Chapter Eighty-Eight: Defeated at Last

Hong Bingyin’s face flickered with a trace of embarrassment.

Chen Chuangfu and Wu Zhongdao had been kicked into severe injury by him; how could they possibly come to the main hall and confront her face-to-face?

Luo Tangyu did not miss the fleeting change in Hong Bingyin’s expression, and understanding dawned at once.

Hong Bingyin had a violent temper, and those two must have already been beaten senseless, unable to show themselves.

Luo Tangyu did not wish to offend him too deeply. He was just about to speak tactfully when a disciple entered through the hall entrance.

Qu Yiqiu and the others all heard the movement and turned toward the door.

A tall, broad-shouldered man in black appeared before everyone, his figure upright and powerful.

He cupped his hands and bowed to Luo Tangyu and Hong Bingyin.

“Ah... I thought it was Senior Brother Chi coming to find us...” Huang Lan muttered softly, her face full of disappointment.

Though Zhao Wen said nothing, he also turned away with regret.

As for Qu Yiqiu and the other two, need they even be mentioned? The moment they saw Qi Yongfeng arrive, none of them looked pleased.

Hong Bingyin had no mind to pay him any heed either; last time, when the chaos in Quannan City broke out, Zou Peng had stolen the third-place spot from him, and he was still irritated over it.

“What are you doing here?” Hong Bingyin asked curtly.

Qi Yongfeng finished his salute and looked up. Seeing this, he touched his nose. It seemed he was unwelcome wherever he went.

“Master, this disciple has specifically brought the testimony of Chen Chuangfu and the other man to confront Junior Sister Qu.”

“Chen Chuangfu and the other man cannot come to the main hall in person to speak?” Luo Tangyu asked, though he already had a fair guess at the situation and still had to ask according to propriety.

Hearing this, Hong Bingyin turned slightly aside, awkward and silent.

Qi Yongfeng said respectfully, “Reporting to the Sect Master, Chen Chuangfu and the other man were accidentally injured last night and are temporarily unable to get out of bed. Thus this disciple took the liberty of having them record the course of events in a voice talisman, which I have brought to present to the Sect Master.”

As he spoke, he flipped one hand and offered a voice talisman to Luo Tangyu.

Hong Bingyin’s thick brows rose slightly, and he turned to look at Qi Yongfeng with some satisfaction. He had done fairly well with this matter today.

Qu Yiqiu watched the subtle exchange between master and disciple with calm eyes.

Zhou Chen, meanwhile, had his brows knitted tightly together, worrying as he watched Luo Tangyu infuse spiritual power into the talisman and release the recorded voice.

Mu Yunjin stood obediently beside Qu Yiqiu, lost in thought.

Chen Chuangfu and Wu Zhongdao’s voices came from the voice talisman: “...Yesterday, the White Feather Brocade Crane suddenly lost control and carried three Ironwater Oxen to Little Flat Peak. The two of us went to ask Junior Sister Qu about the White Feather Brocade Crane’s whereabouts, but we were refused and unable to go up the mountain. Only on the second day, when speaking of this matter with Peak Lord Hong, did we learn that the White Feather Brocade Crane and the three Ironwater Oxen had been brutally slain by Junior Sister Qu and the others, and then... eaten!”

The smile on Hong Bingyin’s lips widened.

Zhou Chen looked filled with indignation. Summoning his courage, he stepped forward and said, “Sect Master Luo, what Chen Chuangfu and the other man said is not true!”

“They are not telling the truth. Could it be that what Junior Sister Qu says, and what you say, is the truth?” Qi Yongfeng pressed aggressively.

Zhou Chen’s face flushed scarlet.

What Qu Yiqiu said was, of course, not the truth.

“Senior Brother Qi, besides this voice talisman, did they ask you to bring any other evidence?” Qu Yiqiu knew Zhou Chen to be honest and incapable of lying, so she took the initiative to seize the thread of the conversation.

Qi Yongfeng looked at her with a touch more regard, but his expression remained unchanged. “If the White Feather Brocade Crane were still alive, it could have spoken of how it ran to Little Flat Peak. But now they are nothing but remains, and the evidence was long since cleared away by your Little Flat Peak.”

