On the night the siege ended, the doors of the council hall of the Elder Hall in Spirit City were closed for half an hour.
The servants waiting outside the door couldn't hear anything at first, but they vaguely sensed that the Soul Power fluctuations coming from the crack in the door were heavier than usual, as if something was being pressed down inside the room.
About 15 minutes later, the door suddenly opened from the inside, Bibi Dong walked out quickly. Her hem swept across the threshold, creating a gust of wind. The servants bowed and noticed out of the corner of their eyes that her face was a bit colder than usual. They left without saying a word.
The servant didn't dare to look up until the footsteps faded into the distance. As he pushed open the door to tidy up, a teacup on the table broke, and tea stains dripped down the edge of the table onto the floor.
There was a thin crack in the ground, as if something had struck it hard. He collected the fragments without asking, looking, or saying anything.
Early the next morning, an order from Spirit City was sent to the Spirit Hall Branch of Heaven Dou City, ordering a halt to the operation to annihilate the Pill Pavilion.
At this point, the commotion around the Godwind Academy noticeably subsided. No one from the Spirit Hall appeared near the academy again, and no one came knocking.
The notice at the entrance of the Pill Pavilion branch was posted for two days, and the number of people in line gradually increased from one or two to seven or eight, and then to more than a dozen.
Some people looked at the date on the notice, then at the sign hanging at the shop entrance that read, "That's the end of it," as stated by the Grand Elder of the Spirit Hall.
The discussion shifted from "Does your Pill Pavilion actually have a problem?" to "So, those previous statements were part of a plot against you."
The shopkeeper didn't answer directly, but just smiled and handed over the wrapped medicine.
At the same time, the discussion about the Pill Pavilion in Heaven Dou City shifted. Someone at a tea stall said, "Even the Grand Elder of the Spirit Hall has personally said it's over, so the Pill Pavilion must be innocent."
Someone asked, "Then who spread those rumors?" The person next to him didn't speak, but their eyes said it all.
When the news reached Godwind Academy, Feng Lingtian was sitting at a table in the side hall of the Pill Pavilion, with an open notebook in front of him and a pen beside him, as if he had been writing for a while but had not yet finished.
After listening to the messenger, he nodded without saying a word, and only closed his notebook after the messenger left.
Feng Lingtian sat for a while, then reached into the drawer beside him and took out a letter. The envelope was yellowed, unsigned, and unmarked, with only four characters written on it, "Wind Control Divine Sect ".
The letter was found on his desk last night.
He couldn't remember where he put it, only that the light from the oil lamp fell on the envelope, and he thought it was a piece of paper that someone had forgotten to take with them. When he picked it up, he found that there was writing on it.
He kept quiet and didn't tell anyone about the letter's existence because its contents couldn't be made public immediately.
He reviewed the records repeatedly to confirm that they matched the information he already knew.
But each time he saw it, his feelings became more complicated.
The events mentioned in this document corroborated what he had read in the family archives, pointing to a conclusion he had long suspected but had always lacked evidence for:
The Speed Family was tricked back then. And the person who tricked them had a much larger power behind them than they imagined.
Feng Lingtian knew this item was important, but he didn't know who the messenger was or what their purpose was. As a transmigrator, he understood better than anyone that this kind of "anonymous intelligence delivery" tactic often involved a much larger scheme.
He should have been cautious and investigated the source before taking action, but the records were indeed related to his family—his mother, his uncle, and the clansmen who died in the fire.
Feng Lingtian closed the letter, put it back in the drawer, sat silently for a while, then got up and left.
He originally intended to go to the back mountain to find the ancestor and ask him directly, but when he reached the corner of the corridor, he met his father, Feng Qingxuan.
Feng Qingxuan stood under the eaves, as if he had just come from that side. He paused when he saw him. "Your mother has woken up and says she wants to see you."
After Feng Lingtian nodded, he followed his father through the corridor to visit his mother.
When he pushed the door open, Bai Qingyin was already sitting on the edge of the bed, wearing an outer robe, and looked more energetic than a few days ago.
Feng Xiaotian was already there, sitting in a chair by the window, holding a glass of water but not drinking it.
When Bai Qingyin saw Feng Lingtian enter, she didn't beat around the bush. " Lingtian, I heard from your father about the encirclement and suppression. You weren't injured, were you?"
Feng Lingtian sat down beside her bed. "I'm fine. My father protected me very well, and later the Ancestor appeared."
Bai Qingyin lowered her eyes and remained silent for a while. When she raised her eyes again, her voice was softer than before. "I always thought that the Ancestor was dead."
The room fell silent for a moment.
Feng Lingtian offered no further comfort, only saying, "The Ancestor is on the back mountain of the academy. Mother, if you wish to see him, I will go and invite him."
Feng Xiaotian stood up from the window. "I'm going too."
Bai Qingyin looked at her two sons, remained silent for a long time, and finally said only two words: "Go."
That afternoon, Feng Xiaotian Feng Lingtian went to the small courtyard on the back mountain together.
When Bai Yuanqi opened the door and saw them, he didn't say anything, but stepped aside to let them in.
Upon entering, Feng Lingtian skipped the pleasantries and went straight to the point. "Grand Ancestor, Mother is very eager to see you. She sent us to inquire whether you may come over now."
Bai Yuanqi paused for a moment, then closed the courtyard gate and followed Feng Xiaotian Feng Lingtian out of the courtyard.
As Bai Yuanqi walked through the corridor, Feng Qingxuan stood by a pillar, bowed slightly, called out " Elder Bai," and stepped aside to make way.
Bai Yuanqi stopped a step as he walked past him, glanced at him, and nodded.
Bai Qingyin didn't cry when she saw Bai Yuanqi. She simply stood up, walked to him, and stood there for a long time, as if trying to see this person who had disappeared for half his life clearly again.
Bai Yuanqi spoke first, "Please sit down."
Bai Qingyin didn't sit. She stood there, her voice steady as she spoke, "When the clan's territory was burned down back then, I thought you were dead too."
Bai Yuanqi was silent for a moment. "They didn't die. When they returned, the clan's territory was nothing but a sea of fire."
Bai Qingyin didn't press further. She simply asked, "Are you finding your accommodations comfortable?"
Bai Yuanqi said, "It's alright."
Feng Lingtian Feng Xiaotian exchanged a glance, then left the room, leaving the space to themselves.
The corridor fell silent. Feng Lingtian took a few steps out, then suddenly stopped. After thinking for a moment, he turned back to the door and stood there without going in. "Ancestor, there's something I'd like you to see."
He took the unsigned file from his sleeve and handed it over. "I received it last night; it's on my desk. The cover says ' Wind Control Divine Sect,' and it records some things inside."
Bai Yuanqi took it, unfolded it, and read it through, his brow twitching slightly.
"Where did you get this?"
"I don't know who sent it," Feng Lingtian said. "It's unsigned and unmarked."
Bai Yuanqi didn't press further, putting the file into his sleeve. "Leave it for now. We'll talk about these things later."
Feng Lingtian nodded and left the room.
Feng Xiaotian leaned against the wall at the end of the corridor, waiting for him. When he saw the man come out, he didn't ask any questions, only saying, "Let's go."
The two brothers walked back side by side. After a few steps, Feng Xiaotian finally spoke, "What did the ancestor say?"
Feng Lingtian: "He said to leave it for now."
Feng Xiaotian nodded without pressing further. But both brothers knew that the appearance of that file meant something was already underway, just not yet time to be revealed.