Chapter 78

The gathering place was hard to find, so Lu Xiaofeng directly borrowed the base of Wanmei Mountain Villa.

The next day, a very ordinary day, one by one, people with remarkable presence arrived at the base of Wanmei Mountain Villa in a semi-secret manner.

Wanmei Mountain Villa did not arrange anyone to welcome them, as only Ximen Chuixue had the qualifications to do so, but with his cold and icy personality, how could he welcome others?

Moreover, in such a situation, they did not care much for this kind of welcome. Each person brought two or three subordinates and came to the hall on their own.

Soon, there were more than twenty people in the hall. Eight people with different attire were seated, while the rest stood, including Lu Xiaofeng.

Lu Xiaofeng stood in the middle of the crowd, enduring the scrutiny of over twenty pairs of eyes.

"Ha ha!" Lu Xiaofeng laughed somewhat uncomfortably. No matter how bold he usually was, he couldn't help but feel uneasy at this moment.

These people were the true rulers of the southwest, especially the eight seated. He had little confidence in defeating any one of them. How could he feel at ease in such a situation?

Among the eight, Ximen Chuixue, as the host, sat in the main seat. On his left were Shuimu Yinji, Gan Luo, Qingyilou's Huo Xiu, and Gongsun Dang, whose face was hidden by a red shoe.

On his right were Gu Santong, Chizun Xing, and Meng Shentong of Meng Family Manor. The seemingly casual seating arrangement actually revealed the strength of the eight major forces.

Apart from Wanmei Mountain Villa as the host, the Shuishugong and Riyue Shengjiao were undoubtedly the leaders.

Riyue Shengjiao aside, the presence of Dongfang Bubai, Gu Santong, and Yan Shisan alone was enough to make everyone silent. Shuimu Yinji was the strongest person present, and even Gu Santong and Chizun Xing felt a sense of danger from her.

Shuimu Yinji might be at the level of the Heavenly List, everyone couldn't help but think.

Although the Heavenly List level was not on the Heavenly List, it was extremely terrifying. The other seven major figures present vaguely understood that, except for Dongfang Bubai, who was in mysterious seclusion on Blackwood Cliff, no one in the southwest's eight major forces could match Shuimu Yinji.

Of course, they weren't afraid of Shuimu Yinji. In a life-or-death duel, no one would know the outcome until the last moment.

At this moment, the eight people's gazes seemed to be on Lu Xiaofeng, but in reality, most of their attention was on the other seven. Although they knew each other's names, it was mostly their first time meeting, and they were all rivals, so how could they not pay attention?

As the eight people sized each other up, a heavy aura unconsciously rose from them. Fortunately, they all knew it wasn't the right time, so they were restraining themselves, but they didn't withdraw their auras, as that would be a sign of weakness. The atmosphere in the hall became very tense.

"Cough, cough, cough!" Seeing this, Lu Xiaofeng quickly coughed a few times to attract everyone's attention. He then said solemnly, "Everyone should know that this incident is a conspiracy, a conspiracy against all of us."

No one's expression changed. Who among those present wasn't a seasoned fox? They had long known this, or they wouldn't have let Lu Xiaofeng investigate.

"Cough, cough, cough!" Seeing no one respond, Lu Xiaofeng coughed again, gathered his thoughts, and said seriously, "This matter is very strange. I asked Wan Zhenshan, and on that night, someone forced him to reveal the whereabouts of Liancheng Jue. They also hinted that Liancheng Jue was in the hands of his junior, Qi Changfa, and then left without doing anything to him. Wan Zhenshan didn't see what the person looked like, only that their martial arts were extremely high, so high that he had no resistance at all. Now, Qi Changfa seems to have vanished. Later, almost all of you received news of the Liancheng treasure at the same time, and only you eight major forces received this news, even the Southwest Prince's Mansion didn't. Clearly, the person or force behind this is targeting you eight major forces..."

At this point, everyone's expression became slightly more serious and somewhat unpleasant, as no one wanted to be the target of someone else's plot.

Lu Xiaofeng frowned inwardly. He had been carefully observing everyone, trying to see something, but saw nothing. He continued, "To put it another way, the person or force is plotting against the entire southwest...!"

"Hmph!"

The hall immediately filled with a series of disdainful and angry snorts, even Gu Santong and the others looked displeased.

"Plotting against the entire southwest! How ridiculous." Chizun Xing said with disdain.

"Lu Xiaofeng, you say the other party is plotting against the entire southwest. Do you have any evidence? If they wanted to plot against the entire southwest, why gather us all together? Why not divide and conquer?" Meng Shentong looked at Lu Xiaofeng and frowned.

Meng Shentong was in his forties, a well-known hero, ruthless and cruel, but fair and straightforward in his rivalry, never using any underhanded tactics. He was a very distinctive figure in the evil path, and his mastery of the evil path's unique skill, the Asura Yinsha Gong, made anyone dare not underestimate him.

