Many different opinions, but the real culprit hides in the dust.

Three dark figures from the Martial Soul Hall Adjudication Hall Secret Guard hauled the limp and powerless Tang San away, vanishing into the dense shadows of the forest in an instant. They left behind not even a lingering trace of soul power, as if they had never existed at all.

On the Shrek Academy training grounds, the dust and smoke gradually settled, leaving only cracked earth in their wake—a testament to the sudden, violent clash that had just transpired.

The entire area remained deathly silent. The shock and lingering terror on everyone's faces refused to fade, and their gazes remained fixed on the chaotic center of the field, their hearts churning with endless confusion.

Xiao Wu's hand, clutching Lin Chen's sleeve, tightened slightly. Her pretty face was pale with lingering fear as she spoke in a trembling voice, "It's too strange. How could the people from the Martial Soul Hall appear right on cue to intercept Tang San? Tang San had hidden himself so well; no one should have known he was coming back."

Ning Rongrong's brows were tightly furrowed, her glass-like eyes filled with bewilderment as she echoed softly, "Exactly. Tang San breaking through to level forty and sneaking back to the academy to silence witnesses were all supposed to be secret matters. Yet, the Martial Soul Hall acted as if they knew everything in advance and laid an ambush here early. Someone must have tipped them off."

Zhu Zhuqing remained silent, her cold eyes sweeping across the surroundings, but she detected no abnormal residual aura, making her feel that the matter was increasingly suspicious.

Lin Chen stood among the crowd, his posture upright and his expression gentle. The soul power fluctuations around him were as calm as ever, perfectly matching the ordinary state of a level thirty-six Soul Elder. He spoke softly, his tone flat and natural, without the slightest hint of intentional guidance, "The Martial Soul Hall has been entrenched on the continent for many years, and their intelligence network is spread everywhere. Perhaps it was just an eye they had planted in the dark that happened to notice Tang San's movements."

This statement was a deduction based entirely on common sense, without the slightest exaggeration. The others nodded one after another upon hearing it, yet Flender and Zhao Wuji remained solemn, their vigilance not relaxing in the slightest.

Flender paced to the center of the field, his eagle-like eyes scanning the direction of the forest. He slightly restrained his Soul Saint soul power and said in a deep voice, "It was no coincidence. The Martial Soul Hall Adjudication Hall Secret Guard are all death soldiers who execute top-secret missions. Without precise, classified intelligence, they would never act rashly, nor would they have timed their strike on Tang San with such flawless accuracy."

Zhao Wuji nodded heavily and said in a gruff voice, "The awe that the leader of the Secret Guard showed when looking toward the forest just now was definitely not faked. It is clear he was extremely wary of the person who sent the message. But to bypass the security of the Martial Soul Hall's top-secret communication points without a sound or leaving a trace—that is not something achieved by overwhelming power, but by someone who has mastered the world's peak techniques of breath concealment, stealth, and espionage."

The two exchanged a look, both voicing the same conclusion:

That mysterious informant was neither a god, nor a Limit Douluo, nor a peak powerhouse like a Titled Douluo. Instead, it was a veteran intelligence soul master who had long hidden in the shadows, belonging to some secret intelligence organization or operating as a lone wolf!

Such soul masters might not have reached the pinnacle of cultivation—perhaps they were only at the Soul Douluo level, or even high-level Soul Emperors—but their methods of concealment, investigation, and information relay were the best on the continent. They could easily evade various soul power alerts to obtain top-secret information silently, making them the most troublesome entities on the continent.

They were not adept at frontal assaults, but they could strategize and achieve their goals through the hands of others. Their movements were erratic and impossible to track, making them far more elusive than those with top-tier combat power.

This deduction instantly dispelled the group's fantasies about a "top-tier powerhouse" and perfectly aligned with the common knowledge of the power dynamics on the Douluo Continent—the Martial Soul Hall had many enemies, and there were plenty of intelligence forces and hidden soul masters lurking in the dark, waiting for a chance to retaliate. Using the Martial Soul Hall to eliminate the remnants of the Clear Sky Sect was entirely logical.

Dai Mubai suddenly realized, saying, "So it was a hidden soul master skilled in espionage and stealth. No wonder they could send a message to the Martial Soul Hall without a sound and precisely control Tang San's movements. People like that are always elusive; there's simply no way to track them."

Ma Hongjun also let out a sigh of relief, scratching his head as he said, "It's a good thing it's not some peerless powerhouse, otherwise we at Shrek wouldn't have a moment of peace."

