Further Anomalies Appear, Nine Heavens Tremble and Yan Investigates

The commotion in the Hall of Punishment finally died down. As I stepped through the courtyard gate, the air still carried the scent of burnt wood.

A rift opened in the clouds overhead, and moonlight slanted onto the eaves, illuminating half of the grey-green tiles. I stood at the threshold, not entering immediately. Instead, I raised my hand and popped the last piece of apple into my mouth, my teeth crunching on the core. After swallowing the tart juice, I spat the core into my palm, rubbing its surface with my fingertip. A faint golden pattern was visible – a crystallization formed by the Heaven-Slaying Origin seeping into the fruit. It was so faint that at first glance, it looked like mere fibers within the flesh.

The moment I retracted my hand, a dull thud echoed from above.

It sounded like a mountain collapsing into a deep pool, or a bronze bell sinking into an icy river. The entire spiritual array of the Ji Family Estate trembled. The light membrane of the guardian barrier rippled, then quickly subsided. But that momentary fluctuation was enough to cause alarm. Guards in several distant high towers looked up, and someone gasped in a low voice.

I tilted my head back to look.

High above the Nine Heavens, chaos churned, and a gray-gold phantom slowly coalesced. It wasn't like thunderclouds or mist, but rather the outline of some kind of portal, appearing and disappearing in the night sky. Fragments of light constantly peeled away from its edges, scattering like snowflakes. Each piece that fell caused the ground to tremble slightly.

This phenomenon... was the resonance of heaven and earth triggered as the Origin within me approached the threshold of the Dao Foundation.

But I couldn't let it continue.

I turned and walked into the courtyard, stepping onto the stone stairs. The soles of my feet felt warm. The Pseudo-Primordial Body quietly activated, guiding the Heaven-Slaying Origin remaining in my meridians out through the soles of my feet and into the earth's veins. This courtyard was connected to a branch of the dragon energy vein leading to the Ji Family's ancestral graves, making it ideal for dispersing turbulent energy. I could feel that nascent, explosive aura being stretched, diluted, like a stream flowing into an underground river, no longer restless.

As soon as I stood still, the sound of orderly footsteps approached from a distance.

The clanging of iron armor and the tapping of halberds on the ground announced the arrival of a troop of City Guards. They formed ranks outside the courtyard. Their leader wore a black robe, a jade seal at his waist, and had a square face with a slightly upturned short beard. He stood at the forefront of the formation, his gaze fixed directly on me.

Yan Jiuxiao had arrived.

He wasn't wearing his official uniform, but he exuded more authority than he would have in it. The eight personal guards behind him were all Golden Core cultivators or higher, wielding Soul-Suppressing Halberds. Once their formation was set, even the air seemed to grow heavy.

"Young Master Ji," he said, his voice not loud, but each word clear. "The source of that phenomenon just now points to this courtyard of yours."

I didn't reply, simply tossing the apple core in my hand into the air.

It traced an arc and landed in his direction.

Yan Jiuxiao reached out and caught it, his brow furrowing slightly. The core rolled in his palm for a moment before emitting a faint golden light, which vanished instantly.

"Leftovers," I said. "If you think there's a secret inside, feel free to investigate."

He stared at the apple core for a moment, then flicked his finger.

A strand of Spiritual Power was shot into it.

With a soft "pop," the apple core burst, scattering powder. But as the fragments dispersed, a speck of golden light shot out from the crack, heading straight for his sleeve. He reacted with lightning speed, his wrist flipping to contain the energy, but the golden light had already slipped through the fabric and entered.

The corner of my mouth twitched, almost imperceptibly.

That wasn't an ordinary Heaven-Slaying crystallization. It was a "lure" I had woven from fragments of the Remnant Dao. It wouldn't harm anyone, nor would it reveal my presence, but it could detect if the contact's body contained any trace of Demonic Qi – especially old Demonic Qi that had been disguised, hidden within letters or talismans.

And in that instant, I distinctly felt a slight suction reaction from the Pseudo-Primordial Body.

There was indeed something in his sleeve.

Yan Jiuxiao looked down at his sleeve, then back up at me, his expression changing.

It was no longer the condescending scrutiny of before, but a sharp, predatory gaze.

