Chapter 26: Framing and Entrapment

And so, after a day of monotonous and tedious work, he accidentally lost his way while returning to his quarters and somehow found himself at the back mountain.

While no one was paying attention, he inadvertently "stepped to death" a level eight Qi Refining red-armored bear, and incidentally enjoyed a meal of roasted bear paw.

"Ding! Host has successfully hunted the first Qi Refining realm spirit beast of your life. Task reward: 150 points, 5 superior-grade Qi Recovery Powders, 300 inferior-grade spirit stones."

...

Over the next few days, while Su Yi spent his time slacking off in the herb garden, he simultaneously transformed into a heartless task-grinding machine, racking up points like crazy!

Uh...

Grinding points!

"Ding! Host has successfully collected the first century-old spirit herb. Task reward: 150 points..."

"Ding! ...Defeated a formidable level seven Qi Refining opponent and completed the first sect sparring session. Reward: 300 points..."

"Ding..."

During this period, he felt like his ears were filled with the sound of "dings." He was practically becoming numb to them.

However, seeing that his points had broken through the three-thousand mark, Su Yi felt a bit more balanced; it was the final shred of comfort he could find in the sea of dull and tasteless tasks.

Yet, just after he completed the task of [Mastering the First Spell], he didn't hear the system's "ding" for an entire day.

He waited for a long time, but there was no response from the system.

Su Yi was quite annoyed. He opened the system interface and looked at the task column, which remained empty, feeling a sense of frustration.

"What's going on? Where are the tasks?"

"Hurry up and generate them for me! Don't be lazy!"

He had finally endured that nauseating, soul-crushing experience of grinding tasks and had finally adapted to it, and now he was being told there were no more tasks?

"System, let me ask you, have you ever seen a fist the size of a sandbag?"

"Ding! Please remain calm, Host. The 'First Time' series of beginner tasks has been officially completed. The system is currently generating the next stage of tasks for you. Please wait patiently and do not be anxious."

*So that’s it!*

Su Yi suddenly realized. His heart settled a bit. He had thought he’d overused the system and burned it out, turning it into a piece of junk. It turned out it was just the end of the first phase.

Wait, automatically generated?

Su Yi's eyes lit up. Could it be that the system was becoming normal? That it wouldn't issue him such brain-dead tasks anymore and was finally getting on the right track?

Thinking of this, he rubbed his palms together impatiently.

He had had enough of these low-level tasks. If possible, he hoped the system would give him something challenging—at the very least, something that wouldn't make him feel like he had no energy at all!

He began to chant silently in his heart.

*Give me something difficult, System. Preferably something like finding a divine artifact, a celestial relic, or even infiltrating the side of a powerful master...*

*Ahem, just giving examples, don't be so ridiculous. In short, just don't be so brain-dead. Give me some intensity, I beg you!*

*If you can grant my wish, buddy, I will never scold you again!*

After a while, the system gave a "ding." The long-silent task column finally began to flicker, and rows of familiar small characters appeared.

Su Yi scanned them up and down, full of anticipation.

His expression shifted from a bright, sunny day to overcast, and then to a light drizzle...

*Damn it! A dog will always be a dog!*

Just as Su Yi was in a foul mood, footsteps sounded outside his room, and someone shouted loudly:

"That handyman disciple Zhang Yi lives right here!"

Su Yi frowned, as he could tell the voices outside sounded ill-intentioned. He immediately composed himself and stepped forward to open the door.

As the door swung open, he was greeted by several stern-faced men and women.

The group wore the attire of outer sect disciples, with the emblem of the Law Enforcement Pavilion embroidered on their chests. They were clearly outer sect disciples working for the Pavilion.

Noticing who they were, Su Yi was stunned for a moment, then asked in a deep voice:

"What do you want with me?"

The leading Law Enforcement disciple was a girl of seventeen or eighteen. She had a good figure and was quite pretty; if she were to dress up, she would surely be a little beauty. However, her face was ice-cold, which ruined her aesthetic, making her appear unpleasant and unapproachable.

She cast a cold glance at Su Yi and said expressionlessly:

"Su Yi, you have been reported. Now, please come with us!"

*Exposed?*

Su Yi's first thought was that he had been exposed. His eyes shifted as he searched for a strategy in his heart.

But as he reacted, he felt something was wrong.

If his identity had been exposed, why would these low-level Law Enforcement disciples be the ones sent?

He wouldn't even need to blink if a Law Enforcement elder came; with his status as the Saint Son of a Holy Land, even the Sect Master of the Xianxia Sect would have to act like a grandson in front of him.

Furthermore, if they had discovered his identity, they would have kept it strictly confidential. They wouldn't let a single shred of information leak out, because if news that the Saint Son was working as a handyman here got out, it would be a massive blow to the reputation of the Tianyuan Holy Land. To save face, the Tianyuan Holy Land might do anything.

Silencing him would be the least of it; they might even wipe out the entire sect...

Seeing Su Yi silent, a Law Enforcement disciple behind the girl stepped forward and snorted:

"Zhang Yi, why are you still acting innocent? I won't mind telling you—since we've come to get you, we certainly have concrete evidence proving you colluded with Xu Ze to steal spirit herbs from the herb garden."

"Bringing you in for a confrontation is just giving you a chance to confess honestly. The sect rules are strict; no one cares who you are!"

*What?*

*Stealing spirit herbs?*

Hearing this, Su Yi let out a sigh of relief. He had thought his identity was exposed; to think it was just this matter.

*Good thing I didn't get excited and reveal any flaws...*

Regaining his composure, he cupped his hands and offered a smile.

"I apologize, brothers and sisters. I was just startled by this situation. Please forgive any rudeness on my part."

"But I truly did not steal any spirit herbs. Someone must be framing me."

Upon hearing this, the Law Enforcement disciples all showed expressions of impatience.

"Cut the crap, come with us!"

...

Arriving at the outer sect's main hall, Su Yi saw from afar that Xu Ze was tied up and kneeling in front of the hall, with a small bundle of freshly picked Emerald Leaf Grass laid out before him.

Seeing Su Yi, Xu Ze immediately began to struggle, shouting:

"Brother Zhang! I have no idea how a bundle of Emerald Leaf Grass appeared in my room. It must have been Zhao Zijing who framed me!"

As soon as these words were spoken, Zhao Zijing, who was in the crowd, turned red with rage and was unable to contain his fury.

"Nonsense! What evidence do you have? How dare you frame me! If you can't produce evidence, I will report you for slandering a fellow disciple!"

"You were caught red-handed, and you still want to deny it? You wretch, Xu Ze! One mistake wasn't enough, and now you want to drag others down with you? You are truly despicable!"

Hearing this, Xu Ze stared at Zhao Zijing with bloodshot eyes, wishing he could swallow him alive.

"You Zhao-surname bastard, it wasn't enough to frame me, you even wanted to frame Brother Zhang? You truly are shameless!"

As he spoke, he seemed to think of something, and he looked with a gray, lifeless face at Luo Xiaojia, who was standing beside Zhao Zijing.

He hissed:

"So it was you. No wonder you’ve been running to my living quarters these past two days. I thought you had changed your mind about me, but it turns out you were plotting to destroy me!"