After transmigrating into the body of the protagonist's childhood friend, he was targeted by a

Lin Zhixu remained silent, but his brows furrowed more and more deeply.

What they said coincided with his own thoughts.

If what they say is true, that imperial advisor was able to gain the emperor's complete trust within six months and even improve the emperor's health rapidly, which is clearly not something an ordinary sorcerer could do.

If this person is connected to evil cultivators, Zhou Tong and Jiang Che's investigation of the palace was most likely because they stumbled upon the Grand Preceptor's secret and were detained.

He looked up at the gradually darkening night sky. Inside the dark palace walls, the halls and pavilions were brightly lit, yet there was an indescribable chill about them.

"Is that imperial advisor still in the palace?"

Master Qingcheng nodded: "Yes. He lives in the palace, and he's getting more and more powerful. Now he has people all over the palace, both inside and outside, and he's even planted quite a few in the Imperial Guards."

It seems that this palace is even more dangerous than expected.

He looked at Master Yunhe and the other two: "What brings you here this time?"

Master Yunhe's expression changed, then, as if struck on a sore spot, he gritted his teeth and said, "We're here for revenge!"

"Revenge?" Lin Zhixu was taken aback.

"Yes!" Yunling chimed in, her little face full of resentment. "The Wen family suffered retribution; their old house was burned down, and afterwards, the Wen family had a series of misfortunes, and the old house was never rebuilt. I heard that the Wen family members had nowhere else to turn, so they sought refuge with the emperor of the mortal realm."

"We followed this trail, asking around, hoping to find out what happened and settle accounts with Wen Wuqing!"

Lin Zhixu was even more puzzled: "You have a grudge against the Wen family? Didn't you admire Wen Wuqing quite a bit back then?"

Upon hearing this, the expressions on the faces of the three men turned grim.

Yun Ling stomped her feet in anger: "That was before! We were blind to believe Wen Wuqing was a good person! We never imagined he was such a big liar!"

"Brother Lin, do you remember? He gave me a magical artifact for self-defense back then. I felt like I got a great deal and was incredibly grateful. Who knew that lousy artifact was a complete fake!"

He became more and more agitated as he spoke, his eyes reddening: "Later, one time when I went out with my master on business, we encountered danger on the way, so I used the magic weapon he gave me, thinking that at least it could protect us."

"And what happened? That thing was shattered with a single palm strike. I couldn't even withstand half a breath of their attack! I almost died on the spot."

"It was my master who risked his life to save me. He was seriously injured while saving me and it took him a long time to recover..."

Master Yunhe sighed, reached out and gently patted Yunling's head, indicating that he didn't need to continue.

He looked at Lin Zhixu, his tone restrained but still carrying an barely suppressed anger: "After that incident, we slowly came to our senses. That bastard Wen Wuqing had no good intentions at all."

Master Qingcheng also snorted heavily from the side: "More than just ill intentions! I later carefully examined the fragments of that magical artifact. The runes engraved on them seemed exquisite, but in reality, they contained hidden array patterns that would attract disaster. Once activated, they would not only fail to protect oneself, but would also summon all the evil spirits in the surrounding area!"

"He pretends to be humble, polite, gentle, and kind on the surface, but who knows what malicious intentions he harbors behind the scenes. That magical artifact he gave Yunling was clearly left behind on purpose. What kind of self-defense item is that? It's nothing but a tool to harm people!"

Lin Zhixu listened and remained silent for a moment.

He had long known that Wen Wuqing was a wicked person, but he never expected that the other party would even resort to such underhanded tactics against a child.

Lin Zhixu seemed to realize something, and his expression became somewhat subtle.

"You may never get your revenge."

The three of them were all taken aback: "What do you mean?"

Lin Zhixu calmly said, "Wen Wuqing is already dead."

"Dead?!"

Master Yunhe: "How did you die?"

Lin Zhixu: "...I heard he offended some big shot and was killed. His father still hasn't found his remains."

The three looked at each other, unsure how to react.

Having harbored such deep hatred and anger for so long, he traveled thousands of miles to chase his enemy here, only to find that the enemy was already dead.

Yunling pouted, wanting to cry but unable to.

It took Master Qingcheng a long time to finally manage to utter a sentence:

"That beast got off easy."

Lin Zhixu then looked at Daoist Qingcheng: "They're seeking revenge. What about you? You can't possibly have a grudge against the Wen family too, can you?"

Upon hearing this, Master Qingcheng subconsciously puffed out his chest, adopting a righteous and awe-inspiring demeanor, and solemnly declared, "I have always hated evil as if it were my enemy! That Imperial Preceptor has committed numerous wicked deeds and wreaked havoc on the court. As a cultivator, I naturally must act on behalf of Heaven and eliminate him as soon as possible!"

No sooner had she finished speaking than Yun Ling whispered, "That's not true. He's just after the money."

Master Qingcheng's eyelids twitched.

"Ever since that imperial advisor arrived, the emperor has stopped donating money to his Taoist temple. He's out of money; otherwise, he wouldn't have come all this way here."

Lin Zhixu: "..."

Indeed, the old saying is absolutely right.

Cutting off someone's livelihood is like killing their parents.

In that sense, Master Qingcheng's hatred for the Imperial Preceptor might be even deeper than Master Yunhe and Yunling's hatred for the Wen family.

Lin Zhixu pulled his wandering thoughts back and asked the most crucial question at hand: "In that case, what are your plans?"

The three of them fell silent.

Master Qingcheng looked up at the sky, while Master Yunhe looked down at the ground.

Yunling looked left and right, then lowered her head and began to grind the pebbles on the ground with her toes.

Lin Zhixu felt a throbbing pain in his temples as he looked at their guilty expressions.

"You didn't just barge in without any plan, did you?"

The three people: "..."

Lin Zhixu remained expressionless: "That's the imperial palace, with tens of thousands of imperial guards. If that imperial advisor is truly connected to evil cultivators, who knows how many experts are lurking in the shadows. Do you think the three of you can just rush in like that and be killed three times over?"

Master Qingcheng shrank back and muttered under his breath, "I just came to check the situation first. If we really can't win, we'll retreat. We can't risk our lives for revenge, can we? That would be foolish."

The two people next to him nodded.

Lin Zhixu: "...Should I praise you for being pragmatic and wise?"

The three waved their hands, saying, "No need, no need, you're too kind."

Lin Zhixu: "..."

Who's being polite with you? Can't you understand polite words?

He was at his wit's end with the three of them, and resignedly raised his hand, beckoning them: "Alright, stop standing here in the wind. Discussing how to break into the palace under the walls—are you really afraid the Imperial Guards won't spot us?"

Lin Zhixu led them to a secluded inn and booked the most remote room.

After the waiter finished serving the tea and left, Lin Zhixu closed the door, creating a soundproof barrier, before sitting down at the table.

"Tell me, how much do you really know?"