Confrontation at the Ancestral Hall, Qing Wan's Wager Reveals Disguise

I stared at the jade bottle in his hand. The Ninth-grade Marrow Condensing Pill glowed warmly under the candlelight. The incense had barely finished burning, its last wisp of smoke just dissipating. The people in the hall rose and left one after another, their footsteps fading into the distance, leaving only him and me standing there.

I didn't put away the Medicine Cauldron.

He knew what I was waiting for.

As soon as the elders' figures disappeared at the end of the porch, I made my move. My body flickered, and I had already circled behind the offering table, using the tall ancestral tablet as cover to get close to his back. A silver needle slid out from my sleeve, pressing against the carotid artery on his neck. The force was light, but enough to make him aware.

"Three years of feigning madness, hiding your strength to this extent, what exactly are you after?" My voice was kept very low, almost brushing against his ear.

He didn't dodge.

He didn't even turn his head.

He just slowly raised his hand, fingers spread, and gently grasped the needle tip. His skin broke, and blood flowed down his palm, dripping onto the bluestone floor with a faint tap.

Then he spoke, his voice slightly hoarse, "Miss Ye's needles are sharper than the Blood Demon Sect's blades."

My heart clenched violently.

Blood Demon Sect—those three words were like a red-hot iron wire, instantly piercing my mind. The chase that night at the end of the black market alley, the poisonous mist, the puppet faces carved with the features of righteous disciples, that scene had never been mentioned to anyone. Even the Ji Family's higher-ups thought I was just an orphaned daughter from a branch family, stranded in a foreign land.

But he knew.

I still didn't loosen my grip. Instead, I pushed the silver needle forward half an inch, closer to deeper meridians, "How could you know?"

He finally turned his head, his gaze falling into the depths of my pupils, as if trying to see through all my disguises. The candlelight in the ancestral hall flickered in his eyes, reflecting a faint golden glint that vanished in an instant.

"You thought you were investigating me?" he said in a low voice, "Or have you forgotten who you are?"

I remained silent.

But he continued, "You went to the Forbidden Ground last night not for the medicinal ingredients, nor for the materials. You were drawn by that Remnant Dao fluctuation—because you sensed the aura of a kindred spirit. The Primordial Blood Phoenix Body is naturally sensitive to anomalies in the world, isn't it?"

My fingertips trembled slightly.

He was right.

I had sensed something was wrong when the crows vomited ash. The energy trajectory remaining in the ashes was the same as what I had felt when fleeing in the black market—that sense of oppression before being hunted, there was no mistake.

So I went to the Forbidden Ground.

So I saw him sitting cross-legged on the remnants of the altar, faint golden patterns moving around his body as he absorbed the Remnant Dao.

But all of this had been seen through by him.

"You've been targeting me for a long time," I said coldly.

"Mutually," he released his hand, letting the blood flow down his wrist, staining his sleeve. He didn't bandage it, merely pressed the blood-stained hand onto the ancestral tablet in the center of the hall, as if performing a ritual.

The action seemed respectful, but it held a deeper meaning.

I could feel a certain power slowly gathering within him, not Spiritual Energy, nor True Essence, but something more primal, more suppressed, lurking and flowing in his meridians like a dormant thunderstorm.

"What exactly do you want to do?" I withdrew the silver needle but did not retreat.

"I want to live," he said, looking at the names on the tablet, his tone calm. "When they destroyed my Dao Bone three years ago, they never intended for me to live. Now that I'm standing here, able to refine pills and walk, do you think they'll let me go?"

I fell silent.

He was speaking the truth.

A person who should have been crippled and left for dead suddenly displaying ability would only attract more suspicion and killing intent.

But that didn't mean I could trust him.

"Then why did you agree to the wager?" I asked. "You knew that once you made a move, you would become the target of public criticism."

The corners of his mouth curved up, revealing a smile that was almost mocking, "Because someone is already preparing to make a move."

Before he finished speaking, the sound of orderly footsteps came from outside the door.

More than one person.

And it was a troop of guards, their steps unified, their weapons not yet unsheathed but already carrying a killing intent.

I quickly retreated two steps, hiding in the shadows of the offering table, my hand reaching for my medicine pouch, my fingertips touching the porcelain bottle of Spirit Sealing Powder.

The door was pushed open.

Ji Hantian walked in.

His Purple-Gold Python Robe gleamed coldly in the dim candlelight. He gently fanned himself with a folding fan, a gentle smile on his face, but his eyes were fixed on us like nails.

