Desolate Devouring Art - Chapter 1464 - Confused

Chapter 1464 – Confused

The other elders stood frozen, completely stunned and caught off guard.

With a deafening boom, the palm crashed down from above, and Chang Wu disappeared on the spot, vaporized before everyone’s eyes.

“Elder Xue, what’s the meaning of this? The palace lord has yet to even ask about the mastermind, and you’ve cut off our only clue by killing Chang Wu,” Ding Yuan said in an accusative tone as he stepped forward.

Chang Wu had been his friend; the three of them had tended the herbal garden together for nearly a century, and their bond ran deep. Watching Chang Wu die in front of him at Elder Xue’s hands made Ding Yuan’s heart twist with grief and rage.

“Traitors like him deserve nothing less than death,” Elder Xue said, ignoring Ding Yuan completely as he returned to his seat as if nothing had happened.

“Elder Xue, you killed Chang Wu because you feared he would expose you as the real traitor, am I wrong?” Liu Wuxie asked with a smile, looking straight into Elder Xue’s eyes.

His words instantly stirred an uproar throughout the crowd. Elder Xue stood at the pinnacle of the Heaven Gaze Realm and had served in the Nine Dragon Palace for nearly five thousand years; no one had ever questioned his loyalty before.

“Liu Wuxie, this is the Nine Dragon Palace, and you have no right to speak here. Just from what you said earlier, you can forget about leaving this place alive today,” Elder Xue said, his sharp glare locked on Liu Wuxie, murderous intent flashing in his eyes.

Many elders nodded in agreement, feeling justified since Liu Wuxie was merely an outsider.

“Even if I’d stayed silent, you had no intention of letting me leave the Nine Dragon Palace alive, did you?” Liu Wuxie asked, still smiling as he studied Elder Xue’s face.

“You’re right. According to the sect’s rules, we shall execute any outsiders who intrude on the main hall,” Elder Xue said. By the rules, the elders should have approved Liu Wuxie’s presence in the main hall beforehand.

“Speaking of outsiders, you’re the one who doesn’t belong here,” Liu Wuxie retorted.

The palace lord remained silent. Since he had brought Liu Wuxie into the main hall, he naturally could guarantee his safety, and it went without saying that Liu Wuxie had entered under his authority.

After all, if the Nine Dragon Palace collapsed, Liu Wuxie would gain nothing and would instead lose his source of spiritual herbs.

“Hahaha! I’ve been in the Nine Dragon Palace for five thousand years, and you’re calling me an outsider? What a joke!” Elder Xue laughed, genuinely amused by Liu Wuxie’s claim.

“That only means you’ve hidden yourself well for the past five thousand years,” Liu Wuxie responded with a shrug.

“Liu Wuxie, if you don’t explain yourself clearly, I’ll kill you today, even if the palace lord is here. How dare you slander the Supreme Elder of the Nine Dragon Palace!” Elder Xue roared, murderous intent shining coldly in his eyes.

The atmosphere in the main hall tightened at once, but none of the elders spoke up. Strictly speaking, it also displeased them to see an outsider like Liu Wuxie meddling in the Nine Dragon Palace’s internal affairs, but since the palace lord had not spoken against him, they had no reason to speak up.

“The Serpent Insect controlled Chang Wu, and it’s easy to find out who’s the mastermind. The Serpent Insect fears the Bodhi Fruit, and the victim will feel needles piercing their entire bodies the moment they touch it. Even cultivators at the Heaven Gaze Realm can’t endure that pain, and we can test it here and now,” Liu Wuxie said calmly, though his words sent a powerful shockwave through the crowd.

For many elders, this was the first time they had ever heard that the Bodhi Fruit was the nemesis of the Serpent Insect. Even the palace lord had only just learned that the Bodhi Root could dissolve the Serpent Insect’s control.

“What a joke! Since when does our Nine Dragon Palace let an outsider meddle in our internal affairs? Why should we touch the Bodhi Fruit just because you told us to? Elder Xue is right, and we should drag you out and execute you,” another elder said, rising to his feet to voice his support for Elder Xue.

“Palace Lord, don’t you think today’s events have turned absurd?” Several elders stood up as well, feeling that it was ridiculous for a mere junior at the Void Realm to interrogate the Nine Dragon Palace’s elders as though they were criminals. If word of this spread, cultivators across the astral domain would mock them.

“This matter concerns the life and death of the Nine Dragon Palace, and we have no choice but to take this route. Liu Wuxie is also acting for the sake of the Nine Dragon Palace. Everyone, calm down, and there’s no harm in touching the fruit,” the palace lord said, his voice pressing the clamor back into silence.

It didn’t take long for Huang to return carrying a black box about a foot tall.

“There’s a Bodhi Fruit inside the box, and everyone just has to reach in to touch it once. If you feel nothing, that means that Serpent Insect does not control you,” Liu Wuxie said, pointing at the box placed at the center of the main hall and signaling that everyone could begin the test.

No one moved, as most of them found it humiliating, especially the Heaven Gaze Realm elders. The idea that a Void Realm junior dared to order them around left their faces stiff with displeasure.

“Liu Wuxie, I’ll put your little theory to the test. I’ll go first,” Elder Xue said as he walked over to the black box, which had a single opening large enough for one arm.

When Elder Xue reached in up to his elbow, he suddenly screamed, his body trembling as though struck by lightning, his face contorted in agony.

