The Bee Queen’s newly awakened Divine Technique, the Voice of All Things, had yet to reveal any other functions. However, simply being able to communicate with it was more than enough.
He could even use the Bee Queen as a relay, allowing him to communicate with his other Spirit Beasts and better understand their thoughts and feelings.
Demonic beasts and Spirit Beasts below the Golden Core realm were incapable of speech.
The Beast Taming Sect did teach a discipline known as "beast language," but with countless types of Spirit Beasts in the world, it was impossible for a single Cultivator to master them all. Learning a few major categories—such as the languages of felines, avians, and reptiles—was generally considered sufficient.
Even after mastering these languages, communicating with Spirit Beasts was still a chore. Their intelligence was low, making their "speech" disorganized, and Spirit Beasts from different regions even had distinct "accents."
But the Bee Queen’s Divine Technique bypassed all linguistic ambiguity and went straight to a Spirit Beast’s mind. It was a truly superior thod of communication.
After processing this information, Fang Qingyuan allowed the newly awakened Bee Queen to continue feasting on the Golden Jade Flower Honey. He withdrew his Divine Sense from the Immortal Mansion and addressed the crowd waiting outside, saying:
"I just had a minor epiphany and resolved a difficult point in my cultivation. I apologize for being lost in thought and keeping you all waiting."
Hearing Fang Qingyuan’s explanation, the Foundation Establishnt Cultivators, who had been waiting for quite so ti, could hardly criticize him. Instead, they ca forward to congratulate him on his breakthrough.
As for the weeping Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivators, no one paid any mind to their reactions.
Setting that aside, Fang Qingyuan turned his attention to the demon-possessed Elder Zhang. According to the Loose Cultivators, it was a simple story of a Cultivator succumbing to demonic influence and going on a killing spree. However, Fang Qingyuan instinctively felt it wasn’t that simple.
There hadn’t been a single Demon-possessed Cultivator here in ten years. For a case to appear right after he had sched against the Spirit Wood Alliance... to call it a coincidence felt incredibly far-fetched to Fang Qingyuan.
’Could the Spirit Wood Alliance be behind this?’
Now, whenever anything bad happened in his territory, Fang Qingyuan’s first instinct was to suspect the Spirit Wood Alliance. He was far more inclined to believe in sabotage than in coincidence.
’Always plan for the worst. That way, you have room to maneuver when you respond.’
’But if this is the Spirit Wood Alliance’s handiwork, is this really all there is to it?’
Forcing a Late-stage Foundation Establishnt cultivator to beco demon-possessed just to destroy a newly developed camp... The move seed far too petty.
’Unless... all of this is just bait. What if the Spirit Wood Alliance’s real target is our newly arrived battle formation?’
At this thought, a chill went down Fang Qingyuan’s spine. He looked down at the still-weeping Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivators and announced:
"Our Southern Border Beast Taming Sect is now aware of this situation, and we will see it through to the very end. You may all go and rest. It won’t be long before peace is restored to this place."
Hearing Fang Qingyuan’s promise, the few Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivators below were overjoyed. They thanked him profusely once more before being led away. Disciples of the Beast Taming Sect would follow up with them later to inquire about more details.
After the outsiders had gone, Fang Qingyuan looked at the dozen or so Foundation Establishnt Cultivators in the room and said:
"What are your thoughts on this matter? Please speak freely. Let’s discuss it so that we can avoid any oversights on my part."
After Fang Qingyuan’s courteous opening, the seated Cultivators began to discuss the matter animatedly. Having reached the Foundation Establishnt realm, none of them were lacking in experience or insight. A few were even the leaders of Cultivator Clans, making them particularly shrewd.
One man stood up and said:
"Elder Fang, I find this matter suspicious. As soone with Late-stage Foundation Establishnt Cultivation, Elder Zhang couldn’t possibly have shown no signs before becoming demon-possessed. What’s strange is that none of the many Cultivators in this camp noticed anything beforehand. It doesn’t add up."
The speaker was the Clan Leader of a Vassal Cultivator family of the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect. His na was Ma Kun, and he possessed a Mid-stage Foundation Establishnt Cultivation. He had served as Clan Leader for over fifty years, having lived through the eras of both Wei Tong and Wei Xuan of the Wei Family. After the Wei Family of Celestial Attraction Mountain was defeated, he returned to the Southern Border and pledged his allegiance to the Beast Taming Sect.
