Hell Emperor.

Chapter 467 Ye Jie-Tracing
After listening to the disciple's explanation, the second elder was about to explode, but suddenly he thought of something and couldn't help but frowned:
"No, there are many disciples stationed on the main road out of the city. If you stole the mechanical beast and planned to take it away secretly, you would be discovered halfway. How did you take the mechanical beast away?"

The disciple hesitated a little, and seemed unwilling to answer, but under the stern gaze of the Second Elder, he finally spoke:
"Second Elder, you may not know that I dug a tunnel in an abandoned cellar that leads directly to the outside of the city. This is how I was able to avoid the inspections of other disciples."

"What?" Hearing this, the Second Elder couldn't keep calm and immediately said, "Take me to the location of the cellar."

The disciple lowered his head and led the few people to a remote corner of Tianji City. Sure enough, in the cellar covered with cobwebs and dust, they found the tunnel he mentioned.

At this time, the second elder seemed to have discovered something. He looked around and sensed something. His expression changed slightly: "This aura... is the aura that only demon cultivators have. Besides you, who else knows about this tunnel?"

The disciple quickly replied: "This is the tunnel I dug. No one knows about the tunnel except me..."

"You are lying. What's with the aura of the demon cultivators around you? Not only did you steal the sect's property, but you are also an accomplice sent by the demon cultivators just to sell out the Tianji Sect's intelligence and betray the sect one day!" the second elder said angrily.

The disciple was so panicked that he couldn't even speak clearly. Thinking of the severe punishment he was about to receive, his eyes were filled with despair.

Ye Jie released his senses and soon discovered something. He entered the tunnel and picked up a square token. After taking a closer look, he saw the word "wang" engraved on the token.

Seeing this token, the Second Elder was horrified, and a deep fear surged in his heart: "Is that... the Wangchen Token? That is the token of the Wangchen Demon Lord. The Wangchen Demon Lord must have been here. He entered Tianji City from here!"

Ye Jie looked calm and comforted him, "Don't worry, Lord Wangchen is dead, that was just one of his tokens."

With Ye Jie's comfort, the Second Elder regained his usual composure. Soon, he looked at the disciple with a bit of lingering hatred in his eyes: "You were the one who let the Devil Lord Wangchen in, and you still say you are not the accomplice sent by the Demon Sect?"

The disciple was trembling, having not expected this at all, and just kept begging for mercy.

Ye Jie glanced at him and asked, "Are you sure you haven't mentioned this to anyone?"

The disciple thought about it carefully and said uncertainly: "I remember that I seemed to have mentioned this to the merchants who collected the mechanical beasts once. They asked me how I brought the mechanical beasts out. I answered that I used the tunnel, but I didn't tell them the location of the tunnel... Looking at the way those merchants were dressed, they were obviously from the Qinglian Chamber of Commerce and should have nothing to do with the Demon Sect. How could it be..."

Ye Jie shook his head: "Maybe they sold your information, or maybe they were disguised as the Demon Sect. Their intention was not to target the mechanical beasts at all, but to find a way to enter the city through you. In short, the reason why they were able to enter the city is inseparable from you."

The disciple looked bitter. After hearing these words, the second elder couldn't help but gasp:
"According to the investigation of other elders, after entering Tianji City, Lord Wangchen went to the residence of the Sect Master and stole the Moon Meteorite. Only a very small number of Inner Sect elders knew that the Sect Master borrowed the Meteorite. Ordinary disciples were not qualified to know. Even if Lord Wangchen could find a way to enter Tianji City, he would not have been able to act so quickly if he had not received the news in advance..."

Hearing this, Ye Jie also realized something, and his expression changed slightly: "Are you saying that there is a traitor among the elders?"

The second elder smiled bitterly, and finally nodded, accepting the result.

Now even Ye Jie felt a strong sense of vigilance in his heart. It seemed that someone in the Tianji Sect had bad intentions.

Ye Jie thought for a moment, then warned, "Regarding the tunnel and the traitor among the elders, please block the news for the time being and do not alert the enemy."

The second elder nodded repeatedly: "What the Purple Star Palace Master said is true. This news is of great importance. If it is spread out hastily, it will not only fail to help us find the traitor, but it may also cause panic among the disciples in the sect, which will put us in a passive position... Unfortunately, I still have many affairs to attend to in the sect, and I am afraid that I will not be able to find the traitor. Can you trouble the Purple Star Palace Master to eliminate this hidden danger for the Tianji Sect?"

Ye Jie nodded. Without waiting for the Second Elder to ask, he had the same idea in mind, so he went with the flow and said, "Then the matter of the Sect Leader election after that..."

