Translated by: Laplace and Ea
Edited by: Ea and Molly
As captain of the inspection team, Li Mohan was naturally qualified to investigate this matter and give the perpetrators certain punishments according to the Academy’s commandments and regulations.
Li Mohan led a group of people and two tiger cubs to the trial hall. The two parties stood on each side of the place and did not talk to each other. Not long after, the owners of those dead demonic beasts hurried over.
The first person to arrive turned out to be Longyao Lingguang.
Longyao Lingguang saw the Raging Inferno Crane lying in the center of the hall. His whole person seemed like it was about to explode, and the veins on his forehead bulged out. He clenched his fist and shouted, “Who killed my crane? I want him to pay with his life!”
Hu Po let out a cry and lashed his teeth out at Longyao Lingguang.
Longyao Lingguang saw that and suddenly looked at Hu Po. He pulled out Sinking Star and pointed it at Hu Po. “Bastard, looks like it was you! I’ll kill you and have you accompany my Yanzhi to the underworld!”
While saying that, he was about to cut Hu Po down.
Yan Tianhen also pulled out the rusty sword and held it horizontally across his body. A cold light flashed and he coldly stated, “What kind of place is this, you still dare behave atrociously at will? Senior Martial Brother Li, he dares to strike right in front of you — clearly, he doesn’t care to give you face.”
Li Mohan knocked the mallet and coldly said, “Silence, everyone. Both sides will state their facts, and I will come to my own conclusion.”
As soon as Li Mohan’s voice fell, Ying Guanchao came in.
He also saw the dead rare beast. After seeing Yan Tianhen, his eyelid could not help twitching.
Ying Guanchao didn’t have too many feelings towards this rare beast. It was nothing more than a subordinate he had raised to fight as the vanguard. Raising one did not cost him much, and losing one also didn’t cost him much. Therefore, his mood was not too agitated.
Ying Guanchao asked, “What happened here? I just heard someone say that Prince Yan brought two fierce beasts, rushed into Demonic Beast Garden, and slaughtered many beasts. He even wanted to kill the disciples on duty — is it true?”
Yan Tianhen lightly said, “On the contrary, it was these disciples and those demonic beasts who suddenly went crazy for some reason and wanted to kill Yin Changge. He asked me for help, so I hurriedly arrived just in time to save the person in distress. I had no choice but to take your place and kill these demonic beasts for you, lest these beasts hurt Yin Changge. After all, if that happened, the master would be the one being punished.”
“You–!” Longyao Lingguang took a deep breath and coldly shouted, “My Raging Inferno Crane is the descendant of spiritual beasts and demonic beasts, and it has already developed sentience. It has never taken the initiative to attack human beings. These words of yours are nothing more than excuses!”
Yan Tianhen calmly said, “I remember that Prince Longyao has always looked down on bastards. How can you trust this mixed breed of Raging Inferno Bird and crane this much?”
Longyao Lingguang was so angry he couldn’t speak.
Li Mohan looked down and said to the disciples who sent out the cold whistle, “You both have entirely different stories. Who is telling the truth?”
“Him! He is lying!” That disciple pointed to Yan Tianhen with bloodshot eyes and said, “In all these years, has there ever been a matter of demonic beasts going crazy at the Demonic Beast Garden? After all, we have done our utmost to care for the demonic beasts. There was never half a step of error, but why was it that these demonic beasts all went crazy when he came?”
“That’s right! What’s more, although these demonic beasts are not human beings, and they can’t change forms, however, they are still living beings. He just let those two white tigers brutally kill these demonic beasts! He’s vicious and merciless!”
“I am vicious and merciless?” Yan Tianhen laughed. ”Not to mention how you neglected your duty — not only were you not on duty during the assigned time, but you just had to get together with those demonic beasts and bully someone. Anyone who still has some sense of justice would be unable to stand it if he saw it.”
“Don’t frame upstanding people!”
“Yeah, when did we bully anyone?”
“This is slander! Slander!”
“Don’t think that you can do whatever you want just because you are the second heir to the dynasty. This is Myriad Dao Academy, the fairest and most impartial place!”
“Senior Martial Brother Li will definitely not give you a lighter punishment just because of your status!”
Li Mohan was being flattered, but he still looked indifferent.
Longyao Lingguang sneered, “Yan Tianhen, don’t tell me that my Yanzhi is crazy just because you said it went crazy? If I say that your two bastards are sick, can I similarly kill them as well?”
Yan Tianhen said, “If I didn’t have any evidence, how can I dare to casually take action? Do you think I am as stupid as you?!” After he finished speaking, he turned to Yin Changge and said, “Show your wrists to these people!”
Yin Changge was just about to show his wrist when he inadvertently locked gazes with Ying Guanchao, whose pair of dark eyes were full of warning. Yin Changge paused and remembered Ying Guanchao’s warning that day — “You’ll endure this. If you dare to show it to people, be careful of Shen Congrong’s puny life. I can crush him like an ant.”
When he thought of that, Yin Changge’s lips curved imperceptibly, and soon it fell down. He looked up and pulled back his sleeves. The burn marks marring his snow-white skin had spread to his elbow and were bleeding profusely. He had clearly been burnt by flames.
Someone gasped.
Yan Tianhen’s eyelids twitched. “Why didn’t you say you were so badly hurt? I’ll give you medicine first!”