To have survived nurous bloody wars, Ma Kun was clearly a capable man. Fang Qingyuan had brought him along precisely for his seasoned experience, hoping Ma Kun could compensate for his own relative inexperience.
Ma Kun held considerable prestige among the vassal families present. His words represented the views of all seven or eight of the vassal Cultivator Clans, so Fang Qingyuan took his opinion very seriously.
When Ma Kun finished, Fang Qingyuan nodded and said:
"Clan Leader Ma speaks sense. A Cultivator tainted by Demonic Qi wouldn’t beco demon-possessed without any warning, especially not a Late-stage Foundation Establishnt Cultivator. In your opinion, then, where should we begin our investigation?"
Ma Kun replied with the confidence of a seasoned strategist:
"Those Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivators we just spoke to... I suspect there’s sothing wrong with them. I don’t believe they were intentionally lying to us, but it’s possible they themselves are unaware of a problem."
Fang Qingyuan nodded, gesturing for him to continue. Ma Kun stroked his beard and said:
"I possess a treasure that can reveal a Cultivator’s Heart Demon. If Elder Fang permits, I would like to call those Foundation Establishnt Cultivators back in, one by one, to see if we can find anything."
The Beast Taming Sect disciples had already inspected the Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivators when they entered, but Ma Kun was clearly more confident in his own Magical Artifact.
Fang Qingyuan had no objection to Ma Kun’s proposal. He whispered a few words to Zhan Zhi’Er, who then swayed her hips as she left the room.
A mont later, a single Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivator was brought in. It was the sa one who had claid his kidney was stolen.
The Foundation Establishnt Cultivator looked bewildered upon being brought back in, unsure why he had been summoned alone.
Seeing his expression, Fang Qingyuan reassured him in a soft voice:
"Do not be alard. We have a few more questions for you, but before that, we need to perform a small inspection."
"An inspection?"
The Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivator’s expression soured. But facing a room full of Foundation Establishnt Cultivators, every single one of them stronger than him, he had no choice but to say:
"I trust in your integrity and in the reputation of the Beast Taming Sect. Please, proceed."
For a Loose Cultivator, having his foundations—his entire background and abilities—laid bare for others to see was sothing to be resisted at all costs.
If his cultivation level, Talent, Magical Artifacts, and Cultivation Technique were all known, any Cultivator of the sa rank with ill intent could easily ambush him. He would stand no chance. Yet, forced by circumstance, the Foundation Establishnt Loose Cultivator had no room to resist. He could only use his words to find so small asure of psychological comfort.
Fang Qingyuan understood this well. After offering a brief reassurance, he signaled to Ma Kun to begin.
Ma Kun stepped before the Loose Cultivator and, with a wave of his hand, summoned an Eight Trigrams Ancient Bronze Treasure Mirror from his storage bag. He then circulated his Magical Power, channeling three wisps of pure qi into the mirror.
Nourished by the Magical Power, an eye-like ornant on top of the mirror suddenly blinked. The mirror’s surface then projected a beam of clear light, which enveloped the Loose Cultivator.
Although the Loose Cultivator’s face was grim as the clear light enveloped him, nothing unusual happened. The mirror revealed nothing at all.
Unwilling to give up, Ma Kun channeled a few more wisps of pure qi into the mirror, but the result was the sa.
After a while, Ma Kun gave up in disappointnt. Just as the Loose Cultivator broke into a relieved smile, Fang Qingyuan, who was seated above, suddenly asked:
"What was that? Did you say you want to kill all of us?"
Everyone was stunned by his words. They hadn’t heard the Loose Cultivator make any sound of discontent, yet Fang Qingyuan’s expression made it seem as if the man had just said sothing terrible.
The Loose Cultivator was startled as well. He forced a smile and said:
"I didn’t say anything. My lord, you must have misheard."
Fang Qingyuan rubbed his temples and said to Ma Kun:
"Don’t be stingy with your blood essence. Focus the mirror on his cranial palace. I suspect the problem is there."
At this command, Ma Kun’s expression turned solemn. He imdiately spat a mouthful of blood essence onto his mirror. Instantly, the eye on the Eight Trigrams Ancient Bronze Treasure Mirror snapped open and projected its light onto the Loose Cultivator before him.
The next mont, the Loose Cultivator’s cranial palace seed to turn transparent, revealing the brain tissue within—and the figure of a small, nacing red spider.
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