Chapter 123: Resolution

Chapter 123: Chapter 123: Resolution

Inside Li Ping’s cave abode.

In the pavilion, Li Ping, Wu Feng, and a hale and hearty, elderly-looking cultivator in a snow-white robe sat together in a circle.

The three chatted idly, and before they knew it, the conversation turned to the Meng family opening Hu Feng’s cave abode just a moment ago.

Wu Feng had a strange look on his face as he sighed, "I wonder what on earth was written in the Jade Scroll that Fellow Daoist Hu Feng left behind. It made Fellow Daoist Meng lose his composure so completely."

Just a moment ago, under the watchful eyes of all the artisans, the Meng family’s Ancestor had inspected the Jade Scroll left by Hu Feng, but in just an instant, his expression changed drastically. After putting away the Jade Scroll and offering a quick apology to the artisans, he departed in a great hurry.

Leaving only the artisans standing there, looking at each other in bewilderment.

Gossip is human nature, and even Cultivators are no exception.

Given how strangely the Meng family’s Ancestor had acted, it was only natural that Wu Feng was curious.

"Fellow Daoist Li, you were Hu Feng’s neighbor and were always quite close. Do you know anything about the inside story?" The speaker was the hale and hearty elder.

The hale and hearty elder’s name was Ning Wuxu. His Cultivation had already reached the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, and he was also a Tier Two Lower Grade Array Master.

Of course, Li Ping knew what was written in the Jade Scroll Hu Feng had left behind. He had even personally added some of its content.

But it involved Dai Sangyu, the Vice Sect Leader of the Immortal City. How could he possibly tell anyone else?

If Dai Sangyu found out he was the one behind this, with her temper, she would probably cut him down without a second thought.

That was not an outcome he wished to see. He had no desire to get personally involved.

He only wanted to be the one pulling the strings from behind the curtain, his contributions and identity hidden from the world.

At this thought, Li Ping glanced at the two curious men and shook his head helplessly. "I don’t know. In fact, just like you two, I’m also very curious about the contents of that Jade Scroll."

In response to Li Ping’s words, both men simply nodded without saying much more.

In truth, they were only asking casually. When the Meng family’s Qi Refining cultivators opened Hu Feng’s cave abode, they had clearly seen all the Sound Transmission Talismans that had come from Li Ping.

They were well aware that Li Ping didn’t know the details of Hu Feng’s situation.

’And here I thought their relationship was rock-solid, but it turns out they were just superficial friends,’ both men thought to themselves.

After chatting for a while longer, Wu Feng and Ning Wuxu took their leave, leaving Li Ping alone in the pavilion.

He gazed calmly in the direction of Cyan Dragon Mountain, as if he could see the gray-robed Sword Cultivator sitting cross-legged there. Then, his gaze shifted toward the Meng family’s ancestral lands. ’Meng family, I have delivered the blade to you. What choice will you make?’

If the Meng family was intimidated by Dai Sangyu’s power and status and didn’t dare to make the matter of the Jade Scroll public, he would, without hesitation, assume the guise of a Cultivator with the surname Li and sell a copy of the Jade Scroll to the likes of Jade Cliff Palace and the Spirit Treasure Pavilion.

As the local branches for Core Formation Sects like the Purple Cloud Sect and the Sword Washing Pool, they would likely not mind watching the Immortal City’s internal strife for their own amusement.

... ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

While Li Ping was lost in thought, in the grand assembly hall of the Meng family’s ancestral lands, the Meng Ancestor sat in the highest seat, his expression constantly shifting.

The entire hall was silent, save for the rhythmic tapping of his finger on the table.

And the Jade Scroll that had thrown his thoughts into such turmoil lay quietly on the table.

Before long, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator in a black robe walked in. He asked in confusion, "Ancestor, you summoned us in such a hurry. What has happened?"

