The Sect Leader Dares to Kill?

Liu Yan'er practically fled in a crawling, stumbling scramble.

She ran outside the Cave Abode and clumsily crushed a communication talisman. Then a streak of sword-light flashed across the horizon, and Xiao Yichen arrived before her.

Before Xiao Yichen could speak, Liu Yan'er threw herself into his arms like a rain-drenched bird, trembling as she clung tightly to him.

A trace of heartache crossed Xiao Yichen's cold face as he asked, "What happened to you? Why did you crush a communication talisman in the sect for no reason? I told you that thing was quite precious and should be used at critical moments."

"Master!" Liu Yan'er said fearfully. "The Sect Leader killed someone. She killed Senior Brother Fan!"

"What?" Xiao Yichen froze, then shook his head slightly. "Don't talk nonsense. Though the Sect Leader is narrow-minded and jealous of the worthy and capable, she still knows the bigger picture. She couldn't possibly lay hands on disciples of this sect. Besides, she has always doted on Fan Bailu. How could she kill him?"

"It's true, it's true, Master!" Liu Yan'er was so anxious that she could not even summon her usual foxlike charm. "If you don't believe me, go take a look. He's in the Cave Abode—Senior Brother Fan's corpse is still lying on the ground!"

Xiao Yichen frowned slightly. He did not believe Luo Qingdie would kill a fellow disciple, but neither did he wish to suspect Liu Yan'er of lying. Thinking there might be some misunderstanding, he said, "Fine. I'll go in and take a look."

Liu Yan'er brightened and hurriedly pulled Xiao Yichen over.

When they arrived at the Cave Abode, Xiao Yichen first saw Chu Lu seated at the very front. He merely raised an eyebrow at Chu Lu's utterly changed appearance, showing little reaction, but when he saw the corpse on the ground, his pupils shrank slightly.

"Luo Qingdie, what is going on?" Xiao Yichen asked with a frown. "How did Fan Bailu die? Who killed him?"

"I did." Chu Lu propped his cheek up with one hand and scrutinized Xiao Yichen before him. He was quite pleased with this scene of the young one dying and the old one arriving afterward. "He defied his superior and dared attack me. He deserved to die."

Xiao Yichen's already cold face turned even frostier. "When I first heard Yan'er say you had killed Fan Bailu, I did not believe it at all. I thought that although you had many flaws, you at least understood the difference between right and wrong. But I never expected you to be such a wolf-hearted, dog-lunged thing."

Chu Lu was not angry in the slightest. Being called a beast by a beast was only laughable.

"So what do you intend to do?" Chu Lu revealed an eager smile.

"You violated sect rules, so naturally the Disciplinary Hall will deal with you. I will summon the elders at once. You had better not try to run, lest you pile mistake upon mistake."

"Sure." Chu Lu considered it, then agreed.

Xiao Yichen pulled Liu Yan'er away at a brisk pace.

At that moment, Luo Qingdie emerged.

Although her body had been possessed and she had lost control of it, she could still sense what was happening outside. Thus, she had witnessed everything that had just occurred.

The instant Fan Bailu was killed, she instinctively felt a pang of heartache.

But she quickly remembered how, in her previous life, she had poured her heart and soul into him, only for Fan Bailu to literally dig out her heart and lungs. All that remained in her heart was delight.

She had emerged mainly out of concern.

"Chu Lu, is this your method?" Luo Qingdie asked worriedly. "It may look satisfying, but it does not seem to have accomplished much, does it? Forget revenge—my reputation is practically being ruined by you."

"Don't worry. Everything has only just begun," Chu Lu said calmly.

"Huh?"

Chu Lu tossed aside the broken sword in his hand and considered his next move.

Killing Fan Bailu had merely been a test.

Though he had heard the whole story from Luo Qingdie, as the saying went, hearing is illusory while seeing is believing. He still needed to witness things himself before he could determine who deserved to die and who did not.

And this trial at the Disciplinary Hall was a perfect opportunity.

Everyone who did not stand on his side...

Chu Lu narrowed his eyes.

—All of them deserved to die!

At the Disciplinary Hall, the three elders on duty were taking advantage of their rare free time to chat. Their topic happened to be Liu Yan'er.

"Look, this is the scented sachet Little Yan'er gave me. They say the dried flowers and herbs inside were all personally gathered and prepared by her."

"Oh, come on. Look at mine. This is the protective charm Little Yan'er gave me. She stitched every thread and every seam herself. She even said she hoped I would remain safe and sound for my whole life."

"My Pixiu pendant is the most precious. It's jade—jade!"

The three old men, whose combined ages totaled three or four thousand years, began bickering with one another.

"Mine is better."

"Mine is the best."

"Little Yan'er likes me the most!"

The three old men argued without end, but how could such a matter ever have a right or wrong answer? Exhausted from arguing, all three eventually gave up and began sighing.

"Ah, how was Little Yan'er raised? How did she become so lovable?"

Just then, Xiao Yichen strode in.

The three elders immediately sat up straight, leaving no trace of their previous laziness.

The Grand Elder asked, "Elder Xiao, why have you come?"

"Something happened in the sect."

At those words, the three men's expressions immediately turned even more serious.

For Xiao Yichen to hurry over and report it, this had to be a major matter.

"What happened?" the Second Elder asked.

"The Sect Leader, Luo Qingdie, suddenly went mad and killed her disciple, Fan Bailu," Xiao Yichen said.

The moment they heard this, the three elders' expressions became strange. They looked at one another, then burst out laughing.

"Hahaha. Who would have thought Elder Xiao, with such a cold temperament, had learned to joke as well?"

"The Sect Leader killed her own disciple? Her? Hahaha."

"Enough. It is not as though we have never seen the Sect Leader get beaten by her disciple. If she dared to fight back, that would be wonderful. We have always felt that the Sect Leader spoiled that disciple of hers too much. That is why he is still only at Foundation Establishment."

"Elders," Xiao Yichen said expressionlessly, "do I look like someone who jokes?"

At that, the three elders' expressions changed again.

"But even so, this is simply too..."

"It's true." Liu Yan'er poked her head out then. "Yan'er saw it with her own eyes. Yan'er was scared to death. I think the Sect Leader has gone mad!"

The three fell silent.

"Fine. Where is the Sect Leader? And where is the corpse? Take us there," the Grand Elder said.

"She is in the Cave Abode. Please follow me."

When the group arrived at the Cave Abode, the three elders saw the corpse on the ground and Chu Lu waiting there as though she had nothing to fear. Their expressions were especially spectacular.

"You finally came." Chu Lu looked at them. He had waited until he was getting a little impatient.

"Sect Leader, what exactly is this... No, there is no need to say more." The Grand Elder looked complicatedly at the corpse on the ground, then at Chu Lu, feeling as though he suddenly no longer knew her.

"The dead deserve respect. First, take in the body, then..." the Grand Elder said solemnly, "we ask the Sect Leader to come to the Disciplinary Hall and explain herself!"