Yuan Songting saw a handsome face appear before him.
Who else could it be but Su Fei, whom he had met that day?
Yuan Songting's pupils contracted sharply. He instantly slumped into his chair, his mouth hanging open.
Turmoil surged through his heart in an instant, for Su Fei had stumbled upon the entirety of his plot to murder his master.
At that moment, panic, dread, and terror engulfed Yuan Songting. His fingertips trembled slightly beyond his control, and the composure he had shown while plotting to seize power vanished without a trace. He spoke in a quavering voice, stumbling over his words.
"Ch-Chiliarch Su? Wh-why aren't you resting in the guest room? Why have you trespassed into this old man's courtyard in the dead of night?"
Su Fei stood tall at the doorway, a faint smile in his eyes as he spoke at an unhurried pace.
"Elder Yuan, your words make no sense. As a chiliarch of the Demon Suppression Bureau, inspecting the sects of Qingyang Circuit is part of my duties. Among all the sect territories under heaven, where am I forbidden to go? What you said was entirely unreasonable."
As his words fell, Su Fei's gaze abruptly turned cold. His eyes fixed directly on the panicked Yuan Songting, and every word he spoke was sharp.
"What I would like to ask you is this: these people are draped in strange black robes and wreathed in evil energy. They are certainly not martial artists of the Crimson Flame Sect. You secretly met outsiders late at night and joined forces to poison Sect Master Shi Haotian. And what exactly is this major undertaking you spoke of plotting behind the scenes? Explain every detail."
Yuan Songting's Adam's apple bobbed hard. His mind was thrown into chaos, and his lips moved