Intricate and Complicated

"Think about it. If this despicable frame-up hadn't succeeded, we would have already captured Baihe City, and further captured Yuanhua City, completely linking Linfeng City, Yuanhua City, Lingxiao City, and Baihe City on the border into one. From there, we could have expanded outwards to conquer surrounding cities. Before long, everything west of Star Province would have fallen into the hands of our Purgatory Sect. What a wonderful situation that would have been! But what about now?"

Qin Li spread his hands. "It's true that we've captured Baihe City, but it's an isolated city. To hold it, we don't know how much manpower and resources it will take. Lingxiao City, which was originally supposed to be a supporting force to Baihe City, has also turned against us, leaving Elder Xue attacked from both sides. In addition, Yuanhua City is blocking our way to Star Province in the east... How much impact has this had on our plan to seize Star Province? Without losing a single soldier, the situation west of Star Province has been paralyzed! How vicious is this conspiracy!?"

The palace masters exchanged glances, seemingly lost in thought.

They seemed to be pondering whether this was the true nature of a conspiracy.

"If you still can't see the truth of the matter, let's use a simple principle: the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Qin Li said, "Elder Gu first killed the Supreme Elder Yan Xuejian of the Heavenly Gang Sect, then killed the Sect Master Su Fangzheng and the Supreme Elder Su Bieli. Following that, with his momentum undiminished, he killed Zhang Lü and wiped out the Meteor Guard and the three thousand troops of the Heavenly Gang Sect. Judging by his actions rather than his intentions, can't these actions prove his stance?"

"How do you explain the Yuanhua City incident?"

"I am the head of the Supervision Hall," said Chong Qianguang in a deep voice.

"Palace Masters, Sect Leaders, let's put ourselves in their shoes. When you finally defeated the Heavenly Gang Sect and were about to take Yuanhua City while it was undefended, you were suddenly attacked. How would you feel? What would you do?"

Qin Li slapped his palm with the back of his hand. "It's perfectly reasonable for him to fight back without knowing why, my friends!"

"Don't understand? Your explanation is rather vague. Back then..."

Chong Qianguang paused, not wanting to repeatedly recount Elder Shi Chen's defeat, and could only say, "Wouldn't he recognize the Lin family's troops in Yuanhua City?"

"Once a great battle begins, deception and reality will be intertwined; who can so easily distinguish between them, especially..."

Qin Li paused slightly, then said, "As I said, there have always been people within our Purgatory Sect interfering with Elder Gu's matter. Not only do we know who that person is, but Elder Gu must know as well!"

He looked at Chong Qianguang and sneered, "If it were me, risking my life for the sect outside, only to be framed and wronged time and time again, and suddenly the culprit appeared in front of me, I would kill the culprit even if it cost me my life to vent my anger. Therefore... I wouldn't be surprised if Elder Gu did anything excessive at that time."

The deputy sect leader, Dongfang Xue, glanced at Qin Li...

What he said made such a good point that she couldn't refute it.

Um.

If they hadn't vaguely guessed what the sect leader was thinking...

Really...

But Lu Dengxian pondered and said, "Perhaps we really were sown apart by the Meteor Guards, which is why we wrongly accused Elder Gu."

Immediately afterwards, he took out a letter and said, "This is a letter that Elder Gu just sent. You may take a look."

The palace masters received the letters, examined them one by one, and their expressions...

It's very strange.

"I see."

"Elder Gu first killed Yan Xuejian, then killed Su Tong, the daughter of the Minister of the Star Patrol Department, and then surrounded and annihilated Su Fangzheng, the leader of the Heavenly Gang Sect, Su Bieli, the Supreme Master, Zhang Lu, the Star Master, and three thousand elites... This is indeed enough to prove his stance."

"Although Elder Gu has occupied Yuanhua City and Lingxiao City and become the lord of the two cities, his most recognized identity is still that of an ordinary elder of the Purgatory Sect? And he is willing to continue to respect the Purgatory Sect as the master and assist Baihe City in conquering the surrounding areas and annexing other cities?"

After reading the letter, each of the palace masters suddenly understood.

