The Peak Masters were all too eager for gossip

Fu Shouci had ordered everyone to keep quiet about the Demon Clan spy caught outside Pill Peak's Shadow Prison.

At that moment, in the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's Council Hall.

Fu Shouci sat at the head of the hall. Below him, the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's senior members who were not in seclusion and had a say in its affairs sat solemnly upright. Liang Qiu sat to one side, his expression grave as well.

"Then it's settled. Starting today, every peak will conduct a discreet internal investigation. Focus on the elders in charge of affairs on each peak and disciples who have reached the Golden Core stage."

"Bai Wuxia, starting today, take your Law Enforcement Hall elders and direct disciples to investigate every corner of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect in secret.

Reexamine all unusual incidents that have occurred in the Ten Thousand Swords Sect over the past ten years, too. See whether any suspicious people were involved."

"Jiang Mei, take the Formation Peak elders and accompany Xu You to the Shadow Prison later. Inspect and repair its formations, and add a few more layers while you're there."

As Fu Shouci spoke, he already had a plan in mind.

He intended to trap the Demon Clan spies hiding within the Ten Thousand Swords Sect and catch them all in one sweep!

Then he would eliminate these Demon Clan spies from the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, step by step.

"Yes, Sect Leader."

The Peak Masters immediately cupped their hands in acknowledgment.

At that moment, Qi Yan, the Peak Master of Talisman Peak, spoke.

"Senior Brother, why not find some other pretext to have Tang Yan visit each peak? Perhaps we can learn more about the demons from him. That would help us catch the demonic spies lurking in the shadows sooner."

The others nodded in agreement.

Fu Shouci said, "Junior Sister Qi has a point. I'll assign that task to Ji Xue later."

As he spoke, Fu Shouci paused, glanced at his junior brothers and sisters seated below, then continued.

"There's another important matter. Little Five is now an ordinary person with no cultivation at all. Although he has a supreme treasure and won't be easily harmed, I'm still somewhat uneasy.

So I intend to assign him a personal bodyguard. Who do you think would be the best choice?"

The moment Fu Shouci finished speaking, all the Peak Masters perked up.

Jiang Mei, the Peak Master of Formation Peak, spoke first. "Me, me, me! Senior Brother, let me do it! Protecting people is my favorite thing to do."

Kuang Yishan, the deputy Peak Master of Ten Thousand Swords Peak, refused to be outdone. "I like it too. Senior Brother, choose me."

The others hurried to speak up as well.

"I'll do it. My combat strength is a notch above Junior Sister Jiang's and Junior Brother Kuang's."

"Bullshit! Your Law Enforcement Hall has more work than you can handle. Can you really keep Martial Nephew Tang Yan safe? Let me do it instead."

"Damn it, Ye Sheng! Your Artifact Peak just lost a disciple with outstanding artifact-refining talent not long ago. You should focus on managing your peak. Protecting other people isn't the job for you."

"..."

As Fu Shouci listened to his junior brothers and sisters bickering endlessly below, his face darkened.

Normally, whenever something needed doing, every last one of them would slack off if they could.

But the instant he mentioned choosing someone to protect Little Five, they all sprang to life.

This was outrageous. It was just gossip—did they have to get so excited?

"Enough! All of you, shut up!" Fu Shouci cut off their squabbling, his expression thunderous.

Everyone below promptly snapped their mouths shut, falling utterly silent.

"You're all several hundred years old, yet you keep chattering like children."

Fu Shouci rolled his eyes inelegantly and said sternly.

"You'll take turns, seven days each, starting with Ten Thousand Swords Peak. Junior Brother Nangong is still in seclusion, so Fei Zhong, you'll take his place. Just remember one thing: Little Five must not notice anything amiss."

Fei Zhong's face broke into a broad smile. "Yes, Senior Brother Sect Leader. I'll follow your orders."

As he spoke, he made sure to cast a smug glance at his fellow disciples. His grin positively radiated self-satisfaction.

After a moment's thought, Fu Shouci added, "If Little Five needs to leave the sect in the future, we'll make separate arrangements then."

"Yes."

"All right. Now let's discuss how to use Xu Zhenzhen and Jiang Liu'er to lure out the Demon Clan spies hiding in the shadows."

After discussing matters in the Council Hall for most of the day, the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's senior members finally settled on a plan.

Fu Shouci wasted no time putting the plan to trap the spies into motion.

Only after the Peak Masters had left did Liang Qiu speak from beside him.

"Old man, could you lend that brat Tang to my Divine Medicine Sect for a while? Don't worry. I'll make absolutely sure he's safe."

Fu Shouci said, "We haven't even dealt with the Demon Clan spies in my Ten Thousand Swords Sect yet."

"I think you should go back and conduct your own internal investigation first. In any case, the Two-Sect Grand Competition will be held at the Divine Medicine Sect in a month. I'll bring Little Five along. If anything's amiss, we'll be able to learn a thing or two then."

Liang Qiu frowned, but eventually said, "Fine. Then I'll head back first and tell Junior Sister He Qing to start an internal investigation."

Fu Shouci was just about to rise when he suddenly remembered another important matter.

"Right, I almost forgot something important. Once you return to the Eastern Region, issue a notice in the Divine Medicine Sect's name. Say that your sect has discovered Demon Clan spies, and urge the people in charge of all major sects, clans, and guilds in the Eastern Region to conduct internal investigations."

The top sects of each region served as pillars of stability for that region.

Whenever a major incident arose in a region, its top sects took the lead.

Generally, when a top sect issued a notice, the sects and clans beneath it would all respond.

Liang Qiu nodded. "I would have notified them even if you hadn't said anything."

Fu Shouci's expression eased slightly.

"We should also notify the Northern Domain, Western Region, and Central Region. As for the Demon Region..."

As he spoke, Fu Shouci's brow furrowed again.

A thousand years ago, humans and demons had fought together against the invading Demon Clan, and relations between the two sides had been fairly good.

But over the past thousand years, all manner of conflicts had broken out between the Demon Region and the Human Region. Their relations were now bitterly hostile, and neither side had had dealings with the other for a hundred years.

Liang Qiu sighed as well. "Let's take care of our Human Region first. Hopefully, when the Demon Clan returns, we'll be able to protect our sects and disciples as best we can."

"Alas..."