Interrogation, Search!

"Battalion Commander Xie, these are the soldiers who returned from Sanmen Town."

Xiang Kun hurriedly said with a fawning smile.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Bei inwardly murmured, Just as I thought.

He had been wondering about it earlier.

Normally, the Death Squad Camp was a place other officers from other camps disdained to visit. Yet now, one had suddenly shown up for no reason. Most likely, he was Lin Jie's brother-in-law.

He had not expected it to truly be so.

He had learned some time ago that Lin Jie's brother-in-law was named Xie Kaiyue, the Battalion Commander of Dingzi Camp. The moment Xiang Kun addressed him as Battalion Commander Xie, Jiang Bei immediately understood everything.

"He came fast enough."

Jiang Bei pondered inwardly.

It seemed that after Xie Kaiyue had wiped out the Barbarians in Sanmen Town, he had discovered Lin Jie's corpse and come straight to the Death Squad Camp.

He believed Lin Jie had been killed by them.

Xie Kaiyue's gaze swept across Jiang Bei, Ye Fei, and the others. A fierce light bloomed in his eyes, chilling to the bone. "Lin Jie is dead. Did you know?"

"What? Lin Jie is dead?"

"He... he was killed by the Barbarians?"

As soon as those words fell, Ye Fei and the others' expressions changed. They exchanged glances, unable to believe it.

Jiang Bei's eyes widened as well, and even his lips trembled slightly. Then he clenched his fists. "I never thought Lin Jie... Those damned Barbarians!"

After asking the question, Xie Kaiyue immediately fixed his gaze on everyone's eyes, wanting to see who was genuinely surprised and who was hiding something.

Yet after staring them down, he found that not a single one of them showed any sign of concealment.

"Tell me everything that happened when you were in Sanmen Town, from beginning to end! You first. Everyone else, get outside!"

Xie Kaiyue pointed at Ye Fei and issued an order that allowed no objection.

Jiang Bei and the others withdrew from the tent.

"Xiang Kun, keep an eye on them. Don't let them slip away!"

Xie Kaiyue looked at Xiang Kun and said in a deep voice.

"Yes!"

Xiang Kun nodded repeatedly and walked out of the tent.

After leaving the tent, Xiang Kun could not help glancing at Jiang Bei, but quickly withdrew his gaze.

On the surface, Jiang Bei remained perfectly calm.

But inwardly, he could not help growing tense.

If Xie Kaiyue learned that Lin Jie had been killed by him, he would likely die in the Death Squad Camp today.

He had to keep up the act. He could not reveal the slightest weakness!

Xie Kaiyue interrogated Ye Fei inside. Once he was finished, he did not let Ye Fei leave. Instead, he stayed outside the tent and had Xiang Kun summon the next person.

Time passed quickly, and before long, two quarters of an hour had gone by.

Everyone before him had already entered the tent and given their explanations.

Now it was Jiang Bei's turn.

Jiang Bei entered the tent without changing expression and saw the somewhat gloomy-faced Xie Kaiyue.

Clearly, Xie Kaiyue had gained nothing from the earlier interrogations.

"What is your name?"

Xie Kaiyue asked coldly.

"Reporting to my lord, my name is Jiang Bei."

Jiang Bei replied.

"So you are Jiang Bei!"

At those words, Xie Kaiyue's brows immediately furrowed. A cold glint flashed in his eyes as an oppressive aura involuntarily radiated from him and swept toward Jiang Bei.

With his Eighth Rank cultivation, Jiang Bei could naturally withstand this pressure.

But he knew that now was the time to hide his true abilities.

His legs went weak, and his face turned pale.

Xie Kaiyue asked in a deep voice, "They said earlier that you encountered a Barbarian patrol and even fought them. How did you escape?"

"It was a close call," Jiang Bei said, his face pale and his voice trembling faintly. "At that time, there was only one Barbarian on my side. The others had been drawn west of town by some strange commotion. The Barbarian I fought had not yet entered the ranks, so I was fortunate enough to escape."

"And then?" Xie Kaiyue pressed.

"I had wanted to immediately notify Lin Jie and the others, but that group of Barbarians had already headed west. The situation was critical then, so I could only... withdraw first to protect myself."

Jiang Bei continued, enduring the pressure.

Xie Kaiyue's pupils contracted. His gaze was like a blade as he locked onto Jiang Bei's eyes, trying to find the slightest trace of panic or concealment.

Yet there was nothing.

Even an old hand in the world would inevitably reveal flaws if he forced himself to remain calm. Jiang Bei was not even twenty—how could he possibly be so flawless?

Moreover, his account completely matched what the others had said before.

Could it truly not have been him?

"Jiang Bei, if you do not wish to die, you had better tell the truth!"

Xie Kaiyue stepped forward. His figure bore down like a mountain, and his shadow completely enveloped Jiang Bei.

"My lord, every word I said is true! Does my lord suspect... that an ordinary soldier like me killed Lin Jie?" Jiang Bei raised his head and asked. Then, as if remembering something, he lowered his voice. "My lord, may I boldly ask... aside from Lin Jie, did any of the other brothers survive?"

Xie Kaiyue gave Jiang Bei a long look. "They are all dead."

"I only just entered the Ninth Rank, while Brother Lin Jie had been at Ninth Rank Minor Training for many years. Even if I truly had murderous intentions, how could I have killed him? Besides, the few of them were always together. How could I possibly have that ability?"

Jiang Bei's tone was urgent but clear, every word striking the ground like iron.

Before his words had even faded, Xie Kaiyue's hand shot out like a venomous snake and clamped down on Jiang Bei's shoulder.

Jiang Bei felt a sharp pain surge through him.

But Jiang Bei gritted his teeth and endured it without moving in the slightest.

A moment later, Xie Kaiyue withdrew his hand. His expression changed, and the doubt in his heart deepened.

"He really only just entered Ninth Rank Minor Training?"

He examined Jiang Bei once more.

With such strength, even a sneak attack would make it extremely difficult to kill Lin Jie, much less with others standing nearby.

Could it be that Lin Jie and the others had truly encountered the Barbarian patrol by chance while passing west of town during their retreat and died at the Barbarians' hands?

And Jiang Bei, after turning back to retrieve something, had fought a Barbarian, immediately retreated when he saw things going wrong, and never even approached the East Temple area—thus narrowly escaping death?

At that thought, an idea suddenly struck Xie Kaiyue. His sharp gaze turned toward Jiang Bei, and regardless of whether Jiang Bei was willing, he stepped forward and searched him directly.

Yet after searching him, he found nothing.

Still unwilling to give up, he strode out of the tent and ordered Xiang Kun, "Where is Jiang Bei's barracks? Take me there!"

"This way, Battalion Commander Xie. Please follow me."

Xiang Kun hurriedly led the way.

The group arrived at the barracks.

Xie Kaiyue barged directly into Jiang Bei's quarters and personally rummaged through the place, searching every inch inside and out.

Yet he still found nothing.

He then searched Ye Fei and the others' quarters one after another, but the result remained the same.

Xie Kaiyue's brows were tightly furrowed, and his face grew increasingly grim as he clenched his fists.

He had found nothing—Lin Jie and the others most likely had indeed died at the Barbarians' hands.

Jiang Bei stood to one side, outwardly calm, but inwardly he secretly breathed a sigh of relief, as though he had survived a great calamity.

Fortunately, before leaving, he had been cautious enough to secretly hide the "Cloud Shadow Steps" manual in an unnoticed corner of the camp.

Otherwise, this time, he truly would have been doomed.