Chapter 8 Wait until I gather my strength, then I'll spit in your face...

The four decided to set off immediately.

Wu Chen and his two companions were fine; they always traveled light and were almost always empty-handed, moving about with ease. Jin Hua, on the other hand, didn't bother with the pretentious airs of having beautiful maids clearing the way for him, and hurriedly headed towards Tan Family Village with his guards.

Lu Qing followed behind Wu Chen, glancing back at the pretty maids who had stayed behind. She really wanted to say to Jin Hua: Young Master Jin, one must have principles!

They weren't the only ones who arrived after hearing the news; many independent cultivators had already gotten there first.

Lu Qing stood under the gatehouse she had visited the previous night and looked inside.

Tanjiazhuang is built on a hilly terrain. From here, you can see the layers of rooftops and upturned eaves in the distance. It must have been a bustling and grand place in the past.

But today, dark bloodstains are visible everywhere on those green tiles and white walls. Many people are scurrying around in groups of three or five, like rats, probably trying to find clues about the Fruit of Spiritual Communication, or perhaps taking advantage of the situation by stealing something.

Jin Hua was the most anxious of the four. Seeing the chaotic scene, his face immediately darkened. If someone had indeed stolen the Spirit Fruit, where would he find it?

"Men, surround the entire Tan Family Village! How can we turn a blind eye to such a heinous atrocity?" Jin Hua said, his face filled with righteous indignation.

"That's what I think too!" someone came up from behind.

As soon as Wu Chen and the others turned around, they saw a burly man with a red face, dressed in a brocade robe, striding aggressively towards them. Behind him were at least a hundred men, openly armed and blatantly displaying their intention to rob and plunder.

Yu Jitang shifted his feet and stood side by side with Wu Chen, shielding Lu Qing behind him.

Lu Qing overheard him whispering to Wu Chen, "Luo the Poison Hand is here too. This is going to be quite a show. Hey, should we stay and watch the show, or stay out of this mess?"

Wu Chen frowned slightly. "Such a method of annihilating an entire clan is far too domineering and insidious. If we didn't know about it, that would be one thing. But if we knew and then withdrew, wouldn't that make people laugh at the Divine Palace disciples for being incompetent?"

Yu Jitang stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and said, "This sounds familiar. It's like something I often say. Why are you saying it today?"

Lu Qing found it amusing. Standing behind Wu Chen, she carefully observed his reaction.

Like a fallen leaf drifting onto a tranquil lake, there was only a faint connection. She only saw Wu Chen's long, dark blue eyelashes gently fall and then rise again; in an instant, the slight hint of mockery in his eyes vanished without a trace.

This person...

Lu Qing wasn't interested in the newcomer, but rather in Wu Chen's subconscious reaction.

That's really interesting...

While she stared blankly at Wu Chen, Jin Hua and the man Yu Jitang called "Poisonous Hand Luo" had already gone toe-to-toe several times. In the end, neither of them would give in, so they all decided to stay and work together to find out the real culprit.

Lu Qing hid behind Wu Chen and yawned. It turned out that all these people had been talking back and forth for so long, and that was all nonsense. Wasn't the result the same if everyone had gone in at the beginning?

Wu Chen glanced down at her. "Let's go, stay close to me. There might be some unknown dangers along the way."

Lu Qing immediately perked up and nodded repeatedly.

Tanjiazhuang is a family with a long history of spiritual cultivation, and the family's heritage can be seen everywhere, from every flower and tree to every brick and tile.

It's a pity that now, apart from these outsiders, even the bird nests under the eaves are empty. Only bloody, cold corpses remain everywhere.

Wu Chen, Yu Jitang, Jin Hua, and Luo Dushou walked at the front. Wu Chen didn't care about material possessions, but he was extremely interested in the cold, lifeless corpses. He stopped to examine each one carefully.

Jin Hua and Luo Dushou knew how formidable he was. Although they were eager to act first, they feared missing the crucial clues Wu Chen had discovered. Therefore, they instructed their subordinates to first surround Tan Family Village and capture everyone inside. They themselves then stayed close to Wu Chen.

Wu Chen examined more than ten corpses, his doubts growing. “These people actually only had one fatal wound,” he said, pointing to the corpse of a young man beside him. “A sword through the heart. But look at his body, there are many other wounds, none of which are fatal. It looks like he was tortured.”

Yu Jitang crouched down to examine another corpse beside him. "This one too. But these wounds," he gestured above, "look like they were made by claws. What kind of weapon could inflict such wounds?"

Wu Chen looked at Luo Dushou, "Senior Luo, do you know of any such weapon?"

Luo Du stood with his hands behind his back, looking disdainful. "I have never seen him before."

Wu Chen wasn't annoyed, he just nodded, "Last night I looked out from the gatehouse and it was still peaceful here, with light faintly visible in many doors and windows. There was nothing unusual."

Luo Dushou frowned, his thick eyebrows furrowing. "You were here last night?"

Wu Chen nodded and pointed towards the mountain gate. "That's right. After dinner, I strolled over to the gatehouse. Since it was evening and I didn't want to disturb the peace, I went somewhere else."

Lu Qing thought to herself: You didn't say that last night.

Yu Jitang glanced at her.

Lu Qing then said, "You two were talking about that fruit yesterday, but we were both too lazy to deal with the hassle, so we took a detour and strolled around on other streets. When we came back, Young Master Jin's maids were downstairs. They can testify that we only had time for a short walk."

Young Master Jin had actually been keeping an eye on them, so he naturally knew that what Wu Chen said was true. He smiled and replied, "If Senior Luo doesn't believe me, I'll have a maid come over to be a witness."

