Chapter 23: The Cunning Wang Yanghai

At the summit of the mountain stood a magnificent great hall, grand and solemn.

Outside the hall stretched a vast plaza. In the past, the plaza would be filled with disciples of the Primordial Yang Sect.

But at this moment, the square was utterly empty, bleak, and silent.

Leaning on his long spear, Lin Yu appeared in the plaza and slowly raised his head to stare directly at the two people standing at the entrance of the great hall.

Lin Yu opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but the overwhelming exhaustion in his body left him without even the strength to say a word.

At the entrance of the great hall, Wang Yanghai, the Sect Master of the Primordial Yang Sect, stared coldly at Lin Yu. Killing intent surged from his body without the slightest attempt at concealment.

Beside him was a grandmaster chair, and seated upon it was a gorgeously dressed man. A noble air radiated from between the man’s brows.

Although the man’s cultivation was only at the First Rank, he seemed utterly unafraid of Wang Yanghai. In contrast, Wang Yanghai wore a smile the entire time he faced the man, as though he were deliberately trying to curry favor with him.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk, Sect Master Wang. Your Primordial Yang Sect is, after all, the number one sect in the Shuxia Domain.”

“And yet you could not even deal with a mere Second-Rank nobody. How can my master ever trust you with anything in the future?” the man said with a frivolous tone, glancing sideways at Wang Yanghai.

“Chief Steward Lu, this was only an accident.”

“This boy merely dared to come and run wild in the Primordial Yang Sect by relying on a cultivation art, that is all.”

“He is already at the end of his rope now. He cannot stir up much trouble.”

“You sit here and rest. I will go deal with him at once,” Wang Yanghai said with a smile meant to please.

With that, Wang Yanghai walked into the plaza and looked coldly at Lin Yu.

“Boy, I have already investigated your background thoroughly.”

“This old man truly cannot understand why you are so stubborn. They were only a few cheap lives. Why did you insist on making things come to this point?”

“Do you know how great a loss you have caused my Primordial Yang Sect today? Even if you repay it with your life, it still will not extinguish the fury in my heart!” Wang Yanghai said darkly as he stared at Lin Yu.

Lin Yu lifted his head and glared at Wang Yanghai, forcing a sneer onto his face. “Sect Master Wang, you say that so lightly.”

“A few lives? Remember this well—there were exactly five hundred and sixty-five people in Lin Village!”

“For the sake of a single Purple Moon Jade, you slaughtered the entire village! Is this truly the conduct that a so-called righteous great sect should have?!”

“As far as I am concerned, your Primordial Yang Sect is inferior even to those demonic sects.”

“Heh... cough, cough...” Lin Yu let out a mocking laugh as blood continuously flowed from the corner of his mouth.

Wang Yanghai’s face darkened like still water, and his hands clenched tightly.

“Lin Yu, there is no need for you to deliberately provoke me here. Things have already come to this.”

“So long as you die today, who will still know of the shameful deeds my Primordial Yang Sect committed behind the scenes?”

“Before you die, I will tell you this—if I were given the choice again, I still would not hesitate in the slightest to order the deaths of those worthless commoners.”

“There is no other reason. It is simply because I am stronger than they are.”

With those words, Wang Yanghai strode toward Lin Yu.

The Blood Essence in Lin Yu’s body had already been completely burned away in the earlier battle. The only reason he had managed to make it this far was by relying entirely on sheer will.

When Wang Yanghai arrived before Lin Yu, he raised his hand and struck toward Lin Yu’s head.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

“Today, Sect Master Wang’s remarks have truly broadened my horizons.”

Chu Feng appeared with Shi and Su Yanran, clapping lightly as he spoke. Yet the light in his eyes had grown colder and colder.

Wang Yanghai halted his hand, turned to look at Chu Feng, and frowned. “Who are you people?”

“Me?” Chu Feng smiled playfully, then his expression turned stern.

“Chu Feng, Seventh Prince of the Great Xuan Dynasty!”

