Chapter 1096: Inspecting by Decree

When they reached the flying mounts Shouque Villa had urgently prepared, Ding Wei stopped and warned him, "Niu Youdao, Wuliang Garden is not a place you should go."

Niu Youdao said, "Does the Presiding Administrator mean inspectors are not permitted to inquire into what happened at Wuliang Garden?"

There was nothing wrong with the words themselves.

It was only his tone that sounded strangely insinuating and made it easy for people to read something more into them.

Ding Wei abruptly turned his head and stared at him coldly.

He nearly lost his temper.

Niu Youdao's tone carried a strange sarcasm, almost as though he suspected Ding Wei was deliberately preventing the inspectors from examining a problem at Wuliang Garden.

At such a sensitive moment, what exactly was he trying to imply?

Ding Wei forced his voice to remain calm. "Naturally, someone will investigate what happened at Wuliang Garden. Even if you go, you won't uncover anything."

Niu Youdao said, "Hong Yunfa's matter seems to have been uncovered by inspectors too."

A short sentence, but it carried many implications.

Ding Wei narrowed his eyes at him.

He very much wanted to ask what the hell Niu Youdao thought he was.

The man was simply too audacious, actually daring to speak to him this way.

If not for Niu Youdao's status as an inspector, and if the power of life and death over inspectors were in Ding Wei's hands, Ding Wei could have killed him on the spot.

Ding Wei said nothing more.

He raised a hand and gave the order.

Several flying mounts rose into the air. His party flashed aboard and departed.

He had neither agreed to let Niu Youdao go nor explicitly refused.

The key point was that the inspectors had been ordered to inspect Misty Pavilion, while Wuliang Garden nominally belonged to Misty Pavilion as well.

"Quick!" Niu Youdao called without ceremony, waving Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie forward.

The three immediately leapt onto the flying mount they had arrived on and took off in pursuit.

Wind roared past their ears.

Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie exchanged looks, unable to understand why Niu Youdao had chosen to speak to Ding Wei that way.

"Elder, I'm afraid speaking like that has offended Ding Wei," Qin Guan reminded him in good faith.

Niu Youdao chuckled. "Offended him? I offended him long ago. What difference does one more time or one less time make?"

"Yes, he stands high and holds great authority. But he still can't do anything to us. He has no authority to punish us."

The two men sighed.

It felt as though their Elder had decided that since the jar was already cracked, he might as well smash it.

Ke Dingjie asked, "Elder, Wuliang Garden is a place everyone else avoids if they can. Why do we insist on going there?"

Niu Youdao said, "Precisely because everyone else avoids it, we have to go."

"Something this serious happened at Wuliang Garden. If the inspectors don't even dare ask about it, what kind of inspectors would we be?"

"I'm afraid of angering the Sacred Venerables. Even if all we do is put on a show, that's better than nothing."

"Besides, don't the two of you want to visit Wuliang Garden and broaden your horizons?"

"Faster. Don't lose them."

Ke Dingjie shook the finger bell, ordering the flying mount to travel at full speed.

One of Ding Wei's companions reminded him about the people behind them.

Ding Wei looked back and discovered Niu Youdao truly had chased after them.

Anger rose inside him.

Yet bound by the Nine Saints' restrictions, there was nothing he could do. If he wanted to deal with Niu Youdao, he would have to wait for an opportunity.

Before long, Niu Youdao and the other two finally caught up and joined Ding Wei's party.

...

The heavens stretched vast above; the earth ran boundless below.

When a huge expanse of burned forest appeared across the mountains in their field of view, Ding Wei's group had finally arrived.

Ding Wei did not descend immediately.

He led the group in circles through the sky, first examining the burned area from high above.

Then they descended and inspected it again from lower altitude.

Only afterward did the group finally land on a hillside.

Ding Wei walked to the front and raised the Misty Pavilion command token.

Facing the blackened, devastated mountains, he called out, "Open the gate!"

They waited for a short while.

A pale-blue line of light twisted through empty air like a crack, then suddenly widened and spread outward, turning into a pale-blue ripple shaped like an inverted bowl.

Within the rippling barrier, mountains and waters, pavilions and towers seemed to appear from thin air.

A gap opened along the curved surface of the glowing bowl.

