167: shameless scoundrel

The situation was urgent, and Shui Qingxue had no time to think carefully. After parrying an attack from the black-robed figure, she urgently shouted to the few gate-guarding Disciples who looked troubled:

“Desperate times call for desperate measures! This person holds a moon shadow token and is an honored guest of our Sect; perhaps he is related to the current incident! I will take him into the Sect to report first. You all must guard the mountain gate strictly and ensure you capture this fiend!”

Having said that, she did not wait for the Disciples' response. Her figure flashed, and she arrived at Lin Feng's side, whispering, “Fellow Daoist, the situation has changed. Follow me into the Sect first!”

Before her voice had even faded, she had already pulled Lin Feng's arm, transforming into a stream of light, and flew straight through the mountain gate toward the interior of the Sect.

Leaving the few gate-guarding Disciples to look at each other in dismay, they had no choice but to intensify their siege on the black-robed figure.

Lin Feng only felt a gentle force coming from her, and he involuntarily flew into the Illusory Moon Sect along with Shui Qingxue. The scenery before his eyes changed rapidly; pavilions, towers, small bridges, and flowing water appeared and disappeared in the clouds and mist. Rich and pure Taiyin Qi rushed toward him, causing the Water and Wood Sword Essence within his body to become slightly active.

He was filled with shock and suspicion. Such an incident had actually occurred within the Illusory Moon Sect, and Shui Qingxue's reaction was even more suspicious.

Shui Qingxue led Lin Feng in a rapid journey, avoiding several paths where people might be, and finally landed in front of a relatively secluded side hall.

She let go of his hand and quickly set up several sound-insulating Restrictions, ensuring no one was spying around, before turning around. Her chest was heaving slightly; clearly, the recent pursuit and her unauthorized decision to bring someone into the Sect had left her agitated.

She looked at Lin Feng with complex eyes—surprise, gratitude, and a trace of lingering fear. “Fellow Daoist, I didn't expect to see you here again. It was urgent just now, and forcing you into the Sect was truly impolite. I hope you can forgive me.”

Lin Feng shook his head slightly, his expression calm. “Fellow Daoist Shui, you are too serious. Desperate times call for desperate measures; I understand.” He did not mind the previous action. His gaze swept over the faint, flickering light of the Restrictions around them, and he knew that conversation here needed to be cautious.

Shui Qingxue breathed a sigh of relief and gave Lin Feng a grateful look, then her gaze immediately fell back onto the moon shadow token in his hand. Her tone was grave. “Fellow Daoist Lin, this moon shadow token... is of great importance. Where did you get it?”

She paused, associating this with the chaos outside the Sect and the Heavenly Demon Palace scout from just now. Her face turned slightly pale, and her voice lowered a few notches. “Could it be... that this item is related to the recent unrest outside the Sect?”

Seeing her nervous expression, Lin Feng knew this token involved a great deal, so he stopped hiding it. He briefly informed her about how he had encountered the dying female cultivator and was entrusted to deliver the message, but he omitted the details about his own Cultivation Technique resonating, only saying he was entrusted by someone and was fulfilling a duty.

After hearing this, Shui Qingxue's face became even uglier, confirming her worst guess.

“I won't hide it from you, Fellow Daoist,” her voice carried a trace of imperceptible trembling. “The black-robed person just now was a scout from the ‘Heavenly Demon Palace’ who had actually infiltrated the Sect with evil intentions! The Sect has been quite unsettled recently, and the Saintess... the Saintess is also worried about this matter and has gone into seclusion. This token of yours...”

Her words came to an abrupt end, her eyes filled with inquiry and urgency. Clearly, the appearance of this moon shadow token caused her to directly link Lin Feng's arrival with the Sect's current crisis, and her mood was extremely heavy.

Lin Feng took in her reaction, and he understood in his heart that the Illusory Moon Sect was indeed in the midst of some kind of vortex, and this token and message were likely the key.

He asked in a deep voice, “Fellow Daoist Shui, what exactly does this moon shadow token, and the message ‘Moon shadow slants west, Gui water flows in reverse’, mean? The Fellow Daoist who entrusted this to me said before dying that this matter concerns the survival of your Sect.”

