Players: All NPCs in the Sect Are Moles

Lin Qingfeng stood by the battlements, looking at the hundred-thousand-strong imperial army in the distance.

This was the grandeur of having the entire nation as your enemy.

He had to admit, the game’s scene rendering was on point, especially the realism. This was precisely the Ashen Heaven Group’s advantage, putting them in a league of their own against other game companies in the Ninth District.

That hundred-thousand-strong army arranged in a phalanx of longspears, along with the few hundred Cultivators zipping about in mid-air on flying swords, Dusters, and gourds—the lighting effects were truly impressive.

If this were a F2P player, they would have just surrendered and begged some whale to carry them.

But Lin Qingfeng was different. He was a whale himself! He didn’t need to latch onto anyone else!

The old Confucian scholar at the fore, his beard bristling with rage, pointed a finger at the current Grand Tutor below, who was trembling with anger.

"You old scoundrel! You have the gall to claim you follow the teachings of the sages?"

"As the Imperial Tutor, instead of teaching the sovereign to love his people as his own children, you taught him how to bleed the land dry! When the refugees of the realm were so hungry they were chewing on tree bark, where were you? You were in the capital’s lap of luxury, drinking Deer Blood Wine with an eighteen-year-old concubine in your arms, singing of courtyard flowers!"

"Is your face made from the cornerstones of the city wall? How can you be so thick-skinned! If the sages were here, they’d probably be so infuriated by you they’d climb out of their graves and beat you to death with their own coffin lids, you unworthy descendant!"

The Grand Tutor below pointed at the top of the wall, stammering, "You... you... you..." for what felt like an eternity, unable to form a complete sentence. Finally, his eyes rolled back in his head, and he nearly tumbled from his horse.

Lin Qingfeng adjusted his stance, finding the perfect angle.

He gazed up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, his eyes fixed on some point in the distant void.

"The air... has grown a little cold."

"The weather has turned cold, and the hearts of the people have grown cold with it."

The line both expressed his disappointment with the current situation and subtly hinted that ’the old order is about to collapse, and a new one must be established’.

At a time like this, he needed the person next to him to take the hint.

Su Ling’er, standing half a step behind him, was still in "autopilot mode."

Although her body had been taken over, her consciousness was lucid—even more active than usual.

Hearing her Senior Brother’s words, Su Ling’er’s mind began to race.

’The weather’s turned cold?’

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

If those words had come from the mouth of the thoroughly-dead City Lord, it would have been perfectly reasonable. After all, a mere mortal body would certainly shiver in the autumn wind.

’But who was this standing before her?’

This was her own Senior Brother, a man who, despite being a part of the demonic Guixi Sect, still steadfastly walked the righteous path.

His Cultivation had long since reached the Transformation Realm; immunity to heat and cold was just a rudimentary skill for someone like him.

Forget the paltry autumn wind of Jinnan City—even if Su Ling’er herself tore a hole in the heavens and let the astral winds pour down, her Senior Brother could still stand there warming wine and brewing tea without a change in expression.

’Could it be...?’

Su Ling’er’s gaze shifted to the group of Evil Cultivators in mid-air!

’It must be them! Seeing that the Grand Tutor was being cursed out by the Confucian scholar to the point of coughing up blood, they realized they couldn’t gain an advantage head-on, so they must have secretly used some vile, underhanded technique!’

’Despicable! Shameless!’

’What kind of man was her Senior Brother? Even after detecting this insidious plot aimed solely at him, he had chosen to endure it all alone, just to keep the army’s morale from wavering and to prevent a burden like her from worrying.’

’His line, "The air... has grown a little cold"—how could he possibly be talking about the weather?’

’He was clearly using it as self-deprecation, mocking these so-called Cultivators, whose methods were even more foul and secretive than rats in a sewer!’

Then, Su Ling’er’s gaze fell upon a tray in a corner of the battlements.

On it was a folded, bright yellow robe.

In truth, Lin Qingfeng had placed it there deliberately.

At that moment, Su Ling’er, in her "maidservant" persona, looked at the yellow robe. Though her mind was still reeling, her autopilot logic had already made a determination: Master feels cold. Maidservant finds clothing. Clothing located. Execute "add clothing" command.

Su Ling’er walked to the tray and lifted the bright yellow robe with both hands.

A gust of wind unfurled the robe, its color glaringly bright in the setting sun.

Lin Qingfeng caught sight of Su Ling’er approaching out of the corner of his eye and breathed an internal sigh of relief.

’All right, it seems this autopilot can actually understand me!’

’Come on, drape it on me!’

’Let me complete this classic "yellow robe" scene!’

Su Ling’er walked up behind Lin Qingfeng, raised her hands, and was about to drape the bright yellow robe over his shoulders.

"Ling’er! What are you doing! This is highly improper!"

Lin Qingfeng wore a look of utter anguish as he resisted her. Though his words were a harsh rejection, his hands were far more honest, gripping the fabric tightly.

According to the classic script of three refusals, his junior sister should have taken the cue to kneel and tearfully proclaim, "The realm is without a master! Only you, my lord, can save the people from their suffering!" Then, she would insist on putting the robe on him, no matter what.

He would then refuse two or three more times before finally, under great duress, tearfully putting it on and completing his "yellow robe" coronation!

However, reality is often full of surprises.

Su Ling’er, under the control of her programming, had a very simple logical loop for her maidservant role: Master says no. Command recognized as "rejection." Execute retrieval protocol.

And so, the girl in red tensed her wrists and yanked the robe backward.

SNAP!

The yellow robe was pulled taut.

Lin Qingfeng: "???"

’Wait, this isn’t how the script is supposed to go...’

’What the fuck?’

’You’re actually taking it back?!’

His eyelid twitched violently as he internally cursed this "artificially stupid" autopilot system, throwing in his idiot junior sister for good measure.

’Can’t you just play along? It’s called acting! Do you get it? This is just part of the process! Don’t you see the hundred-thousand-strong audience down there waiting for the big show? You took away the prop, so how the hell am I supposed to perform now?! Doesn’t your database have the "three refusals" script? Go update your data, will you!’