The Sect Halls and Registries sat in the very heart of the Central District—an immense circular complex of white stone, ringed by spires carved with ancient runes. It was not a place for battle.
It was a place for records, disputes, laws, and punishments.
A place where words could cut deeper than blades.
Chen Yuan stood before the entrance, adjusting the simple cloth on his shoulder and steadying his breath. Compared to the Cloud City, to the Silver Lamb, to the horrors of the Great Zone, this place felt almost… mundane.
But he knew the truth.
For someone like him—
someone without clan backing, without talent, without status—
these halls were more dangerous than any beast den.
Still, he pushed the doors open.
Inside, the air was cool and quiet, filled with the faint scent of pine ink and old scrolls. Disciples moved in neat lines, scholars cross-referenced documents, and registrars debated minor violations with monotone civility.
Chen Yuan moved along the edge of the room, eyes scanning for familiar symbols until he found them:
Judicial Record Hall.
He entered.
Shelves soared into the rafters, filled with:
incident logs
discipline reports
cultivation violations
debt disputes
failed missions
elder complaints
clan accusations
It was the place where truth slept—
and sometimes where lies were born.
Chen Yuan swallowed hard.
He needed proof against Elder Zhao.
The System's directive was clear:
Confront your old enemy.
If he couldn't do it with strength, then he would do it with these shelves.
He approached a registrar—an older woman with sharp reading glasses and the annoyed expression of someone who had processed too many complaints that morning.
"Yes?" she said without looking up.
Chen Yuan bowed politely. "I… am seeking records related to Elder Zhao of the Zhao Clan."
She paused her writing.
Then looked up slowly.
"…Why?"
There was skepticism in her eyes, but also something sharper. The Zhao Clan's name meant politics. And politics meant trouble.
"I need to verify if he has been involved in misconduct," Chen Yuan replied carefully.
"Misconduct?" she repeated, tone flat. "Elders are rarely recorded for such things. They handle their disputes internally."
That was exactly the problem.
Chen Yuan inhaled softly.
"Is there any way to check mission records for irregularities?" he asked. "Or complaints filed by disciples?"
"Disciples almost never file against Elders," she said. "They'd be crushed."
Her eyes flicked over Chen Yuan from head to toe.
"You don't look suicidal… so why do you want to do this?"
He didn't answer.
Because he couldn't.
Because if he said "Because Elder Zhao destroyed my family,"
or "Because he tortured Zhao Ming,"
or "Because the System demands Strife,"
whatever she wrote down would get buried or twisted by Zhao Clan influence.
He needed careful steps here.
Smart steps.
"Is there a way," Chen Yuan asked slowly, "to anonymously request an archive review involving mission misconduct or debt extortion?"
Her eyebrows rose.
"…Debt extortion?"
Everything in Chen Yuan's posture stiffened.
He had not meant to say that aloud so directly.
But the woman's expression changed slightly—
interest replacing boredom.
"Debt cases… are public record," she said, standing up. "They can't be altered by Elders without being noticed. If Elder Zhao was involved in anything of that nature, it would be listed here."
Chen Yuan felt a flicker of hope.
He followed her between the shelves, the scent of old parchment growing stronger.
She spoke in a low voice as they walked:
"You didn't hear this from me,"
"but several Zhao Clan debt cases from the past decade were flagged for irregularities."
Chen Yuan's heart thudded.
Irregularities.
That was something.
She stopped at a shelf marked:
Debt & Clan Requisition Archives — Year 1073 to 1092
Her fingers danced over scrolls until she plucked out three.
She handed them to Chen Yuan.
"These were all disputed, but never resolved."
Chen Yuan held them with trembling hands.
"Thank you," he said quietly.
She waved him off. "Just read. And don't let anyone see you with those. Especially a Zhao."
Chen Yuan found a corner desk and unrolled the first scroll.
The words were simple but heavy:
Requisition Order: Compensation of Debts
Filed by: Elder Zhao
Involved: Chen Clan (Minor Branch)
Status: Closed without review
His pulse quickened.
The second scroll:
Requisition Order: Beast Core Debt Settlement
Filed by: Elder Zhao
Involved: Multiple Disciples
Irregularity Level: High
Reason: Excessive interest demands
Chen Yuan exhaled slowly.
This was real.
This was proof.
And then the third scroll nearly made his blood run cold:
Disciplinary Directive: Subjugation of Non-Compliant Disciple
Filed by: Elder Zhao
Target: Zhao Ming, 15 years old
Requested Action: Public punishment for defiance
Status: Buried / Hidden filing
Buried.
Hidden.
Proof of intention to punish Zhao Ming illegally.
Chen Yuan's vision trembled.
Elder Zhao wasn't just cruel.
He was corrupt.
He had used sect law as a weapon.
Chen Yuan rolled the scrolls shut, breath shaking.
His first instinct was fear.
His second was anger.
But the third was different.
Resolve.
He whispered:
"I can use these."
He knew the Zhao Clan would fight back.
He knew Elders had protection.
He knew he was outnumbered and underpowered.
But he finally had a weapon.
Not a blade.
Not a style.
Proof.
He tucked the scrolls into his robe and rose from his seat.
No longer walking as an ordinary disciple.
But as someone preparing for war—
a war of Strife,
fought not on battlefields,
but in the heart of the Sect itself.