"I beseech you all to show mercy and not trouble these two young ladies."
To plead for Han Dong and Ouyang Ye, Qian Shan set aside her pride, cupping her hands in salute to the crowd.
"Lady Qian Shan, it's not that we deliberately wish to trouble them," someone responded. "It's simply that the Young Lord Chiyan surnamed Gu is vicious and cruel. After slaughtering our Hunyuan Gate's direct disciples, he vanished without a trace. Their relationship with Young Lord Chiyan is far from ordinary. If we don't seek them out, who else can we turn to?"
"If I recall correctly, Ouyang Ye once said the Young Lord Chiyan surnamed Gu was her sworn elder brother, and also Han Dong's Dao companion. They must know the whereabouts of that man surnamed Gu."
"Exactly! Today, if they do not reveal the whereabouts of that man surnamed Gu, we will not rest!"
The various forces did not intend to let Han Dong and the other go simply because of Qian Shan's status. Although she was a person close to Fairy Su Hua, she was merely a person close to her, not Fairy Su Hua herself. That they were even listening to her speak was already giving her ample face.
Of course.
The angry shouts and accusations within the hall came mostly from ordinary disciples. The Elders and direct disciples of the major sects remained silent. They were all people of status and reputation. After all, it was Young Lord Chiyan who had done the killing; it had nothing to do with Han Dong or Ouyang Ye. Publicly harassing two juniors would, if word got out, more or less affect their reputations.
More importantly, Qian Shan was, when all was said and done, a person close to Fairy Su Hua. None of them wanted to sour relations too badly.
"Debts have their creditors, wrongs their perpetrators. The person was killed by Young Lord Chiyan, so why trouble these two young ladies?"
Qian Shan continued, "If you all insist on holding them responsible simply because they are close to Young Lord Chiyan, don't you find that excessively unreasonable?"
"You are all esteemed figures of the Great Northwest. To bully two young ladies like this now would surely damage your prestige if word spread."
Although Qian Shan did not usually appear in public, it did not mean she was ignorant of worldly affairs. On the contrary, having followed Fairy Su Hua for so many years, she had witnessed countless scenes, big and small. While she might not handle such situations with Fairy Su Hua's effortless composure, she had her own methods.
Qian Shan took a step forward, sweeping her gaze over the crowd, and added, "Moreover, if proximity to Young Lord Chiyan warrants responsibility, then the ones you should be pursuing are not Han Dong and Ye Ye, but the Crimson-Letter Sect!"
No one had expected Qian Shan to say this, directly pointing the spear at the Crimson-Letter Sect's Changhong Branch.
"Lady Qian Shan, this old man respects that you are a person of Fairy Su Hua, which is why I grant you this small courtesy."
The one who spoke was the old Incense Master stationed at the Changhong Branch, Xuefeng.
His grandson Wuhen was now a cripple. Old Incense Master Xuefeng was deeply grieved. Ever since receiving the news, his killing intent had never faded. However, there had been no trace of that man surnamed Gu. He had come here not necessarily to trouble Ouyang Ye and the other, but to learn the whereabouts of that man surnamed Gu. He had never imagined Qian Shan would point the spear at the Crimson-Letter Sect.
"Lady Qian Shan, what do you mean by that?" Daozun Minghui, the current Branch Master of the Changhong Branch, stepped forward. "That man surnamed Gu committed murder. What does that have to do with our Crimson-Letter Sect? Please make yourself clear."
"May I ask you gentlemen of the Crimson-Letter Sect, for whom does the Crimson-Letter Sect exist?"
As soon as Qian Shan's words fell, Old Master Xuefeng immediately responded, "Naturally, for His Majesty the Monarch."
As he responded, Old Master Xuefeng cupped his hands and bowed towards the heavens. Clearly, he held Lord Chixiao in utmost reverence; even mentioning the Monarch, he dared not show the slightest neglect.
