At that moment, both Lianshan Xin and Qi Shiyun seemed to radiate the shining light of the righteous path.
Had any onlookers witnessed the scene, they surely would have been moved to tears by their righteous resolve to slay demons and defy tyrannical powers.
After all, even Lord Heavenly Sword had been targeted for assassination, yet Tanhua Qi and Young Master Xin remained steadfast. If this was not what it meant to be loyal ministers, what was?
"Let's go. Come with me to the Prefectural Estate."
Seeing how readily Lianshan Xin went along with the plan, Qi Shiyun nodded in satisfaction and prepared to leave with him.
"I need to head back to the student dormitory to grab a few things."
"Go and come right back."
"Understood."
Lianshan Xin hurried back to his room.
As the only student with direct admission to Bailudong Academy this term, Lianshan Xin enjoyed special treatment: a private room.
Those who had entered through the examinations shared rooms of at least two, and most were four to a room.
Upon returning, Lianshan Xin glanced at Tian Ji, whose earthshaking snores filled the room, and felt an urge to drag him back to have Lianshan Jingcheng examine him.
If his memory served him right, Tian Ji hadn't gone to sleep particularly late last night.
Lianshan Xin now harbored a suspicion that the reason Tian Ji had hit it off with him like an old friend was that Tian Ji needed him as an alibi.
For all he knew, Tian Ji might even be carrying injuries right now.
Yet the thought vanished as quickly as it had come, and Lianshan Xin decided against it.
It wasn't that he feared Lianshan Jingcheng couldn't see through Tian Ji's condition.
He feared that if his father truly did discover something, it would spell real trouble.
Illnesses detrimental to unity were best left undiagnosed.
Previously, Qi Shiyun had held nothing back in guiding him, and Zhang Aniu, as a senior, had treated him mostly with admiration, which had cast a bit of a rose-tinted glow over his view of Nine Heavens.
But the arrival of Tian Ji and Zhuo Biyu swiftly brought Lianshan Xin to alert:
The waters of Nine Heavens were definitely deeper than he had imagined!
And the internal competition within Nine Heavens, as it now appeared, far exceeded his expectations.
The nine lineages of Nine Heavens were inextricably intertwined. Between the young faction and the faction in power, between the ambitious climbers and the lay-flat slackers, relationships were tangled and complex. Newly inducted into Nine Heavens, he needed to observe carefully before finding his true footing.
Lianshan Xin cast another look at the soundly sleeping Tian Ji, then exited the room.
The entire process was dead silent.
Tian Ji noticed nothing, his thunderous snoring continuing uninterrupted, causing Lianshan Xin's gaze to turn deeper and more contemplative.
***
"I'll still fly you there."
Qi Shiyun grabbed Lianshan Xin by the collar, then parted her delicate lips: "Wind, rise."
To Lianshan Xin's shock, riding the surging gale, the wind swept them both straight into the azure clouds.
Qi Shiyun was immensely pleased by Lianshan Xin's stunned expression. "Once you reach the Grandmaster realm, you will comprehend similar minor divine abilities. For our Dragon Supporting lineage, entering the Grandmaster realm allows us to summon wind and rain to a certain extent, evoking the grandeur of immortal cultivators from a millennium ago. That is something ordinary martial artists cannot compare to."
Lianshan Xin looked forward to it immensely.
"By the way, there's something I need to tell you."
Qi Shiyun's black hair drifted in the wind, a few strands brushing across Lianshan Xin's face, tickling him inside and out.
Then he heard Qi Shiyun continue, "Before you, I cultivated ninety other individuals. That is due to the unique cultivation method of our lineage. Lianshan Xin, you are different from them."
Lianshan Xin blinked.
"They could be called prodigies, but you are my fellow Daoist. Between them and me, there were no secrets that could not be shared with the Crown Prince and His Majesty."
Lianshan Xin said solemnly, "This student understands and will not entertain improper thoughts."
Qi Shiyun glanced at him and nodded slightly. "The world is vast; keep your vision far-reaching. At your speed of cultivation, once matters in Jiangzhou conclude, you should roughly be able to reach Grandmaster. Those ninety people are no match for you. The ones you should measure yourself against are Tian Ji, Zhuo Biyu, and their peers. Do you understand?"
"Understood."
"You must also guard against pride and impetuousness. Although you broke through three realms in a single day, you progressed too slowly over your first eighteen years, so a gap still remains between you and the realm's pinnacle prodigies. The True Intent realm is merely the threshold of the Hidden Dragon Rankings. Once in the True Intent realm, cultivation speed slows down drastically. Wanting to break through three realms in one day again is pure fantasy, so be mentally prepared," Qi Shiyun advised.
She feared Lianshan Xin had grown accustomed to yesterday's rate of progress and would suffer psychological disappointment.
