Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 163 - 156: Turnaround Part 2

Chapter 163: Chapter 156: Turnaround Part 2

"The two of us are Dao inspectors from Tianyun Dao, and we have come here to investigate whether the manor is harboring any Demon Path Cultivators."

Situ Hao, with an awkward expression, could only repeatedly bow and agree.

"How may I address you two?" Lin Xin was suddenly startled, stood up, and the people nearby also got up hurriedly; even the Disciple of the Daoist Master in the Foundation Establishment Stage did the same.

Tianyun Dao, this name was too frightening. If the Four Sects were like four super giants to them, the Tianyun Dao was similarly a super giant to the Four Sects, but on a completely different scale.

The leader of the Righteous Path, the foremost great sect in the world: such a reputation wasn’t boosted but carved through the blood and bones of countless traitors, those from the Demon Path, and Loose Cultivators.

"I am Ming Qing, and he is Ming Yi. We two are brothers and disciples of the Daoist Master White Crane." The two of them took on a more serious tone with Lin Xin.

"So it is Masters Ming." Lin Xin bowed in return.

"There’s no need for long speeches, we have pressing matters; shall we begin the investigation now?" Ming Yi interjected.

The two of them looked similar, both exuding a sharp aura, only distinguished by the colors of the ribbons in their hair; Ming Qing wore a white ribbon while Ming Yi wore a black ribbon.

"How will you conduct your investigation?" Lin Xin’s heart tightened. He had killed so many that even his Spiritual Energy had turned red; if they discovered something amiss this time, he didn’t believe these two appeared as simple as they seemed.

"Earlier, there was a Qi Refinement pinnacle master who went missing here. We received orders to investigate the suspicion of Demon Path involvement. Surely the Villa Master is aware of this?"

Ming Qing narrowed his eyes at Lin Xin, radiating an aura as dangerous as a venomous snake.

"Of course, I know..." Lin Xin replied solemnly.

The people around in the manor too began to tense up; they all knew about that incident. Now, it seemed someone had indeed followed up on it.

"Might you recount the events?" Ming Qing said indifferently.

Lin Xin immediately recounted the prepared explanation word by word.

Ming Qing glanced slightly at his brother behind him.

Ming Yi, whose eyes were slightly shut without anyone noticing, slowly opened them now.

"He has not lied. However, there are some missing details."

Lin Xin’s heart clenched; Ming Yi actually had the ability to discern lies? Yet he hadn’t lied, only deliberately left out many details and did not mention whether he was the mastermind.

His heart began to churn.

Ming Qing nodded and turned his face back to Lin Xin.

"Then, please allow me to ask the Villa Master another question."

"What question?" Lin Xin asked in a deep voice.

Ming Qing smiled slightly.

"My brother has had a special ability since childhood to discern whether others are lying. So now I will ask the Villa Master a critical question, and I hope you can answer truthfully. If not..."

Suddenly, the atmosphere in the hall turned tense.

Even the Daoist Master, who was somewhat detached, felt something and turned his head to look at Lin Xin. Seeing Lin Xin with a calm expression, seemingly not in disarray, the others began to show signs of unease, however.

He thought for a moment, then softly transmitted his voice to Lin Xin.

"Villa Master, be careful; these two are at least Foundation Establishment experts and are deeply concealed, or perhaps they possess their sect’s Foundation Establishment Talismans. Their power is no less than mine... maybe even stronger..." He kindly warned.

"Thank you for the information, Master." Lin Xin’s mind was clear, and as he processed his thoughts, he nodded. "Please ask, Masters."

Ming Qing too nodded.

"So... please tell me, was the manor involved in the death of the Qi Refinement master?"

The atmosphere in the hall instantly tensed.

As soon as these words were out, all eyes in the manor concentrated on Lin Xin’s face.

"This matter is extremely intricate and coincidental, and whether or not the manor was..."

"You only need to answer yes or no." Ming Qing interrupted him.

"Then may I ask the two Masters, if it were an..."

"I didn’t ask you anything else!" Ming Qing interrupted him again. "Yes or no!"

His voice suddenly rose.

"I, Lin Xin, dare swear on my fortune and life..."

"I don’t care about your reasons; I’m just asking you if you were involved!"

Ming Qing’s voice turned cold, interrupting him again.

After being interrupted repeatedly, Lin Xin finally fell silent.

After a long moment, he remained silent, merely lowering his eyes.

"The manor isn’t involved... It was only I who participated..." Finally, he slowly spoke.

"Villa Master!!"

As soon as these words came out, the crowd below erupted into chaos, not only the retainers but also people like Lin Xinyuan became noticeably agitated.

This was a sign of being pinned with a crime for sure!

Ming Qing glanced around once, his eyes cold as ice springs, immediately suppressing the heated excitement of the crowd.

"The Villa Master is indeed honest. We won’t interfere in your personal grudges. Next, I’m going to ask you, have you colluded with the Demon Path?"

He actually didn’t care about Lin Xin killing a Qi Refinement expert!

Lin Xin was stunned. The people of the manor were also frozen in shock. But someone quickly realized—right, they were from the Heavenly Cloud Dao, and they couldn’t care less about your killings of any expert.

Their true purpose was only to investigate whether there was a spy from the Demon Path. It was merely a misunderstanding that everyone assumed otherwise.

"Absolutely not!" Realizing this, Lin Xin’s mind suddenly cleared, and he quickly responded.

Ming Qing glanced at his younger brother. Ming Yi opened his eyes and nodded slightly at him.

