First Direct Contact

The next morning.

Before the first light of dawn, Ning Ye had just risen when he saw Luo Qiuzhen appear before his small cottage.

Seeing Luo Qiuzhen, a look of astonishment appeared on Ning Ye's face: "Deacon Luo? Aren't you..."

He did not continue, and Luo Qiuzhen smiled slightly: "Junior Brother, there is no need to panic. I am not dead."

Ning Ye let out a long sigh of relief: "Heaven has eyes. Deacon Luo is the backbone of the Inspection Hall; the Inspection Hall cannot do without you."

Luo Qiuzhen wore a smile, his eyes narrowing slightly: "Oh? Does Junior Brother Ning truly think so?"

Ning Ye was startled: "What does the Deacon mean by that?"

Luo Qiuzhen looked into the room: "Won't you invite me in for a seat?"

Ning Ye put on an expression of sudden realization: "Please, Deacon."

Upon entering the room, Luo Qiuzhen looked around: "Your place here is quite humble."

Ning Ye poured tea for Luo Qiuzhen: "Master often says that to attain the Great Dao, one must temper their heart and will. If one indulges in pleasure, they will surely suffer for it."

Luo Qiuzhen then said: "No wonder Junior Brother Ning's progress is so rapid."

Ning Ye shook his head: "It cannot be called rapid. It has been nearly a year, and my cultivation has yet to reach the fourth level."

Luo Qiuzhen smiled without warmth: "That is already quite good. Most people take four or five years to reach the peak. And as it stands now, you might achieve it in two and a half years. Given your aptitude and the lack of excessive external resources, this speed already exceeds the norm. Not to mention, I hear your Killing Heart Blade is even further ahead, and you have already begun practicing the Body Killing Blade."

Ning Ye looked at Luo Qiuzhen strangely: "Is Senior Brother interrogating me?"

"I wouldn't call it that, just asking casually. After all, you happened to be on the scene the day the incident occurred. Come to think of it, the Black and White Divine Palace has been quite eventful this year; many things have happened in succession."

"Indeed, there are many scoundrels. Even the Deacon was ambushed by evildoers. I wonder if the Deacon has discovered any clues?"

"Isn't that why I've come to consult with you, Junior Brother?"

"Consult with me? About the Green Wood Hall incident?"

"Not entirely. For instance, Huaiyin Mountain and Ancient Spring Town—you were present at both, were you not?" Luo Qiuzhen said with deep meaning.

Ning Ye smiled and said: "So that is why the Deacon came. I understand what the Deacon means. When I was in Ancient Spring Town, I did indeed see Junior Sister Yue, but she was killed by a strange mechanism; it had nothing to do with me. In fact, I was also ambushed by that same anomaly later on, a fact everyone is aware of."

Luo Qiuzhen looked at Ning Ye and continued: "I know what you said, and I also know that during the first explosion at Xuanyu Pavilion, you were all at Ningxin Cottage. Although the culprit behind the scenes used a delayed detonation method, considering the limited time for such a delay, you could not have done it."

"The Deacon is wise."

"However, the second explosion in Senior Brother Xuan Mulang's bedroom is harder to account for."

"What does the Deacon mean?"

Ning Ye looked at Luo Qiuzhen with clear, steady eyes, and just then, the teapot began to whistle.

Ning Ye lifted the teapot to pour tea for Luo Qiuzhen.

Luo Qiuzhen took a shallow sip, looking at the tea leaves in the cup: "I have always been curious about one thing: why was a Flame Burst Bead used for the explosion in Xuan Mulang's bedroom instead of a mechanism box?"

"Is there a difference?" Ning Ye asked.

"There is." Luo Qiuzhen replied calmly: "Although a Flame Burst Bead can also be set to detonate with a delay, the effect is primarily determined by the amount of mana injected. The biggest problem is that it is difficult to precisely control the timing, making it far inferior to that ingenious mechanism box. And therein lies a problem."

Ning Ye listened attentively.