"What a well-matched pair," he said, striding slowly into the ancestral hall. Behind him, dozens of Law Enforcement Team members filed in, sealing the four doors and windows. "Destroying the Medicine Cauldron privately, forging pills, and now meeting in the ancestral hall for a secret discussion—Ji Wuchen, what else do you have to say?"

Ji Wuchen remained standing in his original spot, his hand still on the ancestral tablet, his expression unchanged.

"The Great Elder's direct grandson personally leading the team, it seems you were well-prepared," he said calmly. "Which Family Rule have I broken that requires you to surround me with soldiers?"

"The evidence is conclusive, why argue?" Ji Hantian sneered. "You, a person with severed meridians, could refine a Ninth-grade Marrow Condensing Pill on the spot? What kind of logic is that! Unless... you have long colluded with foreign enemies, stolen secret techniques, and intended to subvert the Ji Family's legitimate lineage!"

He raised his hand and pointed. Two guards immediately stepped forward, intending to apprehend Ji Wuchen.

Ji Wuchen did not move.

But I saw the fingers on the tablet slightly curl.

The next moment, an invisible pressure spread from within him. Although not strong, it made the approaching guards falter, their faces turning pale as if they had run into an invisible wall.

Ji Hantian frowned, closed his fan, and tapped it against his palm. "There is indeed something wrong. Guards, dispatch more men! Anyone who resists will be killed without mercy!"

More guards surged forward, their halberds pointing directly at the center of the ancestral hall.

I stood at the edge of the offering table, my heart pounding. The Spirit Sealing Powder could only suppress spiritual power for a short time. It was enough for ordinary people, but against this group of well-trained Law Enforcement Team members, it wouldn't last ten breaths.

Just then, Ji Wuchen suddenly turned his head and glanced at me.

There was no plea for help or fear in that look, only something akin to certainty.

It was as if he were saying: If you don't believe me, you can leave now.

I didn't move.

He immediately turned back to face Ji Hantian, his voice not loud but clearly audible throughout the entire ancestral hall. "You say I colluded with foreign enemies? Then tell me—when did I contact whom? By what means did I transmit the message? And what is your evidence?"

Ji Hantian snorted coldly. "Evidence is unnecessary. Your abnormal behavior alone is enough for imprisonment and interrogation!"

"Then please, be my guest." Ji Wuchen actually voluntarily released his hand from the ancestral tablet, spreading his arms. "If I were truly a traitor, I could break out and escape right now. But I am standing here, at your mercy. If you want to arrest me, come and get me."

This statement silenced the entire crowd.

The Law Enforcement Team's movements faltered.

Ji Hantian's expression turned grim.

He knew that if he made a move here, he would be accused of "framing a member of the Direct Lineage." Especially since Ji Wuchen had just refined pills in public, and many had witnessed his power's resurgence. To convict him rashly might incite turmoil within the clan.

"You think this will absolve you?" Ji Hantian gritted his teeth. "I will thoroughly investigate all your past movements! Especially last night—you weren't in your residence, but appeared in the Forbidden Ground! That is a family Forbidden Ground, and unauthorized entry is punishable by death!"

My heart tightened.

He had indeed sent people to monitor the Forbidden Ground.

Ji Wuchen, however, smiled. "Forbidden Ground? That ruin has a broken formation, so what 'strict prohibition' are you talking about? On the other hand, you, as the Great Elder's direct grandson, are not guarding the treasury, but are relentlessly pursuing a cripple like me. What are your intentions?"

"You—!" Ji Hantian was furious, pointing his folding fan sharply at him. "Take him down! Anyone who dares to obstruct will be punished as an accomplice!"

The guards advanced again.

Ji Wuchen finally moved.

He slowly raised his right hand, palm facing up, as if receiving something.

The air in the ancestral hall seemed to freeze for a moment.

I could feel the power within him circulating faster, surging like an undercurrent to its breaking point. But he didn't attack. He simply flipped his palm and gently placed it over his chest.

A faint golden pattern flashed across the scar on his left cheek.

Ji Hantian seemed to sense something, his pupils contracting sharply. He shouted sternly, "Quick! Restrain him! Don't let him—"

Before he could finish.

Ji Wuchen looked up, his gaze like a blade, piercing the other man. "You want to know what I was doing in the Forbidden Ground?"

He paused, a cold arc forming on his lips.

"I was waiting for someone."