"Guys, you two remember the script we've prepared, right ? We can't afford to make a mistake, remember that. And boss, it's better if you don't say much. Let your underling do these miscellaneous jobs for you," Xuhan hissed to the two of them as they hurriedly rushed toward the mountain peak where missions were handled .

They had reached the sect just at daybreak, their boat stopping at a junction in the small branch river near the sect's boundaries. After that surprisingly safe journey, their nerves were on tenterhooks. The three of them had ran like the wind from there.

Briefly, Han Xuhan had finally realized the real benefits of being a member of a sect. Cultivation resources and manuals that were usually glorified in typical xianxia stories were not the best thing about a sect. It was the protection and sense of united strength it offered that topped all the rest of the benfits.

Where would he run to screaming for help if he did not have a badass sect to back him up?

Is this how those arrogant young masters feel when the protagonist chases them?

By the time they had reached the top of the mountain peak, the sky had become clear eastward, silhouttes of the endless plains and mountainous terrain showing themselves in the horizon beautifully.

Looking at the eye catching scene, Xuhan sighed. Who could guess that beneath that beautiful exterior, terrifying powers were running rampant ?

The task administrators were active 24/7. So they easily found a senior disciple sitting inside the building where missions were given out, meditating calmly or dozing off while sitting, it was hard to say. 

After a few raps on the desk in front of him, he opened his eyes suddenly, looking dazed.

"Hu-eh ? Is my shift over ? It still looks dark outside..."

"Senior brother, we are here to report our mission details," Han Xuhan said politely, interrupting his scattered musings.

"Mission details ? You've finished your tasks ? But what the hell is up with your timing ? Couldn't you wait till sunrise ?" He asked with a confused expression.

"The task we were assigned to led to the discovery of a huge conspiracy, senior brother. The whole thing involves multiple powerhouses beyond the soul reformation realm, and I believe the authorities of the sect needs to learn about the incident immediately. Or a calamity might happen anytime."

Gaping at him for a long moment, the senior disciple stiffly rubbed his eyes and repeatedly slapped himself in the cheeks for some reason. Then he stood up and gestured at the three of them to follow his lead.

Behind the building that dealt with the tasks and missions, there was a moderate sized living quarter of the elder in charge. The senior disciple entered the lushly decorated house while the trio waited outside anxiously.

A few moments later, the senior disciple came out with a rather puzzled expression.

"The elder has ordered you to enter a few moments later so that he can comose himself. Give him the details as clearly as you can and don't hide anything...Or there is going to be consequences. "

But the three of them were running low on patience. Mu Ran sort of forced the disciple to move aside a few seconds later, and the three of them entered inside the house.

The room that greeted their sight was not large, but it had all the equipments for comfort a cultivator could ask for. Thick rugs, cushions, a small hearthfire burning in a corner, a sturdy desk, a woman hiding behind the curtains who was trying to sneak out through the window, soothing paintings on the walls, a messed up mattress on which a handsome man sat with a dumbfounded expression on his face, his hands clutching a quilt over his lower half. The elder must have been cultivating arduously...

What else can a man ask for ?

Clearing his throat, Xuhan stepped up, not giving him the time to recover from his shock, and recounted their experiences to the elder smoothly, hiding what needed to be hidden.

When the elder heard the phrase 'purification process', which Xuhan had heard Qian Yun say under the control of brother BB , his eyes narrowed into slits, his expression hardening. It was apparent that he had guessed what the process would result into.

Without batting an eyelid , Xuhan glossed over his own schemes and theories , crediting their escape to sheer luck and the power of friendship , making out Qian Yun to be a tragic hero who had struggled with the mind controlling asshat to the bitter end, letting them take the chance to run away.

One could say that he had no reason to downplay his own contributions. But right now, Han Xuhan still hadn't let go of his suspicions that there might be a mole in the sect. Attracting useless attention right now was hardly a wise choice.

Besides, he felt pity for that puppetized guy. Declaring him to be an outright villain would leave a bad taste in his mouth . So Xuhan did his best to convince the elder that Qian Yun was absolutely innocent .

Yuen Zhou and Mu Ran silently stood behind him, nodding and echoing his words from time to time. They had practiced their script half a dozen times. It went quite smoothly, and the elder looked extremely grave after hearing their guesses, as well as the fate of Pine town.