In an instant, the attitudes of these temple lords all changed.

"Perhaps Sect Master Qin is right. We have fallen into the enemy's trap and wrongly accused Elder Gu."

"Elder Gu not only has a firm stance and has occupied Yuanhua City and Lingxiao City, but he is also willing to steadfastly assist Elder Xue in conquering the surrounding areas. This merit... deserves a reward."

"Elder Gu, you are still loyal to your sect even when you are in the enemy camp. It is not easy for you."

Lu Dengxian watched this scene unfold, his expression remaining largely unchanged.

Chong Qianguang, though he knew that the sect was unwilling to spend a lot of money to deal with Gu Jinlai, still couldn't help but ask, "Elder Yang Kan and the Yuanhua City matter can be barely explained, but what about the Linfeng City matter? The Gu Clan plundered my Purgatory Sect's city, shouldn't they be punished?"

"The words of Palace Master Chong are somewhat misleading."

Qin Li said, "The conflict between the Gu Clan and the Lin family is a personal grudge. Do you understand what a personal grudge is? They are both forces under our Purgatory Sect. It is perfectly normal for them to have occasional conflicts due to some contradictions. Just because there are conflicts between our Purgatory Sect's subordinate forces, does Palace Master Chong have to escalate it to the sect level?"

"Making a big deal out of nothing? The Gu Clan is..."

Just as Chong Qianguang was about to argue, Lu Dengxian interrupted him, saying, "Alright, Lin Fengcheng is unharmed, only the Lin family suffered a slight loss. There's no need to discuss such a trivial matter at this meeting."

He turned his gaze to the crowd. "Since all the hall masters also believe that Elder Gu's matter was framed by the enemy, then the Supervision Department and the Reward and Punishment Hall shall clear Elder Gu's name again. In addition, he has made contributions in capturing Yuanhua City, and shall be rewarded with a scroll of Secret Method."

The value of Secret Method can vary greatly.

Obviously, in this situation where everyone knows the truth, this is the best way to reward someone.

"This matter... I'm afraid it might be difficult for Sect Leader Lin to handle..."

Chong Qianguang spoke again.

"Sect Leader Lin has fallen ill due to the management of the Star Province, and a misunderstanding with Elder Gu has caused some losses to the Lin family. His Qi and Blood are in danger. I suggest that Sect Leader Lin rest for a while."

Qin immediately said.

Dongfang Xuan also nodded slightly. "Sect Leader Lin is exceptionally talented. If he hadn't been burdened by sect affairs all these years, his cultivation would have progressed by leaps and bounds. He should take this time to rest and focus on cultivation. Perhaps he can even glimpse the profound Spirit Transformation stage."

Lu Dengxian glanced at the two of them. Considering that Baihe City still needed assistance in the near future, it was indeed not advisable for Lin Xiao to provoke Gu Jinlai. He immediately said, "Then let's do it that way. You two should hand over the matters he is in first."

"Yes, I will not disappoint the sect leader."

Qin Li's face lit up with joy.

Besides the Purgatory Sect, the Meteor Guards were also discussing how to handle matters from Gu Jinlai.

At this moment, Cheng Wanli, Minister of the Main Star Department, Su Wen, Minister of the Star Patrol Department, and Qi Yuanxing, Minister of the Red Star Department, were gathered together.

Besides discussing matters from Gu Jinlai and modern times, the topic of their conversation was the recent news of the fall of Baihe City.

Unlike Lingxiao City and Yuanhua City, Baihe City is one of the six major cities in Star Province.

The city alone has a population of one million.

The value of this city far surpasses that of Lingxiao City and Yuanhua City.

In addition, the city is occupied by Red-Robed Elder and Gold-Robed Elder.

These two are Qin Kaitai and Xue Wuqing. Besides being Red-Robed Elder of the Purgatory Sect, Xue Wuqing has another identity.

One of the top ten masters of the demonic path.

The strongest expert in the Purgatory Sect.

The personal disciple of Primordial Spirit True Lord Lu Zhanxian.

This is the most direct line of the Purgatory Sect.

