Chapter 648: Chapter 648: Meng Wan (3)

"Please have some tea."

Li Feng glanced at the tea before looking back at her.

"There’s no need for formalities."

His expression became serious.

"Now... You’d better have a convincing explanation to prove your innocence."

Meng Wan’s expression became slightly tense.

She knew that her family’s survival depended on this, but his serious gaze still made her feel a little pressure.

"Of course...!" she said quickly. "I understand your concern."

She took a slow breath before continuing.

"The formation protecting this branch is normally under the control of the Meng Family. Only a few trusted elders and core members have access to the formation’s control points."

Li Feng narrowed his eyes.

"Then how did those assassins take control of it?"

Meng Wan hesitated.

"That is precisely what we are trying to find out."

Her expression became solemn.

"We have never given them access to the formation, and none of the people authorized to control it should have betrayed the family."

Li Feng stared at her.

"So you’re saying you don’t know?"

Meng Wan’s lips tightened.

"At this moment... no."

She lowered her gaze slightly.

"But I can promise you that the Meng Family had no reason to cooperate with those assassins. Whoever allowed them to take control of the formation either betrayed us or used a method we have never encountered before."

Li Feng remained silent for a moment.

Then he suddenly asked,

"Can you prove it?"

And Meng Wan looked at him and nodded quickly.

"I can. That is why I asked you to come somewhere private. I can show you the formation records, the access records, and everything else we have regarding tonight’s incident."

Li Feng’s serious expression remained unchanged.

"Good."

He stood up.

"Then let’s see how innocent your Meng Family really is."

Meng Wan nodded and stood up as well.

"Please follow me."

_

_

_

From the meeting room, there was actually another door, and from that she led Li Feng deeper into the Autumn Pavilion.

The two of them passed through several corridors before arriving at a heavily reinforced room.

Unlike the meeting room, this place had no decorations at all.

The walls were covered in complicated formation patterns, and several jade plates were embedded into the stone.

Li Feng looked around curiously.

"What is this place?"

"This is the formation control room for the entire Autumn Pavilion branch," Meng Wan explained. "Normally, only the Matriarch and a few trusted elders are allowed to enter."

She walked toward the center of the room and placed her hand against one of the jade plates.

Then spiritual energy flowed from her palm.

A moment later, the formation lit up.

Countless lines of light spread across the walls, forming a huge network that seemed to cover the entire Autumn Pavilion.

Li Feng stared at it.

"So this controls the entire branch?"

"Yes."

Meng Wan nodded.

She then made several hand seals.

"Normally, anyone who wants to control the formation must have one of the authorized formation keys. Without one, even a Golden Core cultivator shouldn’t be able to take control."

Li Feng’s eyes narrowed.

"But those assassins did."

"...Yes, which normally shouldn’t be possible."

Meng Wan’s expression became grim.

"That is what makes this incident so strange."

She pointed toward one of the formation patterns.

"Look here."

Li Feng stepped closer.

And saw several lines of light around the formation had turned completely black.

"These traces appeared after the assassins took control," Meng Wan explained. "They didn’t simply break through our defenses. They somehow bypassed the formation’s control restrictions and forcibly connected themselves to it."

Li Feng stared at the blackened formation.

After a moment, he asked,

"Can you tell how they did it?"

Meng Wan shook her head and smiled wryly.

"Not yet."

After all, not much time had passed, and they would need time to investigate it in detail.

Right now, the important priority was to make sure Li Feng did not suspect them.

Hearing that answer, Li Feng didn’t respond immediately.

Instead, he continued staring at the formation.

His eyes slowly moved across the blackened lines, carefully following their paths.

After a few seconds, he suddenly pointed toward one of the damaged sections.

"This part."

Meng Wan looked at where he was pointing.

"What about it?"

"This isn’t where they entered."

Meng Wan froze.

Li Feng pointed toward another section.

"And this isn’t either."

He continued examining the formation for a moment before speaking again.

"They didn’t break through the formation’s defenses from the outside. They inserted something into the formation from inside and used it to slowly change the flow of spiritual energy."

