In the Su Yuan Sect, within an ancient and time-worn hall, the tablets were arranged in sequence atop the sacred steps, with the air filled by the wafting scent of incense and the glow of lit oil lamps.

In a corner of the hall, five crystal lamps were placed in the pattern of a star. Within each lamp, a cloudlike aura swirled around the flame, serene and tranquil. Suddenly, the aura within one lamp dramatically surged, disrupting the peaceful atmosphere as it churned and extinguished the flame within.

The flame quickly suffocated and went out with a gasp, as a light mist rose gently from the lamp.

Below the sacred tablets, a middle-aged man in white, sitting cross-legged on a cushion, abruptly opened his eyes and slowly turned to look at the five crystal Lifebound Lanterns in the corner. Seeing the rising wisp of smoke, his face filled with shock and suspicion, he quickly got up to check the lanterns.

After confirming, he turned and sprinted away.

Soon, accompanying several older individuals, he rushed back.

The group inspected the Lifebound Lanterns and one of them spoke gravely, "It's Guan Wen."

The leading elder said, "The daily reports from the capital have all indicated smooth proceedings. Since the Child-and-Mother charms can't cross realms, send someone to directly inquire about the situation."

It was of minor concern that a disciple had died; rather, there was anxiety over whether ominous signs had emerged, whether the participating disciples had already fallen into peril, and whether this would affect the outcome of the conference.

Promptly, a man flew down the mountain and headed straight for the bustling city at its base, where an Xun Gate providing direct access to the royal capital was located.

This was the stature of the most prominent sect on the Shengshen Continent—having an Xun Gate right at their doorstep.

The man who passed through the Xun Gate straight to the royal capital, hurried to the Sky Rain Meteor Conference venue, but was stopped at the entrance, lacking the required entry token.

Having no choice, the man claimed his identity as a disciple of the Su Yuan Sect and asked for help to pass a message to the Su Yuan Sect disciples inside.

As expected of the continent's top sect, a warrior inside helped relay the message.

Before long, disciples of the same sect emerged from the venue, shocked upon learning that Guan Wen's Lifebound Lantern was extinguished.

Regrettably, the elder stationed at the venue was not present due to it being nighttime at the West Pole, with visibility so poor that his presence was meaningless; for most of the day, he would be absent from the venue.

Left with no alternative, they made another attempt to find the elder...

In the Moon Sea Forest, Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang had indeed found several Extreme Crystals, but without straying far. After collecting eight crystals, deemed just enough to fulfill their duties, they retreated to a dark hiding spot near the rendezvous point, awaiting others.

This place was notoriously dangerous, and neither dared to roam recklessly.

As midnight approached, scattered bursts of Sandalwood Gold Flame Energy hastened towards the rendezvous point.

Some returned to the agreed meeting spot on top of the hill, but did not find Guan Wen and were uncertain of the situation, so they waited on the spot.

Hidden in the dark, Wu Jinliang noted, "There's light on the hilltop, someone has returned."

Beside him, Shi Chun shook his head, "Let's wait a bit more."

The lights appearing on the hilltop seemed like a summoning signal, drawing flickers of light from deeper in the forest, as the related personnel gradually returned.

Noticing this, Shi Chun couldn't help but curse, "Damn, what was Guan Wen thinking, having these people search the Moon Sea for Extreme Crystals? He must have been overly optimistic. Let's go too; being too eager and returning too late might raise suspicions."

He had thought Guan Wen understood these people well, but it now appeared that Guan Wen was overly presumptuous.

Thus, the two men also revealed their Sandalwood Gold Flame Energy and headed back.

At the midway point up the mountain in the assembly area, quite coincidentally, Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang ran into Chu Jingtang and a group from the Bilan Sect. They greeted each other and climbed the hill together.

Once they reached the top, as expected, almost everyone had returned. During the brief greetings, the remaining people also rejoined, except for the noticeably absent Guan Wen who was supposed to be in charge here.

Shi Chun took the initiative to ask, "Where is Guan Wen?"

A team leader from a sect responded, "I don't know; he wasn't here when we arrived first."

Someone discontentedly remarked, "Wasn't he supposed to wait for us here? Where did he run off to?"

Another muttered quietly, "What if he thought it was too dangerous here and got out first?"

At this remark, no one spoke; it seemed all shared this suspicion.

Shi Chun suggested, "It's not possible that he abandoned us, right? Maybe he also went to look for Extreme Crystals?"

Wu Jinliang's mouth twitched oddly, forming an eerie grin.

"Ha-ha," someone laughingly scoffed, almost questioning believably.

The various sect members looked discontent and eager for something more but remained silent.

Shi Chun asked again, "Friends, how many Extreme Crystals did you find?"

"Five."

"Me too, five."

"Four."

"We found six."

"Three."

The highest count was six—no reports surpassed that.

Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang exchanged looks; it turned out they had found the most crystals, and yet, could this be believable?

But there seemed no reason to lie.

