to factions and underworld organizations that had longstanding feuds with certain members of the Order. However, the scale and coordination of the attacks suggested something far beyond what those groups could manage. The so-called culprits lacked the resources and manpower to execute such a widespread and calculated assault. This led the Order to a troubling assumption—there was a powerful mastermind behind it all. And it might not even be a single entity but several working in concert.
Whoever they were, they were careful. Meticulous. They left no trail, no connecting thread. Every lead ended in intermediaries, false trails, or, in some cases, elaborate frame-ups so well-crafted that had it been any organization other than the Order, they would have fallen for it. Even more alarming was their ability to evade the Order's scrying techniques—techniques performed by elders at the peak of the domain realm.
That was what made the Order truly wary. To escape detection from those techniques, the ones responsible had to be at least peak domain experts of extraordinary skill—or, worse, they were at the soul formation stage. The latter was a possibility the Order dared not dwell on.
In recent months, the attacks had not only increased but had grown in sophistication and intensity. The most recent case was particularly dire—fifteen half-step palace realm cultivators had ambushed a quasi-palace realm inquisitor. Though he managed to escape, killing ten of his attackers and fatally wounding the rest, he sustained severe injuries. He had to be transported to the Order's Medicine Valley, where he would require a full year to recover.
In response, the Order had reinforced its branches, ensuring that at least one palace realm expert was stationed in each. Major branches were assigned either a peak palace realm cultivator or, if resources allowed, an early-stage domain realm expert. But domain experts were scarce, a critical resource that had to be deployed strategically. While the Order had talent, the number of cultivators at the domain stage was limited, and their presence had to be carefully positioned where they were needed most.
Because the Order's mandate covered the entire continent, it had always struggled with a shortage of manpower. Even with their best efforts, years of expansion, and steady growth, the Order could only address roughly 10% of the continent's issues. Countless cases went unresolved or unnoticed, and there were entire regions where the Order had no presence at all.
The recent attacks had stretched their already thin resources even further. At present, the Order was locked in a difficult debate—should they close some branches and consolidate their forces in the more strategic locations? Alternatively, for the next decade, should they divert three-fourths of the new talent from their institute to reinforce the branches rather than the main headquarters? Or should they pursue the most direct but dangerous route—tracking down the mastermind and eliminating the root cause?
The last option carried the heaviest risk. Success depended on whether they could eliminate the mastermind without suffering devastating losses. The Order was already in a precarious position, especially after its destruction of a rank-one sect. That act had exposed their strength, leaving the rank-three sects and above wary. Their longstanding policy of protecting the weak over catering to the interests of powerful sects and noble families had only deepened the resentment against them. If the Order moved against the mastermind and both sides suffered heavy casualties, there was no doubt that these sects and families would seize the opportunity—unite, and strike.
Yang Qing exhaled quietly. "Feng Xin, I hope you're okay."
Beside him, Yi Jie stood with his hands behind his back, fingers tightly clenched.
It was in this somber atmosphere that the courtroom doors suddenly swung open.
Three figures stepped inside. Two of them were in a wretched state—their robes tattered, bodies covered in black soot, and one of them completely bald. They looked barely alive, swaying unsteadily, held upright only by the man in the center.
The third man was in better condition, though his right sleeve was torn away, exposing a pale white arm with visible wounds that were already healing at an unnatural speed.
Yang Qing's eyes widened in surprise, but within seconds, his expression softened into a relieved smile. Yi Jie's tense shoulders eased, and a faint smile touched his lips.
"YANG QING, YOU IDIOT! WERE YOU TRYING TO GET ME KILLED WITH THOSE TALISMANS?!!"
The man in the middle roared as he carelessly dropped the two people he had been supporting.
"Feng Xin, you're okay!" Mao Yunru said cheerfully, quickly leaving her desk to check on him.
Feng Xin, who had been an erupting volcano just moments ago, instantly cooled the moment he saw Mao Yunru rushing toward him with a bright, glowing smile.
"Mao Mao, you're the only good one here," he said, his fury vanishing as he gave her a warm smile. "Unlike a certain someone. I wish I could ditch his court for yours." His expression softened—but not before he shot Yang Qing a death glare.
Yang Qing let out a sheepish laugh. "See, Yi Jie? I told you—Feng Xin's ability to survive is as great as his ability to eat. Truly unparalleled."
Yi Jie simply smiled as the two followed Mao Yunru toward him.
Mao Yunru embraced Feng Xin in a quick hug before turning her attention to the two figures collapsed on the floor.
"Summer Stratus Glow."
A golden cloud formed at her fingertips, spreading over the two injured figures and gently enveloping them.
Cheng Yuan's pupils contracted the moment he got a clear look at them. Even in their charred and battered state, he recognized them instantly.
How could he not? One was his junior brother.
The other—one of his oldest friends.