Luo Qiuzhen said: "During the first explosion, no one was paying attention to Xuanyu Pavilion, so the culprit had the most ample preparation time before the first blast. The second blast was different. After the first explosion occurred, everyone was on alert. The time between the two blasts was extremely short. In such a situation, to strike at the bedroom would require even more precise timing. So, if it were me, I would have used the Flame Burst Bead for the first blast and the mechanism box for the second. That would be appropriate, wouldn't it?"

Ning Ye was shocked internally, knowing that Luo Qiuzhen had hit the nail on the head.

The reason a mechanism box was used for the first blast was to precisely control the time and provide an opportunity for Tianji to prepare. The second blast used a Flame Burst Bead naturally because the bead could be detonated instantly—there was no choice, as Tianji hadn't found the fragment at that time.

This was an unavoidable problem during the execution of an operation; there are always many things that cannot be foreseen.

And it was precisely because of this second blast and the reversed order of usage that Luo Qiuzhen discovered the issue.

If that were all, it would be one thing, but the problem was that Luo Qiuzhen had discovered far more than that.

Luo Qiuzhen continued: "What is most baffling is the significance of this second blast. If it was to kill someone, the power was too small. If it was to steal treasure, why go through the extra trouble? Why not take it earlier? So, what was the point of the opponent doing all this?"

Ning Ye's heart sank.

Luo Qiuzhen had found the most critical point of the issue: the purpose of the second blast.

Judging from the situation at the time, the purpose of the second blast was indeed very weak—so weak that it was difficult to establish any motive.

If it were Fu Dongliu, he would certainly have ignored such a situation, but Luo Qiuzhen was different. He did not have many magical techniques; he relied on his brain and deduction. Thus, he realized immediately that the purpose of the second blast might be the key to the whole problem.

"Then, the Deacon means..."

"I suspect the true culprit might have been on the scene, and this second blast was merely a cover for their actions. Although Xuanyu Pavilion was burned and destroyed, leaving the scene in a mess, and Xuan Mulang has yet to fully account for his losses, I believe that among the missing items, there might be something the opponent truly wanted."

Ning Ye then said: "After this incident occurred, the Inspection Hall sealed the entire hall. I was searched when I came out. Furthermore, Lord Xuan Mulang has already stated that his bedroom had already been burglarized before the Flame Burst Bead detonated."

"But that is the problem! Since they had already succeeded, why detonate it again? It makes no sense!"

"How would I know? Perhaps it was just to assassinate Lord Xuan Mulang. Deacon Luo, although everyone believes that a Flame Burst Bead could not kill Xuan Mulang, one cannot deny the intent just because it failed. Perhaps the opponent wanted to injure Lord Xuan Mulang to prepare for a future strike? Or perhaps the person acting in the shadows had other ideas, such as wounding Lord Xuan Mulang to lay the groundwork for future conflicts. There are too many possibilities. Neither you nor I are the person in the shadows; we can never know the full intent of others."

"As you say, there are many possibilities. Injuring Xuan Mulang could be one goal, but there could be others."

Ning Ye nodded: "So, the Deacon is suspecting me?"

"Huaiyin Mountain, Ancient Spring Town, Green Wood Hall—you were at all of them. To call that a coincidence, isn't that pushing it a bit?" Luo Qiuzhen countered.

Ning Ye then said, "Why not? In the past year, there have been dozens, if not hundreds, of incidents at the Black and White Divine Palace. I wasn't involved in every single one, was I? And I'm not the only one who has appeared in multiple cases, am I?"

That was true. Truth be told, aside from Ning Ye stirring up trouble, the Black and White Divine Palace itself had all sorts of events: disciples killing each other, infiltration by external enemies, attacks by rogue immortals, and internal treachery—all sorts of incidents emerged one after another.

There were always some people who were just unlucky enough to be involved in multiple events at the same time.

Take Wang Sen, for example. If one were to flip through all the case files, they would find Wang Sen's shadow in several of them. Even the figures of Chi Wanning, Xu Yanwen, Yang Ziqiu, and Zhong Rihan could be found.

