The Ice-Cold Beauty Senior Sister Keeps Falling for Her Own Theories - Chapter 34

A faint smile flickered at the corner of Gongsun Muhan’s lips before vanishing like a wisp of smoke.

Outside the window, the breeze rustled through the bamboo grove, the leaves whispering secrets as they brushed against one another.

“Are you still unwilling to speak?”

Tang Xianyu’s voice broke the silence abruptly. Though she didn’t specify whom she was addressing, Gongsun Muhan could tell from her gaze that the question was directed at her.

Tang Xianyu’s eyes were fixed precisely on Feng Jie, or more accurately, on the simple jade hairpin nestled in Feng Jie’s hair.

Gongsun Muhan’s heart stirred slightly. Tang Xianyu had seen through her intentions.

Not only that, but Tang Xianyu was also forcing her to speak, indirectly compelling her to abandon her plan to feign death to escape punishment.

If she did not comply with Tang Xianyu’s unspoken demand and voluntarily recount her experience, that is, provide the so-called testimony and evidence to prove her innocence, the focus of the entire matter would likely shift to Feng Jie in the next moment.

Was this the twisted amusement of those in power?

Gongsun Muhan met Tang Xianyu’s faintly amused gaze with an expression of calm indifference. When she spoke, she did so without much deliberation, for she had no intention of dragging her junior sister into this.

“Elder Tan Feng was not wrong in his earlier statement. It is indeed unlikely that he coveted the Bixin Sword for his own cultivation progress. It’s easy to be misled into thinking he had no motive to secretly hoard the Bixin Sword. But what if he concealed it for someone else? Must the motive for coveting the Bixin Sword always be rooted in selfish desires for one’s own cultivation?”

Gongsun Muhan let out a cold laugh and continued, “Of course, I can understand why all of you would think that way, after all, it’s only natural to project your own intentions onto others.”

Because all of you desire the benefits of the Bixin Sword, you instinctively assume that anyone who hoards it must also be driven by their own greed for its power.

How laughable…

Tang Xianyu swept a glance over the assembled elders. Some had already realized they were being mocked by a junior like Gongsun Muhan, their faces alternating between shades of green and black, clearly suppressing their anger.

Others, whose minds had grown sluggish from years of secluded cultivation, were still frowning deeply, pondering whether Gongsun Muhan had presented some new evidence…

Tang Xianyu’s brows furrowed slightly in resignation. Sooner or later, she would have to reform this Immortal Alliance. As it stood, it was filled with either hotheads or fools.

She withdrew her gaze and said to Gongsun Muhan, “Continue.”

Gongsun Muhan refrained from further insinuations and proceeded to lay out the entire truth.

“In the Discipline Hall’s confinement chamber, I was about to sever the divine contract when Elder Tan stopped me. He instructed me to voluntarily break the contract using a specific method. Afterward, I entered a complex formation, sustained by top-grade spirit stones, with a piece of ten-thousand-year mystic iron at its center. Once I successfully severed the contract at the formation’s core and opened my eyes, I saw two identical Bixin Swords.”

“I watched as Elder Tan placed the two swords into separate containers, one in a plain wooden box and the other in an exquisite cold jade box. During our journey here, Elder Tan briefly left at one point. When he returned, he carried only the cold jade box.”

“If any of you doubt my words, you may bring limewater to test it. The wooden box was made of damp paulownia wood. Anyone who came into contact with it would leave black marks when exposed to limewater.”

Dao Xuanzi couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise, “Two boxes? Damp paulownia wood?”

Gongsun Muhan replied calmly, “That’s correct.”

At that moment, Tang Xianyu cast a casual glance at the somewhat flustered Dao Xuanzi and asked, “Do you have something to add?”

Dao Xuanzi hastily waved his hand. “No, no.”

But the moment he turned away, his expression darkened instantly, and his gaze toward Tan Feng grew increasingly sinister.

He actually remembered the damp phoenix treewood box and the ten-thousand-year-old black iron, both were items Tan Feng had requested from him. It seemed Gongshu Muhan’s words were not false.