According to the rules of the Cultivation Realm, as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, he was supposed to address the Meng family’s Ancestor, also a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, as ’Fellow Daoist’.

However, among family cultivators, blood is thicker than water, and they more often addressed each other based on seniority.

As the eldest member of the current Meng family, the other Foundation Establishment Cultivators all treated the Ancestor with respect.

"Sit down first. Wait for Qingyi and the others to arrive," the Meng Ancestor said without explanation, simply gesturing for him to take a seat.

Though his mind was full of questions, the Ancestor’s word had always been law in the family. The black-robed cultivator had no intention of arguing and simply found a seat near the Meng Ancestor.

A short while later, two more Foundation Establishment Cultivators arrived, one of whom was none other than Meng Qingyi, whom Li Ping knew.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, the Meng Ancestor wasted no time. He used his Magical Power to make the Jade Scroll on the table float before them, allowing them to inspect it one by one.

At the same time, he briefly explained the origin of the Jade Scroll.

Soon, the other three Foundation Establishment Cultivators of the Meng family had finished reading the contents of the Jade Scroll. All of them were aghast, but beyond their shock, their reactions were completely different.

Meng Qingyi’s expression was grave, while the other two Foundation Establishment Cultivators were rather excited.

One of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators asked excitedly, "Ancestor, is the content of this Jade Scroll true?"

Hearing the question, the Meng Ancestor shook his head. "Fellow Daoist Hu Feng has likely already left the Immortal City. I am also not certain whether the records he left in this Jade Scroll are true or false."

"Tampering with the Pills refined by Wang Li, stealing a Tier Three legacy from the Secret Skill Pavilion to give to an outsider..." The black-robed Foundation Establishment Cultivator seemed to revel in the news. "Tsk tsk... the transgressions Ye Chen has committed are far more serious than the Wang family swindling Loose Cultivators out of Spirit Stones."

Meng Qingyi spoke up at this moment, her eyes filled with worry. "Ancestor, the Immortal City has only just recovered from the beast tide, and then there was the matter with Wang Li. Things have finally stabilized. If this matter is limited to just Ye Chen, it would be one thing, but if it implicates Senior Brother Xiong Pohai and Senior Sister Dai Sangyu... I fear it will cause turmoil in the Immortal City, which would not be good for our Meng family either."

"Sister Qingyi, you’re overthinking it," the black-robed Foundation Establishment Cultivator retorted. "So what if they’re implicated? As for the Immortal City, as long as the Master is presiding over it, how much turmoil could there possibly be?"

Meng Qingyi shook her head. "Given Senior Sister Dai’s character, I don’t believe she would do something so treacherous and deceitful."

"As the saying goes: you can know a person’s face, but not their heart..." the black-robed cultivator immediately countered.

But before he could finish, the Meng Ancestor cut him off. "Stop arguing. The most important thing right now is to first determine if this Jade Scroll is genuine."

The black-robed cultivator nodded and analyzed, "Since Hu Feng has already left the Immortal City, the only way to confirm the truth is through Wang Li and that Wang family member who failed his Foundation Establishment despite using two Foundation Establishment Pills."

The Meng Ancestor nodded. "Mm, Qingyun, you’ll be in charge of this! Go find that boy and get to the bottom of the matter with the Foundation Establishment Pills."

Meng Qingyi, standing to the side, was about to speak but was met by the Ancestor’s piercing gaze. "Qingyi, if the investigation reveals that the Jade Scroll’s contents are true and Dai Sangyu is involved, then I, this old man, will definitely unite with the other families to petition the Master and strip her of the Vice Sect Leader position. Then, we will work together to push you into her place!"

"I... sigh. I will follow the Ancestor’s orders." Meng Qingyi sighed but ultimately said nothing more.

She didn’t want the situation in the Immortal City to become unstable, but if the Ancestor and the others had made a decision that she couldn’t change, she couldn’t drag everyone down either.

After all, in the end, it was the family that had raised her.

