Chapter 895: A Million People, I Roast Fish by the Stream
The Imperial Court had already made its stance clear.
The several hundred cultivation experts who stood up alongside the White Tiger Divine General also represented a stance—and a very real deterrent.
The crowd grew somewhat chaotic. Many sect leaders looked around at their fellow cultivators, wanting to know what choices others would make.
Chen Changsheng watched this scene in silence, lost in thought.
Hu Sanshi also felt that if His Holiness the Pope could summon the Black Dragon Guardian to explain this matter clearly, it would be best. But for some reason, the Pope stubbornly refused to do so. He walked over to Chen Changsheng and said softly, "While the Southern Stream Monastery Sword Formation can protect us for a while, please, Your Holiness, summon Southern Guest and flee as the best course."
Chen Changsheng remained silent.
He hadn't expected that the premonition he'd felt yesterday before the stone wall on the Saintess Peak would actually fall upon himself.
This conspiracy was indeed terrifying—at least so far, he could see no obvious flaws.
He now understood very clearly that this plot wasn't merely about Bie Tianxin's death; there were deeper layers.
First, the conspirator used the merging of the Southern Stream Monastery to successfully unsettle his mind, causing him to advance recklessly alone. That was why he was now surrounded on the peak. If it had been like in Wenshui City, with thousands of National Church cavalry and two National Church heavyweights like Linghai Zhiwang and An Lin bearing precious treasures by his side, what would he have had to fear?
Then, the conspirator used the profound cold dragon breath of the Frost Dragon to kill Bie Tianxin, making Bie Yanghong and Wuqiong Bi firmly believe that the true murderer was the Black Dragon. And since the conspirator knew in advance that Chen Changsheng couldn't summon Zhi Zhi to confront them, Bie Yanghong and Wuqiong Bi were convinced he was the mastermind behind this murder, thus creating the current situation.
Only sacred-domain experts like Bie Yanghong and Wuqiong Bi, driven by the grief of losing their son, would dare attack His Holiness the Pope. And only under these circumstances would the Prince of Xiang and the Imperial Court find sufficient excuses, allowing many to dare show hostility and form a siege.
Yes, Chen Changsheng hadn't refused to summon Zhi Zhi to the scene to confront them—he simply couldn't summon her now.
Just when Bie Yanghong stretched out his right hand to show him the bone fragments still carrying the profound cold dragon breath, Chen Changsheng had already sent a message through his soul to the distant reaches.
But it vanished without a trace.
According to the prearranged plan and the calculation of her itinerary, Zhi Zhi should have been in White Emperor City at that moment, with no danger.
But at that instant, he could only sense that she was still alive, yet he couldn't contact her, let alone make her come to Saintess Peak.
Clearly, the other party had made extremely meticulous arrangements in advance—one could even say they had calculated everything about him and all the events.
Who was that person?
Chen Changsheng looked at the Prince of Xiang, the White Tiger Divine General, the green-robed Daoists, and the Imperial Court experts, thinking that even if the mastermind wasn't his teacher, his teacher must know about this and be deeply involved. But… Teacher, do you really want me dead that much? Or do you want me dead that much?
Now, it seemed, this was indeed his last chance to leave.
But he couldn't leave, because he couldn't let the Southern Stream Monastery disciples standing before him hold on alone. He had promised Xu Yourong that he would help her defend Saintess Peak.
The cliff top was deathly silent.
The White Tiger Divine General watched him from afar, expressionless.
The several green-robed Daoists from Changchun Temple watched him, expressionless.
The hundreds of Imperial Court experts and cultivation masters watched him, expressionless.
The Prince of Xiang watched him, expressionless.
Wuqiong Bi watched him, expressionless.
Everyone watched him, expressionless.
The scene seemed frozen at that moment, drained of all color. The clouds, peaks, trees, and cliffs lost all their vitality.
The atmosphere on the cliff top was unbearably tense and oppressive.
"Senior Brother, what should we do?"
Bai Cai looked at the surrounding crowd, asking nervously.
He didn't know Chen Changsheng, let alone the legendary evil dragon, so naturally he didn't want to stick his neck out. But as a disciple of Lishan Sword Sect, he certainly wanted to protect the junior and senior sisters of Southern Stream Monastery. Yet now, everyone on the cliff top seemed to stand against Chen Changsheng and Southern Stream Monastery. With so few Lishan people, what use could they be?
Gou Hanshi looked at the tense Southern Stream Monastery disciples on the platform and said, "If trouble erupts, naturally we draw our swords to help."
All the evidence now pointed against Chen Changsheng, but he had never once thought that Bie Tianxin was really killed by Chen Changsheng, because he knew Chen Changsheng wasn't that kind of person.
Bai Cai thought he understood his senior brother's meaning. His right hand fell on his sword hilt, and he said solemnly, "Senior Brother, rest assured. Even if I lose my life, I will protect the junior sisters' safety."
Gou Hanshi said, "I was referring to His Holiness the Pope."
Bai Cai was very surprised. He looked at him and asked, "Then… what would the Grand Senior Brother think?"
"If Senior Brother were here, he would do the same."
Gou Hanshi said, "Of course, Senior Brother's wisdom far surpasses ours. If he were here now, he might have already found a way to resolve this matter."
…
…
The situation on that peak was extremely tense, likely to erupt into a brutal melee. But this didn't affect other parts of Saintess Peak.
At the foot of Saintess Peak, there was a crystal-clear mountain stream. Two people were sitting on rocks by the stream, roasting fish to eat. The slightly burnt aroma of fish drifted far, drawing a few bird calls from the forest and some rustling sounds from the grass.
The Autumn Mountain Clan Leader took a roasted fish, examined it carefully to confirm it hadn't been drugged, then took a bite.
"Why must you be like this? You know, missing such a good opportunity as today would truly invite divine retribution."
He looked at the man by the campfire and said, "You've exiled yourself for five years. If you don't do something and let the situation develop like this, the world will only know Xu Yourong and Chen Changsheng. Who will still remember your name, Autumn Mountain Lord?"
The man roasting fish was indeed Autumn Mountain Lord, also known as Rob from Banya Horse Farm.
After leaving Wenshui City, he had returned to Lishan. At his little junior sister's strong insistence, he finally shaved off all his beard, revealing his true face.
It was hard to describe Autumn Mountain Lord's appearance. In short, even the Autumn Mountain Clan Leader, every time he saw him, felt both proud and a little puzzled—how could his own son be born so handsome?
Autumn Mountain Lord took down the second roasted fish, took a delicious bite, and said indistinctly, "I don't live to make others remember me."
The Autumn Mountain Clan Leader said irritably, "Then why did you come out of seclusion? What are you doing here?"
Autumn Mountain Lord smiled but said nothing.
Seeing him like this, the Autumn Mountain Clan Leader grew even more annoyed. "If I hadn't specifically come to block you, you'd probably be up on the mountain by now."
Autumn Mountain Lord said, "The mountain must be very lively right now. I just wanted to go take a look."
The Autumn Mountain Clan Leader said resentfully, "Do you think you can fool your father with that? You just want to go help Chen Changsheng break the deadlock. I don't know how I, such a selfish, cunning, and thoroughly rotten fellow, gave birth to someone so warm-hearted and noble."
Autumn Mountain Lord couldn't help but laugh. "Father, your words are truly amusing."
The Autumn Mountain Clan Leader said angrily, "Never mind whether they're amusing or not. Just tell me if I'm right."
"You're right. I was indeed planning to go up the mountain to break the deadlock."
Autumn Mountain Lord said, "Because I feel that the person who set this trap is insulting my intelligence."