Lianshan Xin made a dark joke: "If this student successfully commits regicide, could I become a Great Grandmaster on the spot?"
Qi Shiyun nearly crashed midair.
Glaring fiercely at him, Qi Shiyun solemnly warned, "Jokes like that are not to be made lightly."
"This student spoke out of turn."
Lianshan Xin quickly apologized, then asked in a low voice, "What if I slay the Crown Prince?"
Qi Shiyun glared at him again.
Yet after a moment's hesitation, as if possessed by some strange impulse, Qi Shiyun actually opened her mouth: "Slaying the Crown Prince would at most help you become a Grandmaster. For a Great Grandmaster, it is nowhere near enough."
Lianshan Xin quietly noted this down.
Grandmaster worked too.
He wasn't that picky.
It was evident Qi Shiyun had seriously contemplated this possibility.
The only difference between her and Lianshan Xin was that Lianshan Xin was truly a man of action.
Qi Shiyun leaned more toward theory.
"You are no match for the Crown Prince. Stop daydreaming all day," Qi Shiyun cautioned again.
Lianshan Xin found it odd. "Isn't it said that the Crown Prince is frail of health?"
"Being frail means he must practice martial arts even harder, or he would die even faster. The Crown Prince carries the True Dragon bloodline after all, and his innate ability is no worse than yours. Furthermore, he has virtually limitless resources to burn through. Right now, he is already at the Grandmaster cultivation level, a half-step away from the Domain realm. Even for me, taking him down within fifty moves isn't guaranteed."
Lianshan Xin: "..."
As far as posturing went, she was still a step below Zhang Aniu.
If it were Aniu, it would probably be: *Even for me, leaving him an intact corpse within five moves isn't guaranteed.*
Speak of Aniu, and Aniu was at hand.
Qi Shiyun's flight speed was indeed swift, quickly bringing Lianshan Xin to the Prefectural Estate.
Qi Shiyun touched down directly in the estate's courtyard. The estate guards all possessed martial cultivation and had spotted Qi Shiyun long before; none dared obstruct them throughout.
Thus, Lianshan Xin immediately saw Heavenly Sword, his face dark and sallow, blood still seeping from his lower abdomen.
This shocked Lianshan Xin. "My Lord, you're injured?"
This didn't look like the work of the young masters.
If the young masters of Nine Heavens' various lineages could injure a lineage master, why would they still be mere young masters?
Upon seeing Lianshan Xin, Zhang Aniu's stern face softened slightly.
"It's nothing. A few petty scoundrels can't hurt me."
If blood weren't still seeping from Zhang Aniu's lower abdomen, Lianshan Xin might have actually bought his bravado.
"Shiyun tells me your martial intent is Insight?"
"It is."
"Very good. Then this seat's assassination attempt is yours to handle. Investigate it to the very bottom. No matter whose head it leads to, this seat will brook no leniency."
Feeling the Extinction Sword Intent radiating from Zhang Aniu, Lianshan Xin clearly sensed Heavenly Sword's fury.
Lianshan Xin responded with equal solemnity, "This subordinate accepts the order! I will spare no effort and never let these Demon Cult monsters in Jiangzhou off the hook. If they dare assassinate Your Lordship today, they will dare assassinate His Majesty tomorrow! It is simply outrageous—we must strike them with an iron fist!"
"It wasn't necessarily done by Demon Cult fiends."
Zhang Aniu remained clearheaded, not led astray by Lianshan Xin.
"Yesterday, the Prefect invited me to his residence for a conversation. Inside the Prefectural Estate, I was first poisoned, then ambushed. If this truly were the work of the Demon Cult, heh..."
Zhang Aniu sneered coldly.
Prefect Jiang, who had just hurried over and heard Zhang Aniu's words, subconsciously wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
"Prefect Jiang, what do you have to say?"
Zhang Aniu stared him down with a cold glare, offering Prefect Jiang no face whatsoever.
Yesterday, his demeanor hadn't been like this.
Yet now, Prefect Jiang completely understood.
He could only offer a bitter smile. "Lord Heavenly Sword, please see clearly: no matter how foolish this official may be, I would never plot against you inside my own residence. Were I truly to do such a thing, not even Her Ladyship Consort Shu could save me."
As one of the Four Consorts and the birth mother of the Second Prince, Consort Shu enjoyed immense imperial favor in the palace, and she happened to be Prefect Jiang's elder sister.
Prefect Jiang pointing this out caused Zhang Aniu to sneer, "Is Prefect Jiang threatening me with Consort Shu?"
"I would never dare! This official only wishes to prove to Lord Heavenly Sword that I genuinely lack both the audacity and the capability to show disrespect to you."
Under normal circumstances, a prefect had no need to be so servile toward Nine Heavens.
