Chapter 1273: Investigation Results (Part 2)

Chapter 1273: Chapter 1273: Investigation Results (Part 2)

"Then let’s talk about our main event from last night: any discoveries at the Hongjun Sword Furnace!" Pei Yan, who had his arrangements with the White Deer Institute, shifted the topic after saying these words.

Xiang Zixiong shook his head helplessly upon hearing the question and said, "Compared to the White Deer Institute, dealing with the Hongjun Sword Furnace is much more difficult! Although their sect leader ordered cooperation during the interrogation, most disciples were perfunctory throughout the process. We were only able to broadly inquire about the events following last night’s incident. Whether it’s true will require time for slow verification."

"What about the death of Elder Lian in the secret chamber, any findings?" Pei Yan asked lazily while reclining in his chair.

"The Immortal Palace combined efforts with the Embroidered Robe Envoy to examine him, and there are two possibilities. The first is a sudden sneak attack by a master touching the limits of the Heavenly Dao, skilled in the manipulation of source Qi and meridian operations, leading to a rupture of his meridians. The second could be self-inflicted, causing his meridians to shatter. Based on yesterday’s situation, we lean toward the latter," Xiang Zixiong responded truthfully.

This outcome was within Pei Yan’s expectations. He stood up and continued to inquire, "And what about him as a person? Who sent him to guard the secret chamber last night?"

"According to his fellow brothers, Elder Lian Yazi wasn’t someone who climbed the ranks from an outer disciple of the Hongjun Sword Furnace. He was once a Sword Cultivator but a Loose Cultivator with decent qualifications who broke free from the Three Corpses Realm into reincarnation relying on his ancestral Cultivation Technique. However, he felt that he couldn’t achieve the great Dao this way, so he joined the Hongjun Sword Furnace. As he brought an ancestral sword manual of considerable quality within the Cultivation Technique, the Hongjun Sword Furnace, after investigating his background, found no issues and accepted him into the sect. Since joining, Elder Lian has been low-key, avoiding disputes, handling matters prudently and treating others kindly, hence he had a good reputation within the sect. Additionally, he has indeed made significant contributions to the Hongjun Sword Furnace over the years. In terms of strength, background, and seniority, his position as Elder was unquestioned within the Hongjun Sword Furnace. As for last night..."

Xiang Zixiong paused, took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, then continued, "Elder Liu Xuanji said that initially he didn’t consider the issue of the secret chamber’s Teleportation Array but instructed his disciples to watch over the main Teleportation Array visible in the separate courtyard. It was Elder Lian who actively suggested being vigilant about someone potentially using the secret Teleportation Array, causing problems. Given his usual prudence, Elder Liu didn’t think much and dispatched him to strictly guard the secret chamber Teleportation Array. But unexpectedly, it led to such a consequence."

"Heh heh! Anyway, the person is dead, whether it’s suicide out of guilt or forced self-elimination to conceal the sect’s crimes, the living say whatever they want!" Pei Yan sneered mockingly after listening to this account, then he asked, "Has the issue with Ten-Eyed Well been investigated? Is the timing of changing the Spirit Stone purely coincidental, part of a standard routine operation?"

Upon hearing Pei Yan’s question, Xiang Zixiong secretly admired how formidable the Investigation Hall’s people were. The Embroidered Robe Envoy supposedly oversees other sects collecting intelligence, but actually before emerging publicly, they were all secretly cultivated confidants by Lin Ruxue. Other than having superior resources and Cultivation Techniques, they were no different from ordinary cultivators. Regarding inquiries and interrogations, they too were learning on the job, cobbled together as needed. Despite the Embroidered Robe Envoy’s disdain for many investigators’ capabilities, they secretly respected their investigation processes, interrogation keypoints, techniques, etc., which was one of the reasons why Lin Ruxue brought the Investigation Hall into play upon noticing this. Even their commander instructed subordinates to respectfully supplement their shortcomings by learning from the Investigation Hall. Many of the issues pointed out, like Pei Yan’s suggestion, were flaws Director Mei identified when cooperating with investigations. If it were up to them alone, they would likely be floundering aimlessly before considering these points.

"Hmm, no! Reminded by Mr. Mei, I checked previous records of Ten-Eyed Well’s Spirit Stone rotation. Their timing for replacing Spirit Stones and refilling dye is regular, about seasonal intervals. The last exchange was just a month and a half ago," Xiang Zixiong replied earnestly after his musings.

"Oh! Does Hongjun Sword Furnace have any explanation for this?"

"The disciples on guard at the Teleportation Array said that it was coincidental that Elder Yang happened to conduct an inspection of sect affairs there that night. He discovered a crack on the Spirit Stone embedded in the Ten-Eyed Well, causing Spiritual Qi leakage. Under his orders, the disciples guarding the array replaced the Spirit Stone on the Ten-Eyed Well. During this time, the secret chamber’s array was activated, but due to the loss of source Qi from the Spirit Stones, nothing was recorded by the Ten-Eyed Well."

Pei Yan smirked coldly with disdain: "Such coincidence? Heh heh, do you believe it, Commander Xiang?"

Xiang Zixiong chuckled along with Pei Yan and shook his head in response. Pei Yan tapped his fingers on the table, scrutinizing his phone handed over by Xiang Zixiong, from Mei Simiao, repeatedly watching the entrance and exit recorded at the White Deer Institute, then he looked at Xiang Zixiong and asked, "Are Elder Yang and his disciple detained? And they mentioned the Ten-Eyed Well issue stemmed from a cracked Spirit Stone! What about the replaced Spirit Stone?"

"Uh...! Elder Yang and his disciples are detained, but should we also investigate the replaced Spirit Stone?" This time, Xiang Zixiong was stumped and responded uneasily.

"Of course! How else would you know if what they said is true or false!" Pei Yan raised an eyebrow and scolded.

"I’ll get someone to handle it right away!" Xiang Zixiong, realizing his oversight, was about to give orders but his actions were halted by a voice coming from outside.

"No need! Director Mei has already detained that Spirit Stone!"

The speaker was Wang Wenze, who walked in from outside. Last night, he didn’t participate in the search operation but kept watch at the Mo Sect. Today, he was full of energy and was the first to sign up for assistance when Director Mei sent people to aid the investigation in the morning.

"Is your leg okay? Already running around?" Pei Yan, seeing his friend, immediately put on a smile and teased.

Wang Wenze ignored him, first grabbing Pei Yan’s tea and gulping it down, then unsatisfied, picked up a Coke from the table, drinking more than half the bottle heartily, wiping his mouth and disdainfully commented, "This drink is more refreshing, stop pretending to be sophisticated like them drinking tea! Phew! Running around all day tires me out!" As he slouched into a chair, he patted his injured leg and laughed, "You know whether your treatment of my leg works or not, I only get affected by residual Sword Qi when channeling source Qi, needing a few days for the complete elimination! Besides that, normal actions aren’t hindered at all."

"Alright! If you say it’s fine, then it is! How’s that Spirit Stone, any issues?"