Yin Changge shook his head, looked up at Li Mohan, and spoke, “Senior Martial Brother Li, it was still fine when they constantly bullied me and humiliated me, but today, they just had to pour dirty water on Ah Hen, so I’m no longer willing.
Ever since I came to the sect a year ago and got guard duty for the Demonic Beast Garden, I’ve always been grateful. Although these colleagues always bullied me as a newcomer and assigned me the dirtiest and most tiring work, I had nothing to say and worked hard without complaint.
It’s just that recently, not only did they bully me, but they also had these demonic beasts bully me. Ah Hen passed by here today and saw that I was nearly killed by the demonic beasts, so he urgently took matters into his own hands and killed these demonic beasts. If Senior Martial Brother wants to punish someone, he can punish me.”
Li Mohan stared at Yin Changge’s arm, and his heavy eyebrows wrinkled tighter and tighter. “What you said, is it true?”
Naturally, the disciple on guard duty at the Demonic Beast Garden would deny it. He stuck out his neck and spoke angrily, “This wound was caused by the demonic beasts’ counterattack when he abused them. Don’t be fooled by his pure appearance. In fact, his heart is black. If he hadn’t tortured those demonic beasts first, how could the demonic beasts attack him?”
“He’s spouting venomous slander. Senior Martial Brother, please see it clearly!”
Yin Changge sneered slightly, “Do you really think I would dare to speak without thinking if I didn’t have any evidence?”
With this, Yin Changge took out a piece of crystal jade from the worn-out storage bag, then stepped forward and presented it to Li Mohan. “All the events are recorded here. Shixiong will understand after seeing it.”
As soon as this thing was taken out, Ying Guanchao’s face suddenly changed. He blurted out, “How can you have a second piece? Didn’t that piece of yours get–” he suddenly closed his mouth.
Yin Changge turned. His expression was mild, and his tone held hints of a smile. “Ying Shixiong wants to say that my piece was taken away by you, right?”
Ying Guanchao was livid. “Don’t talk nonsense.”
Yin Changge said, “It doesn’t matter even if you deny it. However, who told you that I only have one crystal jade like this?”
Ying Guanchao, “…”
Hearing this, Longyao Lingguang understood everything. He couldn’t help but angrily glare at Ying Guanchao, who couldn’t even handle matters properly.
They relied on the fact that Ying Guanchao had already snatched away Yin Changge’s crystal jade capable of recording pictures so that Yin Changge possessed no other treasure. Even if he was bullied, he still wouldn’t be able to report. Otherwise, how could they be so unbridled?
But who would have thought that there would be two pieces of this rare natural crystal jade in the same person’s hands!
Ying Guanchao didn’t know what that crystal jade had recorded, so he couldn’t help feeling a little uneasy in his heart. He quickly exchanged glances with Longyao Lingguang and no longer raised objections.
Li Mohan took the crystal jade. After watching it, he gently nodded while sneering, “Great, really great. To think that in the Academy, right under the Sword Venerable’s nose, this kind of bullying within the sect can actually happen. It’s simply repulsive!”
As he spoke, he struck the gavel heavily and frowned severely. “According to the sect rules, anyone who bullies or humiliates their fellow disciples for no reason for over a year, regardless of their family background, talent, or strength, will be expelled from the sect and never readmitted! You guys–”
Li Mohan read out the names of these disciples on guard duty in the Demonic Beast Garden and said, “Today, I will give you all a day to pack your bags. Tomorrow, follow me to the steward’s house to take your names off the register, then leave on your own!”
These disciples were suddenly stunned, one after another. When they finally reacted, they wept bitterly and cried regretfully, begging Li Mohan to give them another chance to turn over a new leaf.
“Senior Martial Brother!” Longyao Lingguang narrowed his eyes and asked, “How to prove that they’ve been bullying him for over a year?”
Li Mohan replied, “The records in the crystal jade are crystal clear. I will report this to the judge and ask him to draw out the recording in the crystal jade and keep it for our records. If you don’t believe it, wait until the evidence is preserved and take a look then.”
Longyao Lingguang took a deep breath, clenched his fist in secret, and sneered, “Since both the witness and the evidence are there, I will accept it. It’s just that — Yan Tianhen killed my Raging Inferno Crane. This debt, how should it be settled?”
Yan Tianhen was very happy in his heart. He said leisurely, “That stupid bird of yours not only bullied the weak, but it also feared the strong. My family’s Ah Bai and Hu Po were just acting on behalf of heaven. If they killed it, then they killed it.”
Longyao Lingguang stared at Yan Tianhen with a narrow gaze, and his expression showed he wished he could stab him a hundred times.
Everyone knew that although the Raging Inferno Crane’s cultivation was not high, it was his Dage Longyao Lingheng who went to the Southwest Land to especially find the demonic beast pet for him. Over time, it was bound for greatness. Longyao Lingguang also doted heavily on this Raging Inferno Crane.
Now it had died at the hands of Yan Tianhen’s spiritual pets. How could Longyao Lingguang just swallow this?
However, nobody had to think about it to know that, inside the crystal jade, the behavior of the Raging Inferno Crane was definitely recorded.
Longyao Lingguang took a deep breath and said, “My Raging Inferno Crane has only lived for fifteen years. It’s nothing more than a baby and doesn’t understand anything. Besides, demonic beasts have strong temperaments by nature. Even if it did do something wrong, you still shouldn’t have just killed it!”