If Gongshu Muhan had spoken the truth, then Tan Feng had been scheming against him from the very beginning.

Tan Feng had first stirred his greed for the Bixin Sword, then used his authority to openly seize the sword, only to hand him a counterfeit in the end… Clearly, he had exploited his position as the sect leader, whom he had addressed as “Senior Brother” for a century, to satisfy his own selfish desires for the Bixin Sword.

How despicable!

Feeling the murderous intent in Dao Xuanzi’s gaze, Tan Feng couldn’t help but shudder. On the surface, his senior brother appeared to be an ascetic cultivator free from worldly desires, but Tan Feng was well aware of the ruthless methods he employed behind the scenes.

Once a crack appeared in Dao Xuanzi’s trust, no matter how small, even the slightest hint of suspicion, he would never grant that person a chance to live. Tan Feng had witnessed Dao Xuanzi torturing such individuals time and again, employing every cruel method from flaying to bone-crushing.

Now that his senior brother no longer trusted him, it was futile to continue shifting suspicion onto Gongshu Muhan. Even if he managed to survive by some miracle, he would inevitably end up as a pool of blood in Dao Xuanzi’s torture chamber.

Since that was the case, he might as well take a gamble. If he could frame Dao Xuanzi for secretly hoarding the Bixin Sword, he might achieve two things: first, he could potentially conceal the sword’s true whereabouts, as the cultivation world would direct their accusations solely at Dao Xuanzi, relentlessly demanding he produce the sword; second, with Dao Xuanzi burdened by the charge of coveting and hiding the Bixin Sword, perhaps the Immortal Alliance would intervene and eliminate him.

After all, the Immortal Alliance had regulations in place to protect the basic rights and dignity of cultivators. To minimize deaths or cases of insanity caused by soul extraction, the practice was strictly prohibited in the cultivation world. As a sect leader and a Violet-tier cultivator, he reasoned that they would not resort to such unjust means as forced soul extraction, to avoid wrongful convictions.

With this in mind, Tan Feng grew more resolute in his decision.

The onlookers watched as, after hearing Gongshu Muhan’s defense, he suddenly glanced repeatedly at Dao Xuanzi, the sect leader of Bixia Sect, and stammered:

“I, I was only, only following orders.”

After speaking, he hunched his shoulders, quickly lowered his head, and dared not look in Dao Xuanzi’s direction again.

The cultivators present understood the situation all too well. It was blatantly obvious that Dao Xuanzi had ordered Tan Feng to steal the Bixin Sword for him! As a sect elder of considerable status, who else could Tan Feng be taking orders from if not the sect leader above him?

Unable to contain their anger, several elders shot furious glances at Dao Xuanzi. Li Dakui, the sect leader of Qisheng Sect, who had always held a grudge against him, stepped forward without hesitation and pointed directly at Dao Xuanzi’s face, exclaiming:

“You cunning old fox, with your deep schemes! Hand over the Bixin Sword at once!”

Dao Xuanzi pointed back just as aggressively, but when he saw the accusatory stares from all the sects, his teeth chattered with rage, and he tasted blood in his mouth. “You, !”

“You, !”

After stammering for a long while, Dao Xuanzi realized he was now like a dumb person tasting bitter herbs, unable to voice his suffering. No matter what he said, it would be seen by the various immortal sects as pointless excuses.

Too furious to contain himself, he glared at the culprit. Tan Feng still hung his head low, clearly too ashamed to face him!

“Swish, ”

With a wave of his hand, he unleashed a surge of spiritual energy toward Tan Feng. Having lost his composure, he struck with lethal intent.

Seeing this, Gongsun Muhan, as if anticipating it, kicked Tan Feng aside. At the same time, Tang Xianyu stepped in to block Dao Xuanzi’s attack.

