NOVPUBIn the following days, Xu Zimei continued to absorb Blood Demon Crystals at the Sect Gate.
The blood energy here wasn’t particularly pure, so it was necessary to refine it with Spiritual Energy before absorption.
......…
Xu Zimei let out a long breath, as the one hundredth Blood Demon Crystal shattered before him. At that moment, his vitality surged within him, as if a mighty river was roaring and boiling.
He stood up, exhaling a white mist from his mouth, his complexion slightly flushed. After the tumultuous energy within him had calmed, Xu Zimei left the room.
As he just stepped out of Goose Southern Peak, a disciple came to look for him, saying that the Deputy Sect Master summoned him to the Council Hall.
Xu Zimei knew what had happened and followed the disciple straight to the hall.
At that moment, in the Council Hall, Xu Qingshan sat at the highest seat, flanked by the seven Great Elders of the Sect.
Apart from Xu Qingshan and the seven Great Elders, some disciples who had entered the Blood Demon Secret Realm had also been summoned, including Lin Ruhu and Xiao Guizi.
The atmosphere in the hall was so quiet that it felt oppressive; the Great Elder’s complexion looked extremely unpleasant.
As Xu Zimei walked in, the Great Elder was the first to question him, his presence exploding like thunderous bombardment, deafening to the ears.
"Xu Zimei, do you know of your crime?"
Upon hearing the Great Elder’s words, before Xu Zimei could speak, Xu Qingshan at the highest seat frowned slightly and spoke in displeasure, "Great Elder, the outcome of this matter hasn’t been determined yet. What crime could my son possibly have? You tell me."
Looking at Xu Qingshan’s darkening expression, the Great Elder hastily replied, "Sect Master, I have just lost a beloved disciple. My words might have been inappropriate; I apologize."
After the Great Elder finished speaking, he glared at Xu Zimei and asked, "Xu Zimei, did you kill Zhong Xin?"
"What, Elder Brother Zhong is dead?" Xu Zimei looked extremely surprised, then quickly shook his head, replying, "I don’t know about that."
"Then let me ask you, some disciples saw him follow you incessantly after entering the Blood Demon Secret Realm.
Since you all returned safely, where is he?" the Great Elder continued.
"How should I know? I wasn’t with Elder Brother Zhong for long before he left," replied Xu Zimei, shaking his head. "Where he went is not something I could control. If the Great Elder insists that I killed Elder Brother Zhong, then please present your evidence."
"You," the Great Elder stared at Xu Zimei, too furious to speak. If he had evidence, he wouldn’t be blasting Xu Zimei here.
However, he knew clearly that it was he who had instructed Zhong Xin to follow Xu Zimei in the Blood Demon Secret Realm to ensure Xu Zimei gained nothing.
Now that an incident had occurred, Xu Zimei must be involved.
"Great Elder, as one of the seven Great Elders of the Sect, your status is revered, and your every word and action might impact the Sect’s decisions," Xu Zimei went on to say, "I hope when you speak, you can shoulder the responsibilities that come with your position, and base everything on evidence.
Instead of arbitrary suspicion, lest you misunderstand someone and cause an indelible hurt to a disciple’s heart.
After all, what you say could change the fates of many."
"Fine, I will personally visit the Blood Demon Secret Realm to investigate Xin’er’s death thoroughly," the Great Elder said to Xu Zimei, word by word.
"This has nothing to do with me. I only hope that the Great Elder can show some dignity befitting an elder and not deliberately make things difficult for certain disciples," Xu Zimei replied indifferently.
Hearing Xu Zimei’s words, the Great Elder let out a cold snort and said, "How I handle matters does not require your instructions."
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"I wouldn’t dare, I just don’t approve of the way the Great Elder educates," Xu Zimei shook his head and said, "I happened to hear rumors from the outside, saying that Elder Brother Zhong Xin is a hypocrite, appearing to be decent on the surface, but never doing anything humane in secret.
Now that he’s dead, it’s a relief to everyone."
Upon hearing Xu Zimei’s words, the Great Elder’s face turned extremely ugly, and he said sternly, "Xu Zimei, my disciple has already died, yet you still insult him like this.
Well, that’s just great.
Today, you must give me an explanation, or I will personally take action to send you to the Cliff of Confinement."
"What kind of explanation does the Great Elder want?" Xu Zimei asked.
"Didn’t you talk about evidence before? How can you accuse my disciple like this now, what evidence do you have?" the Great Elder asked, his gaze upon Xu Zimei was gloomy.
"I can vouch for Elder Brother Xu," as soon as the Great Elder finished speaking, Xiao Guizi stepped forward and said, "Actually, I was the one who told Elder Brother Xu about this matter." 𝓃𝓸𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
"Think carefully, there are some things you as a mere Inner Sect Disciple can’t bear," the Great Elder said in a deep voice, "What evidence do you have?"
"I don’t have any evidence, but I have seen with my own eyes that Elder Brother Zhong violated an innocent girl, worse than pigs and dogs, an absolute dreg," Xiao Guizi said bitterly, "If the Great Elder doesn’t believe it, you can have Elder Brother Zhong confront me.
I, Xiao Guizi, will wait here for him."
"Confront? How can we have a confrontation, damn it, when even the body can’t be found?" the Great Elder looked at Xu Zimei and Xiao Guizi, his face purple with rage.
These two were sure that Zhong Xin was dead without proof, spreading dirty water here. Such behavior was akin to not letting go even after death, digging up and whipping the body.
"Then why didn’t you report it at first, and now that he’s dead, you come to speak of it, what’s your intention?" the Great Elder’s aura flickered between light and shadow, staring fixedly at the two people below.
"Ah, it’s also my fault," Xiao Guizi sighed, slowly saying, "I didn’t dare expose him, the difference in status between him and me was huge.
I’m just an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple, with no support, no power.
And him? He was a prominent Core Disciple, the most brilliant youth in our Sect Gate, and his master was the Great Elder of the Sect Gate.
For him, killing me would be as easy as crushing an ant."
Xiao Guizi said this and wiped away the few tears he had forced at the corner of his eyes, choking back sobs, "I chose to hide this matter.
But after I went back, I found that my conscience was unsettled, the tragic end of that girl haunted me like a nightmare, always surrounding me."
Xiao Guizi’s face showed determination as he emphasized, "Today, I’ve chosen to make this matter public, regardless of what my outcome will be.
At least, I won’t have to face the condemnation of my conscience. Today, I want to say that phrase in front of everyone.
Zhong Xin is trash, he’s a waste, worse than pigs and dogs.
And you, Great Elder, as his master, don’t you bear any responsibility?
As the saying goes, ’Like master, like pupil.’"
Upon hearing Xiao Guizi’s words, the entire place was so quiet that it seemed one could hear a needle drop.
Even Xu Zimei turned his head to look at Xiao Guizi; that last sentence of the speech wasn’t part of the script they had discussed before.
"You actually ad-libbed."
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