Xuan Yangzi's Reverie

A sliver of moonlight leaked through a hole in the roof of the stone dungeon, falling exactly on the two figures in green robes standing outside the array's light barrier.

The person on the left had the flowing cloud patterns of Qingyun Peak embroidered on his sleeves. The moonlight outlined his slightly raised chin; it was none other than the Sect Master of the Qingxuan Sect, Xuanyangzi.

The person on the right had his spiritual energy restrained like a deep pool; he was the Peak Master of Purple Bamboo Peak, Gu Changge.

The twelve people in the stone dungeon instantly fell silent, even lightening their breathing.

Wang Daolong stared fixedly at Xuanyangzi, his Adam's apple bobbing. "Sect... Sect Master? Why are you here?"

Xuanyangzi ignored him, his gaze sweeping over the crowd as if looking at a bunch of clowns. "Why did you stop talking? Weren't you chatting quite lively just now? Keep going."

Liu Xian huddled in the corner, looking at Gu Changge behind Xuanyangzi, and suddenly remembered something. "You are the Peak Master of Purple Bamboo Peak?"

Gu Changge nodded faintly and gently tapped his fingertip.

The stone walls of the dungeon suddenly lit up, and the identity information of the twelve people unfolded like a picture scroll.

The spiritual energy rubbings of Wang Daolong's secret letters with the Burning Heaven Palace, the pill recipes Liu Xian passed to the Yuqing Sect, the information about newly recruited disciples that Zhang Meng secretly transmitted to the Array Breaking Sect...

Even the Array Breaking Sect token hidden in the sole of Sun Hao's boot could be seen clearly.

"This..."

Sun Hao's eyes widened. "You even found out about this?"

"What did you expect?"

Xuanyangzi sneered, his gaze scraping over Wang Daolong like a knife.

"Elder Wang, you have been in the Law Enforcement Hall for many years, taking the salary of my Qingxuan Sect, yet acting as a dog for the Burning Heaven Palace. How does it taste?"

Wang Daolong's face turned deathly pale, his lips trembling so much that he couldn't speak.

"And you, Liu Xian."

Xuanyangzi turned to the deacon of Pill Cauldron Peak. "My Pill Cauldron Peak has treated you well. Was your conscience eaten by dogs?"

Liu Xian buried his head even lower, not daring to look directly at Xuanyangzi.

Zhang Meng suddenly spoke up, his voice hoarse. "Sect Master, we admit defeat. But I wonder how you plan to deal with us?"

Xuanyangzi's anger flared even hotter. "You ungrateful traitors! My Qingxuan Sect treated you well, yet you return kindness with enmity!"

The more he spoke, the angrier he got, and he unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks on the group.

Wang Daolong and the other two suddenly felt a sense of familiarity welling up in their hearts; it turned out that the person who came to beat them up every day before was the Sect Master.

Looking at everyone's bruised and swollen faces, Xuanyangzi was still not satisfied, wishing he could kill them all.

Betraying the sect was a capital offense. If it weren't for the fact that the Soul Snatching Art could turn them into die-hard loyalists, he would have sent them down to see their ancestors long ago.

Xuanyangzi glared at the crowd, still wanting to continue his assault!

Gu Changge glanced at the moonlight and said indifferently, "Senior Brother, stop wasting words with them and get down to business."

Xuanyangzi nodded, raised his hand, and struck out twelve golden patterns that sank into the center of each person's brow.

It was exactly the secret technique of the Soul Snatching Art that Gu Changge had just imparted to him.

"Ugh ah—"

Sun Hao was the first to let out a muffled groan. His eyes gradually cleared, yet they revealed an eerie obedience, as if an invisible shackle had been added to the bottom of his heart.

In an instant, the rest of the people were also controlled, and a kind of almost instinctive awe appeared in their eyes.

Facing Xuanyangzi, they suddenly dropped to their knees with a thud and kowtowed. "Master! We are willing to serve you like dogs and horses!"

At this moment, Xuanyangzi felt that with just a slight shift of his thoughts, he could control the life and death of the people before him. Even if he made them bark like dogs on the spot, they would do so without hesitation. This sense of control made his entire body feel comfortable.

"Each of you, slap yourselves in the face ten times," Xuanyangzi ordered.

As soon as the words fell, the sound of continuous slapping rose and fell.

Sun Hao hit the hardest, slapping his face like he was smacking a watermelon. After ten slaps, his cheeks were swollen like two red apples hanging there, bearing clear five-finger marks.

Liu Xian's hand strength was weak, causing Xuanyangzi to frown. "Haven't you eaten? Use more force!" This frightened him into quickly mustering all his strength. As a result, he failed to control his power and slapped himself so hard he grew dizzy, almost planting face-first into the ground.

