The trio both took the remaining empty seats. In total, seven students were present.
The blue-haired guy spoke first.
"Since we're now complete, let's make a proper introduction. I am Glass Owl, and like I said before, consider yourself a member." He adjusted his glasses, gaze sliding toward the others.
Meng Xuan nodded slightly.
A girl leaned forward, malt-colored hair swaying, lips curling with a teasing smile.
"Scarlet Veil."
Meng Xuan recognized her. Liu Rong. Lower-tier cultivator, infamous for her beauty—and her habit of playing with hearts. She'd lure boys in, take what she wanted, then toss them aside. Her charm was the kind that made fools line up for heartbreak.
"Your lack of holy force might actually be a blessing in disguise," she said.
"I'll take that as a compliment," Meng Xuan replied, voice uneasy. He had no intention of becoming her next toy.
The next was a stout figure Meng Xuan also knew: Cang Ning. A martial artist once compared to Di Tang in the tournaments, though he had been absent recently, as if he vanished.
"Iron Fang," Cang Ning said, giving a faint smile. "If someone like Meng Xuan caught your interest, then he's worth it."
After him came a girl Meng Xuan wasn't familiar with, likely an upper-tier cultivator.
"White Dove. Let's hope you don't end up like the former Silent Wright."
"I have something they call luck," Meng Xuan answered with forced confidence.
White Dove chuckled. "Confident, huh. No wonder you dared piss off Jiao San."
Beside Meng Xuan, a quiet boy finally spoke. Only two words.
"Echo Blade."
And last was the one who brought him here.
"You already know me. Cold Giant." Di Tang's tone was calm as ever.
Glass Owl nodded in satisfaction.
"Good. Everyone has accepted you. Then… welcome to the Circle of Freedom."
Meng Xuan's gaze swept the table, the dim candlelight flickering over their faces.
"So what's the real purpose of this group? And the benefits?"
Scarlet Veil smirked. "We do whatever we want. Take our next mission, for example. Glass Owl wants a certain book from the upper library. 'The Primordial War,' written by an anonymous author. He's only after one page—a formation creation method."
Meng Xuan's mind stirred. The Primordial War was a story every child heard, about Lucifer, the radiant star who rebelled against heaven. Chained in the sky prison for eternity. Even Fiend Monk had claimed to be Lucifer's fragment, though Meng Xuan still doubted that him.
"A high-grade formation spell?" Meng Xuan asked deliberately. "That's not something a low cultivator can even create."
"Don't worry about that," Glass Owl cut in smoothly.
Cold Giant leaned back, voice steady. "Some of us want that page too. We gathered resources, and the benefits will be shared after success. But the problem is obvious: the Special Tier Library."
Meng Xuan's thoughts drifted. The Radiant Sky Academy library was divided into low, upper, and special tiers. The last could only be entered with a special token. Tight security, nearly impossible for ordinary students. Yet this group wanted to breach it? Bold.
"You're trying to bypass the academy rules," Meng Xuan said.
Echo Blade's voice was low, but it carried weight. "Those who follow rules end up as trash."
Meng Xuan nodded, lips curling faintly.
"I don't care about rules. I care about benefits."
Iron Fang crossed his arms. "That's it. This group is about survival, benefit exchange, and carving our own path. Your contribution determines your share."
The candle flickered, shadows stretching across the walls. Fiend Monk's voice echoed in his head.
Interesting… I like this Owl's brain.
Glass Owl spread a map across the table, hand tracing the lines.
"The book is in the east alcove, second room. Two guards stationed at the stair landing, another patrol every ten minutes."
He paused, eyes gleaming.
"Tomorrow is the day. The special tier cultivators will leave to stabilize theSpiderAbyssal demonic zone. Perfect timing."
Meng Xuan couldn't help but remember Li Feng and Ji Baixi during his last hunt there.
"Cold Giant will duel Iron Fang to draw attention," Glass Owl continued.
Meng Xuan's brows twitched. A duel between those two was not something student will likely miss. Perhaps that explained Cang Ning's silence recently. They had planned this long ago. Scheming.
"Scarlet Veil will distract the guards. White Dove will intercept teachers. I'll create a disturbance in the upper tier library to lure the head librarian, but she'll solve it quickly. That's when Silent Wright was supposed to bleed for a five-minute distraction."
He tapped the map.
"But Silent Wright is dead. Which leaves a hole."
Meng Xuan already sensed where this was going, but he stayed silent.
" There's was a risk involved before even if silent wright was here but we had another plan but it will cause some commotion, since you are here echo Blade would take the role, using his blood for delay. You, Meng Xuan… you'll infiltrate. No holy force means the dial won't detect you. Success is almost guaranteed."
All eyes turned to him. Scarlet Veil tilted her head.
"You'll even get an invisibility talisman. Two uses, twenty seconds each. If you're lucky, you can keep one."
Tempting. Dangerous. Benefits too sweet to ignore. Meng Xuan's face stayed calm, but Fiend Monk snickered in his mind.
They don't even know what kind of monster you are.
"I don't have holy force. How do I even activate a talisman?" he asked flatly, covering his own abilities.
White Dove's eyes narrowed, confident. "I have a technique for that."
Glass Owl slid a small item across the table. "You will record the page with an item that will be given tomorrow. Don't tear, don't steal—the library formations would react instantly."
Details spilled one after another until the map was folded away. Silence returned, broken only by the candle's hiss.
White Dove suddenly spoke again.
"There's another death case in the academy. Supposedly, the victim was outside the school, so they closed it. Not the first time either. I think they're covering something."
She produced a small image of a girl with green hair.
"We stay in the same form and I saw her entering the academy that day. Yet they claim she was gone."
Cold Giant waved a hand. "We'll deal with that after the mission."
The others nodded. Only Meng Xuan's expression twisted briefly. The girl in the image… she was one of his kills.
The rest didn't notice. Their eyes stayed on the photo.
Inside, Fiend Monk laughed coldly.
The murderer is right in front of you.