Fraud

"Crash!"

The thunderous clash of spells, the monk's roar, and the sky-filling blaze turned Hanging Temple's quiet camp into utter chaos.

Many Qi Refiners awoke from their dreams and came outside to investigate.

"Is another Qi Refiner trying to escape?" someone muttered, having heard the middle-aged monk's shouted slander.

The Qi Refiners here were not all mediocre. Quite a few of them had keenly noticed the middle-aged Daoist and the burly man fleeing last night.

"That young man who arrived yesterday was hooked by Yan Yushu so quickly? Is he really this obsessed with beauty?"

Some Qi Refiners stared at the room where Chen Xuan was staying and speculated.

They found it utterly baffling. Though they themselves often could not help recalling the moment they had brushed past Yan Yushu's breathtaking beauty—it truly was a sight of peerless loveliness rarely seen in this world.

But in the end, it had been only a fleeting encounter. The two sides had not even exchanged a single word before Yan Yushu quickly moved away.

Even if that had caused them to develop involuntary fondness and think of her endlessly, and even if they felt deep regret over the tragedy Yan Yushu was about to face...

But did that mean they had to disregard their lives and directly oppose Hanging Temple?

Those who refined qi were almost all outstanding figures with exceptional dispositions. The influence of Six Desires Heaven was not that terrifying... People like the middle-aged Daoist and the burly man were merely rare exceptions.

"A young man courting death. He could have taken advantage of Hanging Temple, yet he insists on doing something foolish." A Qi Refiner sighed, feeling certain that Chen Xuan was doomed.

"Wait! This young man has undergone Second Ascension. He killed the Hanging Temple expert!"

Suddenly, a powerful Qi Refiner exclaimed in astonishment, having seen the closed wooden door of the room where Chen Xuan was staying being pulled open from within.

"Rustle..."

Chen Xuan emerged with a calm expression. His body was tall and straight, and his eyes were as tranquil as a deep, dark, silent pool. His gaze swept over every face in the camp.

Then he left the wooden house and walked toward the area where the Hanging Temple monks had gathered.

"Hiss! What's that in his hand?"

Some Qi Refiners cried out in alarm when they saw Chen Xuan dragging a young monk's corpse behind him. He was gripping the monk by the lower leg, dragging the body across the ground. The entire head looked like charred wood still burning, blackened yet glowing with flames.

The scene was far too strange. Wasn't he supposed to flee and help Yan Yushu?

Why was he dragging a monk's corpse to Hanging Temple? What exactly was he planning to do?

Could their guess have been wrong?

"Amitabha..."

The old monk boiling rice porridge, the Ascetic Monk reciting the morning sutras, and more than a dozen puzzled gazes tinged with varying degrees of anger all fixed tightly on Chen Xuan.

Outside the camp, many Ascetic Monks laboring among the woods noticed the disturbance and hurried back.

"Daoist friend, what are you trying to do?"

An Ascetic Monk frowned as he asked. He did not know exactly what had happened. "Why did you kill a disciple of my temple? Are you truly trying to escape?"

Although the middle-aged monk had deliberately shouted his slander loudly enough for it to carry far, nearly everyone in the camp had heard it clearly.

In truth, however, some people remained rational and maintained an attitude of suspicion—especially the people from Hanging Temple.

After all, Chen Xuan had shown nothing unusual from beginning to end.

Besides, what had their two senior brothers gone to someone else's room for? Could they have known in advance that Chen Xuan would cause trouble?

"..."

Chen Xuan did not answer. He threw the young monk's corpse in front of all the Ascetic Monks, then walked straight to the fire where the iron pot was propped up.

He held a crystal-clear, slender jade hairpin upside down in his hand—"Clang!"

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

The crisp, rhythmic sound of metal and jade striking rang from the rim of the iron pot and resounded in everyone's heart.

"I saw it..."

Chen Xuan's calm voice rang out. His scrutinizing gaze fell into the old monk's withered, murky eyes across from him.

The cold wind swept up the hot steam as Chen Xuan continued speaking slowly.

"Old fellow, just now... you were peeking—"

The old monk held the wooden stick he used to stir the porridge, his face blank with confusion.