"You're quite calm," he said. "The storeroom caught fire, the murder weapon bears a name, Afu was beaten into unconsciousness but refused to change his story, and just then, a Gate of Chaos appeared in the sky, landing right on your head. What do you expect people to think?"

I brushed the apple core residue from my hands, my tone flat. "Think what? Think that I was a cripple for three years, only to achieve enlightenment overnight? Or think that I feigned madness just to burn a few baskets of medicinal herbs?"

He didn't smile, nor did he get angry. He slowly collected the pile of apple core remnants into his sleeve.

"Ji Hantian cut his wrist to prove his innocence, and now you're causing a phenomenon," he paused. "One wants to clear his name, the other wants to draw attention. The timing is too coincidental."

I met his gaze. "So? Is the City Lord going to arrest me, or investigate me? If it's an investigation, the law requires an Official Document. If it's an arrest, please present an Arrest Warrant. Otherwise, as a cripple, I can only stand here and talk."

The surrounding guards shifted slightly.

They hadn't expected me to respond like this.

Yan Jiuxiao was silent for a few breaths, then suddenly smiled. "Well said, 'stand here and talk.' It seems the rumors are true; though you are crippled, your backbone is not soft."

He took a step back and gestured for his troops to withdraw.

The formation began to retreat in an orderly fashion, their footsteps fading into the distance. But as he reached the courtyard gate, he stopped and looked back at me.

"We'll discuss the matter of the apple core later," he said, then turned and left.

I stood in place, neither seeing him off nor moving.

Only after their figures had completely disappeared at the end of the long corridor did I slowly raise my right hand, my fingertips gently brushing against the Cloud-Treading Boots at my waist. The soles of the boots were warm, residual heat from guiding the Origin into the earth just moments ago. The System operated silently, and a faint vibration surfaced deep within my Sea of Consciousness – not a life-or-death crisis, Heaven-Slaying Origin +0.03 strands.

Seven strands and nine-tenths, plus three.

Less than one more thread, and I would reach the threshold of the Heaven-Slaying Dao Foundation.

Just as I was about to turn back into the house, my peripheral vision caught something unusual on the wall.

A Spirit Butterfly phantom, as thin as a cicada's wing, hovered in mid-air. It was pale green, with faint medicinal patterns etched on its wings. It circled once, then suddenly flapped its wings and swooped towards my face. The moment it touched the scar on my left cheek, it transformed into a warm current, seeping beneath my skin.

It was a message left by Ye Qingwan.

Warning me that when Yan Jiuxiao had tested me earlier, he had formed a secret hand seal within his sleeve – not a Ji Family inheritance, nor a standard City Lord's mansion technique, but a spirit-controlling method somehow connected to the Blood Demon Sect.

She had seen more clearly than I had.

I closed my eyes, and when I opened them again, my gaze was calm.

In the distance, the chaotic phantom in the sky was slowly dissipating, leaving only a long, thin crack hanging high above, like a curtain torn by a sharp blade, slow to close. The wind blew from the north, stirring a fallen leaf in the corner of the courtyard. It skittered across the ground in a swirl.

I bent down and picked up the leaf. On its underside, I found a speck of dark red powder. It wasn't soil, nor rust, but some kind of medicinal residue. I rubbed it between my fingers, feeling a slight stinging sensation.

This is the "Anti-Scouting Powder" Ye Qingwan secretly gave me this morning. She said it could interfere with high-level cultivators' Spiritual Sense Scans. So, she had already anticipated today's investigation.

I clenched the leaf, feeling a burning sensation in my palm.

Just then, hurried hoofbeats echoed from outside the courtyard.

An inconspicuous Blue Tented Cart drove around the street corner and stopped at the entrance of the Ji Family's alley. An old servant wearing a bamboo hat was driving, and a woman in a Black Cloak sat in the cart. Her hood was pulled down low, revealing only a sliver of her fair jawline.

She didn't get out of the cart. Instead, she raised a hand, lifted a corner of the curtain, and glanced in my direction.

I couldn't see her face clearly, but I knew it was her.

She waited for a moment. Seeing that I hadn't moved, she lowered the curtain.

The carriage turned around and slowly drove away.

I stood frozen in place, the leaf in my hand already soaked with sweat.