Minglong

Chapter 283 Cross-examination
Realizing that Master Wei, who had just been incredibly brave and had the chance to bring Blood Rain Tower back to its peak, had been crushed by Old Demon Xie in a single move, the members of Blood Rain Tower felt as if the sky had fallen!

Does happiness come so suddenly, and go so quickly?

Fan Hai Nie was so anxious that he slapped his thigh and hurriedly shouted:
"Lord Xie! It's a misunderstanding! We didn't attack any government officials; we wanted to surrender! This Wei Yin was trying to bribe us, and we were planning to capture him and hand him over to you..."

The remaining hall masters also realized the problem and, fearing that Wei Kun, who clearly had a chance to become one of the Seven Heroes, would be beaten to death, quickly explained:
"Yes, thank you for your mercy, Lord Xie! We had no ill intentions; we simply wanted to apprehend this man and report to you..."

"Oh?"

Xie Jinhuan's robes fluttered in the wind as he slowly floated down from the sky, stopping three zhang above the ground. His ethereal, otherworldly demeanor was completely different from before. His gaze fell upon Wei Yin, who was coughing up blood.
"Is there anything else going on?"

"Cough...cough..."

Wei Yin was vomiting blood from the fighting, but seeing Xie Jinhuan's reinforcements arrive, he felt no excitement, only utter despair. He gritted his teeth and said:
"They're spouting nonsense! Brother Xie, I came here to investigate the remnants of the Blood Rain Pavilion, and they ambushed and killed me. How could my esteemed Snow Eagle Ridge possibly deign to look down upon these江湖草莽 (jianghu caomang, meaning outlaws of the martial world)..."

Seeing that Wei Yin was blatantly lying, Fan Hai Nie quickly said:
"Lord Xie, we are just a bunch of roughnecks from the martial world. If we hadn't heard his intentions, how would we dare to fight against the mighty Snow Eagle Ridge? He really wants to recruit us, and he even said that with his backing, you would never dare to settle accounts with us."

"We thought that you should be in charge of the martial world of the Great Qian Dynasty from now on. Their double-dealing will be discovered by you sooner or later, and they will still die then. That's why we risked everything to try to capture him..."

Xie Jinhuan clearly knew the reason, and after briefly examining everyone, he calmly said:

"I understand. It seems I went a bit too far earlier. Go check the river and see if that little fish can be saved. I need to talk to Brother Wei alone."

Fan Hai Nie and the others breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. They dared not disobey orders and hurriedly ran to the riverbank to see if they could salvage the fragments of Wei Kun.

……

After Xie Jinhuan and the others left, they landed on the broken street and looked at Wei Yin, who was lying on the ground, unable to get up:
"What did you mean just now, Brother Wei?"

Wei Yin struggled to get up, but the other man had hit him too hard, leaving him powerless and only able to gasp for breath.
"Since Brother Xie has chosen to believe the words of a bunch of江湖贼寇 (jianghu zealots), what use is there for me to say more?"

Xie Jinhuan squatted down beside the pit:
"I was referring to that tiger's roar just now. Everyone in the town heard it, and Brother Wei's behavior was far beyond what is expected of an ordinary person. Shouldn't Brother Wei explain the reason?"

"?"

Wei Yin's face paled slightly as he carefully examined the white-robed young man before him, and said incredulously:
"Were you the one who just fought me?"

"Who else but me could have driven Brother Wei to this point? This whole charade was just to keep our master from hearing any news from the martial arts world and to warn him in advance."

Xie Jinhuan carefully observed Wei Yin and continued:
“I’ve killed quite a few half-demons, such as He Man and He Hai. Their physical conditions are exactly the same as yours. They are all talents derived from the innate half-demons of the Western Rong. We have at least fought each other in the arena. Let’s settle things directly, at least with some dignity.”

When Wei Yin saw that Xie Jinhuan had figured out the details of his physique, he knew that this was a special trip to investigate him, and that his master had already been exposed.

