Chapter 185: Suspicion

Yin Song downplayed the presence of the Academy students in this matter; their goal was to uncover the insect-human incident in Luchuan, and the key lay in Mo Rushi's past—his actions at Long Hushan were merely to provide blood and flesh for his insects to breed; knowing this was enough, why dwell on the details?

Since Yin Song mentioned the deadline, Cao Ye had been tense inside, neglecting to investigate Mo Rushi's arrest in depth, instead following Yin Song's line of thought and seriously inquiring into Mo Rushi's origins.

Zhang Ziwang and Lin Jingle, lagging behind, exchanged a glance but said nothing, though doubt stirred in their hearts.

Liu Jing, who walked beside Cao Ye, also frowned, several times trying to warn Cao Ye but never finding an opening to speak.

Mo Rushi's origins were certainly important, but given his high cultivation and careful conduct, how could he have been suddenly captured by the Academy?

He had just inquired—he heard that when Mo Rushi seized that fertilizer student, it was already dark; could the Da Shangqing Palace and the Academy have reacted so swiftly?

As far as he knew, the Academy lost students every year.

Though called "missing," a deeper investigation revealed these were merely rumors spread by word of mouth; in truth, every year, Long Hushan Academy saw students unable to bear the pressure of advancement and cultivation flee; or simply quit being Daoist Priests, returning home to live as laymen.

He had reviewed the Academy's records of student disappearances and deaths over the past three years—only one student had truly vanished first, then died.

He had simply been unable to endure the Academy's food, slipped away to the river to catch fish for a treat, slipped on the bank, fell in, and was swept away and drowned.

As a result, the Academy had specifically improved its cafeteria, beginning to serve meat once every three days; though scarce, since then, no student had died from sneaking out to fish and falling into the river.

So Liu Jing knew the Academy had a standard procedure for student disappearances—it would never react so swiftly, with instructors rushing down the mountain the moment a student went missing.

Something must be happening that they didn't know.

But Cao Ye was being led by the nose by Yin Song, especially after seeing Mo Rushi and the preserved corpse—he fixated solely on Mo Rushi's past, and as for why he was captured, who cared?

Mo Rushi was captured by Long Hushan people—could Long Hushan people possibly be at fault?

Cao Ye was in a hurry, didn't ask in detail, ordered horses and coffins prepared, and immediately set out with Mo Rushi and the corpse toward Luchuan.

The speed left Pan Yun awestruck.

She hid in an alley, quietly watching them methodically secure the coffin and escort the prisoner onto the cart, her gaze sliding from Cao Ye to Liu Jing.

Liu Jing's cultivation was low, but he was sharp.

Pan Yun had only watched him for three breaths when he immediately lifted his head, scanning the surroundings.

Pan Yun turned her body, hiding behind a pile of firewood, withdrew her gaze, and slipped away quietly.

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He waited at the other end of the alley, holding a bundle of herbs; as soon as she returned, they rushed to her and asked, "Little Master Auntie, did you see clearly? Were they the ones who oppose your family?"

Pan Yun nodded. "It's them."

Wang Zhen needed people in the Embroidered Uniform Guard—he naturally used those he trusted, so Cao Ye was his man, at least leaning toward him.

But Ma Shun, Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was Wang Zhen's lapdog—could the Embroidered Uniform Guard possibly disobey Wang Zhen?

Pan Yun sneered, taking a packet of herbs from each of Miao Zhen and Miao He, lifting her chin: "A gentleman seeks revenge—ten years is not too late. I'm still young, I have all the time in the world. Let's go back to the mountain!"

Miao Zhen and Miao He nodded in unison, and the three of them marched back to the mountain with proud strides.

Feng Yan stood behind them, watching them sprint off with lightness skill—he opened his mouth to speak but before he could, they vanished.

Feng Yan: "... My master hasn't given me the money purse yet~"

Feng Yan watched them disappear, dared not shout loudly, and lowered his head to return.

Yin Song watched all this, thinking something had happened to them, secretly anxious but dared not show it.

Only when Cao Ye went to assign guards for Mo Rushi did Yin Song find a chance to pull Feng Yan aside and ask, "What happened?"

Feng Yan: "Master, my auntie and sisters took the money purse and forgot to return it to me."

"They went back to the mountain?"

Feng Yan nodded. "They bought a lot of herbs—I paid for them all—but forgot to return the money purse to me."

"Forgot is forgot—it's not a big deal. Go pack your luggage; we'll travel with Commander Cao and the others."

Feng Yan: "But that was all our money, Master—we have no money left at all."

Yin Song stiffened. "Not a single coin left? You put everything in the purse?"

Feng Yan nodded.

Yin Song rubbed his forehead. "Fine, I'm used to it. My Mount Sanqing's fortune seems even worse—traveling with the Embroidered Uniform Guard, I won't go hungry. Maybe I can earn something on the road."

Feng Yan nodded solemnly.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard called out; Yin Song hurried to bid farewell to Zhang Ziwang and the others from the Zhang Zhang Tian Shi's Mansion, mounted a horse, while Feng Yan sat beside the driver on the cart carrying Mo Rushi.

