Chapter 307: Poisoning

Yu Xiao glared at Zhao Li, exasperated. "You're always playing your petty tricks, so short-sighted."

Rebuked by his Sect Master, Zhao Li sniffed and said, "I was wrong."

His apology was sincere.

"I'll send a message to Fellow Daoist Lu Yi right away, telling him not to come," Zhao Li added.

"We've already sent the invitation," Yu Xiao retorted. "How can we tell him not to come now? Wouldn't that make the Heavenly Net Sect seem untrustworthy?"

Zhao Li explained, "Fellow Daoist Lu Yi is very easy to get along with. If I explain the situation, he should understand. Once this commotion dies down, he can come quietly later."

"No need, he's already at the outpost," Yu Xiao said, waving his hand. He had just received a message from one of his disciples, informing him that Lu Yi from the Azureblood Sect had arrived and been settled in.

"Even so, it doesn't matter," Zhao Li said, turning to leave. "I'll go find him now."

"Come back!" Yu Xiao growled.

At the same time, the old man Bai Qian stuck out his foot, tripping Zhao Li, who was too stunned to react and nearly fell. He quickly turned around and stood properly.

"As disciples of the Heavenly Net Sect," Yu Xiao continued, "our word is our bond. Under no circumstances can we be untrustworthy. If the Myriad Demon Ridge learns that the young fellow has come to our sect, they will certainly target us. At worst, we'll lose the outpost."

"Sect Master..."

Yu Xiao's sharp gaze softened slightly. "I know you're thinking of the sect. Our outpost in the Spirit Creek Battlefield isn't ideally located; it's surrounded on three sides by the Myriad Demon Ridge, and it has indeed been difficult to develop over the years. You have grand ambitions, but you must remember to always think twice before acting in the future."

"Yes," Zhao Li replied.

"Furthermore," Yu Xiao continued, "our sect actually has some ties with the Azureblood Sect. Many of our sect's powerful cultivators once served under a certain individual from the Azureblood Sect. Without that person's patronage, our sect wouldn't have its current status. A fifth-grade sect isn't bad."

Zhao Li didn't know who exactly the Sect Master was referring to, but he understood the meaning behind his words. This was to reassure him: even due to the sect's connection with the Azureblood Sect, the Heavenly Net Sect would not drive Lu Yi away.

"Go to the outpost and make preparations," Yu Xiao said, waving his hand. "Our sect may be facing a calamity."

Zhao Li bowed and withdrew.

After Zhao Li left, Yu Xiao sighed. Although he had made up his mind, the prospect still pained him. If things truly went as he expected, their outpost would inevitably be lost.

"Is it serious?" Bai Qian asked.

"I've heard some rumors," Yu Xiao nodded, then suddenly asked, "Elder Bai, what do you think of Lu Yi's talent in array formations?"

Bai Qian pondered for a moment. "Based on what Zhao Li said, the young man's talent is indeed remarkable, and he has many ingenious ideas. There's only one thing I don't understand."

"What is that?"

"The young man is only at the eighth level of the Spirit Creek Realm. How did he see through to the nodes of the grand array's operation? All his methods require targeting these nodes to be effective. Logically, even if his talent in array formations is excellent, it would be useless if he couldn't find the grand array's nodes. It's truly perplexing."

"Perhaps Elder Bai could test him in person?" Yu Xiao suggested.

"I was thinking the same thing," Bai Qian replied. "Let him come here. When he does, have him come see me."

***

Heavenly Net Sect Outpost.

In the small building where Lu Yi was staying, Zhao Li arrived late and quickly apologized. He then had his disciples quickly prepare a banquet to give Lu Yi a welcoming feast.

Although Lu Yi really wanted to see the Hundred Array Pagoda, he couldn't refuse such enthusiasm, so he let Zhao Li take charge.

Soon, the banquet was ready. Lu Yi and Ju Jia took their seats, and Zhao Li joined them.

As an apology, Zhao Li first punished himself with three cups of wine before raising a toast.

Lu Yi drank a cup with him. As for Ju Jia, he had already started stuffing himself.

"Brother Yi, was your journey peaceful?" Zhao Li asked while pouring wine.

As Lu Yi spoke, he suddenly stopped talking and his brows furrowed.

He felt a subtle abnormality within his body. He quickly focused his mind to investigate, and looking inward, he saw his Talent Tree rooted in his Source Spirit Aperture, its leaves burning fiercely. Next to the Talent Tree, grey mist was continuously emanating.

Normally, this situation would be nothing out of the ordinary.

Every time Lu Yi took a spiritual pill, his Talent Tree reacted this way because the pill toxins within the spiritual pill would be burned away by the Talent Tree, allowing him to obtain extremely pure spiritual power.

But for this to happen now was clearly not right; he hadn't taken any spiritual pills yet.

Moreover, as he observed, the grey mist rising from the Talent Tree was extremely dense, which was not at all how it reacted when burning pill toxins.

Lu Yi had never seen this happen before.

"Brother Yi?" Zhao Li looked at him, puzzled, wondering why Lu Yi's expression was slowly turning solemn.

Lu Yi raised his hand and pressed down on Ju Jia's chopsticks, then looked at Zhao Li. After a brief analysis and hesitation, he said gravely, "The wine is poisoned!"

Moreover, the poison was potent, but judging by Zhao Li's reaction, it didn't act quickly, as Zhao Li showed no abnormalities.

