Chapter 150
Lin Bufan and his companions followed Zheng Fa into the market, hurrying after him as he dashed into a small building.
“Everyone, please step outside.”
Zheng Fa addressed the disciples within the building.
The senior brothers exchanged puzzled glances but complied, leaving one by one.
Inside the building remained Zheng Fa, Senior Sister Yuan, and the four of them.
“Junior Brother, what’s going on?”
Senior Sister Yuan noticed Zheng Fa’s unusual demeanor and quickly inquired.
Zheng Fa didn’t respond verbally; instead, he scattered a few illusion and silence talismans around the room, muffling any sounds.
“Senior Sister, has Sister Zhang been in contact with the market?”
“Yes, every three days, I send her information from the market, and she replies to me.”
“Let me see.”
Senior Sister Yuan, still confused, took out several communication talismans. Zheng Fa examined them closely, then pulled out a stack of his own, comparing their contents.
The more he looked, the more his brow furrowed.
“Junior Brother?”
Senior Sister Yuan was even more bewildered.
“Sister Zhang is in trouble.”
Zheng Fa suddenly spoke.
“Ah?”
At this revelation, even Lin Bufan was taken aback—he understood the significance of Zhang Wuyi to the Jiushan Sect from the moment he arrived.
“How do you know?”
“I communicate with Sister Zhang every day.”
“Wait! You communicate every day?”
Senior Sister Yuan raised her hand in surprise.
“Yes.”
“I sent her a message before, and she ignored me… even said she was busy and not to disturb her unless it was urgent?”
Senior Sister Yuan stared at Zheng Fa, her expression one of confusion.
“…”
The room fell into a heavy silence.
“Ahem.” Zheng Fa cleared his throat and said, “Shall we discuss Sister Zhang’s predicament?”
“Serves her right!” Senior Sister Yuan exclaimed angrily. “You tell me!”
“In our communications, Sister Zhang enjoyed it when I posed her a math problem, and the next day, she would send me the answer.”
“…”
Another silence enveloped the room.
“Go on…” After a long pause, Senior Sister Yuan finally managed to say.
“In the messages from the past couple of days, both problems she sent had some issues.”
“What kind of issues? Wrong answers?”
“No, the answers were correct.” Zheng Fa asserted. “But the methods were too simplistic… not up to Sister Zhang’s level.”
“…”
“Someone must be impersonating her.”
Senior Sister Yuan sighed suddenly, saying, “Dealing with you two isn’t easy for anyone.”
Meanwhile, Lin Bufan and Han Qi nodded silently.
“A couple of days ago, I noticed this issue.” Zheng Fa frowned. “Yesterday, I posed another problem.”
“Did they use a simplistic method again?”
“No, this time they seemed to have improved a bit and answered very seriously.” Zheng Fa shook his head. “But… this was a problem I had given Sister Zhang before. She should have been too lazy to answer it again and would have replied scolding me.”
Beside him, Lin Bufan looked utterly perplexed.
He turned to Han Qi.
Han Qi sighed and said, “Don’t look at me. The average Jiushan Sect disciple—oh no, any disciple from a celestial sect—doesn’t have such a twisted hobby.”
…
“If the Sister Zhang who replied is a fake, then when she talks about the market or the administrative hall…” Senior Sister Yuan seemed to be struggling to understand, “there shouldn’t be any flaws.”
“That’s the problem…” Zheng Fa said solemnly. “This person knows our Jiushan Sect too well.”
Senior Sister Yuan’s expression suddenly darkened.
“You’re saying there’s a traitor within our Jiushan Sect?”
(End of this chapter)
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**Chapter 152: Visualization**
Inside the small building, silence reigned as they finally understood why Zheng Fa had sent the other disciples away.
Given the impersonator’s familiarity with the Jiushan Sect, there were only two possible identities for this traitor—
Either this person had a certain standing within the Jiushan Sect and was of considerable cultivation, otherwise, they wouldn’t have access to certain secrets.
Or, there was the other possibility that made Senior Sister Yuan’s face pale—this person was in the market or the administrative hall.
Thus, they were very familiar with Sister Zhang’s habits.
These two possibilities were the only way the traitor could provide information that allowed them to convincingly impersonate Sister Zhang, even advising Senior Sister Yuan on how to manage the market, and knowing the names of everyone involved.
“But… why?” Han Qi raised a question. “What’s the point of impersonating Sister Zhang and sending messages to the sect?”
