Chapter 11: Drilling Hamster

When Du Xinzhi heard this, a look of surprise appeared on her face, and so did the other two deacons.

The Qianzhi Sect has a protective formation within its sphere of influence, which covers more than 300 feet underground, forming a closed space as a whole.

It is impossible for monsters from the outside world to break into the sect's mountains without triggering the sect's protective formation.

Thinking of this, Du Xinzhi pondered and asked, "Do you have the fur of the monster with you?"

"have!"

Sun Ruolan quickly took out the gray fur, held it in her palms, and handed it over respectfully.

The three deacons each picked up a strand and began to examine it carefully.

After a while, Du Xinzhi looked at the plain-looking middle-aged man beside her and said slowly, "Junior Brother Yang, in your opinion, does this fur belong to a mole?"

The latter nodded hesitantly, "It does look alike, but there are too many monsters with similar fur in the world of cultivation. We are not beast-controlling monks, so we cannot make an accurate judgment."

As soon as he finished speaking, the remaining steward spoke up: "There has been no unusual movement in the sect protection formation these days. The monster that sneaked into the courtyard's spiritual field and ate the spiritual plants is likely to be raised by the sect's disciples."

Du Xinzhi then asked, "Does Junior Brother Zhang know who in the sect raises a spirit beast with such fur?"

"The dredging rat that Senior Sister Du just mentioned was raised by an outer sect disciple. If I remember correctly, it was Wang Gu who joined the sect nine years ago. One time, I was patrolling the outer peaks according to the rules and passed by his courtyard. I happened to see him feeding the spirit beast."

Du Xinzhi frowned slightly. "Drill hamsters are very timid. Apart from being good at digging holes in the ground, they have no fighting ability and are of no help to spiritual plant cultivation. Under normal circumstances, no spiritual plant cultivator would choose to raise this beast."

Steward Zhang nodded and said, "That's true, but the sect doesn't have any relevant regulations that prohibit raising dunghills, so when I saw it, I felt strange, but I didn't say anything."

Steward Yang spoke at the right time: "Whether it is the mole or not remains to be confirmed. The simplest way is to call the person here and ask directly."

Steward Zhang made a decision immediately, "Wang Gu lives in Qingzhu Peak, I will go and call him over."

Du Xinzhi reminded him: "Before things become clear, just treat it as normal."

"Don't worry, Senior Sister. I understand."

......

Steward Zhang left quickly, and Su Qingwu and Sun Ruolan remained in the hall.

Not long after, three fellow disciples who were at the first level of Qi Refining came outside the hall. They were all disciples who had recently joined the sect.

The three of them came here to report the damage to the spiritual plants planted in the temple.

Su Qingwu listened attentively to the relevant conversations and determined that the situations encountered by several of his fellow disciples were similar to his own, and he could judge that they were caused by the same kind of monster or spirit beast.

There is only one word difference between a demon and a spirit; the only difference is whether there is someone raising them.

In the wild, they are called monsters; in the possession of masters, they are called spirit beasts; and in the mind of monks, they are called spirit pets.

The three people had lost more than half of the spiritual plants in their courtyards. Even if the remaining ones could grow to maturity smoothly, it would be difficult to reach the number required by the sect to be handed over.

By the time they had reported the relevant situation, Steward Zhang had already brought Wang Gu back to Ming'an Hall.

Su Qingwu looked up and saw a tall young man following the butler silently with his head lowered so that his expression could not be seen clearly.

Steward Zhang, who brought him here, had a hint of anger on his face, and it seemed that the matter had an answer.

When he reached the center of the hall, Wang Gu suddenly knelt down with a plop.

"Yesterday, I didn't keep a close eye on the mole I raised, and it escaped and destroyed the spiritual fields of several fellow disciples. This is all my fault, and I am willing to bear the corresponding losses."

Su Qingwu was quite surprised to hear this.

This senior brother actually admitted it so straightforwardly?

For some reason, she always felt that something was wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

On the other side, Du Xinzhi looked at the young man kneeling on the ground and spoke slowly: "Why do you want to raise a drill rat? For a spiritual plant master, this beast has always been harmful rather than beneficial."

Wang Gu answered without hesitation, "I just had a sudden urge to raise a spirit beast to keep me company. I happened to be out of the sect at that time and caught a mole, so I contracted it."

At the side, Steward Yang snorted coldly, "This reason is really far-fetched."

Wang Gu knelt on the ground and insisted, "Uncle Master, please look carefully. I have not lied. It was indeed because of this plan that I signed the contract with the Drilling Rat."

Du Xinzhi looked at the man kneeling on the ground expressionlessly, and said calmly: "Take a vow to prove that what you just said is true."

"This......"

"What? You don't dare?"

"No, disciple...disciple..."

"Don't hesitate. Swear a vow to prove your innocence. As long as you didn't do it on purpose, you can compensate for the corresponding losses. Otherwise, you will be punished according to the sect's rules."

After these words were spoken, Wang Gu suddenly fell silent.

This move has indirectly shown that what he said before was untrue.

Zhang, the steward who brought him here, frowned and asked in a cold voice, "Where is the mole now?"

Wang Gu responded in a low voice: "He was killed by his disciples."