Chapter 754

Luohuang Zhou·Paolong Sacred Land, garrison.

Yan Buji stood by the window, clutching the newly received message jade slip in his hand, his knuckles whitening from the force. The jade slip detailed the situation of the Great Sinful Sect's shops closing everywhere, as well as the sudden surge of a large amount of Youming Jie spiritual material on the market.

"Ye Lin," he suddenly turned around, "help me investigate something."

Ye Lin set down the teacup in his hand: "Hall Master Yan, please speak."

"Investigate the fund flows of the major merchant associations in the Heavenly Spirit Realm over the past month." Yan Buji's eyes flashed with a sharp light, "especially those suddenly appearing Youming Jie spiritual materials; I need to know their source."

Ye Lin nodded and left.

A few days passed.

"Found it!" came a shout as Ye Lin rushed into the room, his steps hurried. Having run too fast, his forehead was already covered in fine sweat, but he didn't have the chance to wipe it off; instead, he looked anxiously and excitedly at everyone inside the room.

"Those three major merchant associations in the Heavenly Spirit Realm are no small fry! In just this short past month, they secretly transferred over thirty million spiritual stones to the Youming Jie without anyone noticing! That's no small sum!" Ye Lin took a deep breath, slightly calming his excited emotions before continuing:

"Moreover… there's an even more shocking discovery! After some investigation, we found they were secretly purchasing large quantities of Blood Marrow Jade Coffins! These Blood Marrow Jade Coffins are extremely precious treasures! I have no idea what they intend to do with them." Saying this, Ye Lin unconsciously lowered his voice, as if afraid of being overheard.

Yan Buji sprang to his feet: "Blood Marrow Jade Coffin? That's a container specifically used to store yin-sha qi!" He quickly walked to the map, "It seems they aren't importing from the Youming Jie, but... producing Youming Jie spiritual material!"

Ye Lin sucked in a breath of cold air: "How is that possible? Youming Jie spiritual material requires a special environment to..."

"That's why they're so eager to get their hands on those Blood Marrow Jade Coffins!" Yan Buji's mouth curled slightly upward, revealing a sneer full of mockery. His deep, sharp eyes flickered with contempt and disdain, as if he had long seen through the opponent's scheming.

"According to legend, this Blood Marrow Jade Coffin can absorb and store vast amounts of yin-sha qi. Those with ill intentions aim to exploit this trait, combining it with some arcane secret method to counterfeit Youming Jie spiritual material for huge profits. Hmph, what a clever scheme!" Yan Buji let out a soft snort, his tone full of ridicule.

However, at that very moment, his gaze turned sharp, a cold glint flashing from his eyes. "What a pity..." he paused, then emphasized his tone: "Such so-called Youming Jie spiritual material produced through heretical ways is ultimately nothing more than superficial!"

Ye Lin didn't quite understand, asking: "But since the Great Merchant Association is making such a big show, and even using Dragon Void Cave and the Central Heaven United Merchant Association as their pawns, they shouldn't fear us taking action against them."

Ye Lin had hardly expended any effort these past few days, yet he learned of this matter in the Heavenly Spirit Realm.

Yan Buji fell silent, then said: "On the contrary, they want us to take action."

"As soon as they make a move, they'll have a reason to team up with others to strike against the Great Sinful Sect." Ye Lin also quickly thought of this point.

Yan Buji nodded, said nothing, and pinched his chin to think.

"Then Hall Master, what do you plan to do?"

"This matter can only be handled by the Sect; with my strength, this issue already exceeds the scope I should be responsible for," Yan Buji said.

This seems like a normal commercial rivalry, but Yan Buji believes the Great Trade Association certainly has means to reach the Youming Jie, and naturally even Ye Lin learned that the Association has shipped over thirty million Spiritual Stones to the Youming Jie, so they must be cooperating with the Starry Sky Cult.

Given that, the Great Sinful Sect, which has long cooperated with the Underworld, naturally stands on the opposite side of them.

Moreover, the unified war in the Youming Jie has not yet ended; although the Underworld seems to be on the brink of collapse, outcomes cannot be judged by a single moment—victory and defeat are still undecided, and the Underworld may still have a chance to counterattack.

"However, I originally had no intention of getting involved with the Youming Jie at all; even if I wanted to continue controlling its trade, it now seems that only if the Sect can muster great boldness to seize the market."

Yan Buji has not yet received a reply from the Sect, nor does he know what the Sect Master thinks.

However, a batch of Precious Light Ore that has been mined has already been sent back to the Sect, and from a personal‑interest standpoint, Yan Buji indeed has no need to waste brainpower on this matter.

Yet upon closer thought, this is most likely a preemptive move by the Great Trade Association to deal with him, and they will certainly strike at the mining area next.

"There's a chance that siphoning off a portion of the Precious Light Ore would also be discovered by the Great Trade Association..."

Yan Buji frowned, wondering how to prevent this.

Currently there is a mole in the mining area, Li Wan Hua, and there may be more than just him; however, the profits from the Precious Light Ore belong to everyone. If there is more than one mole, this matter would become his death warrant!

Yan Buji's eyes flickered, and he once again took out the pre‑prepared letter to send back to the Sect.

However, Yan Buji did not include his share of the Precious Light Ore with the letter as proof; instead, he plans to decide after seeing the Sect Master's reply.

"If the Sect Master erupts in fury, there will still be room to maneuver; if the Sect Master sends a letter back without replying, then the risk could be great."

Yan Buji frowned; he has never understood He Yun's intentions—He Yun seems unwilling to take over Sect affairs, and there are some internal matters of the Sect that he also doesn't know how to handle.

Yet Yan Buji hasn't seen anyone dissatisfied with He Yun; even the Great Sinful Sect has operated smoothly for so many years, and in terms of maintaining the status quo, He Yun is considered sufficiently capable.

Moreover, He Yun sometimes has sudden flashes of inspiration, which actually surprise Yan Buji with his ideas.

That's why Yan Buji said, I just can't understand He Yun.

He either lacks ability and is only high in cultivation, or his ability is too great.

He Yun is like someone whose strength is high but whose ability is slightly lacking; he's not completely arrogant, can still take others' advice, yet on some matters he will stick to his own ideas without backing down.

For Yan Buji, as a leader he is naturally decent, not too bad. Yet trying to gain personal advantage under his command is not that easy.

"I wonder whether this matter will cross the Sect Master's bottom line; speaking of lining one's own pockets is ultimately unpleasant," Yan Buji thought.

Although Yuan Zhen serves as a protective umbrella, if Elder Yuan and the Sect Master are tacitly in agreement, that would be fine; sending a self‑verifying letter myself is also to avoid the Great Trade Association's underhanded tactics.

But if it crosses the Sect Master's bottom line, that letter becomes a lifeline.