Faced with this scene of being caught red-handed, there was no point in making excuses. Wei Yin coughed a few times and gritted his teeth as he responded:
“My master is not wrong. It is the righteous path that did not give him a chance, which led to the current situation. My master started slaying demons and monsters and upholding justice when he was twenty years old. He was loyal to the court until he was nearly a hundred years old, but the court treated him as a henchman to be ordered around and never paid him any attention…”

Xie Jinhuan frowned:
"Snow Eagle Ridge dominates the entire Daizhou region, and is revered as the leader of the martial arts world. What more does your master want? To be granted territory and made the King of Daizhou?"

Wei Yin responded: "No matter how high the status of a sect leader is in the martial arts world, in the eyes of the imperial court, he is just a commoner. My master has upheld the righteous path all his life. In terms of seniority and seniority, he is no less than Lu Wuzhen. He has never made a mistake in the past. He only wants to become a leader of the righteous path like Ye Sheng and do his part."

"As a result, even though Lu Wuzhen made such a serious oversight during the Jian'an Rebellion, the court still heavily relied on him. Meanwhile, my master lived a life of constant caution, always keeping the righteous path in mind. Just because he had been saved by the Corpse Ancestor before he could remember, the righteous path was always on guard against him..."

Was he saved by the Corpse Ancestor?
Xie Jinhuan was quite surprised to hear this, but then he suddenly understood why Wei Wuyi, who had already achieved great success, would ruin his reputation by associating with the Underworld God Cult in his later years.

However, after careful consideration, Xie Jinhuan asked in return:
"You mean your master was determined to follow the righteous path, but was suppressed by Lu Wuzhen, which forced him to rebel?"

"That's just the way it is; everyone in the martial arts world knows that."

"Over the years, Sect Leader Lu has indeed marginalized other sects. But if Lu Wuzhen deliberately suppresses me and doesn't give me the opportunity to be the leader, then I will definitely not accept it. I will find a way to bring Lu Wuzhen down and let all cultivators in the world see who is qualified to be the leader, instead of colluding with the Underworld God Sect to secretly use tricks to seize power."

Xie Jinhuan paused here and asked in return:
"You complain about the injustice of the righteous path, saying that Lu Wuzhen is targeting your master at every turn. Have you ever considered that perhaps your master is not capable enough to defeat Lu Wuzhen and is therefore unqualified to sit in the position of supervisor?"

"?"

Wei Yin was clearly taken aback by this question, and his face flushed red as he replied:

"You make it sound so easy. Lu Wuzhen was appointed by the imperial court and recommended by the cultivation path as the supervisor. Would my master dare to forcibly take him away?"

Xie Jinhuan shrugged slightly:
"If you can knock Lu Wuzhen down with just a few punches and kicks, who in the Great Qian Dynasty is qualified to say that your master is not qualified to be the supervisor?"

"Lu Wuzhen received the mantle from Master Qixia..."

“As long as your master adheres to the righteous path and defeats Lu Wuzhen fairly to obtain the seat, if Master Qixia forcibly shows favoritism, it is because Master Qixia’s heart is not upright, not your master’s problem.”

Xie Jinhuan frowned and said:

"Your master has been cultivating in seclusion for a hundred years. Surely he wouldn't be afraid to reason with Master Qixia even when he's in the right? What if Master Qixia and Ye Sheng betray the righteous path? Would your master lead the righteous path to surrender if he couldn't win?"

"..."

Wei Yin was speechless for a moment.

Xie Jinhuan nodded slightly upon seeing this:
"See? These are all excuses. The main problem is that your heart is not upright. I don't know if your master was devoted to the righteous path his whole life, but I can be sure that he was not devoted to martial arts."

"Status is established by strength. If you are not strong enough and are not satisfied, then you can only find a way to improve your strength and fight for it. All other methods are crooked paths."

