Lianshan Xin was not a bloodthirsty man; at his core, he was a pragmatist. Dai Yongzhen posed no threat to him, so he had harbored no real intent to kill him.
Yet at this moment, he felt Dai Yongzhen deserved to die.
His mindset was worthy of his suffering.
And his end should be worthy of his mindset.
"Since you don't wish to speak of corruption among the Demon Cult's upper ranks, let us speak of Blood Guanyin."
As Lianshan Xin spoke, his eyes remained fixed on Dai Yongzhen's face.
Hearing the words "Blood Guanyin," Dai Yongzhen—already mentally shattered—paled once more.
"You saw the Elder's portrait?! You deserve to die! How dare you desecrate the Elder's celestial countenance? If the Elder discovers this, she will gouge your eyes out!"
Lianshan Xin frowned.
A man of his years, still simping like this—how had he managed to survive this long?
Yet this time, Qi Wenbin cleared his throat softly and spoke up of his own accord: "Sir, this man cannot be left alive."
Du Jiu nodded in agreement. "Indeed. Blood Guanyin must never learn that we saw her portrait. That witch is far too murderous."
Lianshan Xin was somewhat surprised. "Is Blood Guanyin truly so arrogant? Is there no one who can put her in her place?"
"If she ran into any of the Nine Heavens' nine leaders, Blood Guanyin would naturally flee on sight," Du Jiu reminded him. "However, below the Dharma Idol realm, few can escape her hunt. That is why we cannot allow word of this to spread."
"Is she really that idle?" Lianshan Xin questioned. "Even if word got out, would she deliberately come after us just to kill us?"
"Likely not, but there is no reason to be marked by a female demon in the Dharma Idol realm. If we ever happen to cross paths with her in the future and she slaughters us on a whim, who would we turn to for justice?"
Qi Wenbin spoke pragmatically.
Lianshan Xin found it sensible as well.
"Confess everyone in your network, Master. Cooperate, and I promise you a dignified end."
Dai Yongzhen composed himself, his tone returning to mockery. "Do you take me for someone who clings to life and fears death?"
"Even if you aren't, you should think of Dai Yueying, shouldn't you?" Lianshan Xin murmured softly.
Yet it sounded like the whisper of a demon.
It made Dai Yongzhen's expression shift once more.
Lianshan Xin shook his head. "You have so many vulnerabilities to be exploited, yet you insisted on following the Demon Cult into business that could cost your head at any moment. Truly courting death—why bother?"
If one wished to rebel, at the very least one needed to be free of attachments.
Dai Yongzhen was weighed down by attachments on every side; by no standard did he seem like the type suited for rebellion.
"Dai Yueying was just accepted into Bailudong Academy, Master. Confess everyone in your network, and I promise you an accidental death, ensuring her admission to Bailudong Academy won't be compromised."
"Truly?"
Dai Yongzhen wavered slightly.
"You know my relationship with Yueying. We've always been close, and she even harbors certain feelings for me. I'm not a monster. As long as she has nothing to do with the Demon Cult, why would I make things difficult for her?"
"She has nothing to do with the Sacred Cult! She doesn't even know the Sacred Cult exists!"
Dai Yongzhen rushed to defend Dai Yueying.
Yet almost immediately, he remembered that the letter sent to him had explicitly mentioned the name "Dai Yueying."
His heart sank instantly.
Right then, Lianshan Xin posed the question: "Why would someone from the Demon Cult tell you to take good care of Dai Yueying?"
Dai Yongzhen quickly gathered his words. "In my youth, I fell in love with a steward's daughter and had Yueying. Later, my wife passed away unexpectedly, and I was assigned by the Sacred Cult to Jiangzhou. Though that steward disliked me and wasn't particularly fond of Yueying either, he would still write an occasional word of concern."
Perhaps realizing how full of holes this lie was, Dai Yongzhen could only pin his hopes on Lianshan Xin's conscience. "Little Xin, Yueying cares for you deeply. You wouldn't use her life to pave your way to promotion, would you? That is not how I taught you the teachings of the sages."
Lianshan Xin smiled. "Rest assured, Master. As long as you fulfill my request and confess everyone along Blood Guanyin's line, I naturally won't make things difficult for a frail woman like Yueying."
"I... I can confess, but I don't know much either."
"That doesn't matter. First write down what you know, and at the end, add one name."
"Whose name?"
"Jiang Haoran."
"Who?"
"Jiang Haoran."
Dai Yongzhen stared at Lianshan Xin in shock.
Du Jiu and Qi Wenbin's expressions changed as well.
The two exchanged a glance, and Qi Wenbin was the first to speak: "Sir, if I recall correctly, isn't Jiang Haoran the son of the Jiangzhou Prefect?"
"You recall correctly."
"Do you have a grudge against him?"
"None whatsoever."
"Then why are you..."
"Last year, Jiang Haoran galloped his horse down the main street and struck a seven-year-old boy, sending him flying. When the boy was brought to my family's clinic, he had only a single breath left. My father used every means at his disposal, yet could only prolong his life by three days. In the end, the family received fifty taels of silver in compensation. Our clinic used a great deal of precious medicinal ingredients, but in the end, we didn't receive a single copper of medical fees."
This was one of the reasons Lianshan Xin had solidified his resolve in martial arts and strived to climb higher.
If you didn't climb up, how could you withstand a petty whim from the high-and-mighty scions of privilege?
"In truth, such things are quite common. I doubt any of Great Yu's nineteen provinces are an exception. After the incident, the family gave up on pressing charges. Of course, it wouldn't have mattered even if they hadn't. The Prefect didn't particularly abuse his authority—at least he compensated them fifty taels of silver. I understand how many of these rules work. After all, one can hardly demand the Prefect's son pay with his life for the child of a commoner, can one?"
Lianshan Xin's voice was very calm. "It's just that I believe things shouldn't be like this, nor should Great Yu be like this. Relying on an incident of reckless riding injuring someone would certainly never bring down a prefect's son. Even taking the lawsuit all the way to Shenjing, right before the imperial throne, would be useless. But if the Prefect's son is colluding with the Demon Cult, everything changes."
Lianshan Xin looked at Dai Yongzhen and suddenly let out a soft laugh. "Master, 'wealth and status cannot corrupt, poverty and lowliness cannot divert, power and force cannot subdue'—that was what you taught me. 'A true man should stand upright between heaven and earth, master the civil and martial arts, offer his service to the imperial throne, and serve country and people with an unburdened conscience'—that was also what you taught me. Today, your student presents his graduation report to you. Are you satisfied?"
Dai Yongzhen stared blankly at Lianshan Xin, as if looking at an utter stranger.
After a moment, he dipped his brush in ink and wrote down five names.
The final name was none other than "Jiang Haoran."
After solemnly handing the list to Lianshan Xin, Dai Yongzhen said gravely, "Lianshan Xin, it has been an honor to have been your teacher. I underestimated you. So long as you preserve this unyielding integrity, when my Sacred Cult sets the world right in the future, there will certainly be a place for you."
Lianshan Xin couldn't be bothered to respond.
Taking the list and tucking it into his robe, he asked casually, "Is the Demon Cult Leader, Peacock Mingwang, male or female?"
"A man, of course. Why would you ask such a thing?" Dai Yongzhen asked, puzzled.
Lianshan Xin let out a silent sigh of relief.
He had been a bit too sensitive.
Surrounded by so many Demon Cult heretics, he had gotten a little rattled and started seeing shadows everywhere.
When he got back, he would be extra filial to his mother.
"Master, you may die now."
Chapter 31