Do you know what this means?

My goodness…

When Luo Qi finally arrived at the scene and saw the vast emptiness that looked as if it had been vaporized out of existence, even he, with his extensive experience, couldn't help but widen his eyes.

Luo Qi had always known Isaiah was strong, the foremost figure in the Star Relic Sect, but he hadn't thought he'd be that much stronger. Plus, he had the Corpse Pieces on his side. If they really fought, even if it wasn't a fifty-fifty split, it would at least be sixty-forty, or maybe even seventy-thirty at worst?

But the scene before him was a harsh slap in the face. The blinding white light earlier had left his vision dizzy even now, making him wonder if he could withstand a fight against Isaiah himself.

It seemed unlikely.

But this was just too absurd. That old man didn't even have Corpse Pieces, and he could achieve this level?

Was this what a Star Relic Warlock was capable of?

And the sky wasn't even clear tonight; he could barely see any stars. If Isaiah could fight like this in such conditions, what would he be capable of during a true Spotless Night?

Thinking this, Luo Qi couldn't help but look at Isaiah with a hint of trepidation. At that moment, Isaiah glanced at him. It was just a casual gaze, but it immediately made the spirited young Luo Qi stand at attention, and he politely greeted him, "Mr. Isaiah, thank you for your hard work."

He could only be grateful that Isaiah was an ally. Otherwise, killing him would probably be as easy as flipping a hand.

Luo Qi was quite self-aware in this regard.

Isaiah gave a faint "Mm," giving away nothing of his thoughts. He didn't even respond when his student Mina approached to ask questions, merely watching the various troops rushing towards them.

There were Star Relic Warlocks, Knights of the Rhine, Dream Weavers of the Eternal Nightmare, Guardians of the Contract Land, and some survivors from the Black Merchants.

After all, the commotion earlier had been too immense, naturally alerting all the factions deployed around the area.

Isaiah's gaze swept over each faction, then he glanced at Luo Qi intentionally or unintentionally, but ultimately did nothing.

"Mr. Isaiah," Fenris of the Eternal Nightmare stepped forward and asked respectfully, "Have you dealt with those two fugitives?"

Wasn't that obvious?

Luo Qi couldn't help but scoff internally.

With things like this, how could those two possibly be alive?

The thought of that damned hypocrite being blasted into dust by that scorching light sent a wave of satisfaction through Luo Qi, making him feel as if his right hand, missing four fingers, no longer hurt.

So, the next step should be the scheming and division of the Corpse Pieces.

Luo Qi glanced again at the void behind Isaiah.

It was clear that the hypocrite's remains were gone, but Visas's Corpse Pieces were definitely still there. There was no method in this world that could destroy Corpse Pieces.

Luo Qi's initial plan was to show up during Isaiah's fight, get some recognition, and claim a small portion of the credit, thus qualifying for a share of the Corpse Pieces. But the reality was that before he even arrived, Isaiah had already ended the battle, which was rather awkward.

However, Luo Qi wasn't worried that Isaiah would try to keep them all for himself.

After all, that was three Corpse Pieces. No matter how bold Isaiah was, he absolutely wouldn't…

"No, the ones who fought me were not those two fugitives."

Everyone was stunned.

Fenris asked in surprise, "Not those two fugitives?"

Isaiah responded with a faint "Mm," "Tonight, I never saw the Seven Sound Player you speak of, nor the scholar who possessed forbidden knowledge, from beginning to end. They were not here at all. The one who fought me was a madman from who-knows-where, and his target wasn't me, but the Black Merchants here. I intervened to save these Black Merchants."

Upon hearing this, everyone, including Mina, exchanged bewildered glances, thinking Isaiah was joking.

"This, how is this possible?" Mina said, "Teacher, are you sure…"

"That's enough," Isaiah said, showing no inclination to explain further. He turned and left, "I am tired. Leave the aftermath to you all."

This sudden turn of events completely baffled everyone, but they couldn't possibly stop Isaiah. They could only watch him leave. Mina then led the Star Relic Warlocks in pursuit, leaving Luo Qi and Fenris standing there, at a loss.

"What does this mean?" Fenris asked Luo Qi, "If it wasn't the Seven Sound Player and Ai De Wen, then who could it be?"

