Chapter 40
Layers upon layers of demonic energy swirled above Jiang Linyu's house, so thick that the house beneath it was almost impossible to see clearly.
Shi Anxu felt that the aura of these demonic energies had a familiar feel to it, as if he had felt it somewhere before.
He's been so busy lately that he can't quite pinpoint where he felt that sensation.
Suddenly, someone came out of the room shrouded in demonic energy, and Shi Anxu immediately found a place to hide.
Someone with such a strong demonic aura is definitely not someone to be trifled with. If he were discovered, he might lose his life here.
Jiang Linyu and a person dressed in black robes came out of the house and stopped at the doorway to talk.
Shi Anxu was still quite far away from them, so he couldn't hear clearly what they were talking about, only catching a few words intermittently.
The man in black robes: "Don't worry... the incitement has already been done..."
Jiang Linyu: "Mu Qingzhou...it's over..."
The man in black robes said, "...The immortal fruit...My lord...I've finished eating it."
Jiang Linyu: "...In a few days...I'll find an opportunity...to present it to the Lord."
Upon hearing these words, Shi Anxu instantly remembered where he had first sensed this demonic energy—it was when he first met Jiang Linyu in the Immortal Fruit Forest.
Therefore, the demonic energy originated from Jiang Linyu!
And what that man in black robes said about instigating things and Mu Qingzhou being finished—they were the ones who did what happened in their reading area!
Shi Anxu considered no one but Jiang Linyu; he couldn't even imagine what reason he would have to frame them.
They had no vested interests with Jiang Linyu, and it's possible that Jiang Linyu was inherently rotten, having already colluded with demonic cultivators; how could he possibly be a good person?
Shi Anxu felt that Jiang Linyu might simply dislike them and wanted to destroy them.
His acting skills are usually so good that he can't see through any flaws and thinks he's a very good person.
It seems that we can't judge a person by their appearance alone; we also have to look at their inner character to see if they are truly good or bad.
After Jiang Linyu and the man in black finished their conversation, they parted ways, and the man in black walked straight toward Jiang Linyu.
Shi Anxu immediately straightened up and stood motionless in place, making sure the man in black robes didn't notice him.
The magical artifacts that Su Qinyi left for Shi Anxu and the others were all at least Immortal level, and their effects were not easily detected by powerful beings. For example, the black-robed man in front of him walked past him without pausing at all.
Jiang Linyu had already turned and gone back into the house when the man in black left, giving Shi Anxu a chance to catch his breath.
He wanted to tell the sect leader about Jiang Linyu's situation, that another traitor had emerged in the sect, who not only betrayed the sect but also colluded with demonic cultivators.
Then they will announce this to the world to prove the innocence of their reading area.
Shi Anxu's figure gradually disappeared from the spot. He used the Shrinking Earth technique and quickly arrived at the sect leader's peak.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he arrived at the sect's main peak, the disciples guarding the peak immediately gathered all the disciples in the peak to surround him.
Finally, Shi Anxu was forced into the sect leader's council hall by them.
He knew that the sect leader must have found out about what happened in his reading area and now wanted to punish him. He had to find a way to make the sect leader believe that Jiang Linyu was the real culprit.
Qiu Yunli, still dignified in the main seat, looked at Shi Anxu and asked, "Shi Anxu, you probably already know why I had you arrested."
Shi Anxu replied in a neither humble nor arrogant tone, "This disciple understands."
Qiu Yunli's eyes were full of disappointment and frustration. He asked, "Do you know your mistake?"
Shi Anxu retorted, "Why should I admit my mistake if I didn't do it?"
Qiu Yunli looked at Shi Anxu with a face full of disappointment, "You are so stubborn. Do you value your reputation more than the sect? As long as you admit it, we will try to reduce your punishment."
Shi Anxu never expected that the sect leader would also pander to outsiders instead of helping his own sect members. After such an incident, shouldn't he have stood up for his own sect members and asked disciples from other sects to give him more time?
Their good sect leader is now forcing him to admit to things he didn't do, which really chills Shi Anxu's heart.
He didn't do it, and he didn't want to take the blame. Shi Anxu said directly, "I've said before that I didn't do this, and I won't admit it. Also, I already know who the real culprit is: Jiang Linyu from Yunyang Peak."
Jiang Linyu suddenly walked in from outside the hall, her smile not reaching her eyes. "How come I didn't know I had done such a thing?"
Qiu Yunli said the same thing: "What evidence do you have to prove that Jiang Linyu did this?"
Shi Anxu couldn't produce any evidence right away, and the situation at the time didn't allow him to just openly take out the recording stone to make a record.
Seeing that Shi Anxu remained motionless, Qiu Yunli knew that he could not produce any evidence, and said angrily, "How could the sect have raised such a traitor? Not only have you done such a heinous thing, but you have also slandered your fellow disciples. You are a disgrace to the Qingyun Sect!"
Shi Anxu pointed at Jiang Linyu and questioned, "Sect Master, I don't understand why you believe that I did it when others say it was me, but you believe Jiang Linyu and even say that I am slandering him?"
