Chapter 96 World 4 (Twenty-three)

Xie Wenying raised his eyes, scanning his surroundings with a clear gaze. Families, both unfamiliar and familiar, looked at him with expressions of rage, some as if they wished to skin him alive, others with clenched fists, sighing in relief at his now destitute state. All their resentment and hatred were focused on him alone...

All sentient beings are like this.

As the leader exerted pressure, all the disciples of Yunning Peak fell silent. But Xie Wenying sensed that there were still sharp gazes on him, like long arrows, trying to shatter the calmness on his face, seeing his panic and dejection.

"Do you know your mistake?"

Xie Wenying stood taller than the evergreen cypress trees atop Yunning Peak. He followed the source of the voice and looked toward his master. His expression was as calm as it had been when he first arrived at Yunning Peak. Decades had passed, but Xie Wenying still remembered it. Back then, he'd carried a heavy sword, traversed precipitous peaks, crossed deep pools, and finally encountered a white-haired elder, gently stroking his long beard as he approached him.

The elder could tell at a glance that Xie Wenying had an extraordinary talent, and from his words, behavior, expression and facial features, he determined that his heart was pure and incomparable to others.

The white crane cried loudly, and the sound resounded in Yunning Peak. It was deep and distant, and echoed in Xie Wenying's ears for a long time.

The elder looked at the clouds and mist, his eyes deep, and said in a deep voice: "I don't know whether it is a blessing or a curse to see a person of great luck."

Xie Wenying was still young at the time and couldn't understand the elder's vague words. He just saw the elder turn around, gently pat his shoulder, and said, "From now on, you will stay here to practice martial arts. You must focus on your studies and put martial arts first."

Everything that happened yesterday seemed like it happened only yesterday. But in a moment, Xie Wenying stood up straight and faced the accusations of everyone.

Xie Wenying was puzzled. She didn't understand why Yun Ningfeng, who prioritized martial arts training and stayed away from the secular world, had become like this.

Like the townspeople in a small town, they are full of distracting thoughts, making it impossible for them to have any affection for each other.

Xie Wenying said in a cold voice, "I'm innocent, so why should I admit my mistakes?"

Before the master standing at the head could speak, a disciple suddenly rushed to Xie Wenying, holding the long sword at his waist and ready to draw the sword at the next moment.

The hall was silent, with only Ye Muya's reproachful voice ringing out.

"Junior brother, no!"

Xie Wenying stared directly at the aggressive disciple in front of him, his dark eyes deep and filled with a biting chill.

The disciple who stepped forward impulsively knew that Xie Wenying's meridians were blocked.

Although he was like a useless person now, he was still frightened by the terrifying aura of Xie Wenying and forgot to move.

The disciple retracted his sword in embarrassment, glanced at Ye Muya, and quietly retreated back into the crowd.

When the other disciples of Yunning Peak saw this situation, they all thought that it was because of Ye Muya, so the disciple hurriedly put away his sword.

The master said, "The truth is clear, but you refuse to admit your mistake. Your Highness and the others were the disciples who were injured that day. They are your fellow disciples.

If you have any feelings for Yun Ningfeng, then hand over the antidote and relieve their suffering."

Xie Wenying pulled the corner of his mouth, his eyes cold: "My disciple is not wrong, and there is no medicine."

The master stopped talking. Bai Jiqing sighed softly with regret on his face, "If Senior Brother doesn't tell me, I'll have to deal with him according to the sect rules."

Xie Wenying turned sideways, and there were surging waves in her black pupils.

He memorized every word of the rumor he heard in the dungeon that day.

When Baoshan and he were snuggling together like mandarin ducks, Xie Wenying did not ask any questions. He did not want to discuss the intimacy between the two of them while discussing the unimportant third person.

At first, Xie Wenying was so angry that he thought that the precious fan was just like the other disciples of Yunning Peak, and they discarded him like a worn-out shoe.

But when Xie Wenying was immersed in the warmth, fragrance and softness of the woman and the lingering love, she gradually became conscious: Baoshan was so pure in mind, how could she have anything to do with Bai Jiqing.

