Only after everyone had left the hall did an old man with white hair and beard, his hair pinned in a topknot, stride inside.
"What's this, Yuliang? Something this serious happened, and you didn't even have someone tell an old friend like me? The one pulling the strings must be someone important."
"Otherwise, with that temper of yours, you'd have tucked a blade into your belt and gone after them already."
"Come on, tell me. Who's behind it?"
"These old arms and legs may be creaking, but I can still swing a blade!"
"That's enough, Beishen. I appreciate the thought!"
Gao Yuliang studied the friend who had stormed into the hall. After a long moment, she merely smiled and shook her head.
"What, is this person so powerful that you're afraid even saying their name will drag me into it?"
Seeing that long-absent expression on his former lover's face, Lu Beishen froze for an instant. Then he put away his habitual smile and spoke solemnly.
"Yu Liang, you're an Inner Sect Elder of the Heavenly Star Sect."
"You've made outstanding contributions to the Heavenly Star Sect over countless years."
"Whoever is behind this may be no ordinary figure. Even your standing as an Inner Sect Elder won't be enough to deal with the trouble they bring."
"But don't we have the sect behind us? Don't we have the Sect Leader, a mighty Tribulation-Crossing Pseudo-Immortal Powerhouse?"
A flicker of hesitation crossed Gao Yuliang's face at his impassioned words, but she soon grew resolute again.
"This whole affair began because of me. Unless there's no other choice, I don't want to involve the sect."
"Bei Shen, you should leave too!"
Lu Beishen heard the exhaustion in his friend's voice. Having lived for countless years at Great Vehicle Perfection, he was no fool.