In an instant, everyone concluded that the person behind the scenes was merely an ordinary high-level soul master skilled in espionage and trickery. They possessed neither top-tier cultivation nor an extraordinary status; they were simply someone good at hiding in the dark and manipulating the board.

And Lin Chen, standing in the crowd, felt no ripples in his heart, his expression remaining indifferent.

This was exactly the result he wanted.

No gods, no Limit Douluos, no extraordinary status. Others would only view the person behind the scenes as an insignificant intelligence soul master, completely lowering their guard, and they would never cast suspicious eyes toward him, an ordinary Shrek student.

The ultimate concealment power of the Star Hidden Grass remained wrapped around his entire body, impossible for anyone below a god to detect. The thick soul power of his level sixty-two Soul Emperor cultivation was completely sealed deep within his dantian, indistinguishable from the calm aura he projected. Even if Flender and Zhao Wuji were to scan him repeatedly with their spiritual sense, they would only perceive him as a mediocre, gentle-natured youth, having nothing to do with a mysterious person "skilled in espionage and layout."

The system's notification sound rang quietly in Lin Chen's mind:

[Ding! The Shrek group has determined the mysterious informant to be a high-level intelligence soul master. No suspicions regarding top-tier powerhouses exist. The host's identity is free of any suspicion.]

[Ding! The group has no intention to pursue the mysterious person. Disguise status is perfectly maintained; zero risk of exposure.]

[Ding! Tang San has been taken into custody by the Martial Soul Hall. The hostile threat is temporarily neutralized. The layout has been successfully solidified.]

Lin Chen's lips curled into an imperceptible smile, then returned to his gentle expression. He watched the others discuss the matter, remaining silent throughout, maintaining the posture of an outsider.

Xiao Wu looked up at the calm Lin Chen beside her, her inner panic gradually subsiding. She never imagined that this youth, who had always been by her side and seemed entirely unremarkable, was the true mastermind behind this entire layout.

Flender looked toward the depths of the forest and sternly instructed the group, "Let this matter rest here; do not mention it again in the future. The conflict between that mysterious intelligence soul master and the Martial Soul Hall has nothing to do with Shrek. We need only focus on our cultivation and avoid getting involved in unnecessary disputes."

Everyone agreed, and although the clouds of doubt in their hearts had not completely dissipated, they no longer delved into it.

After all, a hidden soul master skilled in espionage was far less intimidating than a top-tier powerhouse, and not worth the effort of tracking down.

The setting sun gradually dipped below the horizon, and twilight enveloped Shrek Academy. The day's upheaval seemed like nothing more than a brief gust of wind, quickly suppressed by everyone in their hearts.

Deep in the forest, Ghost Fiend and his party of Martial Soul Hall secret guards were moving quickly while escorting Tang San.

Two subordinates lowered their voices and asked Ghost Fiend, "Captain, are we really not going to investigate the identity of that mysterious informant?"

Ghost Fiend glanced at them coldly and replied in a deep voice, "No need to investigate, and we wouldn't find anything anyway. The other party is a top-tier intelligence soul master; their methods of concealment and stealth are rare in this world, and we would never be able to track them. We only need to complete our mission and deliver Tang San to the Martial Soul Hall to fulfill our duty. Do not provoke such opponents who hide in the shadows."

In Ghost Fiend's mind, he also concluded that the informant was a hidden soul master skilled in espionage, possessing top-tier intelligence and concealment methods but lacking top-tier cultivation, merely adept at laying plans in the dark. Although he felt wary, he never considered them an extraordinary powerhouse, nor did he imagine that the mysterious person he was desperately trying to find was not hiding in the shadows, but was instead tucked away in the sunlight at Shrek Academy.

He would never imagine that Lin Chen, whom he viewed as completely unthreatening and ordinary, was not only the true mastermind but also a chess player with the cultivation of a level sixty-two Soul Emperor whose concealment power could deceive the very heavens.

As the night deepened, Shrek Academy returned to peace, and the Martial Soul Hall secret guards disappeared into the darkness with Tang San. Everyone was deducing the ins and outs of this turmoil based on their own judgments.

No one knew that all the doubts, all the deductions, and all the layouts were entirely orchestrated by Lin Chen.

With an ordinary body, he hid his Soul Emperor strength, and with the identity of an ordinary student, he deceived everyone's eyes, keeping the entire turmoil firmly under his control.

The true master of secrets is never the powerhouse hiding in the shadows of the forest with top-tier cultivation, but the ordinary person standing in the sunlight, blending in among the mortals, appearing unremarkable yet capable of manipulating everything.

The storm had temporarily subsided, the undercurrents remained, and Lin Chen's chess game had only just begun to follow its intended path.