[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-dao-dust-pearl":3,"chapter-the-dao-dust-pearl-the-dao-dust-pearl-chapter-27":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Dao Dust Pearl",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2359528,4614,"Chapter 27","the-dao-dust-pearl-chapter-27",27,"\u003Cp>This cry of alarm drew everyone’s attention; Master Kongming exclaimed in alarm: “Among the Twelve Zodiac Masters, there is indeed one who excels in hidden weapons—legend says his attacks are soundless and invisible, leaving victims dead before they even realize what happened.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kang Qiandeng whispered: “The hidden weapon is still inside Tang Da’s skull—should we…?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian Chen shook his head: “We can’t find the weapon at all! Trying to deduce the Zodiac Master’s identity from the weapon is nearly impossible. Tang Da died instantly, with no sign of struggle—because the killer used an ice needle, shooting it into Tang Zhen’s brain with a needle so fine it was nearly undetectable.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Once the ice needle melted, all traces vanished without a trace.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We only now deduced how Tang Zhen died because the ice needle had just melted—the residual moisture still lingered inside his skull, causing blood to seep out. In the earlier nail case, the detective knew this method because when the victim’s corpse decayed and was exhumed, someone found a nail embedded in the skull.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Now, with ice needles, the evidence is erased by time itself!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But,” Kang Qiandeng still trembled with fear: “Who could pierce Tang Zhen’s protective qi barrier with an ice needle? And who could slip one through his nostril—right in front of his eyes—without him noticing? He’s the Thousand Hands, Thousand Eyes…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s precisely the killer’s brilliance,” Qian Chen smiled. “Ice needles are transparent. Did you know the human eye creates a peculiar blind spot? Hold your finger beneath your nose—can you see it clearly?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kang Qiandeng followed his instruction and found that when his finger neared his nose, it blurred, nearly invisible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If even a finger is this hard to see, how much more so a tiny, transparent ice needle?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The killer’s weapon strikes without shadow or sound—a needle so fine it stirs no wind and escapes the naked eye. The angle of attack must have been flawless. The only question remains… why kill Tang Zhen first? He’s the hardest target. How did he even kill him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Remember, though Tang Zhen was careless, he was still the most dangerous target when the killer struck. If he wanted to act safely, he should’ve waited until Tang Zhen was absent—then assassinating anyone but a few Grand Masters would be effortless. He could’ve struck while others were dueling with other Zodiac Masters.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then everyone would assume the victim was merely careless, killed by another Zodiac Master. Who would suspect hidden motives?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eliminating righteous heroes one by one like this would be far more threatening.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kang Qiandeng pondered for a moment, then nodded: “Indeed. Such a hidden weapon master is perfect for ambushes. He should’ve avoided Tang Zhen entirely—there was no need to take such a risk.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tang Zhen, called the Thousand Hands, Thousand Eyes, shouldn’t have allowed anyone into his blind spot. I heard he even had an eye on the back of his head.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Kongming sighed, pulling back Tang Zhen’s hair—and there, indeed, was an eye growing on the back of his skull.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tang Zhen’s divine weapon is this All-Seeing Eye. His rear vision is even keener than his front.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian Chen smiled: “Monks really do have their ears to the ground.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Kongming sighed: “All for the sake of the righteous martial world…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian Chen didn’t dwell on Shaolin’s intelligence-gathering—he wasn’t of this world. Whether Shaolin was righteous or scheming for martial dominance, none of it mattered to him after this mission. He continued: “So the killer must have sensed Tang Zhen’s threat—but if Tang Zhen was truly a threat, he shouldn’t have ignored the killer’s movements.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is an unsolvable puzzle.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this point, everyone’s attention was fixed on Qian Chen. The martial heroes gradually formed a circle around him as he spoke: “Unless… she’s a woman. And a beautiful one. Because Tang Zhen was lustful—he’d stare at beautiful women. But since he was a hidden weapon master, any woman attacking him would be spotted.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Pestle God!” Master Kongming suddenly said. “The most mysterious hidden weapon master among the Twelve Zodiac Masters—the only woman: the Pestle God. I thought it was the Rat-faced Lord of the Beam or the Monkey-faced Crimson Buttocks God.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian Chen smiled: “Rats are cunning, monkeys are agile. But ‘Pestle God’ sounds more like a poison expert or a healer than a hidden weapon master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That explains why the Pestle God targeted Tang Zhen first—the most dangerous one.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It also explains why Tang Zhen let someone he was intensely watching walk into his blind spot—and die so easily.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All eyes turned to Yu Luocha—Shen Wanjun. The beautiful widow’s face was expressionless as ever, her plain white robe accentuating her elegance, coldness, and calm, like a pristine snow lotus on a mountain peak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian Chen continued: “When Tang Zhen stared at Miss Shen, she’d glare back—and he’d flinch, guilt-ridden, turning away. He himself placed her in the perfect killing position. He never imagined… that Miss Shen, famed for her swordplay, was an even greater hidden weapon master than he was!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As the widow of Lord Fu Da, the Night Demon King, Tang Zhen couldn’t control his lust—but still felt a pang of shame.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hahahaha…” Shen Wanjun threw back her head and laughed. “That brute Jiaodou, that conceited Glutton, that arrogant Feihuang—twelve Zodiac Masters, all dead at the hands of a nobody—a young man even younger than me. How laughable…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She lifted her chin proudly: “None of you are worthy to kill me. If you want me dead, come at me yourself!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Kongming mourned: “Miss Shen, why…?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Old monk, didn’t you already know?” Shen Wanjun laughed bitterly. “Fu Ying—I killed him myself.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You venomous harlot, how could you be so cruel?” someone shouted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Venomous harlot?” Shen Wanjun’s face hardened like ice carved over ten thousand years, radiating boundless hatred—yet even her hatred was breathtakingly beautiful. “Why don’t you ask this old monk? Ask the Shen family? Ask Fu Ying? Was I cruel—or did they betray me? Fu Ying was hideous as a demon—how could I ever love him? Do you know how every night, seeing his lecherous body on mine, I wanted to vomit? I hate them!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But you married him!” Li Qianqiu couldn’t help retorting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Because… he raped me.” Shen Wanjun’s beautiful face was now a glacier of eternal bitterness—yet even in her rage, she remained unbearably exquisite.\u003C\u002Fp>",1059,"2026-06-21T05:39:58.326Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","9606d13cc25f5f8c4c72b4d753979404a1f51aad681c0175419321bcfd252d14","the-dao-dust-pearl-chapter-28","the-dao-dust-pearl-chapter-26",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dao-dust-pearl-cover.jpg"]