Chapter 77 – Demon Clan Project
He and Shui Ling'er practiced a stealth technique taught by the guardian elder. This technique was quite mysterious, making their presence almost undetectable, even to mountain mosquitoes.
The two of them stealthily approached the temple.
Lin Hao gently drew out the Fire Spirit Sword, gripping it tightly with one hand.
He felt that Ning Qingxue was acting suspiciously and might be as dangerous as a wolf; it was wise to be cautious.
Holding the sword gave him a slight sense of security!
The temple was large and relatively well-preserved. The plaque on the main hall was still there, though the characters had been eroded by time, making them unreadable.
Lin Hao had excellent eyesight and could see from afar that the altar in the main hall housed a giant stone statue, depicting a fox-headed human body.
However, this "god" fox was likely female.
Because Lin Hao noticed the statue was draped in tattered gauze, and its fox-like face seemed to have been smeared with cinnabar red paint, making it appear extremely seductive.
Especially, he felt that the statue's eyes were constantly watching him, which was quite eerie.
After observing for a moment, Lin Hao quickly shifted his gaze and began scanning the main hall.
Sure enough, he saw Ning Qingxue sitting opposite a burly middle-aged man.
Lin Hao sensed a hint of demonic aura from the man, clearly indicating he was the transformed white tiger.
Sect Leader Ouyang's beloved disciple was meeting with the Demon Clan!
Lin Hao's pupils contracted, and his heart was in turmoil!
Could it be that Ning Qingxue was a spy for the Demon Clan?
Having been tricked by Li Qiushui and Cui Qing'er before, Lin Hao found it hard not to associate Ning Qingxue with the Demon Clan.
If she wasn't a spy, why would she meet with the Qingqiu demon clan in secret?
And judging by the looks of it, their conversation seemed quite harmonious.
Lin Hao's expression grew increasingly grim.
He drew the long sword Bluebird from the sword sheath, attached a recording stone to the blade, and then infused it with spiritual energy.
Bluebird slowly approached the main hall at an extremely slow pace.
...
About the time it takes to burn a stick of incense later, as the human and demon were about to conclude their conversation.
Lin Hao quickly recalled Bluebird, then left with Shui Ling'er, running over a hundred miles before stopping.
"Lin Hao, Ning Qingxue, as the Sect Leader's beloved disciple, is secretly plotting with the Demon Clan. What should we do?" Shui Ling'er asked, her face filled with righteous indignation.
"Don't rush, let's first see what they talked about," Lin Hao replied with a grim expression, taking down the recording stone. After infusing it with power, a light projection appeared.
After listening to the conversation between Ning Qingxue and the demon tiger, the two were shocked.
Ning Qingxue was indeed a spy for the Demon Clan, or rather, calling her a traitor to humanity was more fitting!
This woman had conspired with the Demon Clan to devise a vicious plan to wipe out the talented disciples of various sects, thus severing the roots of these sects, allowing the Demon Clan to retaliate against humanity using their own tactics.
As a human, she colluded with the Demon Clan, betraying and killing her own kind. Her heart was truly malicious!
Although Lin Hao didn't have a strong sense of belonging to the sect, there were people he cared about within it—his master, Shui Ling'er, and others he knew, like Leng Fengchun and Elder Han...
How could he stand by and watch them fall into the hands of the Demon Clan?
"This matter must be reported to the sect's higher-ups to expose Ning Qingxue's conspiracy!"
Though filled with rage, Lin Hao didn't act recklessly but carefully analyzed the situation.
If he reported this to Little Bamboo Peak's Venerable Murong Qinxue, there was no guarantee she wouldn't leak it to Sect Leader Ouyang.
Lin Hao didn't fully trust the Sect Leader either, given that Ning Qingxue was her beloved disciple.
After careful consideration, he decided to inform Elder Liu Mei, who was leading their group.
This woman had a good relationship with his master, and he could entrust her to communicate with his master.
Having made up his mind, Lin Hao began searching for other teams and unexpectedly encountered Uncle Black, whose face was even darker.
"Lin Hao, we wouldn't dare rob you anymore."
"If you don't rob me, does that mean I can't rob you? Enough talk! I just need to borrow something from you."
Lin Hao searched one of them and found a talisman.
This was a life-saving talisman issued by the sect to its disciples. Once used, an elder would rush over, potentially saving a life, but it would also disqualify one from the competition.
So Lin Hao didn't use his own.
The three were unsure of Lin Hao's intentions when he activated their talisman, but they didn't dare resist.
His luck was good; the elder who arrived was Liu Mei.
Liu Mei was surprised to see the talisman in Lin Hao's hand.
Then she saw Uncle Black and the others looking pitiful.
She instantly understood.
The talisman in Lin Hao's hand wasn't his own.
This little thief was truly despicable, not only robbing others but also breaking their life-saving talisman.
Wasn't this forcing them to withdraw from the competition?
Truly shameless!
Sensing a hint of sympathy in the elder's gaze, Uncle Black looked aggrieved.
Exactly!
Support us at pawread.com .
Robbing us wasn't enough.
We didn't even provoke him.
Yet he came and took our life-saving talisman!
This was too much bullying!
Liu Mei frowned; breaking someone else's life-saving talisman wasn't in line with the rules!
She was about to reprimand him when she heard Lin Hao's voice transmission.
"Elder Liu, I've discovered a shocking secret."
Liu Mei's smooth forehead furrowed. A shocking secret? What was this kid up to!
She transmitted back, "What secret?"
"There are too many people here; it's not suitable to discuss this matter."
Elder Liu Mei's brows furrowed tighter. With a wave of her hand, a white ribbon wrapped around Lin Hao's waist, and in the blink of an eye, they were ten miles away, where she set up a barrier.
"There's no one here; you can speak now."
Lin Hao, grateful for Liu Mei's formidable strength, began, "Elder Liu, Ning Qingxue is a spy for the Demon Clan."
"Ning Qingxue..." Liu Mei's eyelid twitched, her voice turning sharp.
"Are you saying Ning Qingxue is a spy for the Demon Clan?"
"How is that possible? She's the Sect Leader's beloved disciple!"
"Lin Hao, you must know that falsely accusing a fellow disciple is a grave crime. You can't make such claims lightly."
Seeing Liu Mei's disbelief, Lin Hao didn't waste words and directly presented the recording stone.
After watching the content of the recording stone, Liu Mei still found it hard to believe.
Ning Qingxue, who had been in the sect since childhood, turned out to be a spy. It was truly hard to accept.
But the content of the recording stone couldn't be faked.
This Golden Elixir seed was indeed secretly negotiating with the Demon Clan and had devised a plan to kill the sect's talented disciples.
Liu Mei's pretty face turned grim as she put the recording stone back into her storage bag.
"I will immediately report this to the sect's higher-ups and let them decide."
Lin Hao feared that there might still be Demon Clan spies among the sect's higher-ups, or perhaps there was some unspeakable secret between the Sect Leader and the Demon Clan.
Therefore, he chose to give the recording stone to Liu Mei rather than Murong Qinxue.
"Elder Liu, I have an unreasonable request."
Liu Mei, still not fully recovered from the shock of Ning Qingxue being a Demon Clan spy, absentmindedly said, "Speak freely."
"I hope you can inform my master about this matter first."
Liu Mei hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Do not spread this matter. Focus on the competition, and if you encounter danger, crush the life-saving talisman. An elder will come to your rescue."