Chapter 97
At the main peak, in the Sect Master’s hall.
At this moment, the elders and disciples of the main peak and the Hall of Enforcement had gathered.
Sect Master Gu Changqing sat with an imposing aura, his emotions not showing on his face, while Jiang Chen stood in the center of the hall.
After looking around, Jiang Chen did not see any Supreme Elder’s figure.
With such a big commotion, those old immortals must have noticed, and their absence meant they wanted to leave the matter entirely in Gu Changqing’s hands.
Gu Changqing looked dignified with stern gaze.
After glancing at Jiang Chen, he asked in a cold voice, “Jiang Chen, do you know your crime?”
“…”
Jiang Chen didn’t respond.
This made Gu Changqing frown.Seeing this, Li Fadu stepped forward and said, “Sect Master, there’s no need to listen to his excuses! Jiang Chen harmed his fellow disciples, and this was witnessed by a disciple of the Ninth Peak! The evidence is conclusive!”
“Where is the witness?” Gu Changqing nodded.
As his voice fell, a disciple from the Hall of Enforcement brought in a Ninth Peak disciple who was pale and terrified.
Gu Changqing glanced at him, noting his lower realm cultivation and age of eighteen.
He immediately understood that this must be a newly joined disciple of the Ninth Peak, and very likely a menial disciple of the Ninth Peak.
“What’s your name?” Gu Changqing inquired.
Hearing this, the Ninth Peak disciple trembled and hurriedly replied, “Disciple’s name is Lu Lin, a menial disciple of the Ninth Peak.”
“Lu Lin, did you personally witness Jiang Chen knocking two fellow disciples off the cliff?” Gu Changqing asked again.
Lu Lin clenched his teeth and didn’t reply.
This made Li Fadu’s eyes widen, and he immediately scolded, “Lu Lin! The Sect Master is asking you a question. You will be punished for concealing a crime if you don’t tell the truth!”
Lu Lin’s face turned even paler with fright, but he still remained silent.
“There’s no need to be afraid. I will ensure your and your clan’s safety,” Gu Changqing said reassuringly.
Lu Lin shook his head slightly and finally spoke, “To report to the Sect Master, it’s not that I fear Jiang Chen, but this matter pertains to the Ninth Peak. Without the Peak Master’s permission, I cannot answer.”
Gu Changqing frowned again.
He had always known that Xiao Hongyi treated the disciples of the Ninth Peak extremely well and seldom punished them harshly.
But he had not expected that in the eyes of this Ninth Peak disciple, even his status as the Sect Master was disregarded!
How audacious!
“How dare you!”
Upon hearing this, Li Fadu scolded again.
As he spoke, he intentionally stimulated his vital energy, and when his voice reached Lu Lin’s ears, it caused Lu Lin’s blood to flow in reverse, with strands of fresh blood trickling down from the corners of his mouth.
Even so, he still refused to speak!
Just as Li Fadu’s gaze was turning cold, preparing to punish Lu Lin for harboring a criminal…
“Enough, just ask me directly,” Jiang Chen suddenly said.
“Oh?”
Gu Changqing was somewhat surprised.
He inwardly scoffed, wondering if Jiang Chen had changed his ways and did not want to implicate his fellow disciples.
“Don’t misunderstand. Even if you were to kill Lu Lin right here, I wouldn’t be moved in the slightest. But it will surely alarm Master if this continues to drag on. Neither you nor I want to see the Master appear,” Jiang Chen replied indifferently.
These words left Gu Changqing confused.
He indeed did not want Xiao Hongyi to appear, knowing that she would likely be biased based on his understanding of her.
This did not align with his plan.
As the Sect Master, Gu Changqing knew where the hidden dangers of the sect lay.
He had intended to take advantage of Xiao Hongyi’s seclusion to eliminate these dangers.
In doing so, he would have made a significant achievement as the Sect Master, and even if Xiao Hongyi went mad afterward, many Supreme Elders would stand by him.
But the question was, why did Jiang Chen also not wish for Xiao Hongyi to appear?
What Gu Changqing did not know was Jiang Chen did not want Xiao Hongyi to be caught in a dilemma nor did he want to see her in anguish.
The same old saying. This woman was unaware of herself.
She thought she was strong, but in reality, she was weak inside.
She thought she could be ruthless, but whether it was destroying his Core Formation or expelling him from the sect, she would end up crying behind closed doors.
She would be overjoyed for days and nights about Jiang Chen’s change, and also deeply pained by his misdeeds.