A group of people came out.

At their head was a white-haired old man, who asked, "What brings the Presiding Administrator here?"

Ding Wei put away the token. "Something this serious happened. I've come to take a look."

The white-haired old man said, "You know the situation here. It isn't appropriate to bring a large group inside. Two attendants should be enough."

Ding Wei nodded faintly.

He turned and said, "You two come in with me. Everyone else stays outside."

The moment Niu Youdao heard that, he became anxious and hurried forward. "Mr. Ding, what about me?"

Ding Wei ignored him completely.

Niu Youdao immediately waved Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie forward and approached the white-haired old man.

"Senior, we are carrying out the Sacred Venerables' decree to inspect Misty Pavilion. Are we not permitted to enter either?"

Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie truly did not know what to say about their Elder anymore.

They could only follow close behind him.

"Inspecting by decree?" The white-haired old man looked puzzled.

He turned toward Ding Wei. "Is that true?"

What could Ding Wei say?

He could only give a slight nod.

The white-haired old man frowned, but did not say anything more.

He stepped aside and allowed them through.

Even with permission, however, everyone still had to undergo inspection.

Apart from the Nine Saints themselves, anyone entering or leaving Wuliang Garden had to be searched.

Normally, no personal items were permitted in or out. Only the daily necessities required by the people inside Wuliang Garden could be brought through, and even those essentials were subjected to strict inspection.

They were searched one by one.

Each person was surrounded by three men who searched him at the same time.

Even Ding Wei was no exception. He obediently submitted to the inspection.

Ornaments and other accessories, including the weapons carried on their bodies, were all removed and left outside.

Only after the guards confirmed there was no problem were Ding Wei and the others permitted to enter.

The moment everyone was inside, the entrance in the protective formation quickly fused shut again.

The entire formation suddenly contracted.

Blue light flashed.

Wuliang Garden vanished into thin air.

The people waiting outside the formation exchanged looks.

The mountains and waters before them had simply disappeared, leaving only a blackened swath of burned land.

For those inside, however, nothing had changed when they looked outward.

Everything outside remained perfectly visible.

It was extraordinarily strange.

Inside Wuliang Garden, Niu Youdao, Qin Guan, and Ke Dingjie looked around in every direction.

It was their first time entering a forbidden ground like this, so curiosity was inevitable.

"I heard the Sacred Venerables came?" Ding Wei asked as he walked beside the white-haired old man at the front.

The old man sighed. "They began arriving one after another on the second day after the incident. They didn't remain here the whole time. They personally asked about what happened, then left."

He made it sound casual.

But Ding Wei could hear the truth behind the words.

The Nine Saints had definitely been furious.

There was no chance the people here had escaped a harsh reprimand.

Wuliang Garden looked more like a secluded paradise untouched by the world.

Pavilions and buildings were scattered gracefully throughout the landscape.

Following behind, Niu Youdao continuously observed the terrain.

Quite a few people inside the Garden poked their heads out of doors or windows to look at the newcomers.

Along the way, Niu Youdao saw a familiar face.

The other man's surprise was obvious.

Ao Feng stood by the railing of an upper floor, astonishment showing in his eyes.

He had been wondering who had arrived, only to discover Niu Youdao.

On the day of the fire, Niu Youdao had told him he would make a trip into Wuliang Garden within a few days.

Ao Feng had thought the man insane.

He had never expected Niu Youdao truly to come.

Once he saw Ding Wei, he understood.

Niu Youdao had followed Ding Wei inside.

Ao Feng had no idea what method Niu Youdao had used to make Ding Wei bring him into Wuliang Garden.

With Ding Wei leading the group, however, Ao Feng felt somewhat reassured.

What he feared was Niu Youdao acting recklessly.

Some damned inspector barging into Wuliang Garden on his own authority would obviously arouse suspicion.

Niu Youdao noted where Ao Feng lived and committed the location to memory.

He had originally intended to find some way to see the Wuliang Fruit tree.

Unexpectedly, Ding Wei saved him the trouble.

Ding Wei headed directly toward the central region of Wuliang Garden, where the Wuliang Fruit tree stood.

A stream of unknown origin circled the center.

Within the stream's loop stood an isolated "island" with a single great tree.