The moment those words fell, Wang Yanghai, Chief Steward Lu, and Lin Yu all trembled in shock.

Chu Feng walked to Lin Yu’s side. When he saw the other man’s condition, he let out a regretful sigh.

If Lin Yu had told Chu Feng the truth earlier, Chu Feng would never have allowed him to reach this point.

But now, it was already too late to say anything.

Given Lin Yu’s current state, even if Chu Feng personally intervened, it would still be of no use.

Chu Feng lifted a hand and pointed through the air. A stream of pure Spiritual Qi flowed into Lin Yu’s body.

That stream of Spiritual Qi could only extend Lin Yu’s time slightly. It could not change the outcome.

Nourished by the Spiritual Qi, a trace of relief appeared on Lin Yu’s face, and he no longer looked quite so tormented.

“Leave what comes next to me. Today, I will give you a satisfactory answer,” Chu Feng said softly as he patted Lin Yu’s shoulder.

“Thank you, Chen... thank you, Your Highness the Seventh Prince!” Lin Yu said gratefully.

After settling Lin Yu down, Chu Feng turned to look at Wang Yanghai. His sharp gaze seemed capable of piercing straight through the heart.

Wang Yanghai looked somewhat guilty and hurriedly explained, “Your Highness the Seventh Prince, you must not believe this traitor. He is speaking utter nonsense and slandering my Primordial Yang Sect.”

“That is right, that is right, Seventh Prince, I can testify to that.” That Chief Steward Lu hurried over.

“I am Lu Qiu, chief steward of the Shuxia Domain Governor’s Manor. I pay my respects to Your Highness the Seventh Prince,” Lu Qiu said respectfully as he bowed to Chu Feng. Then he continued, “Your Highness, I know Sect Master Wang’s character better than anyone. He loathes evil as though it were his mortal enemy. He is righteous and upright.”

“He would absolutely never do something as utterly inhuman as slaughtering a village. This is all slander.”

When Chu Feng heard that, he turned and looked at Lu Qiu.

The chief steward of the Shuxia Domain Governor’s Manor had actually appeared here.

That alone already revealed quite a few things without a word needing to be said.

Chu Feng finally understood why the Primordial Yang Sect had been so brazen.

So it turned out they had powerful protection from above.

“You are slandering us!”

“When the Primordial Yang Sect disciples slaughtered the village, the people of another nearby village saw them long ago.”

“That villager personally saw that they were wearing the robes of the Primordial Yang Sect. How could that be false?!” Lin Yu shouted back, his emotions unusually agitated.

“If they were wearing the robes of the Primordial Yang Sect, does that prove they were people of my Primordial Yang Sect?”

“As I see it, it must have been nearby bandits who did it, merely wanting to throw dirty water on the Primordial Yang Sect.”

“Other than that, do you have any additional evidence? If you have no evidence, then stop making an unreasonable fuss here,” Wang Yanghai said without so much as blinking.

He had already decided that Lin Yu had no other proof.

After all, with the Seventh Prince standing here, he absolutely could not admit it. Otherwise, even the people backing him would not be able to protect him.

“You!” Lin Yu glared at Wang Yanghai, so furious that his chest heaved violently.

“Your Highness, the facts are already clear. Sect Master Wang is obviously innocent.”

“This man has killed so many people of the Primordial Yang Sect, so let us hand him over to Sect Master Wang for disposal,” Lu Qiu said to Chu Feng, his face full of a fawning smile.

“Enough!” Chu Feng raised a hand and said coldly.

“I will naturally find the evidence myself. What is real cannot be made false, and what is false cannot be made real. I am taking charge of the Lin Village massacre.”

Lu Qiu’s and Wang Yanghai’s expressions changed drastically, both of their faces turning ugly.

“But before that, Sect Master Wang, this Prince will first take your life.”

“W-What?” Wang Yanghai froze, suspecting that something had gone wrong with his ears and that he had misheard.