"The crime of desertion?"

In the main hall, many of the high-ranking members of the Allied Forces exchanged glances, but finally nodded, recognizing that the charges against the Heaven Cloud Half-Saint and the other three indeed constituted desertion.

"According to the Alliance's military regulations, all deserters are executed without exception."

Ling Chen's lips curled into a cold smile.

Upon hearing the word "executed," the faces of the Heaven Cloud Half-Saint, Ling Hai, and Ling Feng turned grim. They hadn't thought they would be caught by Ling Chen.

"Fourth Elder!"

The Heaven Cloud Half-Saint urgently clasped his hands. "The reason we fled was because the situation was too critical at the time, it was understandable. We implore the Fourth Elder to be lenient."

"Yes, Fourth Elder, at the time, the Witch Fiend Sect had overwhelming numbers. Seeing the tide turn against us, we fought desperately to escape and return with the news."

"Fourth Elder, considering it's our first offense, please show leniency."

Ling Hai and Ling Feng also spoke hastily.

Inside the hall, there were several powerful figures from the Ling Family Main Branch, or those allied with it, who also pleaded for the three.

The Fourth Elder pondered for a while, then seemed to have made a decision and nodded, "Alright, considering you are the elites of Ling Family, this time we will spare you the death penalty, but the consequences cannot be completely avoided."

"Heaven Cloud Half-Saint, Ling Hai, Ling Feng, all of your Family Contribution Points will be confiscated, and you are to return to the family immediately to await punishment!"

"Yes."

Heaven Cloud Half-Saint and the other two acknowledged immediately, although they were displeased by the loss of their contribution points, the punishment was relatively light; desertion was a serious crime.

"Ling Yu, do you have any objections?" The Fourth Elder looked at Ling Chen. He had no other way to handle the situation. While the crime of desertion was sufficient to execute ordinary people, it wasn't enough to dispose of these three.

"I have no objections."

Ling Chen shrugged. If possible, he would certainly prefer to see the three dead, but such a result was clearly impossible. Ling Chen did not expect to be able to kill the three with just the charge of desertion; a slight punishment and a blow to their arrogance were sufficient.

The Fourth Elder nodded, somewhat surprised by Ling Chen's calmness, but said no more and waved the three to leave, "You three may leave now."

The Heaven Cloud Half-Saint and others stepped back, casting cold glances at Ling Chen before exiting the hall.

Once they left, Ling Chen flipped his hand and retrieved a black Token.

"Fourth Elder, this was found on the Thousand Faces Venerable's body—it's his Identity Token."

Ling Chen tossed the black token to the Fourth Elder.

The Fourth Elder examined it, then nodded solemnly; it was indeed a unique item of the Witch Fiend Sect, bearing their distinct mark.

The Fourth Elder's expression was amazed as he listened to Ling Chen recount the details of the mission. Ling Chen's daring venture was fraught with risk and a high chance of failure, but in the end, the Witch Fiend Sect deployed a large force, yet Ling Chen still managed to retreat safely. Despite some losses, uncovering the spies in the army made it worthwhile.

None had expected that the White Dragon Half-Saint, with a good reputation among the Allies, was actually a spy from the Witch Fiend Sect.

The Water Heart Half-Saint praised Ling Chen highly in front of the Fourth Elder, recounting the events she witnessed. She declared that without Ling Chen, they would have faced total annihilation and certainly couldn't have eliminated the traitor.

If the Allied Forces' high-ranking members had any doubts about Ling Chen's achievements, the Water Heart Half-Saint's words dispelled them quickly. Everyone knew she was typically solitary and reticent, yet chose to commend Ling Chen today—suggesting his actions truly solidified his authority and achieved significant merit.

"Ling Yu, you've earned great merit this time. I will report the events truthfully to the Family. Should the Family Head have new instructions, I will inform you immediately."

The Fourth Elder looked at Ling Chen with satisfaction, assured that the latter had fulfilled his expectations. Indeed, many held great expectations for him, not just the Fourth Elder.

This young man might truly have the capability to compete with Ling Yuxuan.

"Heroes emerge young; I never imagined Envoy Ling Yu would be so outstanding at such a young age, no wonder the Ling Family appointed him as a Special Envoy—now it becomes clear."

"Yes, thanks to Envoy Ling Yu, we could uproot the thorn that was the Thousand Faces Venerable and turn the tide."

"Having resolved the traitor issue, we can now confidently strategize step-by-step against the Witch Fiend Sect."

In the hall, one by one, the high-ranking allies rejoiced.

Ling Chen merely smiled, his heart calm and unperturbed, for he cared nothing for military achievements, prestige, or fame. Killing the Thousand Faces Venerable meant that he fulfilled Ling Tingfeng's task.

As such, he had accumulated enough contribution points to exchange for Golden Sword Pupil. Now, he just awaited Ling Tingfeng's response, after which he could return to Ling Family and begin cultivating Golden Sword Pupil.

Three days later.

Ling Chen and Ling Xue received orders from Ling Tingfeng to leave Qinglong Island and return to Ling Family.

Sitting on the back of a Flying Puppet, Ling Chen's thoughts buzzed. The mission took less than half a month, faster than expected.

Cultivating Golden Sword Pupil seemed to allow for ample time.

However, within this brief period, the young generation of the Nine Provinces experienced quite a stir, as the Hidden Dragon List saw disturbances—a new, unfamiliar name suddenly surged into the top ten of the Northern List.

This unfamiliar name was Ling Yu.

Ling Yu's rank stabilized at eighth on the Northern List, though based on Ling Chen's performance half a month ago. If adjusted to his current abilities, eighth place wouldn't be so far down.

Even Ling Xue realized Ling Chen's strength exceeded eighth place; entering the top five should pose little challenge.

Ling Chen cared little for his Hidden Dragon List rank, his goal was to be in the top three of the Heavenly Sword Tournament; eighth on the Hidden Dragon List was far from his aim. For others, cracking the top ten for the first time might spark joy, but Ling Chen felt no excitement whatsoever.