On the rear mountain behind the Pavilion of Pearls and Jewels stood Qingfeng Temple, a property belonging to Huo Xiu. Deeper within the hills lay a secluded pavilion he had built, where he would stay for a month or two each year.
The vast space beneath the building had been hollowed out from the mountain's belly. Inside lay the weapons and his share of the treasure inherited from the Golden Roc Dynasty; at the same time, this was also the headquarters of Qingyi Tower.
A few days earlier, he had sent an anonymous message to Dugu Yihe claiming that Yan Tieshan might be the master of Qingyi Tower and that the Pavilion of Pearls and Jewels was its headquarters. His aim had been to lure Dugu Yihe here and use Lu Xiaofeng's hand to eliminate the Emei sect leader.
No one could have ever guessed that the true First Qingyi Tower was right here on the mountain behind the Pavilion of Pearls and Jewels!
Just as he was secretly congratulating himself on his seamless plan, a knock suddenly sounded at the door.
Huo Xiu immediately went on high alert.
It wasn't Shangguan Feiyan; that woman never knocked when she entered. Could it be Yan Tieshan coming to see him?
He went downstairs and opened the door, only to find Qin Zheng standing on the threshold holding a magnifying glass. The eye behind the lens appeared magnified nearly twice its size—it turned out he had held the single-sided magnifying glass with the convex face pointing the wrong way.
Huo Xiu started in surprise, but then caught sight of Lu Xiaofeng and the others who had accompanied him. Frowning, he asked, "How did you all end up together?"
Lu Xiaofeng replied, "Boss Yan's home was burgled. We followed the trail of clues straight to this place."
"Your home was burgled? When did this happen?" Huo Xiu gasped in shock, staring at Yan Tieshan in disbelief.
With a grim face, Yan Tieshan said, "Ten days ago, every single bit of valuables in my home was stolen. Based on the clues we have, it's very likely the work of Qingyi Tower, the Embroidery Bandit, or Chu Liuxiang."
Huo Xiu's heart gave a violent jolt. The Embroidery Bandit was one thing, but how could even Chu Liuxiang be competing with him for Yan Tieshan's fortune?
Wait—if Yan Tieshan's treasure had been cleaned out, wouldn't his entire scheme fall to pieces?!
Seeing Huo Xiu's astounded reaction, the suspicions in Yan Tieshan and the others softened slightly. Only Qin Zheng remained deadpan, speaking up, "Mister Huo, I am Qin Zheng, newly appointed foremost divine constable of Six Doors. We followed the trail of this thief here. Would you allow us inside to continue our search?"
Huo Xiu's expression shifted several times before he said coldly, "With no evidence whatsoever, you want to search my home? I, Huo Xiu, may have modest martial arts, but I am still a man of status in the jianghu. If word of this got out, wouldn't I become the laughingstock of our peers?"
Qin Zheng said with righteous gravity, "We have no other choice if we wish to solve this case, so I hope Mister Huo can forgive us. If the investigation proves this has nothing to do with you, Lu Xiaofeng and Jin Jiuling will kowtow and apologize to your face. How does that sound?"
Huo Xiu was taken aback. Looking at the dumbfounded expressions on Lu Xiaofeng and Jin Jiuling, he gestured invitingly. "Since you have put it in such terms, please come in and search."
Lu Xiaofeng's eyes went wide. "..."
Wait, did I ever agree to this?!
Jin Jiuling gave Qin Zheng a dark, murderous glare, wishing he could run his sword straight through him. Unfortunately, a higher rank held crushing authority; facing an imperial secret agent directly answering to the Emperor, he could not openly embarrass him in front of so many people.
Seeing everyone file in to search the room, Huo Xiu sat down at the table with an untroubled conscience. Picking up the wine pot, he poured and drank by himself, completely unfazed that they might find anything incriminating.
After all, he truly hadn't committed this theft. Moreover, the hidden mechanisms in this pavilion were the masterwork of Zhu Ting, the realm's greatest craftsman. He refused to believe these people could uncover any secret passages.
While Huo Xiu sat leisurely waiting for the group to make fools of themselves, Qin Zheng had already stealthily planted the red handkerchiefs he carried. He suddenly yanked up the pillow and shouted, "The Embroidery Bandit's red handkerchief!"
