In the martial arts world, he threatens Yin Susu from the start.

Kong Wen shook his head, clearly disagreeing with Zhang Cuishan's statement.

"Amitabha. How can the deaths of seventy-one people from the Longmen Escort Agency be settled simply by saying that Zhang Wuxia did not inflict the injuries? Xie Xun is an even more heinous villain who has killed countless people. How can we protect him?"

"Hand over Xie Xun!"

"Hand over Xie Xun!"

Apart from the Emei Sect, which remained relatively reserved, the other major sects began shouting and making a ruckus.

Pressed by the crowd's pressure, Zhang Cuishan looked conflicted. It wasn't that he wanted to reveal Yin Susu and Xie Xun's whereabouts, but rather that he hesitated about whether to explain that Xie Xun had been framed by Cheng Kun. Revealing it now would inevitably alert Cheng Kun, making it even more difficult to find him later.

Yin Susu misunderstood, thinking that Zhang Cuishan harbored resentment towards her for killing the seventy-one members of the Longmen Escort Agency.

She thought to herself: So be it. We were husband and wife after all, and I was loved and cared for by him, spending half my life together. I have failed in my duties as a wife, so it's good to repay him today.

However, just as Yin Susu was about to step forward and confess that she was the one who murdered the entire Longmen Escort Agency, her pupils contracted, and she looked incredulously at the person who had stepped into the arena before her, bowed to the crowd, and spoke loudly.

"My name is Gu Hanyuan, a third-generation disciple of Wudang. Now that things have come to this, I have a few words to say. Master Kongwen is highly respected and renowned throughout the world. Surely he wouldn't stop a mere disciple like myself from speaking a few words of justice?"

It was Gu Hanyuan who stepped forward. Seeing Yin Susu looking like she was about to self-destruct, he cursed her under his breath as a "stupid woman" and had no choice but to step in early to defuse the situation. Fortunately, it didn't significantly impact the plan; perhaps there would even be some unexpected gains.

Chapter 9: The Unfounded Accusation

Gu Hanyuan's sudden entry into the center of attention not only stunned the people from various sects, including Kongwen, but also greatly shocked the Wudang group.

Even many members of the Wudang Sect didn't recognize Gu Hanyuan, this usually inconspicuous figure. Only the Seven Heroes and six others who had recently been frequently visiting Yu Daiyan knew him.

Occasionally, I would catch a glimpse of him. I knew that Yu Daiyan had such a handsome but rather unremarkable disciple.

Shangguan Haitang also looked surprised, not expecting that the person she had admired after exchanging a few glances would appear in the room under these circumstances.

Deep down, she hoped that Gu Hanyuan would be safe and sound.

Abbess Miejue frowned slightly. For her, the most important thing was to find the whereabouts of Xie Xun, the Golden Lion King, so as to avenge his elder brother, Fang Ping, the "Golden Melon Hammer" of Kaifeng.

Originally, things were progressing, but then Gu Hanyuan suddenly interfered, which inevitably made her feel dissatisfied.

As for the disciples behind Miejue, they only felt that Gu Hanyuan was overestimating himself, and it was just a pity about his handsome face.

Yin Susu was more shocked than anyone else on the field.

She could tell that, based on her understanding, Gu Hanyuan wouldn't have chosen to appear at such a dangerous time if it weren't for her impulsive actions.

Although she still felt somewhat resentful about being threatened by him that night, after being comforted by him last time, and with their secret interaction just now, she couldn't deny that a few feelings had developed between them.

Moved by this again, Yin Susu began to waver.

At this moment, she could only choose to trust Gu Hanyuan and silently pray that everything would be alright.

In the few steps it took to decide who would leave the stage, Gu Hanyuan had already decided that he would step into the spotlight in the future.

To avoid fading into obscurity, one needs sufficient prestige, and the grim-faced Kong Wen and the distressed Kong Zhi are the perfect tools for gaining prestige.