Both realized that the bottom line of this group was actually lower than they had anticipated; among them, the most naive were actually themselves. Despite feeling like guilty thieves, they had quite efficiently gathered so many in such a short time.

They could even guess that these guys hadn't dared to run far; most likely, they had found a spot to hide.

Asking for three was indeed a bit too much.

Everyone had reported their count, and seeing that the two were silent, Chu Jingtang asked, "Brother Wang, how many did you find?"

Shi Chun was too embarrassed to speak, and Wu Jinliang replied in a muffled voice, "Eight."

Then, as expected, over fifty pairs of eyes turned towards them, staring as if they were something odd.

The intense scrutiny made them uncomfortable, and the crowd casually shifted their gaze away.

The matter of the Extreme Crystals was dropped, and nobody mentioned it again.

However, the current issue wasn't the most urgent. After waiting a little while longer, someone else spoke up: "Guan Wen is also missing; are we supposed to just stand here and wait?"

Wu Jinliang touched the Magical Treasure in his pocket and remained quiet.

Shi Chun also kept silent; after all, neither of them would be the first to suggest leaving.

After another period of silence, someone spoke again: "What if he has already gone ashore and is waiting for us there?"

Someone impatiently said, "He was the first to misspeak. We'll leave a message here; if he hasn't come ashore when he returns, he'll see it."

No sooner said than done, with fingers like knives, they swiftly wrote in large vertical strokes on the tree bark: "Already returned ashore to gather; return quickly!"

He had lost his patience and, not wanting to continue the pretense with the others, left a message and called to his sect members, "Let's go."

And off they went, flying into the sky with their sect members.

Someone had taken the lead, and nobody wanted to linger any longer in a place where danger could unexpectedly arise, so they quickly followed.

The group swiftly went ashore, only to discover that Guan Wen was not there; even after searching the area, they found no sign of him.

A team leader took out a linked charm to contact Guan Wen, but there was no response. He then said to others, "The matching charm piece is with him; try contacting him."

Aside from Shi Chun and another, leaders from all sects took out their charm halves to make contact.

After trying for quite some time, nearly an hour and a half without any response, what did this indicate?

It indicated that Guan Wen had not returned and was still in the Moon Sea Forest.

It was only then that the group truly couldn't stay calm anymore; they stood in a line at the water's edge, nearly in a straight line, looking over at the occasionally strange-sounding misty basin under the starlight, their expressions quite solemn.

Saying that Guan Wen wasn't overseeing the original location and had gone to search for the Extreme Crystals was something they absolutely didn't believe.

If not there and not back, then where did he go?

Something had happened! Everyone came to the same conclusion in their minds.

Especially since they hadn't heard any sounds of fighting, this left them clinging to their last hope, deciding to wait a bit longer for any unexpected developments.

Finally, Shi Chun broke the silence, "Why don't we go back into the Moon Sea and look around?"

People around him turned their heads to look at him, their eyes full of disbelief, as if thinking him a fool. Who would dare search throughout the Moon Sea? After all their efforts that evening, could they even find a hundred Extreme Crystals?

Having just made it back safely, were they not satisfied unless they encountered danger again?

Someone couldn't help but say sarcastically, "If you want to search, go back to Youxia Mountain and look; we'll wait here. If you encounter danger, just shout and we'll come to rescue you."

Shi Chun sighed and said, "Such a large area, how can just the two of us search? When will we even find him? Everyone, Guan Wen was after all tricked into going down by us; if something really happens, the Su Yuan Sect might not let us off easily, I'm afraid."

This statement stirred the crowd perched on the cliff, instantly throwing their formation into chaos.

Especially the leaders, who quickly moved in front of Shi Chun, each either frowning or displaying an angry face.

"What nonsense are you saying?"

"Who tricked him?"

"Brother Wang, what nonsense are you spouting? Don't drag us into this."

The group unanimously spoke out in condemnation.

Shi Chun's gaze swept over the crowd, his voice chilly, "Are you thinking of silencing someone?"

Hearing this, Wu Jinliang, who had a broadsword on his shoulder, reflexively grabbed it.

In the heat of the moment, some had indeed harbored thoughts of silencing, but being reminded in such a way, they came back to their senses. If they did something like that, with so many witnesses, should word get out one day, it would be as if their pants were filled with crap either way.

Someone sternly reminded, "Mr. Wang, we did not trick him. If anyone tricked Guan Wen, it was you who tricked him down there. Everyone here saw it."

"Exactly."

"Right."

"It was you who tricked him."

Facing the barrage of spit coming his way, Shi Chun quietly nodded, "That's true, it has nothing to do with everyone else. If it's about tricking, then it was me who tricked him. Rest assured, when I discuss this matter with the Su Yuan Sect, I will take full responsibility."

Hearing him say this, everyone felt considerably more at ease.

But then Shi Chun immediately followed up with, "I would never dare twist the truth onto anyone's head. Whatever happened, happened. I will explain the exact details to the Su Yuan Sect."

The leaders of the sects instantly stiffened, silently staring at him.

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