Zheng Fa and Senior Sister Yuan exchanged glances.
“Delay!” Senior Sister Yuan uttered two words.
“Exactly.” Zheng Fa’s expression grew serious. “If I can discover this, Sister Zhang must have noticed too—her lack of communication means she’s likely in trouble, but she should be safe for now.”
“These people impersonating Sister Zhang are afraid that our Jiushan Sect will notice and send someone to rescue her. They want to buy some time—so they can deal with Sister Zhang.”
Zheng Fa slowly articulated his thoughts.
The others nodded in agreement.
“There’s definitely a possibility… otherwise, their actions would be meaningless!” Senior Sister Yuan dashed outside, shouting, “I’m going to Taiyang County!”
“Senior Sister!” Zheng Fa grabbed her arm. “Don’t rush!”
“Can I not be anxious?”
Zheng Fa replied, “The person who can trap Sister Zhang is likely also at the Nascent Soul stage; it’s not something you can handle!”
“Then… I can’t just sit back and do nothing!”
Senior Sister Yuan clearly had a strong sense of loyalty.
But Zheng Fa’s choice was—call for reinforcements!
Who doesn’t have a few capable elders in their family?
Old Bai was right; don’t shoulder everything alone.
This wasn’t something he and Senior Sister Yuan could handle on their own.
He pulled Senior Sister Yuan up the mountain and reported his suspicions to the sect leader.
“Sister Zhang is in trouble?”
“Yes!” Zheng Fa recalled his communication with Sister Zhang. “It seems that after she led people into the spirit cave, the person replying to me wasn’t her anymore.”
“This matter… is quite strange.”
The sect leader frowned, gazing towards the direction of Taiyang County, seemingly lost in thought.
“Master? I can confirm that Sister Zhang is definitely in some trouble.”
“I don’t doubt you.” The sect leader waved his hand and spoke, “If something happened to Sister Zhang, why hasn’t the Changchun Sect sent any news? They’re so close; nothing could escape their notice.”
“…”
“It’s good that you didn’t act rashly.” The sect leader’s expression tightened. “The Changchun Sect… either they’ve been wiped out, or they’re unreliable now. Taiyang County is likely a den of danger.”
“What about Master… Sister Zhang?”
Zheng Fa hadn’t forgotten about Sister Zhang’s current safety.
“Sister Zhang…” The sect leader waved his long sleeve, sending a communication talisman flying towards the seventh peak of Jiushan. “This matter depends on Sister Huang.”
…
The communication talisman reached the seventh peak, and the next moment, a purple streak of light shot up from the peak, landing before Zheng Fa and the others.
This was Zheng Fa’s first time meeting Sister Zhang’s master, Huang Zhenren.
She appeared to be in her thirties, clad in a dark Daoist robe, with a gentle expression and bright eyes, resembling a serene female Daoist.
“Wuyi is in trouble?”
She arrived and asked directly.
“It’s possible; Zheng Fa discovered it.”
Huang Zhenren’s gaze fell on Zheng Fa, as if she recognized him. “Go ahead.”
Zheng Fa recounted how he communicated with Sister Zhang and how he discovered the inconsistencies in her messages.
Huang Zhenren nodded lightly after listening.
“What do you think?”
She suddenly turned to the sect leader.
“…Take it easy.” The sect leader hesitated, seeming conflicted. “Or should I go instead?”
“She is my only direct disciple!”
The sect leader’s expression grew even more troubled, as if trying to reassure her. “I know, I know. I’m just saying… if you go overboard, I won’t be able to explain it to the Hundred Immortals Alliance.”
Huang Zhenren gave the sect leader a deep look but said nothing. She turned and stepped onto the rainbow light, heading straight towards Taiyang County.
“Master? Is it just Huang Zhenren going alone?”
Zheng Fa still felt uneasy.
“The Jiushan Sect is the foundation of our sect; at least two Nascent Souls should be stationed.” The sect leader shook his head. “Besides, Sister Huang is the most formidable among our three Nascent Souls.”
“Ah?”
Zheng Fa was taken aback. Huang Zhenren was that powerful?
Seeing his bewildered expression, the sect leader pondered for a moment, as if trying to find the right words.
“My style of fighting is not afraid of spending money.”
Thinking of his master’s extravagant ways, Zheng Fa couldn’t help but nod.
“Sister Huang’s style is different; she’s not afraid of risking her life…”
“…”
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