A World Worth Protecting

h.
The loss might be painful, but the damage was really to the sect’s reputation.
However, the latter would amount to a declaration of war.

Outsiders would view it this way as well.
The degree of malice was clearly different.
If one heard that their neighbor was robbed of something precious, they would instinctively raise their guard and be more cautious.
However, if one heard that their neighbor had been killed, their reaction wouldn’t be restricted to a mere increased sense of caution.

The reactions following Wang Baole’s robbery were as he had predicted.
It was almost impossible to hide the fact that the Thousand Spirit Sect’s battleship had been stolen.
Besides, the sect had quite a few enemies.
The robbery of their battleship soon made headlines across the planet.
The news spread like wildfire.

Every sect, big and small, was talking about it.
Even the disciples in the Holy Crest Sect were discussing the matter.
There was a slight edge of caution to their words, as well as a great deal of petty cheer over someone else’s misery.

“Have you heard? The Thousand Spirit Sect’s battleship returned with a full bounty and was robbed.
Not only was their loot stolen, but a great portion of their battleship was also taken apart!”

“Something like that hasn’t happened in years…”

“The Thousand Spirit Sect has always been cocky.
Who knew this would happen to them? Haha, I asked around.
I heard they destroyed a small civilization and got their hands on a mountain of Star Illusory Stones.
They worked so hard only for those stones to fall into someone else’s hands!”

Wang Baole might be immersed in the construction of his battleship, but he would still get out occasionally and take charge of the repairs on the Holy Crest Sect’s battleship.
He would catch snippets of discussions amongst other disciples.
He would frown then.

“The Thousand Spirit Sect belongs to the cluster of sects on the fifth mountain ring.
We might not be able to offer aid after they were robbed, but we should be careful to only discuss the robbery within the confines of the sect grounds.
We shouldn’t speak so carelessly when we are outside.
At the same time, we should practice greater caution so that the same thing doesn’t happen to us!”

Wang Baole had a stern expression on his face as he spoke seriously.
The disciples who had been discussing the matter trembled secretly.
They lowered their heads and murmured their agreement.
The Grand Supreme Elder agreed with what Wang Baole had said as well.
In fact, he gathered the seven elders to discuss this matter with them in detail.

“Grand Supreme Elder, I have a humble suggestion.
We could ask the Thousand Spirit Sect if they require our help in searching for the perpetrator.
It doesn’t matter if we’re sincere in helping or merely putting up appearances.
It might also help prevent something similar from happening to the Holy Crest Sect in the future,” Wang Baole coughed and said seriously during the meeting, as if he were truly concerned about the Holy Crest Sect.

The Grand Supreme Elder smiled and waved Wang Baole’s suggestion aside.

“I sought out fellow Daoist Gongsun immediately when I heard about this, but Gongsun Hou seems suspicious of everyone at the moment.
He rejected my offer to help.”

“We cannot blame him.
It’s really quite embarrassing… A galactic pirate is supposed to be the one doing the pillaging and plundering, but he’s now being robbed by someone else,” another elder smiled and said.

“There’s a high likelihood that someone in the sect leaked information about the returning battleship.
So many battleships return to the home planet every day.
There’s no way to explain why theirs was targeted.” Wang Baole nodded and provided a seemingly intelligent analysis of the situation.

It was in line with what the other sects were guessing as well.
It had been a while since someone had attempted to rob a battleship on the Divine Eye planet.
Not to mention that the target had seemed too deliberate.
It was as if the perpetrator had known that the battleship had been the one carrying the most valuable load.

The farce of a galactic pirate being pirated soon became a running joke amongst the few sects hostile to the Thousand Spirit Sect.
The Water Refinement Sect, especially, put a lot of effort into fanning the flames.

The Thousand Spirit Sect felt the most miserable of all sects in the days that followed.
They had lost their hard-earned loot, their battleship had been dismantled for parts, and they had to put up with the mocking commentary coming from other sects such as the Water Refinement Sect.
In addition, no matter how relentlessly they investigated, they couldn’t find any traces of evidence explaining the robbery or identifying the perpetrator.
In a moment of rage, Gongsun Hou had carried out a ruthless investigation against the members of his own sect, to no avail…

Gongsun Hou was frustrated.
He suspected the Water Refinement Sect was involved in the entire fiasco but had no evidence to prove his suspicions.
In the end, he prepared to continue the investigation in secret.
It seemed that there was no end in sight.
A month passed.
Wang Baole was sitting inside his chamber when he raised his head, his eyes shining.
He licked his lips.

I’ve used up all the materials…

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