"I'll immediately inform all the elders and the sect master himself. Is there anything else I should know? "

His gaze bore into Xuhan's skull, making him suspect that the elder might have guessed that he was hiding some information. Swallowing hard, Xuhan tentatively threw out a hook he had been preparing for a while.

"Elder Tang, I'm not sure how to say this... but can you guarantee that i will not be punished in any way provided I am an innocent person who got caught up in the other party's scheme and ended up harming the sect directly or indirectly? "

The elder's eyebrows shot upward as he crawled backwards on the large mattress, keeping a good hold on his quilt. Subtle qi fluctuations appeared around him. 

"What have you done ? " He asked gravely.

Xuhan nervously exchanged a glance with Yuen Zhou and Mu Ran. 

"Elder Tang, while we were trying to advance past the circle of laws within that world fragment, my dao base was infiltrated by a strange force that apparently works as a seal. It makes me forever obedient to the Holy Land of Laws as their disciple. I'm just afraid that it might affect my mind somehow and make me a threat to the sect."

From their discussions on the boat, Han Xuhan understood that these type of infiltration was extremely hard to remove. The texts had already become a part of his dao tower, forming an invisible, vaguely existent seal that even he could not detect. 

But he had to try and see if it was possible to get the help of the sect's experts.

Hearing his confession, the elder sighed with relief.

"Ah, even if it isn't something that i excel in, our sect master can probably remedy it. Come, accompany me to the sect master's quarters. He can examine you."

Finally standing up from his previous awkward sitting posture, the elder removed the quilt from his lower body, revealing a hurriedly tied trouser. What exactly had he been trying to hide...?

The three of them nodded and followed him as he rushed out of the room. As they ran down the mountain, the elder lightly coughed and turned to look at them.

"About what you saw in my room..."

"Don't worry elder Tang. We are all old enough to understand what was happening. You don't have to explain . In fact , if you ever need advice on how to have sneaky relationships , feel free to come chat with me . I can be considered to be somewhat of an expert on this ," Mu Ran answered with an understanding smile.

"...Boss, I don't think elder Tang was trying to say that. "

"What ?" Mu Ran asked in puzzlement.

Han Xuhan sighed and returned the knowing look to elder Tang who looked like he was about to explode.

"Elder Tang, we definitely saw nothing inside your room. We did not see the woman trying to escape, neither did we see you trying to hide your bone-"

"YES, THAT'S IT. NOW SHUT THE HELL UP."

Nearly bursting out in fury, elder Tang hurrumphed and turned around, continuing on his way to the sect master's residence.

The sect master, Xuan Zi, was thankfully awake when they reached the mountain he lived on. It was one of the smallest mountains in the sect, nearly inconspicuous if one missed how meticulously the entire mountain had been given an artificial design. Every inch of the soil on it looked like they had been accounted for and placed there by someone with mild OCD.

Upon hearing that there might be a mysterious super OP cultivator who had wiped everyone's memories of Pine town, Xuan Zi's expression flickered for a moment. But it soon went back to it's normal expressionless state, a perfect poker face.

"Children, you do not need to worry about any such threats reaching you as long as you reside within our sect. Our sect is not something any random powerful expert can steamroll over. Rest assured, even if they dare to show up with ill intentions, they will have to pass through me first, not to mention our elders and dao ancestors."

Sect master Xuan Zi looked as tall as a mountain and as majestic as a titan as he spoke those words in a grand fashion. Behind him, the rising crimson sun seemed to burn with the spirit of a red giant in all its glory. It was such a picturesque scene that it looked edited.

Sect master is so cool !

"Of course, if the enemy is more powerful than our dao ancestors as well, which is a very valid possibility considering your descriptions , then we'll all end up being very, very, dead. So make sure to write up your will and whatnot. I did mine decades ago," sect master Xuan Zi suddenly added as an afterthought, a very realistic remark that made Xuhan remember that this unnecessarily realistic xianxia world had issues following the typical tropes. 

The sun behind him now looked more like a bloody flag of tragedy. His titanic aura was instantly reduced, becoming as fake as the mountain he lived on.

Han Xuhan's deep feeling of admiration was shredded brutally at that moment .