"I remember that behind Lord Bei is our Deputy Leader, Xiang Beidou? Ranked ninth in the Cloud Weapon List."
Yin Shen Gong spoke with admiration, "Leader Xiang, he is truly a figure among the clouds."
Mu Linyuan carefully responded, "Yes, Deputy Leader Xiang is our eighth Deputy Leader, naturally high above, looking down upon the world from the clouds."
Yin Shen Gong could refer to him as 'Leader Xiang,' but Mu Linyuan had to add 'Deputy.' A single word made a big difference. It was essential to make Yin Shen Gong feel it.
This was the instinct of an experienced person.
"Hmm, Lord Bei Mingxin and Deputy Leader Xiang, I remember them being master and disciple?" Yin Shen Gong rubbed his temples.
"Leader, you might have forgotten. They are not master and disciple, but fellow disciples. According to their seniority, Lord Bei is two generations younger than Deputy Leader Xiang, making him a grand-nephew disciple. They both belong to the Blood Demon Heavenly Sect."
By this point, Mu Linyuan had mostly figured it out, so he continued, "And our Deputy Leader Ren Zhongyuan is the disciple of Lord Bei's junior sister, making him Lord Bei's grand-nephew disciple. It is a direct lineage."
"Hmm? Yes, I remember something about that."
Yin Shen Gong's voice took a few turns.
Mu Linyuan continued, "That's correct. The Blood Demon Heavenly Sect was destroyed because they harmed someone they shouldn't have. The Condensing Snow Sword, one of the three great leaders of the Guardians, personally took action, single-handedly destroying the Blood Demon Heavenly Sect in one night. By the time Lord Duan arrived, the Condensing Snow Sword had already left. Because of this, our Only Me Orthodox Sect and the Guardians had a major conflict."
"And... Deputy Leader Xiang and Deputy Leader Ren, among others, are survivors of that battle. It is said that out of the tens of thousands in the main base of the Blood Demon Heavenly Sect, fewer than a hundred survived, including women, children, and the elderly."
Mu Linyuan, with his excellent memory, finished explaining.
Yin Shen Gong did not interrupt.
He listened attentively to the entire explanation.
"With fewer than a hundred survivors, the bond among them must be very close."
Yin Shen Gong smiled as he spoke.
Mu Linyuan echoed with a smile, "Yes, a sect with tens of thousands of members, wiped out in one night, leaving only these few survivors. Naturally, they would band together and take care of each other. For example, when Deputy Leader Ren was appointed, Lord Bei personally hosted a family banquet, which speaks volumes."
Yin Shen Gong exhaled lightly and said, "It seems our Deputy Leader Ren has deep roots."
Mu Linyuan smiled and said, "Deputy Leader Ren's foundation is nothing compared to yours, Leader. I hear our Patriarch is about to be promoted to the third position? If he advances one more step, he will truly be at the pinnacle of the world!"
"The Patriarch indeed holds a high position, but our branch has too many people. The Patriarch may not necessarily be able to look after me. In terms of close relationships, it's far from the deep bond shared by Deputy Leader Ren, Lord Bei, and Deputy Leader Xiang, who survived such a catastrophe together."
Yin Shen Gong sighed with some emotion.
Mu Linyuan laughed heartily and said, "As far as I know, the Patriarch holds you in high regard, Leader. This is well known in the headquarters, proving your extraordinary strength and leadership."
"Extraordinary strength and leadership..." Yin Shen Gong mused, "…the wind must surely try to topple it?"
Mu Linyuan was startled and quickly said, "Leader, what you said is true for an isolated tree, but you have deep roots and countless predecessors supporting you in the clouds. No wind can topple you. Especially with the Patriarch shielding you, you have nothing to worry about."
Yin Shen Gong, with a serious expression, said, "The Patriarch protects us, but we must also strive to make him proud."
"Absolutely!" Mu Linyuan hastily pledged his loyalty, "No matter what the Patriarch and Leader command, I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"
"Bei Mingxin has been promoted to Hall Master. As they say, people move up and water flows down. Our Patriarch has held the fourth position for many years without change. Do you think the Patriarch wants to be promoted?"
Yin Shen Gong asked.
"That is inevitable."
Yin Shen Gong looked into Mu Linyuan's eyes and said softly, "The Patriarch wants to be promoted to the third position, and Deputy Leader Xiang surely desires the seventh. But can mere desire make it happen? It always requires someone to support them, right?"
Mu Linyuan didn't dare respond to this statement.
Yin Shen Gong took a couple of steps and suddenly sighed, "Old Mu, tell me, can I trust you?"
Mu Linyuan stood up abruptly, "Leader! I will follow you through life and death!"
Yin Shen Gong remained silent, his mind spinning faster and faster.
He compared all of Ren Zhongyuan's actions in recent years to those of the previous five years, ten years, fifty years, and a hundred years.
His gaze grew increasingly dark.
Because he noticed a diminishing trend.
"For Deputy Leader Xiang to advance, he needs people under his command. If Ren Zhongyuan becomes the Leader of the One Heart Sect, he can coordinate from below, acting as a significant official. Ren Zhongyuan, he wants to be the Leader."
