"Senior Brother, I don't acknowledge that Dharma name... I am Laughing Maitreya. The previous Big-Bellied Lord was a Shaolin renegade, the reckless brute Mang Jingang, who once served as a kitchen ascetic monk at our temple. Later, during one of his rampages of evil, he ran into me, and I slaughtered him. Afterward, I unexpectedly found the mask of the Big-Bellied Lord on his body, so I went back to discuss it with you... The Twelve Yuan Chen commit every manner of atrocity and will surely become a terrible plague upon the martial world in the future.
"That kitchen monk had learned the martial arts of our Shaolin, which made it all too convenient for us to assume his identity and infiltrate the Twelve Yuan Chen.
"Over these past few years, I tracked down many clues regarding the Twelve Yuan Chen, preparing to seize an opportunity to eradicate them in one fell swoop. Alas, Dragon Head's identity has always been kept under absolute secrecy, and I was never able to get anywhere near him.
"When the Twelve Yuan Chen set out to assault Four Seas Hall this time, I had already prepared myself for exposure. Only four of the Yuan Chen were assigned to take action openly—namely me, that old golden rooster, that silly bull, and that great tiger. And they've all been rounded up in one scoop. Originally, that old hound, the Sun-Chasing Lord, was supposed to come with us as well, but that venomous snake, the Mist-Riding Lord, seemed to have vanished. With no one to do his part, Dragon Head handed the job to the hound.
"Yet none of us knew what each other's missions were!"
"In other words, at least one—perhaps even several—of the Yuan Chen are still lurking among us?" Qian Chen stroked the ribs of the Heavenly Net Umbrella and gave a faint smile. "Then what are we waiting for?"
"We have to take those heads back, after all!" Qian Chen muttered softly.
"Brother Qian, what did you say?" Kang Qiandeng hurried over, eyes full of eager admiration.
Qian Chen only felt a wave of discomfort. *In truth, I'm only fourteen... or maybe fifteen! I'm still just a kid. You're a 'young' swordsman in your twenties or thirties—what are you calling me Brother for?*
The group returned to Five Lakes Hall. By this time, Qian Chen's standing was entirely transformed. As the fourth great grandmaster among the righteous champions to have displayed his cultivation, his merit was illustrious and his strength staggering. His status was already equal to figures like Hong Sihai and Chan Master Kongming.
The crowd had repelled the Twelve Yuan Chen's initial assault, obliterating four of their number—Tiger, Ox, Rooster, and Boar. It was already a resounding victory.
Yet, upon returning to Five Lakes Hall, the first order of business remained settling internal affairs.
The four great grandmasters, including Qian Chen, stood before the corpse of Liang Dou. Not far away lay the mutilated heads of the Straight-Talking Brothers. Every one of the righteous heroes wore a grim, solemn expression.
Four corpses were laid out in the center of Five Lakes Hall. Nearby, the heads of the Ghost-Devouring Lord and the Gladiatorial God-Lord were set as sacrificial offerings before their spirits. The Big-Bellied Lord had already pulled the Dawn-Crowing Lord out of his cloth bag and was applying brutal methods to torture him for clues regarding the other Yuan Chen.
The Dawn-Crowing Lord gritted his teeth and endured, glaring with a somber sneer at Laughing Maitreya before suddenly bursting into loud laughter.
"Big Belly, it's not like you don't know that we God-Lords keep our identities secret even from one another! If you want clues about the true identities of the other God-Lords, go find Dragon Head!"
"We will find Dragon Head, and we will thoroughly destroy your Twelve Yuan Chen!" Hong Sihai stared directly into the Dawn-Crowing Lord's eyes. "What I want to know is... how exactly did my sworn brother die?"
The Dawn-Crowing Lord laughed uproariously. "Why don't you ask Big Belly? He was the one who captured Bi Tongtian alongside me and handed him over to that pervert Gladiator! He suffered every conceivable agony! Haha... haha..." The Dawn-Crowing Lord laughed until he was out of breath. Overwhelmed with fury, Hong Sihai seized him by the shoulder, crushing the bone to powder with his bare hand.
Tears and snot streamed down the Dawn-Crowing Lord's face from the agony, yet he still laughed wildly.
Divine Monk Kongming hurriedly stepped forward to stop Hong Sihai, saying, "Alliance Leader, this old monk stakes his life as a guarantee that although Kongxu infiltrated the Yuan Chen, he would never commit such deeds. Moreover, this man has set his mind, and his resolve is unyielding; torturing him will yield nothing."
"Indeed, Alliance Leader... you mustn't ruin your own spotless reputation for the sake of this beast!" the crowd urged in succession.
Someone else chimed in, "This man's mouth is as stubborn as a dead duck. Let's execute him to consecrate our banner! It will serve as an offering to console the spirits of those who died in this battle!"
Yet Qian Chen spoke up: "Since he is unwilling to confess clues about the other Yuan Chen, we might as well screen through the clues we already have. The person who murdered Hero Liang Dou is bound to be a traitor in our midst—one of the Twelve Yuan Chen hiding their identity. When Hero Liang Dou met his end, we had already calculated the possibilities. Only three individuals possessed the strength to launch a surprise attack and slay Hero Liang, while lacking an alibi.
