"Master Lü! This is all a misunderstanding!"
"Master Lü! Please come out and speak with us!"
The Supreme Clarity Sect's inner grounds had descended into chaos. Disciples scattered in every direction, calling out at the top of their lungs.
But no one answered.
Atop the spire of a pavilion in the central district stood a tall, thin elder in a silver-trimmed red robe, his hands clasped behind his back and his face grim.
Beside him stood a clean-shaven, fair-faced middle-aged man: Elder Tang Ren.
After a long while, the disciples came flying back from every direction.
"Elder Pan, Elder Tang, we've searched everywhere. There's no sign of Master Lü."
"Master Lü must have heard us. He's just hiding and refusing to come out."
"Elders, what should we do next?"
Elder Pan drew a sharp breath and called out, "Master Lü! I am Pan Dechang, an elder of the Supreme Clarity Sect. I swear on my life that our sect bears you no ill will! Please come out and speak with us so we can clear up this misunderstanding!"
"Misunderstanding... standing... ing..." The echoes rolled through the sect's inner grounds.
The disciples held their breath and waited.
But the man they were waiting for never appeared.
"Martial Uncle Pan, after we activated the Mountain-Guarding Grand Formation, Master Lü must have become deeply suspicious of our sect. He won't come out," Chen Rong said softly.
"Keep looking!"
Once Elder Pan Dechang had sent the nearby disciples away, he sighed and glared at Tang Ren. "Junior Brother Tang, look what you've done!"
Tang Ren forced a smile. "Senior Brother, I was thinking of Master Lü's safety. With a treasure of the dark path in his possession, he was bound to be targeted by the Black Heaven Cult. He would have been better off