Three of them backed away, sheepish, but the fourth laughed at him and took another bite. Juices ran down his chin as he chewed the duck and swallowed, joy evident on his face.

Hui licked his lips again and forced himself to look the disciple in the eye, not stare at his duck.

The fourth disciple cleaned the bone and waggled it at him, smug. “Yeah, that’s right. We’re eating those ducks, trendsetter.”

Hui frowned. He shook his head and waved a finger at the disciple. “This small disciple learned the hard way. One cannot simply eat the Sect Master’s ducks. If you don’t want to end up like me, stop now, while you still can!”

“Why?” the fourth asked.

“The wrath of the Sect Master—” Hui started.

The fourth waved the bone. “No, no. I mean, why stop now? You’re back. Now we can blame it all on you.”

The other three chuckled. “You tell him, Wang Zhong,” one of the other cultivators cheered, taking another bite of the duck.

Hui backed away, shocked. “You… you’ll sink that low?”

“Says the original duck-eater,” Wang Zhong said, grabbing another piece of duck. The meat glistened, perfectly cooked, the skin crisp and the flesh moist. The scent of duck once again filled the air, utterly irresistible. “Besides, everyone already knows you’re a consummate villain. It’s not like a little more duck-eating is going to ruin your reputation.”

Hmm. It seems these guys didn’t spread the original rumors, but they certainly aren’t afraid to spread more. Hui put a hand to his chin, thoughtful. Externally, he put on a troubled expression, as if this truly bothered him. “Elder Brothers, please. This small disciple… if I can’t convince you to stop, I… I’ll have to—”

“To… what? Use force? Come on, go ahead. What’s a weak little coward like you going to do?” Wang Zhong scoffed.

Hui froze in the middle of signaling Li Xiang. He narrowed his eyes at the four. Three at the third realm, and Wang Zhong is in the lower end of the fourth realm. With my talismans, and the help of the lotus beast or Jin Xian, I could take them!

But then… why bother? Fearlessly, he signaled to Li Xiang.

“I’ve heard enough! You’ll answer for your crimes!” Li Xiang shouted, leaping out of the forest. She flew like an arrow from a bow for the closest of the lower tier disciples, her sword flashing ahead of her, a silver blaze. The disciple’s eyes went wide. He desperately reached for his sword to block, but by the time his hand landed on the scabbard, Li Xiang’s sword had already flashed past him. He jolted, then fell flat to the ground, eyes rolled back in his head.

Hui backed away. Jin Xian pressed against his consciousness, wanting to come out and fight, but he pressed her back. Instead, he fired off an ice talisman at another of the three third realm cultivators. The cultivator jumped back, but too slow. Ice slammed into him and froze him in place, coating him in ice from head to toe. Hui struck him with another two talismans to be sure, and the ice coating thickened into a block of ice, so thick Hui could barely see the cultivator inside it. He breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

Li Xiang struck at the final third-realm cultivator as he turned toward her, and he, too, toppled, unconscious. At the same time, Wang Zhong slashed his sword at Hui. Bright red sword light twisted in midair, taking on the shape of a vermillion bird. It screeched and bared its claws at Hui. Li Xiang cut toward the bird. A sword beam emanated from her sword and slashed at it, but too slow. Already, the bird was almost upon Hui.

Putting on a stern face, Hui made a complicated handsign and called out, “Ghost Duck Whirlwind!” At the same time, he silently called the ducks back to him.

From all directions, black ducks rose out of the undergrowth and flew at Hui. In the space of a breath, they overtook Li Xiang’s slash and slammed into the vermillion bird. It screeched out and turned to fight, but even as it did, its body crumbled. Red sword light twisted into black where the ducks touched it, and a strong aura of death erupted from the vermillion bird. In the next instant, the ducks devoured it, nibbling away at what little remained. The vermillion bird let out a final, pitiful cry and vanished.

Pleased with themselves, the ducks rushed at Hui and slammed into him, vanishing into his second dantian. He stumbled back with the impacts, brows faintly furrowed, then stood upright.

