The Primordial Law

Chapter 357 Raising troops to investigate crimes
The area around Nanqing Palace shook, and the sound was deafening.

The elders and true disciples of the mortal realm stepped out of the mansion and gazed into the distance.

Several days ago, they heard rumors that the Southern Venerable, known as the "Number One Beauty of the Divine Cult," had been confined to the Kurong Hall and was forbidden from leaving the Nanqing Palace. Of course, the title of "Number One Beauty" was first coined by her eldest disciple, Li Weiyi, and then gradually spread.

The upper and middle-level cultivators of the main altar all knew that Venerable Nan was about to encounter trouble.

Today, the formation has been breached, and a large number of troops have surrounded Nanqing Palace. Clearly, everything has come to a close.

Nanqing Palace.

Inside the main hall, with its hipped roof and green tiles, Yao Qingxuan sat in the frontmost position on the right side of the hall. She knew this day would come sooner or later, so she remained extremely calm, waiting for the storm to arrive.

The hall master and deputy hall master of the Kuru Hall were the first to enter the hall.

A man and a woman, one with a golden pure immortal body and the other with a silver pure immortal body, both around fifty years old, radiated dazzling light, dividing the green-tiled palace into gold and silver, exuding a magnificent aura.

They are in charge of punishments, rewards, divine prisons, and laws within the sect, and reside year-round on the third level of the Asura realm. They are the two figures most feared by the disciples of the Rice Cult.

Those who do not have the bloodline of the Rice Man must first pass through the Hall of Withering and Glory before entering the main altar.

Most of the human martial arts practitioners who infiltrated the area met a tragic end. Only those who passed the screening were allowed to enter the second level of the Asura Layer for cultivation.

For a pure human martial arts practitioner to enter the mortal realm of the main altar is as difficult as ascending to heaven.

"So Lord An is here too," said the deputy lord of the Kurong Palace.

An Xianjing had been in Nanqing Palace for two days, sitting in the main seat at the head of the hall, her hands holding prayer beads, her expression shifting between light and shadow. She said, "How about we give this seat to Palace Master Sikong?"

The Lord of the Kuru Palace said in an icy tone, "No need. I am only here to listen in and arrest people. I hope Lord An will prioritize the great cause of the Divine Sect and not show favoritism or protection because of personal relationships. This is not something we can afford to take responsibility for."

Afterwards, the two hall masters of the Kuru Palace sat on the left and right sides near the hall door, closing their eyes to rest.

They never looked at Yao Qingxuan from beginning to end, clearly knowing what was going on and that he was already guilty.

Chu Tianshu, the deputy hall master of the Heavenly Principle Hall, entered the room. The snake head on his neck glanced at Yao Qingxuan, flicked its tongue, and revealed a sinister smile. He bowed to An Xianjing and the hall master of the Withering Hall in turn, and sat down opposite Yao Qingxuan.

Immediately afterwards, Zen Master Xin Ku appeared at the door.

He wore a purple cassock, stood 2.5 meters tall, and had a belly as big as a water vat.

Upon seeing An Xianjing sitting at the head of the table, his expression changed slightly, and like a mouse seeing a cat, he scurried to the side, not daring to enter.

An Xianjing said quietly, "My heart is breaking!"

Zen Master Xin Ku immediately appeared, bowed respectfully, and said obsequiously, "Greetings, Uncle Master."

Master Xin Ku was the most ruthless of the three great masters of Guanshan, possessing extremely high cultivation and talent. In the Southern Territory, his fearsome reputation was second only to the three great barbarian bandits.

"What are you doing here?" An Xianjing asked.

Zen Master Xin Ku cautiously reported, "I have come on behalf of my master! My master told me to take Yao Qingxuan back to him alive."

An Xianjing closed her eyes, resting in silence.

Zen Master Xin Ku stood there, hunched over, frozen in place, unsure whether to advance or retreat.

Only when the patriarch of the Sheng family arrived did he step aside.

The patriarch of the Sheng family was one of the four great figures of the Sui Sect and also the "Elder Qiu" of the seven elders of the Southern Territory, in charge of affairs in Qiu Prefecture.

