Shen Muzhi couldn't help but twitch his lips when he saw someone speak so casually about a traitor within their sect.
You Siqi, standing beside him, also couldn't bear to watch and asked, "Liu Buli, aren't you worried at all about the trouble that traitor within the sect might cause you?"
"What trouble could it cause? At most, they'll just tell others about the sect's affairs," Liu Buli said with a smile. "They wouldn't dare do anything too outrageous because I'm not an idiot. If they only say things that are obvious to everyone, I wouldn't be able to find out who they are. But if they cross that line, they'll become the most vulnerable. Surely you don't think I haven't made enough examples of killing chickens to scare the monkeys in this sect?"
You Siqi certainly didn't mean that.
After all, he was well aware of what kind of person Liu Buli was.
So, after a moment of hesitation, You Siqi said no more.
Liu Buli, however, smiled and said, "Water that is too clear has no fish. Sometimes, it's not a big problem for the water to be a little murky. As long as you can ensure that the murkiness doesn't turn into a puddle of mud, a little silt and sand is fine."
This had always been his approach to handling matters, and after being in the sect for so long, everyone could see it.
Therefore, faced with Liu Buli's answer, everyone just smiled and shook their heads, making no further judgments.
Yawning, Liu Buli said, "But not everything I said just now was false. I do feel that doing this kind of thing with them, knowing it's futile, is truly a waste of time. After all, I have more important things to do, and I don't have time to deal with them now."
Hearing his words, Shen Muzhi subconsciously thought he was referring to the matter of souls. Frowning, he said, "Are you planning to start refining souls? I don't know much about this, but I can help you keep an eye on things. Just tell me what you need to do, and I promise you won't have any accidents."
"I know, I'll definitely rely on you for this later," Liu Buli said with a smile, his expression completely calm. He waved his hand gently and said, "But I won't be refining it for now, so you don't need to rush. You're my physician, after all. You should know my physical condition better than I do without me having to say it. In my current state, how can I enter a炼丹炉 (liàn dān lú - alchemy furnace)? One wrong move could truly refine me into a pill. The risk is far too great, and I don't intend to put myself through that kind of suffering."
He said it with utmost seriousness.
Shen Muzhi thought about it and felt that what he said did have some truth to it.
Although Liu Buli could talk to them now, his posture of reclining clearly indicated that the effort of dealing with those cultivators earlier had already exhausted him.
His current physical condition was truly not good.
He could put on a show for outsiders, but when he was surrounded by familiar faces, he let his pretense drop, and the weariness and helplessness that emanated from the bottom of his heart became even more apparent.
Everyone could see this, and he himself understood it, which naturally put everyone's minds at ease.
However, precisely because of this, his current actions were even more likely to arouse suspicion in others.
Scratching his head, You Siqi asked, "Why don't you just tell us directly? What important thing do you need to do now? Can we help with it? Don't carry everything on your own. Since we're all friends, you should rely on us more."
"That's what I was thinking, which is why I'm telling you," Liu Buli said with a smile. He then directly took out the manual of heart techniques that Master Linkong had given him from his Qiankun bag. Placing it on the stone table beside him, he said, "When he gave me this just now, I was indeed too excited and believed his words without any hesitation. After all, every word he spoke touched upon the things I cared about most, so it's understandable that I lost the ability to think for a moment. But now that I think about it, perhaps it's because I'm a naturally suspicious person. I think I need you all to help me judge whether I should try it."
As he said this, he paused for a moment and then slowly recounted everything that Master Linkong had told him earlier.
After all, as he himself had said, he trusted his companions in front of him far more than Master Linkong. Therefore, he hoped to hear their opinions on how to proceed.
After hearing his account, Ao Lie maintained his cold expression. Liu Buli strongly suspected that this guy might not have been listening carefully at all, or even if he had, he truly couldn't show much concern for human affairs.
As for Yun Xiang, she was already moved by the story, her eyes red as she wiped away tears, constantly murmuring, "Master Linkong is too pitiful. To think he had such an untold past. He's truly too pitiful."
Alright, this attitude was consistent with Yun Xiang's character. After all, this girl was simply naive and pure, believing whatever others told her. This hadn't changed at all from before.
Liu Buli knew this well and had long given up on correcting Yun Xiang. In fact, he sometimes felt that it wasn't bad for this young girl to remain as she was. Living a lifetime of naive innocence was much better than being too cunning and constantly scheming.
He gestured to Ao Lie beside him, signaling him to comfort his little disciple. Then, he shifted his gaze back to You Siqi and Shen Muzhi.
He had revealed these matters primarily to get answers from these two. And indeed, as he had expected, after a moment of silence, You Siqi raised his hand and said, "I think it can be trusted. Because in the novel, Master Linkong is a rare upright existence in the cultivation world. Although he takes the matter of good and evil very seriously, when he considers you his own, he will indeed do his best to provide help. Since you also said that he's doing this to repay a debt of gratitude, I think trying to trust him should be fine."
The author had already provided him with the character's profile, so Liu Buli naturally felt a lot more at ease.
Finally, all eyes turned to Shen Muzhi. Among their group, besides Liu Buli himself, Shen Muzhi's mind was the most useful.
Realizing that everyone's attention was focused on him, Shen Muzhi hesitated for a moment before chuckling softly. He said, "Actually, if you ask me, I think you don't need to ask us at all."
Liu Buli raised an eyebrow.
Shen Muzhi continued, "Because you have no real choice, do you? If I told you this was suspicious, would you not try this method? Impossible. Even if you don't try it now, in a few days, or perhaps not even a few days, as soon as you miss Lu Wuming, you'll secretly go and try it yourself. So, it's better to just try it like this. We're all here, and if something goes wrong, we'll find a way to save you."