Chapter 92

Shenma's Line (92)

If Han Xuehua's group were also guests of Huashan, this was not something to be taken lightly.

"Fortunately, those councilors gave us a generous amount for the repairs. However, given the situation, we won't be able to do business for a while."

The innkeeper's words filled Zhen Mingzhenren with regret.

Then, he suddenly felt a strange sensation and turned his head.

He saw Han Xuehua standing there, her cold gaze emitting a chilling aura.

Zhen Mingzhenren smiled bitterly.

His disappointment must have been great.

Still, how could it be just him?

He had missed the opportunity to create new memories while reminiscing, and felt a deep sense of regret.

"I will personally hold the Wulin Alliance accountable for this."

Although Zhen Mingzhenren misunderstood, Han Xuehua did not bother to explain.

Instead, she turned and took Dan Aoxian's hand.

"Are you leaving like this?"

Han Xuehua nodded indifferently at Zhen Mingzhenren's puzzled question.

"We'll postpone the meal."

Dan Aoxian quickly bowed to Zhen Mingzhenren.

"Thank you again."

"Hmm?"

"It's the token of appreciation."

Zhen Mingzhenren replied with a gentle look.

"That's not much of a difficult task. Huashan supports Dan Xiaoxie's cause. May the blessings of the Primal Celestial be with you."

"Me too. If you need my help, I'll come running anytime."

Zhen Mingzhenren watched the two depart with a regretful gaze. Once they were completely out of sight, he slowly turned his head.

His previously warm gaze had now turned cold.

His eyes were fixed on a dumpling stand next to the inn.

"The Wulin Alliance is truly crossing the line."

The man disguised as a vendor flinched.

Despite the considerable distance, Zhen Mingzhenren's voice was as clear as if it had come from right beside him.

The Wulin Alliance's spy, with an uneasy expression, quickly packed up his stall and hurried away.

* * *

As Dan Aoxian walked alongside Han Xuehua, she smiled.

"At least the uncles seem to have improved a lot."

"......?"

Puzzled, Han Xuehua chuckled at Dan Aoxian's words.

"You were attacked first, but you didn't kill them, did you?"

"Really?"

"Isn't that so?"

"That's......"

Han Xuehua sighed lightly, finding it hard to explain.

"Soon you'll know."

With that, the two entered the forest where Chao Ailiang and Fan Jiewei had been hiding.

"Hey? You're here? You finished early?"

Fan Jiewei, unusually pleased, greeted them. Han Xuehua's eyes narrowed at his calm demeanor, which seemed to mock the situation.

Chao Ailiang was the same.

"Did everything go well?"

"Yes!"

Dan Aoxian smiled brightly and showed the token of appreciation with Zhen Mingzhenren's hand seal.

Han Xuehua asked the two.

"Did you stay here the whole time?"

"Of course!"

"Did you cause any trouble?"

"Of course not!"

At this point, Han Xuehua was the one who was speechless.

Knowing everything already, they still dared to lie so openly!

"What? That look? You don't trust us? We really stayed here. Right, Chao?"

"Uh, uh...... Yes."

Unlike Fan Jiewei, Chao Ailiang's voice wavered under Han Xuehua's intense gaze.

Dan Aoxian shook her head with a sigh.

Fan Jiewei, puzzled, asked Dan Aoxian.

"Why are you like this? Dan Yishi. Are you uncomfortable?"

"It's not that."

Dan Aoxian forced a smile. Cold air was already emanating from Han Xuehua's entire body.

"We...... were coming from Yilai Xiang."

Chao Ailiang and Fan Jiewei, startled, exchanged glances.

At that moment,

Fan Jiewei suddenly turned and vanished into a point.

In that instant,

"All of this was his doing."

Han Xuehua's gaze shifted to Chao Ailiang.

"I only intervened to stop it from getting worse."

Chao Ailiang, who had pushed all the blame onto Fan Jiewei, declared boldly.

Han Xuehua inwardly smiled. His retreat to a distance where her attacks couldn't reach him lacked credibility.

As Han Xuehua silently stared at him, Chao Ailiang cleared his throat.

"Ahem. I'll go catch him right away."

With that, Chao Ailiang shot off. But in the opposite direction from where Fan Jiewei had gone.

From the beginning, Fan Jiewei was just an excuse.

Han Xuehua's gaze then turned to Jiudual, who was trembling alone.

Jiudual cried out pitifully.

"I have no sin and no power!"

At his desperate plea, Han Xuehua shook her head.

Then she said to Dan Aoxian.

"Did you see? These are the kind of people."

* * *

Danzhu Jie Guyan frowned deeply.

The reports arriving one after another were all far from what she had expected.

"No one died?"

Her subordinate, prostrate on the ground, spoke cautiously.

"An objection letter also arrived from Huashan Sect."

"......"

"It's a letter written by Zhen Mingzhenren himself. He demands formal accountability from the Wulin Alliance for the person responsible for this mistake."

"Mistake?"

The man, realizing his mistake late, hurriedly bowed his head.

After a long while, he spoke again, carefully gauging Jie Guyan's mood.

"How should we proceed with the tracking?"

"Continue."

"Then, this time, with a bit more skilled people......"

"No. As before."

The man, sensing his superior's displeasure, did not dare to offer further suggestions and withdrew.

Jie Guyan was trying to calm her troubled mind with a long-cold cup of tea when someone visited her.

