Chapter 107: Abnormal Mirror

Excellent!

They appreciated Wang Sheng's willingness to take responsibility, but that didn't mean they had forgotten the full details of what had transpired.

There was no collective involvement from them in the deception; could Wang Sheng alone have deceived Guan Wen?

The leaders of the various factions hesitated, finding it difficult to persuade Wang Sheng to lie to Suyuansong, and even harder to force him to do so.

The Heavenly Meteor Shower Competition still had over a month to go. If they incurred the resentment of the Suyuansong group because of this incident, it would be very troublesome. While Suyuansong might not openly retaliate, they could make an example of someone, or, when assigning dangerous tasks, ensure that person goes first.

Leaving aside future difficulties, right now, if you genuinely take responsibility, those Suyuansong disciples wouldn't just sit by while their sect member is missing; they would surely force you to venture into the Moon Sea to find him.

Seeing this situation, Wu Jinliang, who had excellent rapport with Shi Chun, knew how to interject. He grumbled, "Senior Brother, what deception are you talking about? Guan Wen himself insisted on entering the Moon Sea to collect Extreme Insect Crystals. We were forced into it by him. If something happened to him, he brought it upon himself. What does that have to do with us? If you take responsibility recklessly, you'll implicate our sect."

Turning to face the leaders of the various factions, he continued, "Everyone, isn't that true? Why is it acceptable for people from other sects to die, but if one person from Suyuansong dies, one of us has to take responsibility?"

The group, who were caught between a rock and a hard place by Wang Sheng's honesty, saw that Wang Sheng's own sect member had a different opinion and immediately grasped the situation.

"That's right, there was no deception here. He ordered everyone to enter the Moon Sea to find Extreme Insect Crystals. Everyone else went in; why wouldn't he?"

"Yes, the Extreme Insect Crystals in our hands are the best proof. Without his order, how would we dare venture into the Moon Sea?"

"Everyone knows how dangerous the Moon Sea is. He was determined to go, and we couldn't stop him." "Everyone went in, and the danger was the same. It's just bad luck for whoever gets into trouble. We're all fine. Who knows what else he did impulsively in there?"

"Brother Wang, even if you don't consider yourself, you must consider the sect."

The group spoke over each other, their attitude clearly having shifted.

Wu Jinliang, highly displeased, retorted, "The only reason my senior brother wanted to admit fault was because you pressured him! You witnessed the entire process; how could he not tell the truth?"

If that's how it's presented, then it's manageable, as long as Wang Sheng himself isn't overly honest.

Chu Jingting immediately replied, "Brother Wang, as long as you don't say anything reckless about this, we certainly won't. Isn't that right, everyone?"

"That's right, who participates in this competition without facing danger? Life and death are sometimes up to fate. Who can be blamed?"

"No, even if someone is to blame, it can't be us! We didn't want him to have an accident either!"

Seeing everyone's indignant expressions, Wu Jinliang's lips curved into a smile. He realized these people were quite agreeable, saving him a lot of trouble.

Shi Chun, who had been silent, finally spoke again, "If Guan Wen truly doesn't return, and Suyuansong truly presses for answers, what should I say?"

"What else is there to say? Just tell the truth. When we arrived, there was a meteor shower of Extreme Insect Crystals, and the landing site was too close. Guan Wen was tempted and insisted on ordering us to go search for them. In the end, he was the only one who didn't come out. What could we do?"

"Exactly. Don't mention anything extraneous. It's as simple as that."

"Right, no one wanted to harm him. Saying unnecessary things would damage the unity of the Xuanzhou contingent. Winning the championship for Xuanzhou is the most important thing."

Under the clamorous suggestions of the group, the entire incident was finalized: the appearance of the Extreme Insect Crystal meteor shower led Guan Wen to take everyone in search of them, and then Guan Wen disappeared.

What they called suggestions was, in fact, a coordinated effort to standardize their story to deal with Suyuansong.

As a result, Shi Chun was persuaded by them and reluctantly agreed, though he appeared somewhat preoccupied.

Finally, the matter was settled. Each leader then instructed their own sect members again.

Once confirmed, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. However, seeing Shi Chun's troubled expression still left some people secretly worried.

Someone quietly pulled Wu Jinliang aside and advised him, "Regarding your senior brother, keep a close eye on him and persuade him not to do anything foolish. Some things we say privately can't be acknowledged publicly. To ensure Suyuansong ranks first, the various Xuanzhou factions have already lost hundreds of people. What's the big deal if Suyuansong loses one or two? Brother, what you said earlier is right: even if you don't consider yourself, you must consider the sect."

Wu Jinliang nodded, "Understood. Don't worry, with me here, he won't cause any trouble."

The person patted his shoulder and left with a look of relief.

The group didn't seek a hidden spot but sat together on the edge of the cliff, simply waiting.

There was nothing they could do. They wanted to contact Suyuansong, but none of the factions had been willing to split up and act independently with their fellow disciples beforehand, which meant they didn't have any linked communication talismans with Suyuansong from this location.

This was beyond Shi Chun's expectation; he was quite exasperated with these people. To act separately like this, they hadn't even made arrangements for better communication. This highlighted the Suyuansong group's self-reliance. Furthermore, it wasn't just with Suyuansong; the ten teams that had previously spread out to set up around the Moon Sea had also lost contact without Guan Wen.

They didn't send anyone to contact Suyuansong either. The long journey was one issue, and Suyuansong would naturally send people once they realized contact couldn't be made from this side; perhaps they were already en route.

The group sat there until dawn, but Guan Wen still didn't reappear. They had essentially concluded that he was likely gone for good.