Shui Qingxue's expression tightened at Lin Feng's direct question. She pursed her lips, her eyes flickering, clearly struggling internally.

After a moment of silence, she finally shook her head. “Fellow Daoist Lin, it is not that I, Qingxue, am unwilling to tell you. It is just that this moon shadow token involves too much, and the message involves the core secrets of the Sect; it is definitely not something a mere ordinary Disciple like me can recklessly speak of.”

She looked up at Lin Feng, her gaze earnest. “This matter is of great importance, and I must immediately report it to Senior Sister Yun. I ask that you wait here for a moment and please do not walk around freely. The Sect is... not very peaceful lately, and your arrival with the token may have already attracted some attention.”

After hastily giving these instructions, she turned and walked away quickly, her figure disappearing at the end of the corridor outside the side hall, leaving Lin Feng alone.

This side hall was elegantly decorated, yet it exuded a sense of cold loneliness.

Lin Feng could clearly feel that shortly after Shui Qingxue left, several obscure yet scrutinizing Divine Senses quietly swept across the hall from different directions, lingering briefly on him.

The owners of these Divine Senses were clearly not weak in cultivation, carrying undisguised inquiry and guard.

His expression was calm, eyes watching his nose, nose watching his heart, as if he were completely unaware of the surrounding spying, but in his heart, he had a deeper understanding of the turbulent situation within the Illusory Moon Sect.

This moon shadow token was indeed a hot potato.

He did not wait long before the light at the entrance of the side hall dimmed, and a middle-aged female cultivator wearing a moon-white Daoist robe with black trim and a cold expression stepped in.

Her whole body radiated the Spiritual Pressure of the Early Core Formation Stage, her aura sharp. She was none other than Shui Qingxue's Junior Martial Uncle, Elder Yan Jing, who was in charge of the Sect's laws.

Elder Yan's gaze was like a knife, piercing directly at Lin Feng, her tone cold and devoid of any emotion. “You are the Fellow Daoist Lin that Qingxue mentioned? Hand over the moon shadow token, explain your true intentions, and then leave the Illusory Moon Sect immediately. Our Sect is a pure land; we do not accept outside guests, and even less do we allow men to stay for long.”

Her words were firm and decisive; clearly, she was extremely dissatisfied with a man entering the Sect and wanted to drive him away immediately.

Lin Feng frowned slightly and was about to explain the origin of the moon shadow token, but Elder Yan's gaze suddenly fixed on his waist.

“This jade pendant!” Elder Yan's pupils shrank suddenly, her voice rising sharply, carrying incredulous shock and anger. “Where did you get this item?!”

Lin Feng was taken aback by her intense reaction. He looked down at his waist, where another jade pendant was hanging, shaped like a crescent moon, with a warm and moist texture. It was the crescent jade pendant that Yun Qingyao had gifted him back then.

He answered truthfully, “This was when I was traveling in the past and accidentally helped a Fellow Daoist named Yun Qingyao. She gifted it to me to express her gratitude.”

“Yun Qingyao? Helped?” Elder Yan looked as if she had heard the biggest joke in the world, the anger on her face growing even more intense, her eyes almost spitting fire.

“Nonsense! When that child Qingyao returned from her last trip, she was suffering from a strange poison and her Divine Soul was damaged. It was clearly the result of a villain's scheme, and she suffered immense... emotional trauma.

If not for the Saintess personally intervening, she would have nearly had her dao foundation destroyed. She was tight-lipped about this matter after returning. So... so that shameless scoundrel who deceived her and harmed her to this point was you!”

Lin Feng was shocked to his core, instantly understanding the reason. So, when Yun Qingyao was poisoned by the spirit bewitching pill, it was the Illusory Moon Sect's Saintess who had cured it.

It was just that the Senior Brother Ling who had deceived her feelings back then had clearly been destroyed by her own use of the Cold Moon Burial Flower Restriction technique. This grudge had actually been wrongly placed on his own head.

He hurriedly spoke, “Lin only had one meeting with Fellow Daoist Yun. After gifting the pendant, there was no further contact. There was absolutely no deception or harm. There must be a misunderstanding here.”

“Misunderstanding?” Elder Yan sneered sharply. “The evidence is conclusive, yet you still dare to quibble! Wait until I capture you, then I will know after searching your soul!”