“What’s going on? Don’t tell me that Elder Xue is really a traitor!” The main hall instantly descended into chaos, and those who had questioned Liu Wuxie earlier fell silent. None of them had expected the Bodhi Fruit to be the Serpent Insect’s nemesis, truly.

“Control Elder Xue!” the palace lord said as he stepped forward, restraining Elder Xue, who clutched his head as pain twisted his features.

“Your turn,” Liu Wuxie said, sweeping his gaze across all the elders present as the smile at the corner of his lips deepened. Any elder who dared not submit to the test would lay bare their guilt, and those exposed would be subdued, just like Elder Xue.

No one stepped forward, and the elders exchanged uneasy glances. Even the Heaven Gaze Realm experts looked at a loss for words.

“Weren’t all of you so eager to question me earlier? What’s wrong? You don’t even dare to touch the Bodhi Fruit now? Or are you afraid everyone will see you for the traitors you are?” Liu Wuxie mocked, and many elders’ faces turned visibly pale.

If the palace lord hadn’t been present, someone would’ve already struck Liu Wuxie with a killing blow.

“I’ll go next,” Ding Yuan said as he stepped forward and slid his arm into the box. He waited for about a breath, and when nothing happened, he withdrew his hand.

“I’m fine. For the safety of the Nine Dragon Palace, we should test everyone to prove our innocence,” Ding Yuan said. The existence of traitors within the Nine Dragon Palace was a grave matter, and they had to identify them as quickly as possible.

Ding Yuan began to urge the elders one by one, and there was nothing shameful about taking the test. Only someone with a guilty conscience would refuse it.

The palace lord then released his aura at the Quasi-Immortal Realm, letting it bear down over the entire main hall.

“I’ll go next,” another elder said, stepping out and extending his right hand into the box to touch the Bodhi Fruit inside. When he sensed nothing unusual, he quietly walked to the right side of the hall.

To prove their innocence, more elders stepped out from the crowd and moved toward the box. Those who had already undergone the test stood to the right, while those who had yet to undergo it remained on the left.

With several hundred elders present, the testing progressed quickly. Although many of them felt unhappy, they could only bear with it for the sake of the Nine Dragon Palace. Once all the traitors were rooted out, they could settle the score with Liu Wuxie afterward.

Roughly fifteen minutes later, the testing finally ended, and no one else let out a scream.

“Palace Lord, the test is complete, and the facts speak for themselves. Only Elder Xue is a traitor, and shouldn’t we execute him now?” An elder with cultivation at the pinnacle of the Heaven Gaze Realm stepped forward from the crowd.

“Elder Yu is right. Since we’ve found the traitors, this farce should come to an end now,” the other elders echoed one after another.

Elder Yu held a higher status in the sect than even Elder Xue. As the last elder withdrew his hand from the box, Liu Wuxie and the palace lord exchanged a glance, amusement flickering in their eyes.

“No hurry. The testing might be over, but this matter has yet to come to an end,” the palace lord said, signaling for everyone to stay calm.

“Chang Wu, you can come out now,” Liu Wuxie said, and Chang Wu stepped out from the side entrance of the main hall.

The sight left everyone completely stunned. They began to doubt their own eyes, as they had clearly watched Elder Xue kill Chang Wu.

“Palace lord, what’s the meaning of this? Didn’t Chang Wu die?” The main hall erupted into another uproar. No one could figure out what the palace lord intended, or how Chang Wu could be alive after they witnessed his death.

“Chang Wu never died, and what you saw was only an illusion. The real traitors are still among you. Considering we were once companions, I’ll give you one last chance to step out now,” said the palace lord as his gaze swept across the main hall. His voice grew colder with every word, and the chill seeped into everyone’s bones, leaving them uneasy.

“What’s going on? Didn’t we touch the Bodhi Fruit? No one reacted to it aside from Elder Xue,” the elders muttered, and even the Heaven Gaze Realm experts looked utterly confused.

“Palace lord, just reveal it already. Who’s the traitor? Once I find out, I’ll wipe out his entire family,” said a hot-tempered elder, no longer able to restrain himself as he urged the palace lord to name the traitors directly.

“The traitor will soon be revealed. Aren’t you all curious why there was no reaction when everyone touched the Bodhi Fruit?” Liu Wuxie asked with a smile. He and the palace lord worked together seamlessly.

“Liu Wuxie, stop beating around the bush and tell us what’s going on!” Ding Yuan asked, his confusion mirroring that of the others.

Hundreds of gazes focused on the calm and composed Liu Wuxie as he slowly rose to his feet. Step by step, he descended toward the black box.

Huang stayed close to Liu Wuxie the entire way, preventing anyone from launching a surprise attack. He even released his aura, forming a defensive barrier around him.

They had forged the black box from special materials and inscribed it with Quasi-Immortal seals that prevented anyone’s divine sense from probing its interior.

Right before everyone’s eyes, Liu Wuxie drew a dagger and sliced open the box, revealing its contents to all.

“This…” A wave of exclamations rippled through the hall as they saw what lay within. Some elders looked amused, some wore solemn expressions, and others felt the entire situation had turned absurd.

“How could this be? We’ve all been tricked!” Many of them realized someone had played them, and only now did they understand that they had already gone too far to undo it.

“This is brilliant! Liu Wuxie is terrifyingly genius,” someone muttered after finally seeing through the trick.