Great! I'm surrounded by villains!
Chapter 111 - 31: Chaos in the Imperial Court

Chapter 111: Chapter 31: Chaos in the Imperial Court

It proved that no matter where they were, humans’ pursuit of gossip never ceased.

Compared to dry Academic questions, the unknown gossip about the head of the Chess Institute and the Elder Princess seemed much more interesting to people.

However, to the disappointment of the crowd, the head of the Institute, Su Yun, didn’t discuss his romantic affairs, nor did he reveal the identity of that old friend. Every topic began with Ning Ruyue and also ended with her.

The Prime Monarch’s action of passing on the Flying Sword to the Elder Princess naturally caused dissatisfaction among many, and conspiracies to assassinate the Elder Princess began to form, with Yin Die being the executor of this assassination plan.

Everyone knew that the current Prime Monarch had long been running out of Life Energy and would soon pass away. It was an excellent opportunity to support a new monarch. The Elder Princess, being upright by nature and a woman, was naturally not favored by the important officials of the Imperial Court. Only the Prime Monarch showed extraordinary affection for Ning Ruyue.

After sensing Yin Die’s movements, the Prime Monarch had no choice but to order his trusted subordinates to escort the young Elder Princess away from the Imperial Court, to a place far from the political strife.

This journey was fraught with danger, and by the time they reached the foot of Qing Chi Peak, pursued by Yin Die, only one guard was left.

Badly injured and cornered, the guard had no choice but to break his promise of never returning to the Chess Institute and took the Elder Princess to the foot of Qing Chi Peak in secret.

When Su Yunru saw the letter the guard left with the Elder Princess, she took her back to the Chess Institute, treating her as if she were her own and raised Ning Ruyue.

The name Ning Ruyue was also chosen by her to conceal the Elder Princess’s identity.

Listening to Su Yunru narrating the past to everyone, Ning Ruyue was inevitably moved.

Her childhood memories were far too distant from her, with many details forgotten. She only remembered leaving the Imperial Court, with fewer and fewer people beside her until she was alone.

All these years, she had always thought that her father sent her to the Institute so that she could muster forces to make a comeback, but now she learned that it was not her father’s intention to send her here. Instead, the guard had brought her to this secluded place because they had no other choice under the pursuit of Yin Die.

Their purpose was to protect her safety and keep her away from the strife of the Imperial Court.

Why Su Yunru knew the Prime Monarch’s guard was a question too far in the past, which probably dated back to her days as a student at the Institute.

Only Mo Song seemed thoughtful, looking deeply at Su Yunru and sighing, "Indeed, there was a disciple with the surname Ning at the Institute who left a deep impression on me."

This gave the onlookers ample room for imagination. Although the clues were fragmented, they were already able to piece together a heartbreaking story. In the past, two geniuses parted ways over different ideals and met again only to say goodbye forever.

How touching!

After this trial was over, they planned to have the writers from the Institute create a story based on these events and then collaborate with the artists to turn it into books.

"Since Director Su is determined to protect the Elder Princess, we outsiders will say no more," said Chu Xingluo, turning the conversation back to Duan Mingyuan. "But Elder Princess, how can you be sure that Duan Mingyuan isn’t a spy sent by the Imperial Court to get close to you?"

"Because I attended Teacher Mingyuan’s classes, and he wanted to help the Institute out of its predicament."

"Then how do you explain his Sword Control Technique? As the Elder Princess, you should understand its difficulty better than anyone. How could a person with no prior experience in Sword Control Technique, master it overnight? Logically and emotionally, it makes no sense."

"This is because..."

Ru Yue found herself at a loss for words.

In truth, she didn’t understand the principle behind it. Her feelings for Duan Mingyuan were more like blind admiration. She wanted to believe that her teacher was capable of not only saving the Institute but also resolving the chaos in the Imperial Court.

"Because all Strange Gates and Devious Techniques fundamentally involve the use of Life Energy,"

Duan Mingyuan explained.

Of all the people present, only Headmaster Chu remained steadfast in his principles, uninterested in the past affairs between the head of the Chess Institute and the Elder Princess, untainted by lowly desires. From the beginning to the end, he had but one demand—that today either Duan Mingyuan or Chu Xingluo must be sent to the Ghost Prison.

Duan Mingyuan admired Chu Xingluo’s persistence and decided to help the Chess Institute’s headmaster fulfill his wish.

He asked, "Does Headmaster Chu believe that it is impossible for me to have mastered the Sword Control Technique in just one day?"

"Of course."

"By the same logic, as a newcomer to the academy who has been here less than two days, I also should not have been able to control the academy’s Barriers, correct?"

At the same time, Chu Xingluo suddenly felt a surge of palpitations.

Seeing as he had dared to call the Enforcement Team to take Duan Mingyuan to the hall for public trial, he naturally did not fear Duan Mingyuan making a move against him—losing one’s temper in the hall and lashing out at a headmaster would only further cement the identity of a spy from the Imperial Court.

However, Chu Xingluo quickly realized that the palpitations did not come from Duan Mingyuan, but from behind him.

When he turned to look back, he was shocked to find that the portrait paintings of the four founders of the academy had come to life at some unknown time, their majestic gaze uniformly converging on him, as if they were trying to see right through him.

At that moment, fear in his heart climbed to its peak. Chu Xingluo screamed out, tumbling off his chair to the ground, scrambling several times without being able to stand up, his appearance at the height of disarray.

Those in the hall could only watch his bizarre performance in confusion, full of bewilderment.

"What on earth have you done?"

Chu Xingluo steadied himself using the table, barely managing to stand, but although he dared not look back, he could still feel those burning gazes, making him feel like there were thorns on his back, even his speech was no longer coherent.

"When I was flipping through the classics in the library, I happened to come across an interesting Mysterious Technique, which mentioned that when the founders of the academy established this hall, they laid down a Barrier here, hoping that it would help future generations to discern right from wrong in matters too difficult to judge."

It was evident how much the founders were affected by having to send their fellow founders to the Ghost Prison when they established the academy, and it was not long after that the public hall was built.

Perhaps it was their hope that the future generations of the academy would not have to face such a difficult choice.

Duan Mingyuan continued, "But as time went on, the academy became stable, and there was seldom any need to use the hall, so this Mysterious Technique has been lost to the generations."

"Nonsense!"

"Headmaster Chu need not worry, this Mysterious Technique itself does not possess lethal power. All it does is probe a person’s inner heart, according to the description in the classics, if there is someone with a guilty conscience, they will become restless under its influence, and in severe cases, find it hard to sit or stand. Hence, even the calmest of people would no longer be able to conceal their thoughts once they are in the hall,"

Upon hearing this, the onlookers had an epiphany.

With this explanation, the reason why Chu Xingluo was frightened into falling to the ground after looking back at the founders’ portraits was now understood.

"Are you suggesting that I have a guilty conscience?"

"Headmaster Chu often mentions the venerable ancestors, so it’s most appropriate for the four founders of the academy to judge right from wrong,"

Duan Mingyuan said, "The classics also mention that this feeling will grow more and more intense, only disappearing when the truth is spoken... You and I persist in our own views, unable to convince each other, so on this hall, let us follow tradition and allow the four founders to make the judgment on who truly has a guilty conscience."