Of course, it was possible that Zhao Li had poisoned them, but the likelihood was small. After all, this was the Heavenly Net Sect's outpost, and Zhao Li was the Garrison Master. If he poisoned them, the consequences would be severe. This was also why Lu Yi spoke plainly to him.

It was also Lu Yi's test.

As he watched, Zhao Li's expression clearly showed bewilderment. He then timidly asked, "Brother Yi, are you joking?"

Lu Yi remained silent.

"But I don't feel anything," Zhao Li said, starting to panic.

Lu Yi turned to look at Ju Jia beside him. Ju Jia slowly shook his head; he didn't feel anything either. However, Ju Jia hadn't drunk any wine; he had merely been focused on eating the dishes, and it was unknown if the dishes were poisoned.

Lu Yi continued to examine his Talent Tree. The dense grey mist dimmed in a very short time, clearly indicating the poison had been completely burned away.

He truly hadn't known that the Talent Tree had such a peculiar function. But thinking about it, it wasn't strange; if the Talent Tree could even burn away pill toxins, it could naturally burn away other poisons.

In just over ten breaths, no more grey mist floated out, making Lu Yi momentarily unsure if his deduction was correct.

After thinking for a moment, he poured himself another cup of wine and drank it in one gulp.

Zhao Li stared at him blankly. "Brother Yi?"

He couldn't understand what Lu Yi was doing. Just now, Lu Yi had said the wine was poisoned, but then he drank another cup. Was he... truly joking?

"It is indeed poisoned," Lu Yi confirmed, as he once again saw the dense grey mist emanating from his Talent Tree.

Zhao Li was completely dumbfounded. For a moment, his mind couldn't process it, and his thoughts became muddled. And whether it was psychological or not, he started to feel unwell himself.

Then he saw Lu Yi pick up a mouthful of food with his chopsticks and eat it. A moment later, Lu Yi said, "The dishes are also poisoned."

"Brother Yi!" Zhao Li exclaimed, almost in tears.

"Spit it out!" Lu Yi said, turning to Ju Jia. Ju Jia immediately stood up and moved to the side.

Lu Yi then raised his hand and touched his battlefield imprint, sending out a message. Only then did he look at Zhao Li. "Brother Zhao, please order the outpost to be sealed. No one is to leave. Also, investigate if anyone has left the outpost within the last hour. If so, please send trustworthy people to bring them back!"

Hearing him say this, Zhao Li also realized the seriousness of the situation. It seemed Lu Yi wasn't joking; the food and wine were genuinely poisoned.

After a moment of stunned silence, Zhao Li quickly sent out a message.

***

At the Azureblood Sect's main headquarters, Shui Yuan rushed into the Sect Leader's residence, startling the Sect Leader who was meditating.

"Lu Yi has been poisoned!"

A cold glint flashed in the Sect Leader's eyes. He said gravely, "Where is he?"

"The Heavenly Net Sect outpost!"

The Sect Leader immediately rose. After only a few breaths, two figures transformed into streaks of light and shot into the sky.

***

At the Heavenly Net Sect's main headquarters, Yu Xiao, who had received the message, turned ashen. He slammed his palm onto the armrest of his chair, shattering it, and snarled through gritted teeth, "Bastard!"

Lu Yi from the Azureblood Sect had only just arrived at their outpost and was already poisoned. This clearly meant someone had secretly made a move. What he hadn't expected was that there would be someone from the Myriad Demon Ridge within the Heavenly Net Sect, and that they would act so quickly.

The two major factions had been opposing each other for so many years, so it was commonplace for each to plant their people in the other's ranks. No one could guarantee that their own sect's disciples were entirely trustworthy.

Some hidden agents might never expose their identities throughout their lives, but once they acted at a crucial moment, they could certainly inflict tremendous losses on the enemy.

Take, for example, the incident when the Sect Leader was escorting Lu Yi back to the Azureblood Sect's main headquarters and they were ambushed mid-journey. A Myriad Demon Ridge hidden agent had also played a role in that. Moreover, that agent was a True Lake Realm cultivator. Although Pang Zhen later found clues and rooted him out, if they hadn't been lucky at the time, Lu Yi would have already died.

Both sides invested significant effort and cost in cultivating hidden agents. Generally, even if they succeeded in planting an agent, they would likely be found out. Every hidden agent who could remain concealed was extremely important and would never be easily deployed unless absolutely critical.

But this time, the Myriad Demon Ridge was clearly desperate. To deal with a Spirit Creek Realm eighth-level cultivator, they didn't hesitate to use a hidden agent planted within the Heavenly Net Sect.

***

Soon, Grand Elder Bai Qian returned, his expression very serious. "What's the situation now?"

"It's confirmed that he's been poisoned," Yu Xiao replied. "As for who did it, we're still investigating for now, but we've roughly identified a few suspects."

"We must find the poisoner no matter what," the Grand Elder said gravely. "Only then can we determine the type of poison and administer the correct antidote."

"I thought the same," Yu Xiao said. "And Lu Yi made these arrangements immediately; Zhao Li is also acting according to his instructions."

"So calm at such a young age?" Bai Qian was somewhat surprised. "What's their condition now?"

"Zhao Li said the symptoms aren't very obvious," Yu Xiao explained. "It should be a very insidious poison, but its toxicity is very potent."

"Symptoms not obvious, yet very potent?" Bai Qian frowned. This clearly wasn't right. If the poison was potent enough, the symptoms should be very clear. These two characteristics shouldn't appear together.