Chapter 539 - 490: Merit Will Be Rewarded

Chapter 539: Chapter 490: Merit Will Be Rewarded

"Greetings, Elder."

A white-robed figure could be seen sitting in the room, while Chu Mu bowed deeply at the door.

"Come in."

Xu Lingtian glanced indifferently at Chu Mu, who was bowing by the door, and gave a slight nod.

"As you command."

Only then did Chu Mu straighten up and follow Xu Changqing into the room.

"Are you here for that piece of Nine Heavens Profound Gold?"

Xu Lingtian’s voice drifted over once more just as Chu Mu stepped into the room.

"You see things with perfect clarity, Elder. I am indeed here for the Nine Heavens Profound Gold."

"With all the major powers converging, quite a few have their eyes on this Nine Heavens Profound Gold. It won’t be easy for you to obtain it."

Xu Lingtian’s voice was calm, as if he were discussing a trivial matter.

Chu Mu fell silent. He was well aware of the difficulty.

His name might carry some weight in the Golden Core Realm, but right now, Bazhou City was clearly not a stage for Golden Core cultivators.

Longevity Sect, Righteous Alliance, Chen Family, Overlord Saber Alliance, Celestial Star Alliance...

All the major powers had gathered. The Nascent Soul cultivators were the ones playing the game.

For a Nascent Soul cultivator, considering the rarity of Nine Heavens Profound Gold, obtaining it would be nothing but beneficial, regardless of its immediate use.

The chances of him getting his hands on this Nine Heavens Profound Gold were, in truth, not high.

To attempt the impossible would, more likely than not, bring him a disaster he couldn’t withstand.

If he were to insist on forcing the issue, the safest method would be...

Chu Mu subtly glanced at the Sword Dao Nascent Soul cultivator before him, his eyes flickering as a plan began to form in his mind.

He clasped his hands and bowed, but instead of continuing Xu Lingtian’s line of conversation, he suddenly changed the subject. "Elder, do you know about the Chen Family’s Tier Four Soldier Puppet?"

At these words, Xu Changqing, who stood to the side, couldn’t hide his surprise, wondering why Chu Mu had suddenly brought this up.

Xu Lingtian, however, frowned slightly. "You mean the Ancient Immortal Dao Sect’s Guardian Puppet that the Chen Family hired you to repair?"

"Yes."

Chu Mu nodded but said no more.

Xu Lingtian stared at Chu Mu for a long moment before slowly speaking, "Is there something unusual about that Soldier Puppet?"

Hearing this, Chu Mu felt a great sense of relief. ’As long as the Longevity Sect wasn’t behind the puppet’s anomaly, then everything will be much easier to handle.’

He immediately clasped his hands and bowed. "When I was repairing that Tier Four Soldier Puppet, I was fortunate enough to notice a small problem."

Xu Lingtian’s interest was piqued. He raised an eyebrow and said, "Tell me about it."

"Well..."

Chu Mu began to speak slowly, explaining every detail of the puppet’s anomaly—omitting only the backdoor he himself had hidden.

After listening to Chu Mu’s explanation, Xu Lingtian’s expression clearly grew grave. "Are you saying that someone left a hidden backdoor on the Chen Family’s Tier Four Soldier Puppet?"

"Yes."

Chu Mu affirmed, "I am certain that as soon as that backdoor is activated, control over the Tier Four Soldier Puppet will most likely be stolen."

Xu Lingtian’s expression was heavy. His fingertips tapped unconsciously on the tabletop for a while before he looked at Chu Mu and asked again, "I’ve heard that after the Tier Four Soldier Puppet was repaired, the Chen Family kept you for a period to analyze the puppet’s structure."

Here, Xu Lingtian paused briefly before continuing, "If the Chen Family refines more Soldier Puppets, will that backdoor also exist in the newly refined Tier Four Soldier Puppets?"

