Chapter 1029: Betrayal

The two Qiyun Sect disciples were so nervous they had no idea what to do.

Taishu Shancheng forgot Ding Wei's warning and hurried to speak for them. "Mr. Ding, how are they supposed to admit to something that never happened? Does Misty Pavilion intend to twist the truth and force a confession?"

At a moment like this, he had no choice but to back them up. He was afraid the two disciples would not withstand the pressure.

Ding Wei stared at him coldly. "Didn't you hear what I just said? Do I need to help you keep your mouth shut? I'll warn you one more time. If I haven't told you to speak, then keep quiet!"

Taishu Shancheng was furious and aggrieved, but helpless as well. He shut his mouth. His gaze, however, shifted toward the two disciples, plainly warning them not to speak carelessly.

Xuan Yao took out a roster, ran a finger down to the Qiyun Sect entries, and interjected, "Who is Taishu Xun? Who is Taishu Li?"

The disciple on the left cupped his hands. "Taishu Xun."

The one on the right followed. "Taishu Li."

Xuan Yao closed the roster and barked, "The Presiding Administrator told you two to answer. Didn't you hear him?"

The two disciples exchanged a tense glance. Taishu Xun suddenly gathered his courage and said, "We don't understand what Mr. Ao Feng means. We committed no violations in the Desolate Marsh Deadlands."

Taishu Li added, "This is slander."

Taishu Shancheng immediately relaxed, secretly relieved.

Ding Wei watched the reactions on all three faces for a while, then turned back to Ao Feng. "Ao Feng, they flatly deny your accusation. Do you have evidence to prove what you said?"

Ao Feng replied, "No. And I don't need any. I've already said it: I am only telling you what I saw. Believe me or don't. If an investigation proves I lied, I'll accept whatever punishment is imposed. There's nothing else to say."

His attitude remained calm. Having gone this far, he had almost become indifferent, appearing composed and untroubled.

He had no idea whether what Niu Youdao had told him was true or false. Now that he had taken this step, if he was eventually proven to have lied, there would be nothing he could say. He could only submit to punishment. At worst, when the time came he would drag Niu Youdao down with him and admit that Niu had instructed him to testify this way.

He knew far too little about the real situation to invent evidence. Trying to be clever would only risk making things worse.

Ding Wei turned back to the three men from Qiyun Sect. "You've seen Ao Feng's attitude. Do you think he has any reason to frame you?"

Taishu Shancheng stiffened his neck and shouted, "He truly has no reason. I can't understand why he's doing this either."

Ding Wei said, "Ao Feng has said that if he's lying, he's willing to accept any punishment. What about you?"

Taishu Shancheng declared loudly, "If any of us are lying, we are also willing to accept any punishment!"

At this point, all he could do was deny everything to the bitter end. If he did not hold firm, the only road left was death. Since either way had reached this point, he had no choice but to stake everything on one desperate gamble.

Ding Wei said, "Ao Feng says he isn't lying. You say you aren't lying. It is impossible for both sides to be telling the truth. One side must be lying. Since neither side will admit it, and neither side can produce evidence proving its position, Misty Pavilion has no choice but to use interrogation by torture. But there is one point I need to remind you of."

He paused, his gaze moving slowly across their faces. "If Ao Feng is lying, then he alone bears responsibility. One man acts, one man answers for it. But there are three of you, and you came here representing Qiyun Sect. If it is proven that all three of you lied together, the entire Qiyun Sect will be implicated."

"Ao Feng has said that the man who killed and robbed someone was Taishu Shancheng. Based on his testimony, Taishu Xun and Taishu Li, you two were not the killers. You are disciples of the sect and must obey your Elder's commands. If you said something against your conscience in order to protect your sect's Elder, I, as Presiding Administrator, can understand the sentiment..."

Taishu Shancheng shouted over him, "Presiding Administrator, there was no such thing! What they said was the truth. How could it be against their conscience?"

