Zhang Cuishan Ran Off (Seeking Recommendations, Seeking Favorites)

Zhang Cuishan Ran Off (Seeking Recommendations, Seeking Favorites)

Noodle Bun seemed to hold considerable prestige among the Shaolin Sect players. Once he stepped forward, the others instinctively took a step back, clearly leaving the matter for him to decide.

With his usual amiable smile on his face, Noodle Bun said nothing. However, judging from the constantly shifting expressions of the other Shaolin Sect players, they were clearly discussing something through their party or sect channel. After a moment, Noodle Bun spoke again. "Brother Weiming, from what you said earlier, you're also here to investigate the truth behind the Dragon Gate Escort Agency massacre. And that Extremely Wicked murderer is him!"

As he spoke, Noodle Bun pointed at the young man fighting seven opponents at once with dual weapons. "This man is Zhang Cuishan, Iron Painting, Silver Hook, one of the Wudang Seven Heroes. He resented the Dragon Gate Escort Agency for failing to protect Yu Daiyan, which led to Yu Daiyan's limbs being crippled by villains. He had ample motive for murder."

"Moreover, he could fight three senior Shaolin monks of the Yuan generation and four of the Hui generation alone, so he also had the ability to kill. On top of that, at the time of the crime, he had already admitted his identity to Uncle-Master Yuan Yin... So, Brother Weiming, I apologize first for my earlier recklessness, but we should be on the same side. Shouldn't we?"

As soon as Noodle Bun finished speaking, the Wudang Sect players led by Yin Bukui all looked at Ye Weiming with guarded expressions.

As mentioned before, the players had only just joined their respective sects. Their strengths had not yet diverged significantly, so numerical superiority often meant a difference in overall power.

However, Ye Weiming was rather exceptional.

First, he had completed a level-skipping mission earlier, and combined with the gains from collecting corpses, he had raised both the Breathing Technique and Moon Maiden Swordplay to Level 6. The other players who had just joined sects had mostly learned low-level martial arts from their own sects. Though those arts were a tier higher than Ye Weiming's, their levels were generally low, usually only around Level 2 or 3.

As for the martial arts obtained back in the beginner village? Sorry, but in Eternal Chivalry, the power of different move-based martial arts did not stack.

Therefore, Ye Weiming, who had continued using a low-grade sword technique, had instead gained the greatest advantage on today's battlefield. His strength might not have been the greatest among those present, but he was definitely among the strongest. He could take on three or four ordinary players by himself.

Combined with the movement technique he had displayed earlier, which far surpassed everyone else's, both sides believed that although he could not form a third faction through his own power alone, his stance could definitely tip the scales of victory toward either side.

"Brother Weiming." Yin Bukui also changed his form of address, copying Noodle Bun's example. "Several of us came to the Dragon Gate Escort Agency with Fifth Martial Uncle. The people in the escort agency were already dead when we arrived. We can testify that Fifth Martial Uncle was definitely not the murderer."

"Hmph!" Noodle Bun was nowhere near as polite to Yin Bukui as he had been to Ye Weiming. He snorted disdainfully. "You call him Fifth Martial Uncle, so of course you'd speak for him."

"Bullshit!"

"Feeling guilty because you got called out?"

As they spoke, Noodle Bun and Yin Bukui had already begun trading insults.

Ye Weiming ignored their argument and instead turned toward Zhang Cuishan, who was fighting one against seven. He called out, "Fifth Hero Zhang, did you commit the Massacre Case at the Dragon Gate Escort Agency?"

The moment those words came out, everyone looked at Ye Weiming as if he were an idiot.

Wasn't that way of questioning someone a little too childish?

Zhang Cuishan, meanwhile, answered proudly, "I didn't kill anyone!"

"Alright, I understand." As he spoke, Ye Weiming took out the token representing his identity and called to those still fighting, "I am Ye Weiming of the Divine Constable Bureau. I was ordered to investigate the Massacre Case at the Dragon Gate Escort Agency. Please stop for the moment and hear me out."

At this, Zhang Cuishan repeatedly swept his Judge's Brush with his right hand, leaving a clearly visible character for "dragon" in the air. The fierce Qi Force directly forced back the Shaolin Sect's seven experts. At the same time, he said, "Esteemed monks, why not hear what this constable has to say?"