All this meant she lived in conflict and contradiction every day, tormented and wounded.
Nine cycles of reincarnation.
Jiang Chen had once hated Xiao Hongyi, hating that as his Master, she was unwilling to truly believe in him.
But soon, he came to understand.
It wasn’t that Xiao Hongyi didn’t believe in him, but that the heavens wouldn’t allow it.
Because as soon as Xiao Hongyi sensed his change, there would inevitably be irrefutable ‘evidence’ of his misdeeds.
This time was no diffferent.
Nine cycles over a thousand years, it was Jiang Chen who was tormented, but how could Xiao Hongyi have had it easy?
To be specific, Jiang Chen tried to defy the heavens in nine cycles of reincarnation, and in fact, so did Xiao Hongyi.
The difference between them was that Jiang Chen retained his memories, knowing that all this was the will of the heavens.
Xiao Hongyi, on the other hand, did not know this and was passively hoping her disciple would turn toward goodness, thus repeatedly shielding him and wanting to believe.
Therefore, even right before Jiang Chen’s death.
This Master, who kept talking about ‘cleaning the sect’, still cried bitterly, full of self-reproach and pain.
This was her biggest difference from other characters like Jiang Lianyue.
And Jiang Chen, who had the memories and understood everything, had gone through nine cycles without being able to defy the heavens successfully.
Under such circumstances, how could he expect Xiao Hongyi to be able to?
Jiang Chen had always known that his Master had never actively given up on him.
So in this life, even if his heart had completely cooled, even if he was determined to be a villain, he would still not give up on his Master!
He would do everything in his power to spare her from all suffering.
No matter what the outcome of this matter would be, it was better for Xiao Hongyi not to know rather than letting her find out about this and protect him in her conflict and suffer in her indignation.
“Then I’ll ask you again, Jiang Chen, do you know your crime?” Gu Changqing’s voice rose again.
“What does it matter if I know my crime or not?” Jiang Chen retorted.
“If you admit your crime, I can turn a blind eye, and you’ll only need to be expelled from the sect! If not…”
Gu Changqing paused, his voice growing colder, “If not, with conclusive evidence, I will destroy your cultivation!”
“Haha! Destroy my cultivation?”
Jiang Chen suddenly burst into laughter, “You? Are you worthy?”
Hearing these words, even Gu Changqing, with his deep composure, could no longer contain the anger in his heart!
He stood up abruptly, looking down from a high position, and said fiercely, “Jiang Chen! Don’t think that just because you are the sole heir of the Jiang Family, you can act lawlessly! Do you think your Jiang Family can come to the Jiuyan Sect and behead me?!”
“Sect Master, you misunderstand me,” Jiang Chen shook his head.
Hearing this, Gu Changqing also reined in his anger.
After all, he was the Sect Master and could not lose his composure in front of everyone.
Moreover, being too aggressive could indeed lead to consequences beyond his control.
But just as he was considering whether to directly convict Jiang Chen…
“What I meant by you misunderstande is that if one day, a hundred members of the Jiang Family, eighty-two retainers, and three thousand six hundred Purple Riders descend upon the Jiuyan Sect, then it won’t just be you who is beheaded, but the entire Jiuyan Sect!”
Jiang Chen’s voice was as malevolent as a demon’s.
【 Host’s actions conform to the villain’s character setting, reward: Phoenix Blood Essence】
“Boom!”
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone felt as if thunder had exploded in their minds!
This Jiang Chen, he was actually threatening to annihilate the Jiuyan Sect?!
So audacious!
Before the crowd could rebuke him, twelve powerful presences suddenly appeared, descending from above as if to crush Jiang Chen into submission, but ultimately, they withdrew.
Seeing this, everyone felt as if they had been doused with cold water, instantly sobering up.
They were very clear. If it really came to a fight to the death before the Imperial Dynasty took action, the Jiang Family indeed had the power to annihilate the Jiuyan Sect!
“Huff.”
Gu Changqing slowly exhaled a breath and calmed down.
Since Jiang Chen would rather die than have his cultivation destroyed, then expelling him from the sect would suffice.
After all, his goal was only to help the Jiuyan Sect eliminate a hidden danger.
He was about to say something when he saw a peak disciple rush in, panicked.
“Sect Master, it’s terrible! Jiang Lianyue, Lin Mubai, Qingning, and a big White Tiger are attacking the main peak!”
“What?!” Gu Changqing was shocked.
This group of madmen is utterly insane!
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