He was the protagonist of today's grand show. After entering, he bowed to the various palace masters and then poured a blood-soaked human out of his bag, which landed with a thud.

It's Qi Xiao!
He had already fainted and was barely breathing.

The patriarch of the Sheng family stood in the center of the hall, looking at Yao Qingxuan with eyes as sharp as swords: "Venerable Nan, he is from your Nanqing Palace, isn't he? The men I sent out tracked him all the way to Qiuzhou, and then the entire army was wiped out. Why did he go to Qiuzhou? What was he doing there? What explanation do you have for this, Venerable?"

Yao Qingxuan glanced indifferently at Qi Xiao on the ground, not getting caught up in the self-justification: "If you want to rise to the top, do you have the strength?"

The patriarch of the Sheng family chuckled: "I knew you would turn the tables. I have no interest in the position of Venerable Nan. Yao Qingxuan, we have solid evidence. The only reason we are giving you a chance to argue is because you hold a high position and power. We hope you will confess on your own and atone for your crimes. Perhaps then you can die a quicker death."

"Otherwise, your fate will be either to be imprisoned in the Divine Prison or sent to the Coffin Mountain, where you will be unable to live or die."

Yao Qingxuan had already prepared himself mentally and did not say another word.

It was clear that her fate was sealed the moment several palace masters appeared at the same time.

When the Sheng family patriarch saw that things were not as he had expected, there was no heated debate or tense atmosphere, he became hesitant and secretly glanced at An Xianjing above.

Seeing that his solo performance wasn't going well, the deputy hall master of the Heavenly Principles Hall spoke up, breaking the silence: "I have a vague impression of this kid. He seems to be from the Qi family in the Southern Territory. Could it be that he leaked some important secrets while fleeing back to Qiuzhou?"

“This is exactly what I was most worried about!” said the patriarch of the Sheng family.

The deputy head of the Heavenly Justice Hall asked, "Has an interrogation been conducted?"

"We interrogated him, but he wouldn't talk no matter what. We brought him back to ask the people from the Heavenly Palace to use the Soul-Seizing Technique to directly seize his memories," said the Sheng family patriarch.

Only those who unleash the fire of death can claim a soul.

If an outsider attempts to claim Qi Xiao's soul, the deathly fire within his body will instantly ignite.

The deputy hall master of the Heavenly Principle Hall asked, "Since the men you sent out were all wiped out, where did you capture him?"

“This boy is extremely cunning. Knowing that the death flame within his body would reveal his location, he actually hid in an underground immortal abode. If I hadn’t personally taken action, it would have been very difficult to track him down.”

Seeing that Yao Qingxuan remained indifferent, the Sheng family patriarch said in a deep voice, "Whether the secret has been leaked will be revealed in time. Yao Qingxuan, you pride yourself on your exceptional intelligence, claiming to be the most outstanding daughter of the Southern Territory since childhood, even deceiving Palace Master An. But you should never have dreamed that when I was young, I saw Zhou Bida as a child in the Jiuli tribe."

"Did he later join the Nine Li Hidden Sect?"

"Li Weiyi is a hermit of the Nine Li Hidden Sect, and Li Songgu also appeared at Nanyan Pass at the same time. Therefore, you are also a member of the Nine Li Hidden Sect!"

Yao Qingxuan understood immediately.

The Sui Sect deliberately set a trap for Zhou Bida, intending to eliminate her and uncover the Nine Li Hidden Sect, wiping them out in one fell swoop.

The idea of ​​Suizong occupying Lizhou has remained unchanged from ancient times to the present, generation after generation.

Yao Qingxuan nodded slightly, sighing with admiration, "Impressive... I accept defeat wholeheartedly this time! Yang Shenjing is indeed experienced; I admire him, I have no choice but to admit it!"

All eyes in the hall turned to her.

They believe she has already confessed.

The patriarch of the Sheng family waved his hand, his tone high-pitched: "No, it is your Jiuli Hidden Sect that is more powerful. Jiang Xin is dead! The foundation that the Divine Sect has built in Nanyan Temple over hundreds of years has been destroyed by you in an instant."

