Chapter 104: The Mole

The reason Nan Feihuang could be so certain was very simple: because they were fleeing for their lives at the time, and since their speed was already far inferior to Red Hare, they shouldn't have been running in a straight line, yet they actually took the initiative to turn and slow down—was this out of fear that Red Hare wouldn't be able to catch them?

If it had been in a place with dense woods, it might have been explainable as them trying to use the terrain to confuse Red Hare and gain a better chance at escaping, but turning on a main road—wasn't it obvious that there was a very clear direction of travel?

The fact that they were able to encounter Mother at that time was no coincidence; they knew exactly where she was and had headed straight for her.

Combining this with the marks Qian Renxue left along the way when he rescued her, he was certain that there must be a mole among them, one who had also left marks for She Long and the others that only they could understand.

Originally, Nan Feihuang thought that person must have been sent by Qian Renxue, but after two years of interaction, he realized it wasn't her, so it had to be someone else.

There are two major factions within the Spirit Hall: the Pope Palace and the Offering Hall. Since Qian Renxue was unaware, it was undoubtedly one of Bibi Dong's people.

In truth, Nan Feihuang had originally wanted to keep Dian Wei and Lv Lingqi completely hidden, not even letting them participate in the Academy Tournament, otherwise the Gu Lei Kingdom's strength would be too great, but now there was no other way.

Because Bibi Dong must have already learned the detailed information about Dian Wei and Lv Lingqi through that mole.

Whether it was Elder Zhang or Xu Rong, both were high-level officials in the country, and Nan Tianchen trusted them greatly, so he had not deliberately hidden things from them.

Fortunately, only a very few people knew the actual relationship between Nan Feihuang and Lv Lingqi, and neither Xu Rong nor Elder Zhang were among them; therefore, he only needed to say that Dian Wei and Lv Lingqi were subordinates he had secretly cultivated, and there was no need to say anything else.

As long as this letter was sent out, Bibi Dong would not only fail to sow discord between him and Qian Renxue, but it would instead turn into a counter-assist.

Even Bibi Dong herself would be led into a trap by Nan Feihuang.

It was just that, in doing so, Lingqi would be completely exposed to Qian Renxue's gaze, which was the reason for Nan Feihuang's hesitation.

"My Lord, Bibi Dong already knows about E Lai and Lingqi. She will definitely tell Qian Renxue later to create conflict between you and Qian Renxue. There is no point in hiding it anymore; it would be better to let them out openly to prevent trouble before it happens. They are also Battle Generals, and you always keeping them hidden actually makes them feel unwilling. Why not take this opportunity to show our country's foundation in a dignified manner? As long as you maintain the relationship with Qian Renxue's side, the Spirit Hall will not move against us for the time being," Xun Yu advised.

Nan Feihuang nodded; he admitted that what Xun Yu said made sense.

"By the way, Wenruo, how did you know that Xu Rong and Elder Zhang might be the mole? Was it also through the information Red Hare told me?" Nan Feihuang asked with some confusion.

"Eh? So the Lord only knew there was a mole, but didn't know who it was? It seems I overestimated the Lord's wisdom. Elder Zhang is truly pitiful; he is devoted to the country, yet he is still suspected by you. Furthermore, although the method the Lord used to judge there was a mole was meticulous, there was no need to be so meticulous. I knew there was a mole from the day you returned, and I didn't need any intelligence from Red Hare. When I finished hearing the whole process of the Lord being captured, I already knew who the mole was."

"It's just that for these past two years, I have been secretly searching for evidence on one hand, and on the other, I was thinking of using this person in reverse later to pass on some false information, so I chose to do nothing for the time being. After all, a mole who thinks they are hidden is sometimes more useful than one's own confidant," Xun Yu smiled somewhat smugly; in terms of cleverness, was he still slightly superior to his Lord?

Although Nan Feihuang heard Xun Yu speak vaguely, he still obtained the key information, "Wenruo, you said I misunderstood Elder Zhang, so the mole is Xu Rong?"

"Exactly!" Xun Yu confirmed, "My Lord, if you first recall the general map of the Douluo Continent, you will understand why I judged early on that there was a mole."

There was a map of the Douluo Continent hanging in Nan Feihuang's bedroom; he had looked at it hundreds of times and knew the various geographical locations by heart.

Nan Feihuang was not stupid; he understood as soon as it was pointed out. Once the map in his mind emerged, he understood immediately.

Actually, why was there a need for so many twists and turns? Back then, they had entered the Star Dou Great Forest from the entrance at the border between the Gu Lei Kingdom and the Heaven Dou Empire.

This was nothing strange; after all, they had set out from the Gu Lei Kingdom, and Qian Renxue had set out from the Heaven Dou Empire, so they were closer to that entrance.

The strange thing was the direction they fled after Qian Renxue encountered the Red Hare horse.

One must know that Wuhun City is the city closest to the Star Dou Great Forest, located directly to the west of the Star Dou Great Forest. At that time, when they were fleeing for their lives, a normal person's thought would be 100% to run in that direction to have a glimmer of hope for survival.

Yet they ran north, which was the direction they had come into the forest.

This could only mean that from the very beginning, they had the intention of seeking survival in that direction.

Or rather, they knew that compared to Wuhun City, Lan Xue was even closer to them.

But the Star Dou Great Forest is so large; if they hadn't known her exact location, how could they have made such a choice?

It was based on this that Xun Yu guessed there was a mole among them who had left marks for Snake Spear Douluo and the others.

Nan Feihuang asked again, "Then how did you determine that the mole was Xu Rong and not Elder Zhang?"

"Because the person who came to protect you at that time was Xu Rong. At that time, Snake Spear Douluo and Citun Douluo wanted to use the Queen's power to deal with Red Hare, but there was one point they couldn't fully grasp: what if the Queen was unwilling to help them and chose to flee instead?"

"Therefore, they had to ensure there was a factor there that would force the Queen to stay, and that was you, my Lord. As long as you remained there, no matter how much the Queen didn't want to fight, she would have to fight."

"This was the most important and critical part. How could they control it? Could it be that they gambled their lives, and the final key depended entirely on luck? Is that possible? If Xu Rong hadn't deliberately stayed close to protect you, would the King, who has always favored men over women, have ignored Princess Feiling and come to save you first before leaving? If he hadn't used the Glory Shield to pretend to cover you, but instead grabbed your shoulder and fled directly? As a Soul Elder at the time, how could you have resisted a Spirit Saint?"

"But he did none of those things. He just stood in place, holding the shield as if protecting you, but instead, he restricted your escape. A mere Soul Elder, in a dangerous place like the Star Dou Great Forest with a powerful enemy ahead, how would you dare to leave the protection range of a Spirit Saint on your own?"

"Otherwise, as long as you left, even if the Queen cared about others, she might not necessarily have risked her life to help them fight."

"Therefore, I am very certain that at that time, whoever was the key person to keep you on the battlefield, forcing the Queen to have to fight for her life, that person must be one of theirs!"

(End of chapter)