As dusk fell over the capital city, Jiao Rang, the Xuanzhou Domain Lord, was the first to arrive in haste at the best viewing platform of the training grounds. This time, he brought someone who shouldn't have been there.

It was Ji Qinghe, an elder of Suyuansong, a refined-looking middle-aged man in white robes, whose three long strands of beard lent him an air of dignity.

Clearly, Suyuansong had already alerted the Xuanzhou Domain Lord about Guan Wen's situation.

They didn't want to make a big fuss. Before approaching the Xuanzhou Domain Lord, they first sought out Suyuansong disciples holding important positions in the capital, hoping they could pull some strings to have the supervisory personnel in Xiji contact the Suyuansong participants and ascertain the situation.

The disciples in important positions did indeed find people, but they discovered that this Heavenly Meteor Shower Competition seemed unusual, with exceptionally strict controls, making it difficult for external forces to intervene. Several influential Suyuansong disciples in the Immortal Court or Royal Court tried, but all failed.

After their efforts failed, they had no choice but to go through official channels, asking Ji Qinghe to seek help from Xuanzhou Domain Lord Jiao Rang.

In fact, Jiao Rang had been alerted quite early.

Jiao Rang also told them to abandon any idea of using illicit methods and to be patient during this Heavenly Meteor Shower Competition. He instructed them to wait until dawn in Xiji, as it was useless to rush; the Sky-Peering Mirror couldn't show anything clearly at night.

So, as soon as it was dawn, they arrived.

Ultimately, Jiao Rang was quite concerned about Suyuansong's situation, not entirely for Suyuansong's reputation, but because Suyuansong's worries were valid: could something unfavorable be brewing in the competition?

Xuanzhou's victory still depended on Suyuansong's cohesion, and he certainly didn't want to be made to clean up their dirty laundry.

As soon as Jiao Rang arrived, the person in charge quickly received the news and appeared.

Jiao Rang, staring at the light screen, directly ordered, "Have Yang Wu find someone. I want to see them now."

The person in charge bowed slightly and asked, "Who?"

As for such a minor figure, Jiao Rang didn't have a strong impression and couldn't quite remember, so he turned his head to glance at Ji Qinghe.

Ji Qinghe hastily replied, "Guan Wen, from Suyuansong."

After noting it down, the person in charge quickly found someone and relayed the instructions.

The image on the Sky-Peering Mirror seemed to have a problem; it was as if a calm lake surface had suddenly been ruffled by the wind, and nothing could be seen clearly.

It was the first time such a situation had occurred, and even Jiao Rang and others below the stands in the training ground were surprised.

Soon, the messenger who had been dispatched quickly returned and reported something to the person in charge, who then swiftly relayed it: "Domain Lord Jiao, Master Yang Wu asked me to inform you that the Sky-Peering Mirror cannot clearly show this person's situation, and the Ultimate Mountain and River Map also cannot display their location. The person you are looking for has likely ventured into the Moon Sea."

"The Moon Sea?" Jiao Rang muttered, turning to Ji Qinghe. "That place is forbidden. Is he illiterate, or did you instruct them to take such a risk?"

Ji Qinghe shook his head, "We wouldn't make them take that risk. There's no need."

Jiao Rang raised a hand to signal him, "What about the others? Report all their names. Let's see them."

Ji Qinghe immediately reported the names of the Xuanzhou Qingqing group and others to the person in charge. In fact, it was a bit redundant; simply saying they were from the Xuanzhou Domain would have been enough for the staff there.

Just as the instructions were relayed, another person arrived. It was none other than Wei Mo, the Shengzhou Domain Lord.

He and Jiao Rang were quite close, often inviting each other. Hearing that Jiao Rang was here, he also came to see what was happening.

"Domain Lord Wei." Ji Qinghe bowed respectfully.

As they knew each other, Wei Mo nodded slightly in acknowledgment. He was somewhat surprised by Ji Qinghe's presence and realized that Jiao Rang's hurried arrival might mean something had happened in the Xuanzhou Domain. He also saw the unusual display in the mirror image and turned to ask the person in charge, "What's going on here?"

The person in charge dared not easily reveal the full story and subtly observed Jiao Rang's reaction.

Wei Mo immediately reprimanded, "Why are you looking at him? Just answer my question!"

Seeing that Jiao Rang showed no objection, the person in charge then concisely explained the situation.

Upon hearing this, Wei Mo chuckled, "They actually entered the Moon Sea! Your Xuanzhou Domain disciples are truly insatiably greedy, like a snake trying to swallow an elephant!"

Ji Qinghe smiled humbly and remained silent.

Immediately after, the mirror switched to a new scene: it was the Xuanzhou Qingqing group from the Xuanzhou Domain. Although the sky there wasn't fully bright yet, the few individuals could still be seen clearly.

Yan Ji, Guan Yingjie, and Chao Zhilin were all there, with several fellow disciples standing on a hilltop, discussing something. Then, Xuanzhou Qingqing pulled out a metal pine cone from a pocket and handed it to Yan Ji.

Those who recognized it immediately knew it was the flying magical artifact called "Wind Carp."

Ji Qinghe was even clearer about this: before these disciples participated, the Xuanzhou Domain had provided them with two "Wind Scale" magical artifacts as backup. Seeing Xuanzhou Qingqing use the "Wind Scale" on the leader, he roughly guessed that the other "Wind Shark" might be on Shi Chun.

"What exactly happened? Those few don't look like they're in any danger."

In the scene, Yan Ji activated the 'Wind Scale' artifact and ascended into the sky, drawing admiration from many sects in the training ground. They exclaimed that it was indeed worthy of Shengzhou's largest sect; many smaller sects' entire contingent might not possess what was merely a personal item for these disciples.