Yin Shen Gong spoke each word with a stern face.
Yin Shen Gong confirmed his suspicion.
Everyone here is a centuries-old fox; once suspicions arise, following the trail of doubt usually leads to the truth.
Moreover, these people have been with Yin Shen Gong for centuries; he knows each of them thoroughly.
"What?!"
Mu Linyuan almost exclaimed.
But he quickly composed himself, his attitude becoming resolute, "Leader, just give the orders. What do you need me to do?"
Yin Shen Gong nodded in satisfaction and said, "For now, keep a low profile and observe secretly. You need to..."
Mu Linyuan listened intently and then said, "Leader, I must ask, this could shake the very foundation of our sect. Is the situation... true?"
Yin Shen Gong thought carefully and said, "Seventy percent!"
"I understand."
"Go."
Mu Linyuan left.
Then Yin Shen Gong frowned, thought for a while, and summoned several of his most trusted aides, making arrangements.
He then made a high-profile appearance at the main altar.
He even rewarded and promoted a few top experts from the Battle Hall.
He looked utterly pleased and content.
Just as unpredictably as before, he executed a sect member.
Then, accompanied by his personal maid, he returned to the grand hall.
However, he immediately ordered the maid to prepare some soup, and he himself went to his private study room.
He took out the communication jade.
He sent a message to Fang Che.
"In all matters, you may decide for yourself."
After sending it, he stared at the communication jade.
On the other side, when Fang Che received the message, he immediately felt uneasy.
These six words were not simple.
"In all matters, you may decide for yourself."
The meaning was clear: from now on, whatever happens, you decide for yourself, no need to ask me.
His first reaction was: Could Yin Shen Gong be suspicious of me?
Because with my current status, I am not yet in a position to "decide" anything.
What is my status in the One Heart Sect?
A small fry.
What can I decide for myself? I can decide when to eat and go to the bathroom.
Everything else requires reporting or waiting for instructions.
So Yin Shen Gong's words must have some other meaning.
Looking back at my last reply: "Subordinate takes his leave."
I've already taken my leave.
And then you send me such a message, clearly there's an issue.
But then Fang Che thought, Yin Shen Gong shouldn't be suspicious of him. Given Yin Shen Gong's character, if he really suspected him, his head would already be rolling, courtesy of Qian Sanjiang or someone else.
So this message was intriguing.
Fang Che quickly thought it through and crafted a perfect response.
"Subordinate does not dare. Leader's words make me feel deeply apprehensive and unable to act. From childhood, I've never made decisions on my own, always following orders. As a child, I obeyed my elders, and as an adult, I follow the Leader.
Whenever I act on my own, I always feel it's inappropriate and lack confidence. Moreover, with my current low status, I cannot bear the consequences of any decision, making me even more afraid to decide on my own. I'm used to following the Leader's orders. My master also advised me not to bother the Leader too much, but I feel uneasy not reporting issues. It's my incompetence, please forgive me, Leader."
Yin Shen Gong's lips curled into a cold smile.
His gaze became more dangerous.
Fang Che's response was exactly what he wanted to see.
When he was in a good mood and gave others these six words, most of the responses were similar to Fang Che's.
But Night Devil was younger and more cautious than others, as he should be.
As he read Fang Che's reply, he recalled the words he said to Ren Zhongyuan before his last retreat.
It was also these six words:
"In all matters, you may decide for yourself."
But that time, Ren Zhongyuan only replied with one word: "Sure!"
At the time, Yin Shen Gong didn't think much of it, but the more he thought about it now, the more it didn't feel right.
"What does 'Sure' mean? If he truly considers himself a subordinate, even if he doesn't express caution, the minimum response should be 'Yes' to show obedience."
"But a straightforward 'Sure'? Is that an attempt to place himself on equal footing with me?"
Yin Shen Gong pulled up the conversation with Ren Zhongyuan.
He reviewed it message by message.
The more he read, the angrier he became.
"So many matters are reported to me only after they've been executed!"
"Ren Zhongyuan's treachery is at least seventy to eighty percent likely!"
"This time, there will be no leniency."
"If Ren Zhongyuan isn't disloyal, then this will be an opportunity to clean up the One Heart Sect, restore full control, and weaken his power! But if he truly has treacherous intentions, he can't blame me for being ruthless!"
Yin Shen Gong quickly made up his mind!
He revisited the communication with Night Devil, feeling increasingly that Night Devil's reactions and responses were exactly what a genuinely apprehensive subordinate should display.
"Not bad."
"But I can't focus solely on cultivating Night Devil without caution. When necessary, I must also discipline and guard against him. An incident like Ren Zhongyuan must never happen again."
...
Far away in Baiyun Continent, after sending his reply, Fang Che still felt something was off.
But he couldn't figure out what it was. He studied those six words all night without any clue.
"How strange!"
Fang Che scratched his head.
The only thing he could be sure of was: his reply was absolutely correct!
"Now, all I can ensure is that if there's any trouble, it won't fall on me. And that's good enough for me."
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