"Taking you to Nine Heavens would leave you with very little dignity. Will you do it yourself, or should we?"
Lianshan Xin gave Dai Yongzhen the choice.
This was true mercy.
Dai Yongzhen understood, and a look of gratitude entered his eyes as he regarded Lianshan Xin.
Every member of the Demon Cult knew their struggle with the imperial court was one to the death.
Being allowed to choose his own way to die was already an act of extraordinary leniency.
"I'll do it myself. As for Yueying, I leave her in your care from now on."
Dai Yongzhen did not truly set his mind at ease regarding Dai Yueying, nor did he fully believe Lianshan Xin would look after her well.
Even so, Lianshan Xin's willingness to see justice done for that boy deepened Dai Yongzhen's trust by a few degrees.
If he could show such mercy toward a strange child, surely he would treat Dai Yueying—a classmate of several years with whom he had shared some tender affection—no worse.
Most importantly, he had no other choice.
Once their identity was exposed, ordinary Demon Cult disciples had only one end, unless they were Elder-level figures like Thousand Faces.
"Sir, we..."
Qi Wenbin tried to speak.
Du Jiu kicked his shin, then grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the room.
Lianshan Xin did not stop Du Jiu.
Internally, he mused once more that Qi Shiyun's judgment had indeed been correct—Du Jiu possessed far greater potential than Qi Wenbin.
Outside the door.
Qi Wenbin still voiced his grievance: "Little Jiu, why didn't you let me speak?"
Du Jiu led Qi Wenbin into the courtyard, waiting until he was sure nothing inside the room could be overheard before explaining, "What were you trying to warn him about?"
"That he can't go around making an enemy of the Prefect's son, of course!" Qi Wenbin said. "That's the Prefect's son!"
"Investigating the Jiangzhou Prefect is one of the reasons we came to Jiangzhou in the first place. How do you know moving against the Prefect wasn't Lord Heavenly Sword's intention?"
Qi Wenbin froze.
Du Jiu said in all seriousness, "Brother Qi, remember: Tanhua Qi assigned us to Young Master Xin. Do you understand what that means?"
"It means our future lives, deaths, glory, and shame will all depend on Young Master Xin," Qi Wenbin said.
Du Jiu added, "It also means Young Master Xin, like Tanhua Qi, has the talent for cultivating immortality. His future belongs at the same heights as Tanhua Qi's."
Qi Wenbin nodded quietly. "That's why I thought Young Master Xin is still young after all, and we should patch up any oversights. We can't let him do something that harms others without benefiting himself just because of youthful arrogance or excessive mercy."
"An iron law of Nine Heavens: when a mission comes down from above, execute it if you understand it, and execute it if you don't. Brother Qi, we don't need so many thoughts. Young Master Xin came from an ordinary background; he values his own prospects far more than we do. Besides, haven't you noticed?"
"Noticed what?"
"Young Master Xin is smarter than both of us."
Du Jiu remembered clearly how Lianshan Xin had handled the Qu household's assets yesterday, right down to his methods and choice of words.
Now today, had he suddenly turned into a youth of unyielding integrity who feared no power?
Dai Yongzhen had been brainwashed by the Demon Cult and grown muddled with age. He might believe it, but Du Jiu certainly did not.
Glancing at Qi Wenbin beside him, Du Jiu shook his head helplessly.
He felt no joy in outperforming Qi Wenbin.
They would both be serving under Young Master Xin from now on and, barring accidents, would partner together many times. He simply hoped his partner could be a little sharper. Qi Wenbin was not his rival; failing to achieve a breakthrough from his current realm swiftly would be his true trouble.
"Brother Qi, from now on, we must speak less, do more, and raise our strength as quickly as possible so we don't fall behind Young Master Xin's pace. You know how quickly Tanhua Qi rose back then. Who still remembers the two who were initially assigned to Tanhua Qi?"
Qi Wenbin's expression shifted slightly. "Little Jiu, you're right. We need to raise our strength quickly. If Young Master Xin possesses even half of Tanhua Qi's cultivation speed, we'll hardly keep up, and newcomers will replace us. Hm? Dai Yueying is back?"
"Subdue her."
Du Jiu made the decision in an instant.
Just then.
The front gate of the Dai household was knocked from the outside.
Du Jiu pulled it open from within.
Dai Yueying stepped past the threshold.
At the same moment, Lianshan Xin emerged from Dai Yongzhen's room.
Their gazes met.
Seeing Lianshan Xin, Dai Yueying was caught entirely off guard.
Seizing the opening, Qi Wenbin struck her acupoints in a flash.
Then he flung Dai Yueying straight into Lianshan Xin's arms.