“The ducks you’ve ate here disapprove of your actions! If not, I wouldn’t be able to so easily call on them,” Hui declared righteously. At the same time, he rotated his body’s dantian, stimulating the life qi songbirds so he exuded an aura of life which covered up the ducks’ aura of death. It’s not righteous to use ghosts, but as long as I phrase it as his fault, it’s fine, probably?

Wang Zhong stared at Hui, panting in shock. All at once, he grit his teeth and slashed out again, once, twice, three times. Three streams of sword light shot forth from his blows, twisting together into one enormous vermillion bird. He let out a furious howl and charged at Hui, raising his sword. “You’re just a coward! Everyone knows the disciple of Weiheng Wu is an undeserving weakling who can’t fight! How can you take a blow from my Vermillion Bird Strike? I refuse to accept it!”

Li Xiang stepped forward to intercept the blow, but Hui put a hand on her shoulder. He shook his head and stepped forward. I don’t want to fight, but dammit, if I don’t dispel these rumors, more people will appear to fight me! I need them to think I’m not weak, at least enough that they don’t attack me!

Reaching into his storage ring, Hui pulled out a talisman. He stepped forward, putting on the most domineering aura he could as he activated the talisman. As if sensing Hui’s attempt to appear domineering, Zhubi woke up and darted up to his neck, lifting slightly off Hui’s neck to hiss at Wang Zhong.

Although he tried his best, as someone unused to being domineering, Hui missed the mark. He tipped his head down and gave Wang Zhong a small smirk, quirking an eyebrow. Rather than a domineering hero, he appeared more like a villain, exuding a dark and sinister air. The addition of Zhubi only added to his sinister aura.

Hui activated his talisman, the talisman Zhu Diyu had given him. Waves of force rippled through the air, distorting everything around them. Powered at Hui’s fourth-realm base, the talisman twisted reality itself. Where the ripples grew wider, tiny pockets of black void gaped open.

Hui’s eyes gleamed. I couldn’t unleash the attack at full power before, and I still can’t now, but those voids… How powerful can this attack become? And more importantly, what kind of mysterious power does it hold? The power of void…

The charged Vermillion Bird Strike slammed into Hui’s attack. The bird shuddered, then twisted apart. Red sword light shattered, destroyed by the talisman.

The talisman rushed on, unhindered by the attack. Wang Zhong’s eyes flew open. He slashed out once, twice, three times, but still the talisman refused to break. He grit his teeth and drew out a jade slip, crushing it in the instant before the attack reached him. The power of teleportation burst out of the slip and teleported him a short distance away, out of the range of the attack.

He stared at Hui, wide-eyed. “You… how?”

Li Xiang leaped to his side and put her sword to his neck. “Surrender.”

Wang Zhong knelt, lowering his head. Hui drew out a wood talisman and bound his hands, then stepped forward, drawing death qi to his fingertips. A second before he applied it to Wang Zhong, he yanked his hand back. Wait! Hold up! I can’t use death qi to seal a fellow disciple! Even using death qi is bad. Sealing him with it is—I can’t!

Li Xiang tapped Wang Zhong on the forehead. A force of sealing burst out from her fingertips and suppressed his cultivation.

A shadow fell over them. Hui stared up, startled. Lan Taijian stood above them, hands behind his back. He frowned. “This… what happened here?”

Wang Zhong’s eyes shone. “Peak Lord Lan! Weiheng Hui attacked me and my friends out of nowhere when we caught him eating Sect Master Lan’s ducks again! Please, stop this villain!”

“You—don’t be ridiculous!” Hui exclaimed, looking at Li Xiang. She frowned at Wang Zhong as well, confused. Li Xiang is right here. It’s nothing to disprove him! That’s why I brought Li Xiang!

“Is that so,” Lan Taijian said grimly. He waved his finger at Hui. Pressure congealed around him, instantly rushing at his body.

Hui activated his crystalized form. His body became more simple, but his bodily strength grew much greater. The power slammed into him. He fell with it, allowing it to throw him back. The blast itself shook his body. Great cracks opened in his arms, legs, and torso, and one even burst open on his neck. The crystal keened, on the verge of shattering. Hui grit his teeth. He struck the ground and rolled through the forest, smashing through trees and undergrowth. None of the plants could injure his body at all in its crystal form.