Chu Mu was silent for a moment, then he clasped his hands and bowed. "The art of Artifact Refining in the Vast Sea has withered. If the Chen Family’s few Artifact Refiners fail to notice the anomaly and continue to copy the blueprint blindly, then they will inevitably carry that backdoor over to any newly refined Tier Four Soldier Puppets."

After speaking, Chu Mu raised a hand, and a Jade Scroll appeared, hovering over his palm. He clasped his hands, bowed, and presented the Jade Scroll. "I have reverse-engineered the puppet’s structure and recorded the details of the backdoor within this scroll."

The words had barely left his lips when, with a flick of Xu Lingtian’s sleeve, the Jade Scroll Chu Mu was presenting shot from his control like an arrow from a bowstring. In the next instant, it was in Xu Lingtian’s hand.

Chu Mu’s expression remained calm as he waited in silence.

After about a quarter of an hour, Xu Lingtian slowly lowered the Jade Scroll in his palm.

Xu Lingtian seemed pensive. He looked at Chu Mu and asked, "Who do you think left this backdoor?"

"This backdoor is hidden within the Puppet Core. The Soldier Puppet’s original Puppet Core was damaged, and I repaired it according to the puppet schematics fragment that the Chen Family provided."

"This backdoor was also recorded in that same schematics fragment from the Chen Family."

"I believe that if we want to know who the mastermind is, we need to determine where the Chen Family obtained that schematics fragment."

Having said this much, Chu Mu fell silent again.

Since the Longevity Sect wasn’t behind the Soldier Puppet’s backdoor, this information was undoubtedly a golden opportunity for them.

After all, back on Celestial Secret Island, the Chen Family went to great lengths to analyze the Soldier Puppet’s structure. This meant they surely had plans to refine new Tier Four Soldier Puppets.

As long as the Chen Family remained unaware, this backdoor would inevitably be carried over to any other newly refined Tier Four Soldier Puppets.

He even suspected this was the very reason the backdoor in the Soldier Puppet had never been triggered.

The mastermind was probably waiting for the Chen Family to blindly copy the design and refine other Tier Four Soldier Puppets, preparing to reap a huge reward for no effort.

And as for his own backdoor within the backdoor...

Chu Mu pressed his lips together, silently awaiting a response from the Sword Dao Nascent Soul cultivator before him.

At this moment, Xu Lingtian asked another question. "As far as I know, you were in full charge of repairing this Tier Four Soldier Puppet for the Chen Family, correct?"

Chu Mu’s expression was calm. "Reporting to you, Elder, I was indeed in full charge."

"Since you were in full charge, if something were to go wrong with the Soldier Puppet in the future, I imagine you wouldn’t be able to absolve yourself of responsibility, would you?"

Xu Lingtian chuckled. After this brief jest, his tone suddenly shifted. "But with your level of caution, I doubt you’d leave yourself so vulnerable to such a huge disaster, would you?"

His tone was casual, yet it seemed to carry a deeper meaning.

"While I repaired the Soldier Puppet, the repair plan was approved by the Chen Family. The entire repair process was witnessed by the Chen Family’s Nascent Soul cultivator and was fully recorded and archived."

Chu Mu explained, neither servile nor overbearing, his every word watertight and flawless.

Xu Lingtian asked again, "Is that all?"

Chu Mu was silent for a moment before replying methodically, "I also left behind a little something of my own."

"Hahahaha!"

Xu Lingtian let out a hearty laugh, seemingly unsurprised.

He didn’t press Chu Mu about what this "something" was. Instead, he changed the subject. "This information is of great importance to my sect. This counts as a great merit for you!"

"My sect has always rewarded merit. Since you came here for the Nine Heavens Profound Gold, how about I bid on that piece at the auction for you?"

"I thank you for this gracious gift, Elder!"

Greatly relieved, Chu Mu bowed deeply and respectfully presented another Jade Scroll.

With a flick of his sleeve, Xu Lingtian swept the Jade Scroll into it, where it vanished from sight...

...