Chapter 3175: The Hidden Ancestor

Huo raised his eyes, his calm expression sharpening. "Go on."

"The ancestor of the Hidden Cave Sect is alive," Lin Mu said plainly. "The patriarch was in contact with him directly. The messages are clear, but the ancestor has taken steps to conceal his location. Not even the patriarch knew where he was."

There was a brief silence as the other elders digested the information. Some frowned, others shifted uneasily, but Grand Huo did not appear surprised.

"As I thought," Grand Elder Huo said after a moment. "A sect of this size would not rise so high without someone watching from the shadows. It is only natural that a figure such as their ancestor still exists. Men like him are too crafty to perish so easily."

Lin Mu nodded. "It may be that he works directly with the Ephemera Sect. There are signs that point in that direction. But it is just as likely he hides somewhere else on the continent. We will have to investigate further."

Grand Elder Huo folded his arms, his gaze steady. "And investigate we will. Whether during our clash with the Ephemera Sect or before, such a man cannot hide forever. His presence will reveal itself in time."

Lin Mu let out a quiet breath. It was a measured response, neither alarmed nor dismissive. He appreciated that balance.

"Have you found anything more?" Lin Mu asked, glancing at the piles of records the others were sorting.

Grand Elder Huo tapped a finger against the topmost jade slip. "Most of what we discovered confirms the information you have already uncovered. Records of trade, correspondence with allies, and notes on their dealings.

The majority of the other documents are nothing more than the day-to-day workings of the sect. Administrative matters, schedules, and resource ledgers. They will be of no real use to us."

Lin Mu nodded. He had expected as much.

"But," Grand Elder Huo continued, "we did find details of their informants. Not all of them were Immortal cultivators. Many were commoners scattered across the continent. Merchants, clerks, servants, even beggars.

They carried whispers and rumors, feeding them back to the Hidden Cave Sect. A few of them were cultivators, usually wandering ones or those who belonged to small, unaffiliated sects. The net they cast was wide."

Lin Mu’s expression darkened slightly. "That will make things more complicated. Rooting out informants across the continent will take time, and some may not even know who they were truly serving."

"True," Huo agreed. "But it is a task we cannot neglect. If even a handful survive, they could be gathered again, and the roots of this sect might grow back in another form."

The others in the room murmured their agreement.

Lin Mu remained silent for a moment, considering the weight of what they had learned.

The Hidden Cave Sect was gone, its elders and patriarch slain, its foundations dismantled. Yet the shadows they had cast still stretched far. The ancestor remained alive, and the network of informants they had cultivated over decades would not disappear overnight.

But Lin Mu was not discouraged. If anything, it only sharpened his resolve. This was not the end. It was merely the beginning of a greater purge.

The meeting of elders had been progressing for several hours, the piles of jade slips, scrolls, and ledgers continuing to shrink as more and more information was catalogued.

Lin Mu had already shared what he found in the patriarch’s possessions, and Grand Elder Huo had gone over the findings of the wider team. Just as Lin Mu was preparing to leave the chamber to continue his own investigations, one of the elders finally raised a question that had been hanging in the background since the Hidden Cave Sect’s destruction.

"What should we do with this place?" the elder asked, his brow furrowed with concern. "We cannot simply leave it behind. If we abandon it, we risk another faction stumbling upon it eventually, and this could turn into a danger greater than it already was."

The others turned their attention to him, thoughtful expressions spreading across their faces.

Indeed, the location of the sect was no ordinary place. It was housed inside a sphere within the Lesser Void, shielded from the outer world and fortified by layers of ancient arrays. Simply finding it had been a monumental task, one that would have been impossible without Lin Mu.

The security of such a hideout was beyond anything the surface could provide.

Grand Elder Huo nodded slowly. "You are correct. To leave it empty would be irresponsible. The question is not whether to keep it, but what to use it for."

A murmur of agreement passed among the elders.

Another elder, his robes marked with the insignia of a formation master, leaned forward. "Its very isolation makes it invaluable. It would serve perfectly as a refuge if our sects were to face a calamity in the future. A stronghold in the void where our disciples could retreat to safety."

Another elder countered, "A refuge is valuable, but I see another use. We are not yet done with our enemies. Once the Ephemera Sect and their allies are brought down, there will be survivors. Prisoners too dangerous to keep in normal prisons but too valuable to simply kill.

They will have secrets, memories, techniques, knowledge that we cannot afford to lose. A place like this could serve as a prison beyond reach. Its arrays already make it impossible for ordinary beings to escape, and with some modifications, it could become a perfect holding ground."

Several elders nodded at this suggestion.

The idea of a secure prison struck them as practical. Cultivators of immense power could not simply be locked away in common cells, nor could their knowledge be discarded lightly. This hideout was already infused with millenniums of formations that prevented unauthorized teleportation and restricted spatial fluctuations.

With effort, it could be adapted to restrain even immortals.

Lin Mu, who had been listening in silence, finally spoke.

His tone was calm, but the weight of his words silenced the room.

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