Ding Wei's tone sharpened abruptly. "I said this is based on Ao Feng's testimony. I am speaking hypothetically. Do you not understand my words?"

As his tone changed, more than a dozen Misty Pavilion cultivators flashed over and surrounded the three men, glaring at them like tigers and ready to seize them at any moment.

Overwhelmed by the situation, Taishu Shancheng had no choice but to shut his mouth again.

Ding Wei continued, "Based on Ao Feng's testimony, as I said, I can understand why you would want to protect a fellow sect member. Taishu Xun, Taishu Li, I can give you one more chance. So long as you confess truthfully, and so long as your testimony counts as making amends through merit, I can represent Misty Pavilion and pardon you both of all guilt."

"Don't rush to answer. Listen until I've finished. Before you respond, I want you to think very carefully. And before you do, I need to remind you of something. Everything that exists beneath Heaven, Misty Pavilion possesses. Every method of interrogation and torture that exists beneath Heaven, Misty Pavilion lacks none of them. Misty Pavilion has more than enough means to make anyone tell the truth."

"Of course, Misty Pavilion is not an unreasonable place. We do not want to use torture casually, nor do we want innocent people to suffer for no reason. To put it another way, tormenting everyone like that would be troublesome for all involved. But if both sides insist on holding to their claims, while neither side can produce evidence, then Misty Pavilion has no choice but to use hard methods and make whoever ought to tell the truth tell it."

Ao Feng could imagine exactly how he felt on hearing that. The prospect of being tortured for nothing made him curse Niu Youdao in his heart and wish him a miserable death.

"Taishu Xun, Taishu Li, do you understand what I mean? No one can keep their mouth sealed under Misty Pavilion's interrogation methods. If you tell the truth now, it will count as making amends through merit and I will pardon you. I have made that promise publicly and will not go back on it. If you resist to the end and the truth is forced out of you, then even if you escape a death sentence, you will not escape severe punishment."

"More importantly, you are disciples of Qiyun Sect. I doubt either of you wants to drag the entire sect down with you. As long as the two of you are innocent, then this becomes Taishu Shancheng's personal conduct and has nothing to do with the sect as a whole. Only Taishu Shancheng will be punished. I give you my word on that. But if you remain stubborn to the end and it is proven that all three of you conspired together, the entire Qiyun Sect will be implicated. Misty Pavilion will erase Qiyun Sect from the cultivation world completely. The Taishu clan will be washed in blood. Every member of the Taishu clan will be exterminated as a warning to others!"

"You are disciples of Qiyun Sect, and you are also members of the Taishu clan. I assume you do not want to bring ruin upon your entire family either. Which road you take and how you choose is up to you. This is the last opportunity placed before you. Listen carefully: it is the final chance. There will be no next time, and I will not waste another word on you. The life and death of Qiyun Sect and the Taishu clan now rest on a single thought from the two of you. Your answer concerns matters of enormous importance. Miss this opportunity and it will never return. Think very carefully before you speak."

That was all he said.

Though the words appeared hypothetical, Ding Wei was in fact already leaning toward believing Ao Feng. It was not because he intended to help Ao Feng. Rather, Ao Feng seemed to have little reason to lie, while the reactions of the three men from Qiyun Sect had revealed something abnormal. The focus of Ding Wei's suspicion had shifted squarely onto them.

The entire summit fell silent. The people from the various sects were almost afraid even to breathe. Ding Wei's words had frightened them.

He had already spoken publicly and set the matter in stone: if the accusation was proven, Qiyun Sect would be erased from the cultivation world, and the entire Taishu clan would be slaughtered. The threat was vicious enough.

Whether it was intimidation or not, everyone knew Ding Wei was unlikely to go back on his words after saying them before so many people. If the matter was truly proven, Ding Wei, as the man presiding over Misty Pavilion, absolutely had the ability to carry it out. He could command all beneath Heaven to join in the extermination. A catastrophe would descend upon the Taishu clan.

