Berute's sudden departure left the entire great hall somewhat awkward, and the celebration banquet came to an early end. Gaisleisen and the other three clan patriarchs exchanged pleasantries with Poslo, Bei Bei, and Lin Lei before the latter group took their leave.
In the great hall, most of the elders had begun to depart when Fu'erhan finally stood up.
"Fu'erhan." A cold, sharp voice cut through the air.
Fu'erhan looked up to see the Grand Elder walking toward him, her icy gaze fixed squarely on him. Her divine sense transmitted directly into his mind: "Fu'erhan, let me ask you — did those eight enemy elders go after Lin Lei because of you?"
"No!" Fu'erhan answered without the slightest hesitation. "Mother, I am absolutely not a traitor! Mother, you have to believe me!"
The Grand Elder studied him carefully, but Fu'erhan was putting on a performance she would never see through.
She seemed to let out a quiet sigh of relief, and her voice softened. "Good. I believe you. As long as you are not a traitor, the family will not allow anyone to harm you." With that, the Grand Elder departed as well.
Deep beneath the earth, in the cold underground hall.
Fu'erhan stood there alone. "From the way Berute spoke, it almost seems like he truly believes I'm the traitor? Could a Highgod really have witnessed something? Highgods may be exalted, but they're still human in nature — they walk the earth in various forms. It's entirely possible he really knows."
His mind raced, turning the matter over and over.
"Hmph. Even if a Highgod did discover something, what of it? Beings as magnificent as Highgods wouldn't stoop to meddling in something this trivial." Fu'erhan steeled his resolve. "As long I maintain that I'm not a traitor, then I'm not!"
The only thing Fu'erhan had to do was simple — deny everything to the last breath!
In the great canyon of the Heavenly Sacrifice Mountain Range, Berute had not moved into the residence prepared by the Four Divine Beast Families. Instead, he had taken up quarters right in the canyon itself, settling in as a neighbor to Lin Lei and Bei Bei.
In the main room of Lin Lei's dwelling, Lin Lei, Bei Bei, Poslo, and Berute sat together in a circle, while Dilia was outside with little Weidi.
"Grandpa, since you and the Highgod already know about this — since you know Fu'erhan is the traitor — why not just kill him outright?" Bei Bei huffed. "I've never liked that Fu'erhan, not from the very beginning."
Lin Lei chuckled. "Bei Bei, the patriarchs and elders of the Four Divine Beast Families all carry a deep-seated pride within their hearts. If you kill him without evidence, even if the patriarchs and elders don't turn on you immediately, they'll hold a grudge deep inside."
"That's right," Berute agreed with a nod and a smile. "Those four patriarchs may seem respectful toward me, but don't forget — they are the children of four Highgods. There is tremendous pride in their hearts. You can't push things too far."
Lin Lei felt a quiet surge of gratitude toward Berute. Why would Berute truly care if the Four Divine Beast Families bore a grudge against him? He was doing all of this because he was worried that Lin Lei would be ostracized and have a miserable time within the clan.
"Lord Berute, you mentioned that in a few months you'd make Fu'erhan unable to say a word in his own defense. What exactly is your plan?" Lin Lei asked eagerly.
"Yeah, Grandpa, what've you got in mind?" Bei Bei chimed in.
"Haha…" Berute laughed.
Poslo grinned as well. "Bei Bei, did you forget? A little over a year ago, you met your grandmother in Mir City. What did you receive from her that time?"
"The Soul Extraction Shard? What about it?" Bei Bei said, puzzled.
Berute explained with a smile, "That Soul Extraction Shard was sent over by an old friend of mine. I had your grandmother pass it to you at that time because I was accompanying that old friend and couldn't come find you myself."
"Fu'erhan is a member of the Azure Dragon Clan and is protected by his innate talent. I can't forcibly cast 'Soul Bewitchment' on him. But my old friend — he can." Berute spoke with absolute confidence.
A supreme powerhouse who could extract soul shards?
"If this person takes action," Lin Lei thought with elation, "Fu'erhan will have nowhere to run!"
"Because of Dilia's situation, I rushed over here this time. I was actually worried my old friend might have left already, but I just made contact — he's still in the Azure Blue Manor. He'll be here in a few months," Berute said with a calm smile.