"He is not lying."

"Let’s go." The two actually spoke of leaving and turned to depart.

"Ah!! Sires! Great masters, Lin Xin has harmed our sect’s disciples, his crimes are unforgivable, such evil person should be brought to justice, how could..."

Situ Hao was anxious too, hastily trying to stop the two.

"That is your affair, irrelevant to us," Ming Qing said indifferently.

"Brother Masters, I’ve always found Situ Hao highly suspicious. Why not take advantage of your divine skills and inquire whether this man has colluded with the Demon Path?" Lin Xin suddenly said with a smile.

It was just an offhand remark from him, yet Ming Qing actually stopped in his tracks. He looked at his brother.

Ming Yi also nodded at him.

"Just in time, my divine skills are still available," he agreed.

"Then, I ask again now, Situ Hao, have you colluded with the Demon Path?" he formally asked Situ Hao.

Unexpectedly, the color drained from Situ Hao’s face in an instant.

"I... I..." His lips trembled, struggling to speak.

Ming Qing was stunned. He had truly just asked casually. The people of the manor were also stunned, even Lin Xin hadn’t expected this.

"Take him!"

Suddenly, a white rope shot out, fiercely tying up Situ Hao who turned to flee, causing him to fall to the ground.

That white rope appeared out of nowhere, not from the clothes of the two brothers but seemingly shooting from beneath Situ Hao’s feet. It was quite eerie.

"Spare my life!"

Situ Hao screamed loudly. His voice was piercing.

"I was forced!!"

Ming Qing turned and bowed to Lin Xin.

"Thank you, Villa Master, for the reminder. We had no idea that we brothers had been living with a spy for days. If not for your warning today, perhaps we would have been deceived by this demon for a long time!"

"You’re welcome..." Lin Xin quickly said. "Why don’t you stay a while longer. I can also provide many conveniences and information, being somewhat of a local lord here."

After a moment of thought, the two agreed. Indeed, having Spirit Heart Villa to assist them would make their tasks much more manageable.

"Then we thank the Villa Master for his support."

With that, everyone in the manor breathed a sigh of relief.

This crisis was finally over.

Lin Xin had not expected an inspector to suddenly appear, and from the Heavenly Cloud Dao, no less. It seemed that the Pine Sword Sect too had its concerns about dealing with him. It must be that their superiors were either unwilling or uninformed, leading to their subordinates acting on their own, wanting to act first and report later to gain an advantage. It appeared also to be a matter of lax discipline.

Otherwise, if they really wanted to move against him, they would have just forcibly come straight over rather than sneaking around.

**************************

"Come, come, come, Brother Ming Qing, another cup. It feels as though we were destined to meet, and if not for the inspection, we might never have crossed paths," Lin Xin said, smiling as he toasted Ming Qing.

Ming Qing’s face showed a trace of guilt. These past few days, thanks to Lin Xin’s full support, they rapidly uncovered crucial leads. He was thrilled, and thinking of how Lin Xin had entertained them with the best of foods and drinks, and recalling how they had initially misunderstood him, he felt a sense of debt. What moved him even more was that Lin Xin’s thoughts and insights did not seem like those of a cultivator from a small place—as they often broached topics with a depth that was both unconventional and astonishing.

"Brother Lin’s breadth of knowledge goes without saying, but what is truly remarkable is your unusual approach and the depth of your views. These few days of conversation have been quite enlightening for me," he said.

Lin Xin attended his dark abode every day, where a day could be stretched to two or three days’ worth of time, naturally having far more than enough opportunity to reflect on cultivation practice and ponder issues. His accumulations had greatly increased.

Moreover, since he originally wasn’t from this world, his thoughts were novel. Even just mentioning some things could astound them greatly.

"Brother Ming Qing flatters me, I am but a lower-tier cultivator. Whenever demons rampage, it is individuals like Brother Ming Qing who always fight on the front lines. But having the ambition without the power, if we cannot return a clear sky and peace to the people, then what is the meaning of our cultivation?" Lin Xin spoke earnestly.

"Brother Lin speaks truth," Ming Yi also felt moved, "In my cultivation of distinguishing lies through divine skills, I strive to unearth my own talents, so my descendants, my children, can have a better environment, a more peaceful world, and not suffer as we do now under the torment of demons."

"Many people are ignorant and think our Heavenly Cloud Dao’s adherence to ideals too foolish, but they fail to understand that what we stand for is righteously a future longed for by countless dawn-seeking people. This is the key to why our Heavenly Cloud Dao has stood unwavering for many years. And if one cannot discern right from wrong, then what’s the point of living!" Ming Qing said with a trace of scorn. "If a person has no ideals, are they not just beasts controlled by their desires?"

"Brother Ming Qing is absolutely correct," Lin Xin nodded, his face full of integrity. "The bottom line for humanity, if one cannot clearly define love and hate, right and wrong, once these lines blur, it’s easy to stray from our ideals, like a frog being slowly boiled, its boundaries gradually lowered until it’s mired in desires without even realizing it."

"Your brilliance, Brother Lin!" Suddenly, these straightforward, modern concepts brightened the eyes of Ming Qing and his brother, and they frequently raised their glasses in toast. It seemed like this conversation had lucidly articulated their long-held but hard-to-express convictions.

For a while, the three of them mingled their cups and interchanged their heartiest feelings, perceiving each other as kindred spirits. (To be continued. If you like this book, you are welcome to vote at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.)