Yet with Zhang Aniu being the victim here, Prefect Jiang had no choice but to bow his head and plead for understanding.
"My Lord, I do not believe Prefect Jiang did this either," Lianshan Xin stepped forward and took the initiative to speak a fair word on Prefect Jiang's behalf.
This immediately caused Prefect Jiang to look at Lianshan Xin with eyes full of goodwill. "This young friend sees with utmost clarity."
Lianshan Xin also nodded amiably toward Prefect Jiang. "In my view, this matter was still carried out by Thousand Faces' subordinates. My Lord recently dealt Thousand Faces a heavy blow. An old fiend of decades standing, who spent decades carefully laying out his schemes only for My Lord to shatter his disguise, would naturally harbor resentment and seek vengeance."
Prefect Jiang nodded repeatedly. "Great minds think alike! This official shares the exact same view as young friend."
Lianshan Xin's tone grew increasingly genial: "However, there is one question I must ask Prefect Jiang to explain: how could Thousand Faces' people orchestrate such a massive undertaking right inside the Prefectural Estate without being detected?"
The goodwill in Prefect Jiang's eyes vanished in an instant, replaced at once by the predatory glare of a vulture: "What does young friend mean by this?"
Lianshan Xin patiently explained, "Lord Prefect, if you were the mastermind behind the assassination of Lord Heavenly Sword, then you are committing treason."
"This official would never do such a thing!"
"If it was Demon Cult fiends who attacked Lord Heavenly Sword, then that means right under Your Honor's nose, the Demon Cult has been spreading its branches and taking root."
Lianshan Xin laid his dagger bare: "Lord Prefect, are you committing treason, or are you colluding with the demons?"
A single thread had become an inescapable bind from both ends.
Having not spent his first year in officialdom, Prefect Jiang chose "or" when faced with this lethal multiple-choice question.
"It might not necessarily have been done by Demon Cult fiends either," Prefect Jiang said.
Lianshan Xin wore a smile. "Whoever it was, daring to assassinate Lord Heavenly Sword is a capital crime."
"Naturally, naturally." Prefect Jiang dared not challenge that in the slightest.
"Lord Heavenly Sword was, after all, ambushed inside the Prefectural Estate. I intend to summon all estate personnel for questioning. Lord Prefect has no objection, I presume?" Lianshan Xin asked.
The Prefect hesitated slightly.
Right at that moment, a blatantly arrogant and unruly voice rang out: "Of course there is an objection! Who do you think you are? What makes you worthy of investigating such a major case?"
Lianshan Xin looked over.
Unsurprisingly, he saw the Prefect's son, Jiang Haoran, accompanied by a constable. Lianshan Xin recognized him—it was Iron Hand, hailed as Jiangzhou's greatest constable. His entire skill resided in his hands, and having cracked several major cases in Jiangzhou, his reputation preceded him.
Lianshan Xin's gaze lingered on Iron Hand for only a second, focusing mostly on observing Jiang Haoran.
To tell the truth, part of Lianshan Xin's burning desire to advance also stemmed from him.
Last year, when Jiang Haoran galloped his horse down the main street and sent a seven-year-old boy flying, the child had ultimately been rushed to Huichun Hall. Unfortunately, Lianshan Jingcheng was unable to save him, yet Jiang Haoran paid no price whatsoever.
A prefect's son acting a bit willful was considered completely normal.
As for whether it brought total ruin upon an ordinary family—who cared?
Lianshan Xin had often wondered: what if he had been that seven-year-old boy struck dead?
The answer seemed glaringly obvious.
And so Lianshan Xin had told himself that he must strive to hold his own destiny in his hands.
"Father. Lord Heavenly Sword."
Jiang Haoran cast a contemptuous glance at Lianshan Xin before bowing respectfully to Prefect Jiang and Zhang Aniu.
He practiced judging people by their status with utter clarity.
"This is Iron Hand, the greatest constable of Jiangzhou City. He solved the Plum Blossom Bandit Case, the Flower-Plucking Thief Case, and the Mortuary Ghost Vengeance Case. Lord Heavenly Sword, Lianshan Xin is an inexperienced novice incapable of shouldering such grave responsibility. I recommend Iron Hand to take charge of this case; he will surely give you a satisfactory answer."
Jiang Haoran's reasoning sounded well-grounded, yet Zhang Aniu gave no comment either way, merely looking toward Lianshan Xin.
Lianshan Xin's brow furrowed slightly. "Young Master Jiang actually knows of me?"
That shouldn't be.
The day before yesterday, when he went to Bailudong Academy to meet Heavenly Sword, he had indeed crossed paths with Jiang Haoran, but Jiang Haoran was speaking with Kong Ningyuan at the time and paid him no attention at all.
Yet now Jiang Haoran had called out his name without hesitation.
Why?