"Grandpa, are you sure about this?" Bei Bei asked, a trace of worry creeping in. "Fu'erhan has his innate talent protecting him."
"Absolutely certain," Berute replied.
Lin Lei's heart flooded with joy, and he silently marveled: For a supreme powerhouse like Lord Berute, the friends he keeps must be supreme powerhouses too. Even someone like Fu'erhan, protected by the innate Azure Light, could be subjected to soul bewitchment. The level of mastery in soul arts was truly staggering.
The days of waiting passed in leisure, but the news that the Azure Blue Manor's lord had identified Fu'erhan as a traitor spread throughout the Heavenly Sacrifice Mountain Range. Many clansmen were privately furious, believing the lord was abusing his power to bully others.
Several months slipped by in the blink of an eye. On this particular day, Lin Lei and Dilia were playing with Weidi in front of their home.
Weidi could already toddle about, swaying as he walked.
Holding her son steady, Dilia suddenly looked up. "Lin Lei, that news from before really spread far and wide. It's even reached our canyon. When I took Weidi out for a walk just now, I overheard clansmen from other branch families in the canyon saying that the Azure Blue Manor's lord was slandering Elder Fu'erhan. Of course, some said Fu'erhan's refusal to undergo soul bewitchment proved he had a guilty conscience… but it seems most of them are siding with Fu'erhan."
"Don't worry about it. Once that expert arrives, the truth will come out," Lin Lei replied. He then crouched down. "Come on, Weidi. You can do it. Take a few more steps. Come to your father."
"Ya, yaaa~~~"
Weidi beamed, his rosy little mouth splitting into a wide grin, and took one tiny step after another until he finally tumbled into Lin Lei's arms.
"Papa," Weidi said sweetly.
"Here, give me a kiss." Lin Lei doted on him.
Holding his son, Lin Lei glanced over at Dilia beside him. Only a few months ago, he had been drowning in despair. All of this had changed because of Berute: "This kindness — I could never forget it for as long as I live."
Just as the family of three was savoring their happy moment —
"Berute!" A booming, hearty voice rang out across the sky above the Heavenly Sacrifice Mountain Range.
"Hm?" Lin Lei and Dilia both looked up in surprise.
The figures of Berute, Poslo, and Bei Bei shot out from the dwelling in quick succession. Berute turned to Lin Lei with a smile. "Lin Lei, my old friend has arrived. Let's go. It's time for Fu'erhan to show his true face."
Lin Lei and Dilia brought their child along as they flew up toward the top of the canyon.
High above the Heavenly Sacrifice Mountain Range, a solitary, imposing figure hovered in midair. He was draped in a dark blue-gray robe, his similarly colored hair curling loosely down in a wild disarray, and his thick black eyebrows were like a pair of swords.
He stood there with his hands clasped behind his back, suspended above the mountain range.
A large group of patrol warriors surrounded him at a distance, none daring to approach. Gaisleisen arrived at the head of several elders.
"Patriarch, this strange fellow flew straight here, called out 'Berute' once, and then just stood there without moving. When we tried to drive him away… every brother who got close to him lost consciousness and fell from the sky. They regained awareness after hitting the ground," the patrol captain reported urgently.
Gaisleisen's brow furrowed at these words.
He flew forward immediately and called out in a booming voice: "I am Gaisleisen, patriarch of the Azure Dragon Clan. And you are?"
The stranger finally opened his eyes and glanced toward Gaisleisen. The patriarch felt a jolt of shock — he could have sworn he saw the faint illusion of two serpents swirling within those eyes.
"Gaisleisen?" the stranger said indifferently. "I'm waiting for Berute."
Gaisleisen frowned. Though he could sense that this person was extraordinarily powerful, he was not afraid… His greatest strength lay in 'soul defense,' after all. He possessed a fully intact soul defense Highgod artifact.
"Then please, come and rest at my residence while you wait for the Manor Lord," Gaisleisen offered with a courteous smile.
"No need," the stranger said.
"Haha… Danington, you're a bit slow on the uptake, aren't you?" A hearty laugh rang out, and Berute's figure flickered from the distance, arriving in an instant. Lin Lei, Bei Bei, and the others flew up behind him.
"Berute." The stranger broke into a smile and stepped forward to meet him.