The seven Shaolin NPCs knew they could not take down Zhang Cuishan anytime soon. Though their expressions were unpleasant, they still stopped attacking at the signal of the leader.

With both sides temporarily ceasing hostilities, the leading NPC of the Shaolin group, who held a Buddhist staff, turned to Ye Weiming and asked, "What insight do you have?" He offered no Buddhist greeting, and his tone was extremely unfriendly. He did not even give his own Dharma name.

It seemed Zhan Zhao had not been exaggerating when he said that martial artists disliked Imperial Hounds!

Ye Weiming showed no displeasure at the man's attitude. He merely said casually, "Fifth Hero Zhang has just stated that the people of the Dragon Gate Escort Agency were not killed by him. Therefore, I believe the Shaolin Sect is being somewhat hasty in identifying Fifth Hero Zhang as the murderer."

The staff-wielding monk flew into a rage. "You believe whatever he says? Is that how an imperial constable handles cases?"

Ye Weiming's smile did not change as he countered, "You identified Fifth Hero Zhang as the murderer because he had previously admitted his identity, did you not?"

The staff-wielding monk faltered, but immediately continued, "Du Dajin's entire household was murdered, yet he happened to be at the scene. How do you explain that? Furthermore, Hui Feng personally witnessed him committing murder. How do you explain that?"

"I never said Fifth Hero Zhang was not a suspect. I merely said the current evidence is insufficient to identify the murderer." As he spoke, Ye Weiming walked over to a corpse on the ground and pointed to several hidden weapons lodged in its neck. "This escort master died from hidden weapons..." Then he pointed to another corpse. "This caravan hand had his neck twisted by claw force, and this escort master..."

For more than ten minutes, Ye Weiming examined the wounds on every victim in the Dragon Gate Escort Agency one by one. Finally, he concluded, "There were sixty-seven people in the Dragon Gate Escort Agency. Most of the escort masters who knew martial arts were killed by hidden weapons, while the few remaining ones were killed by palm force. The elderly, weak, women, children, and caravan hands without much fighting ability, meanwhile, all died to claw techniques."

Everyone nodded upon hearing this. Judging from the causes of death, they clearly did not match Zhang Cuishan's martial arts style.

At that moment, the staff-wielding monk said, "Every sect in the martial world has hidden weapon techniques. Wudang is naturally no exception. As for claw techniques, Wudang's Second Hero Yu has the Tiger Claw Severing Hand, feared throughout the martial world. Even if Fifth Hero Zhang has never practiced it, there is no guarantee that none of the Wudang player disciples present are his successors."

In other words, Zhang Cuishan still met the conditions to commit the crime.

Ye Weiming replied calmly, "First, Fifth Hero Zhang does not admit that he is the murderer, so his earlier admission of identity cannot be counted as proof. Second, the fatal injuries on the people of the Dragon Gate Escort Agency do not match Fifth Hero Zhang's style, or at the very least, they do not match his usual combat style. Of course, those two points cannot completely clear Fifth Hero Zhang of suspicion. Whether we say he is the murderer or not, there is insufficient evidence."

The staff-wielding monk spoke again. "That is why we must capture Zhang Cuishan and question him about the truth."

"And here comes the key question." Ye Weiming shrugged. "Can you do that?"

The staff-wielding monk snorted and said nothing more. If they could have captured Zhang Cuishan, they would have done so long ago. Why would they still be standing here listening to some minor constable ramble on?

Ye Weiming smiled faintly. That was precisely why he had been so confident in calling for a halt. "Since neither side can do anything to the other, why not sit down and have a proper talk? If everyone reasons things out calmly, perhaps we can find clues that were overlooked before."

"Who's there!?" Zhang Cuishan suddenly shouted angrily. His body shot into the air, and with a tap of his left toe against the top of his right foot, he turned into an afterimage and vanished from within the Dragon Gate Escort Agency.

Zhang Cuishan had actually run away!

Seeing this, Ye Weiming was so angry he nearly jumped up and cursed. I was kindly helping you out here, and you just slipped away? You can't betray your teammates like this, can you?

It was not only Ye Weiming. Even the Wudang Sect players present stood there dumbfounded, every face showing the desolation of having been abandoned.

It was as if they had given someone all their sincerity, only to encounter a scumbag who refused to acknowledge them after pulling up his pants?