But Xie Wenying's belief in the treasure fan does not mean that he trusts Bai Jiqing as well.

It was late at night, and no matter what excuse he had, it was not a reason for Bai Jiqing to break into the room of a weak and pitiful woman.

Anger was surging in his chest, and the corners of his narrow eyes were scarlet.

Bai Jiqing had never seen Xie Wenying look like this before. The eldest brother was always calm and composed, so he would never show his emotions like he did now.

Bai Jiqing looked dazed for a moment, but soon regained his composure and carried out the plan as planned.

He looked conflicted. He should have reported to his master and acted according to the sect's rules, but he just couldn't bring himself to say those words.

"Master, this matter..."

But Bai Jiqing refused to say anything, and the other disciples were all filled with indignation, shouting that they wanted to deal with him according to the sect rules.

Several disciples lying on the rattan stretchers opened their eyes wide, leaned forward slightly, and looked upwards.

Just as they expected, the master nodded slightly and agreed to act according to the sect rules.

The master no longer looked at Xie Wenying in the hall, but turned his gaze away and looked elsewhere.

Two disciples, holding a long whip in one hand and a porcelain bowl filled with water in the other, stood on both sides of Xie Wenying.

The clear water in the porcelain bowl was melted snow from Yunning Peak and was bone-chillingly cold.

The long whip is made of extremely tough silk cloth and has barbs like cockleburs on it. If such a long whip hits a person, it will definitely cause blood to flow.

Ye Muya ignored Bai Jiqing's advice and stopped him, and stood in the middle of the hall with his hands clasped, saying loudly: "Master, I think this is inappropriate."

The many disciples either looked at him or gave him cold glances, but they could not make Ye Muya retreat in fear.

She remembered the teachings of her senior brother and the decades of brotherhood and sisterhood on Yunning Peak.

As Xie Wenying's junior sister, Ye Muya has never believed the so-called "facts" and has always believed that Xie Wenying is innocent. However, she has searched for clues everywhere but has found nothing.

As the second senior sister of Yun Ningfeng, Ye Muya understood that she should put Yun Ningfeng first, obey her master's instructions, and act according to the rules of the sect.

But Ye Muya could not abandon his selfishness and watched Xie Wenying being whipped.

Ye Muya saw Xie Wenying's clothes clinging to her body from the corner of her eye, and knew that they were soaked by the water in the dungeon.

The water dungeon was bitterly cold, and Xie Wenying's meridians were blocked, so his body must have been damaged. If he were to be whipped with a long whip, his muscles and bones would be damaged. Faced with such a situation, how could Ye Muya remain silent and watch from the sidelines?

She stood firm, looking at her master from afar.

"Big Brother is upright and honest, and would certainly not do such a shameful thing. I think it is unacceptable to use the sect rules so rashly."

Ye Muya spoke in a firm tone, and did not use the word "inappropriate". Instead, she thought it was unacceptable. How could Xie Wenying be treated with flogging?

There was an uproar in the hall, but the master did not immediately blame Ye Muya, which made her feel a little relieved, thinking that the situation had turned around.

But the next moment, after those extremely cold words were spoken, Ye Muya stood stiffly in place.

"Nothing is wrong."

The whip was stained with cold snow water, and the taut whip tightened even more, "swish swish swish" falling on Xie Wenying's body. Xie Wenying frowned, but never admitted her mistake.

Even though he knew in his heart that today's action was to force him to admit the crime of harming his fellow disciples.

The wound on the back that had just healed suddenly broke open, and traces of blood shone through the thin clothes, revealing a large pool of blood.

Big beads of sweat appeared on Xie Wenying's forehead, and he looked as if he had just been fished out of blood.

Qu Linglong stood quietly behind Bai Jiqing, unable to bear to continue watching. She had mixed feelings in her heart, and on the one hand, she was recalling the kindness of her senior brother.

On the other hand, he knew that if he pleaded for his senior brother, he would definitely be rejected by the disciples of Yun Ning Peak. Even Ye Muya, who was an excellent martial artist, was alienated by the disciples because he pleaded for Xie Wenying.