Huo Xiu's hand trembled so violently that his cup tumbled straight to the floor. Springing to his feet, he looked toward Qin Zheng, only to see him lift the pillow and pull out an entire stack of red handkerchiefs embroidered with black peonies!
"That's not mine!"
"So you are the Embroidery Bandit! Hand over your life!"
Before Huo Xiu could defend himself, Jin Jiuling had already drawn his sword and lunged straight for Huo Xiu's throat.
As the true Embroidery Bandit, Jin Jiuling was inwardly panicking as well.
Now that the imperial court was investigating the Embroidery Bandit, he had to clear himself of suspicion as fast as possible. With a scapegoat practically delivered to his doorstep, he could not afford to let the chance slip away.
Regardless of whether Huo Xiu had stolen Yan Tieshan's property or not, today Huo Xiu was going to take the fall as the Embroidery Bandit!
Besides, Huo Xiu was known as the wealthiest man under heaven. If he killed Huo Xiu, he could swallow his fortune in the bargain. Killing two birds with one stone—wouldn't that be splendid!
The blade flashed like lightning, arriving before Huo Xiu in the blink of an eye, the stinging sword qi pricking his throat with sharp pain.
Seeing that Jin Jiuling was truly out for his life, Huo Xiu stopped concealing his martial arts. His seventy years of Tongzi Gong cultivation burst forth before everyone. Channeling pure yang palm power into his hand, he deflected the sword tip with a strike and joined battle with Jin Jiuling.
Jin Jiuling hailed from Shaolin and had studied martial arts from across the realm within Six Doors. He believed that among the top masters under heaven, only Ye Gucheng could contest him in a four-to-six split, while all other experts fell short of him.
Yet facing Huo Xiu today, he discovered the old man's martial arts were not in the least inferior to his own; Huo Xiu's vast, profound internal energy was actually a cut above his!
Fortunately, Jin Jiuling was well-versed in the realm's martial styles and could tell at a glance what move Huo Xiu would make next, allowing him to anticipate his enemy's attacks and temporarily suppress Huo Xiu.
Listening to the sounds of their clash, Hua Manlou was secretly astounded. "The martial arts of these two are formidable indeed! Lu Xiaofeng, you know Ximen Chuixue well. Do you think he would be a match for either of them?"
Lu Xiaofeng said gravely, "Jin Jiuling's martial arts are on par with Ximen Chuixue's. As for Huo Xiu... within fifty exchanges, Ximen Chuixue could suppress him, but past fifty, it's hard to say."
As he spoke, Lu Xiaofeng turned curious eyes toward Qin Zheng, who was standing aside cracking melon seeds and watching the show. "How do your martial arts compare to theirs?"
Qin Zheng spat out a melon seed shell. "Are you asking if I fight them one by one, or if all three come at me at once?"
Lu Xiaofeng rolled his eyes. "Forget it if you don't want to say."
Hua Manlou, however, looked thoughtful. Blessed with extraordinary hearing, he had detected that Qin Zheng's heartbeat hadn't fluctuated in the slightest when he spoke. Did that mean Qin Zheng truly had the capability to defeat the three of them joined together?
By now, Jin Jiuling and Huo Xiu had traded over thirty exchanges, battling their way from inside the house out into the open.
Noticing a slight easing in Jin Jiuling's onslaught, Huo Xiu pleaded his innocence, "I truly am not the Embroidery Bandit!"
Jin Jiuling snarled, "If you aren't the Embroidery Bandit, why did we uncover the signature mark he leaves at crime scenes right in your room? And why have you kept your masterful martial arts hidden? Go on, explain yourself!"
Hearing this, grief welled up in Huo Xiu's chest.
How on earth was he supposed to explain?
Making up an excuse on the spot certainly wouldn't work; Jin Jiuling and Lu Xiaofeng were hardly easy to fool. Was he supposed to tell the truth—that he hid his martial arts to keep a low profile and conceal that he was the master of Qingyi Tower?
And as for that stack of red handkerchiefs: he had stayed in this pavilion for the past ten-odd days. Who in the world possessed the skill to slip handkerchiefs in right under his nose without a sound? Even the Bandit Chief Chu Liuxiang in his prime could never have pulled that off!
Could it be that he really was the Embroidery Bandit, and had simply forgotten about it in his old age from amnesia?
Just what in the world was going on here?!
Chapter 66