INE Chapter 109: Time to Return

Elder Gong?

Jiang Fei was momentarily stunned. She had just been about to ask Ji Rong how she knew about this matter when the latter quickly added, “But I only heard it through the grapevine.”

“……”

An impeccable answer. And yet Jiang Fei couldn’t help but wonder, just where exactly had she ‘heard’ this from?

Before she could ask further, the one who actually heard things through the grapevine, who had been sitting on the side watching the show, suddenly spoke up.

Wei Zongqiu paused in the act of fanning himself and said, “Senior Sisters, I just remembered something.”

Ji Rong blinked in confusion. What could Wei Zongqiu possibly remember? He hadn’t even been there, he’d been summoned back to the palace by the Princess Consort.

Jiang Fei glanced at Wei Zongqiu and said succinctly, “Go on, Junior Brother.”

Having received her permission, Wei Zongqiu felt confident enough to continue, “On the day of the sect competition, though I was delayed in the capital due to family matters, the events at the dueling arena were the talk of the town. I heard quite a few things.”

Indeed, on that day, when Wanjian Sect hosted its grand sect competition, disciples from countless sects had gathered.

With so many mouths, it only took one person to speak for rumors to spread like wildfire.

Ji Rong, however, noticed that Jiang Fei seemed to furrow her brows slightly upon hearing this.

And then, a sudden thought occurred to her:

This matter even spread to the capital... could it be that Senior Sister Jiang doesn’t know about it at all?

In truth, Jiang Fei really didn’t know.

She had never taken an interest in gossip, believing that if one remained calm at heart, idle chatter couldn’t trouble the ears.

What’s more, she had been investigating a case on behalf of the people at the time and was too focused to pay any attention to happenings outside her investigation.

So all she knew was that the Divine Sect’s edict had spread across the cultivation world, declaring that a Heavenly Demon Seed had appeared in the southeast.

As for what had actually happened at Wanjian Sect that day, or the true identity of this so-called demon seed, she had no idea.

After all, who the demon seed was, whether they were alive or dead, had nothing to do with her.

Wei Zongqiu, noticing her silence, hesitated for a moment before continuing, “From what I heard, the Divine Sect’s Saintess, Mei Lixue, claimed that a disciple from Wanjian Sect used a Heaven-grade teleportation talisman to reach the Divine Sect just to expose Sect Leader Mei for harboring the Heavenly Demon Seed.”

“Harboring the Heavenly Demon Seed?”

At those words, Jiang Fei’s brows knitted tighter.

Her tone was still calm, but it now carried a subtle undertone of anger, even her last syllables landed heavier. “Nonsense. Why would the Sect Leader hide the Heavenly Demon Seed?”

Wei Zongqiu shook his head. “I wasn’t there myself, so I don’t know the details. I only heard that afterward, Sect Leader Mei was confined by the Divine Sect Leader Feng He and has not been heard from since.”

Once he had finished speaking, Jiang Fei fell into silence.

Ji Rong watched her expression, feeling a twitch in her left eyelid. She had a bad feeling, something terrible was about to happen.

After a long pause, Jiang Fei finally turned to Ji Rong and asked, “Junior Sister, earlier you said that Xie Bai is close to Elder Gong?”

Caught in a dilemma, Ji Rong didn’t know whether to nod or shake her head. She felt like she had just dug a deep hole for her own disciple.

Seeing Ji Rong’s silence, Jiang Fei had already made her own deduction.

The disciple who exposed the Sect Leader had used a Heaven-grade teleportation talisman. Coincidentally, when Xie Bai attempted to assassinate Lady Xu, she had also used a Heaven-grade teleportation talisman.

If they were the same person, everything suddenly made sense.

Which meant, the mastermind behind it all was the one who provided Xie Bai with that talisman.

And the one most skilled in talismans within Wanjian Sect was none other than Gong Yu.

But Jiang Fei couldn’t understand why Gong Yu would have Xie Bai expose Mei He. After all, it didn’t benefit her, unless… Gong Yu wanted to seize the position of Sect Leader.

Though she couldn’t yet unravel the entire scheme, she knew one thing for certain, Mei He was in danger.

She had to go to the Divine Sect and bring the Sect Leader back.

Having made up her mind, she reached into her storage pouch and handed the luminous pearl to Wei Zongqiu.

Wei Zongqiu squinted, confused as to why Jiang Fei, who had been in the middle of an investigation, was suddenly returning the evidence.

And then, this amateur constable not only handed it over so casually, but also said, quite calmly:

“Junior Brother, I have a hunch that the memory stored in this luminous pearl may be connected to you, it’s just that you’ve forgotten. Maybe you should take it and ask the Princess Consort about it. The truth might come to light.”

With that, she lifted the carriage curtain as if preparing to jump out.