"Very well. Young Lord Chiyan is the Heir of the Monarch. Does he not have a connection with your Crimson-Letter Sect?"
"The world is full of countless frauds claiming to be the Heir of the Monarch. How can you be certain he is the true heir?"
The one who said this was not Old Master Xuefeng, but Wan Dongfang, leader of the Nine Dragons and Eighteen Elephants. He narrowed his eyes, staring at Qian Shan, his demeanor suggesting he did not hold her in particularly high regard.
"On what grounds? Hah!"
Qian Shan let out a cold laugh. "On the grounds that with an empty strum, he could evoke the artistic conception of 'Drunken Chant of the Azure Sea.' On the grounds that he could play 'Wind Rises Over Great Green Mountain' with the artistic conception of 'Chixiao's Wind, Clouds, and Thunder Rumbles.' And on the grounds that with a single performance of 'Youth's Journey,' he could make everyone dream back to the Monarch's youth."
Qian Shan stared at Xuefeng, Hongwen, and several other old Chixiao followers. "You all followed Lord Chixiao in the past and understand far better than I how profound the Monarch's music is. I dare ask you, venerable seniors, in all the world, aside from the Monarch's heir, who else could accomplish this?"
Qian Shan's words not only left Xuefeng, Hongwen, and the other old Chixiao followers speechless, but also rendered the others unable to refute.
Indeed.
They all had some knowledge of music, and among them were many masters proficient in the art. They clearly knew that whether it was 'Drunken Chant of the Azure Sea' or 'Wind Rises Over Great Green Mountain,' few in the present world could evoke their artistic conceptions. Especially that piece 'Youth's Journey'—not even Fairy Su Hua had been able to induce such spiritual resonance in the audience, to let their spirits wander heaven and earth, dreaming back to the Monarch's youth.
That piece was improvised by the Monarch himself. There was no score at all. Even the Monarch himself had played it only a handful of times. Most of the scores circulating in the world were fabricated nonsense. To this day, only that Young Lord Chiyan had been able to truly make people dream back to the Monarch's youth.
"Furthermore, if Young Lord Chiyan were not the Heir of the Monarch, why would he be able to condense and manifest the Chishang Seal Command?"
"If Young Lord Chiyan were not the Heir of the Monarch, why did Incense Master Fang Qing, along with Ziyang, Wei Xuan, and a dozen other old Chixiao followers, kneel in worship three years ago at the Fengyun Branch?"
"If Young Lord Chiyan were not the Heir of the Monarch, how could he, who turned to ashes three years ago, be resurrected from death today? Such ability, defying the Laws and acting against heaven—in all the world today, aside from the Monarch's heir, who else could accomplish it?"
As Qian Shan spoke these words, the hall fell utterly silent.
Especially the few old Chixiao followers from the Crimson-Letter Sect's Changhong Branch—their expressions were complex.
Ever since learning that a Young Lord Chiyan had appeared in the Four Directions Great Domain, claiming to be the Heir of the Monarch, they had traveled to the Four Directions Great Domain three years ago. They had personally sought out Fang Qing, Ziyang, Wei Xuan, and others from the Fengyun Branch. To this day, they still vividly remembered what Ziyang and the others had said back then.
Ziyang, Wei Xuan, and the others said:
They did not know for certain whether Young Lord Chiyan was the Heir of the Monarch.
They did not even know whether the Chishang Seal Command Young Lord Chiyan condensed and manifested was real or fake.
They only knew that when facing Young Lord Chiyan, the Chixiao Dragon-Elephant within their bodies would experience a very strange, very complex feeling. It was a mix of excitement, agitation, fear, and terror.
As for why they had this feeling, Ziyang, Wei Xuan, and the others had no idea.
But there was one sentence that Old Masters Xuefeng, Hongwen, and the others present still remembered vividly. Ziyang said he saw in Young Lord Chiyan the shadow of the Monarch from back then—a shadow that was both familiar and unfamiliar...