Chapter 510: Elder Mu, The Traitor Is Yan Shaozhe!
He Caitou began explaining his experience.
It was a simple story he had been wandering aimlessly through Sunrise City when he noticed an evil soul master acting suspiciously. He followed the man in secret, trailing him to the water prison, where he discovered the hostages. Using an ambush, he managed to kill the evil soul master and the other cultists inside. Luckily, the stronger members of the Holy Spirit Cult weren't present at the time.
As a result, he successfully rescued the prisoners and brought them to Elder Song.
Of course, it all sounded rather absurd even He Caitou himself felt his so called heroic rescue was barely believable.
But as long as the hostages backed up his story, that was the reality everyone would accept. Whether he believed it or not didn't matter what mattered was that others did.
Elder Song was utterly shocked. She didn't doubt He Caitou's words he was a student of Shrek Academy and a product of the Ultimate Soldier Plan. He was trustworthy. There was no reason for him to lie about something like this.
She smiled in satisfaction and praised him. "He Caitou, you've made a great contribution. When we return to the academy, I will personally bring this matter up in the Sea God's Pavilion meeting. Shrek Academy has never been stingy in rewarding students who achieve great feats, and the Three Douluo Empires will also honor you for your actions."
"Understood!" He Caitou nodded. Then he asked, "By the way, Elder Song, I also spotted Tang Ya in Sunrise City. Shouldn't we try to rescue her as well?"
He had indeed seen Tang Ya on his way back. However, she had been surrounded by evil soul masters and was heading toward the water prison likely about to explode with rage once she discovered the hostages were gone.
Since there were too many hostages to protect, he had avoided unnecessary conflict and refrained from attempting to rescue Tang Ya directly.
"Tang Ya is in Sunrise City too?" Elder Song's brows furrowed. After a brief moment of thought, she made a decision. "I will investigate her situation. If the opportunity is right, I'll take action immediately. If not, we should focus on escorting the hostages out of Sunrise City first. Shrek Academy and the Three Empires' spies can assist them in leaving the Sun Moon Empire. Afterward, we can plan further action.
For now, don't tell Bei Bei about Tang Ya. I fear he might act recklessly."
After a moment of thought, He Caitou nodded. "Elder Song, your judgment is wise."
Shrek Academy, Sea God's Pavilion
The autumn wind howled, rippling the once still surface of the lake outside the pavilion. Inside, the atmosphere was just as turbulent.
Seated in his chair, Elder Mu clenched the armrests tightly, his knuckles white with tension. Cracks spread across the wooden surface like a spider's web.
His gaze swept across the elders of the Sea God's Pavilion as he took a deep breath, trying to control his emotions. "So… Elder Zhuang and Elder Lin both perished at the Sun Moon Empire's border. And to preserve our remaining strength, you all chose a strategic retreat back to Shrek Academy? I expect a reasonable explanation."
From a purely strategic standpoint, their decision made sense.
Since Elder Zhuang and Elder Lin had already fallen, and the Sun Moon Empire suffered no casualties, it was clear that the power gap between them was immense. Staying at the border to clash with such overwhelming strength would have been unwise. A tactical retreat was understandable.
But why retreat all the way back to Shrek Academy?
Were the Sun Moon powerhouses truly so terrifying that they had completely broken the spirits of Shrek's battle hardened elders?
Yan Shaozhe, looking at Elder Mu, spoke in a displeased tone. "Teacher, this was all Elder Xuan's decision. If not for his insistence, I don't think we needed to retreat all the way back to the academy.
Although our elders can't match the Sun Moon powerhouses, we could have maintained a presence at the border letting them know that we are still there!
Yes, it would be risky, but as long as we were cautious and avoided direct combat, we could have at least drawn their attention away, giving Elder Song and her team more time to complete their mission.
But Elder Xuan refused. He insisted we return to the academy and even claimed he had already sent word to Elder Song, instructing her to retreat as well. Doesn't that make this entire operation a failure?"
Elder Mu nodded slightly Yan Shaozhe's reasoning was sound. Elder Xuan's actions did seem out of place.
Turning to Elder Xuan, he waited for an explanation.
Elder Xuan's expression turned serious. "Elder Song, it's not that I didn't want to continue the operation. But if we had remained at the border, the traitor among our elders would have seized the opportunity to eliminate me and those still loyal to Shrek.
That would have been a catastrophic loss for the academy. Given how tense the situation has become, it could even threaten the foundation of Shrek Academy itself.
That's why I led our elders back here to deal with the traitor once and for all. Only after purging the traitor can we focus our efforts on external threats."
A traitor among Shrek's elders?
Elder Mu was stunned.
He had always believed that Shrek's elders, having gone through rigorous selection and years of cultivation under Shrek's values, were all dedicated to the academy's interests. How could there be a traitor among them?
But Elder Xuan spoke with such certainty it seemed he already knew exactly who the traitor was.
The other elders were equally dumbfounded, exchanging glances with one another.
"Who is the traitor?" Elder Mu asked, choosing to err on the side of caution.
If there truly was a traitor, their presence posed an immeasurable danger. They wouldn't just leak intelligence; they could also betray Shrek's strongest fighters at critical moments.
Elder Xuan confidently declared, "Based on my observations and the evidence I've gathered, I am certain the traitor is Yan Shaozhe! Elder Mu, I ask that you enforce academy law and ensure he faces justice!"
The room fell into stunned silence.
Elder Mu's face was filled with disbelief.
Yan Shaozhe? His own student? How could that be possible?
But Elder Xuan and Yan Shaozhe had always been close. If Elder Xuan was accusing him, it wasn't a baseless claim. He had no reason to frame him.
Yan Shaozhe was completely dumbfounded.
Why was Elder Xuan accusing him?
Forgetting their long standing relationship, he roared in protest. "Elder Xuan! How dare you falsely accuse me? I would never betray Shrek!"
Meanwhile, Cai Mei'er and Xian Lin'er, who had already been suspicious of Yan Shaozhe due to his closeness with Feng Ling, now furrowed their brows in displeasure.
They were growing increasingly uncomfortable with Elder Xuan's baseless accusations.
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