tricked

Inside the main hall of the sect leader.

All the elders had arrived. The sect leader's face was serious and cold. "Recently, there have been some unfounded rumors circulating in the sect. When you return later, elders, you must restrain your disciples."

The elders responded in unison, their eyes falling on the two standing figures: Wen Zheng and Fatty, who should now be called Luo Xin.

The elder of the Discipline Hall explained the situation to the sect leader, and also talked about the affairs of the Mission Pavilion. His attitude was impartial and fair.

The sect leader looked at Luo Xin, "Do you have anything else to say?"

The rumors spread rapidly, and by the time the sect leader heard about them, they had already reached the entire sect, leaving him no time to stop them.

Luo Xin didn't even have such a grand ceremony when he became a disciple. When he saw the sect leader personally asking him questions, he stammered, "Disciple, disciple has nothing to say. Although Wen Zheng made a heavenly oath, it doesn't prove that she didn't harm her fellow disciples."

When Wen Zheng made her vow, she said she would use her fellow disciples for practice, but she didn't say whether she had harmed them.

Luo Xin seized upon this loophole and tried to find a way to defend himself. If he were to truly confess to the crime, he would be completely finished within the sect.

Elder He Qing also stepped forward at this moment to defend him: "Rumors never come from nowhere. Wen Zheng must provide evidence that she did not harm her fellow disciples in order to prove her innocence. Otherwise, the rumors will not be quelled."

Elder He Qing did not hold a high position in the Zhuxian Sect. He used to be just a rogue cultivator, but he stayed in the Zhuxian Sect as an elder because of some things. Today was the first time he had spoken in front of so many elders.

His words sparked a flurry of discussion among the other elders.

“What He Qing said makes sense.”

"We need to provide evidence to let the disciples know, otherwise they will continue to spread rumors in private."

“Indeed, with evidence, we don’t need to bother our disciples to tell them.”

Everyone agreed with He Qing's statement, and then looked at the sect leader, waiting for him to speak.

The sect leader had been resting with his eyes closed. Only after the surroundings quieted down did he speak, "Wen Zheng, what do you think?"

Finally, the question was directed at her, and Wen Zheng immediately stepped forward. She was about to burst from hearing so much.

“I disagree with what Luo Xin and his master said.” As soon as she said this, many elders frowned, and their impression of her worsened.

Wen Zheng saw what those people were doing, but she ignored it and said to Luo Xin, "When you spread rumors that I harmed my fellow disciples, you didn't provide any evidence. Now you want me to prove that I didn't harm my fellow disciples. You've shifted the focus of the matter to me, but you've distanced yourself from the whole thing."

"If you want me to produce evidence that I did not harm my fellow disciples, then please ask the sect leader to make Luo Xin produce evidence that I did harm my fellow disciples. Otherwise, he is maliciously slandering me within the sect to settle personal grudges."

Her words were firm and resolute, and Luo Xin panicked instantly. He only wanted to exonerate himself and didn't expect things to escalate so much.

Elder He Qing fell silent and stood there lost in thought.

The sect leader glanced at the two of them and said to Luo Xin, "Do you have any further explanation?"

He gestured for Luo Xin to produce evidence. If Luo Xin could produce evidence, his case could be let off the hook; if he couldn't, he would be severely punished.

Luo Xin hurriedly looked at Elder He Qing, but the latter ignored him. He then looked around at the people around him. The elders who had previously had a bad impression of Wen Zheng all looked at him at this moment, waiting for him to produce evidence.

Finally, after pretending to rummage through his storage bag, he knelt down in defeat.

"I... I have no evidence. I only heard it from others."

Wen Zheng: "Who told you that?"

After waiting for so long, he finally got to the point, and Wen Zheng focused on listening to his sophistry.

"I..." Luo Xin stammered for a long time before revealing the truth, "That day I went out and ran into a junior sister who was burning paper money. I heard it from her."

Wen Zheng frowned: "Who?"

Junior sister? And burning paper money?

She doesn't know many people, and even fewer girls.

"I don't know either. I was in a hurry at the time and didn't ask which peak she was from or her name," Luo Xin blurted out.

Wen Zheng turned the wooden bracelet around, pondering the choice of a "junior sister".

This person must know that Xiang Hutian and she have a grudge, and may know either her or Xiang Hutian. Moreover, the person is burning paper money, which is obviously a way of commemorating someone. Wen Zheng feels that the person who harmed her may be related to Xiang Hutian.

Just as she was thinking about how to lure out the person behind it all, the sect leader had already ordered Luo Xin to spend three years reflecting on his mistakes at the Cliff of Repentance.

Luo Xin left dejectedly with the elder of the Discipline Hall, while Elder He Qing had quietly left sometime earlier.

The sect leader said to Wen Zheng, "I will tell the people in the sect about the rumors to clear your name, and I will also ask the elders to restrain the disciples."

"Thank you, Sect Leader." After thanking the Sect Leader, Wen Zheng returned to Aoxue Peak.

Qu Hong and Mo Xin had to go back first, and the others also left for various reasons, leaving only Lin Su and Lu Yun at Aoxue Peak.

Seeing the two standing in the wind and snow, Wen Zheng quickly took out an umbrella from her storage bag and opened it. "Why didn't you find a roof to shelter from the snow?"

Aoxue Peak is covered in snow all year round, and the temperature is extremely low, making it impossible for people to withstand the cold outside.

"I only waited for a short while." Lu Yun took the umbrella and followed Wen Zheng back to her room.

The charcoal fire inside had burned out, so Wen Zheng didn't take any new charcoal. Instead, she casually drew a talisman on a piece of yellow paper on the table and threw it away.

As the talisman landed, the surrounding temperature rose.

