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As soon as Liu Zhengfeng said these words, the hall suddenly became noisy, and the crowd began to whisper and discuss. No one expected Liu Zhengfeng to give such an answer. Originally, everyone guessed that even if he didn't deny it, at most he would just admit that he had met Qu Yang once. But unexpectedly, he actually said that Qu Yang was his close friend.

Fei Bin showed a barely perceptible smile on his face and said, "It would be great if you admit it yourself. A man should take responsibility for his own actions. Liu Zhengfeng, Alliance Leader Zuo has set two paths for you, you can choose whichever you want."

Liu Zhengfeng seemed to have not heard Fei Bin's words. He walked slowly to a chair and sat down slowly. He stretched out his right hand, steadily picked up the wine pot on the table, and gently poured a glass of wine. Then he raised the glass to his lips and drank it slowly.

Everyone saw that the sleeves of his silk shirt were hanging straight down without any movement. Everyone present was secretly amazed that he could remain so calm at such an urgent moment, which showed how deep his concentration was. To reach this state, one needs not only extraordinary courage, but also a deep foundation in martial arts. Both are indispensable. Everyone looked at Liu Zhengfeng with a little more admiration.

Seeing this, Fei Bin raised his voice and said loudly: "Leader Zuo said: Liu Zhengfeng is a rare talent in Hengshan Sect, but he was careless for a moment and made friends with bandits and went astray. If you can deeply repent, how can we, your friends of chivalry, not give you a way to reform yourself? Leader Zuo asked me to tell Brother Liu: If you choose this path, you have one month to take the head of the Demon Sect elder Qu Yang and come to see us. In this way, the past will not be pursued, and we will still be good friends and good brothers in the future."

After hearing this, the heroes all thought to themselves: Good and evil cannot coexist, the people of the Demon Sect have always been regarded as unorthodox, and they will fight to the death with the chivalrous people when they meet. Leader Zuo asked Liu Zhengfeng to kill Qu Yang to show his true intentions, which was not too much.

A sad smile suddenly flashed across Liu Zhengfeng's face. He raised his head slightly, as if he was lost in memories. After a while, he slowly said:

"When I first met Brother Qu, I felt that we had a mutual understanding, as if we had known each other for many years. After that, we had many night talks on the same bed. When we occasionally talked about the differences between our respective sects, Brother Qu always sighed deeply, thinking that it was meaningless for the two sides to fight like this. I became friends with Brother Qu purely because of my love for music. He is a master of the seven-stringed harp, and I like to play the flute. Every time we met, we mostly played the harp and flute together. As for martial arts, we never talked about it."

At this point, Liu Zhengfeng paused for a moment, a faint smile appeared on his face, and he continued, "You may not believe it, but in today's world, when it comes to playing the zither, I think no one can compare to Brother Qu; and when it comes to playing the flute, I think I am not inferior to others. Although Brother Qu is a member of the Demon Sect, from his music, I can truly feel that he has a noble character, a broad mind and noble sentiments. I not only admire him, but also admire him with all my heart. Although I, Liu Zhengfeng, am just an insignificant person, I will never hurt such a gentleman no matter what."

The more the crowd listened, the more surprised they were. No one had expected that Liu Zhengfeng and Qu Yang's friendship was due to music.

Although everyone had doubts in their hearts, they couldn't help but believe it a little when they saw that Liu Zhengfeng spoke sincerely and there was no sign of hypocrisy.

There are many strange people and things in the martial arts world, and it is not uncommon for Liu Zhengfeng to be obsessed with music. Those who are more familiar with Hengshan School think that most of the masters of Hengshan School love music. The current head of the school, Mr. Mo Da, nicknamed "Xiaoxiang Night Rain", never leaves his huqin with him on weekdays. He is also known as "the sword is hidden in the huqin, and the sword makes the sound of the huqin". In this way, it is very likely that Liu Zhengfeng made friends with Qu Yang because of playing the flute.

After hearing this, Fei Bin snorted coldly and said, "You and the demon Qu met because of music. Alliance Leader Zuo has already found out everything. Alliance Leader Zuo said that the demon sect had ill intentions. They knew that our Five Mountains Sword Sect has been developing rapidly in recent years and it is difficult to compete with it, so they tried every means to sabotage it, sow discord, and use every possible means, such as tempting with money or seducing with beauty. Senior Brother Liu, you have always been strict in your conduct, so they catered to your preferences and sent Qu Yang to approach you through music. Senior Brother Liu, you have to be more sober. How many of us have been killed by the demon sect over the years? How could you be deceived by their evil tricks and still be obsessed with it?"

Nun Dingyi echoed, "Yes, Junior Brother Fei is right. The scary thing about the Demon Cult is not that their martial arts are vicious, but that they have endless tricks that are hard to guard against. Junior Brother Liu, you are a gentleman, and it is no big deal for you to be schemed against by a despicable villain. You should kill that demon Qu Yang with a sword as soon as possible, and the matter will be over. We in the Five Mountains Sword Sect are of the same blood, and we must not fall into the evil schemes of the Demon Cult and hurt the loyalty among fellow Taoists."

