Chapter 274

Chapter 274

"Not right..." Qin Ran walked out of Gu Yueming's cave and headed to the Main Peak Butler Hall, clutching the token of the Chief Alchemy Elder in his hand. His brain was running at full speed.

"The Sect Master said they have already investigated Jian Yuanjie's death from various sources. So, he may not know how Jian Yuanjie died, where he died, or who killed him. But he controls the Mountain Protection Array, so he should at least know when Jian Yuanjie left the sect... He should also know when I entered and left the sect... And Chasing the Wind has been looking for me within the sect. He has every reason to suspect me... And what just happened in his cave..."

"Not right!" Analyzing up to this point, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. "The Sect Master must already know that I killed Jian Yuanjie!"

A sense of crisis instantly invaded Qin Ran's heart, urging him to escape.

"Calm down... Stay calm!" But he quickly realized it and told himself to stay calm in his mind. He continued walking towards the Butler Hall as if nothing had happened. "The Sect Master knows that I killed Jian Yuanjie, but he didn't take action against me. Instead, he entrusted me with the position of Chief Alchemy Elder. The implication... the implication is that he doesn't intend to hold me responsible?!"

"Yes!" Realizing this, Qin Ran breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that he was temporarily safe.

But he had doubts again, why?

Is it because I am the only alchemist in the Dao Sword Sect, or is it because...

"The Sect Master has actually already discovered this pawn called Jian Yuanjie!"

His eyes were deep, like the universe, with stars flickering inside. Grasping some details, he reconstructed the truth of the matter. "The Sect Master discovered Jian Yuanjie a long time ago, but he didn't make a move... The Sect Master was severely injured and went into seclusion... In fact, the Sect Master had planned all this. It's a case of feigning weakness, luring the enemy in deep, and inviting the intrusion of the Zhi Shen Valley?!"

"What a cunning old fox!"

Qin Ran sorted out the cause and effect clearly and suddenly realized that Jian Yuanjie was just a pawn in the power struggle between the two major sects. Killing Jian Yuanjie, the Sect Master probably wouldn't pursue it.

"Wait a minute..."

At this point, he suddenly realized something: If Jian Yuanjie was a pawn, then now that he had killed this pawn and been pushed into Jian Yuanjie's position by the Sect Master...

"I've become a pawn!"

He killed Jian Yuanjie, not without punishment, but now he had become Jian Yuanjie. He was now the pawn in the power struggle between the two sects!

"This isn't right..." Qin Ran looked at the alchemy furnace in his hand. "How did things turn out like this? How did I suddenly end up in the center of the whirlpool?"

He had just wanted to be a low-profile cultivator who survived by practicing immortality!

...However, since things had come to this point, he could only take it step by step. At worst, he could leave early. After all, the escape plan had always been in his contingency plan.

He finally arrived at the Butler Hall.

Qin Ran didn't actually know much about the Butler Hall. His understanding of the Butler Hall was similar to his understanding of the school administration office when he was in school in his previous life. He was familiar with it but didn't know the internal organizational structure.

He had to rely on asking for directions to finally find this so-called Chief Alchemy Hall.

Qin Ran pushed open the door and took a look inside. The space was immense, about the size of a football field, but there were not many people inside, only a dozen or so. Among them, there were only four individuals worth noting.

After exchanging a few words with Shi Yuan, Qin Ran approached the desk of a female steward to his right and asked with a smile, "May I know your name?"

"Disciple Ke Yue," she replied respectfully, setting down her pen.

"What are your responsibilities?"

"I am in charge of distributing elixirs to the disciples every month. Generally, all the elixirs needed by the disciples within the sect pass through my hands," Ke Yue answered.

"Oh..." Qin Ran glanced at this sweet-looking female steward and nodded. "It must be quite demanding for you, with so many disciples in the Dao Sword Sect."

"No, I'm only responsible for keeping records," Ke Yue replied modestly.

After a brief conversation with Ke Yue, Qin Ran moved on to the desk of a male steward to his left. With a smile, he asked, "And how should I address you?"

"Just call me Yan Yi, the Chief Steward," he replied.

When he heard Yan Yi addressing himself as the Chief Steward, Qin Ran asked, "Do you recognize me?"

"I am from the same generation of disciples. During the examination at the Dao Gate, I was defeated on the questioning platform presided over by the Chief Steward," Yan Yi joked.

"Oh! So you had bad luck and ran into me," Qin Ran also joked.

"No, not at all..." Qin Ran's face and demeanor were not aggressive, but rather approachable. Seeing this, Yan Yi relaxed and smiled. "Actually, I'm a big fan of Senior Sister Li Shiyin. She's truly amazing."

"Haha..." Qin Ran chuckled twice and said, "If there's a chance, I'll take you to Dan Peak to meet your Senior Sister Li."

Saying that, he also asked Yan Yi, "What are your responsibilities?"

"I'm in charge of everything related to alchemy within the sect. Any external disciple who wants to practice alchemy usually goes through me," Yan Yi replied.

Upon hearing that Yan Yi had such a job, Qin Ran smiled and said, "Well, your job seems quite leisurely."

In fact, there were no alchemists within the Dao Sword Sect, so it seemed that Yan Yi was the exemplary slacker of the sect.

Yan Yi awkwardly scratched the back of his head and replied, "Actually, there are disciples who want to practice alchemy..."

After chatting with Yan Yi for a while, Qin Ran went to the desk of another female steward to his right, the knowledgeable and intelligent-looking one. Smiling, he asked, "May I know your name?"

"Feng Feiyan."

"What a beautiful name," Qin Ran said, his eyes narrowing as he smiled at this elegant and intelligent female steward. "What are your responsibilities?"

"I am responsible for procuring elixirs and spiritual medicines," Feng Feiyan replied.

Upon hearing this, Qin Ran's smiling eyes slowly narrowed.

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