"Your master and Lu Wuzhen were classmates, and their talents were not too different. Lu Wuzhen was busy with official duties all day and could not concentrate on cultivation, while your master had no trivial matters to deal with. He had worked hard for nearly a hundred years, but he still did not have the confidence to crush Lu Wuzhen. Can you blame the righteous path for suppressing him?"
"If I were Lu Wuzhen, I wouldn't let your master take the position either. He didn't even dare to challenge us, and he spent all his time building connections and creating momentum. Why should I step down?"

"..."

Wei Yin's face turned red with anger, but he couldn't refute it at all. After all, that was the truth. The Imperial Observatory had no gatekeepers to stop them. If Wei Wuyi came to challenge him one-on-one, Lu Wuzhen would lose and have to go cool off in the sidelines.

If Wei Wuyi were truly so heroic, the court and the public would all give him a thumbs up and call him a true hero. Who would say he wasn't qualified?

"Even Monk Wuxin didn't dare to vie for the position of Supervisor..." "Monk Wuxin is a monk, does he care about this? Even if Monk Wuxin couldn't take it, he didn't betray the righteous path, he just obediently stayed in the Northwest to cultivate Buddhism. Fachen was so eager to betray the sect, but he was innocent. Is this the same as your master colluding with evil sects to plot something sinister when he couldn't win?"

"..."

Wei Yin was truly speechless this time. After holding back for a long time, he responded in a deep voice:

“My master raised me for twenty years. Even if I have made mistakes, I would never betray my master. Kill me if you want.”

It would be easy for Xie Jinhuan to kill someone, but what he needs now is intelligence, and this person needs to be kept as a backup witness.

Even if he knew the Soul-Dismantling and Image-Revealing Technique, he could only see the events of the last few days, making it difficult to ascertain the full picture. Therefore, he needed to get Wei Yin to confess. At this moment, he said earnestly:
“You possess the divine gift of the Suppressor, and I won’t hide it. I did want to kill you to seize the treasure, but now that I’m on the righteous path, I still need to follow some procedures when doing things.”

“You’ve always cultivated in the mountains and never entered the martial world. If you can realize that your master was wrong, there might still be hope for you.”

"I'll give you a chance. Tell me everything you know, and that will be your way of redeeming yourself. I can petition the court for leniency, and you might even have a chance to live in the future."

"Of course, you can choose not to tell me, and I can find out myself, but you will definitely not survive. I actually hope you will die rather than submit, so that you can kill openly and fairly, without worrying about being criticized by the court for seizing opportunities without leaving any witnesses."

Linghu Qingmo had already walked up to them and interjected:

"You know Xie Jinhuan's style of doing things. It's just that I didn't use drastic measures directly because we fought each other before."

“We have already found out about your master. Even if you don’t tell, your master cannot escape the pursuit of the righteous path. He died here for someone he couldn’t protect. What is left of your master after pursuing his life?”

"..."

Faced with Xie Jinhuan's threats and Linghu Qingmo's persuasion, Wei Yin's gaze shifted slightly.

Knowing that he could not advance any further, his master focused all his energy on him, setting a goal for him from childhood: to become Ye Shengwu Zu.

For this reason, Wei Yin trained hard every day from a young age, almost never leaving the mountain, and didn't even know many of his fellow disciples. His only belief was to become the strongest, challenge all martial arts masters, and fulfill his master's long-cherished wish.

Now that his master has been identified, whether he speaks or not, it won't change the fact that Xie Jinhuan will soon go back to settle scores.

There's still a chance to survive, but if he dies here, his master will truly have nothing left, and in the end, he'll have gambled away nothing...

……

After a long silence, Wei Yin opened his mouth, then finally spoke:
“I used to practice my skills on the mountain and didn’t get involved in things down there, so I don’t know much and it might not be of much use to you.”

Xie Jinhuan nodded slightly: "Tell me about it first."

