"If you won't tell me, then that means you've been lying to me," Chu Feng said.
"You're threatening me," the old cat narrowed its eyes, staring at Chu Feng.
"It's not a threat — I'm simply waiting for your decision," Chu Feng narrowed his eyes in return, a faint smile playing across his face.
At that moment, Chu Feng and the old cat locked eyes in a silent standoff, neither speaking a word.
They remained like that for quite some time.
After a while, the old cat finally broke. "Fine, fine. Seeing as you're a junior, I'll cut you some slack. I'll help you find that tomb first."
True to its word, the moment the old cat agreed, it leaped onto the open clearing with startling speed.
Then, with both front paws moving in concert, it began sketching out the layout of a formation — and it did so with surprising precision and flair.
As the saying goes, once an expert makes their move, you know right away whether they're the real deal. The moment the old cat sprang into action, even Chu Feng's pupils contracted and his eyes lit up.
Even Her Majesty, who was typically rather harsh in her assessments, couldn't hide the look of surprise that flickered through her beautiful eyes.
"Hard to believe — that cat may be ugly, but this formation is actually rather impressive," Her Majesty couldn't help but offer a word of praise.
Chu Feng nodded in agreement without objection.
Impressive — this formation was truly impressive. It was a type of formation that even Chu Feng couldn't fully see through, yet its structure surpassed every formation he had ever mastered.
This was a powerful decipherment formation, and it was exceedingly difficult to set up.
But the old cat's true genius lay in its ability to take a complicated formation that was nearly impossible to deploy and simplify it dramatically.
If knowing such a formation and being able to sketch out its setup method was one thing — then being able to take a formation that was originally far too complex, one that was almost impossible to put together, and make it simple enough to actually deploy — that was an entirely different level of skill.
…………
Meanwhile, outside the forbidden ground, the Valley Master of the Sunset Cloud Valley — who had been at his own residence — had already arrived at a different restricted area within the valley.
This was a special place where the valley's important figures went into seclusion for cultivation.
The reason he had hurried here was that Su Jingrui, the master of Xu Yiyi, had emerged from his seclusion.
He wanted to know whether Su Jingrui had truly told Chu Luyang not to take action against the Red Butterfly Association — and he also wanted to confirm whether the elders from the Enforcement Department had all been present when those words were spoken.
"Outrageous! Unforgivable!!!"
Suddenly, the Valley Master of the Sunset Cloud Valley let out a roar thick with fury.
Although he believed Xu Yiyi, believed Elder Ning Shuang, and even believed Chu Feng — he also trusted Li Rui's master and believed in those elders from the Enforcement Department. As such, a sliver of doubt still lingered in his heart, and he could not yet be certain of the truth.
That was precisely why he had not immediately handed down a severe punishment to Li Rui's master and those Enforcement Department elders on the spot.
But now, after hearing Su Jingrui's account, the truth was laid bare — and it was a result he found difficult to accept.
After all, he had placed so much trust in Li Rui's master and those Enforcement Department elders.
"I was blind to have granted him such authority."
"This time I caught it — but if I hadn't, who knows how many people he would have killed."
In that moment, the Valley Master felt a sudden rush of clarity, because incidents like today's were not, in fact, the first of their kind.
Previously, he had always chosen to believe Li Rui's master. But after today, he suddenly realized that those past decisions had been wrong.
"Valley Master, the deed is done. Self-blame is useless. The priority now is to deliver a fitting punishment to Tuoba Shangshui and select a new Chief Elder of the Enforcement Department."
"A person like that can never again be trusted with a position of power," Su Jingrui said.
"Elder Su, then what would you suggest I do with Tuoba Shangshui?" the Valley Master asked.
"You are the Valley Master — that decision should be yours," Su Jingrui replied with a faint smile.
The Valley Master looked around, and only after confirming that no one else was present did he turn to Su Jingrui and say, "Senior Brother, there is no one here but us. Please give your junior brother some advice."
"You still consider me your Senior Brother?" Su Jingrui smiled faintly, but the smile carried a depth of meaning.
"Senior Brother, I am the Valley Master now, and there are times when I must consider the bigger picture. But in my heart, you have always been my Senior Brother." Having said this, the Valley Master actually bowed respectfully to Su Jingrui.
"Sigh." Seeing this, Su Jingrui sighed and said, "I told you long ago that Tuoba Shangshui was a man of poor character, but you insisted on giving him power."
"Senior Brother, you withdrew from worldly affairs. If you hadn't, how would the position of Chief Elder of the Enforcement Department have ever fallen to him?" the Valley Master replied.
"Sounds to me like you're still blaming me." Su Jingrui cast a sidelong glance at the Valley Master.