The deputy hall master of the Heavenly Principle Hall glanced at An Xianjing and seized the opportunity to add insult to injury: "Jiang Xin is the elder of the prefecture of the Divine Sect, and the prefecture is the location of the main altar. His death has a huge impact, and countless people will be implicated. This crime alone is a capital offense."

"Nanyan Pass is of even greater importance, involving hundreds of lives and a huge blood debt."

Yao Qingxuan was surprised. Logically speaking, with Yang Shenjing personally orchestrating the plan and holding all the advantages, he should have been able to wipe out the Nine Li Hidden Sect in one fell swoop. How was the Nine Li Hidden Sect able to fight back despite being at a disadvantage?
Outside the hall. Someone reported that the elder in charge of cultivating the Death Spirit Flame in the Heavenly Palace had been summoned.

The elder of the Heavenly Palace, who was made of rice, entered the palace and released strands of spiritual light from his fingertips, which entered Qi Xiao's seven orifices to search for his soul and memories.

After a while.

He bowed deeply to the Hall Master of An Palace and the Hall Master of Kurong Palace: "I've figured it out!"

The deputy head of the Heavenly Principles Hall asked with a smile, "Did he leak any secrets?"

An Xianjing opened her eyes. As long as the secret hadn't been leaked, she could still say a few words about it.

If a major secret were to be leaked, she would have no choice but to avoid suspicion. Because it would inevitably alarm the Rice Ancestor.

The elder of the Heavenly Hall looked at the Sheng family patriarch and asked, "Elder Qiu, does he have a letter on him?"

The patriarch of the Sheng family looked at Qi Xiao on the ground, whose magical artifacts and robes were all torn to shreds: "Even if there was a letter on him, it has been shattered into dust. In any case, I did not find any letter on him."

The elder of the Heavenly Palace nodded slightly: "Qi Xiao's sea of ​​consciousness has been tampered with."

"What did you say?" the Sheng family patriarch said in a deep voice.

The elder of the Heavenly Palace said, "Qi Xiao's memory is missing a section. From the missing parts, we can see that he is carrying a letter from the Fourth Divine Son. The letter says that if anything changes at Nanyan Pass, he should immediately return to the Divine Sect headquarters and inform Venerable Nan. Obviously, the Fourth Divine Son sensed the danger before entering the pass and made arrangements in advance."

"Not long after Qi Xiao left Nanyan Pass, he was hunted down by experts from the sect."

The patriarch of the Sheng family sensed the skepticism in the other party's words: "You'd better not talk nonsense."

The elder of the Heavenly Palace, who was responsible for cultivating the Death Spirit Flame, must have possessed considerable mental power; he was a Holy Spirit Mentalist. He showed no fear of the Sheng family patriarch, gesturing for him to investigate.

At the same time, An Xianjing and the Palace Master of the Kurong Palace each sent out a strand of spiritual light to investigate.

The Nanqing Palace had been sealed off several days earlier.

Yao Qingxuan had no access to outside intelligence and was unaware of the specific situation at Nanyan Pass. She realized that the situation might be turning around, so she chose to remain unchanged and wait for all changes to come.

He secretly wondered what his eldest disciple was plotting.
Even she couldn't foresee the danger at Nanyan Pass, so how could that kid have sensed it beforehand?

An Xianjing withdrew her spiritual light: "There is indeed such a missing letter in his sea of ​​consciousness. Logically speaking, if those three lads betrayed us, the Fourth Divine Son shouldn't have sent him back to the main altar; he should have sent him back to the Qi family, back to the Zuoqiu sect. How can this be explained?"

The patriarch of the Sheng family said, "It must be that the Zuoqiu sect has already obtained the information and deliberately erased his memory, sending him back to cover up the truth. If it were me, I would have erased his memory completely. How could he have left behind the memory of a letter? Think about it, if he really wanted to return to the main altar, it would be closer to go directly to the Rice Ancestor Temple. Why would he go to the entrance of the Underground Immortal Mansion instead of going to the nearest place?"

The deputy hall master of the Heavenly Principle Hall said, "This matter is indeed strange and cannot be explained."

The elder from the Heavenly Palace said, "To extract a soul from a consciousness requires a great deal of time and luck. After all, consciousness is extremely fragile and can easily become disordered and chaotic. To accurately manipulate a person's memories is not so simple."

