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Xuanyuan Changfeng's expression was gloomy, seemingly extremely angry. The two people kneeling at his feet were trembling, unsure of what they had done wrong.
"Could it be that Wine Kid is throwing another tantrum..." Ye Tian frowned deeply. He had just managed to calm him down and had even offended A-Xue and others over this matter. If Wine Kid was indeed acting childish again, that would be quite irresponsible.
However, this thought was quickly dismissed by Ye Tian, as the situation of the two kneeling by Xuanyuan Changfeng's feet suggested that the problem lay with them.
"Could it be that they harmed Wine Kid?!" Ye Tian's heart skipped a beat as he suddenly recalled his own recent experiences. As Xuanyuan Changfeng's most beloved direct disciple, it was not impossible for Wine Kid to have been harmed.
With this in mind, Ye Tian decisively stepped forward and walked straight toward Xuanyuan Changfeng.
Ye Tian's sudden appearance caused a stir among the crowd, and everyone looked at him with strange expressions, casting him glances akin to those reserved for monsters.
Feeling the hundreds of unusual gazes upon him, Ye Tian's brow furrowed slightly, a vague sense of foreboding rising in his heart.
"Could this matter actually be related to me..."
"Master." While lost in thought, Ye Tian had already arrived in front of Xuanyuan Changfeng, bowing respectfully.
In Cloudscroll Pavilion, unless it was for particularly significant rituals or occasions, disciples did not need to kneel before their masters; a simple expression of respect sufficed.
Upon seeing Ye Tian, Xuanyuan Changfeng's expression also shifted. There was a deep expectation in his eyes, as if he feared disappointing Ye Tian.
"Where have you been?" Xuanyuan Changfeng asked in a deep voice.
Ye Tian remained bowed; since Xuanyuan Changfeng had not spoken further, he could not stand up due to etiquette. However, this also conveniently concealed his pale face from having to fabricate a lie.
When Xuanyuan Changfeng asked this question, it seemed as if the entire room held its breath, falling into an eerie silence for a moment.
"Could it be that Elder Dou exposed my possession of the Blood Exchange and Marrow Transformation Technique..." Ye Tian stared at the ground in front of his toes, his mind racing. After a brief analysis, he concluded that the possibility of Elder Dou being the one to reveal this was extremely low, as it would be a desperate move that could lead to mutual destruction. Hurting himself was not Elder Dou's ultimate goal, so there was no need for him to do such a thing.
"Master, I overslept," Ye Tian said hurriedly. In his rush, he couldn't find a reasonable and grand excuse, so he had no choice but to use this pathetic excuse that would likely invite ridicule.
As soon as Ye Tian spoke, it seemed someone in the crowd suddenly let out a sigh of relief. Ye Tian sensed this and glanced over with his peripheral vision.
The person stood nervously among the crowd, lacking any notable features except for being slightly older; it was Zhang Bin, who had offended Ye Tian earlier that day.
Ye Tian's strength surpassed even Elder Dou's, let alone Xuanyuan Changfeng's, so what he could sense was even clearer to Xuanyuan Changfeng.
"Zhang Bin!" Xuanyuan Changfeng suddenly shouted sharply, his eyes seemingly capable of piercing through worldly affairs suddenly flashing with brilliance.
Zhang Bin's face changed dramatically upon hearing this, and his body uncontrollably trembled.
"Hmm?" Xuanyuan Changfeng showed a look of suspicion. He had only intended to test the waters, but unexpectedly found that Zhang Bin indeed reacted differently.
"My Lord, it has nothing to do with me!" Zhang Bin fell to the ground with a thud, pleading loudly for mercy.
"Zhang Bin, are you an accomplice of Ye Tian?!" Li Xun stepped forward and pointed at Zhang Bin, questioning sternly.
Ye Tian suddenly raised his head at these words, vaguely realizing his situation.
"Hsun." Xuanyuan Changfeng frowned and glanced at Li Xun; his actions seemed somewhat abnormal.
Li Xun awkwardly stepped back and stood aside, glaring fiercely at Zhang Bin. Seeing this, Zhang Bin hurriedly lowered his head and dared not raise it again.
"Zhang Bin, I will ask you a few questions. You must answer truthfully; otherwise, your life will be in danger." Although Xuanyuan Changfeng's tone was not loud, it was firm and resolute. Usually, he preferred to refer to himself as "I" or "this old man," but today’s occasion seemed significant enough for him to refer to himself as "this pavilion," representing the supreme authority of Cloudscroll Pavilion.
"My Lord, please ask. Zhang Bin will speak without reservation," Zhang Bin replied anxiously.
"Have you seen Ye Tian today?" Xuanyuan Changfeng's tone suddenly rose, and an overwhelming pressure instantly filled the entire Cloud Viewing Stone Platform.
Everyone present was stirred by this aura, and those with guilty consciences even trembled involuntarily.
"I have seen him..." Without much thought, Zhang Bin instinctively provided an answer.
After Zhang Bin spoke, many people's expressions subtly changed. Elder Dou frowned slightly, while Hong Zhi looked at Elder Dou with a pleading expression. Li Xun's face darkened, seemingly annoyed. Meanwhile, Ye Tian felt a sudden clarity in his heart; he had a rough idea of what was happening.