"Tian Ming is the reincarnation of Tianji Immortal Venerable. It is only natural for him to be the sect leader. My support is not a big deal, but the key is the other two inner sect elders. They are not as easy to talk to as I am, especially the chief elder..."

The second elder seemed to remember something and hesitated to speak.

Ye Jie pondered for a moment and asked, "Speaking of which, I have already met two elders, but I have not yet visited the first elder. I heard that his son Tiancheng is also a contender for the position of the sect leader. I wonder what the second elder thinks of this?"

No wonder Ye Jie thought so much, it was really difficult for the Great Elder to clear his relationship. If anyone was to say who would benefit the most after Tian Ming was abolished as the Sect Leader, it would definitely be the Great Elder. From this point of view, it was reasonable for him to release the news to Demon Lord Wangchen.

If you think about it carefully, when the Demon Lord Wangchen attacked earlier, the Great Elder's reinforcements were a beat late. If Ye Jie hadn't taken action and killed the Demon Lord, I'm afraid Tian Ming would not have escaped. From this point of view, he is more suspicious.

The second elder pondered, "Tiancheng is a man of poor talent. Compared with Tianming, his attainments in the art of mechanical devices are far inferior to those of Tianming. Logically speaking, he is not qualified to succeed the position of the sect leader. However, the first elder does not think so. Instead, he supports Tiancheng's participation in the competition. He was even the first to propose the abolition of Tianming's position as the sect leader... Could it be that he betrayed the Tianji Sect for the position of the sect leader?"

Ye Jie kept the situation in mind, reminded the Second Elder once again to block the news, and then left.

After visiting the two elders, Ye Jie did not stop and soon arrived at the residence of the great elder. No matter what the great elder was planning, Ye Jie had to come and find out in person.

Soon, after the disciples' notification, Ye Jie also saw the great elder who was waiting in the courtyard.

As soon as he saw Ye Jie, without waiting for him to speak, the Great Elder spoke first, his tone was cold:
"Master Ziwei, a disciple told me that you have been wandering around in Tianji City, which has seriously affected their practice and work. If it is not necessary, please do not disturb them."

Ye Jie replied slowly, "The path of cultivation requires concentration, which is like not changing one's expression even when Mount Tai collapses in front of you. The art of mechanical engineering also requires one to be focused and to achieve unity between man and nature. I just passed by them and they were disturbed. It seems that their cultivation is not up to standard yet."

The Great Elder looked at Ye Jie deeply and said, "That makes sense. It seems that it is not a fluke that the Purple Star Palace Master was able to defeat the Devil Lord Wangchen. You have done a favor to the Tianji Sect this time. I wonder if there is anything in the Tianji Sect that can be of service to you?"

Ye Jie waved his hand and said, "Tian Ming is forging a magic weapon that I need urgently. I am very grateful for what he has done, so I will not bother the Great Elder. By the way, Tian Ming and I are very compatible, and I am willing to help him become the leader of the sect. I wonder if I can get the approval of the Great Elder?"

The Great Elder snorted coldly: "If he wants my approval, let him come to me himself. Let others get approval, and it is someone from outside the sect who comes. What's the matter? I can't approve of him."

Ye Jie was not in a hurry. The reaction of the great elder was not beyond his expectation. Just as he was about to speak, a series of dull noises suddenly came from outside the door, including the constant collision of mechanisms. Looking in the direction of the sound, he saw several sweaty disciples walking in. Dozens of them worked together to push the heavy crossbow, pressing the ground down, leaving deep ruts.

"Great Elder, we have pushed the Fire Dragon Crossbow back..."

The leading disciple reported respectfully.

The Great Elder nodded slightly: "The powerful enemy has retreated, and this Fire Dragon Crossbow is no longer needed. Let's take this Fire Dragon Crossbow back to the sect's forbidden area."

Following the instructions of the Great Elder, the disciples gritted their teeth and worked together to push the Fire Dragon Crossbow, which was as heavy as a mountain, into the distance.

Ye Jie was slightly curious. Speaking of which, he had also seen the Fire Dragon Crossbow appear in the previous battle, but he had never personally felt the power of that giant crossbow. So he asked, "With the power of the Fire Dragon Crossbow, can it really threaten the Devil Lord Wangchen?"

The great elder stroked his beard, and said with a hint of complacency: "If the Demon Lord Wangchen was hit by an arrow from the Fire Dragon Crossbow, he might not die, but at least he would be severely injured, his strength would drop drastically, and he would have no choice but to flee in embarrassment."

After a pause, the Great Elder said with some regret:
"This Fire Dragon Crossbow is good in every way. Whether it's its power or its ability to break through the protective immortal essence, it is one of the best among all the giant crossbows. The only one that can surpass it is the Moon Shooting Crossbow forged by the founder. The only flaw of the Fire Dragon Crossbow is that it is inconvenient to move. Before it can reach the battlefield, the enemy will have already run away..."