Song Yuanqiao was a kind and generous man. Seeing that Gu Hanyuan had attracted firepower in such a dangerous situation, he instinctively wanted to stop him, but Zhang Sanfeng stopped him.

Zhang Sanfeng was watching with great interest his grand-disciple, who was usually unremarkable but was now radiating brilliance as he engaged in a lively and eloquent debate with the assembled heroes.

With his keen eye, it was not difficult for him to see that Gu Hanyuan, who usually kept his abilities hidden, had already reached the early stage of the Innate Realm.

Even though Zhang Sanfeng hadn't seen him make a move, his footsteps, eyes, and aura revealed almost everything about Gu Hanyuan's hidden cultivation level.

Of course, Zhang Sanfeng was the only one in the room with such insight; even Mu Daoren was a step behind.

Kong Wen's expression turned grim when he heard Gu Hanyuan use similar words to those he had previously spoken to Zhang Sanfeng. He had a vague premonition that things wouldn't go as planned that day.

Kong Wen appears to be a person of high moral character and compassion, but in reality, he is extremely petty, often suspecting others with the greatest malice, and loves to show off his petty cleverness to satisfy his sense of superiority.

In reality, Kong Wen didn't care about Longmen Escort Agency.

After all, Longmen Escort Agency was just an escort agency opened by Du Dajin, a lay disciple of the Northern Shaolin Temple who was dismissed due to poor martial arts aptitude. And there were at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, lay disciples like Du Dajin within the Ming Dynasty.

Every year, one or two lay disciples, similar to Du Dajin, would die. And the Northern Shaolin Temple never sought justice for anyone.

How much of a place could such a person as Du Dajin hold in Kong Wen's heart?

It's just that Zhang Cuishan is involved, so they can use this opportunity to strike at the Wudang Sect.

He genuinely wanted revenge for Kong Jian, after all, Kong Jian was the most powerful master in the Northern Shaolin Temple on the surface. Moreover, Kong Jian had an excellent reputation, otherwise Xie Xun wouldn't have been so convinced of his abilities.

Kongjian's death has greatly damaged the interests of the Northern Shaolin Temple.

As for acquiring the Dragon-Slaying Saber, it was to enhance the Northern Shaolin Temple's reputation in the martial arts world; they had little interest in the saber itself.

"Since you have something to say, please speak frankly."

Kong Wen tried to regain some face and take back the initiative by relying on his seniority.

Gu Hanyuan didn't care about Kong Wen's somewhat clumsy provocation.

"Does Master Kongwen possess any concrete evidence that Fifth Uncle murdered seventy-one people from the Longmen Escort Agency?"

Kong Wen frowned slightly, but could only tell the truth.

"Although there is no evidence, Zhang Wuxia was the most likely person with the strongest motive at the time."

After Kong Wen admitted that he had no evidence, Gu Hanyuan delivered a decisive blow.

"So, Master Kongwen is using fabricated charges to interrogate Fifth Uncle? I never imagined that the highly respected Master Kongwen and the renowned Northern Shaolin would compare themselves to the Emperor of the Song Dynasty? Is the next step to send Fifth Uncle to Northern Shaolin for execution on a chosen day?"

As soon as Gu Hanyuan finished speaking, the entire hall fell silent, with only the sound of breathing remaining among the hundreds of people present.

Although this argument is somewhat far-fetched, only 20 years have passed since Yue Fei was unjustly killed.

The events of that year caused a great uproar throughout the land. Even within the Ming Dynasty, it was common knowledge. And the fabricated charges against him were thus universally reviled.

Given Yue Fei's prestige among the various states in the Central Plains at the time, if it were confirmed that the Northern Shaolin Temple had followed the example of Emperor Zhao Gou of the Song Dynasty and unjustly killed Zhang Cuishan on fabricated charges, the Northern Shaolin Temple would very likely have been razed to the ground by those who respected Yue Fei.

Therefore, Kong Wen and the Northern Shaolin Temple absolutely cannot bear the burden of this fabricated charge.

