Chapter 113: You Brought This Upon Yourself

At this point, an uproar broke out among the people in the valley. Even Yan Shu looked at Xiao Jihan in some surprise, not expecting that he had encountered such a situation. Was this, perhaps, the fabled fate of the beautiful but tragic hero?

Sun Changfeng stared at the projection, his face pale as he finally realized the source of the odd feeling he’d had in the dense forest. Of course! Xiao Jihan, that wretch, had deliberately coaxed information out of him!

Yet this was only the beginning.

“Senior brother, you are mistaken. As long as I do not attempt to venture deeper into the forest or harm the Earth Dragon Spirit Beast, even if you wish to make me a sacrifice, it would be impossible. Besides, I have the jade token!”

“The jade token? You mean this one?”

“How did you get my jade token?”

“I had already prepared this jade token to hand over to Uncle Liu. You forced Shuo’er to suppress his cultivation, and even extorted my spirit stones and Essence Cultivation Pills. Did you think I would let such a good opportunity slip by?”

By now, the crowd was beyond shocked. Everyone present knew the importance of the jade token to those who entered the secret realm. No matter how strong one was in the outside world, once in the Brahma Heaven Secret Realm, one’s cultivation was suppressed to the late Golden Core stage, while the highest-level monsters there reached the seventh rank, equivalent to the late Nascent Soul stage.

Was this just a piece of jade? No! For those entering the Brahma Heaven Secret Realm, this was their very lifeline!

Finally, someone could not contain their outrage and cursed aloud, “You’re worse than a beast! To think I once believed your lies!”

“A despicable scoundrel crying thief! You disgrace the cultivation world!”

“And you still have the nerve to call others malicious? No one is more vile than you!”

For a moment, the air was filled with curses and rebukes. Sun Changfeng stood ashen-faced, his fists clenched tightly, jaw locked, unable to utter a word.

He was waiting! Waiting for the moment when Xiao Jihan would expose that he had crafted the Beast-Attracting Powder and sold him a fake version! Waiting for everyone to see the moment he was doused in the real powder!

As he wished, the projection continued to play.

Only Xiao Jihan’s back was visible in the image, but his words rang clear for all to hear: “There are only a few days left before the secret realm closes. Cultivators are forbidden to kill each other here. As long as I do not provoke the Earth Dragon, I can leave safely even without the jade token.”

In the image, Sun Changfeng’s lips curled into a sinister sneer. “Heh!” Then he pulled out a porcelain bottle.

Sun Changfeng’s lips pressed thin. Yes, this was the moment! He poured the Beast-Attracting Powder over Xiao Jihan, but the Earth Dragon did not attack Xiao Jihan. It was then that Xiao Jihan revealed he had crafted the powder, and doused Sun Changfeng with the real thing, forcing him to crush his jade token and exit the secret realm!

Yes, this was it! Just a little further and everyone would see Xiao Jihan’s true colors!

As Sun Changfeng gritted his teeth and awaited the turning point, the image suddenly flickered and blurred.

Was the spirit power of the Memory Stone exhausted?

Sure enough, the projection froze on the moment Sun Changfeng opened the porcelain bottle. The scene darkened, and the image vanished.

Xiao Jihan respectfully handed the Memory Stone to Bing Shien and spoke slowly, “That is the truth. Perhaps Senior Brother Sun underestimated me, for as he was about to pour the Beast-Attracting Powder on me, I struck his hand, causing him to spill it on himself.”

“The Memory Stone’s power was depleted and failed to record that critical instant. I offer the Memory Stone for Uncle and the Disciplinary Hall’s inspection.”

He then produced another porcelain bottle, handing it to Bing Shien. “This is the bottle Senior Brother Sun used for the Beast-Attracting Powder. I picked it up at the time. Uncle and the stewards may compare it with the images.”

Bing Shien looked at him with a complicated expression, but in the end said nothing, accepting both the Memory Stone and the bottle.

Sun Changfeng’s composure finally shattered. Face twisted, he jabbed a finger at Xiao Jihan and shouted, “Lies! You despicable villain! You sold me fake Beast-Attracting Powder and doused me with the real thing! You’re the one who’s shameless!”

Xiao Jihan glanced at him coldly, not even bothering to reply.

Yet though Xiao Jihan was silent, the onlookers exploded.

“How dare you call Xiao Jihan shameless! You’re the most shameless one here!”

“That’s right! The opportunity was given to you by Xiao Jihan, and you not only showed no gratitude, but tried to sacrifice him to the Earth Dragon!”

“Bringing Beast-Attracting Powder into the secret realm—what were you really up to? Even a fool can see it!”

“After all this, you still try to play the victim? Truly, the shameless are invincible!”

Amidst the torrent of insults, Sun Changfeng finally broke. He spun around and roared at the crowd, “What do you fools know! Xiao Jihan is the most insidious villain of all—everything was part of his scheme! He deliberately stopped the Memory Stone here to mislead you!”

“Ha! Did he foresee you’d bring Beast-Attracting Powder? That you’d try to pour it on him? That you’d swap his jade token? That you’d lure the Earth Dragon to harm him?”

“You were the one with malice—you brought this on yourself!”

Buffeted by the crowd’s accusations, Sun Changfeng was left speechless. His fists clenched until his knuckles were white, his eyes bloodshot. Gritting his teeth, he turned to Bing Shien and declared, “Every word I’ve said is true! I am at fault, but Xiao Jihan crafted the powder, set me up, and doused me with it. I am willing to submit to the Soul-Searching Technique to prove my innocence!”

The moment these words were spoken, even those who wished they could drown Sun Changfeng with spit fell silent.

The Soul-Searching Technique probed every memory and thought, good or ill, leaving nothing hidden. Those subjected to it would have an unstable soul and find it almost impossible to further their cultivation. Sun Changfeng was determined to burn all bridges.

But this also meant there was a chance he was telling the truth.

Bing Shien looked at Sun Changfeng, whose eyes were nearly bursting with rage, and frowned, about to speak when Yan Shu interjected, “Senior brother, can a person’s memory truly not be altered? While the Soul-Searching Technique is reliable, this matter happened ten years ago—and as we have seen, he was prepared to frame Xiao Jihan from the start.”

“If he has hypnotized himself, what use is the Soul-Searching Technique? Besides, everyone knows I took Xiao Jihan as my disciple to temper his character. For a year, I gave him no special instruction or treatment; only shortly before the secret realm opened did I teach him our sect’s cultivation method and alchemy.”

“In just a month or two, how could Xiao Jihan have learned to make Beast-Attracting Powder? Where did he get the formula? With all the evidence already at hand, is it not enough to prove Sun Changfeng’s false accusations? What more is there to say? A man who would harm his fellow disciples—how could he be worthy of trust?”