"You're asking me? How would I know?" As soon as Isaiah left, Luo Qi no longer needed to play the role of a good student. His brow furrowed immediately, "What nonsense is this old man spouting?"

They had been tracking the Tongue all along, and now Isaiah was saying he wasn't fighting the Tongue?

If it wasn't the Tongue, then who could it be? And who else could fight Isaiah to this extent?

And he said the other party was after the Black Merchants, and he intervened to protect them… What kind of strange reason was that?

Where were the Black Merchants? Why was nothing left?

What exactly did you protect?

Moreover, Luo Qi knew for certain that Isaiah was lying. After all, during Isaiah's battle, he could sense that unreserved power belonging to Visas.

But he couldn't understand why Isaiah would lie…

Hmm?

Luo Qi thought of something, narrowed his eyes slightly, and murmured, "Old man, you really intend to keep all three Corpse Pieces for yourself, don't you."

"Teacher, Teacher!" Mina quickly caught up to Isaiah, "Please wait for me."

Isaiah stopped, but without turning around, he asked Mina with his back to her, "What is it?"

Mina's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

She could feel the undisguised coldness emanating from Isaiah towards her.

But... why? Did she do something wrong?

Mina suppressed her unease and palpitations, and cautiously asked, "What exactly is going on tonight?"

"Are you asking me?"

"This student is asking the teacher."

"Oh, I thought you knew."

"This student... doesn't know." Mina was anxious. "This student has been doing as you asked and doesn't understand what they did wrong. Please enlighten me."

"Doing as I asked," Isaiah said softly. "So that's how it is."

"...Teacher?"

Isaiah waved his hand, first dismissing the other Star Relic Warlocks, leaving only himself and Mina.

Then, he slowly began to speak, "Let's be direct, Mina. What kind of chips did that Tongue offer you to make my dearest student betray me?"

Mina's eyes widened instantly, her voice starting to tremble, "Teacher... how could I possibly betray you?"

"If you didn't betray me, then why did you come tonight?" Isaiah finally turned around, his cold eyes fixed on Mina. "It's not like you mistook the time, is it?"

"Something unexpected happened tonight. The Holy Sound Player made their move a day early, alerting the target, so we had to follow up."

"Why didn't you report the unexpected event?"

"I, I did report it."

"Oh?" Isaiah narrowed his eyes slightly. "You reported it? How did you report it, in a dream?"

"Of, of course not." Mina panicked. "I reported it using the star chart."

"If that's the case, why not open the star chart and take a look?"

Mina hurriedly opened the star chart, wanting to prove herself. But she soon discovered that the last message she had sent to Isaiah via the star chart was her guess that Luo Qi was the Thumb, and everything after that was blank.

"No, this, how is this possible!" Mina hadn't expected this at all. "I clearly reported it to you, just last night, I, I, I..."

Faced with irrefutable evidence, Mina's voice grew smaller and smaller, her expression more and more panicked.

Meanwhile, Isaiah had been watching his prized disciple. If Mina had any ulterior motives or was lying, she would absolutely not escape his right eye.

However, Mina showed no abnormality. Isaiah could be sure she was telling the truth.

Since that was the case, Isaiah had no reason to continue testing Mina. He said directly, "Tell me, what happened from last night until now... everything."

"Yes!"

Mina could tell that Isaiah no longer suspected her, but it was too soon to relax. She quickly recounted all the events from their operation in De La Town last night to their arrival at the scene just now, not daring to miss even the smallest detail.

After listening, Isaiah had a general idea. He then whispered, "That's the Tongue."

"...Teacher?" Mina didn't understand Isaiah's meaning.

"We all stepped into the trap laid by the Tongue."

Isaiah took a deep breath to alleviate the negative emotions in his heart. He hadn't suffered a loss in any aspect since obtaining this eye. No matter who it was, they were like naked dancers in front of him. No scheme, no conspiracy could escape this eye of his.

But now, he had stepped right into someone else's trap.

At this moment, he recalled what he had said to Lai Er during their previous fight, "The rules I possess are superior to yours." The indescribable sense of frustration grew even stronger.

"The Tongue's rules guided all of this," Isaiah said slowly. "The Holy Sound Player, and you, were both influenced by him."

"I... was influenced by him?"