Jiang Haoran looked at Lianshan Xin as if looking at a dead man. "Miss Zeng sent word asking me to look into you. Lianshan Xin, to dare lust after even Miss Zeng—you truly possess celestial audacity."
The information he disclosed surprised even Zhang Aniu.
Did people from the Heaven's Chosen lineage love cuckolding the imperial family that much?
Qi Shiyun went after the Crown Princess.
Lianshan Xin went after the Second Prince's intimate confidante.
It truly was passed down through the bloodline!
Not a single thought spared for their nine familial relations.
Jiang Haoran added as much: "A petty man drunk on sudden success, forgetting himself completely. Lianshan Xin, do not forget your humble origins, and do not forget that your parents both reside in Jiangzhou."
Lianshan Xin's eyes instantly turned freezing cold.
*Smack!*
A slap whipped out across Jiang Haoran's face.
It sent one of Jiang Haoran's teeth flying right out of his mouth.
"You dare—"
*Smack!*
Lianshan Xin struck him with another vicious backhand.
Having slapped him flat onto the ground, Lianshan Xin pinned him firmly beneath his foot.
Then he looked at Prefect Jiang, his tone chillingly cold: "Prefect Jiang, do you intend to target the family of a Nine Heavens member?"
Prefect Jiang shuddered. "This official harbors no such intention! It is entirely my unworthy son's ignorance; I have failed in raising him!"
The last faction that tried to target the families of Nine Heavens members was the previous Demon Cult, and Nine Heavens had uprooted them entirely.
Even killing Heavenly Sword carried less severe consequences than laying a finger on Heavenly Sword's wife.
Prefect Jiang understood the gravity of the situation.
"Since Lord Prefect has failed to discipline his son, I shall discipline him on your behalf. Lord Prefect should have no objection, correct?"
Before Prefect Jiang could answer, Lianshan Xin drove his right foot down with tremendous force.
Young Master Jiang's agonizing shriek echoed across the entire Prefectural Estate.
But that was not the most horrifying part.
The most horrifying part was that Young Master Jiang soon fell silent.
His neck was crooked at an unnatural angle.
With that single stomp, Lianshan Xin had delivered a fatal blow.
When a person is killed, they die.
"Lianshan Xin, you dared kill my son?!"
"You scoundrel, daring to commit murder in broad daylight!"
Iron Hand was thoroughly shocked. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine Lianshan Xin would dare blatantly slaughter the Prefect's son right before everyone's eyes, catching him completely off guard.
Having failed to rescue him in time, Iron Hand now lashed out in fury, hoping only that the Lord Prefect might overlook his earlier dereliction.
*Boom!*
Qi Shiyun met his strike head-on with a palm of her own. Iron Hand was blown backward through the air, and Qi Shiyun stepped in front of Lianshan Xin to shield him.
By this time, however, every guard in the Prefectural Estate had drawn their blades, preparing for battle.
Grief and rage over losing his son consumed Prefect Jiang, leaving him with only the barest shred of sanity: "Heavenly Sword! If you do not give me an explanation, this wretch will die beneath ten thousand arrows today!"
Before Zhang Aniu could speak, Lianshan Xin cut in: "Why trouble Lord Heavenly Sword to give you an explanation? I will give you one myself."
Lianshan Xin bent down and peeled away Jiang Haoran's human-skin mask, revealing an unfamiliar face beneath.
"Prefect Jiang, look closely. Is this Young Master Jiang?"
Prefect Jiang's expression froze in shock.
Lianshan Xin then glanced at Iron Hand and let out a scoff. "Jiangzhou's greatest constable? Heh."
Iron Hand's face flushed crimson, yet he had no words to rebut.
He had failed to detect the slightest trace of disguise on this fake Jiang Haoran.
"Prefect Jiang, do I possess the qualifications to lead the investigation into this case now?" Lianshan Xin asked proudly.
Prefect Jiang could not refute him. "Young friend's observation is indeed meticulous to the subtlest detail. Even I failed to realize Haoran was an imposter."
"Thousand Faces, Myriad Forms—this is precisely what makes Thousand Faces so terrifying," Lianshan Xin stated solemnly. "My Lord, Lord Prefect, the evidence is indisputable: this matter is indeed tied to Thousand Faces. Were it not for my unique gift, he truly would have succeeded in driving a wedge between the Prefectural Estate and Nine Heavens."
Both Prefect Jiang and Zhang Aniu shuddered inwardly.
Prefect Jiang nodded repeatedly. "Young friend speaks the absolute truth. Thousand Faces sought to sow discord among us from within!"
"Fortunately, my Insight martial intent happens to be Thousand Faces' natural nemesis. Entrusting this matter to me, both Your Excellencies can rest easy."
Today, the title of Jiangzhou's greatest constable had officially changed hands.
Chapter 70