Luo Dushou snorted coldly, "As one of the divine servants, how could Young Master Wu act in such a way? Even if someone is trying to sow discord, I trust him."

Jin Hua was left feeling awkward and cursed the old scoundrel in his heart.

Wu Chen stood up and walked towards Lu Qing. Lu Qing took several steps back, covering her nose, "Don't come any closer, your hands smell like those corpses. It stinks."

Wu Chen stopped walking helplessly. "Then you follow me, but don't run off."

Lu Qing nodded and covered her nose with her sleeve.

Luo Dushou glanced at her and, seeing that she was neither beautiful nor anything special, refrained from asking any further questions for the time being.

The group continued up the mountain. Upon entering the inner courtyard of the Tan family manor, they discovered that the scenes of carnage outside paled in comparison. Many of the women inside were incomplete corpses, their bodies mangled and unrecognizable.

Lu Qing was the first to not be able to stand it and ran out to vomit.

Wu Chen didn't have time to examine the body and hurriedly chased after it.

Seeing such a serious attitude, Luo Dushou narrowed his eyes, "Who is that little girl?"

Yu Jitang rolled his eyes. "It's so obvious, why are you still asking? Of course, it's his sweetheart."

Luo Dushou looked at him and said, "Forgive my poor eyesight, but whose daughter is this?"

Yu Jitang gave a forced smile, "It doesn't belong to anyone. You can't buy his liking with a thousand pieces of gold."

Luo Dushou immediately banished Lu Qing from his mind and stopped paying attention to her.

Jin Hua overheard their conversation and chuckled. Having spent his life in the world of romance, he was naturally adept at using any means necessary to win a woman's heart, showering her with tenderness and affection. He was only slightly surprised by Wu Chen's apparent high regard, but didn't find anything amiss.

Luo Dushou's men and Jin Hua's men rushed into the backyard, capturing many of the rogue cultivators who had arrived earlier. They surrounded the group in an open area.

The atmosphere immediately became tense.

Only Lu Qing was vomiting bile. Wu Chen found some hot tea from somewhere and made her rinse her mouth, then stayed by her side with worry. He completely ignored what was happening.

Luo Dushou and Jin Hua were outwardly hostile and inwardly at odds. However, when faced with these rogue cultivators who were clearly trying to steal their food, they tacitly united as one against them.

Jin Hua's cultivation was lacking, but he was wealthy. As the young master of Jin Man Lou, the largest money house, he had known since childhood how to use money to manipulate others. The guards around him, though dressed extravagantly, were all highly skilled and renowned experts in the cultivation world.

Luo Dushou, also known as Luo Poison Hand, was the top expert at the Zhan Yan Platform, a training ground. Because he never cared about stopping short of killing, his attacks were always fatal or crippling, hence the name Luo Poison Hand.

With these two joining forces, the rogue cultivators were immediately at a disadvantage.

Luo Dushou's voice boomed, "The Tan Family Village massacre was a brutal crime. We, the righteous, cannot stand idly by. Anyone not involved should leave immediately. If you linger here, don't blame us for suspecting your involvement."

The independent cultivators were indignant. Those who had come here had all heard the news of the Spirit Fruit being in Tan Family Village and hoped to obtain this unparalleled treasure. But wasn't Luo Dushou's action simply an attempt to seize the Spirit Fruit for himself?

One of the rogue cultivators shouted, "You don't question those who should be suspected. Instead, you drive away us witnesses. Are you trying to cover up the truth and seize the Spirit Fruit? Even if we can't share such a rare treasure, you should at least compensate us."

Luo Dushou appeared careless but was actually quite shrewd. He didn't dwell on the rogue cultivator's later words and had him brought out. "Who do you mean to be the one to be suspected?"

The rogue cultivator stood before Luo Dushou, his legs trembling slightly. "Those two..."

Luo Dushou looked in the direction he was pointing and saw Wu Shen helping Lu Qing to her feet, carefully wiping away Lu Qing's cold sweat with a handkerchief. Lu Qing had stopped vomiting, but her face was deathly pale, clearly terrified.

The rogue cultivator didn't recognize Wu Chen. "Yes, it's those two. I saw them acting suspiciously at the gate last night."

Yu Jitang scoffed, "Have you ever personally witnessed them killing someone?"

The rogue cultivator insisted, "In the dead of night, acting suspiciously. You were with them, yet instead of questioning them, you chased us away. Do you dare say you have nothing to hide?"

Luo Dushou threw the man in front of Yu Jitang, "Do you know that the sneaky person you mentioned is the Divine Attendant of the Divine Palace, Young Master Wu Chen? And this one is another Divine Attendant, Young Master Yu."

The rogue cultivator's face immediately turned pale.

Before Yu Jitang could speak, Wu Chen had already helped Lu Qing over. "This cultivator, are you sure you saw us enter Tan Family Manor last night?"

Upon learning their identities, the rogue cultivator dared not utter any more nonsense. "No, no. I must have been seeing things."

Wu Chen sighed, "The way you put it, it makes things even more difficult for us. Fine, to prove our innocence, we'll stay here. We'll leave after this matter is investigated."

The other cultivators present were filled with admiration upon hearing this. They had long heard that this Young Master Wu Chen was the most prestigious among the divine servants, and seeing him today, they found him indeed to be polite, refined, and possessing a rare gentlemanly demeanor.

Even though Luo Dushou and Jin Hua didn't want him to stay and cause them trouble, they couldn't really harbor any ill will towards him.

Only Lu Qing, head down, rolled her eyes: "So that's why you dragged me here! Turns out you just wanted an excuse to stay. I'll gather my strength and wait until I throw up in your face!"