Taoist Tianmen also nodded and said, "Junior Brother Liu, when a gentleman makes a mistake, it is like an eclipse, and everyone knows about it. But as long as you can admit your mistakes and correct them, it is a great act of kindness. You just need to kill the demon named Qu, and everyone in the chivalrous way will give you a thumbs up and praise you, saying, 'Liu Zhengfeng of the Hengshan School is indeed a good man who can distinguish between good and evil.' As your friends, we will also feel proud."

Liu Zhengfeng listened to what everyone said, but did not respond immediately. His eyes slowly moved, and finally landed on Yue Buqun's face, and he said: "Brother Yue, you have always been able to distinguish right from wrong, and you can be called a gentleman. Now that so many martial arts masters are forcing me to betray my friends, I wonder what you think?"

Yue Buqun pondered for a moment, then said solemnly, "Brother Liu, if it was a true friend, we in the martial arts world would never hesitate to stick our necks out for our friends. But the man named Qu in the Demon Cult is obviously up to no good, smiling but hiding a dagger in his heart. He deliberately tries to please you, but in fact he is our most sinister and vicious enemy. His goal is to ruin your reputation and destroy your family. His intentions are so sinister that it is hard to describe. How can such a person be considered a friend? It is simply an insult to the word 'friend'. The ancients even killed relatives for the sake of justice, so even relatives could be killed, let alone such a big demon and traitor who is not even a friend?"

After hearing Yue Buqun's impassioned speech, the heroes all nodded in agreement. Many of them even cheered loudly, saying, "Mr. Yue is absolutely right. We should be loyal to our friends, but we must root out our enemies and never be soft-hearted. How can we be loyal to them?"

Liu Zhengfeng listened to the discussion quietly, his face was calm, without any emotional fluctuations, but his heart was like a turmoil, with mixed feelings. He knew that no matter what choice he made today, he would face a huge dilemma. But he never regretted meeting Qu Yang. In his heart, Qu Yang was his lifelong confidant, and this friendship was far more precious than anything else. Even if he was facing a life-and-death decision at this moment, he was unwilling to give up this precious friendship.

Liu Zhengfeng sat in the hall, his expression solemn, surrounded by a noisy crowd. He took a deep breath, waited for the crowd to quiet down, and then spoke slowly. Although his voice was not loud, it was clearly heard throughout the hall: "When I first became friends with Brother Qu, I had expected a situation like today. In recent days, I have been secretly observing the situation, and I expect that in the near future, there will be a tragic fight between my Five Mountains Sword Sect and the Demon Sect. On one side are fellow disciples with deep friendship; on the other side are close friends who know and cherish each other. Liu is really in a dilemma, and helping either side goes against my original intention, so I came up with this plan to retire. Today, I am here to announce to my fellow practitioners that Liu will withdraw from the martial arts world from now on, and will no longer participate in the grudges and hatreds in the martial arts world. I only wish to stay out of it and avoid being implicated in this endless dispute. I donated a small military officer position, which was originally a self-defilement, just to cover up the truth, but I didn't expect that I still couldn't escape the eyes of the left leader."

After hearing this, everyone suddenly understood. Some of them whispered to each other, "So there is such a deep meaning behind his retirement. I was wondering, how could a master of Hengshan Sect be willing to be such an insignificant official?" Liu Zhengfeng's explanation made everyone feel as if they had guessed the reason long ago, as if they had foresight.

Fei Bin, Ding Mian and Lu Bai looked at each other, and a hint of pride flashed in their eyes. Fei Bin thought to himself, "If it weren't for Senior Brother Zuo's foresight, who saw through your plot and stopped it in time, you would have succeeded."

Liu Zhengfeng continued, "The Demon Sect and my Chivalrous Sect have been fighting and killing each other for more than a hundred years. It is hard to tell the right and wrong in a short time. I just hope to withdraw from this bloody and dangerous dispute, live in seclusion in the mountains, play the flute and teach my children every day, and be an ordinary citizen who abides by the law. I think this wish does not violate the rules of my sect, nor the covenant of the Five Mountains Sword Sect."

Fei Bin sneered and said sarcastically, "If everyone is like you, and chooses to escape in times of danger, then wouldn't that allow the Demon Cult to run rampant in the martial arts world and harm the world? You want to stay out of it, but how can the demon named Qu stay out of it?"

Liu Zhengfeng smiled calmly and said, "Brother Qu has already sworn a solemn oath to his Demon Sect's founder in front of me that no matter how the Demon Sect and the White Sect fight in the future, he will stay out of it and never intervene. He will uphold the principle of not offending others unless they offend me."

