Chapter 133: House Arrest

King Yong ordered Zhou Yi to step forward, but Zhou Yi remained motionless.

His face instantly lost its composure. After a warning glare, he began to rack his brain for a way to resolve the awkward situation.

Although Ye Qingchen was indignant, her sense of reason ultimately prevailed over her personal feelings. After all, she was embroiled in a murder case; if she adamantly refused to cooperate, it would tarnish the reputation of the Shuxing Tower once word got out.

It would be better to yield to King Yong’s wishes and wait a few days before deciding on the next course of action.

She said, "Whether I am innocent or guilty, the truth will inevitably come to light." Turning to Zhou Yi, she added, "Your Highness, I am willing to accompany you to the Ruijin Palace."

King Yong was overjoyed, fearing that Ye Qingchen might cause a scene and create unnecessary trouble.

Since she was cooperating voluntarily, it was the best outcome, sparing everyone a confrontation. However, every situation has its pros and cons.

He replied, "I shall trouble you, Tower Master Ye, to return to the Ruijin Palace with Zhou Yi first. I have a few words to exchange with Master Baili, and I shall join you shortly."

He then signaled with his eyes. Zhou Yi, seeing this, had no choice but to bite his tongue and mutter, "Please, Tower Master Ye."

Ye Qingchen said to Su He, "I am fine. Wait for my return."

Su He nodded; under the circumstances, this was the only option.

Once they had moved away, King Yong bowed to Su He and said, "I have an unwelcome request, and I hope Master Baili will grant it."

"Your Highness refers to the Shuxing Tower?"

"Exactly. I ask that you keep this quiet for a few days. Once the results are out and it is proven that Tower Master Ye is not involved, I will personally escort her back to the Wangyun Inn.

"I only hope you will consider that the victims were ordinary immortals, no different from commoners in the eyes of true cultivators.

"One must ask, what did they do to deserve this? I ask you to grant us a few more days to avoid public unrest." With that, he actually bowed to Su He.

Su He could not let him complete the gesture and quickly reached out to support him. "I can agree to this request."

"Many thanks!"

"But do not rejoice too soon, Your Highness. Since the Shuxing Tower allows Lady Ye to travel through Yuhaitian, they naturally have eyes and ears to report her every move to Saint Lord Qi.

"This matter cannot be kept secret for long. If you wish to uncover the truth, you must know that time is of the essence."

King Yong nodded and cupped his hands in farewell. "I understand. We shall meet again."

Su He remained uneasy and followed them for a distance. Only when he saw them enter the royal palace did he turn back.

Upon reaching the entrance of the inn, he encountered Que Yunzi and the others, who were also returning.

"Did you encounter anything, Senior?" Su He asked.

"Not really. We were just worried when you left, so we followed to check. To our surprise, we spent half the night without seeing a ghost. By the way, why isn't the girl Ye with you? Did she return already?" Que Yunzi asked, preparing to head inside.

Su He stopped him. "Lady Ye was taken away by the Ruijin Palace."

Que Yunzi froze. "What happened? You were fine when you left. How did she end up being taken?"

"It happened like this..." Su He recounted the massacre at Little Zhou Village in full detail to Que Yunzi.

After a long pause, Que Yunzi looked up and asked, "Now that you are back, what do you intend to do?"

"I returned to inform you of the situation so you wouldn't worry. Then, I plan to take advantage of the quiet to head back to Little Zhou Village and search for any missed clues. It might just help Lady Ye."

"We will go with you. It will be faster."

"No."

"Why?"

"From the current perspective, Lady Ye has fallen into a trap set by someone with ulterior motives. If we all go, the large group will be too conspicuous." He paused, then added, "Moreover, we don't know the goal of the perpetrator. Is it aimed at Lady Ye, or..." aimed at the Seal-Breaker.

Su He left the rest unsaid, but Que Yunzi understood his meaning.

He bowed his head in silence.

Zou Jiren, seeing their grave expressions, said, "I will go with you. Two people are less conspicuous than four. And you won't have to go alone."

Que Yunzi asked, "What about your injuries?"

"They are no longer a major issue, as long as I don't engage in a life-or-death struggle."

With that, he looked directly at Su He.

Su He, understanding their intentions, nodded in agreement. He turned to Yun Xingyu and said, "Brother Yun, I leave the inn in your care. If King Yong’s men come, tell them I will arrive later."

Yun Xingyu remained silent for a moment before saying, "Very well."

With his promise secured, Su He and Zou Jiren hurried toward Little Zhou Village.

Once they were gone, Yun Xingyu glanced toward a corner and said, "Saint Hand, let us return."

Que Yunzi, feeling a sense of foreboding, replied, "Let's go."

The two flickered and appeared on the second floor.

Mo Ruyuan emerged from the shadows, remarking on how keen the eyes of those men were. He looked at the sign of the Wangyun Inn, then toward the direction where Su He had vanished.

He formed a seal and vanished silently into thin air.

From Zou Jiren’s room, Yun Xingyu parted the curtains slightly. Seeing that the person was gone, he closed them again.

Que Yunzi sat at the table, sipping water, but it felt bitter. He now understood why Su He had been reluctant to travel with everyone initially; he had clearly foreseen this day.

In that case, had their insistence on accompanying him now become a burden?

"Sigh..."

"Why does the Saint Hand sigh?" Yun Xingyu walked to the table and sat down, pouring himself a cup of water.