Bai Jiqing's brows were furrowed, but his heart was slightly relieved. He thought to himself: I have been abandoned by everyone. After Xie Wenying faints, I will secretly use the secret medicine, and then I will be able to use this person for my own benefit.

But until the last moment, Bai Jiqing did not relax at all and did not show any emotion.

Therefore, in the eyes of everyone, he just couldn't bear to see Xie Wenying suffer.

But because of the justice in his heart, he couldn't lean towards it and was extremely conflicted.

The long whip was raised high, and the blood beads and cold snow water mixed together, dyeing the whip into an unrecognizable original color. All that was known was the scarlet blood color.

Just as the whip was about to fall, a petite and frail figure ran out from outside the hall, saying in a pitiful and mournful voice, "No!"

The disciple wielding the long whip was slightly startled, and then he saw the snow-white figure, like a young bird returning to its nest, pounce on Xie Wenying.

There was no time to retract the whip, and it was about to fall on the soft body.

Such delicate skin, if it were whipped, would probably cost half its life.

Bai Jiqing, who had been calm and composed, saw this and his eyes widened, and he immediately wanted to help.

But there was someone who was more agile than him. He grasped the whip that was about to fall with a broad hand, and with a little force, he threw the disciple who was wielding the whip heavily to the ground.

Xie Wenying turned around and held the trembling precious fan in her arms, which she hugged tightly and refused to let go.

Noticing the stiffness and fear in the person in his arms, Xie Wenying felt secretly helpless: If he is so scared, why is he still trying to be strong?

Even the coldest and most unkind person cannot help but be moved by this purity.

"Nonsense."

Baoshan hugged Xie Wenying tightly, fearing that Xie Wenying would disappear from her sight the next moment.

Her eyes sparkled with crystal tears, some as large as round pearls. Baoshan's voice trembled as she whispered, "No..."

Her soft hands caressed Xie Wenying's injured back, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and tears fell.

"Senior Brother Wenying is in pain."

It wasn't actually that painful, Xie Wenying thought to herself: it was just the long whip hitting her body, which was a bit unbearable. But the thin red mark, gently traced by the delicate hand of the treasure fan, was like a small flame burning, causing the originally minor wound to burn.

Xie Wenying picked up the treasure fan and slowly stood up. Big drops of blood on his back rolled onto the ground and gathered into a ball, looking extremely horrifying.

Xie Wenying looked at Baiwei, who was standing aside with Baoshan and looking uneasy, and nodded slightly without much blame.

If Baoshan wanted to come, Baiwei would not be able to stop her.

The many disciples in the hall finally came to their senses and looked at Xie Wenying in surprise and anxiety.

Looking at the way he grabbed the whip just now, it didn't look like his meridians were blocked at all.

But they had clearly seen their master take action, and now... The disciples were surprised: If Xie Wenying had broken through the constraints of his meridians by himself, then everything would make sense. However, if it was really as they suspected, Xie Wenying's martial arts realm had reached an immeasurable level.

Xie Wenying held Baoshan's head in her arms to prevent her from seeing the malice of the people around her.

Baoshan was a docile person. He allowed Xie Wenying to do whatever she wanted and did not look back at the expressions of the disciples of Yunning Peak at that moment.

The master's expression shifted slightly, and he asked, "Has the obstacle to your martial arts been removed?"

He remembered that Xie Wenying's martial arts had not made any progress for many days and was at a stagnant stage.

Xie Wenying admitted that in the water prison, because of the anger lingering in his dantian, he vomited blood and his mind was confused. He unexpectedly broke through the stagnation in his martial arts and made further progress.

It can be seen that to achieve martial arts skills, one does not have to leave the world, entering the world is also a way.

The master was not angry, and asked calmly: "Since you have achieved such success in martial arts, why are you still pretending to be trapped here?"

Endure abuse, misunderstanding, and even beatings...

The sixteen whip marks on Xie Wenying's body were faintly hot. His voice was cold, and his words echoed in the hall.

"It's never been brute force that's holding me back. Master, don't you understand?"

The master's eyes were dark and unclear.