The next seven days passed like a storm with no sound—
a war fought not with fists, but with ink, whispers, and shadows.
Chen Yuan had imagined that gathering proof meant reading scrolls and asking questions.
He was wrong.
Gu Long operated like a cultivator whose weapon was law itself.
Day 1 — The Records Below the Records
Gu Long dragged Chen Yuan through three different archives.
Not the public ones.
The restricted ones.
The ones guarded by old scholars and silent disciples who nearly threw them out more than once.
Chen Yuan held lamps while Gu Long dug like a predator, pulling out scroll after scroll.
"Look at this," Gu Long muttered.
"Three requests for beast cores from low-ranked disciples… all unverified."
"Here—missions marked 'voluntary.' But none of the signatories are alive."
"And this one. Interesting… Elder Zhao ordered ten disciples to retrieve a root that doesn't exist."
Chen Yuan swallowed.
"How many violations does he have?"
Gu Long smirked darkly.
"We've only just started."
Day 2 — Interviews With the Broken
They visited the small houses where the lowest-ranking disciples lived.
Some were limping.
Some were missing fingers.
Some pretended not to hear.
But when Gu Long spoke, softly:
"Do you know Elder Zhao?"
Their eyes changed.
Fear.
Resentment.
Pain.
A young disciple, trembling, whispered:
"He forced us to pay for cultivation pills he said were 'clan debt.' We never saw those pills."
Another said:
"He punished a boy for asking questions. The boy vanished the next day."
A third:
"He said my brother owed him a spirit stone. My brother died on the mission assigned right after."
Gu Long wrote everything.
Not emotions.
Not embellishments.
Just facts.
Cold, clean facts.
Chen Yuan realized something then.
He wasn't the only one Elder Zhao had crushed.
Day 3 — Following the Money
Gu Long insisted they visit the Financial Registry.
Chen Yuan didn't understand why.
But when he saw the documents, he did.
Elder Zhao had:
redirected mission funds
altered prices of equipment
inflated costs of basic services
added "Zhao Clan debt tax" to records that never had such a thing
"He's been bleeding the sect dry," Gu Long whispered.
Chen Yuan felt bile rise.
"And nobody noticed?"
"Oh, they noticed," Gu Long replied. "They were simply too afraid to speak."
Day 4 — A Forbidden Scroll
Late at night, while Chen Yuan was re-checking lists of victims, Gu Long stormed into the room.
"I found it."
Found what?
The disciplinary directive given to Elder Zhao twenty years ago.
The one meant to limit his authority after an earlier scandal.
It had been buried, misfiled, and nearly destroyed.
Chen Yuan read the faded ink:
'Elder Zhao must not exercise disciplinary authority unsupervised.'
He felt his pulse sharpen.
Gu Long looked at him with a glint of triumph.
"If this reaches the tribunal, he's finished."
Day 5 — The Witness They Didn't Expect
A woman approached them in secret.
Middle-aged.
Eyes tired.
Voice quiet.
She carried a scroll sealed with wax.
"I… I worked for the Zhao Clan," she murmured. "I want to help."
She exposed:
forged debt records
forced labor orders
names of disciples Elder Zhao "disposed of"
Gu Long thanked her with a respectful bow—
the first time Chen Yuan saw him bow to anyone.
She left with tears in her eyes.
Day 6 — Reconstructing the Case
They locked themselves in a room with dozens of scrolls.
Gu Long spread everything on the floor.
"This," he said, "is enough."
Chen Yuan stared at the mountain of evidence.
"Now what?"
"Now," Gu Long said, stretching his fingers, "I build the case."
He wrote for hours—
lines, citations, footnotes, arguments sharper than swords.
Chen Yuan watched, realizing something:
Gu Long wasn't just a prodigy.
He was a monster.
A monster of logic, precision, and language.
Day 7 — The Final Piece
Night had fallen.
Lantern light flickered.
And Gu Long placed one final scroll on the table.
"What is that?" Chen Yuan asked.
Gu Long tapped the seal.
"Proof Elder Zhao knew Zhao Ming was innocent. Proof he ordered his punishment anyway."
Chen Yuan's breath froze.
"And this," Gu Long added quietly, "is the nail in his coffin."
Chen Yuan whispered:
"Then… it's time."
Gu Long leaned back, eyes gleaming with cold confidence.
"Yes. Tomorrow morning, we file the case."
He clasped his hands together.
"Chen Yuan… you brought me a rotten tree. I turned it into firewood."
He smiled.
"And tomorrow, we burn the Elder with it."
Chen Yuan closed his eyes.
After one week of quiet war—
he finally saw the path to Strife.
And Elder Zhao would soon see it too.