Some people even secretly looked forward to it, especially the sects of Qi and Wei. They would gladly see Misty Pavilion destroy Qiyun Sect and remove a major threat to both states.

Cold sweat had already broken across Taishu Shancheng's back. He was terrified. More than anyone, he understood the cruelty in Ding Wei's method. Ding Wei was not merely attacking the body; he was attacking the heart.

The threat frightened the two disciples by making the consequences unmistakable, while at the same time giving them a way out. If they betrayed Taishu Shancheng, it would not count as betraying their sect. They would be protecting the sect. Not only would they escape being branded traitors, they could even claim merit for having saved Qiyun Sect, all without suffering torture.

The correct choice no longer seemed difficult.

Taishu Shancheng was now so frightened he no longer dared speak. He could only stare nervously at the two disciples.

Niu Youdao gave Ding Wei, standing high above them, a longer look. A chill stirred in his heart. The man Dayuan Sacred Land had sent to rotate into command over Misty Pavilion and issue orders beneath Heaven truly was no ordinary figure.

Niu Youdao had originally believed that so long as all three denied everything to the end, Misty Pavilion would still have to expend considerable effort. But that was no concern of his. If Ao Feng wanted to live, Ao Feng would likewise have to deny everything to the end.

Now it seemed Niu Youdao had underestimated Ding Wei. There was no need to drag matters out. A few sentences alone had probably already broken the two Qiyun Sect disciples' resolve.

The palms of Taishu Xun and Taishu Li were drenched in sweat. They were torn, wavering. The determination they had forced themselves to summon earlier had collapsed completely beneath Ding Wei's words.

And hesitation at a time like this was itself a sign.

Quite a few people were secretly alarmed. Could Taishu Shancheng really have committed robbery?

For some sects, Qiyun Sect doing something like that did not seem especially surprising. Qiyun Sect had always been overbearing in the cultivation world. They simply had not expected it to be overbearing enough to behave this way inside Sacred Realm.

Noticing the change in their reactions, Ao Feng was secretly astonished. Could Niu Youdao actually have been telling the truth? Had these three really killed and robbed someone?

The summit was utterly silent. Everyone watched the two Qiyun Sect disciples.

Mountain wind roared around them. Ding Wei stood with his hands behind his back, looking down impassively from above and waiting in silence.

After some time, Ding Wei spoke again. "Very well. It seems no one intends to tell the truth. I gave you the opportunity, and you refused it. Don't blame me. Men, take Ao Feng and the three from Qiyun Sect away. Separate them and interrogate them under torture. Pry open their mouths!"

"Yes!" A Misty Pavilion steward cupped his hands and accepted the order.

"Presiding Administrator!" Taishu Xun suddenly shouted.

Ding Wei raised one hand slightly, stopping his men from moving. "You've thought it through?"

Taishu Xun looked toward Taishu Li with agony written across his face.

Taishu Li swallowed hard, then slowly turned. With enormous difficulty, he looked at Taishu Shancheng and said, "Sixth Uncle, forgive us. We... we... we're doing this for the good of the sect too..."

He had not even finished before Taishu Shancheng understood exactly what they meant.

His eyes instantly went bloodshot. In front of everyone, he erupted in fury, pointing at the two and roaring, "Animals! I have never treated either of you poorly. How did the Taishu clan produce cowards like you!"

Hatred tore at his heart. He wanted nothing more than to tell them what there was to fear. All they had to do was endure the torture and never loosen their mouths.

But he also knew that was only his own wishful thinking.

Things had already come this far. Taishu Shancheng abandoned all restraint. The moment he finished cursing them, he said nothing else and flashed away, fleeing on the spot. He clearly had no intention of waiting meekly for death.

The instant he ran, it was little different from admitting the accusation.

Figures shot up from all directions to intercept him, all of them Misty Pavilion personnel.

[End of Chapter 1029]