Black Myth: Starting from the Destined One
Chapter 179 - 163: Scapegoat Again!

Chapter 179: Chapter 163: Scapegoat Again!

"Oh?"

Cen Wenjin then gave Xie Wenren a look of approval before inquiring further,

"So once he comes, can he avenge my son? Is he willing to kill the defrocked monk Mahaparinirvana and Li Ping’an for me?"

"Lord Cen, since I have spoken as such, naturally I am confident I can persuade him. Everything rests on me, you just need to do as I say!"

"Good! If this matter succeeds, our agreement remains as before!"

Cen Wenjin felt a secret delight, thinking that with Pei Yuanjing—the second most talented man under the heavens—taking action, the defrocked monk Mahaparinirvana and Li Ping’an, who had injured his son and caused him to lose face in Chang’an, would undoubtedly die!

"That beast, go handle this matter!"

Cen Wenjin casually pointed at a ruffian, but immediately regretted it upon reflection that for inviting someone like Pei Yuanjing to take action, he must choose someone very clever and articulate. He turned promptly to the steward Cen San and said,

"Old steward, you go. You must bring Pei Yuanjing here!"

"Rest assured, master!"

The steward Cen San immediately rode off to the Flame Cloud Taoist Temple to find Pei Yuanjing.

No sooner had steward Cen San departed than Wang Lang, the Iron Staff, who had been absent for a long time, hurried back.

The moment he appeared, the idle followers and hooligans around him cast scornful glances. Cen Wenjin, upon seeing him, turned away disdainfully, about to curse him away, but before he could, Iron Staff Wang Lang threw himself at Cen Wenjin’s feet and clutched his leg, crying out,

"Master! I’ve found the man who killed your brother, the Magistrate Cen, and took his money today!"

"What?"

Cen Changjin suddenly widened his eyes and turned back, glaring furiously at Iron Staff Wang Lang, seizing his collar, and gnashing his teeth,

"You beast! Didn’t you say before that my dead brother fell off a cliff? How come now you say he was murdered!"

"Master, here’s what happened..."

Iron Staff Wang Lang then recounted the entire story of Cen Changqing’s death, detailing how they left Five Finger Mountain County, encountered Li Ping’an and Zixia at the entrance to Five Finger Mountain, how they were captured by Supreme Treasure, also known as Li Ping’an, at the Axe Guild stronghold, and how they came across the Six Demons of Five Finger Mountain, and the details of Cen Wenqing’s murder.

However, the cunning Iron Staff Wang Lang pinned the entire blame for Cen Changqing’s death on Li Ping’an alone, since he certainly dared not provoke Zixia of the Qingyun Sect or Night Traveler, Muqiang Baoshan—and Cen Wenjin could not afford to provoke them either!

"So that’s how my wretched brother died! What a pity for those ten thousand taels of gold and five thousand taels of silver he worked so hard to embezzle and extort!"

Cen Changjin felt a piercing pain and hatred surged towards Li Ping’an—not because Li Ping’an had killed his brother Cen Changqing, but because those riches, which should have belonged to him and his brother, were snatched away by Li Ping’an and the members of the Axe Guild!

"Why didn’t you tell me sooner, you beast!"

Enraged, Cen Wenjin kicked Iron Staff Wang Lang in front of everyone, but Iron Staff Wang Lang was too crafty and thick-skinned, having prepared his defense. After being kicked away, he knelt down before Cen Wenjin again, his face the picture of mourning as he self-reproached,

"I deserve to die! I truly deserve death! It’s all because I failed to protect Magistrate Cen!"

"The reason I didn’t divulge the true cause of Magistrate Cen’s death to you beforehand was because I thought that after Li Ping’an and the Axe Guild murdered and plundered, they would become fugitives and vanish without a trace. I figured if I told you, master, and we couldn’t find them, in the end, it would simply become a worry for you, potentially making you sick, so I hid the truth."

"Heh heh!"

Cen Wenjin looked down with a cold sneer and said,

"So you’re saying I should thank you now?"

"Master is truly a man blessed by the heavens!"

Iron Staff Wang Lang put on a completely different face, looking up at Cen Wenjin like a dog, changing his tune and, with a smile on his face, continued to deceive:

"I never would have imagined that the audacious Supreme Treasure would dare come to Chang’an, and this guy even changed his name, calling himself Li Ping’an. He’s the same beast who fought to the death with Xie Wenren today!"

"So it’s him!"

Cen Wenjin squinted his eyes and clenched his teeth as he looked towards the sky:

"Damn it, first he kills my brother who worked for me, then he injures my precious son! This Li Ping’an really thinks there’s no one left in the Cen Family? Or that I, as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, am easy to bully! Li Ping’an, this time we settle both new grudges and old scores together!"

"Injured Young Master Cen? Who?"

Iron Staff Wang Lang, not believing that Li Ping’an, that bandit, could be as formidable as he appeared and only believing Li Ping’an’s fabrications — that defeating Xie Wenren was only possible with the assistance of the Defrocked Monk Mahaparinirvana from the shadows — did not know until now that the person who shattered Cen Fuda’s kneecaps was Li Ping’an, hence he had that question.

"Hmph! You useless fool!"

Cen Wenjin again lowered his head to glare at Iron Staff Wang Lang and scolded:

"I’ve paid you a great sum to guard my home and protect it, yet today you ran away so quickly!"

"To not deceive Master, the reason I did not show up was because I was afraid of startling the snake by hitting the grass! Think about it, at that time, with that beast being supported by Mahaparinirvana, even if I had publicly identified him, no one would have been able to apprehend him!"

As Iron Staff Wang Lang spoke, he deliberately glanced at Xie Wenren inside the house, suggesting that his absence had been unavoidable and was due to Xie Wenren’s incompetence — not at all related to himself.

"That’s the truth. Even a hundred high-level Jianghu experts like you are no match for the Warrior, the Defrocked Monk Mahaparinirvana."

Cen Wenjin was already spellbound and completely believed Iron Staff Wang Lang’s words. Following the hint from Iron Staff Wang Lang, and understanding the scenario, his resentment towards Xie Wenren deepened, but his attitude towards Iron Staff Wang Lang became much more amiable:

"Then let me ask you, where were you just now? You took so long to show up without any trace!"

Seeing that the time was ripe, Iron Staff Wang Lang immediately stood up and said in a low voice:

"After the fight to the death between Immortal Xie, Mahaparinirvana, and Li Ping’an concluded, I followed Li Ping’an all the way. In a bold move, I discovered that the man was actually hiding in a civilian residence within the Fallen Dragon Pit!"

"I dared not take action then, fearing that if I killed him alone and reported back to Master, Master might not believe my words, and think I killed a man to silence him!"

"Therefore, I endured and came back specifically to report to you, seeking Master’s decision — whether it is to kill or to maim him tonight, I shall abide by Master’s wishes! As long as Master agrees, I will lead men into Wolong Pit tonight to capture Li Ping’an, so Master can vent his anger personally!"

"This..."

Cen Wenjin was momentarily troubled upon hearing this. Inside, Xie Wenren said Li Ping’an was extremely formidable, claiming he was the expert who injured his son’s kneecap, while outside, this mob of ruffians and idle followers claimed Li Ping’an had publicly admitted that it was only with the help of Defrocked Monk Mahaparinirvana that he could defeat Xie Wenren, implying Li Ping’an was a mere commoner.

Now after hearing what Iron Staff Wang Lang said, it seemed that Li Ping’an might still be a Jianghu figure with some skills but otherwise ordinary.