Chapter 422: Opening

In the forest, Jiang Ran picked up the Young Manor Lord’s head and examined it closely.

With a WHOOSH, something flew over.

Jiang Ran paid it no mind, and the object landed beside the Young Manor Lord’s corpse.

It was another head.

“What are you looking at?”

Tang Huayi’s voice reached his ears.

Jiang Ran said softly,

“There are wounds.”

The real Young Manor Lord’s head in his hands had several wounds on it.

The Young Manor Lord had managed to disperse Jiang Ran’s terrifying attack with his own unique art, but it had left him covered in wounds from head to toe.

His face was naturally no exception.

“Then how about this one on the ground?”

Tang Huayi came closer. The head on the ground belonged to the Young Manor Lord’s body double.

Jiang Ran had brought this head with him when he came looking for the Young Manor Lord.

“Forget it.”

Jiang Ran shook his head. “The real can’t be fake, and the fake can’t be real. We can’t treat the people from the Court like complete idiots.”

“Mm, have Dao Wuming and the others arrived?”

“They have. They’re with the people from Blood Saber Hall, besieging Heterodox Manor.”

As Tang Huayi said this, she glanced at Jiang Ran.

“Actually, I don’t think you needed to go to all this trouble.”

“After today’s battle, you could have taken the Jiaowei with perfect justification… Why do all this extra work?”

“There’s something that’s been bothering me.”

As Jiang Ran spoke, he took a bottle from his robes.

Tang Huayi was not entirely unfamiliar with its contents.

Effort-Saver.

It was an excellent concoction for destroying a corpse and eliminating all traces.

It could obliterate a body, leaving nothing behind.

But before sprinkling it on the Young Manor Lord’s body, Jiang Ran searched the corpse from top to bottom.

He didn’t find much.

A few pieces of loose silver, silver notes worth about a hundred taels, a bottle of Antitoxic Pills, and nothing else.

Jiang Ran squatted and stared for a moment, his brows slightly furrowed.

“What are you looking for?”

Tang Huayi asked.

Jiang Ran’s gaze suddenly landed on her.

“In Wenxiang Forest, your Demon Sect Leader appeared and gave the Young Manor Lord a Token with the characters for ‘Free’ on it.”

“What is this Token used for?”

“Your Sect Leader said it was a token of trust… What is it used for?”

“Oh, so that’s what you’re looking for.”

Tang Huayi had a sudden realization, then shook her head slightly.

“You’re talking about the ‘Free Celestial Demon Order’. In our Demon Sect, it is indeed an extraordinary token of authority.”

“It can be used to mobilize the Seven Emotions Hall, the Six Desires Hall, the Inquiry Heart Studio, and their subordinate branches.”

“The Sect Leader gave this to Heterodox Manor?”

Her tone revealed considerable surprise.

Jiang Ran shot her a skeptical glance.

“You really don’t know?”

“I’ve been by your side ever since Cangzhou Prefecture. What could I possibly know?”

“Right now, I’m like a kite they’ve let go, with the string cut… To avoid making you suspicious, they haven’t even allowed me the slightest contact.”

“The last time the Sect Leader appeared in Wenxiang Forest, I was planning to meet with him, but that old geezer actually avoided me. It’s outrageous!”

Tang Huayi sounded quite indignant as she said this.

Jiang Ran noticed, however, that the girl didn’t seem to show much respect when talking about the Demon Sect Leader.

He couldn’t help but smile.

“Speaking of which, I haven’t asked yet—what exactly are your and Tang Shiqing’s statuses within the Demon Sect?”

“Our statuses are incredibly high!”

Tang Huayi raised her head proudly. “We are the Saintesses of the Demon Sect, second to one, above all others!”

“Forgive my bluntness, but I don’t see it…”

Jiang Ran was speechless. ‘With a Saintess this unreliable, it’s no wonder the Demon Sect is doomed to fall.’

“Looking down on me, are you?”

Tang Huayi shot him a glare. “Believe it or not.”

Jiang Ran ignored her and started considering another problem.

‘Why would the Demon Sect Leader give the Free Celestial Demon Order to the Young Manor Lord?’

‘The Young Manor Lord appeared in Benma County to find Duan Dongliu, but ended up with the Free Celestial Demon Order.’

‘According to the Demon Sect Leader, Duan Dongliu is very likely in Jinyang Prefecture.’

‘Could there be a connection between the two?’

‘Now the Free Celestial Demon Order is nowhere to be found… Who did the Young Manor Lord give it to?’

‘The Manor Lord of Heterodox Manor? Or… someone else entirely?’

After mulling it over, he sprinkled the Effort-Saver on the Young Manor Lord’s corpse.

He completely destroyed the body.

‘From this moment on, Man Shengming and the Jiaowei zither are both missing.’

‘They will once again become a legend in the martial world…’

‘Many people will try their hardest to find them, but unfortunately, they never will.’

“You went to all this trouble. What is it that’s really bothering you?”

Tang Huayi looked at Jiang Ran.

Jiang Ran pondered for a moment, then said,

“Because to this day, the true mastermind behind this whole affair has yet to show their face.”

“So, you plan to pull yourself out of the light and into the shadows?”

Tang Huayi said pensively.

“Let’s go. Time to head back.”

Jiang Ran just smiled and turned to leave.

“Wait for me! First, tell me what you’re thinking.”

Tang Huayi quickly chased after him.

Of course, before leaving, Jiang Ran did one more thing.

He destroyed the fake Jiaowei zither.

…

…

「On Sunset Plateau, the great battle had now ceased.」

Strictly speaking, Jiang Ran had cast a net on Three Immortals Mountain today.

When the Young Manor Lord finally left with the Jiaowei zither, it was time to draw the net closed.

With Blood Saber Hall, Dao Wuming, and others moving from the outside in, and the martial arts experts on Sunset Plateau moving from the inside out…

…none of the fish in the net could escape.