"Du Zihuai, the Azure Blood and Loyal Heart Sword; Chief Escort Zhao Cheng of the Changfeng Escort Agency; and Old Li Qianqiu... At that time, the Straight-Talking Brothers and the Elder of Eight Cripples had not yet returned. Now, the Straight-Talking Brothers have tragically perished, leaving only the Elder of Eight Cripples... Thus, there are four suspects in total."
Daoist Wanshi furrowed his brows and said, "Though Eight Cripples has a poor temperament, he and the Straight-Talking Brothers encountered Dragon Head. There is no way he could have launched a sneak attack to kill Hero Liang. His suspicion ought to be cleared as well!"
Qian Chen shook his head. "We can discuss that matter in a moment.
"Earlier, we deduced that the murderer must possess a divine weapon capable of piercing gang qi. A divine weapon capable of leaving a wound like Hero Liang's and piercing protective gang qi... could there really be that many of them?"
At this moment, everyone turned their gazes toward Old Li Qianqiu. Li Qianqiu remained silent, offering no defense for himself.
Someone among the heroes had already lost his temper, letting out a furious roar and lunging forward with raised fists to strike... The onlookers hurriedly held him back. Chan Master Kongming and Hong Sihai flanked Li Qianqiu on his left and right, penning him between them. Yet Li Qianqiu merely smiled bitterly.
Qian Chen continued, "Hold your hands. I never said Senior Hero Li was the killer."
The crowd looked back in astonishment, their eyes seemingly asking, *Then was everything you just said utter rubbish?*
Qian Chen explained on his own, "Consider this: if Senior Hero Li were the culprit, it is common knowledge that his Spring and Autumn Brush can pierce gang qi. Could Hero Liang himself have been ignorant of that? Hero Liang undoubtedly knew the weakness of his own gang qi; how could he have felt safe letting Senior Hero Li stand behind him? Was Hero Liang truly that reckless a man?
"Therefore, Senior Hero Li is actually the least suspicious. The true culprit certainly concealed the property of his divine weapon."
Only then did the crowd breathe a sigh of relief. An acquaintance scolded Li Qianqiu with mild irritation, "Hero Li, why didn't you explain yourself earlier and save us from misunderstanding you...?"
Li Qianqiu hesitated for a long while. In the end, Qian Chen offered the explanation: "The reason Senior Hero Li offered no explanation is that it was difficult to explain. He likely noticed a trace left behind by the murderer... but felt it awkward to speak of."
The crowd turned their gazes back to Li Qianqiu, only to see him look at Qian Chen with complete conviction. "Master Qian truly has eyes sharp as a torch. Indeed, everyone knows that my ancestral divine weapon is a judge's brush, and my family's martial arts are brush techniques. Yet my lifelong passion happened to be spear techniques. Thus, after becoming a Grandmaster, I incorporated spear techniques into my brush forms.
"Earlier, when I examined the wound on Hero Liang's body, I faintly sensed something... That person used spear techniques! One can alter the shape of a wound inflicted by a weapon, but the habits a martial artist develops through wielding their weapon are etched into the very marrow of their bones. They cannot be erased."
"A short weapon, yet wielded with spear techniques!" Chan Master Kongming nodded. "If Senior Hero Li had voiced this discovery, the very first person under suspicion would have been himself. Moreover, with his martial arts surpassing the others, mounting a sneak attack against Hero Liang would not have been difficult for him."
By now, everyone understood.
Among the remaining suspects besides Li Qianqiu, between Du Zihuai, the Azure Blood and Loyal Heart Sword, and Zhao Cheng, the chief escort of Changfeng Escort Agency, one could tell at a glance which one practiced the spear.
Zhao Cheng spoke coldly, "This is all nothing more than your one-sided claim..."
"Verifying whether it is a one-sided claim is exceedingly simple," Qian Chen said in an undertone. "Hero Zhao merely needs to produce his divine weapon, the Fading Sun Spear, and let us test whether it possesses the power to pierce gang qi!"
With a lifeless, deadened tone, Zhao Cheng said, "Even if I hid the ability of my divine weapon, that proves nothing. Plenty of people would do the same. Walking the jianghu, who is truly worthy of absolute trust?"
"Indeed!" Qian Chen sighed. "Walking the jianghu, who is truly worthy of absolute trust? Therefore, whether you admit it or not is of no consequence. What matters is whether everyone trusts you!"
A ring of empty space had already opened around Zhao Cheng. The four great grandmaster experts—the old monk Kongming, Hong Sihai, Daoist Wanshi, and Qian Chen—stood at the four cardinal directions, front and back, left and right, trapping him dead in the center.
Zhao Cheng let out a cold sneer and gripped the shaft of his divine weapon, the Fading Sun Spear...
Qian Chen tilted his head back and sighed. *Why must there always be people who refuse to give up until they are staring into the grave?*
If the man had known this day would come, he should have executed his deed a bit more cleanly! If he had even a tenth of Qian Chen's own caution, would it have ever come to this? Qian Chen suddenly felt a pang of nostalgia for Huang Yuhan. Had that man still been alive, he certainly would have spotted the flaws in this scheme as well. Then Qian Chen wouldn't have had to put on this impressive performance all by himself, without even a single person chiming in to sing his praises.
Though the Twelve Yuan Chen frequently committed major atrocities, their usual method of operation was to slaughter every witness until not even chickens and dogs were left, and then torch all the evidence to ashes...
Their counter-investigation skills, in the end, were simply too lacking!
Chapter 25