While Su Chen was on his way to Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower.
In the courtyard of Lei Hall.
Lei Ao's corpse lay on a white cloth on the ground, while a corpse-sewer was stitching his head back on.
Five other people were in the courtyard.
At their head stood Lei Mu, the hall master of Lei Hall. He was broad-shouldered and fierce-faced, giving off the air of an angry guardian deity.
The other four were Lei Mu, the deputy hall master, and the remaining three guardians: Lei Yao, Lei Gu, and Lei Muyan.
These were the five core figures of Lei Hall.
"Let's go to the meeting hall. Lei Gu, tell us what happened to Lei Ao!"
As Lei Mu spoke, he headed toward Lei Hall's meeting hall.
Once they entered the hall, Lei Mo waved a hand, and everyone inside quickly filed out.
"Hall Master, Lei Ao was killed with a single slash. He had a brief exchange with his attacker before he died!"
"Judging by the time of death, it must have happened around dawn."
"First, one of his hands was severed, then his head."
"From the traces, the attacker used a blade, and it must be close to Artifact Grade."
"Not only did he wield a blade, he was also a powerful cultivator of a Cold Attribute Cultivation Method!"
"There's cold energy in Lei Ao's severed hand. It hasn't dispersed, and it gives me a chill. The attacker may be stronger than the Innate realm."
Lei Gu spoke up.
Lei Gu's name suited his build. He was so gaunt he looked like skin and bones.
Yet a gloomy glint shone in his eyes.
"What about the Happy Pure Tower assassin?" Lei Yao asked from the side.
"He was also killed with a single slash to the head. But unlike Lei Ao, although someone else took the body away, I examined the traces at the scene. The assassin must have been beheaded before he could react at all!"
"The wound looks the same as Lei Ao's. What I don't understand is that the attacker exchanged blows with Lei Ao, so why didn't the Happy Pure Tower assassin even get the chance to strike?"
Lei Gu said gravely.
"You mean the Happy Pure Tower assassin wasn't taken away by the attacker, but by someone else?"
Having caught the meaning behind Lei Gu's words, Lei Mu asked.
"Yes!"
Lei Gu nodded, entirely confident of this.
"So more than one group was keeping an eye on the Happy Pure Tower assassin."
"Second Brother, why was that assassin in Lei Ao's home? Didn't you tell him to leave as soon as possible?"
Lei Mu asked, his expression dark.
"I don't know either," Lei Mo said hurriedly.
But inwardly, he cursed Lei Ao.
"Tell me, who do you think did this? What are they after?"
Lei Mu didn't press the matter further. The priority now was to identify the attacker and figure out what they wanted.
"Hall Master, do you think this might have something to do with Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower?" asked a middle-aged man who had been silent until now.
He was Lei Muyan, one of Lei Hall's four guardians.
"Lei Ao secretly hired someone from Happy Pure Tower to make the attempt behind our backs. Now both Lei Ao and the Happy Pure Tower assassin are dead."
"And they're even hanging at the entrance to Lei Hall. This is clearly revenge, so it must have been Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower."
Lei Muyan continued.
"But Ling Tianhe is in charge of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower now. Su Chen is just a puppet. Ling Tianhe is a clever man; he wouldn't drag Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower down with Su Mengbai."
Lei Mu shook his head.
"Hall Master, Lei Ao went to threaten Ling Tianhe these past two days, demanding that he hand over the Huo Village mine."
"There's Void Nether Stone deep in that mine. Zitan Palace needs a steady supply of ore. If Ling Tianhe wants Zitan Palace's help, he has to secure the Void Nether Stone mine."
"Lei Ao pushed him too far, forcing him into a corner. So he killed Lei Ao and the assassin to threaten us."
Lei Muyan said gravely.
"Ling Tianhe isn't even at the Innate Late Stage. That old fool dares threaten Lei Hall? Hall Master, I'll go snap his neck," Lei Yao said.
"We really can't kill him just yet," Lei Muyan said solemnly.
"He's only Ling Tianhe. Why can't we kill him?" Lei Mu asked, frowning.
"I think the deputy hall master knows the reason."
Lei Muyan looked at Lei Mo.
"I do?" A hint of surprise crossed his face.
He didn't understand what Lei Muyan meant.
"Who was Lei Ao working for? Third Young Master Qin. And he took it upon himself to hire a Happy Pure Tower assassin to kill Su Mengbai!"
"Ling Tianhe must know about this. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so brazen as to kill Lei Ao and the Happy Pure Tower assassin and hang them at the entrance to Lei Hall."
"I expect this news to spread quickly. People from Zitan Palace will arrive in Qingcheng City in just a few days, and this matter will gain momentum before then. If we kill Ling Tianhe, the people from Zitan Palace won't even bother discussing it with us before turning on the Lei Family."
"Although Lei Hall has connections with Young Master Qin, he probably won't offend Zitan Palace for our sake."
Lei Muyan said, his expression troubled.
"Are we just going to let Ling Tianhe off, then?"
Lei Mu's face turned cruel.
"If we can't kill Ling Tianhe, we can kill Su Chen. Doesn't Ling Tianhe want to become the hall master? We'll kill Su Chen in Ling Tianhe's name!"
"Didn't the people coming from Zitan Palace have ties to Su Mengbai? Once they hear Su Chen has been killed, Ling Tianhe won't survive."
Lei Yao spoke up.
"Ling Tianhe is a cunning old fox who controls Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower's intelligence network. If he dared do this, he must have a trump card."
"Perhaps he's waiting for us to kill Su Chen. Once Su Chen is dead, he can truly take over Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower."
Lei Mo said gravely.
His words hung in the air.
The atmosphere in the hall grew tense.
"Why are you all so timid? Is killing one person really that difficult?"
Just then,
a figure in black walked into the hall. It was Elder Mo.
"Elder Mo!"
The five men in the hall greeted him with a slight bow.
"If you don't dare kill them, I'll help you. Su Chen and Ling Tianhe are both fair game!"
"All I want is for you to take control of the Void Nether Stone mine as soon as possible."
Elder Mo said coldly.
The five men's faces brightened at his words.
Lei Mu stepped forward. "If Elder Mo is willing to act, that would be best. Ling Tianhe is in charge of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower now, and he's the one refusing to hand over the Void Nether Stone mine. If you can kill him—"
"Leave that puppet, Su Chen, alive. If he doesn't want to die, I think he'll hand over the mine!"
Lei Mu said.
"Good. Today will be Ling Tianhe's last day!"
Elder Mo said coldly.
"I came here for one other thing. You've already used up the Void Nether Stone from the previous batch. Hurry and transport another batch over."
"Also, let Third Young Master Qin know that the formation he used last time is close to breaking. Tell him to set it up again."
With that, the old man turned and left the hall.
Inside Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower.
Ling Tianhe received a secret letter.
It contained information about Elder Mo, who had appeared in the meeting hall of Lei Hall.
"A demonic cultivator from beyond the frontier, a mid-stage Spirit Refining expert—Mo Beiming."
Before you continue