Following the instructions of the Great Elder, Ye Jie's gaze also fell on the huge crossbow cart. The crossbow body alone was three meters wide, and its weight was extraordinary. He couldn't help but look thoughtful.

At this time, several screams were heard from the front, and a strong disciple who was pushing the cart fell to the ground exhausted. In front of this crossbow cart as heavy as a mountain, even the fourth-level impermanence realm cultivation would not be able to help. No matter how strong the disciple's body was, he would eventually run out of strength.

The Great Elder frowned and scolded, "What are you doing? Hurry up and get up, don't let the Purple Star Palace Master laugh at you!"

The disciple who fell to the ground did not dare to delay and quickly got up. Regardless of the fact that his body was already overloaded, he continued to push the cart with all his strength. Even though his arms were almost cramped, he never gave up.

Seeing this, Ye Jie suggested: "I see that the disciples of Tianji Sect are already exhausted. If they continue to hold on, they may damage their essence, which will be detrimental to their future practice. This Fire Dragon Crossbow is really heavy. If it is replaced by an ordinary immortal, I am afraid it will be difficult to push it. If not, let me send it back."

The Great Elder was slightly surprised: "How can this be possible? No matter what, the Purple Star Palace Master is the benefactor who saved the Tianji Sect. His status is extraordinary. How can he do something like a disciple?"

Ye Jie waved his hand and said, "So what if I am a disciple? Without disciples, where would the elders come from? Let me lend a hand."

After saying that, Ye Jie ignored the Great Elder's slightly changing expression and went straight to the Fire Dragon Crossbow.

Seeing this, the surrounding disciples consciously made way. Ye Jie slowly stretched out his hand, placed his palm behind the Fire Dragon Crossbow, and exerted a little energy. The giant crossbow, which was as heavy as a mountain and required the joint efforts of dozens of disciples to push, also moved forward at a fairly steady speed.

Under the guidance of his disciples, it didn't take long for Ye Jie to push the Fire Dragon Crossbow to the entrance of the forbidden area.

Beside Ye Jie, the strong disciple who had just collapsed from exhaustion wiped the sweat from his head and expressed his gratitude repeatedly:
"Palace Master Ziwei, I am so grateful to you this time. If you hadn't come to my rescue, I would have died of exhaustion here..."

Ye Jie nodded and asked indirectly, "Is the Great Elder like this every day?"

The strong disciple showed fear on his face and lowered his voice, "The Great Elder is very strict with others and never speaks kindly to them. I have been his disciple for so long and have never seen him smile. The disciples all said that getting him to smile is harder than climbing to heaven."

As he spoke, Ye Jie, under the guidance of his disciples, pushed the Fire Dragon Crossbow into the forbidden area.

Looking around, I saw a lot of discarded things piled up around me, including strange-looking mechanical beasts, huge chariots that I had never seen before, and wooden men covered in ashes. At first glance in the dark, it was really easy to be scared.

After pushing the Fire Dragon Crossbow to its place, the strong disciple said with emotion:

"We finally got the Fire Dragon Crossbow back. Taking it away before was really a waste of our lives."

Ye Jie seemed to remember something and asked again: "Did you also come to take the Fire Dragon Crossbow from the forbidden area? Did you stop along the way?"

The strong disciple thought for a while and replied, "A disciple was accidentally caught under the crossbow cart, which delayed him for a long time. I and other disciples rushed to get it as soon as possible, but we were not able to catch up in the end and were punished a lot. Thanks to the Purple Star Palace Master, we were able to save the sect master. Otherwise, the consequences would be disastrous."

Hearing this, Ye Jie couldn't help but frowned.

From this point of view, the reason why the reinforcement of the Fire Dragon Crossbow was late seemed to have a reason, and it was not deliberately delayed by someone. At least on this point, Ye Jie could not find any problem.

At this moment, the swaying human-shaped shadow in the distance attracted Ye Jie's attention.

Looking up, the black shadow disappeared quickly into the depths of the forbidden area like a frightened beast.

"Was that... a cultivator just now?"

Ye Jie was slightly stunned, thinking that he had seen it wrong, and said uncertainly.

The strong disciple showed a vigilant look on his face and reminded: "That is not a cultivator, but an out-of-control mechanical beast. There are many out-of-control mechanical beasts in this forbidden area. If ordinary disciples encounter them, sometimes their lives will be in danger. However, with the strength of Ziwei Palace Master, I think he is not afraid of them."

Ye Jie understood, looked in the direction where the black shadow disappeared, and then left the forbidden area with his disciples.

(End of this chapter)