Hell Emperor.

Chapter 466 Ye Jie-Recognition
With the departure of Fairy Yaoyin, the Moon Meteorite Iron has been found. Ye Jie also set his next goal on gaining the support of the elders of Tianji Sect.

"I heard from Tian Ming that there are three inner sect elders, and he only needs to get the support of two of them. Among these three elders, the one who is in direct competition with him is the Great Elder. The Great Elder's son is also preparing to run for the position of Sect Master. It seems that he will not be able to get the support of the Great Elder."

"In this case, we can only find a way to gain the support of the other two elders..."

After some thought, Ye Jie came up with an idea. He asked the Tianji Sect members about the residences of the other two elders and prepared to pay them a visit.

Arriving at the Hall of Strange Beasts, the Third Elder was there. Before Ye Jie could even say the words of greeting, he heard a shaking of the head and a sigh coming from inside the hall:

"Not enough, it's too light..."

After entering, Ye Jie was slightly surprised by the scene before him. He saw the disciples around him lying on the ground in a mess. In the center was a huge, human-like wooden mechanical beast. It held a broken wooden sword in its hand, and its stiff body no longer moved.

Seeing Ye Jie coming, the third elder dressed as a scholar also put down the control of the mechanical beast and said in surprise:
"Isn't this the Master of Ziwei Palace who killed the Demon Lord Wangchen and resolved the crisis for the sect? What brought you to my Strange Beast Hall?"

Ye Jie smiled and said, "I was just looking around in Tianji City. Speaking of which, your clan's mechanical devices are really interesting. I have never seen them before. What are they?"

As he spoke, Ye Jie's gaze also fell on the wooden man in the field. He saw that the armor carved all over the wooden man was lifelike, like a mighty warrior on the battlefield, but the only thing missing was a face. The entire face was a smooth wooden board as flat as a mirror.

Seeing that Ye Jie was interested in the mechanical beast, the Third Elder did not hide it and introduced it: "This is a humanoid mechanical beast that I made, named Renwu. It has immortal essence stored in its body and can imitate the use of magic weapons by practitioners, but it cannot perform exercises. If it is improved, maybe one day it will shine in battle."

Ye Jie nodded. It had to be said that the craftsmanship of the Tianji Sect was quite sophisticated, and the improvement of the mechanical beast was even more meticulous. Even Ye Jie could not detect any abnormal movement from the body of the mechanical beast. Ordinary practitioners would be caught off guard when encountering such a mechanical beast and would probably suffer a great loss.

At this time, the third elder sighed again:
"Unfortunately, when Ren Wu was building it, he used too much iron and wood, which made it much stronger than ordinary mechanical beasts. Ordinary weapons would break as soon as they were put in its hands. I'm afraid only extremely heavy magic weapons can allow it to use them to its heart's content. There are no such heavy magic weapons in the Tianji Sect. It seems that I can only purchase them from the Qinglian Chamber of Commerce. I don't know how many spirit stones it will cost..."

Ye Jie touched his chin and couldn't help but say, "Come to think of it, I do have a good magic weapon that I can let it use. It is a six-grade giant sword weighing five thousand pounds. I think it should be enough to meet the strength needs of the five people."

The giant sword that Ye Jie mentioned was exactly the Sea-Covering Sword that he got from the Dragon Palace in the East China Sea. It was a gift of apology from a shrimp soldier to him, which just met the needs of the Third Elder.

Hearing this, the Third Elder's eyes lit up, and he said to Ye Jie, "Can you lend me that heavy sword?"

Ye Jie wanted to lend out the giant sword, but the Sea Covering Sword had already been buried under the ruins of the Ziwei Palace along with other valuables. He could only say helplessly:
"It's not that I'm stingy with this magic weapon, but it has fallen with the Ziwei Palace. I'm afraid it won't be found for a while."

The Third Elder pondered for a moment, and recalled the information his disciples had gathered:
"I heard from my disciples that Ziwei Palace fell not far from the border of the continent. Is that true?"

Ye Jie nodded: "It is located in Dongsheng Shenzhou and has been suppressed by the formation of the end of the law. Even if a ghost fairy enters it, it will lose its power in a moment and its soul will be scattered within a few days. Even if the ghosts in the palace want to take back their property, they can't do it now."

Seeing this, the third elder suggested: "I have also heard of the power of the Dharma Ending Array. Ghosts cannot enter it, but living creatures can. If the Purple Star Palace Master does not mind, the task of excavating the Purple Star Palace's treasures from the ruins can be left to the disciples of the Tianji Sect. With the powerful crossbows to protect them, even ordinary thieves are no match for our disciples, and they will be able to recover the treasures safely."

