Chapter 756: Self‑Proof Turbulence

Yan Buji stood before Yuan Zhen, secretly thinking. He realized he might have been drawn into a larger game, and Sect Master He Yun's true intention seemed far deeper than he imagined.

"Hall Master Yan," Yuan Zhen collected his smile, spoke solemnly, "Sect Master's meaning is, since the Grand Merchant Association has taken the bait, we should close the net."

Yan Buji frowned slightly: "Elder Yuan means..."

"Your self‑certification letter is simply a heaven‑sent opportunity!" A flash of cunning light flickered in Yuan Zhen's eyes, bright and fleeting like a shooting star across the night sky. He narrowed his eyes slightly, the corner of his mouth twitching into an almost imperceptible smile, then said: "Those folks from the Grand Merchant Association have always wanted to use the mine incident to deal with you, so why not go with the flow and give them what they wish?" After speaking, he lightly clapped his hands, as if he had already seen a splendid play about to unfold.

Yan Buji's heart jolted: "You mean..."

"Exactly!" Yuan Zhen sprang to his feet, as if already seeing the beautiful scene of the plan's success. He narrowed his eyes, lowered his voice, and said: "We must make the Grand Merchant Association firmly believe that you really embezzled an astonishing amount of Precious Light Ore! Only then can I, in the name of self‑defense, justifiably act against you. By then, whether we first lock you up awaiting the Sect Master's verdict, or wait for the Grand Merchant Association to lose patience and act on its own… hehe!"

Saying this, he smugly made a gesture of casting a net, as if an invisible great net were slowly tightening, and their prey would soon have nowhere to flee.

"This is the perfect opportunity we've carefully plotted! As long as everything proceeds smoothly according to the plan, the final victory will surely be ours!"

Yan Buji took a deep breath: "The mine..."

"The mine definitely must be held!" Yuan Zhen's lips curled slightly, showing a confident smile, and he said softly: "But before that, we still need to carefully plan and stage a good show." His deep eyes glittered with light, as if he had already worked out every detail of the plan in his mind.

Yan Buji pondered for a long time, then suddenly said: "Besides Li Wan Hua, how many tricks do we still have here?"

"Not many." Yuan Zhen's voice came: "Just three."

"Alright, I will do as Elder Yuan instructs!"

"Hmm."

A few days passed.

Suddenly Yuan Zhen brought people and seized Yan Buji outright; those associated with him had their Nascent Soul sealed and were thrown into a makeshift dungeon.

"Hall Master Yan!"

"Hall Master Yan, what's going on?!"

Yan Buji was bound, his power sealed, and locked in another cell, saying nothing.

The surrounding Hall Masters and Elders changed expression, saying: "Could it be that the sect knows we've been selling off the Precious Light Ore?"

"But why is Elder Yuan leading the arrest of all of us?"

"Hall Master Yan, say something."

Yan Buji said nothing, letting them argue however they liked, knowing this was just an act.

But as for whether to make the act real…

Could Yan Buji possibly resist with his meager strength?

The only thing Yan Buji hadn't expected was what the Sect Master had taken a fancy to in the Grand Merchant Association, having plotted it long ago.

"If it's certain that the Grand Merchant Association's people attacked, then we have a chance to provoke them; even if we can't strike them outright, we could still use this opportunity to achieve the Sect Master's goal, right?"

Yan Buji stroked his chin; it seemed those who dealt with the Grand Merchant Association, like Li Wan Hua, were actually quite important.

Suddenly he realized: "Oh right! Although I know Li Wan Hua is the insider feeding information to the Grand Merchant Association, since I came to Luohuang Zhou I've never moved against him, so in Yuan Zhen's eyes he likewise assumes I know the Sect Master's plan.... The Sect Master thinks I had long sensed their scheme, went along with the act from the start and thus didn't strike Li Wan Hua, and furthermore, to eliminate future trouble, I killed Yun Hua in front of a Unity Dao stage cultivator from the Grand Merchant Association, making them see me as having offended a Unity Dao cultivator to cooperate with the sect's plan."

Yan Buji reacted, almost laughing out loud.

No wonder Yuan Zhen showed no dissatisfaction upon receiving my self‑certification letter, even spouting some nonsensical words—it turned out they believed I had truly seen through their scheme, made such a great sacrifice to cooperate, and therefore let me go.

"Hmm, if that's the case, I have no reason to be eliminated by the Sect Master and Yuan Zhen; on the contrary, I still have merit to the sect!"

Thinking this, Yan Buji instantly straightened his back.

Meanwhile, on the other side…

Li Wan Hua learned that Yuan Zhen had brought people to arrest many, and was also startled, hurriedly asking the other elders:

"How were Hall Master Yan and the others all arrested?"

"It's not anyone else—it's that scoundrel Yan Buji, who, in order to climb higher, reported to the sect the share of Precious Light Ore we took! Now the Sect Master is furious and determined to settle accounts with us!"

The elder beside him gritted his teeth, expressing considerable hatred for Yan Buji's two‑faced behavior: "Damn Yan Buji, for his own advancement he's sold us all out! I say he should just be killed!"

"What?!"

Li Wan Hua widened his eyes, suspicion rising.

"No, is Yan Buji's head stuffed with something?"

"How dare he.... Could it be because I sent word to the Grand Merchant Association that he found out?"

Li Wan Hua's face changed; previously, after getting his share of the Precious Light Ore, he had been thinking of killing Yan Buji while trying to snatch more at the smelting workshop.

As it turned out, somehow the Grand Merchant Association learned of this and demanded Li Wan Hua send a batch of Precious Light Ore over, causing all the ore he had hoarded these days to vanish.

For this, Li Wan Hua had to plot several 'accidents' at the smelting workshop just to break even.

Yan Buji had only this possibility; he knew someone might move against them for embezzling Precious Light Ore, so he reported in advance to the sect, hoping for lenient treatment.

"This Yan Buji really deserves to die!" Li Wan Hua gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

Because he knows that if Yan Buji might have guessed the leak of embezzling Precious Light Ore, he could very well trace it back to him. If Yan Buji doesn't die, how will he survive in the sect thereafter?

Li Wan Hua isn't afraid of Yan Buji coming to his door, but being in the sect, he can have someone kill Yan Buji with heavy-handed means without lifting a finger himself—why not?

Li Wan Hua thought, after cursing Yan Buji with the others, he returned to the smelting workshop and secretly sent word to the Grand Merchant Association.