"Haven't you realized it yet? Is there something wrong with what you just told me?" Isaiah said coldly. "You explained everything so clearly, even noticing details like how that old fart Luo Qi would secretly give himself a thumbs-up from time to time, yet you were vague about the process of reporting to me."

Mina's mouth slowly opened wider.

"Because it's something that never happened. Someone implanted false memories into your head," Isaiah said. "So, like those Holy Sound Players, you were controlled without even realizing it!"

Mina broke out in a cold sweat. After realizing everything, she even knelt directly before Isaiah.

"I'm sorry, Teacher... it's all my fault!" Mina gritted her teeth. "Please punish me!"

Isaiah looked at his prized disciple. In the past, he might have lectured her. But after personally witnessing the Tongue's power, and even falling into his trap, he had no reason to blame Mina anymore.

"Get up," Isaiah said. "The past is meaningless. The future is what matters."

Mina pursed her lips, then stood up. She then asked doubtfully, "According to your explanation, if the one who influenced us is the Tongue, then who is the person we've been tracking who is with the Forbidden Scholar? And the one who fought you tonight... was it the Tongue himself?"

"The one who fought me tonight was a Black Merchant named Lai Er... the same guy who impersonated an envoy from Contract Land back then. His alias was Lai Si," Isaiah said slowly. "He used the Tongue's rules on me. It was precisely because I personally experienced that feeling of being controlled that I understood what was happening on your end."

Mina naturally remembered Lai Er. "In that case, he must be the Tongue himself. Did you kill him?"

"Of course," Isaiah said. "I also obtained his Corpse Pieces."

Obtained the Tongue's Corpse Pieces?

Mina was startled.

Doesn't that mean Teacher Isaiah already has four Corpse Pieces?

But he's not turning in four Corpse Pieces, isn't that a bit...

Mina was about to ask, but then she saw Isaiah open his palm and reveal a broken middle finger to her, and she couldn't help but be stunned.

How could it be... the middle finger?

A few seconds later, an indescribable sense of dread surged from the soles of Mina's feet to her brain, her hair standing on end.

"This, this..." Mina couldn't even speak.

"With just this one finger, I can confirm it's genuine," Isaiah said calmly.

Looking at the finger before her, Mina's breathing grew heavy, and countless questions surged into her mind along with the panic, like tangled threads that couldn't be unraveled.

"Hand Eye, Tongue..." she managed to ask, "Are they one person?"

"I don't know," Isaiah's calm tone seemed to hide a torrent of emotions. "There's too much unknown information. Whether they are one person, or if one has already killed the other, I can't be sure. The only thing I can be sure of is that the entire Peach Blossom Paradise is a deception woven by him, or them."

Mina looked at Isaiah. "Even you can't see through it?"

"If I could, I wouldn't be in this situation," Isaiah replied. "Haven't you considered why he would leave this finger for me?"

Mina followed Isaiah's lead and thought for a moment. Just a moment, and her face turned pale.

"This is... framing," Mina whispered. "This way, everyone will believe you killed the Tongue and now possess three Corpse Pieces."

"Yes, that is his objective."

"Then can you hand over this finger?" Mina asked. "Tell the Contract Land everything and let them punish him?"

"Do you think the Contract Land would believe me?" Isaiah said. "Did anyone see me receive just this one finger?"

...No one had seen it.

When they arrived at the scene, everything was already over.

In other words, the moment Isaiah killed Lai Er and picked up this finger, he had already fallen into their trap.

Mina still didn't give up. "But the Tongue didn't have fingers to begin with, and after you were affected by the Tongue's rules, you picked up a finger..."

Mina trailed off, realizing the most crucial point.

"It seems you've figured it out," Isaiah said softly. "The information that 'the Tongue and Hand Eye are not one person' is information from Peach Blossom Paradise, not information held by the Contract Land."

"In the intelligence held by the Contract Land, which was provided by Rhine, there is no Tongue or Hand Eye at all. There is only one person, and his name is Ulu."

"And why did the Contract Land convene a gathering? Because Rhine believes Ulu might have already acquired four Corpse Pieces, including the finger and the Tongue."

"This means that once it's confirmed that the person I killed was Ulu, then in the eyes of the Contract Land..." Isaiah looked at Mina and said, word by word, "I have now obtained those four Corpse Pieces."

"Do you know what that means?"