Wei Yin thought for a moment and replied:
“When I was six years old and noticed something was wrong with my body, I asked my master. He said that he was the same, and that we were all given a body by the gods. In the past, every few years, someone would come to visit me and check on my health, but I didn’t know who that person was.”

"After entering the capital, my master told my senior brother Wei Jili and me some things. It was roughly about first unifying the martial arts, then uniting with some important figures to expel the leaders of the Taoist and Buddhist sects, thereby completely controlling the court and the country."

"When I was going through the archives, I found that He Man and others had the same physical characteristics as me, and I suspected that I was related to the Underworld Cult."

"But Master said that the Underworld God Cult is just a pawn on the surface, and those who cooperate with him are not people of the demonic path. What they seek is not to bring chaos to the world, but to attain immortality."

"I don't understand what it means, and my master didn't tell me much, but I can tell that there is a close minister by the emperor's side who has close ties with my master and has secretly helped my master get a lot of benefits. This person seems to have been a retainer of the Danwang Mansion before."

"Furthermore, Crown Prince Zhao De has health problems and should be a half-demon like me. My master once used my blood to refine medicine, attempting to nurture the Crown Prince's potential and awaken his powers, but he dared not make any major moves, and the Crown Prince's comprehension was too poor, so he did not succeed..."

"..."

When Xie Jinhuan heard that there were spies among the retainers of the former Danwang Mansion, he couldn't help but think of Taishu Dan's troublemaking in Huaijiang Bay and the tampering with the Eight Directions Illumination Formation.

As for the Crown Prince's health problems, that's understandable. Let's think about asking him:

What is the Crown Prince's talent?

"The Monkey King. He should be naturally intelligent and agile, and indistinguishable from a human. Master and the others originally planned to awaken the Crown Prince's talent, making him smarter to solidify his position, but they exhausted all methods and failed to awaken his bloodline talent..."

Linghu Qingmo frowned and said, "The Crown Prince is just like a monkey; he's been harmed by this very talent?!"

Wei Yin paused for a moment, then shook his head:

"No, my bloodline talent is no different from that of an ordinary person if it is not awakened. The Crown Prince was born this way, and it has nothing to do with the person who modified him."

"Oh……"

Linghu Qingmo opened her mouth, then realized she shouldn't have asked that question; it was so hurtful...

Xie Jinhuan also understood Zhao De's prowess. He was simultaneously frustrated by both the righteous and evil factions, yet he single-handedly killed countless brain cells of Wei Wuyi and others, leaving them helpless. This could be seen as a kind of iron will in his heart, refusing to compromise with evil forces...

Seeing that Wei Yin had finished telling him everything he knew, Xie Jinhuan stood up:

“If you haven’t hidden anything, I will petition the court for leniency. However, you must not speak again until we take down this group in the capital. To ensure everything goes smoothly, you need to sleep for a few days.”

bang——

After saying that, Xie Jinhuan touched Wei Yin's neck, and Wei Yin immediately fainted and fell to the ground.

Linghu Qingmo looked at Wei Yin, thought for a moment, and asked:
"What should we do now?"

Xie Jinhuan glanced at the Blood Rain Tower members who were still salvaging Wei Kun's fragments by the river, and thought for a moment before saying:
“Bringing Wei Yin back would be too troublesome. Let’s stick to the original plan and say that we’ve rescued Wei Yin from the Blood Rain Pavilion and handed him over to the Crimson Scale Guard to escort back to the capital. Their escort to the capital will take a day or two. Let’s immediately turn back and inform Sect Leader Lu, and try to control Wei Wuyi before the other side becomes alert, so as to avoid any unforeseen complications.”

Linghu Qingmo brought many of the old members of the Pill King's Mansion with him on this trip. They are currently searching for the Blood Rain Pavilion in the county. He nodded slightly in agreement...
-
I wrote 12,000 words, but after deleting the fluff and filler, I only have 8,000 left. Sigh, or2!

(End of this chapter)