A flicker of astonishment passed swiftly across Hong Bingyin’s face. He turned, pleased, toward Luo Tangyu and urged, “Exactly. That is how the matter happened, just as Yongfeng said. Sect Master Luo should now understand how vile the deeds of Little Flat Peak truly are, should he not? There is no need to waste so many words with them!”

Zhou Chen stared wide-eyed, his mouth opening and closing without managing a single complete sentence.

Zhao Wen and Huang Lan, having witnessed Qi Yongfeng turn the truth on its head, were eating up the drama with great relish. At this moment, both of them watched Qu Yiqiu with lively interest, eager to see how she would respond, and they could not bear to leave.

Luo Tangyu’s brows drew together. The situation was unfavorable. Turning to Qu Yiqiu, he asked, “You say Chen Chuangfu and the other man drove spiritual beasts into Little Flat Peak. Is there any proof?”

Qu Yiqiu glanced lightly at Hong Bingyin and the others and replied, “What this disciple wishes to say is the same as what Senior Brother Qi said. Yesterday, Chen Chuangfu and the other man trespassed into Little Flat Peak. I mistook them for thieves and attacked them, leaving traces of magical implements on their bodies. But since Chen Chuangfu and the other man now claim to be severely injured and unable to meet anyone, I fear they spent the night destroying those wounds. The evidence has already been destroyed by Ten-Thousand Acres Peak.”

Zhao Wen and Huang Lan both formed perfect “o”s with their mouths, their eyes full of surprise and admiration.

Qi Yongfeng was slightly taken aback, thinking that Chen Chuangfu and the other man had actually dared to conceal this matter privately, causing him to suffer a setback in the hall.

A faint trace of delight flashed almost imperceptibly in Luo Tangyu’s eyes. He then said calmly to Hong Bingyin, “Peak Lord Hong, what these two say both makes sense, yet neither can produce evidence. It seems Chen Chuangfu and the other man must come forward in person.”

Hong Bingyin was disdainful at heart. Even if those two fools came out, it would be useless. There were actually wounds left on them by Qu Yiqiu, and who knew whether they had even been erased.

Qi Yongfeng stepped forward, still wanting to speak, when Hong Bingyin had already lost his patience.

“Enough!” Hong Bingyin angrily shattered the wooden chair beside him and barked, “No matter what the truth is, the fact remains that my spiritual beast was eaten. No matter how Little Flat Peak tries to sophisticate its way out of it, it cannot escape the charge of consuming my spiritual beast!”

Luo Tangyu’s expression darkened. It seemed Hong Bingyin was determined not to let anyone from Little Flat Peak off.

“This matter is mine alone to bear. I beg Peak Lord Hong not to implicate Junior Sister Qu, Senior Brother Mu, or Peak Lord Mo!” Zhou Chen pulled aside his dao robe and dropped heavily to both knees.

Qu Yiqiu had not expected Zhou Chen to be so bold as to shoulder such grave responsibility before a Nascent Soul true lord. This was different from what she had said earlier, yet she still could not help admiring his character.

However, her purpose in opposing Hong Bingyin was not to admit fault, but to make Hong Bingyin swallow this bitter loss!

Yet just as she was about to help Zhou Chen up and speak, Hong Bingyin suddenly kicked out, slamming Zhou Chen violently against the main hall’s lattice window and causing Qu Yiqiu’s outstretched hands to grasp empty air.

No one had foreseen this change.

Luo Tangyu erupted in fury at once. “Hong Bingyin, fellow disciples are forbidden to harm one another. The matter has not yet been decided; how can you beat him into severe injury?”

This was outright disregard for the sect rules and for him as sect master.

Hong Bingyin laughed without a trace of fear. “Sect Master Luo, did you not hear just now? He has already admitted that this matter was done by him!”

Qi Yongfeng thought it a pity. Of all times, Zhou Chen had forced himself to stand out at this moment. Even if he had not done it, his master would not let him off now.

Qu Yiqiu had thought everything through with absolute clarity and could not have made a single mistake.

According to her plan before coming here, even if there were to be some punishment for this matter, she could still rely on the sect master’s promise to brush it aside in one stroke, leaving Hong Bingyin with nothing to say.

She had never expected Zhou Chen to worry so much about her that he could not help but stand up and admit fault, only to be seized upon by Hong Bingyin and kicked into severe injury.

The endnote to the chapter: Thank you to Whoever for the recommendation vote at zero degrees below freezing. Thank you all for reading.