The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS
Chapter 231 - 43: Familiar Name

Chapter 231: Chapter 43: Familiar Name

Once suspicion begins, it becomes hard to stop.

As everyone’s attention truly focused on Xiao Chengye, their thoughts began to gallop and whip about.

Indeed, having been suppressed for so many years, who would believe there was no bitterness or hatred? And considering Xiao Chengye’s sudden outburst earlier, it now seemed likely he had been trying to pin the blame on Yuan Jianyi to avoid suspicion himself.

The more they thought about it, the more suspicious Xiao Chengye seemed.

"Wow, this Brother Xiao is quite something, so ruthless!" Lian Ning gave a thumbs up and joked.

The death of Xiao Chengming actually held no relation to them. Even if Yu Jian Manor sought to vent its anger, they were not afraid, as everyone had their own backing. Thus, many present were simply there to watch the excitement.

Now, as the excitement reached its climax, and the murderer unexpectedly turned out to be the victim’s own brother, the twist enthralled the audience who felt their time was well spent, naturally earning a thumbs up.

Of course, some looked down on Xiao Chengye’s fratricidal act, among them was Zhu Kong from Luo Fu Mountain, who coldly taunted, "Worse than a beast!"

Luo Fu Mountain was one of the Four Great Taoist Sects, on par with the Zhenwu Sect, specializing in the Taoist Sword, which blazed a trail with the sword to open the way of the Dao. It was both a Taoist and a Sword faction.

In recent years, Yu Jian Manor had seen rampant expansion, aiming to rival Sword God Lake, thereby treating other Sword Sects with a superior attitude, both overtly and covertly.

Although Luo Fu Mountain was one of the Four Great Taoist Sects, it too couldn’t escape such treatment and had also been scorned covertly by Yu Jian Manor. The relationship between the two had always been very hostile.

"So it was a case of the thief crying ’Stop thief!’ His own kinsman killed Xiao Chengming but threw the blame on our Senior Brother Yuan..."

"Shameless..."

...

With such strong wording, it was naturally the indignant disciples from the Sword Palace, besides Xiao Chengming, who were the most reactive.

’Hm? His reaction, could it be that he knows the real murderer?’

Among the crowd, Qing Yu was most concerned about Qiao Baixuan, who seemed inscrutable.

At that moment, Qiao Baixuan merely watched everyone’s reactions with calm detachment, showing neither joy nor sorrow, appearing as an outsider. It was hard to tell that it was he who had initiated checking the identity of the two from Luo Fu Mountain and demanded an investigation.

Moreover, Qing Yu noticed that Qiao Baixuan’s gaze also occasionally swept towards the Yu Jian Manor disciple he had previously suspected.

"I didn’t, I didn’t..."

Amidst the overwhelming voices and heavy suspicion, Xiao Chengye was now rendered defenseless and nailed to the wall of fratricide.

Although the crowd would not do anything to him, since he was the Young Master of Yu Jian Manor and, following Xiao Chengming’s death, the only remaining Young Master. But it was clear that once he returned to Yu Jian Manor, his situation would be dire.

Moreover, as they were all from righteous factions, how could they allow a fratricidal villain to contest for the Heavenly Calculation Inheritance, a treasure meant for the virtuous. It was decided to bind the villain and hand him over to the Manor Master of Yu Jian Manor afterwards.

"Young Hero Qiao... Brother Qiao, you are a disciple of the senior Time Destiny, and with your discerning eye, you can surely see that I have been framed. Please, save me!"

Xiao Chengye promptly remembered Qiao Baixuan’s earlier statement that he had identified the murderer but lacked evidence, thus he quickly grasped Qiao Baixuan as his last lifeline. Between his words, he expressed extreme entreaty, and had he not been concerned about the face of Yu Jian Manor, his plea might have even turned into a kneel.

If truly branded with the label of fratricide, even if his father didn’t strike him dead to atone for his elder brother’s life, he might spend the rest of his life imprisoned within the manor. At this moment, Xiao Chengye could no longer afford to care about his dignity.

"Young Master Xiao, don’t worry, I won’t let you be wrongly accused," Qiao Baixuan walked over and patted Xiao Chengye on the shoulder.

As soon as he spoke, everyone’s eyes turned to Qiao Baixuan.

"Brother Qiao, are you saying the real culprit isn’t Xiao Chengye?"

"The real culprit, of course, is not Xiao Chengye. Yu Jian Manor is a renowned Righteous Sect, and Manor Master Xiao is a respected figure in the Righteous Path. How could he possibly raise a son who would kill his own brother? I’m right, aren’t I, Young Master Xiao?" Qiao Baixuan said with a smile, looking at Xiao Chengye.

"Yes, yes, yes, Brother Qiao is right!" Xiao Chengye nodded vigorously, as if he could smash a slab of stone with his head if it were in front of him.

"The real culprit is among us," Qiao Baixuan turned and surveyed the crowd, "It’s..."

Suddenly, without turning his head, Qiao Baixuan struck backward with his palm, the palm wind light and fleeting, yet seeming omniscient, enveloping the destined person like a net from the heavens.

The palm wind brushed past Xiao Chengye’s shoulder and struck an ordinary-looking disciple of Yu Jian Manor.

With Qiao Baixuan’s power, combined with this extraordinary palm strike, the disciple was surely unable to dodge.

However, nothing is certain.

Qing Yu’s Void Eye saw that the disciple’s power suddenly surged, from the Innate Second Layer to the Third, Fourth...

He shot up directly to the Innate Seventh Layer, suddenly drew his sword, radiating sword qi, and smashed through Qiao Baixuan’s encompassing palm strike, nimbly dodging this inevitable hit.

"You..." Xiao Chengye, who was nearly scared stiff by that palm strike, turned and saw the disciple’s blinding performance.

"Li Qiuran?! How is that possible?" Xiao Chengye shouted in disbelief.

He knew Li Qiuran, one of his older brother Xiao Chengming’s followers.

But, with the strength of the Innate Seventh Layer, surpassing his own Sixth Realm, how could he merely be a follower of his brother, Xiao Chengming, who was also only at the Seventh Realm?

’Li Qiuran, a long-lost familiar name!’ Qing Yu remembered this name, as most of his family had ended up dead by Qing Yu’s hand.

Li Qiuran, the second son of Patriarch Li Pingsheng from the Li Family of Yang City—usually not in Yang City and known for his business pursuits outside. In reality, he had long joined Yu Jian Manor and most of the Li Family’s funds were spent on his various expenses at the Manor.

Hmm... The main reason Qing Yu remembered this name he had only seen once was exactly because of this. Li Qiuran has deprived Qing Yu of a significant amount of villain points.

After dodging the palm, Li Qiuran swung his sword, his sword light flashing past, either injuring or killing the surrounding disciples of Yu Jian Manor.

Then, gathering his qi, he leapt up, attempting to escape using his qingong.

"Capture him!" Xiao Chengye shouted loudly.

However, those nearby weren’t at Xiao Chengye’s command; they also had no desire to help a rival capture someone.

With no one making a move, it seemed Li Qiuran’s escape was inevitable. The wandering people outside couldn’t stop him either.

But while they lacked the inclination, somebody else had the motivation.

"Stop!"

A sword qi, sharp and exposed, cut across Li Qiuran’s path of escape.