If it weren't for his advanced age and failure to break through to the Spirit Transformation realm, he would theoretically be capable of succeeding as the sect leader of the Purgatory Sect.

"To the west of Star Province are the Purgatory Demon Sect and the Yellow Spring Sect, to the north is the Yellow Heaven Sect Path, to the east is the Dragon Sparrow Manor, and to the south is the Cold Moon Demon Sect. It borders five states: Chi Province, Huangzhou, Baizhou, Jiangzhou, and Lanzhou. Originally, we thought that the biggest threats would be the Dragon Sparrow Manor in the east and the Cold Moon Demon Sect in the south. Unexpectedly, due to a careless move, the Purgatory Demon Sect has driven a thorn in our side in the west."

Su Wen frowned.

"The situation in the East is somewhat better. Although the Dragon Sparrow Manor was restless due to the Tiancao Pavilion incident, they have calmed down after the Star Lord personally visited them. The key issues are the Cold Moon Demon Sect in the South and the newly entered Purgatory Demon Sect."

Qi Yuanxing paused slightly. "Especially the Purgatory Demon Sect and Baihe City, which is the only major city we lost, and it was lost in full view of everyone. If we don't take it back as soon as possible, the people in Star Province will inevitably be in a state of panic."

"Xue Wuqing is a peak Spirit Refining, and he is surrounded by many experts. Non-Self take action, it will be difficult."

Cheng Wanli said.

"When the three of us make a move, we have to consider one factor, and that is the Gu Jinlai of Lingxiao City."

Qi Yuanxing said in a deep voice, "Don't forget, even Qian Shan Niao Fei Jue and Shi Chen were defeated by him. If the three of us face Shi Chen, who dares to say that we are sure of winning?"

Finally, he glanced at Su Wen and said, "If there were such a thing, Minister Su probably wouldn't have remained indifferent."

"Gu Jinlai is ultimately a member of the Star Lord's Department, so I cannot directly take action against him. Otherwise... Gu Jinlai might not be able to remain at large until now."

"When Minister Su interfered in the affairs of our Star Main Department, he didn't seem to regard Gu Jinlai as a member of our Star Main Department."

Cheng Wanli snorted coldly, "Gu Jinlai, he has been at odds with the elders of the Purgatory Sect and defeated Vice Sect Master Lin Xiao. Such behavior is not like what you say about colluding with the Purgatory Sect."

"Since things have come to this, there's no point in saying more. Let's think about how to solve the problem first."

Fearing that the two would start arguing, Qi Yuanxing quickly changed the subject.

"The problem? The problem is that we are powerless to solve it."

Cheng Wanli did not insist.

Qi Yuanxing and Su Wen also fell silent.

Star Province is a battleground on all sides, with one behemoth after another eyeing it covetously. The Meteor Guards are stretched thin and have no one else available.

After a moment, Cheng Wanli suddenly said, "I have a plan that may temporarily restrain Baihe City. We can discuss the next steps after the Star Lord returns from Longque Manor."

"What method?"

"Zhang Lu is dead, and someone needs to fill his place. Judging from Gu Jinlai's actions, he and the Purgatory Sect are not on the same side. So why not let Gu Jinlai inherit Zhang Lu's position as the new Star Envoy, overseeing the three regions of Baihe, Lingxiao, and Yuanhua?"

Cheng Wanli laughed and said, "This Gu Jinlai, and he has the record of defeating Shi Chen. We've put such a big piece of meat in front of him, I don't believe he can ignore it. Let the two of them fight like dogs, and we'll sit on the sidelines and watch the show."

"No!"

Su Wen hurriedly said, "If Zhang Lu dies at his hands, and then he is appointed as the Star Envoy... aren't you afraid that things will backfire and he'll become too powerful to control?"

"But with the situation deteriorating to this point, does Minister Su have a better solution?"

Cheng Wanli countered with a question.

Su opened his mouth, but remained silent for a moment.

Qi Yuanxing sighed upon seeing this.

Although Cheng Wanli's proposal was extremely risky, Star Province's current situation was essentially a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Therefore...

"Minister Cheng, please elaborate on your thoughts."