Walker Of The Worlds

Chapter 3968: The Atmosphere In The Sect

The beasts’ consciousnesses immediately responded and it was almost as if several voices had been waiting for Lin Mu.

"How have you been, Master?" Little Shrubby asked first.

Lin Mu smiled. "I’m good. What about all of you? Hopefully you haven’t gotten into any trouble?"

"We’ve mostly been playing and eating," Xiao Yin and Xiao Yang replied together.

Their answers came with such perfect synchronization that Lin Mu could almost imagine the two little creatures sitting somewhere together while speaking.

Ashy answered a moment later. "I’ve been wandering around the sect. There’s a lot of gossip."

Lin Mu’s eyebrows rose and he immediately knew there was going to be a lot more information coming.

"Go on." He could practically feel Ashy’s excitement through their connection.

She had apparently been waiting for an opportunity to tell him everything.

"There is so much happening!" Ashy began. "The Wild Peak has been incredibly tense. There have been arguments everywhere. People are shouting at each other, elders are getting angry, disciples are whispering in groups, and everyone seems to have an opinion about what happened. The Law and Discipline Hall has also been involved. There have been several arguments between them and the Wild Peak elders."

Lin Mu listened carefully as Ashy’s words came faster and faster. "The whole thing is because of you."

"Little Bull," Lin Mu corrected automatically.

"Yes, Little Bull," Ashy said. "Everyone knows that Taegong arrested Little Bull, and the Wild Peak is furious about it. They think he abused his authority. Some elders have even openly accused the Vault Division of hiding information."

Lin Mu’s expression became serious as that was roughly what he had expected.

Ashy continued. "The Wild Peak elders have been trying to find you. They first went into the Vault."

"I expected that."

"They punched their way inside."

Lin Mu paused. "They did what?"

"They punched their way inside," Ashy repeated happily. "Apparently High Elder Shatter Peak destroyed several barriers. He was extremely angry."

Lin Mu rubbed his forehead. "That sounds like him."

Ashy giggled before continuing. "They didn’t find Taegong. He apparently disappeared somewhere inside the Vault Division. Nobody knows exactly where he went. The Wild Peak elders demanded that the Vault Division hand over Little Bull, but they couldn’t get any useful answer."

Lin Mu already had a pretty good idea why as Taegong had authority over the vault. As long as he remained inside a place where that authority protected him, reaching him would be difficult.

Ashy continued with the rest. "The Wild Peak then started asking about the prisons."

Lin Mu’s eyes narrowed. "They searched several of the sect’s prisons?"

"Yes. They asked the Law Division whether Little Bull had been sent to any of their prisons. The Law Division denied having him." Ashy explained.

Lin Mu sighed. "They’re walking exactly where Taegong wants them to walk."

He had already understood that Taegong’s actions were part of a larger scheme. The man had arranged for Little Bull to disappear, then made sure the Wild Peak would become suspicious of the other divisions. Every attempt to search for him created another conflict.

Ashy continued explaining the situation. "The Wild Peak elders don’t believe the Law Division. They think they’re deliberately hiding Little Bull. There have been several confrontations because of that."

Lin Mu could already imagine the expressions on the faces of the Law Division elders. They probably had no idea where Little Bull was either and now they were being accused of hiding someone they had never even seen.

"And High Elder Shatter Peak?" Lin Mu asked.

"He destroyed three buildings." Ashy said with a lot of excitement

Lin Mu went silent. "Three?"

"Yeah." Ashy chirped.

"He’s going to get punished." Lin Mu sighed.

"He already did."

Hearing that Lin Mu shook his head. That was exactly the sort of thing he expected from Shatter Peak. Ashy continued speaking, and Lin Mu listened while mentally arranging all the information.

The Law Division had been trying to contain Wild Peak’s anger. The Wild Peak elders had been searching through prisons and demanding answers. Their attempts to appeal to higher authorities had gone nowhere.

That last part was particularly important. "Did they appeal to the higher authorities?"

"Yes."

"And?"

"Nothing." Lin Mu’s expression hardened.

That confirmed another suspicion... Taegong was being protected.

The Vault Division’s authority alone could explain some resistance from the other departments, yet completely ignoring the Wild Peak’s appeals suggested something deeper. Someone had made sure that the complaints would not immediately reach the people capable of overturning Taegong’s authority.

Lin Mu thought back to the situation he had encountered before entering the Mad Demon Depths. The timing was too convenient as the Peak Head had suddenly left the world and Taegong had isolated Little Bull.

The Wild Peak had lost its strongest authority figure at precisely the wrong moment. The Law Division had become entangled with the Wild Peak and Taegong had disappeared into the Vault Division.

Everything had been arranged to keep the situation contained.

Lin Mu let out a slow breath. "Do you know anything about Taegong himself?"

Ashy immediately became less confident. "I couldn’t get into the vault. I don’t think anyone knows where he is. Even the elders have been looking for him."

Lin Mu nodded as that made sense. The Vault Division was probably the worst place for Ashy to investigate. Even with her abilities, she could not simply walk into a heavily protected area without attracting attention even with her Shadow Abilities.

Lin Mu then told the beasts about what he had discovered.

He explained the Mad Demon Depths, the prisoner communities, the ancient array, Zhenyu’s legacy, the Mad Demon and the information regarding the Virtuous Calamity Daoist. He also mentioned the possibility that Deng Siqi might be connected to the ancient Hopeful Star Pavilion.

The beasts offered their opinions and their suggestions were remarkably consistent.

"Go back and punch them!"

"Destroy the vault!"

"Beat Taegong until he talks!"

"Burn the whole place down!"

Lin Mu listened quietly and after several seconds, he sighed. "None of you are helping."

Little Shrubby seemed confused. "But Master, those methods work."

"They work for you because you’re a group of walking disasters."