The area around the island had been cleared completely, leaving a broad empty space. Anyone trying to approach the island would inevitably be noticed.

Nine pavilions encircled the open ground.

One look was enough for Niu Youdao to understand that they belonged to the personnel from the Nine Sacred Lands who took turns guarding the place.

The moment the newcomers arrived, several people emerged from each of the nine buildings and watched them closely.

The solitary tree on the island was not exceptionally tall, perhaps five zhang in height, but its branches spread widely, forming a green canopy.

Niu Youdao stared at it.

There was no need to ask.

That had to be the legendary Wuliang Fruit tree.

The group had only just approached the stream surrounding the island when three crows with glowing red eyes shot out of the crown.

They instantly dissolved into mist and transformed into three men with pitch-black faces and skin.

The three stood beneath the tree, guarding three separate directions. Then all three turned their heads and fixed the newcomers with glowing red eyes.

They looked extraordinarily eerie.

These were the Crow Generals guarding the tree.

Niu Youdao's brows rose slightly.

The face of the Crow General directly opposite him matched one of the portraits he had drawn.

The white-haired old man raised one hand to stop the group.

"Presiding Administrator Ding, no one should go any closer. Walking around the perimeter is enough. If we approach further, there may be trouble."

Ding Wei was evidently approaching the Wuliang Fruit tree for the first time himself.

He immediately obeyed and stopped.

"Nothing happened here when the incident occurred, did it?"

The white-haired old man said, "Nothing happened here. The trouble was outside. Everything inside Wuliang Garden remained safe."

While the two men discussed what had happened during the incident, Niu Youdao quietly activated his Dharma Eye and stared fixedly at the Wuliang Fruit tree.

The tree's crown divided into twelve major branches.

Hidden among each branch was a dark-red fruit with a rough rind like a lychee shell, each roughly the size of a fist.

They truly did resemble hearts.

More astonishingly, the "hearts" seemed alive, almost as though they were beating.

A faint red glow seeped from the hollows between the rough ridges of their skins.

These were the legendary Wuliang Fruits.

Glowing fruit.

For anyone seeing them for the first time, it was truly an eye-opening sight.

After studying the Wuliang Fruits for a while, Niu Youdao suddenly withdrew his concentration and walked toward the two men speaking.

He interrupted Ding Wei.

"Presiding Administrator, I'd like to question some of the other people about what happened that day and see whether I can discover anything."

Ding Wei did not answer.

He looked toward the white-haired old man instead, evidently asking whether that was acceptable.

The old man examined Niu Youdao.

He did not refuse. After all, Niu Youdao carried the authority of an inspector acting under the Nine Saints' decree.

The old man merely tilted his head toward the attendants behind him.

"Send two men with him. Do not leave his side for a single step!"

"Yes!" one of them answered with cupped hands.

Niu Youdao cupped his hands in thanks, then led Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie away.

He did not head anywhere else.

He simply retraced the path they had come by.

Whenever he came across a residence, he knocked and called the people inside out for questioning.

When questioning them, Niu Youdao asked the two men assigned by the white-haired old man to step away.

They refused.

"Don't worry. I won't leave your sight," Niu Youdao said. "I'll question them out here in the open where you can see me. But you cannot hear what we're discussing."

"No."

"It's not that I don't trust you. Before the truth of this incident has been established, everyone inside Wuliang Garden is a suspect. I need to prevent suspects from coordinating their stories."

Faced with that reasoning, the two men could not make the decision themselves.

One went back to ask the white-haired old man for instructions.

The answer came back: permission granted.

Niu Youdao then had Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie accompany the two men some distance away.

His reason was simple.

Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie were to determine when the two Wuliang Garden men were far enough away that they could no longer hear the conversation.

Clearly, Niu Youdao was guarding against the watchers secretly listening in.

And so Niu Youdao began questioning people in his capacity as a Misty Pavilion inspector.

The questions themselves were all meaningless.

He merely asked about what had happened when the fire broke out.

The two men assigned to watch him stared without blinking.

After finishing with one residence, Niu Youdao moved to the next.

Eventually, as though by the most natural course in the world, he arrived at Ao Feng's quarters.

[End of Chapter 1096]