Qiu Yunli didn't want to say anything more to Shi Anxu. "Your case has been corroborated by so many cultivators, it's already a done deal. Now you suddenly claim it was someone else who did it, it's hard not to be suspicious. Guards, take him to the dungeon and lock him up to await his fate."
They can't just be thrown into the dungeon like this, otherwise this matter will never be cleared up!
He quickly searched his spatial ring for anything that might allow him to escape, but he had already used up all the things he could find before, and now he was completely out of options.
He stood there, frozen, waiting for the disciples outside the hall to come in and take him away.
Before being taken away, he took one last look at Jiang Linyu.
The other person gave me a provocative smile and said something.
Shi Anxu struggled to decipher the words from the lip movements: "So what if you know it's me?"
Jiang Linyu has been exposed, so she simply stops pretending.
Provoked by his words, Shi Anxu's anger flared up. He was determined to expose Jiang Linyu's true colors and show everyone what kind of person he really was.
On the way to the dungeon, Shi Anxu kept looking for an opportunity to escape, but with his useless cultivation level, he failed to escape even once.
In the end, Shi Anxu was still imprisoned in the dungeon.
The dungeon was extremely damp, and each area had a different form of punishment.
However, the disciple who brought him threw him into the water dungeon and left, which shows they had some conscience.
Soaking himself in cold water calmed Shi Anxu down considerably, and a name popped into his mind.
Mu Qingzhou! I've already arrested him, he's next! I need to warn him quickly so he can leave.
No, he's still in seclusion. I can't disturb him now. They didn't bring Mu Qingzhou with them when they arrested me, which means he's alright.
Moreover, the protective barrier was set up by their master, and they reinforced it further, so even the sect leader couldn't easily break it.
The most important thing now is to find a way to escape and clarify things so that Mu Qingzhou can be absolutely safe and go into seclusion.
Shi Anxu began to observe the surroundings of the water prison, trying to find a loophole.
——
Mu Qingzhou felt the unease in his soul, and he suddenly opened his eyes.
He controlled his soul to examine Shi Anxu's current situation, and the more he looked, the more his brows furrowed.
He hadn't looked for a moment, and he hadn't expected that Shi Anxu had already put him in the dungeon.
In order to find out what had happened, he read the memories of that wisp of divine soul.
Seeing his senior brother being criticized by so many people, his fists clenched tighter and tighter. He gritted his teeth and said, "Jiang, Lin, Yu, if you dare to touch my senior brother, I will make you pay the price."
Mu Qingzhou is currently at a critical stage of his breakthrough; he's just a little short of achieving it.
As the saying goes, the arrow is already on the bowstring and must be released.
He must remain in seclusion until he breaks through, otherwise he will suffer a qi deviation.
Mu Qingzhou was still afraid that if he went into qi deviation, he would harm Shi Anxu, so he did not choose to force himself out of seclusion. Instead, he accelerated his cultivation progress and broke through as soon as possible to help Shi Anxu.
——
Shi Anxu had no idea how many times he had been inside the water dungeon. The Qingyun Sect really hadn't skimped on the construction of the dungeon; there wasn't a single loophole for him to exploit.
Finally, Shi Anxu gave up and sat in the water, closing his eyes to rest.
They placed a restriction on the dungeon, preventing any spiritual energy from entering. He couldn't cultivate in the dungeon and could only pass the time by sleeping.
Shi Anxu spent three days sleeping, until his head was a little dizzy.
Finally, on the fourth day, someone came in.
Qiu Yunli walked against the light to the front of the water prison, looked at Shi Anxu who was completely submerged in the water, and asked, "Have you thought it through?"
Shi Anxu repeated the same words he had spoken in the main hall that day, "I've already said I didn't do it, and no matter what methods you use, I won't admit it. Besides, you've already decided that I did it, so why do you insist that I admit it?"
Qiu Yunli nodded. "I wanted you to confess in order to lessen your punishment. Since you are unwilling, I will execute you in front of all the victims tomorrow."
Shi Anxu was desperate. He was ready to die, but he would never admit to something he hadn't done. "Even if you execute me, I will never admit it!"
Qiu Yunli flicked her sleeves and turned to leave angrily, saying, "Cherish your last night!"
Shi Anxu called out to Qiu Yunli's retreating figure, "I will cherish it!"
Shi Anxu wanted to think of another way to escape, but he had thought of countless methods over the past three days, none of which were suitable. Now he no longer had time to think of a solution.
He was destined never to escape this water dungeon.
Thinking about it now, death isn't so scary. He was already dead in the modern world, so he's quite content to have lived this long.
However, he hadn't yet witnessed Mu Qingzhou become the number one person in the Immortal Realm, and he felt a little regretful.
He only hoped that when Mu Qingzhou emerged from seclusion and learned of his death, he wouldn't be too saddened, and that he would live each day well and stop wearing that cold expression, lest he scare away the girls who liked him, leaving him all alone—the last thing he wanted to see…
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com