The moment the Great Leader spoke, everyone present turned to look at him.
"Ahem." Scarface Elder coughed twice. "The gods certainly exist, Great Leader. You were once a High Sun Priest. You should be mindful of your position."
The Great Leader realized he had misspoken and fell silent. Xia Lun said nothing either, and for a moment, the hall was quiet.
Xia Lun's eyes shifted as he quickly pieced together what he knew.
His experience in Evil Serpent City had shown him that Secret Art Scholars with Knowledge existed in this world. These scholars called themselves gods and took a keen interest in interfering with mortal affairs. To preserve their authority, they would even bring down Divine Punishment on those who offended them.
That made the Great Leader's attitude toward the gods rather strange. By all rights, there was a good chance he had seen one.
Contradictory facts often concealed important information. One possibility would explain the Great Leader's behavior perfectly: the Secret Art Scholars of this world possessed the Cognitive Filter.
From there, Xia Lun could infer something else. Philos Arne, who actively interfered with mortal affairs and brought down Divine Punishment, might not belong to the same faction as the Secret Art Scholars who imposed the Cognitive Filter. In other words, the scholars were not united. There were conflicts among them.
At that thought, Xia Lun recalled the Deer of Abundance's Head the Burly Youth had mentioned.
Had the Deer of Abundance died in a feud among the Secret Art Scholars?
But if so, why had the Dancer brought its head out?
"So who exactly is this Dancer?" the Great Leader asked again. "If she could carry the Deer of Abundance's Head, why would she be content to live as a Slave?"
"Xia Lun just told us her