"Is it true that Huashan Sect sent someone?"

Old Danyang did not even try to hide his displeasure, and a hint of irritation appeared in Jie Guyan's eyes.

"How could you handle things like this?"

Old Danyang's reprimand made Jie Guyan's frown deepen.

"Are you saying I'm like a subordinate of the Pasha Hall?"

Old Danyang glared at Jie Guyan for a moment before expressing his concern.

"This incident could put the Alliance Leader in a difficult position."

"It could."

Old Danyang frowned at her ambiguous answer, as it could easily lead to a major misunderstanding.

"If Huashan Sect continues to press on this matter......"

Jie Guyan interrupted Old Danyang and spoke.

"Wouldn't that be fine too?"

"......?"

"What if, after all the fuss, it turns out they were really Chao Ailiang and Fan Jiewei?"

Old Danyang's gaze wavered slightly.

"In that case, it would be Huashan Sect in a difficult position."

After all, they would be seen as protecting the Ten Great Evils, which would have significant repercussions.

"Shouldn't we report to the Alliance Leader?"

"We should."

Jie Guyan sighed softly.

"I wanted to observe the situation a bit more, but now there's no choice."

She had already calculated everything in her mind.

If she could connect the movements of Chao Ailiang, Fan Jiewei, and Han Xuehua with the son of Shen, she might be able to tie together other sects and resolve the pressure on the Wulin Alliance all at once.

From the Wulin Alliance's perspective, which had been threatened with its existence after the Zhengma Battle, this would be an unparalleled opportunity.

"Before that, the Alliance Leader might step down."

The discussion of the Wulin Alliance's uselessness and the Alliance Leader's resignation had already begun, led by the Beggar Sect.

And the momentum was gradually building.

"Are you afraid?"

"......"

Old Danyang's gaze turned cold.

He finally sensed something unusual in Jie Guyan's attitude.

In the past, he had felt strange a few times, but recently her words and actions when mentioning the Alliance Leader had become suspiciously overt.

Jie Guyan smiled quietly, as if understanding.

"Indeed. It's understandable. After all, the power of the Pasha Hall ultimately relies on the Alliance Leader's authority."

Old Danyang remained silent.

That was true.

If Nangong Bai fell, he would be like a kite with its string cut.

As the silence stretched, someone entered the room.

A martial artist from the Changtian Hall, who guarded the Alliance Leader, bowed to the two of them and spoke to Jie Guyan.

"The Alliance Leader is looking for you."

Jie Guyan smiled.

"Is that so?"

She stood up and nodded to Old Danyang.

"Then I must see the Alliance Leader. I'll be going......"

Leaving behind Old Danyang with a confused look, Jie Guyan headed straight for the Alliance Leader's office.

"Changyi Hall's Jie Guyan pays respects to the Alliance Leader."

Jie Guyan felt a sharp gaze pierce her neck.

Slowly raising her head, she met Nangong Bai's fiery eyes.

"Explain the reason."

As their gazes met, Nangong Bai put down the letter he was holding.

The letter, floating in mid-air, slowly moved toward Jie Guyan.

Realizing it was the objection letter from Huashan Sect, Jie Guyan smiled quietly.

"Have you forgotten? It was the Alliance Leader who asked for results, not the process."

Despite Nangong Bai's furious gaze, Jie Guyan remained calm.

"That's true. However, the results are too disappointing."

Nangong Bai stared intently at Jie Guyan.

"Did I overestimate the abilities of the Changyi Hall?"

Jie Guyan sighed lightly.

Then she raised her eyes to meet Nangong Bai, who was seated on the Tai Shi chair.

"If E'gong and E'ri are Chao Ailiang and Fan Jiewei, what would you do?"

"I've already said that if they were Xueshu Zunzhe and Wangshan Chaozhe, I would have known."

"May I ask why you are so certain?"

Nangong Bai's eyebrows twitched.

As a military leader of the Wulin Alliance, he could not avoid answering her direct question.

"On the day they treated Xiang, the aura that flowed from the residence was not felt by me alone."

The Changtian Hall's leader, Yang Buli, who was standing on one side of the office, nodded.

The aura he had felt that day was warm and comforting, with a mysterious power that drew people in. It did not have any peculiar characteristics.

"The main family's Changgong Dalianxin Gong is an internal skill specialized for the Pasha Hall."

If it had been a peculiar skill of the Fangzuo Sect, he would have been the first to notice it.

Jie Guyan smiled faintly and spoke.

"Sometimes, inexplicable things happen in the world."

Jie Guyan did not back down and expressed her thoughts.

"E'gong and E'ri. I believe they are Chao Ailiang and Fan Jiewei."

Nangong Bai's eyebrows twitched.

However, there must have been a good reason for her to be so confident.

"Explain."

Jie Guyan smiled faintly.

"Although I don't have the lion's heart like the Alliance Leader, I have the fox's mind for analyzing situations."

Jie Guyan explained why she suspected E'gong and E'ri were Chao Ailiang and Fan Jiewei.

The series of events centered around Wuwei and the inexplicable actions of the inspector Bai Yunhui. She listed the suspicious circumstances and coincidences that could not be dismissed as mere chance.

Nangong Bai replied firmly.

"What I want is not circumstantial evidence or suspicions, but concrete proof."

Despite Nangong Bai's reprimand, Jie Guyan did not lose her smile.

And with her next words, Nangong Bai's expression finally changed.