A Jade Tablet

"Wake up!"

Just then, the White Robed Woman let out a soft gasp, calling Wang Xian from his dream.

"Ah..."

Wang Xian was startled. He looked down at the glowing Inner Core in his hand and was instantly stunned.

The entire mountain forest was silent.

He couldn't help but ask, "Senior, am I dreaming or..."

The White Robed Woman smiled faintly. "Dream or not, you're the only one who knows the reason. You don't need to tell me."

Then she softly asked, "Little Fellow, where are you from?"

Wang Xian looked at the Inner Core in his hand, thought for a moment, and replied, "The Daoist temple on the south slope. Have you been there, Senior?"

"So you're the Old Daoist's disciple?"

The White Robed Woman sighed and laughed. "Although I haven't been there, I know your Master's great name."

Wang Xian tensed, but did not answer.

The White Robed Woman said indifferently, "The aura on you..." Before she could finish, her body trembled, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

In that instant.

All the aura on Wang Xian's body vanished.

Instead, from his very bones, he was like a Líng Jiàn, sitting quietly before her.

The White Robed Woman stared at Wang Xian, speechless for a moment.

After a long pause, she smiled faintly. "You only finished half of that dream. Coincidentally, I obtained a treasure. Let me show you..."

With that, she took out a piece of jade and placed it on the table. With a wave of her hand, a surge of Líng Qì poured in, conjuring a projection before Wang Xian.

She said softly, "Watch carefully."

Wang Xian picked up a pastry and took a bite, his eyes fixed on the scene before him, no longer making a sound.

A cold moonlight shone on the Secret Realm.

Unexpectedly, deep in the mountain forest, there was an Ancient Temple.

Not far from the Ancient Temple, several wooden sheds were set up. Further back, there was a Cave.

The Academy Elders lived in the Ancient Temple. The Male Disciples set up the wooden sheds. The Cave not far away belonged to the Academy's Female Disciples.

Just then, Shangguan Feilong, an Elder from the Ancient Temple, was chatting with Elder Wang Ruofei.

Suddenly, they heard an Arrow Sound.

The two Elders immediately flew out of the Ancient Temple. Hearing the Alarm Signal Arrow, they were suddenly shocked.

This was the distress signal of an Academy Disciple when encountering danger.

As they were in the wind, a desperate roar echoed from the Night Fog ahead.

Their feet seemed to catch the wind as they flew forward rapidly.

Before they could get close, a rush of blood smell assaulted them.

An Academy Disciple lay on the ground, blood gushing out from beneath him.

Shangguan Feilong stepped forward and checked his finger. A Black Clad Man had just breathed his last. In his hand, he tightly gripped an Iron Bow.

Elder Wang Ruofei exclaimed, "Not good, this is Long Jie from the Library!"

The two looked up and scanned their surroundings, wondering if it was a Monster Beast or a killer who had murdered an Academy Disciple!

To be able to kill someone instantly and escape under their noses seemed very strange.

Just then, Wang Xian's Martial Brother, Shangguan Jue, also arrived upon hearing the news. Seeing the scene before him, he immediately cried out in shock.

The three of them looked around. In the vast night, there was no trace of the killer anywhere.

Shangguan Jue stepped forward to examine the body and suddenly shouted, "Two Elders, there are words beneath Long Jie!"

Shangguan Feilong took out a Fire Starter and lit a Torch, examining it carefully.

They saw that on the stone slab beneath Long Jie, the character "二" was written in blood.

Clearly, the character was unfinished, and the person had already died.

Sima Jue was so enraged that he shouted to the sky, "Who murdered my Academy Disciple? Even as a ghost, I, Sima Jue, Will Not Let You Go!"

An echo came from the night wind: "Even as a ghost, I Will Not Let You Go..."

The mountain wind blew, and the night grew deeper.

Shangguan Feilong said to the two, "You two take Long Jie back. I'll go scout the vicinity! Whoever harmed our Academy Disciple, I will find them."

Sima Jue said, "Master, be careful!"

Before the words fell, Shangguan Feilong had already disappeared into the vast night.

Shangguan Feilong comforted Sima Jue while taking out old clothes to wrap Long Jie's dead body. Just then, a silk scarf fell from Long Jie's embrace onto the ground.

He reached out, picked it up, and exclaimed, "This is your junior sister's silk scarf. How did it end up on Long Jie?"

Sima Jue was startled. "Elder Wang, let's go back. We'll call junior sister over later!"

The two returned to the ancient temple. Wang Ruofei lit a lamp, and Sima Jue sent a telepathic message to summon their senior sister Murong Yu and junior sister Duanmu Xi.