The patriarch of the Sheng family's eyes turned cold, feeling that this old fellow was deliberately going against him. He snorted and said, "Palace Master Sikong, Yao Qingxuan himself has admitted to being a member of the Nine Li Hidden Sect. In addition, the evidence from Nanyan Pass is conclusive. Let's convict him directly! Qi Xiao is nothing more than a trap set up by the Nine Li Hidden Sect."

“Elder Qiu, when did I ever admit to being a member of the Nine Li Hidden Sect? I only admire your methods; you went to great lengths to deal with me,” Yao Qingxuan said.

The Palace Master of the Kuru Palace asked, "Does Venerable Nan have anything else to say?"

Yao Qingxuan shook his head: "I know nothing about what's happening outside. My men came back to report to me, only to be beaten to a pulp. What can I say?"

The patriarch of the Sheng family said, "Your eldest disciple destroyed all the foundations of the Divine Sect in Nanyan Pass. Countless disciples of the sect died tragically. Do you think you can escape it?"

A commotion was heard outside Nanqing Palace.

Elder Xu's roar rang out from outside: "Get out of the way, I want to see the Palace Master."

"What happened again?" the Sheng family patriarch asked angrily.

A soldier from the enforcement team came to report: "The two Elders Xu of Linggu Hall have brought a seriously injured person and want to see Hall Master An."

"Who's stopping me?" An Xianjing was seething with anger.

The law enforcement sergeant was so frightened that he lay prone on the ground.

"Uncle-Master, please don't be angry. This humble monk will go and bring the person in." Zen Master Xin Ku strode out.

Not long after.

The two elders carried the seriously injured Tuoba Butuo to the outside of the Qingwa Palace.

One of the elders, Xu, reported, "Palace Master, it is Tuoba Butuo, a talented individual under the Fourth Divine Son. He says he has brought back some extremely urgent intelligence."

Another Elder Xu laughed and said, "We found him in the Black Swamp of the Underworld Flower. This kid is really tough. He's covered in wounds, and even his leg is broken, yet he's still swimming desperately on the surface. If he hadn't met us, he definitely wouldn't have made it back."

The reason why the two Elder Xu went to the Dark Flower Swamp was because Li Weiyi had previously exchanged a large amount of scrap metal for a huge amount of Yongquan coins at the Spirit Valley Hall.

Elder Xu asked him for directions, and Li Weiyi generously told him the location of the treasure hunt.

That's exactly when they ran into Tuoba Butuo, who had escaped from the underground immortal abode!

"Palace Master An... the Sui Sect has betrayed us... the Fourth Divine Son has died tragically..."

Tuoba Butuo's voice choked with sobs, his hair disheveled.

He was severely injured, with countless wounds all over his body. His abdomen was slashed open, and more than ten bones were broken. His eyes were filled with tears, and he looked utterly miserable. He truly believed that Li Weiyi was trapped in Nanyan Pass and would face a near-death experience.

Everyone inside and outside the hall was stunned.

The patriarch of the Sheng family was the first to react, shouting sharply, "What did you say?"

His cultivation was so high that this roar contained powerful mental energy. Tuoba Butuo's body went limp and he fell backward.

"Old Ghost Sheng, are you trying to kill me to silence me right in front of me?"

With a loud bang, Yao Qingxuan slammed the chair to pieces and stood up abruptly.

She didn't know what Li Weiyi had arranged, but she knew that stirring up trouble was the only way out.

Tuoba Butuo was revived and, trembling, took out the blood-written letter, wrapped in layers, from the ancestral field.

"What is this?" Yao Qingxuan took it.

Tuoba Butuo looked dejected and wept, saying, "I don't know. It was my brother Wei Yi... the Fourth Divine Son who sent me back to give to Lord An..."

The animal hide wrapping was sealed with special runes from the Spirit Valley Palace.

An Xianjing took the package, glanced at the Sheng family patriarch, and then untied the runes and took out the two blood-written letters inside.

The patriarch of the Sheng family found it amusing, knowing that it must be that kid surnamed Li playing some tricks. But the fact that he dared to frame the Sui Sect was simply too childish.

(End of this chapter)