Tang Xianyu looked at the agitated Dao Xuanzi and said sternly, “This was originally just one side of the story. As a sect leader, how could you lose your decorum so openly before our fellow immortal sects? Acting in such a fit of shame and anger, are you trying to make everyone believe you stole the Bixin Sword?”

Faced with the alliance leader’s questioning, Dao Xuanzi broke into a cold sweat. He had indeed acted rashly just now, but what did the alliance leader mean by that? Was she suspecting him too?

This couldn’t be allowed!

If things continued this way, and he still refused to hand over the Bixin Sword, given its precedent of freely choosing its master, even if he managed to evade punishment, the entire cultivation world would have its eyes fixed on him. How could he ever find peace or continue his research on spiritual bodies…?

He absolutely could not allow that!

Just as he was racking his brains for a way to prove his innocence, Gongsun Muhan suddenly spoke.

“Sect Leader, acting so hastily and with lethal intent, could it be that you’re trying to silence him beforehand? After all, if we extract his soul, we could clearly uncover Elder Tan’s actions and who he serves.”

Hearing this, everyone frowned and glanced at Gongsun Muhan. The method was feasible, but under normal circumstances, it wouldn’t be used. How was soul extraction any different from torture? The means were ultimately unjust… Gongsun Muhan appeared young, but her heart was truly ruthless.

Dao Xuanzi, however, gave Gongsun Muhan a deep look. Her words had reminded him, if he could have Tan Feng’s soul extracted, he would surely be able to clear himself of these false accusations.

After all, Tan Feng had never been involved in matters of the spiritual body. If he had, this path would be cut off, but now, heaven was helping him! He could confidently allow Tan Feng’s soul to be extracted!

Upon hearing Gongsun Muhan’s words, Tan Feng felt a sudden panic and regretted deeply. Why hadn’t he ended Gongsun Muhan’s life earlier? Now she was causing him so much trouble…

However, the Immortal Alliance had rules against the abuse of soul extraction. With the alliance leader present, they surely wouldn’t use it… They wouldn’t…

Tan Feng silently comforted himself.

But as often happens, what you fear most is exactly what comes to pass.

Sure enough, Dao Xuanzi immediately rose from his seat, approached Tan Feng, and maintained a deep bow as he pleaded loudly to Tang Xianyu on the main seat.

“I beg the Alliance Leader to see the truth! You must extract this villain’s soul to prove this old man’s innocence!”

“I treated him well, supported and promoted him all along, gave him the position of elder, and entrusted him with the Discipline Hall. Who would have thought this scoundrel would be so ungrateful, falsely accusing his own benefactor? He must be vicious at heart…”

“Dao Xuanzi implores the Alliance Leader to grant permission for soul extraction!”

“I beg the Alliance Leader for mercy!”

…

After Dao Xuanzi’s bout of wailing, the cultivators of the immortal sect could hardly bear to watch. Dao Xuanzi had never been so frivolous and agitated before… Was he truly betrayed by his trusted elder, or was this exaggerated performance deliberately staged?

Questions still lingered in everyone’s minds, and suspicions toward him only grew stronger. This was hardly the conduct expected of a sect leader!

Beside him, Feng Jie watched the scene calmly, completely unaware that the mastermind behind the drama was right by her side.

A sly smile flickered at the corner of Gongsun Muhan’s lips. It seemed her carefully arranged play was progressing well and would soon reach its conclusion.

Just then, Tan Feng spoke up. He had never expected that his senior sect brother would abandon him so easily, with such a clear intent to seal his fate. After all, he had deliberately left room earlier, never explicitly stating that he had acted under Dao Xuanzi’s orders…

“Sect Leader, though we stand as strangers today, I still hold our past camaraderie close to my heart.”

His words were filled with deep emotion, but Dao Xuanzi’s eyes glared at him as if wishing to flay him alive.

To speak of loyalty now was nothing but an attempt to drag him down! How infuriating!

“But why must you, ”

Suddenly, Tang Xianyu cut Tan Feng off.

Tan Feng had never imagined that, in the end, he would be trapped by his own schemes, for what Tang Xianyu said was…