A Scapegoat for the Qiangu Family

The Tang Sect's position was located on the west side of the outer lake viewing platform, backed by a willow grove that was not yet fully ablaze.

When Yun Jingheng arrived, Zang Xin was shielding two injured young disciples behind him with his body, his palms flying as he dispersed wave after wave of shadow attacks.

His robes were torn with more than a dozen holes, a large part of his left sleeve was scorched, and a trace of blood clung to the corner of his mouth. Of the seven disciples he had brought, only three were still standing.

The other four lay on the ground, two unconscious and two already dead.

There was a person leaning against the willow tree, wearing the white uniform of the Spirit Pagoda, with a hole pierced through his chest, and the blood had stopped flowing.

It was that middle-aged man with a cold and stern face.

Zang Xin kicked aside the corpse in front of him, raised his bloodshot eyes, and looked at Yun Jingheng: "Why are you here? Where is everyone else? Where is your mother?"

"Everyone's safe. My mom's body was sent over there, how did she get injured like this?"

"The poisoning is too deep; it won't be cleared off in a short time. This poison doesn't kill, but it will weaken the body and decompose Soul Power."

Yun Jingheng landed beside Zang Xin, his gaze sweeping over the corpses and wounded on the ground. His voice unconsciously deepened, "I've taken note of the Tang Sect's debt."

Zang Xin coughed, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and actually smiled, "Fine. Tell your dad later that the Tang Sect owes Shrek a life. No—they owe you several."

Yun Jingheng did not reply.

His sword had already been swung.

The remaining Evil Soul Master on the Tang Sect Sect's position were caught off guard by his sudden attack. They had seen this young man wielding his sword from afar at the Sea God Lake before. He shattered the soul guide shield with one strike, killed a traitor with another, and, with the help of two Soul Spirit, cleared out his comrades who were charging at the forefront like mowing grass.

He appeared here now, his sword still so bright that people dared not look directly at him.

The group of Evil Soul Master exchanged glances, made the same decision simultaneously, and turned to run.

Yun Jingheng did not pursue.

They can't outrun Xiao Jiu and Zi JI.

He sheathed his sword, knelt down to check on the injured, and took out several bottles of emergency healing medicine that Ya Li had given him earlier from his Storage Soul Tool, handing them to Zang Xin: "Stop the bleeding first. Those who can move, help carry the immobile ones to the underground shelter. There's a barrier left by the Good Corpse at the entrance there, so it's safe for now."

Zang Xin took the medicine bottle, looked at him, and hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

This young man—no, he can't be called a young man anymore.

The kid who had risen from a freshman in the Outer Court to where he was now in just a few years stood before him, his robes covered in ash and blood, his face expressionless.

His sword was so fast that he hadn't even seen it before it was sheathed.

But when he crouched down to examine the wounded, his movements were so gentle that they were completely different from those of the person who had just shattered the soul-guiding shield with his sword.

Zang Xin suddenly recalled the opening scene of Sea God Fate," where Ye Xinglan stood under the spotlight and said in front of everyone, "I like Yun Jingheng."

The girl who blushed slightly under the spotlight during her confession must have seen this kind of tenderness.

The fat guy who was rejected under the spotlight probably never saw it.

"Senior Zang Xin."

Yun Jingheng stood up, his gaze falling on the person standing under the Spirit Pagoda beneath the willow tree. "That person—did they never leave, or did they return on their own?"

Zang Xin followed his gaze.

The last impression I had of that middle-aged man was that he was being carried by his disciples towards the evacuation route after being poisoned.

But at this moment, as he leaned against the willow tree, the piercing wound on his chest was clearly caused by an attack from Evil Soul Master. It didn't seem like an accidental injury; it was more like he had directly blocked an attack that should have landed on someone else.

"He came back on his own. Just now, a Evil Soul Master attacked the wounded man's stretcher, and he rushed forward to block it."

Yun Jingheng was silent for a moment, then walked towards the willow tree.

He walked up to the middle-aged man and looked down at him. He had seen this man once before, at the beginning of the Sea God Fate event.

His gaze was sharper than anyone else's at the time. He stared at Xu Lizhi for a long time, as if trying to find something out from that food-type Soul Master was serving tea and water.

Looking back now, he probably already sensed that something was wrong.

He just didn't say it, or couldn't say it.

The middle-aged man was not dead yet.

His eyelids twitched, and he struggled to lift them. He saw that the person standing in front of him was not Zang Xin, nor the disciple he had brought, but a young man whose robes were covered in ashes and blood, and who was holding a sword.

He recognized the face—the famous Shrek heir, Yun Jingheng.

"The Qiangu Dongfeng... When I came here, I was told that this Sea God Fate was a signal, a signal that Shrek and Tang Sect were joining forces to ostracize the Spirit Pagoda."

His voice was soft, and he would pause to catch his breath after every few words, but his tone carried a strange calmness—not fear, not Regret, but the kind of calm that comes with finally understanding everything.

"He said the Spirit Pagoda needed a representative to witness this signal firsthand, and he said I was the most suitable because I had great power and seniority."

"My coming to Shrek is the best way to show my support. I thought I was here to observe the ceremony, but actually I'm here to die. He doesn't need a representative; he just needs a scapegoat."

Zang Xin's expression changed.

He strode over, squatted down in front of the middle-aged man, and said in a low voice, each word seemingly squeezed out through gritted teeth, "What did you say? Qiangu Dongfeng —he knew about this attack?"

"You know? He orchestrated it."

The middle-aged man coughed, a trickle of dark red blood spilling from the corner of his mouth. "The Evil Soul Master was able to bypass the outer defenses because the Spirit Pagoda provided the complete defensive map of the Sea God Fate that day."

"The poison that fat man used was also an active enzyme provided by the Spirit Pagoda. That stuff was developed in the laboratory under Qiangu Dongfeng."

"There are still people outside Shrek City. Qiangu Dongfeng not only colluded with Evil Soul Master, but his own people are also lying in ambush outside the city. After the attack, he will enter the city under the pretext of rescue and take over the defense of Shrek City. At that time, Shrek City will belong to Qian Gu."

Zang Xin's pupils contracted sharply.

If the accusation that the Spirit Pagoda colluded with Evil Soul Master to attack Shrek is proven true, it could trigger a war that sweeps across the entire continent.

But if what the Spirit Pagoda representative said is true, and there are still ambushes outside, with the people of Qiangu Dongfeng already waiting outside the city to reap the final spoils, then time is more pressing than imagined.

"Why did you say it? You are a member of the Spirit Pagoda. If you don't speak, you might survive once Qiangu Dongfeng enters the city."

"Survived?" The middle-aged man laughed.

The smile looked particularly desolate on his blood-stained face. "My wife died young. He detained my son at the Spirit Pagoda Headquarters, ostensibly for protection, but actually as a threat."

"He thought that this would make me work for him, even die for him. He doesn't understand me. I'd accept dying for him, but I won't take the blame for him."

A light suddenly shone in his eyes, a sign of a final burst of energy before death. His voice rose a little, as if he were using his last bit of strength to explain the matter clearly.

"They'll enter Shrek immediately after the explosion stops. At that point, any resistance will be labeled as colluding with Evil Soul Master!"