Why Did Zuo Lengchan Send a Spy?

"Master, what do you want this disciple to say? This disciple truly doesn't know."

Laodeno put on an aggrieved expression.

He was already quite old, with the look of a little old man. He actually appeared several years older than Yue Buqun.

It no longer looked like a master interrogating his traitorous disciple, but rather like a young man bullying an old man.

Linghu Chong was forthright, while Yue Lingshan was young.

Neither of them suspected Laodeno.

They only wanted to speak up for him, but with Yue Buqun in such a furious rage, neither dared open their mouths.

"Speak at once! How exactly did you collude with Zuo Lengchan to harm my disciple?"

Yue Buqun barked harshly.

Just as Laodeno was about to speak in a pitiful voice, Yue Buqun cursed again.

"You beast, don't bother trying to argue! Did you think I didn't know you were a spy sent by the Songshan Sect?"

Only then did Laodeno's heart truly begin to pound wildly.

So Yue Buqun had known his identity from the very beginning.

Yet Laodeno refused to give up and merely turned his gaze toward Ning Zhongze.

He knew Ning Zhongze was a kind person.

But this time, he had miscalculated.

Ning Zhongze's lovely face was frosty. Seeing Laodeno look toward her, she could not help revealing a mocking smile.

"What? Are you hoping I'll plead for mercy on your behalf? I may be a mere woman, but I'm not so easily fooled."

"From the moment you entered our sect, you should have sensed something was wrong, shouldn't you? I fear you lost your composure yourself. Seeing your Senior Disciple Brother in such a miserable state and your Junior Disciple Brother covered in blood, you did not even ask a single question."

"If we did not know you were a Songshan spy, you might naturally have fooled us. But once we knew you were from the Songshan Sect, every detail now seemed suspicious."

If Master had only furiously cursed Laodeno, it might still have been because the news of the fine wine below the mountain, which Laodeno had brought back, had served as the bait for this trap.

But now that even Mistress, who was always kind and calm, said so, Linghu Chong had no choice but to believe it.

The three disciples present—Linghu Chong, Yue Lingshan, and Lu Dayou—all wore expressions of utter disbelief. Only Ji Boying's face remained unchanged, as though he had expected this all along.

With his identity exposed, Laodeno stopped pretending. He merely sat slumped on the ground, allowing Yue Buqun's Precious Sword to rest against his neck.

He smiled. "Master—oh, no, Sect Leader Yue. You knew my identity from the very beginning?"

Yue Buqun remained silent, his expression cold.

Laodeno continued speaking on his own.

"But why did you not expose me from the start? No wonder you tested me for so many years before accepting me into the sect. I suppose you were also considering how exactly to deal with me."

"You feared my Master, Zuo Lengchan, yet wanted to use me to guard against him. You truly are meticulous in your schemes, a hero of your generation."

Even after hearing Laodeno expose his own background, Yue Lingshan and Lu Dayou still looked as if they could not believe it.

Only Linghu Chong gritted his teeth and staggered several steps forward.

"La...od...eno...!"

He glared at Laodeno with all his might, but Laodeno remained as calm as drifting clouds and gentle breezes. He cast Linghu Chong a disdainful glance.

Then he looked only at Yue Buqun.

"It's hard to say which of us has the better fortune. You are no match for my Master, and your disciples are all useless. Even if you kept me around to make use of me, I fear you still could not contend with my Master. Who could have imagined that on one trip down the mountain, you would pick up such a piece of flawless jade?"

Laodeno looked at Ji Boying with some emotion.

Yue Buqun openly admitted it as well.

"Heaven has blessed Mount Hua, allowing us to gain such an excellent disciple."

Though praised, Ji Boying showed neither joy nor sorrow. Linghu Chong, however, looked deeply ashamed. Even he himself admitted that the words "all useless" described him well.

"This time, my rash move exposed my identity—or rather, made you reveal my identity regardless of the cost. That should also make my Master somewhat more vigilant. So it cannot be said to be entirely a bad thing."

Laodeno possessed excellent composure.

"It is only a pity, only a pity. I had already thought highly of Junior Disciple Brother, gathered so many men, and gone to such great lengths to lure him down the mountain. Those people were enough to kill me five or six times over, yet they could not harm Junior Disciple Brother in the slightest."

Laodeno sighed, somewhat regretful.

"From the looks of it now, Mount Hua has the greater chance of victory!"

Yue Buqun was somewhat pleased with himself.

But Laodeno said, "Not necessarily! Whether Junior Disciple Brother is a match for my Master remains uncertain! And whether the odds are great or not has little to do with Mr. Yue. You are inferior to my Master. One can only say that fate toys with men."

Zuo Lengchan held immense prestige within the Songshan Sect.

It was he who, after the Five Great Mountains Sword Sects had clashed twice with the Demon Cult and suffered grievous casualties, organized the surviving sword moves and created a flawless, grand, and majestic set of seventeen sword forms.

In the eyes of the Songshan Sect's disciples, Zuo Lengchan was virtually no different from the sect's founding patriarch.

By saying such things, Laodeno was in truth admitting that even Zuo Lengchan's talent could not compare to Ji Boying's. But he held Zuo Lengchan in such deep reverence that he would never willingly say that he was inferior.

Yue Buqun naturally understood what he meant, but he was happy at heart and did not care about anything else.

With his youngest disciple here, Mount Hua Sect would definitely be the one laughing last.

"Finished? If you are, then I can send you on your way."

Laodeno merely closed his eyes.

Just as Yue Buqun was about to make his move, Ji Boying stepped forward.

The stench of blood clung heavily to him. His face was expressionless, and the killing intent around him had yet to fade.

"Master, let me do it."

Yue Buqun yielded the spot to Ji Boying.

Ji Boying did not waste words. With a sweep of his longsword, he directly sliced off half of Laodeno's neck.

Laodeno's body crumpled to the ground, blood continuously gushing out.

Watching the murderous and gruesome scene, Yue Lingshan could not help but shudder inwardly. Her face turned pale as she hid behind Ning Zhongze.

Looking at the blood all over the floor, Yue Buqun rolled his eyes at Ji Boying.

"One sword through the heart would have done. Why did you have to kill him in such an ugly fashion? There's blood all over the ground. My House of Non-Action will need a thorough scrubbing now."

Ji Boying merely smiled without speaking. The matter had not yet been dealt with.

Linghu Chong stared blankly at the corpse of the man who had once been his second junior brother.

He looked up at Yue Buqun in utter confusion. "Master, what exactly is going on?"

"Why is Laodeno a disciple of Zuo Lengchan of the Songshan Sect? Aren't we all part of the Five Great Mountains Sword Sects? Why would Zuo Lengchan send a spy into our Mount Hua Sect?"

Yue Buqun glared at Linghu Chong as though he hated iron for not becoming steel.

Then he turned and sat down once more in the grand armchair at the seat of honor.

He let out a long sigh.

"I said you lot were worthless, and you truly are worthless. Even now, you still cannot see the situation clearly."

"You ask why Zuo Lengchan sent a spy into our Mount Hua Sect? To deal with our Mount Hua Sect. Zuo Lengchan has harbored towering ambitions for a long time—he has long wanted to unify the Five Great Mountains Sword Sects. Who knows how long he has been preparing to swallow up the Five Great Mountains?"

"Do you think he only planted spies in our Mount Hua Sect? I fear there are quite a few in the Mount Tai Sect and Mount Heng Sect as well."