Chapter 136

That fierce, overbearing manner.

It made countless people's eyes light up at once.

Because—

The one who had come was none other than—

The very protagonist of this juicy scandal.

Abbot Xuan Ci of Yunzhou Shaolin, and a group of Shaolin monks!

In an instant—

The originally noisy scene fell deathly silent.

The expressions of the crowd turned playful.

Those mischievous, teasing gazes kept flicking toward Xuan Ci and the others.

Making their faces darken, yet—since there were too many people present—they did not dare to act!

Their teeth, however, ground together with a creaking sound.

And some of the more deeply cultivated existences—

Even furtively sent secret voice transmissions to their acquaintances and friends.

The atmosphere in the field—

Unconsciously grew interesting.

"Amitabha!"

"This old monk, Xuan Ci, greets all fellow cultivators."

He chanted a Buddhist invocation.

Xuan Ci, whose face betrayed not the slightest change—

Greeted the crowd in a tone neither sorrowful nor joyful.

Then—

His old face grew stern, his gaze turning sharp.

"I presume all fellow cultivators have heard the rumors about this old monk, so I shall not elaborate further here."

"Although we, as members of the Mingmenzheng Sect, are upright and pure, and inherently disdain self-justification—"

"Given that this matter has come too suspiciously, and the news has spread far too swiftly—"

"To prevent all fellow cultivators from being used as pawns by others, I have led my monks here to seek an explanation."

"If there is anything amiss in my words, I ask for your understanding."

After this whole speech—

It was logically clear, leaving no room for criticism.

The crowd couldn't help but nod instinctively.

But that wasn't all.

Seeing that everyone expressed understanding or fell into contemplation—

Xuan Ci sank his Qi into his dantian, his voice resonant as a great bell.

"As the saying goes, 'If one wishes to condemn a man, one need never worry about the pretext!'"

"I, Xuan Ci, walk upright and sit steady; I inherently disdain responding to such things."

"But since this concerns the centuries-old reputation of my Yunzhou Shaolin, I hope the one who spread this rumor will step forward of his own accord."

"To return a clean name to this old monk, and to Yunzhou Shaolin!"

"Afterward, whatever you wish to do, my Yunzhou Shaolin will accompany you to the end!"

"If you only know how to engage in shady dealings, what manner of hero or good man are you?!!"

Because his words were infused with internal force—

Almost in an instant—

His voice resounded throughout all of Huashan!

085-This Seat, Qinglong Society, the ninth of April! (Subscribe at your discretion)

Feeling the vast internal force contained within that voice—

The gazes the crowd cast upon Xuan Ci could not help but hold a trace of surprise.

They truly had not expected—

That Xuan Ci, who had always kept a low profile—

Would actually possess such cultivation!

Among them—

Some of the weaker martial artists—

Were even shaken by the voice until their faces went pale and their feet grew unsteady.

"Hahaha!"

"Good! What a fine Abbot of Yunzhou Shaolin!"

"This glib and flattering skill of yours has truly opened This Seat's eyes!"

Just as Xuan Ci's words had barely fallen—

A wild, derisive laugh rang out in the void.

"What petty rogue is it playing tricks here?!"

"What skill is there in hiding one's head and showing one's tail!"

"Show yourself at once!!"

Abbot Xuan Ci's old face darkened.

He let out a soft, unfriendly snarl.

A dangerous glint flickered in his eyes!

At his words, the crowd stirred slightly.

Their faces all wore the look of people settling in to watch a show.

"Hiding your head but showing your tail?"

"You're not worth this seat going to such trouble!"

As that voice, dripping with contempt, rang out—

The crowd only felt their vision blur.

Then—

Three figures appeared in the middle of the field.

What puzzled people, though—

Was that aside from the masked man in the center,

The other two were both being held by him in his hands.

They looked like captives.

One was a middle-aged young woman, the other a bald-headed Monk.

No matter how you looked at it, it seemed a little incongruous.

"Isn't that Ye Erniang of the Four Great Evils?!"

Suddenly—

A startled cry burst from the crowd.

Someone had recognized Ye Erniang on the left.

The crowd froze for a beat, then frowned in unison.

Recalling Ye Erniang's deeds—

Their gazes all turned icy cold!

In fact—

If they hadn't known nothing of the newcomer's depth—

They would likely have been unable to hold back and charged up long ago!

Especially for those martial artists of the Great Song Jianghu.

Ye Erniang's vicious cruelty of harming infants—