Chapter 58: Brother, forgery scene
After placing the spirit stone into his storage bag, Ye Anping took a deep breath. He soared into the air on his sword, swiftly scanning the surroundings with his awareness. Once he confirmed that there were no onlookers, he retrieved a bundle of fire and lightning talismans from his storage bag.
This situation was similar to the question posed by Feng Yudie earlier. Feng Yudie had been abducted after following him. Bai Yuexin was aware of this, and when Feng Yudie left Xuanxing Sect, she should have been seen by the patrolling disciples. If news of Feng Yudie’s abduction reached Xuanxing Sect and an investigation ensued, Ye Anping would become the prime suspect, the sole suspect.
This wasn’t a matter that Bai Yuexin could talk his way out of or use his status as the young master of the Hundred Lotus Sect to brush aside. If he returned like this, he would inevitably be apprehended by the Xuanxing Sect’s Crime Department for questioning, with his parents invited from the Hundred Lotus Sect to observe.
To eliminate his suspicion, Ye Anping hesitated for a moment. He circulated his meridians thoroughly and then tossed two stacks of talismans into the surroundings.
Two hundred talismans floated down like autumn leaves in a dense forest, covering the area. Ye Anping clenched his teeth, infusing all the spiritual energy from his dantian into the two hundred talismans.
In an instant, the sky above Liuyue Lake was enveloped in lightning and fire. Although these were low-level talismans he had drawn himself, their cumulative power was sufficient to intimidate a late-stage foundation-building cultivator. They could be used to fabricate the spell traces of such a cultivator, making it nearly impossible to discern.
As the spiritual energy in his sea of qi was depleted by the talismans, Ye Anping had no energy left to control their direction.
Boom!
Countless lightning bolts and fireballs, like octopus tentacles, struck the barrier lake below, causing chaos and destruction.
Even in a moment, the sunlit azure sky dimmed in the wake of thunder and fire, casting a shadow. Naturally, Ye Anping, too, was affected by the proximity of his own fire and thunder talismans. After the spectacle subsided, he fell freely from his flying sword, creating a dent in the ground amidst swirling mud and dust.
Gasping for breath on the ground, Ye Anping bore the remnants of the lightning’s glow on his body. His clothes were torn with several large holes, presenting a dishevelled appearance.
After regaining a bit of composure, he quickly touched the ground with his palm, guiding the thunder spirit essence on his body to Mother Earth. He then rolled twice to extinguish the flames on his clothes.
Having completed these tasks, he fully relaxed and rested for a while, finally regaining enough strength to stand up.
Ye Anping was trembling and climbed out of the pit and looked at his handiwork. The pavilion where he and Feng Yudie had been collapsed completely. The willow trees in the surroundings were now skewed, and the Liuyue Lake, about two or three acres in size, looked dramatically different.
The lake was filled with belly-up carp, either stunned by electricity or roasted. The entire lake resembled a large pot of fish soup, with mist rising and the water almost boiling.
“Perhaps a bit too much, hmm…” Ye Anping took a deep breath. He then exerted force on his right arm, reattaching the dislocated hand. Quickly, he took out a middle-grade spirit-gathering pill from his storage bag, consumed it, and sat down to regulate his breathing.
Dong Dong—
At this moment, the heavy footsteps of an adult brown bear reached his ears. Ye Anping opened his eyes and saw the bear staring at him from a distance. His actions had inadvertently affected the local wildlife. However, he lacked the strength to confront a bear now. After a moment of contemplation, Ye Anping pointed at the lake and said, “Fish soup for you, go!”
The brown bear seemed to understand, glanced at the belly-up fish on the lake, then back at Ye Anping. It reckoned that eating fish might be a better deal, so it turned and walked towards the lake.
…
Liuyue Lake was at some distance from Xuanxing City, and with the bustling market, most people paid little attention to the distant “boom” sound from the southwest. They assumed it was probably some clumsy cultivator’s alchemy furnace exploding.
Meanwhile, Bai Yuexin squatted at the door of the therapy centre, eagerly awaiting Ye Anping’s return to resume business.
“Bai Junior Sister, why are you squatting at the door?”
“Huh? Senior Brother Chen.” Bai Yuexin explained, “Anping has gone out now. If you need therapy, you might have to wait for a while.”
“Gone out? Fine, I have nothing urgent anyway.”
Senior Brother Chen shrugged and entered the centre, where he noticed five or six people already waiting in the lobby, all familiar faces.
“Has Young Master Ye been away for long?”
One junior sister, sipping her tea, replied, “Senior Sister Bai said Young Master Ye went for a walk with someone and will be back soon.”
“With someone?”
Another junior brother whispered, “It’s the girl who defeated Junior Sister Bai in the sword test before. Silver-haired, named Feng something…”
Senior Brother Chen nodded knowingly, “No wonder Junior Sister Bai looks so troubled… Sigh—”
He turned his head to glance at Bai Yuexin, who was standing guard at the door. Then, he found an empty seat and sat down, waiting for Ye Anping to return for physical therapy. However, just as he settled into the chair, Bai Yuexin, who had been squatting at the door, suddenly stood up with a terrified expression and rushed outside.
“Ah! Anping!”
Hearing her panicked voice, the people inside the room exchanged glances, realising that something might be wrong. They immediately stood up and followed her outside.
Then, everyone saw Ye Anping, his clothes torn with several large holes and covered in injuries.
Ye Anping’s expression was calm, but his legs were weak, and he could barely stand, relying on a thick branch in his hand for support.
Bai Yuexin hurriedly approached and supported him, asking, “Anping, how did you get such serious injuries? Who harmed you?”
“Yes, Young Master Ye, who did this to you? It’s forbidden for cultivators to fight privately around Xuanxing Sect. Who would be so lawless?”
A senior sister who came along frowned, looking like she wanted to avenge Ye Anping and even rolled up her sleeves.
Senior Brother Chen, being the highest in seniority present, quickly asked the other disciples to calm down and stepped forward to check Ye Anping’s injuries.
“Fortunately, there are no bone injuries.” He assisted Bai Yuexin in supporting Ye Anping and asked, “Young Master Ye, what happened?”
Ye Anping, not expecting so many people, paused for a moment and then spontaneously spoke out the prepared explanation.
“Just now, Miss Feng and I were taking a walk and chatting by Liuyue Lake when suddenly a masked person attacked us. Miss Feng and I resisted, but in the end, she was abducted by that person.”
Everyone wore expressions of shock. “What?”
Senior Brother Chen lowered his head, pondered for a moment, and then arranged, “Junior Sister Bai, take Young Master Ye to the sect to find Dr. Zhou for bandaging and treatment. I will take the other disciples to Liuyue Lake to investigate. Perhaps we can discover something.”
“Ah… um.”
Bai Yuexin nodded in a fluster and then wanted to hug Ye Anping. However, seeing his numerous wounds, she hesitated, unsure where to hold him so as not to cause further pain.
Although the injuries were on Ye Anping, she felt the pain as if it were on herself. Bai Yuexin bit her lip, carefully lifted Ye Anping, summoned the flying sword, and flew towards the main peak of Xuanxing Sect.
