100: Chapter 99 Zhu Kun is suspected of having ulterior motives

He added, "With the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade in your hands, even if Zhu Kun truly has ulterior motives, given your strength, even he cannot do anything to you. Only then will the ancient jade be truly safe."

Gu Xian immediately chimed in, "Right, it is best for you to keep it yourself. By releasing this news and letting Zhu Kun know the ancient jade is in your hands, you can also extinguish any thoughts he might have of obtaining it."

Everyone was well aware that once the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade reached Gu Yuan, it meant that unless one killed Gu Yuan, it was basically impossible for anyone to obtain the ancient jade.

And on this Fighting Qi Continent, with no Dou Di currently present, wanting to kill a Late Stage Nine-Star Dou Sheng like Gu Yuan was truly too difficult.

Even taking a step back, if the Gu Family were truly wiped out, as long as Gu Yuan could escape, with his Late Stage Nine-Star Dou Sheng strength, he would inevitably turn around and harass or retaliate against the other party.

No faction could withstand the crazy retaliation of a powerhouse at this level.

This kind of rogue tactic was not just something Zhu Kun could use; Gu Yuan could use it too.

It was just that he could not play it as skillfully as Zhu Kun.

If things went poorly, Gu Yuan might end up overplaying his hand, for example, getting trapped by some Seal or getting entangled in something.

The several Elders spoke one after another, continuing to express their views. Without exception, all of them suspected that Zhu Kun had ulterior motives for his visit, with the core reason being the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade. They all kept urging Gu Yuan to keep the ancient jade himself to ensure nothing went wrong.

Gu Yuan listened quietly to the opinions of the Elders, his brows slightly furrowed as he pondered for a moment.

He felt that what the Elders said made sense. If Zhu Kun had really only come to the Ancient World for a spar, there was no need for him to observe his surroundings while touring the Ancient World, nor to frequently look toward the ancestral hall. This indeed made one suspect he had malicious intentions.

The Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade was the clan's treasure, and also the key to obtaining the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Legacy; Gu Yuan certainly did not want it to fall into the hands of others.

"Very well, I will go to the ancestral hall now to retrieve the ancient jade. From now on, I will keep the ancient jade myself."

...

The Gu Family ancestral hall was located in the most core and secretive position of the Ancient World. It was guarded by dedicated personnel year-round and was heavily fortified; it was the place where the Gu Family specifically stored their clan's treasure.

Gu Yuan's sudden arrival surprised the several Elders in the ancestral hall responsible for guarding the ancient jade.

"Clan Chief!"

Among these guarding Elders, the others had calm expressions, merely surprised by the Clan Chief's sudden visit.

Only Elder Guyang had a flash of undetectable panic on his face. His eyes darted away, he dared not look directly at Gu Yuan, and his conscience was guilty to the extreme.

He was an undercover agent for the Hun Clan and had already been controlled by Void Swallowing Flame.

If this were discovered by Gu Yuan, he would be finished.

Fortunately, all of Gu Yuan's attention at this moment was placed on the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade, and he did not notice Guyang's abnormality at all.

He merely said to the Elders present:

"Take out the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade. From today on, I will keep the ancient jade myself."

The group of guarding Elders were all somewhat surprised. The Grand Elder in charge of the ancestral hall could not help but ask:

"Clan Chief, for so many years, the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade has always been guarded by us, and there has never been any mistake. Why do you suddenly want to keep it yourself?"

This was only possible in the Gu Family, where Elders dared to question the Clan Chief's decision.

If it were in the Hun Clan, facing an order from Hun Tiandi, no Elder would dare to ask a single extra question; they could only unconditionally obey and execute it.

Gu Yuan explained the situation, and after hearing it, the several guarding Elders suddenly realized the truth.

The ancestral hall Grand Elder said, "In that case, it is more appropriate for the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade to be kept by the Clan Chief."

Elder Guyang stood to the side, feeling extremely reluctant, yet not daring to show it.

He knew that with Gu Yuan keeping the ancient jade himself, it would be as difficult as ascending to heaven for him to seize the opportunity to take the ancient jade for the Hun Clan.

But he dared not disobey Gu Yuan's order. He could only bite the bullet, turn, and walk into the secret chamber deep in the ancestral hall, carefully taking out the brocade box containing the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade and handing it to Gu Yuan.

Gu Yuan took the brocade box and opened it to take a look. A simple and unadorned jade plaque was lying quietly in the box; it was exactly the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade.

Gu Yuan took the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade and put it away himself.

Just at this moment, Gu Yuan suddenly spoke up and called out, "Elder Guyang."

Upon hearing his own name, Guyang's body stiffened. He was instantly frightened into a cold sweat, his heart pounding uncontrollably.

Could his identity as an undercover agent have been discovered?

He suppressed the panic in his heart, bit the bullet, and squeezed a forced smile onto his face:

"Clan Chief, do you have any other instructions?"

"From now on, the ancestral hall does not need so many people guarding it. You go and manage the resource treasury."

Guyang was stunned for a moment, then immediately replied, "Oh, alright, this subordinate obeys."

He let out a long sigh of relief in his heart.

Fortunately, he had not been discovered.

The resource treasury managed the storage and distribution of cultivation resources for the entire Gu Family. Since he would come into contact with many people every day, the risk of his undercover identity being discovered was indeed higher than in the ancestral hall.

But compared to being exposed and losing his life right now, it was already much better; at least there was still room to maneuver.

Finally, Gu Yuan left.

Guyang's undercover identity had not been exposed.

The mark that Void Swallowing Flame had planted on these undercover agents was very well-hidden, just like the ones planted on the various powerhouses of the Hun Clan.

Even if Gu Yuan possessed an Emperor Realm Soul, if he did not carefully investigate, it would absolutely not be noticed.

And Gu Yuan clearly would not deliberately investigate his own Elders.

...

The news that Zhu Kun had trespassed into the Ancient World and sparred with Gu Yuan spread not long after.

Among this, the matter of Zhu Kun trespassing into the Ancient World and the two of them sparring was spread by the Gu Family.

The news that Zhu Kun had won and Gu Yuan had conceded was spread by Zhu Kun himself.

After these two pieces of news spread, it triggered quite a discussion among the other Dou Di Clans. The Elders and Clan Chiefs of each clan were all pondering Zhu Kun's intentions.

But this was not the end. A few days later, new news came out from the Gu Family.

The Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade would henceforth be kept personally by Gu Yuan and would no longer be guarded by the ancestral hall Elders.

These few events, when taken individually, were nothing special.

But putting these events together, they became intriguing.

Zhu Kun suddenly broke into the Ancient World, and after the spar, Gu Yuan decided to keep the ancient jade personally.

It was hard not to let one's imagination run wild—had this Zhu Kun done something else?

Inside the Yan Clan's great hall, an Elder bowed to the Yan Clan Chief and said:

"Clan Chief, we previously speculated that Zhu Kun had escaped from the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Legacy location. Now, looking at the Gu Family's reaction, this matter can almost be confirmed."

Another Elder immediately chimed in, "That's right, he must be coveting the Gu Family's Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade and was discovered by Gu Yuan, which is why Gu Yuan made the urgent decision to keep the ancient jade himself to prevent it from being snatched away."

"Clan Chief, to prevent Zhu Kun from coming to our clan to forcibly snatch the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade, our clan's ancient jade should also be kept by you personally! Only then can we ensure nothing goes wrong."

Similar conversations were happening almost simultaneously in the great halls of the Yan Clan, Lei Clan, Medicine Clan, and Shi Clan.