Wei Zongqiu stood there holding the pearl, dumbfounded as he watched Jiang Fei’s movements.

For a moment, he didn’t know whether to stop her or start questioning her.

The situation had escalated so quickly that Ji Rong could only shout as Jiang Fei was about to leap from the carriage:

“Senior Sister Jiang, don’t be reckless, ”

Recklessness is the devil. At least finish your meal first!

But Jiang Fei had always been someone who acted the moment a thought came to mind.

If she wanted osmanthus cake, she would go to Tianshui to get it, no matter how far the shop was.

If she was curious about a Junior Sister who’d scored 231 scrolls, she would travel across the world to see her.

On the day of the Winter Sacrifice, she had danced across the Long Bridge with a group of young men and women in Nuo masks, not for any special reason, simply because when she felt like doing something, she just did it.

Now, Jiang Fei wanted to go to Bixue Peak and pick a fight with Feng He, the strongest cultivator in the Divine Sect.

Because she was the senior sister of all Wanjian Sect disciples, the only disciple of Sect Leader Mei He.

And more importantly, because she was Jiang Fei.

She never needed a reason to do anything. She herself was the reason.

Whether or not she could win didn’t matter. What mattered was that right now, she wanted to fight Feng He.

So she would go fight Feng He.

That was all.

Before jumping off the carriage, Jiang Fei glanced at Ji Rong. “Junior Sister, take care. I’ll go on ahead.”

With that, she lifted the curtain and leapt down.

Ji Rong stared at Jiang Fei jumped down without even explaining where she was going, disappearing with the peachwood sword strapped to her back.

That was it? She just... left?

Snapping back to her senses, Ji Rong threw open the carriage curtain and looked outside.

Not even a shadow of Jiang Fei remained in sight.

Up ahead, Old Gu was still driving the carriage at a steady pace, as if nothing had happened.

With the wind rustling through the woods, Ji Rong leaned out and called to him, “Why didn’t you stop Senior Sister Jiang?”

It had happened so quickly, if Gu Baiyi had reacted in time, maybe he could’ve held her back.

Ji Rong figured that Jiang Fei must have connected the dots and was now rushing to rescue Mei He.

But even if Jiang Fei was strong, she was still a junior. How could she possibly defeat Feng He, the top of the Cultivation Ranking?

Then again, Feng He might be first, but that didn’t mean he could truly imprison the second-ranked Mei He either.

The two of them were likely holding each other in check.

If Jiang Fei stayed out of it, things might have remained in balance. But now that she was headed there, who knew what would happen?

The leaves rustled as Gu Baiyi’s voice, faintly amused, drifted back to her: “Miss, I’m just a humble coachman. How could I possibly stop Miss Jiang?”

Ji Rong’s face darkened.

Coachman? You’re no damn coachman.

“And besides." Gu Baiyi added, “Miss Jiang had already made up her mind. Even if I’d stopped her today, could I stop her tomorrow?”

Ji Rong paused, then couldn’t help but laugh.

True enough, someone like Jiang Fei, once she decided to do something, no one could stand in her way.

…

As they neared Xuanji City, Wei Zongqiu stepped down from the carriage and bid the two farewell.

He held his folded fan and bowed politely to Ji Rong. “Senior Sister, I’ll be taking my leave as well. I need to return to the palace to get to the bottom of some old matters. Too many people have died without justice, I can’t let that continue.”

Seeing the complicated look in his eyes, Ji Rong understood. Among those “people." he meant Hong Zhi, and Xie Bai too.

She nodded. “Take care.”

It was the best blessing she could give.

But just as Wei Zongqiu turned to leave, he stopped after a few steps and looked back.

He turned toward Gu Baiyi, who stood beside Ji Rong.

“Junior Sister Gu." he said, “I know some things aren’t as simple as they seem. No matter right or wrong, no matter who you truly are, I still hope we can meet again someday.”

Gu Baiyi stood silently beside Ji Rong, her silver mask still in place. She gave no reply.

Wei Zongqiu smiled faintly.

Though he no longer wore the unrestrained brilliance of his youth, after all the highs and lows, he still carried himself with ease and freedom.

Just like when he first arrived at Wanjian Sect, chatting easily with fellow disciples, fan in hand, bowing dramatically overhead.

Now, he smiled at the two of them, raised his hand in a bow, and said brightly, “If I can convince my mother to let me return to the sect, I’ll host a proper banquet when I’m back, same Thousand Autumns Wine, same place at Yanhui Pavilion. You’d better not miss it.”

Then he turned and walked on. The road ahead was still long.

Behind him, Gu Baiyi finally removed her mask, offering a polite bow in return. “Thank you, Senior Brother Wei.”

“I’ll be waiting for that day too.”