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Ning Ning nodded, her eyes curving with delight. "Zou Wu will definitely follow Xu Ye's instructions and give me a Rare Grade spirit plant. Once everything's done, all we have to do is arrange for those two sects to meet in the same place, then fan the flames a little—and Haoran Sect will believe Niguang Island is on our side."

She paused, the smile at the corners of her mouth deepening. "Besides, Zou Wu saw with his own eyes that Rong Ci and I get along very well. I'm a lovestruck girl who'd even fall out with her friends for his sake."

Even Rong Ci would never have guessed that the undercover operation he'd painstakingly planned would become a handle they could use against him, making Haoran Sect believe Niguang Island had close ties with Ning Ning and her group.

He Zhizhou wanted to shout, "Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!"

Both sects were confident of victory. One thought it could fleece them for a fortune, while the other was wild with joy at the thought of claiming a peerless treasure. Neither could possibly have guessed that it was all a setup.

After this battle, the people of Niguang Island and Haoran Sect would surely be left badly battered.

Their overall strength was weak to begin with. After fighting each other to a standstill, they would have even less power to cause Ning Ning trouble.

This was a scheme within a scheme within a scheme: a counterintelligence ploy, an infiltration plot, a double-agent act, and sowing discord—all rolled into one. It was spectacular.

He Zhizhou clicked his tongue in admiration. "You're the Tom Cruise of our generation, aren't you?"

"Sorry."

Ning Ning answered in perfect sync, "I'm a police officer."

Dusk, Youlan Slope.

The two groups stared at each other. The face of the small leader in green, who had blasted Zou Wu with a burst of spiritual energy, had turned ashen.

—Weren't they supposed to be the only ones who knew about the Tianhe Stone? What were all these people from Haoran Sect doing here?!

Zou Wu, who had nearly had his brains blown out, looked just as grim. He clenched his fists in secret.

He'd followed Xu Ye's advice and given Ning Ning a Rare Grade spirit plant an hour earlier. Not long ago, he'd received word that she was on the run and would soon arrive at Youlan Slope.

But when he got there, she was nowhere to be seen. Then a voice suddenly sounded in his ear through Voice Transmission.

It was He Zhizhou's voice, brimming with smugness and self-satisfaction. "Did Xu Ye tell you all our secrets? Sorry, we really couldn't find a Rare Grade plant. Luckily, Niguang Island said they'd help us sort this out if we gave them half the spirit plant."

The brat sighed as he spoke, putting on an unbearably affected act. "Sigh, half it is. It wasn't ours to begin with anyway. Take care, brother!"

Zou Wu wanted to kill someone.

Meanwhile, the small leader in green's gaze shifted.

He Zhizhou's voice rang in her ear, sighing and laughing at once. He was the very picture of shamelessness. "You planted a spy among us? We spotted her ages ago. Those idiots from Haoran Sect said they'd help teach you lot a lesson if we gave them the Jinyu Furnace. What can I say? They're idiots, so we agreed."

Haoran Sect had been used as a sword!

The small leader in green clenched her fists and said coldly, "You don't know the Jinyu Furnace is a fake?"

Zou Wu's anger grew even fiercer.

These people had known all along that they were being led around by the nose, and they'd joined forces with those from Xuanxu Sword Sect to mess with them. And now they were bringing it up right to his face—

How dare they mock him to his face?!

"Damn it," Zou Wu cursed, answering with a murderous scowl. "I knew that already! The spy I planted there told me!"

The small leader in green was aghast.

He'd known all along? And he'd still teamed up with Xuanxu Sword Sect to ambush them here! This man hadn't been deceived at all—he'd wanted to wipe them out from the start!

"By the way, Niguang Island probably sent about eighty percent of its people to seize the Tianhe Stone, right? Add Rong Ci, who's still at our place..."

He Zhizhou chuckled. "I wonder how many people are left at your headquarters. Oh, wait. Ning Ning will tell me herself when she gets back."

In their eagerness to seize the Tianhe Stone, they'd left only one person behind to guard everyone's bags.

The small leader nearly spat up a mouthful of blood.

Only moments ago, she'd finally figured out that this was a silent counterintelligence plot. But she'd never imagined—

It was also a stratagem to lure the tiger from the mountain!

Bastards! Those swindlers had all been swindled by swindlers!

The small leader in green could take no more. Trembling all over, she blurted, "You sons of bitches, I'll f*** your ancestors!"

Then she met the fierce glare of the man standing right in front of her.

"You'll f*** my ancestors?"

Zou Wu sneered. "I'll kill you myself!"

Outside the Mystic Mirror, the crowd erupted.

"Unbelievable! One young girl managed to lead two whole sects around by the nose. The twists and turns just keep coming!"

"Now Haoran Sect and Niguang Island have both been badly battered. Ning Ning not only got her hands on a Rare Grade spirit plant, she also ransacked Niguang Island's bags. No matter how furious the others are, in their current state—wounded all over and with their cultivation greatly weakened—they can't do a thing to her."

"Now she can sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight. She must be having the time of her life. Ha ha!"

He Xiaochen, the sect master of Liuming Mountain, roared with laughter. "As expected of Elder Tianxian's disciple! That unconventional approach of hers really does have a touch of her master's style."

The female cultivator from Wanjian Sect, who had nearly smashed the Mystic Mirror in a fit of rage moments earlier, let out a long breath and chuckled in relief. "That boy Xu Ye... What a relief. But how did Elder Tianxian know that Xu Ye's defection was part of a setup?"

"Huh?"

Tian Xianzi swallowed the pastries stuffed in his mouth, then gulped down some tea. With a mysterious grin, he said, "Look at how dumb your disciple is. Does he seem like someone who could come up with a plan to defect to the enemy?"

The woman's mouth twitched. "Tian Xianzi, fight me!"

Tian Xianzi slipped behind Zhen Xiao. "Senior Brother, she's bullying me!"

Zhen Xiao ignored him. His gaze, as cold as wind and snow, swept across the Mystic Mirror, and his voice was just as cool. "Why scheme and plot when you're a Sword Cultivator? If someone refuses to yield, draw your sword and make them."