"Indeed! We are all in Jingzhou City now. To try to take us all down at once, even the first on the Heavenly List, Qin Shi Huang, would find it difficult!" Gan Luo said with a dark expression.

Shuimu Yinji, Gu Santong, and the others didn't speak, but they looked at Lu Xiaofeng with keen eyes, waiting for his explanation.

Lu Xiaofeng had been observing everyone's reactions, but still found nothing unusual. He knew these were all seasoned foxes who already knew what he was saying. He had to intensify his efforts and said solemnly, "It's generally impossible, but what if the mastermind is one of you eight major forces?"

The standing people were taken aback and their expressions darkened, but Gu Santong and the others remained unperturbed, clearly having considered this possibility. However, their gazes also carried a hint of scrutiny.

Lu Xiaofeng ignored their thoughts and continued, "If the mastermind is one of you eight major forces, and uses Liancheng Jue as bait to incite you to fight each other, is that not possible?"

No one spoke, their eyes flickering, deep in thought.

"Lu Xiaofeng, this is just your guess. Do you have any evidence?" Huo Xiu, who had been silent, asked with a flicker in his eyes.

"No, but I have my reasons. First, only you eight major forces know about this matter, even the Southwest Prince's Mansion doesn't. Clearly, the other party wants to keep the matter within the southwest. If the Southwest Prince's Mansion knew, the Ming Dynasty court would also know, and there would be a storm. So, the other party is definitely plotting against the southwest. Second, you have no common enemy, so revenge is out of the question. Why else would they do this? They must be after your power, after the entire southwest. Even if you gather, even the people on the Heavenly List can't do anything to you, so they must break you from within. Third, in today's Ming Dynasty, who else has the ability and the ambition to swallow the southwest except for those present?" Lu Xiaofeng said slowly, and everyone nodded unconsciously.

"Ha ha ha! What Lu Xiaofeng said makes sense, but even so, to swallow the southwest at once requires extremely powerful strength. I, Red Shoes, definitely don't have that strength." Gongsun Dang, wrapped in a black robe, laughed like a silver bell, hinting at something.

Everyone looked at Gu Santong and Shuimu Yinji. The only ones with the strength to do this were the Riyue Shengjiao and Shuishugong.

"Gu Santong, where is Dongfang Bubai? Is he really in seclusion?" Suddenly, Shuimu Yinji also looked at Gu Santong, her gaze stern.

Although Shuimu Yinji was a woman, her face was somewhat masculine, giving her a strong and yang appearance. Her words naturally carried a powerful aura.

With her words, everyone also looked at Gu Santong. All the leaders were present except for Dongfang Bubai. Wasn't he the biggest suspect?

"Hmph!" Gu Santong's face changed, and he snorted angrily and disdainfully, "What, you suspect my Riyue Shengjiao? Ha ha ha, be careful what you say."

He glanced at Shuimu Yinji and Gongsun Dang.

"Hmph, you are threatening me!" Shuimu Yinji's face turned cold, and she glared at Gu Santong.

Gu Santong glared back, undaunted, with a hint of eagerness, as if he wanted to test his skills with Shuimu Yinji.

The coldness in Shuimu Yinji's eyes deepened.

"Alright, both of you, what I said was just a guess." Lu Xiaofeng quickly stepped in to mediate.

Seeing that Gu Santong and the others were still like that, he continued, "I don't think it's the Riyue Shengjiao."

This made Gu Santong and the others slowly withdraw their gazes and look at Lu Xiaofeng. Lu Xiaofeng said seriously, "First, if it were the Riyue Shengjiao, then Dongfang Bubai isn't in seclusion. Why didn't he come to increase the suspicion? Second, if Dongfang Bubai is in seclusion, why would he launch this plot now? Why not after he comes out of seclusion? Third, most of the Riyue Shengjiao's elite are in Wenzhou, fighting against the Zunxin Gate. It's impossible to secretly move them to Jingzhou City. Fourth, if it were the Riyue Shengjiao, Gu Gezhu wouldn't attack the Zunxin Gate, revealing his strength. Fifth, all the suspicion seems to point to the Riyue Shengjiao, which is too convenient. No one would design such a flawed grand plan. Moreover, lacking strength doesn't mean one can't use external forces."

"Ha ha ha ha! Lu Xiaojie, what you said is correct. I, Gu Santong, find you more and more likable. Hmph, don't let me find out who is framing my Riyue Shengjiao." Gu Santong smiled at Lu Xiaofeng and then glanced meaningfully at the other seven.

"Ha ha ha!" Lu Xiaofeng laughed awkwardly, not speaking, but not minding that Gu Santong called him "Lu Xiaojie."

In fact, he had already cursed the old foxes in his heart countless times.

...

This book has a new steward: "Ange City 7"

Thank you.

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