Yin Song said to Cao Ye: "Don't think my Daoist attendant is foolish—he has a lucky birth chart that suppresses evil spirits; having him sit on the cart's yoke will perfectly counter Mo Rushi."

Cao Ye told the driver to look after Feng Yan.

He had heard rumors about Feng Yan—since Yin Song acquired him, his rate of financial loss had slowed, and his savings had increased.

He had always half-believed it, but now, he could believe it—and hoped Feng Yan truly had this power.

Zhang Ziwang and the others watched them depart.

A clansman nearby sighed, "Never thought Yin Song was so favored by the imperial court—alas, Mount Sanqing is about to rise."

"The True Person hardly manages anything..."

Zhang Ziwang's eyes flickered toward him; the man immediately fell silent.

Zhang Ziwang and Lin Jingle returned to the Academy and immediately sent someone to investigate Pan Yun; upon learning she and the others had long since returned to the mountain, they exchanged glances.

Zhang Ziwang: "Given the relationships among Mount Sanqing's disciples, would Pan Yun and the two of them buy herbs and not see them off, but return directly to the mountain?"

They looked at each other—the answer was obvious: no!

Lin Jingle: "Though Yin Song holds office in the court and has many complaints about this year's ordination exam, given his usual 'avoid trouble' attitude, he wouldn't so conspicuously stand out before the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Zhang Ziwang: "Something unusual must be afoot. Miao Zhen and Miao He's identities are fine—it's Pan Yun."

!

Lin Jingle frowned. "How old is she? What could possibly be wrong?"

Zhang Ziwang: "Pan Yun claims she takes the surname Pan from her mountain god master—but does a mountain god truly have such demands or preferences? Wang Feiyin is the senior disciple—he didn't change his surname."

Lin Jingle asked: "Have you divined Pan Yun?"

Zhang Ziwang paused, then said: "I've divined her—but I could divine nothing. The more times I asked, the more the result showed her identity was legitimate—she was indeed born into servitude, sold as a slave by her parents."

Lin Jingle lightly tapped the table, asking in return, and asking himself, "Can a servant, a commoner's daughter sold by her parents, truly possess such resolve and confidence?"

Lin Jingle himself came from a commoner background; when he first entered the Academy, he was truly a country bumpkin in the city.

Back then, his cultivation level wasn't low, yet he still felt deeply inferior before his classmates.

If he himself felt inferior, how could Pan Yun—whose circumstances and origins were even worse than his—possibly be so confident and resolute?

Lin Jingle stood up and said, "I'll take a turn too."

Lin Jingle went to retrieve his tortoise shell and began divination.

Zhang Ziwang watched from the side, seeing him cast the shell three times and calculate the result—and he saw the outcome at a glance.

Pan Yun is fine; her identity is fine.

Zhang Ziwang frowned deeply, then said, "If we aren't wrong, then someone has shielded her from divination, concealing her destiny."

The two exchanged glances and spoke in unison: "Yin Song!"

Zhang Ziwang leapt to his feet and paced in circles. "It must be Yin Song! No one in the Zhang Zhang Tian Shi's Mansion rivals his mastery of celestial arts. To uncover Pan Yun's origins, only those senior elders could do it—otherwise, we must wait."

"Wait until time weakens the shielding spell, and then we can divinate the truth."

Lin Jingle: "But if he comes back to the Academy again, won't that strengthen it? Can we really stop his brother and sister from meeting?"

He said, "Besides, don't forget Zhang Li. Her shielding spell may not match Yin Song's, but it's more than enough to block our probing."

Zhang Ziwang: "Then what do you suggest?"

Lin Jingle: "Investigate. Since we can't use divination as a shortcut, we'll treat it like a magistrate's case—send people to Pan Yun's hometown, investigate her parents, get portraits drawn."

But Zhang Ziwang hesitated again. "Maybe we should just drop it. The girl hasn't done anything wrong—there's no need to investigate her."

"If she did nothing wrong, why pretend to be someone else? Assuming a false identity is itself a wrongdoing—how can it be without fault?"

Zhang Ziwang: "You're too rigid, too dogmatic. Maybe she has a hidden reason? Though the girl is sharp-tongued, disrespectful to her teachers, and harsh-tempered, her character is truly acceptable."

Lin Jingle: "You just listed all her moral failings—how did you conclude her character is acceptable?"

Zhang Ziwang stood up. "I won't argue with you—I can't win against you. My position is simple: I refuse to investigate a student like that."

Lin Jingle sneered. "Hypocrite. You shouldn't have started talking to me about Yin Song and her anomalies if you didn't want to act. You're just trying to push me into investigating while pretending to be the good man."

Lin Jingle ordered him to leave, adding, "I'm not Zhang Zi Fang, that fool. Since you brought it up, don't expect to walk away unscathed. If Mount Sanqing asks, I'll say we both sensed something strange about her."

Zhang Ziwang: "..."

So sometimes he truly hated Lin Jingle—even once making him the person he disliked most in the world.

(End of Chapter)