Fei Bin snorted coldly, "What a saying, 'I won't offend others unless they offend me'! What if we, the people of the white world, offend him?" Liu Zhengfeng replied calmly, "Brother Qu said that he would do his best to be tolerant and would never compete with others. He would also try his best to bridge the misunderstandings and rifts between the two sides. Brother Qu also sent someone to tell me this morning that Huashan Sect disciple Linghu Chong was injured and in critical condition, and he saved him."

As soon as these words came out, everyone was in an uproar, especially the people from Huashan Sect, Hengshan Sect, and Qingcheng Sect, who were whispering and discussing.

Yue Lingshan couldn't help but ask, "Uncle Liu, was my senior brother really... saved by that senior named Qu?"

Liu Zhengfeng looked calm and said, "Since Brother Qu said so, it must be true. When you see Nephew Linghu in the future, you can ask him in person."

Fei Bin sneered, his face full of disdain: "What's so strange about that? The people in the Demon Sect are best at sowing discord. What means can't they use? If he can do everything to win you over, he will naturally try every means to win over the disciples of Huashan Sect. Maybe Linghu Chong will be grateful for this and want to repay him for saving his life. If so, there will be another traitor in our Five Mountains Sword Sect." After saying that, he turned to look at Yue Buqun: "Brother Yue, what I said is just an analogy, please don't be offended."

Yue Buqun smiled faintly, his expression indifferent: "No wonder!"

Yi Huawei frowned. Since Yue Buqun said so, he didn't know what to say, but he secretly took note of him in his heart.

Liu Zhengfeng raised his eyebrows and asked:

"Brother Fei, you said there is another traitor. What does the word 'again' mean?"

Fei Bin sneered and said sarcastically: "A mute eating wontons knows what's going on, so why bother to say it out loud?"

Liu Zhengfeng snorted and said:
"Humph, you are directly accusing me of being a traitor to our sect. Making friends is purely a personal matter for me, and it is none of others' business. I, Liu Zhengfeng, would never dare to betray my master and ancestors and betray the Hengshan Sect. The word 'traitor' will be returned to you intact."

Originally, he looked gentle and polite, like an ordinary rich country gentleman, with a bit of wealth and rusticity, but at this moment, his momentum suddenly changed, and he was full of vigor, like a completely different person. Seeing that he was in an extremely unfavorable situation, but still confronted Fei Bin head-on, without flinching, everyone could not help but secretly admire his courage.

Fei Bin said, "So, Senior Brother Liu is unwilling to take the first path and is determined not to exterminate the demons and kill the great demon Qu Yang?"

Liu Zhengfeng looked determined and said, "If Alliance Leader Zuo gives the order, Senior Brother Fei might as well do it right now and kill Liu's entire family!"

Fei Bin said, "Don't think that just because all the heroes in the world are visiting your home, my Five Mountains Sword Sect will be cautious and will not dare to clean up the mess." As he spoke, he stretched out his hand to Shi Tengda and said, "Come here!"

Shi Dengda quickly replied, "Yes!" and took three quick steps forward. Fei Bin took the five-color flag from him, raised it high, and said in a loud voice, "Listen, Liu Zhengfeng, the left leader has ordered that if you don't agree to kill Qu Yang within a month, the Five Mountains Sword Sect will have to clean up the mess immediately to avoid future troubles. We will root out the trouble and show no mercy. Think about it again!"

Liu Zhengfeng smiled bitterly and said, "When I make friends, I value loyalty. How can I kill my friends to protect myself? Since the Left Alliance Leader is unwilling to forgive me, how can I, Liu Zhengfeng, who is alone and weak, compete with him? I believe that you, the Songshan Sect, have already arranged everything. I am afraid that you have even bought my coffin. If you want to take action, just do it. Why wait any longer?"

At this moment, the atmosphere in the hall was extremely tense, and the air seemed to have frozen. Everyone's eyes moved back and forth between Liu Zhengfeng and Fei Bin, and no one knew what would happen next.

Suddenly, a tall man stood up. He was a disciple of Taishan Sect and had some friendship with Liu Zhengfeng. He clasped his fists towards Fei Bin and said, "Uncle Master Fei, Uncle Master Liu's friendship with Naqu Yang may be just a moment of confusion, not necessarily a betrayal of the Five Mountains Sword Sect. I hope Uncle Master can give Uncle Master Liu another chance."

Fei Bin's face darkened, and he shouted, "Who are you? How dare you speak so much here? Making friends with the Demon Sect is betrayal. If we don't punish Liu Zhengfeng today, everyone in the Five Mountains Sword Sect will follow suit in the future. What will happen then?"

The man was a little scared after being yelled at by Fei Bin, but he still said bravely: "But...but Uncle Liu has always been an upright person. He retired this time to avoid being involved in disputes, and he did not intend to collude with the Demon Cult."

Fei Bin snorted coldly, ignored him, turned to look at Liu Zhengfeng, and said, "Liu Zhengfeng, what is your final reply?"

(End of this chapter)