Brother Chen Xuan is so amazing

Xu Mu shrugged, then removed the hood of his black robe, revealing his face.

“You’re Xu Mu?”

Miao Wentian’s expression changed dramatically.

“Looks like my reputation really has spread far and wide.”

Xu Mu smiled and nodded. “I revealed my identity to you because I trust you. You’re definitely not the traitor Li Chenshuang mentioned.”

Miao Wentian was puzzled. “Why would you think that? Two of the three commanders are dead, and I’m the only one left alive. Wouldn’t that make me the prime suspect?”

“That would be the first thing people think, yes. But when you examine it carefully, it doesn’t add up, because everyone would think of that.”

Xu Mu looked into Miao Wentian’s red eyes. “If you really were the traitor, wouldn’t you be exposing yourself?”

“You do have a point, but they could also assume that I exposed myself deliberately, giving them another reason to suspect me. Don’t you agree?”

Miao Wentian smiled as he posed the question.

“Of course. But any third- or fourth-layer argument after that is ultimately just an extension of the first two.”

Xu Mu looked at Miao Wentian. “In any case, I don’t think you’re the traitor.”

Miao Wentian threw his head back and laughed. “I won’t ask why. Just tell me what you wanted to discuss.”

Xu Mu got straight to the point. “Which of the other two commanders do you think is the traitor?”

“Aren’t they dead?”

“They’ve only disappeared. Who said they were dead?”

Xu Mu countered with a smile.

Miao Wentian’s expression immediately turned grave. “Are you saying they’re still alive and deliberately hiding?”

“Most likely. As far as I know, quite a few people in the Second Tribe are disloyal to Li Chenshuang.”

Xu Mu pulled his hood back over his head. “With so many traitors, how could there not be a powerful leader behind them?”

“You really are extraordinary. For the Yan-Huang descendants to have someone like you may not be a good thing for the Jiuli Tribe.”

Miao Wentian was deeply shaken. Only after a moment did he continue, “Anyone could be a traitor, but never me. The Chieftain’s father once saved my life. Without him, I would have died countless times over.”

“Senior, let’s focus on the important part.”

“I couldn’t see anything suspicious. Both of them treated the Chieftain very well. But if I had to name one, I’d say it might be Li Jiao.”

Miao Wentian thought for a moment before answering.

“Why?”

Xu Mu pressed him.

“He’s the youngest of the three commanders in our Second Tribe, but he’s also the strongest. He’s already at the peak of the second rank.”

Miao Wentian continued, “Besides that, he has a genius granddaughter—Li Peijun.”

“Oh? How old is she?”

Xu Mu asked curiously.

“She should be thirty-eight this year. Converted to your Yan-Huang descendants’ standards, she’d be not quite twenty. Yet her current cultivation has already reached the early Transcendent stage.”

As he spoke, Miao Wentian suddenly turned his eyes to the side and quickly lowered his voice. “That’s the woman.”

Xu Mu had known she was coming, which was why he had already pulled his hood back up.

“Grandpa Wentian, I heard that Sister Chieftain has returned. Where is she?”

Li Peijun approached with a bright smile, then turned her gaze toward Xu Mu. “And who is this?”

Xu Mu looked at the woman before him. She had a tall, graceful figure. Perhaps because the Jiuli Tribe had more ribs than the Yan-Huang descendants, her body appeared exceptionally slender.

Her silver hair was tied up simply and draped over her left shoulder.

She had a petite, oval-shaped face and long silver eyelashes that fluttered like fans before her red eyes.

Even setting aside the color of her hair and eyes, her features and bearing alone gave her an unusually gentle air.

Xu Mu wasn’t sure whether members of the Jiuli Tribe matured at the same age as humans. Judging by her build, however, she looked only about half Li Chenshuang’s age—roughly the same age as Ye Tong.

“She’s a friend of the Chieftain,” Miao Wentian replied.

He was secretly astonished. He had put on his black robe’s hood before Li Peijun arrived. Could Xu Mu have noticed her coming in advance?

“Hello, my name is Chen Xuan. I’m a friend of the Chieftain.”

Xu Mu used the Eye of God to inspect the woman’s information.

Name: Li Peijun

Character: The granddaughter of the Second Tribe’s commander; the female protagonist of Returning from Cultivation to Be a Dad.

Affection: -2

Destiny Level: 7 (Maximum: 10)

Xu Mu was surprised by what he saw. She was another female protagonist connected to Hat Bro.

However, her Destiny Level was only seven. She had probably interacted with the male protagonist quite a bit, but the two had ultimately never ended up together.

Xu Mu had concealed his appearance and had never provoked her, yet her affection for him was still negative.

That gave him a rough idea: the traitor in the Second Tribe was probably her grandfather.

Her negative feelings toward him were likely because of his close relationship with Li Chenshuang.

“Chen Xuan? I’ve never heard that name before. Are you a descendant of the Yan-Huang people?”

Li Peijun asked curiously.

“I’m of mixed Jiuli blood, but my fighting style is inherited entirely from the Jiuli Tribe.”

As Xu Mu spoke, a dark golden light flickered faintly across the back of his hand.

In an instant, both Miao Wentian and Li Peijun’s expressions changed.

They had already sensed the Gu worms inside their bodies trembling.

“Is that the Sacred Gu?”

Shock filled Li Peijun’s face.

“That’s right.”

Xu Mu smiled and nodded.

He felt that if he checked Li Peijun’s filial piety toward Li Chenshuang now, he could definitively determine who the traitor was.

“Brother Chen Xuan was summoned by the Chieftain to investigate your grandfather’s disappearance,” Miao Wentian said with a smile.

“What? Brother Chen Xuan! You have to investigate thoroughly. I’ll cooperate with you fully. I haven’t slept for days since my grandfather disappeared.”

Li Peijun looked extremely agitated.

“Don’t worry. I won’t let anyone off the hook—including you. I’ll be investigating you as well.”

Xu Mu then said to Li Peijun, “You should step away for now. I have a few things to discuss with Senior. After that, we’ll go outside and find the Chieftain.”

“All right.”

Li Peijun nodded and left first.

Using his senses, Xu Mu waited until she had gone some distance away before speaking in a low voice. “Senior, I may have to temporarily smear your reputation. Just cooperate when the time comes. This matter isn’t as simple as it seems.”

“I understand. As long as I can help the Chieftain, I’m willing to do anything.”

Miao Wentian nodded firmly.

“Good.”

With that, Xu Mu rose and headed down the mountain.

Li Peijun was standing beside a large tree in the distance.

“Brother Chen Xuan, did you find anything?”

When she saw Xu Mu, Li Peijun hurried over.

“How was your grandfather’s relationship with Miao Wentian? Tell me the truth.”

Xu Mu didn’t stop. He continued walking straight toward the entrance to the ruins.

Li Peijun followed behind him, her face full of innocence. “They had a very good relationship.”

“Really? I have a feeling Miao Wentian was behind it.”

Xu Mu glanced at Li Peijun. “Two of the three commanders have disappeared, leaving only him. So once Li Chenshuang is gone, who will have the final say in the Second Tribe?”

Hearing this, Li Peijun immediately smiled like a blooming flower.

“Brother Chen Xuan, you’re amazing! How did I not think of that?”