Ye Jie was quite tempted. Buried under the ruins of Ziwei Palace was not only the giant sword, but also many spiritual stones and treasures that could not be taken away. He was worried that he could not find a suitable person to return to the End of the Law Array to take away the treasures. Unexpectedly, the opportunity came now.

Ye Jie immediately said, "That's great. I'll trouble the disciples of Tianji Sect to take back the property. When the matter is done, I will also give the sixth-grade giant sword that Renwu needs as a thank you gift."

Hearing this, the third elder also showed a satisfied smile.

The two of them talked for a while and soon discussed the specific matters of excavating treasures. Before they parted, Ye Jie spoke again:

"By the way, I see that Tian Ming has an extraordinary demeanor. Can you please support him in the sect leader election next month?"

The third elder pondered for a moment and said, "Tian Ming is the reincarnation of Tianji Immortal Venerable. According to the sect's rules, he should have succeeded as the sect leader, but he made a big mistake and betrayed the trust of the other elders... However, since Ziwei Palace Master is so optimistic about him, I will recognize him when the sect leader election comes."

Ye Jie breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that the Third Elder was relatively easy to talk to. Not only did he gain the approval of an elder on this trip, but he also found helpers to go to the End of the Law Array to recover the property. It really was not a wasted trip.

After contacting the third elder, Ye Jie turned his attention to the second elder and walked to the warehouse of Tianji Sect.

Outside the warehouse, a fat man with an greasy face and a mustache was checking the account book in his hand.

"That's not right...why are there so many missing?"

The man flipped through the account book, frowning and feeling cold sweat on his back.

He didn't put down the account book until he heard footsteps behind him. His eyes flashed with displeasure at being interrupted, and he scolded:
"Didn't I tell you not to disturb me when I'm checking the accounts... Wait, are you the Master of Ziwei Palace?"

Seeing Ye Jie, the Second Elder was slightly startled, then he realized that the person who came was the Master of Ziwei Palace who saved the entire Tianji Sect, and his expression changed immediately:
"So it's the Purple Star Palace Master who's here. I wonder what the Purple Star Palace Master wants to talk to me about? Why didn't you tell me earlier so I could prepare the venue for you? It's really embarrassing for the Purple Star Palace Master to see the mess in the warehouse..."

Ye Jie waved his hand and showed a curious look: "I just came here to take a look. I saw that the second elder was frowning and anxious. Could something have happened?"

Hearing Ye Jie ask this, the Second Elder sighed:
"Palace Master Ziwei, you don't know that when Lord Wangchen attacked, Tianji Sect fell into chaos and even the warehouse caught fire. Now when I checked the accounts, I found that the accounts were completely wrong. How could so many things be burned? Do you really think I'm a three-year-old child who is looking at the account book for the first time? I doubt it..."

At this point, the Second Elder looked around suspiciously and said in a low voice:

"Someone stole things from the warehouse, and they were all high-quality items. Then they set fire and lied that all the items were burned..."

"Yeah……"

After listening to the Second Elder's thoughts, Ye Jie also realized the seriousness of the matter, and for a moment his face showed deep thought.

The second elder looked around and said with some concern: "I can see that there is something wrong with the accounts, and of course the first elder can see it too. If we can't find the culprit, I will be the only one to bear the blame. It is at least a crime of dereliction of duty... Master Ziwei, I heard that you have great magical powers. Can you please lend me a hand and help me find out the truth of this matter?"

Ye Jie raised his eyebrows. Before he even opened his mouth, the Second Elder took the initiative to ask for help. It was really easy to get it. "Speaking of which, I also have something to ask. It's about Tianming's election as the leader..."

The second elder said repeatedly: "Isn't it my support? As long as the truth can be found out, everything can be discussed..."

With his answer, Ye Jie showed a satisfied look and immediately started searching in the burned warehouse.

After some investigation, Ye Jie noticed tiny black footprints on the wall. He thought for a moment and then said, "Take me to the granary."

Under the leadership of the second elder, Ye Jie soon arrived at the warehouse where grain was stored.

"Palace Master Ziwei, this is the granary of Tianji City. There are formations around it that can preserve the grain for a longer period of time. There is no need to worry about it spoiling or getting damaged."

Following the Second Elder's introduction, Ye Jie looked around and saw the dried rice and wheat sealed in pottery jars. He asked casually:

"Did you plant this? I don't think I've seen any farmland used for farming near Tianji City."

