The Inner Sect, Tongchen Peak.
Beneath the setting sun, the shadows of the Affairs Hall's eaves stretched long.
Shan Zifeng sat casually in the hall, holding a small booklet and leafing through it page by page.
A cultivator dressed as an outer sect disciple stood in the hall.
With Shan Zifeng saying nothing, he was at something of a loss.
"..."
The atmosphere in the room was oppressive. Perhaps the disciple truly could no longer bear it, for he finally spoke in a trembling voice.
"S-Senior Brother Shan..."
Shan Zifeng suddenly interrupted him. "You sent quite a lot of spirit grain and Spirit Tea back to the sect last month, didn't you...?"
"How come there was only this much left when it reached my Affairs Hall...?"
"Thirty percent less than usual."
Shan Zifeng spoke very slowly.
Yet every word made the Outer Sect Cultivators' heart pound with terror.
Shan Zifeng walked up to him and grabbed his hair.
"You pocketed it?"
With a smack, a Jade Slip in his hand struck the outer sect disciple's face, stirring a heart-jolting sound in the deathly silent Affairs Hall.
"No..."
"Nothing of the sort, Senior Brother Shan..."
The outer sect disciple trembled all over, his forehead bruised purple and seeping blood.
"According to reports, the Northern Fort was attacked by Demon Beasts last month..."
Bang!!
Before he could finish, a porcelain cup grazed his ear and shattered against a Coiling Dragon Pillar.
Porcelain shards flew everywhere.
Shan Zifeng suddenly lashed out, kicking the side of the Outer Sect Cultivators' knee.
The Outer Sect Cultivators cried out in pain and collapsed to the floor.
A pair of python-patterned boots ground down hard on the fingers he had braced against the floor. "You failed to guard it properly, and you still dare make excuses?"
"Oh,