The three cases where Ning Ye had openly appeared were neither too many nor too few; they were just enough to be suspicious but not enough to be conclusive.

Hearing him say this, Luo Qiuzhen laughed. "Junior Brother Ning answers so flawlessly, it looks like you were well-prepared."

Ning Ye replied, "So, because my words are grounded and I am neither panicked nor flustered, that is proof that I have a guilty conscience? If that's the case, then Deacon Luo, if you were to go and ask any random disciple right now, and they appeared panicked, gave evasive answers, and claimed ignorance to everything, would you believe they were innocent?"

Luo Qiuzhen was stunned. He thought for a moment and replied, "I really couldn't. I would only be more suspicious."

Ning Ye spread his hands. "So you see, this is the 'neighbor stealing an axe' fallacy. Whether I am calm or flustered, or even if I am neither, you will always find a reason to be suspicious, right?"

Luo Qiuzhen nodded. "That is indeed true. I am actually starting to believe that you weren't prepared in advance, but are just naturally sharp-tongued. Interesting. You didn't act like this when you were rampaging through the Trial Arena."

Ning Ye smiled. "So Deacon Luo has seen me fight in the Trial Arena. However, Deacon Luo is mistaken. Who says a brave warrior must be a brainless one? Being on the battlefield, surrounded by danger on all sides, one must attend to all directions. Even when the blood is pumping and the battle is fierce, one must keep a steady mind and analyze calmly; otherwise, I fear I would have died long ago. Since the Deacon was watching, you must know that I accurately identified every Illusion Skeleton. Without a calm mind, how could I have done that?"

"Your master probably wouldn't agree with your way of thinking, would he?"

"My master's school is like a horse race—the ones who survive are the best. I, however, am a coward. I don't want to be part of survival of the fittest; I just want to live a peaceful life."

"No wonder you chose the Yang Talisman Scripture."

Ning Ye raised his cup. "Master is very dissatisfied."

Luo Qiuzhen laughed heartily. "You are an interesting person. Not many can talk so freely in front of me; you count as one. It's a pity, if it weren't for the many issues surrounding the Xuanyu Pavilion incident, I would be quite willing to make friends with you."

"So Deacon Luo has decided that I was the one behind the Xuanyu Pavilion incident?"

"Not necessarily, I'm just asking casually."

Ning Ye countered, "Would the Deacon also ask Fairy Niaohua or Senior Brother Zhong such casual questions?"

"That's impossible. They are the favored children of heaven; I can't afford to offend them."

"So I am someone you can offend?"

"Yes!" Luo Qiuzhen actually admitted it directly.

Ning Ye smiled. "The Deacon is certainly frank. It's a pity that I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you; I don't even know as much as you do."

"That's true. You are, after all, a disciple of Zhang Qisha. Even if your status is lower than theirs, without evidence, I cannot frame you at will." Luo Qiuzhen said quite casually, "That's why I said I was just asking. By the way, the scar on your face—was that from a year ago?"

"Yes, caused by an enemy. If the Deacon wishes to know, you can check the files; it is all recorded."

"Can it still be healed?" Luo Qiuzhen ignored Ning Ye's past. Regardless of whether his background was true or false, Luo Qiuzhen believed that no issues would be found.

"It should be possible, but I suffer from the difficulty of finding good medicine."

"Then what if I were to find good medicine for you, Junior Brother?" Luo Qiuzhen drew out his tone.

Ning Ye stood up and bowed deeply. "I would ask for nothing more, and I would be eternally grateful!"

Seeing him like this, Luo Qiuzhen's eyes narrowed slightly.

He could not confirm Ning Ye's guilt, but at the very least, Ning Ye's performance at this moment had left a deep impression on him.

As he said, if he truly wasn't the one, then Luo Qiuzhen wouldn't mind making friends with this sharp-witted and interesting person.

Just then, an Inspection Hall disciple came from outside to report, "Deacon."

"What is it?"

The Inspection Hall disciple whispered a few words into Luo Qiuzhen's ear, and Luo Qiuzhen was greatly shocked. "What did you say? The real culprit has been found?"