The second elder shook his head and said, "No, we imported these from the Qinglian Chamber of Commerce. Tianji City does not need farmers who work in the fields. It only needs craftsmen who are good at mechanical crafts. An exquisite wooden sculpture carved by the craftsmen is worth a large bag of grain. Who needs to farm in the fields? We can just exchange these utensils for grain through the Qinglian Chamber of Commerce."

Ye Jie nodded, and suddenly his eyes lit up as if he saw something.

The second elder also saw the thing and couldn't help but turn pale. It turned out to be a few dark black rat droppings. He coughed dryly and said:

"Purple Star Palace Master, please forgive me for making a fool of myself. The disciple who was in charge of the granary must have neglected to check and didn't even know there were rats in the granary. I will punish him severely later. Although there was a fire everywhere in the warehouse, the granary was not damaged. Otherwise, Purple Star Palace Master should investigate elsewhere..."

Ye Jie shook his head. This was what he was looking for: "It seems that there is already a clue."

Soon, Ye Jie asked the maid to bring some honey. He asked the second elder to wait aside and poured the honey on the ground. As the fragrance of honey spread, not long after, a big rat poked its head out from the side.

"This is for you. I have something to ask you."

Ye Jie opened his mouth slowly, and with the help of his innate ability to communicate with animals, his words also reached the ears of the mouse.

Under the temptation of honey, the mouse overcame its fear and ran over to swallow the honey on the ground. Soon its stomach became round and it burped contentedly.

"What do you want to ask? You might as well ask it now while I'm in a good mood."

"What did you experience not long ago?" Ye Jie asked.

"You mean before? The place was on fire, and the smoke was so overwhelming that I had to run out of the cave and wait until the fire was out before I dared to come back."

Ye Jie's eyes lit up, and he asked again: "In that case, what did you see?"

"Let me think... I can't remember. If there is something to eat, I can remember it." The mouse rolled his eyes and squeaked.

Ye Jie grabbed a handful of rice and gave it to the mouse, and the mouse said with satisfaction:
"I remember now. I saw the man who usually guarded the warehouse at the east gate holding a torch, constantly setting the surrounding buildings on fire. Then he ran away in a panic. He was holding something in his arms, like a strange-looking wood carving. I don't know anything else."

"A weird-looking wood sculpture? Is it a mechanical beast?"

After some thought, Ye Jie came up with an idea. The wooden sculpture mentioned by the mouse was obviously a mechanical beast. It seemed that as long as he found that person, the problem would be solved.

Once again, Ye Jie found clues to break the deadlock by communicating with animals, and he was also impressed by the uniqueness of this innate magical power.

Even though talking to animals cannot bring about a boost in strength, when it really works, it is no less effective than other innate magical powers. Under the effect of talking to animals, those animals that are easily overlooked by ordinary people have become Ye Jie's spies invisibly, and can provide him with key information.

The second elder was stunned by the scene before him.

After the mouse left, Ye Jie also had a target. Under the leadership of the second elder, he found the disciple who was guarding the East Gate warehouse.

"Second Elder... why are you here?"

Seeing the figure of the Second Elder, the disciple's face trembled and his expression became a little unnatural.

"How dare you say that! I already know what you did!" The second elder gritted his teeth and glared, revealing his anger. "You took advantage of the chaos to set the fire, and you thought I didn't know? How dare you do such a thing? If I don't punish you severely, I'm afraid I won't be able to give an explanation to Tianji Sect!"

Seeing that the truth had been revealed, the disciple trembled, and then heard Ye Jie slowly say:
"Let's give him a chance to explain himself. Maybe he has some difficulties. We shouldn't jump to conclusions too early. If he is willing to confess the truth, he may be able to avoid some severe punishment."

Ye Jie's words immediately made the disciple feel like he had found a life-saving straw, and he immediately confessed the truth:
"Someone came to me and offered me mechanical beasts at a high price, but I am only an outer disciple in charge of the warehouse. My attainments in mechanical arts are limited, so I can't make an ideal mechanical beast at all. I had no choice but to steal the mechanical beasts in the warehouse... I must have been bewitched by a ghost, so I made a mistake and stole a lot of mechanical beasts. I even planned to cover up the evidence with a fire when the sect was attacked. I hope the elder will forgive me..."

In response, Ye Jie shook his head: "This is your own choice. What does it have to do with ghosts? Don't blame everything on ghosts."

(End of this chapter)