Elsewhere, Gu Ningyun went straight to Xia Jue of the Azure Tide Sect as soon as she returned.
She said little, simply placing a stack of evidence of the Zhu Household's crimes before him.
Xia Jue leafed through the "good" deeds the Zhu Household had done over the years, his lips curling slightly. He came straight to the point. "So, Fellow Daoist Gu, you want to use the Azure Tide Sect's Enforcement Hall to eliminate the Zhu Household?"
From the reports sent back earlier, he already knew something of the Zhu Household's current state. It had fallen apart, its members fleeing and scattering.
It seemed Gong Wusheng had already abandoned the Zhu Household.
Yet Gu Ningyun, standing before him, seemed to have no intention of stopping. She appeared determined to find the Zhu Household members who had harmed her family all those years ago.
Gu Ningyun pressed her lips together. "It's a trade!"
A smile lingered at the corners of Xia Jue's mouth, but there was not a trace of warmth in his eyes. "I believe you've come to the wrong person and the wrong place, Fellow Daoist Gu. Although the Zhu Household did have some connection to the spirit-draining stone vein, now that it has scattered, our Enforcement Hall considers its mission complete."
Gu Ningyun's face paled. "So you don't intend to hunt them down to the last?"
Xia Jue shook his head. "They were never central figures in the spirit-draining stone operation. There's no need to waste manpower wiping them out."
"What if I can pay in spirit stones?"
Xia Jue still wore an apologetic expression. "Our Enforcement Hall only carries out what it believes is right. We do not undertake unnecessary tasks. Besides, we have no shortage of spirit stones."
The light in Gu Ningyun's eyes faded