Lin Su and Lu Yun had never seen such talismans before, and asked curiously, "What kind of talismans are these? Why have we never seen them before?"

Wen Zheng invited the two to sit down, brewed them tea, and explained, "The new heating talisman I made is a modified version of the Fiery Talisman. It's not very useful; it just saves me some money on charcoal."

She had to buy all the charcoal she had lit before; she had no choice because her cultivation level was low and the nights were too cold, so she could only keep warm by burning charcoal.

“How is it useless?” Lu Yun said. “How long can this talisman last? If it can keep a room warm for more than twelve hours, you can sell it all the way up north.”

"The North?" Wen Zheng asked, answering Lu Yun's question. "Currently, the talisman only lasts for one hour. I will improve it later."

Lu Yun nodded and changed the subject, asking about the rumors. Wen Zheng recounted the sect leader's punishment of Luo Xin and promised to clarify the matter.

After listening, Lu Yun and Lin Su looked at Wen Zheng and asked, "What do you think? Do you want to take revenge on Luo Xin? We have people in the Discipline Hall."

In response to such domineering remarks, Wen Zheng wiped her brow and said to the two of them, "That's not necessary. Luo Xin has been used as a pawn. The most important thing now is to find out who framed me behind the scenes."

Speaking of this, Wen Zheng looked at the two of them and said, "Senior brother and sister, are there any people in the sect who are particularly well-informed? I want to investigate something."

Lin Su and Lu Yun exchanged a glance. "Yes, I'll help you contact them."

After chatting for a few minutes, the group said their goodbyes and left.

Wen Zheng continued her seclusion in the house, trying to improve the heating talisman. Whether she could get rich depended on this talisman.

If heating talismans have a market in the north, she can take advantage of that to launch cooling talismans and sell them in the south.

Making money from both ends, wouldn't that make you rich?

As Wen Zheng imagined herself becoming rich in the future, she couldn't suppress the smile on her face and happily tried out a new painting style.

At the foot of Jianfeng Mountain.

Ye Qingliu, who had previously hinted at Luo Xin, was restless. In order to avenge Xiang Hutian, she had put a lot of effort into spreading rumors, which had exhausted all the spirit stones she had saved.

She had just heard that Wen Zheng and Luo Xin had been brought before the sect leader, and panicked so much that she lost all interest in practicing her swordsmanship. She wandered aimlessly along the stream at the foot of Jianfeng Mountain.

Ye Qingliu kept telling herself not to panic. Luo Xin didn't know her name or which peak she was from. That day, she had cried until her eyes were red and swollen and she looked haggard. It would probably take several days to find her.

In the next few days, she must find a way to create a big incident and divert the sect's attention to something else.

Ye Qingliu pondered as she walked back and forth along the stream, the lush green grass at her feet withering away.

Before she could come up with a solution, a leopard darted out of the bushes on the other side of the stream. It paused for a moment when it saw her and then let out a low growl.

Ye Qingliu retreated hastily, her face turning pale.

This leopard is intelligent and belongs to the demon race.

Seemingly satisfied with her reaction, the leopard circled around her once before running off towards other peaks.

After watching the leopard disappear into the distance until it was completely out of sight, Ye Qingliu collapsed to the ground, her face pale.

The fact that the leopard could walk at the foot of Sword Peak Mountain means that he has infiltrated the sect. What would a demon want with a small sect like the Immortal Pursuit Sect?

Ye Qingliu couldn't come up with an answer, but she did think of a way to divert the attention of everyone in the sect.

The news of the demon race's intrusion must have made everyone uneasy.

Just as she was about to go back and figure out how to spread the news, Ye Qingliu stopped again. A sword was placed against her shoulder, the blade almost touching her neck. If she dared to scream, the other party would definitely strike decisively.

Thinking of the revenge she hadn't yet taken, Ye Qingliu weakly knelt down and begged for mercy, "This... fellow Daoist? I didn't see anything, I didn't hear anything. My master wants me to go back and practice my sword. If I don't go back, he'll probably come looking for me."

As she finished speaking, she was about to turn her head to look at the other person when her neck was slashed by a sword, and blood instantly flowed out, blooming like red plum blossoms on her clothes.

Ye Qingliu's face contorted in pain, but she dared not move, keeping her eyes lowered quietly, as if she had resigned herself to her fate.

"You'd better bring someone here for me." The man with the sword slowly walked up to Ye Qingliu and fed her a pill. "Take the antidote every three days. If you don't bring someone here, you're dead."

The speaker was dressed in black, his face was covered by a mask so that his features could not be seen, but he had a pair of sharp eagle eyes.

Ye Qingliu nodded and quickly said, "I will definitely bring it to you. May I ask who you are looking for?"

It was a matter of life and death. The man in black was far more powerful than her, and Ye Qingliu was not confident that she could escape from him.

"Wen Zheng? That should be her name. She often wears a wooden bracelet on her wrist."

Upon hearing Wen Zheng's name, Ye Qingliu's eyes darkened. After a moment's hesitation, she agreed. The man in black then sheathed his sword and let her leave.

As she was leaving, Ye Qingliu suddenly asked, "Are you Wen Zheng's friend? Why don't you go find her yourself?"

The man in black gazed at the stream and said calmly, "I heard she's still alive. Someone traveled a long way to have me take care of her."

The murderous intent in her words sent a shiver down Ye Qingliu's spine. She didn't want to deal with Wen Zheng herself right now; she wanted to befriend Wen Zheng, lure her over, and then, once the man in black had dealt with Wen Zheng, she would pin the blame on him—a perfect plan.

She ran away with a smile on her lips. The man in black glanced in the direction she went and sneered.

He never lets anyone off the hook.

This one has to die too.