Xuanyangzi watched the scene before him with satisfaction, suddenly feeling refreshed.

He immediately executed the Soul Snatching Art to carefully search through their memories.

Fortunately, the secrets regarding the strength of the sect's peak masters and Purple Bamboo Peak had not been leaked out.

However, quite a few of the sect's confidential matters had already been transmitted. Xuanyangzi's newly calmed anger was ignited once again, his vital energy and blood surging.

He stared at the crowd and said in a deep voice, "In three days, you will return to your respective positions and continue to disguise yourselves as your original spy personas, maintaining contact with the various sects.

However, when you transmit information, it must pass through my inspection before it can be sent out. If you dare to privately transmit even half a word, I will have you slap your own mouths every day until all your teeth fall out!"

The crowd replied in unison, "Understood!"

Xuanyangzi thought about the ugly faces of these people from before and still felt somewhat unsatisfied. He pointed at the crowd again. "Divide into two groups! Slap each other! One thousand times! Not one slap less!"

The twelve people immediately divided into two rows. Although they hesitated when raising their hands, they still acted according to the order.

The crisp sounds of slapping merged together, and suppressed cries of pain immediately echoed in the stone dungeon.

Sun Hao was beaten until his cheeks were red and swollen, but he still gritted his teeth, raised his hand, and gave Wu Xiaosan opposite him a slap.

Wu Xiaosan dizzily slapped back. The two of them beat each other until blood trickled from the corners of their mouths, yet they were still counting, "Eighty-seven... eighty-eight..."

"While you are in here, slap each other one thousand times every day."

Xuanyangzi's voice continued to transmit over, carrying boundless pressure.

"Slap for a full three days before you come out, not one slap less."

Hearing this, although their bodies still had instinctive resistance, the twelve people still moved according to the order.

Gu Changge looked at the twelve figures in the stone dungeon who were slapping each other vigorously and said indifferently, "Let's go, it's time to head back."

Under the moonlight, the two figures in green robes gradually walked further away, leaving only the faint sounds of slapping in the stone dungeon to slowly dissipate in the night breeze.

The two returned to Qingyun Peak. As soon as Xuanyangzi took his seat, he couldn't help but rub the lingering golden patterns on his fingertips, a gleam of excitement flashing in his eyes.

"Junior Brother Changge, this Soul Snatching Art is truly miraculous! The awe in those people's eyes just now was definitely not faked!"

He picked up his teacup and took a huge gulp, his tone filled with amazement. "With this secret technique in hand, if any more traitors appear in the sect in the future, we can directly capture and control them. It's both worry-free and secure; we'll never have to fear information leaking again!"

Gu Changge twirled his teacup with his fingertips and smiled faintly. "As long as it's useful."

Xuanyangzi, however, grew more excited the more he thought about it. Suddenly, he slapped his thigh. "It's more than just dealing with traitors! Think about it—"

He leaned in a bit closer, lowered his voice, and his eyes shone like two balls of fire. "Could we secretly capture some core disciples from other sects? Especially those with good talent but active minds. We can cast this Soul Snatching Art on them and send them back to act as undercover agents..."

"When the time comes, the pill recipes of the Myriad Laws Pavilion, the combat skills of the Burning Heaven Palace, the formations of the Array Breaking Sect... wouldn't we be able to get our hands on all of them silently?"

Reaching the peak of his excitement, he actually stood up and paced around, gesturing wildly. "What's even better is that we can control their spies in the various sects! If we want them to send fake news, they'll send fake news; if we want them to disrupt the situation, they'll disrupt the situation..."

Gu Changge looked at his elated appearance, a faint smile curling the corners of his mouth. "Senior Brother certainly thinks far ahead."

Xuanyangzi only then realized his loss of composure. With a sheepish chuckle, he returned to his seat and picked up his teacup to mask his excitement. However, he drank too hastily; the tea caught in his windpipe, leaving him coughing until his face turned bright red. "I was just a bit too overjoyed at acquiring such a treasure," he wheezed.

Yet, the gleam in his eyes did not diminish in the slightest. His finger traced circles on the tabletop, clearly already calculating which sect to target first. It was as if he could already envision the glorious sight of countless spies working their hearts out within the core of every major sect—a prospect sweet enough to make him wake up laughing from his dreams.

Gu Changge raised his eyes to look at Xuanyangzi, who was still rubbing his hands together in sheer excitement. "Now that the matter of the internal traitor is temporarily resolved, has Senior Brother thought about what to do with the Cangyun Secret Realm?"

Xuanyangzi, who was still pondering which sect to scheme against first, suddenly slapped his forehead at those words. "I nearly forgot about such a crucial matter!"