Furthermore, Gu Hanyuan's statement that the Northern Shaolin Temple compared itself to the emperor of the Song Dynasty was a serious taboo. What exactly does a martial arts sect want by comparing itself to an emperor?

"you you……"

Kong Wen was so shocked that he couldn't speak, and could only stammer out a few "you".

The other major sects were also still shaken and never made a fuss again.

Shangguan Haitang was also deeply impressed by Gu Hanyuan's audacity. He actually pinned a trumped-up charge on the Northern Shaolin Temple, accusing them of falsely accusing and unjustly killing Zhang Cuishan.

As for the matter of comparing himself to an emperor, that's a rather delicate one.

If you don't care, it's just a matter of laughing it off. But if you really want to take it seriously, the imperial court has every reason to take action against the Northern Shaolin Temple.

Yin Susu had a deep understanding of Gu Hanyuan's shamelessness; directly framing someone was exactly the kind of thing he would do.

This move is indeed powerful, but the key question is how to resolve the matter of Xie Xun? Even if Shaolin is forced to retreat, the other major sects will never easily give up their covetousness for the Dragon-Slaying Saber.

Gu Hanyuan watched the changes in the arena, a contemptuous smile curling at the corner of his lips. He glanced at the restless Kong Zhi, instantly igniting his anger.

"You ignorant brat, spouting nonsense! How dare you slander the Northern Shaolin Temple! You will not be allowed to live today!"

Kong Zhi was impulsive and easily angered by Gu Hanyuan's provocation, and instantly lost his temper, leaping up to attack Gu Hanyuan.

"Junior brother, no!"

Although Kong Wen was also very angry about Gu Hanyuan's words, he knew that it was not advisable to take action today. Otherwise, if it turned into a large-scale battle, the Northern Shaolin Temple and others might be left behind on Wudang Mountain.

He was somewhat aware of the disparity in strength, and his previous coercion of Zhang Cuishan was only achieved through the cooperation of various sects, leveraging the prevailing trend and the name of chivalry. Otherwise, he wouldn't have dared to come to Zhang Sanfeng's side seeking death even if he had ten lives.

However, to his utter surprise, he remained calm despite being the one being targeted, while Kong Zhi, who had been sitting on the sidelines for most of the day, couldn't contain his anger and attacked Gu Hanyuan.

Chapter 10: Calculating Kong Zhi to Gain Reputation

Kongzhi's move was too fast and too unexpected.

Not only did Kong Wen fail to intervene in time, but even the Wudang Sect members were caught off guard.

They could only manage a few scattered shouts of "Be careful!"

Yin Susu was one of the people who reminded him, not because of her high martial arts skills, but because she had been paying attention to Gu Hanyuan and subconsciously shouted it out.

Unfortunately, all she could do was offer a worried reminder; she wanted to step forward and help, but she couldn't.

The Wood Daoist had concealed his true cultivation level for many years, so naturally he wouldn't choose to reveal it in this situation.

Zhang Sanfeng was willing to lend a hand. However, after seeing Gu Hanyuan's starting stance, he decided to observe further, as there might be a pleasant surprise.

Gu Hanyuan saw Kong Zhi lunging at him fiercely. He remained calm, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword.

Kong Zhi did notice Gu Hanyuan's actions, but he didn't care about his resistance at all.

After all, he's just a mere third-generation disciple. How much strength could someone so young possibly possess?

Out of the corner of his eye, he was still more focused on Zhang Sanfeng not far away, worried that he might suddenly intervene. Others might not be able to catch up, but surely Zhang Sanfeng wouldn't be able to?

Although Kong Zhi was enraged by Gu Hanyuan and his words and actions were very fierce, he had not actually completely lost his mind.

Just by looking at how much he paid attention to Zhang Sanfeng's movements, you can tell that he had considered the consequences before taking action.

They weren't foolish enough to think they could kill a Wudang disciple in front of Zhang Sanfeng.

At most, he just wanted to capture Gu Hanyuan to vent his anger.

Therefore, Kong Zhi did not use any profound martial arts skills, but simply struck Gu Hanyuan with a palm.