"Sir, we leave your classmate to your discretion! Little Jiu and I will keep watch at the front gate!"
Qi Wenbin adapted with astonishing speed.
He was doing his utmost to demonstrate his loyalty and competence.
Holding the now-immobilized Dai Yueying with one arm, Lianshan Xin felt a spark of surprise.
Still, he granted Du Jiu and Qi Wenbin an approving look.
This saved him the trouble of explaining.
Then again, he had unconsciously let the sensibilities of his previous life influence him, which made him respectful of others by nature.
In truth, there had been no need to explain so much to Du Jiu and Qi Wenbin.
When in Rome, one had to do as the Romans did.
With that in mind, Lianshan Xin carried Dai Yueying back into the room.
The moment they entered, Dai Yueying saw Dai Yongzhen, who had already ceased breathing.
Her composure crumbled instantly.
"My father..."
"Dead."
Dai Yueying went blank. "W-Why?"
"Your father was a member of the Demon Cult. His identity was exposed; death was the only outcome."
"What? My father was in the Demon Cult? That's impossible!"
Just as Dai Yueying began to recover her senses, she went blank once more. "How could my father be in the Demon Cult?"
She had joined the Demon Cult herself, yet had never known of her father.
Naturally, Lianshan Xin did not know that Dai Yueying was in the cult as well.
That did not stop him from testing her: "It seems you never met Master Dai inside the Demon Cult?"
Dai Yueying nearly nodded on instinct, but being immobilized by the sealed acupoints saved her from giving herself away.
"Brother Xin, what are you talking about?"
Lianshan Xin narrowed his eyes.
A Qi Condensation realm cultivation was not enough for him to constantly monitor another person's blood and qi fluctuations the way Heavenly Sword could.
His innate ability had just activated moments ago and had not triggered again, seemingly still in its refractory period.
Yet here she was: seeing her own father dead—and in all likelihood forced to his death by Lianshan Xin—and she still called him "Brother Xin."
No matter how one looked at it, this defied explanation.
"Dai Yueying, when did you join the Demon Cult?"
"Brother Xin, what you're saying is getting stranger and stranger."
"It seems you aren't under Blood Guanyin's line. Are you under Thousand Faces?"
Lianshan Xin was somewhat surprised.
If that was the case, did Thousand Faces know Dai Yueying's true identity?
"Has anyone ever told you that you were born with an internal charm physique?" Lianshan Xin pressed.
Her acupoints were sealed, leaving her unable to move.
Yet at that moment, Lianshan Xin—ever observant and quick to draw his own conclusions—became ninety percent certain that Dai Yueying knew about her constitution.
Consequently, he was also ninety percent certain of her identity as a Demon Cult heretic.
Then, he drew in a sharp breath of sweet scent.
*Are there really this many Demon Cult heretics around me? Or has the entire city of Jiangzhou been thoroughly infiltrated?*
*It's probably the latter. I shouldn't think too highly of myself. The number of Demon Cult heretics around me surged only after I entered Bailudong Academy's circle; it has little to do with me personally.*
*Still, with so many heretics in Jiangzhou, could the Prefect really be in league with the Demon Cult?*
Lianshan Xin suddenly felt this suspicion could not be ruled out entirely.
His deliberate framing might well have turned him into a prophet.
Of course, that was a matter for later.
The urgent task was dealing with Dai Yueying.
Resting his right hand against her slender neck, Lianshan Xin asked in a gentle whisper, "Approaching me deliberately—was that a task assigned to you by the Demon Cult?"
"No... Brother Xin, it hurts. Be gentler."
Lianshan Xin did not ease his grip.
Smiling, he increased the force of his hand.
"I have already joined Nine Heavens. Killing a Demon Cult heretic or two doesn't even require reporting upward. Dai Yueying, do you think I dare kill you right here?"
As Lianshan Xin applied more pressure, Dai Yueying finally surrendered under the threat of death. "It was M-Master's arrangement... *Cough, cough, cough...*"
Lianshan Xin released his hand.
Dai Yueying burst into violent coughing at once.
"Who is your master?"
The gaze she directed at Lianshan Xin now carried seven parts fear, three parts hatred, and ninety parts deeply concealed, ambiguous desire.
"Thousand Faces."
Lianshan Xin's smile faded slightly.
It truly was Thousand Faces.
Dai Yueying's identity was growing increasingly troublesome.
"Brother Xin, could you... choke my neck again?"
Her words gave Lianshan Xin a sharp shock.
"Are you out of your mind?"
Dai Yueying flushed faintly. "I wasn't before, but just now... I suddenly felt I might be."
Lianshan Xin: "..."
Chapter 32