A pot of wine sat on the table. They each poured a cup and held it in their hands.

A cold wind blew, and creaking sounds occasionally came from the depths of the main hall.

Murong Yu, who had arrived upon hearing the news, called out from afar, "Junior brother, why have you summoned us here in the middle of the night?"

"Ah..."

Duanmu Xi screamed upon seeing the dead body on the ground.

Sima Jue sighed heavily. "Junior sister, when did you give your silk scarf to Long Jie? He was just killed by a demon person in the mountains!"

Even Wang Ruofei found it hard to believe that a female disciple of the academy would harm their own people.

Duanmu Xi stepped forward and looked at the blood-stained silk scarf embroidered with her initial "Xi." She immediately cried out, "How is this possible? I gave this silk scarf to Wang Xian, junior brother."

Wu Ruofei shook his head, took a sip of wine, and used his finger dipped in wine to draw a "two" on the table.

He said coldly, "Look here. If you continue writing downwards from this large character, whose name will it be!"

Murong Yu's expression sharpened. She blurted out, "Such evil deeds... I'm afraid only the Demonic Cult would do something like this?"

Wang Ruofei nodded and added, "Then, what about your disappeared junior brother?"

Murong Yu sighed. "These past few days, we've searched every corner of the secret realm, but there's been no sign of Wang Xian."

Duanmu Xi was shocked. "Could it be that junior brother was abducted by a monster beast?"

Murong Yu sighed. "There's one more place... a place none of us can go to..."

Sima Jue frowned and asked, "Could that place be where the killer is?"

Wu Ruofei shook his head. "Impossible. That is a land of death!"

"Correct!"

Shangguan Feilong, who had just walked in, said, "In the entire secret realm, let alone us, even those monster beasts dare not go to that death zone."

"Why?"

Duanmu Xi said solemnly, "I've been searching for junior brother..."

Wang Ruofei remained silent for a long time. "Even if one were to luckily enter that place, they would definitely not be able to leave alive."

Shangguan Feilong said with a bitter smile, "I've tried that place. As long as you cross the forbidden zone, even flying birds will turn into white bones..."

"How could this be?" Duanmu Xi was stunned upon hearing this.

Wang Ruofei handed the blood-stained silk scarf in his hand to Shangguan Feilong.

He said coldly, "This was given by Duanmu Xi to Wang Xian, yet it appeared in Long Jie's embrace..."

Shangguan Feilong roared, "Good one, Wang Xian!"

Seeing this, Wang Xian became enraged!

He took out his Nà Jiè and looked, then was stunned. "The silk scarf my senior sister gave me is missing!"

The white-robed woman said solemnly, "Perhaps that man liked your senior sister. He used the borrow knife to kill method, then framed you..."

Upon hearing this, Wang Xian was momentarily speechless.

He muttered to himself, "How is this possible? How do you know this secret?"

"Don't worry, let's look back again!"

The woman said softly, "Watch carefully. See how this fellow dealt with his junior brother, and you will understand why he framed you."

The moonlight was dim, and another image slowly emerged before Wang Xian's eyes.

Before the murder took place, Long Jie, dressed in black, was strolling under the moonlight with Sima Jue, dressed in white...

Looking at the moon in the sky, Long Jie said, "Senior brother, you can't associate with people from the Demonic Path anymore!"

"Why? I'm just playing around!"

Sima Jue replied, "I can get spiritual medicine from them to cultivate."

Long Jie sighed. "They've always wanted to destroy the academy. Don't you understand, senior brother? They are just using you!"

"Nonsense!"

Sima Jue coldly shouted, "How many elders are there in the academy, and a Dean who is like a divine person? How could they fear them?"

Long Jie shook his head. "In short, senior brother, don't force me to tell Master about this!"

"Junior brother, don't force me!"

"Martial Brother, I'm doing this for your own good!"

"Wo cao, Junior Brother, you're pushing me to a dead end!"

"Martial Brother, let go!"

"Pu chi!"

A short sword, coated in poison, pierced Long Jie's chest in an instant.

Long Jie turned around, pointing at Sima Jue, clutching his chest with one hand: "Martial Brother, you..."

Sima Jue coldly shouted: "Since you insist on forcing my hand, it's better that Junior Brother dies first!"

Finished speaking, he patted out a palm strike, and Long Jie fell heavily to the ground...

After awhile, certain that Long Jie was dead, Sima Jue grabbed Long Jie's blood-stained hand and wrote the character "二" on the ground.

Thought for a moment, then he took out a silk scarf and stuffed it into Long Jie's embrace.

He let out a roar angrily at the sky.

He shot out a signal arrow into the sky, then stuffed the iron bow into Long Jie's hand.