Softened grains of rice churned in the hot water. On the horizon, a sliver of dawn slowly appeared.

Daybreak was nearly here.

"Young Daoist, I don't understand what you're talking about."

The old monk who had once discussed Ancient Seal Script with Chen Xuan slowly shook his head. His aged, deeply furrowed face was full of bewilderment.

The other Ascetic Monks were equally baffled and found it unbelievable. He was actually questioning them?

And about such a strange matter at that?

A spell battle had caused such a huge disturbance. Shouldn't everyone have been curious enough to come and look?

Chen Xuan stood tall and straight, looking down at the hunched, withered old monk. The pressure he gave off was immense.

He knew the other party understood what he meant.

Before the disturbance began, Chen Xuan had looked outside through the crack in the door, into the night.

At that moment.

A gaze had been fixed tightly on the little house beneath the darkness of night...

Chen Xuan had seen it.

"Hmph!"

The old monk looked furious, as though he had been wronged. He suddenly struck the iron pot with the wooden stick, bang after bang, then repeated coldly:

"I don't understand what you're talking about. I wasn't the only one watching. Don't deliberately cause trouble!"

"Crash!"

A hand suddenly flipped over the iron pot, spilling the scalding, viscous rice porridge across the ground as hot steam billowed upward.

"I said I saw it."

Chen Xuan raised his hand and pointed at the enraged old monk, his tone sharp and absolute.

"Old fellow, you weren't merely peeking... you smiled... Why did you smile?"

The old monk's body suddenly stiffened at those words, and a trace of astonishment flashed through his eyes.

Did I smile?

The old monk himself was not certain...

Suddenly, his heart clenched. It was as though a ferocious beast with bared fangs had locked onto him!

Chen Xuan had already caught that fleeting astonishment in the old monk's eyes. His palm shot out like a streak of lightning, clawing toward the old monk's head!

"You old bastard... I knew there was something wrong with you!"

The old monk was horrified. He realized that Chen Xuan had tricked him into exposing himself. The other party's perception was so sharp that even his momentary astonishment had been detected. He hurriedly dodged backward and shouted:

"Fellow senior and junior brothers, save me! This man has lost his mind and is completely beyond saving!"

The old monk was also a Second Ascension expert. But he had been secretly observing the situation all along and knew that, with the strength Chen Xuan had displayed in killing the two men, he would likely be unable to fight him head-on. He could only rely on his fellow disciples to deal with the crisis before him.

"Clang! Clang!"

Almost simultaneously, several palms wreathed in golden-white radiance intercepted him in midair. The Ascetic Monks had already surrounded Chen Xuan and prepared themselves; they would never let him succeed so easily.

"You still dare to attack? Explain everything!"

An Ascetic Monk roared and struck decisively to stop him.

"Looks like you really were bewitched by Six Desires Heaven. You've set your heart on opposing Hanging Temple. You're beyond saving!"

An Ascetic Monk shouted furiously, finding this man far too arrogant. He was unwilling to offer even a word of explanation, and Chen Xuan was not prepared to listen to the old monk's explanation either. After judging that something was wrong with the old monk, he had casually tested him and then directly struck to kill...

Did he really take all of them for invisible air? Of the dozen or so people present, nearly half were Second Ascension experts!

"Entangled with Six Desires Heaven, with a rotten life and no pity deserved!" Another Ascetic Monk immediately struck viciously, his killing intent intense. They had endured too much pressure lately and might as well vent it now.

In an instant, countless furious roars erupted. Golden-white fist imprints and palms filled the sky, surging toward Chen Xuan from every direction.

"Get lost!"

Fierce menace burst from Chen Xuan's eyes. The Little Firebird Trick drove Red Qi to its limit. Between his fingers, the tip of the hairpin carved out a scarlet crescent-shaped arc that swept head-on toward the overwhelming shadows of golden-white fists.

"Whether my life is rotten or not isn't for the likes of you to decide!"

He refused to yield even half a step.

The wind howled fiercely, blazing flames melted gold, and the dry, hot scent of blood rose through the air.