Chapter 28: This Is Fraud

The declaration stunned the entire crowd.

Su Yi swept his gaze across the room, taking in everyone’s expressions, a slight curl appearing at the corner of his lips.

"I am a man with a strong sense of responsibility. Since the sect has entrusted me with such an important task, I naturally cannot allow any mishaps to occur."

"To monitor the growth of the spiritual herbs and prevent any issues in the spiritual field, I have been placing an image-recording talisman on a large tree by the field every day after my shift ends."

"That way, even if I am not at the herb garden, I can keep an eye on the growth of the Jade Leaf Grass at night. If someone were to sneak in and pick them, they would certainly be captured by the talisman..."

As he spoke, he smiled and pulled a talisman emitting a faint white glow from his robes.

"This is the recording from last night. You summoned me right after my shift, so I haven't even had a chance to look at it yet."

As his voice trailed off, everyone’s expression turned strange, and they stared at Su Yi with cold, wary eyes.

What the hell!

You can use an image-recording talisman like that?

As the name implies, these talismans can record and store footage for a period of time. Although they lack sound, they provide clear, vivid images and are widely circulated in the world of cultivation.

Beyond sending messages or matchmaking, people had developed many "extra" functions for them.

Some used them to record lectures or duels for study, while others specialized in filming salacious, private content, mass-producing copies, and selling them at high prices—at one point, even cutting into the business of the Joyous Union Sect...

However, no one had ever been bored enough to film a patch of dirt non-stop, under the guise of "monitoring the growth of Jade Leaf Grass at night."

Even though a low-grade image-recording talisman was quite cheap in the cultivation world, it still cost at least three spirit stones. At this rate, he would be spending ninety spirit stones a month.

Since a servant disciple’s monthly income was only two spirit stones, this meant that by working hard in the herb garden for a month, this guy was netting a loss of eighty-eight spirit stones...

But as they remembered that Su Yi had just received a massive reward of three thousand spirit stones, everyone suddenly felt that this was not entirely unacceptable.

After a moment of eerie silence, Elder Mo Shenglin of the Outer Sect was the first to react. He beckoned to Su Yi and said in a deep voice:

"In that case, bring it here for me to see."

"Yes."

Su Yi responded and respectfully handed over the talisman.

The moment Mo Shenglin took the talisman, a servant disciple in the crowd suddenly turned deathly pale and began to tremble violently.

"Brother He Jia, what’s wrong?"

A disciple nearby noticed his strange demeanor and quickly reached out to steady him.

However, the disciple seemed not to hear, muttering to himself:

"It’s over, how could this happen..."

"So it was you!"

Su Yi suddenly strode over, reached into the crowd, pulled the man out, and threw him before Mo Shenglin.

"Elder Mo, there is no need to check the talisman. He is the one who picked the Jade Leaf Grass."

The exposed servant disciple’s composure completely collapsed, and he knelt on the ground, trembling.

"Elder Mo, spare me! It really wasn't my intention. Zhao Zijing saw me on duty in the herb garden and gave me ten spirit stones to sneak in and pick the Jade Leaf Grass. I was just blinded by greed..."

A commotion broke out at these words, and those standing near Zhao Zijing involuntarily distanced themselves from him.

Zhao Zijing’s face turned leaden. Panicked, he pointed at the man and questioned him.

"Nonsense! He, when have I ever offended you that you would dare to spout such slander here! You say I instigated this—do you have proof?"

He Jia looked miserable.

"Zhao Zijing, if you hadn't secretly sent someone to give me ten spirit stones, why would I have risked my neck picking herbs for no reason? I was just blinded by greed for a moment..."

As he reached this point, the crowd erupted again, and those near Zhao Zijing moved even further away.

Zhao Zijing, his face livid, glared viciously at the servant disciple.

"He, you had better not spout slander. You say I gave you spirit stones—when did I ever give them to you! Stop trying to smear me!"

He Jia looked miserable.

"Zhao Zijing, you can't deny it. It was you who sent someone to give me..."

"Enough!"

Seeing the two arguing endlessly, Mo Shenglin gave a deep shout to end the exchange and cast a cold look around.

"What kind of decorum is this, bickering like this? Isn't it embarrassing enough?"

Seeing the Elder speak, Zhao Zijing and He Jia shrunk their necks and dared not make another sound. The crowd, previously in a heated discussion, also shut their mouths, fearing further trouble.

After a moment of contemplation, Mo Shenglin looked at Nie Yuman and ordered:

"Junior Nie, take He Jia to the Enforcement Pavilion for a thorough interrogation. We must uncover the truth and punish those who violate the sect rules without leniency."

He then turned his gaze toward the bound Xu Ze and said:

"As for Xu Ze, given that the facts are currently unclear and the evidence is inconclusive, release him for now. We will make a final decision once the investigation is complete."

"This disciple will strictly follow your decree, Uncle-Master."

Nie Yuman cast a look of disgust at Zhao Zijing before waving her hand. Several enforcement disciples skillfully took control of He Jia.

At this moment, Mo Shenglin tossed the talisman back to Su Yi, looking both amused and exasperated.

"You brat, you even tried to bluff me? What is the meaning of giving me a blank recording stone? If He Jia hadn't shown his true colors, how did you plan to explain this to me?"

Su Yi chuckled.

"How could that be, Elder? You are impartial and have eyes like lightning. Those petty, guilty people would be scared to death just seeing you; how could they not have revealed a flaw?"

Everyone was dumbfounded.

What? It was empty?

Everyone stared, eyes wide, shocked by Su Yi. They thought, *you can play it like this?*

Zhao Zijing’s face turned black. This was nothing but barefaced fraud!

Once untied, Xu Ze ignored Zhao Zijing and Luo Xiaojia, who were standing in the distance looking devastated, and walked straight to Su Yi, his eyes brimming with grateful tears.

"Brother Zhang, this is the third time you’ve helped me. I am eternally grateful for this great kindness!"

Su Yi waved his hand with a warm expression. "We are brothers; there is no need for thanks."

Xu Ze nodded heavily. Then, as if remembering something, he hesitated for a moment before making up his mind, his expression turning solemn.

"Brother Zhang, you have been as kind as a mountain to me. There is something I must tell you."

"Oh?"

Seeing this, Su Yi’s expression also grew serious.

This Xu Ze was a Child of Destiny. If his expression was this grave, it must be something significant.

Su Yi glanced around and lowered his voice.

"There are too many eyes here. Let’s go somewhere else to talk."

Xu Ze nodded and followed behind Su Yi.

Soon, the two arrived at Su Yi’s residence.

After entering the wooden hut, they sat down. Su Yi leaned forward, looking ready to listen intently, and asked:

"Brother Xu, speak your mind."

Xu Ze nodded, looking as if he had made a final decision. He checked left and right once more to ensure no one was eavesdropping before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

This behavior heightened Su Yi’s expectations. He wondered if this Child of Destiny had made some world-defying discovery.

"Brother Zhang, that herb garden you are currently guarding—the one with the Jade Leaf Grass—has a massive problem!"

"Oh? What kind of massive problem?"