’I hope the contents of the Jade Scroll are fake,’ she prayed silently.

...

When Cultivators investigated a case, it was naturally not as troublesome as it was for mortals. Soul Searching, mind-clouding... numerous methods could be used to make a cultivator speak the truth.

But the Meng Ancestor didn’t dare to just present the Jade Scroll to Fenglan Master like that.

After all, the three people implicated in the Jade Scroll—Dai Sangyu, Xiong Pohai, and Ye Chen—were all the Master’s disciples and Foundation Establishment Cultivators!

Among them, Dai Sangyu had already reached the threshold of Core Formation and was arguably the second most powerful cultivator in the Immortal City.

If he presented the Jade Scroll, and the Master used mind-clouding techniques on them, only to discover the scroll’s contents were false, then he would be the one to bear the Master’s wrath.

False accusations, especially against three of the Master’s own disciples—it was possible the Master would cripple his Cultivation directly.

He had to confirm the authenticity of the Jade Scroll’s contents before taking the next step!

At this moment, faced with the opportunity to bring down Dai Sangyu, the Meng Ancestor had not lost his head; on the contrary, his thoughts were remarkably calm.

...

After receiving the Ancestor’s command, Meng Qingyun rushed over to the Wang family, brimming with excitement, and stated his purpose.

But soon, he received a piece of information that infuriated him. "What? You don’t know where Wang Xingwei is?"

Seeing his anger, the little old man, Wang Quyan, hastily explained, "After he failed his Foundation Establishment, I arranged for him to be the steward at the Fishing Square’s Spirit Medicine Garden. Later, after what happened with our Ancestor, all the cultivators of my Wang family were dismissed from their posts in the Immortal City. He never came home, so I don’t know where he went either."

Meng Qingyun stared at him with a look of profound disappointment. "What kind of Clan Leader are you? You don’t even go looking for a missing clansman!"

Wang Quyan remained silent. In truth, though he never said it out loud, he was quite resentful that Wang Xingwei had wasted two Foundation Establishment Pills.

Therefore, over the years, he had intentionally or unintentionally ignored Wang Xingwei’s existence.

...

"The Fishing Square’s Spirit Medicine Garden!"

After getting the clue, Meng Qingyun rushed to the Spirit Medicine Garden to make inquiries.

After some questioning, he finally found Cheng Yao.

Cheng Yao thought he was there to take Wang Xingwei home, so she quickly led him to her small, rented courtyard, hoping he would take Wang Xingwei away.

When Meng Qingyun learned from Cheng Yao that Wang Xingwei had suddenly fainted during the beast tide and hadn’t woken up since, and that neither Physicians nor Musicians knew the cause, he couldn’t help but frown.

"Let me examine him."

With that, he walked to the bedside, grasped Wang Xingwei’s arm with one hand, and sent his Foundation Establishment Stage Magical Power into the man’s body to investigate carefully.

Half an hour later, he stood up, his face quite grim.

Because Wang Xingwei was perfectly healthy. There were no problems at all; it looked as if he were just feigning unconsciousness.

SLAP! SLAP!

Meng Qingyun lashed out and slapped Wang Xingwei twice across the face.

Two visible handprints appeared on Wang Xingwei’s cheeks, but he showed no sign of waking up.

"He’s not faking it." Meng Qingyun sensed this was going to be troublesome.

Over the next few days, he used the Meng family’s connections to invite several High-tier Physicians, Pharmacists, and Musicians to treat Wang Xingwei, but they all left defeated.

Left with no other choice, he could only give up and go home to report the matter to the Ancestor.

...

Looking at the room, which had returned to its usual quiet after the brief period of commotion, and at the young man lying on the bed, Cheng Yao couldn’t help but give a helpless, bitter smile.

She had thought that the Foundation Establishment senior would take Wang Xingwei away. Who knew that after all the fuss, he would just leave upon discovering he couldn’t wake the man up.