“Master! Wang Zhong is lying! He’s the one that was eating the ducks!” Li Xiang shouted, frustrated.

“Oh, is that so,” Lan Taijian said, bored.

Elder Sister, he doesn’t care! Any excuse to attack this small cultivator is good enough for Lan Taijian!

Hui finally came to a halt. He swapped to his plant-form, rapidly regenerating the wounds Lan Taijian had inflicted. Blood rushed out from all over his body, but only for a moment before the wounds closed over. He sat up, breathing heavily, then released the technique.

Qi rushed out of him, the price he’d had to pay to regenerate so much. He rubbed his forehead as a rush of weakness and light-headedness passed over him. Summoning a qi pill, he swallowed it down before he stood, and felt warm qi flow into him. He climbed to his feet and walked over to Li Xiang’s side. Blood stained his robes all over, leaving him pitiful and weak.

“Don’t listen to Li Xiang. Weiheng Hui has corrupted her!” Wang Zhong shouted.

Li Xiang’s expression turned dark. She struck toward Wang Zhong. Wang Zhong’s face paled, and he stiffened, preparing for the blow.

An inch from his flesh, Li Xiang stopped her blow. She glared at Wang Zhong, brows furrowed.

“Li Xiang,” Lan Taijian said, evenly reprimanding her.

Li Xiang stood there a moment longer, blade still outstretched, then took a step back and sheathed her sword.

“I understand that Li Xiang can misunderstand situations. However, what you accuse is as grave for Li Xiang as it is for Weiheng Hui. Do not say such things lightly,” Lan Taijian said. Although he spoke in an even tone, something about the way he narrowed his eyes held true warning, a warning that even if someone accused Weiheng Hui of evil, which he approved, he refused to brook any accusation that also incriminated Li Xiang.

Sweat dripped down Wang Zhong’s face. He swallowed. “This… this disciple misspoke. Please accept my apologies, Peak Master Lan.”

Lan Taijian tipped his head slightly. He looked up and behind him, then waved a hand. “These are my father’s ducks. As someone who has supposedly protected his ducks, these accusations have severe consequences for you, Wang Zhong. Thus, Father will decide this matter.”

Wang Zhong trembled, face whitening. He glanced at Lan Taijian. “But… if I… it’s Weiheng Hui! Didn’t you—”

“I? Do you slander me, Wang Zhong?” Lan Taijian asked.

Wang Zhong bit his tongue. He stared at Lan Taijian, bitterness written all over his face.

“Besides, matters have gotten out of hand. This is truly too great a crime for Father to ignore,” Lan Taijian continued, giving Wang Zhong a derisive glare.

Hanging his head, Wang Zhong shuddered unwillingly.

Hui’s eyes widened. Lan Taijian put Wang Zhong up to it? No, no. I think… instead of putting him up to it, Lan Taijian likely insinuated that anyone who could put an accusation on me would be able to get off free in his judgement! Thus, Wang Zhong thought he could get away with eating the ducks, as long as he blamed me in the end. Unfortunately, Wang Zhong ate too many ducks, and drew the attention of others, including Sect Master Lan. Now that the Sect Master’s involved, Lan Taijian cannot one-handedly decide that I am the guilty party, but instead has to bow to the Sect Master’s judgement.

Me bringing Li Xiang here wasn’t an issue in Lan Taijian’s eyes. After all, he could simply claim she misunderstood and hand down judgement anyways—he indicated that himself. He even attacked me in front of her, before she could judge in for or against my claim. But when it comes to involving others, Li Xiang is a powerful force of truth for me. Therefore, Li Xiang would not have interrupted Lan Taijian’s schemes. The one who interrupted them, who overreached, was Wang Zhong!

As for Master… well, he wouldn’t have been happy, but Lan Taijian likely expected that the Sect Master could ultimately suppress Master’s displeasure.

Though if Master is now seventh realm as I suspect he is… that might be a misjudgment on Lan Taijian’s part!

A beam of light streaked overhead, plummeting toward them. Hui stood upright, crossing his arms, righteous in his fury. Li Xiang stood beside him, a simple but determined expression on her face. Wang Zhong bowed his head, but peeked upward, not quite willing to give up yet. All of them stared at the light, waiting for the Sect Master to descend.