"I am wondering if we have become a burden to young master He." Without their persistence, Su He would have been much freer to handle the current situation. With them, he had a weakness. If they encountered someone calculated, they would become a hindrance.

"I do not think so, Brother Yun."

"Oh? You have a different view?"

"Since he agreed to travel together, he must have foreseen this situation. Yet he still agreed, which means he is willing to accept everything that follows. In that case, how can it be a burden?"

Que Yunzi found logic in his words. He then asked, "What were you looking at by the window? Did something troublesome approach?"

Yun Xingyu took a sip of water and said leisurely, "No, just an interesting person."

Hearing this, a flicker of intrigue appeared in Que Yunzi’s eyes. He lowered his voice and asked, "Who?"

"Drink your water."

"..."

Within Little Zhou Village, the bodies had been removed. The vast village was deathly silent; besides the two of them, there were no other living things.

Yes, not even the sound of an insect or a frog could be heard.

When the wind blew, the paper lanterns under the eaves spun with a rattling sound. Occasionally, a wooden cabinet leaning against the wall would suddenly collapse, sending dust billowing into the air.

At other times, a sword hanging by a bed would hum and vibrate within its scabbard.

Zou Jiren said, "Should we check another house? We've been through several, and we've found nothing. It’s just like a haunted house every time we arrive."

As soon as he finished speaking, roof tiles outside suddenly fell to the ground with a harsh clatter.

Su He set down the object in his hand and darted out of the room. Seeing nothing, he leaped onto the roof.

"How is it? Any discoveries?"

"No." Just as he finished, Su He noticed one tile that seemed different; while the others were aligned, this one was reversed.

He paused and lifted the tile to peer down. Looking down from here, he couldn't see the entire room, but he could see enough.

With this thought, he leaped off the roof.

Zou Jiren approached. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing," Su He replied. "Let's check elsewhere."

He walked on in silence.

Zou Jiren looked at him. "What are you thinking about?"

"Thinking of some old matters." He couldn't shake the feeling that the Little Zhou Village case was very similar to the incident at the Shuxing Tower.

Yet, it was also different; the people of Little Zhou Village had other wounds on their bodies before they died. As for which was fatal, that remained to be seen.

Furthermore, the victims at the Shuxing Tower had died under the sword energy of "Minshu." That point was something he still couldn't defend himself against.

Suddenly, he thought of Wang You. With the same face and the same name, he couldn't help but recall the origins of Xi Yuan.

If she hadn't died, she would certainly have had the capability to replicate the Minshu sword energy.

But he had struck her down with his own blade that day; he had watched her vanish with his own eyes.

These facts could not be faked.

Moreover, he had secretly probed Wang You's aura that day. There was no doubt she was human, and her background was worlds apart from the other.

What was the connection between these two? And how much did they have to do with Little Zhou Village?

Zou Jiren, hearing him mention old matters, likely understood what he was referring to. "That day, I followed Lin Mao to testify against you at the city gate, and Xiao the Fourth was there too. Could he know something? But that man is full of high-sounding rhetoric and is not someone to be trifled with."

"Indeed. From the mountain peak to the hillside, he arrived with his men in such a short time. The timing of his appearance was far too coincidental, and his every word was about righteousness, making it seem deliberate. I have clashed with him several times; his tongue is sharper than any blade."

"Artful sophistry, dedicated to gossip and discord—he is not a good man." Zou Jiren was disgusted by this; for a man to spend all day stirring up trouble with his tongue was truly contemptible.

If he were to kill with an open blade, one could at least respect his ferocity. But for this type of person, it was truly lamentable.

He lowered his head. "Is there any similarity between the two places?"

Su He stopped and looked at Zou Jiren. "There are similarities and differences. The similarity is that the victims all died under suspicious circumstances. And during the incident, no one else saw anything, leaving me unable to argue my innocence. The difference is that the people of Little Zhou Village had other injuries on them, and we don't know which one was the fatal blow."

With that, he pushed open the wooden door in front of them.

In just a few hours, the place looked as if it had been abandoned for centuries. All the flowers, plants, and trees seemed as if their vitality had been forcibly drained.

Zou Jiren followed him into the courtyard. "In that case, if we can't find solid evidence, are we just going to sit and wait for news from the Ruijin Palace?"

"That is correct."

"But what if the Ruijin Palace, in order to close the case, simply pins it on Tower Master Ye? Wouldn't that be...?" Thinking of this possibility, Zou Jiren’s face turned grim.

Under the shadow of the royal city, it wasn't like a struggle between sects. If the charges were proven true, even an immortal would have to face the consequences.

"It won't happen. The current Emperor is a wise ruler. The fact that he could entrust the safety of the royal city to King Yong shows that his judgment is unquestionable."

Su He walked into the house and searched, but found nothing.

Suddenly, he noticed something pressed under a broken flowerpot. He reached out and pulled out half a sleeve that had been torn off. The style appeared to be a woman's, and the material was very common.

He handed it to Zou Jiren. "Take a look?"

Zou Jiren took the sleeve, examined it several times, and said, "A woman's?"

"Yes."

"Tower Master Ye is a woman, but even if she fights others, she wouldn't be brawling like a shrew—why would she end up tearing someone's sleeve?" As he spoke, he suddenly realized the implication.

He looked at Su He, then back at the sleeve in his hand.

"Are you implying...?"