However, the changes in these few people's expressions were not as pronounced as Xuanyuan Changfeng's. He seemed to let out a long sigh and then waved his sleeve, saying to Zhang Bin, "Get up."
Zhang Bin was taken aback by this response, seemingly not expecting such an easy resolution. However, this moment of relief was quickly replaced by deeper worry as he cautiously glanced at Li Xun, who was now glaring at him with a murderous intent.
"Hsun, since he has seen Ye Tian, does that mean what you said cannot hold?" Xuanyuan Changfeng turned to Li Xun, his tone calm as if discussing something trivial.
"Master, are you really going to take his word so easily?" Li Xun pointed at Zhang Bin and continued, "Everyone knows his character; he's nothing but a slippery little man..."
"I'm not lying!" Zhang Bin interrupted Li Xun loudly, filled with indignation.
"Seeking death!" Li Xun's eyebrows shot up, and a fierce aura suddenly radiated from him.
"Hmm?" Xuanyuan Changfeng glanced over, his eyes flashing with light.
Seeing this, Li Xun quickly restrained himself and awkwardly said, "What I meant is that he still dares to deny it."
"Whether there is denial or not is not for you to decide!" At this point, Xuanyuan Changfeng could no longer tolerate it. His Chief Disciple had been acting unusually today—first using obvious tactics to slander Ye Tian and now threatening the witness Zhang Bin to change his statement. Such behavior was truly excessive.
Upon hearing this, Li Xun's expression changed rapidly before he reluctantly retreated to the back and fell silent.
"Ye Tian, have you seen him today?" Xuanyuan Changfeng looked towards Ye Tian.
"I have seen him; this person came with Chen Wen's Junior to deliver general matters to me." Ye Tian remained bent over, a jolt of pain shooting through his back.
"Mm." Xuanyuan Changfeng nodded, signaling him to stand up straight and speak.
Ye Tian stood tall, secretly channeling his spiritual energy to soothe the injury on his back, but his expression remained unchanged as he asked Xuanyuan Changfeng, "Master, I dare to ask, what is this..."
"Explain it to him," Xuanyuan Changfeng instructed a steward-like individual beside him.
The man was the same one who had delivered the message last time; his voice was sharp and unpleasant, yet it had a compelling effect that made it hard not to listen.
After his brief explanation, Ye Tian roughly understood the situation.
Today was the Apprenticeship Ceremony for Wine Kid, but after the auspicious time had passed, Wine Kid did not appear. Meanwhile, Li Xun brought heavy news, stating that Wine Kid had been ambushed and was currently seriously injured, and the perpetrator was someone familiar to Ye Tian.
There were two others who corroborated this claim; they were supposedly eyewitnesses and spoke convincingly. Even when separated and questioned individually, their accounts matched perfectly.
However, both of them were filled with fear and trepidation throughout the process. Their expressions were inscrutable, and their eyes darted around as if they were lying.
This clumsy frame-up was obvious to anyone. Initially, Xuanyuan Changfeng did not believe them at all, but after the auspicious time passed without any sign of Ye Tian, this aligned with Li Xun's claims of fleeing due to guilt.
Yet even so, Xuanyuan Changfeng would not easily trust their one-sided story. What troubled him was why Ye Tian had not arrived yet.
"Master, what about Wine Kid's injuries?" Ye Tian asked after hearing the news. He didn't want to engage further because the framing method was too crude. The two dubious witnesses were still stealing glances at Li Xun; everything was too obvious and seemed hastily concocted.
"He is okay; his injuries are not life-threatening. He should regain consciousness in about seven days," Xuanyuan Changfeng replied with a tone of concern. Although he spoke lightly, anyone could hear the self-comfort in his words. To say that waking up in seven days was "okay" was nothing but self-deception.
"How could it be so severe!" Ye Tian silently exclaimed in his heart but did not show it because he did not want to add pressure on Xuanyuan Changfeng.
"Do you know who caused the injury?" Ye Tian asked again.
Xuanyuan Changfeng had not yet had a chance to respond when Li Xun leaped forward, pointing at Ye Tian and scolding, "Shameless! Clearly, you colluded with those mountain bandits to injure Wine Kid, and now you have the audacity to ask who harmed him?"
"Senior Brother Li Xun, from how you speak, it sounds as if you witnessed it firsthand," Ye Tian had already anticipated that Li Xun would come out to stir up trouble, so he was prepared with a retort.
Hearing this, Li Xun's expression turned cold. He flared his nostrils and said in a chilling voice, "Don't try to evade the issue. The witnesses are right here; do you still want to deny it?"
Ye Tian chuckled lightly, glancing at the two witnesses kneeling on the ground, trembling like leaves in the wind.
"You saw me?" After observing for a moment, Ye Tian stepped forward and asked one of the bronze-skinned individuals.
"I... I saw..." The person stammered, unable to meet Ye Tian's gaze.
"And you saw me too?" Ye Tian turned to ask the other person.
"Of course I saw..." The second person also replied weakly.
"Well then, since you both saw me, I suppose I’ll just admit it."
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