Meng Wan’s eyes widened.

Li Feng continued as if he were explaining something extremely ordinary.

"See these black lines? They aren’t actually part of the formation. They’re the result of the original formation being forced to accept a foreign spiritual energy."

He moved his finger along one of the lines.

"That’s why they could control this part without taking over the entire formation."

Hearing all of that, Meng Wan stared at him in disbelief.

She knew how complicated the Autumn Pavilion’s formation was, yet Li Feng had only looked at it for a few moments before immediately noticing something was wrong with it.

Then Li Feng suddenly pointed toward another location.

"There."

He pointed toward a tiny section hidden beneath several other formation patterns.

"This is the real problem."

Meng Wan immediately stepped closer, her gaze becoming serious.

"What is it?"

She was so focused on the formation that she didn’t seem to realize how close she had gotten to Li Feng.

Li Feng glanced at her briefly before looking back at the formation.

Then his eyes narrowed and his voice became serious.

"Someone didn’t simply give them access to the formation... They changed the formation’s internal structure beforehand."

Meng Wan’s expression changed.

"Changed it?"

"Yes."

Li Feng nodded.

"Someone modified this formation before tonight’s attack. They created a hidden pathway that allowed another spiritual energy to enter the formation without triggering the normal restrictions."

Meng Wan’s breathing stopped for a moment.

"If that’s true..."

Li Feng looked at her.

"It means the assassins couldn’t have done this by themselves... Someone prepared the formation for them."

Meng Wan’s expression turned pale.

That meant there really could be someone inside the Meng Family helping the assassins.

Or perhaps someone had infiltrated the Autumn Pavilion long before tonight.

Either possibility was terrifying.

But then, Meng Wan suddenly looked at Li Feng in disbelief.

"Righteous Sword..."

She hesitated a little before asking,

"Do you understand formations?"

Li Feng smiled softly.

He looked at the formation again before turning back toward her.

"Formations?"

He casually waved his hand.

"I just studied them a little in my free time, so you can say I know a little about them."

Meng Wan’s lips twitched.

’A little?’

She knew exactly how complicated the formation of the Autumn Pavilion was.

It had been personally designed and established by a powerful formation master sent by the main Autumn Pavilion.

Even the Meng Family’s own formation experts had needed a considerable amount of time just to study it.

Even after all that effort, they still barely understood its structure and had to rely on the formation control device to operate it.

Yet Li Feng had only glanced at it for a short while before seeing through several of its problems.

He had even identified the hidden pathway the assassins had used.

Meng Wan couldn’t help but look at him in disbelief.

Could this really be what he considered "knowing a little"?

And Meng Wan’s gaze toward Li Feng gradually changed as she suddenly realized something.

Perhaps Li Feng really was a genius.

Not just a genius in cultivation... but a true genius in every aspect, one with a righteous heart at that.

His strength was terrifying, his understanding of formations was extraordinary, and even his reputation as the Righteous Sword had spread throughout the entire Fen Dynasty.

The more she thought about it, the more deeply impressed she became.

Meng Wan had never considered herself talented.

She had been born with only mediocre aptitude, and unlike those geniuses who could advance rapidly with little effort, she had spent almost her entire life slowly cultivating, taking one difficult step after another.

Reaching the Foundation Establishment realm had already taken her countless years of effort.

Because of that, she understood better than most just how precious true talent was.

But she didn’t feel jealous of Li Feng.

Instead, she felt a genuine sense of admiration from the bottom of her heart.

Looking at him, she couldn’t help but think about how different the world must look to someone like him.

And yet, despite possessing such terrifying talent and strength, he showed no trace of arrogance.

Instead, he genuinely cared for the common people, always doing his best to protect them and ensure that justice was upheld.

Meng Wan’s eyes softened as a sincere smile slowly appeared on her face.

"Righteous Sword, after meeting you today, I finally understand what kind of person you truly are. Your strength is impressive, but your character is even more admirable.I truly have to admire you. You really are an extraordinary person."

Her voice carried no flattery or hidden motive.

It was simply heartfelt admiration.

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