“Sect Leader, please calm your anger. This Disciple misspoke. Please punish this Disciple.” Shen Muqing’s expression changed drastically, and he hastily knelt down to beg for mercy.
“The Law Enforcement Hall is of utmost importance to our Beast Taming Sect. The selection of Law Enforcement Disciples is extremely strict, usually handled by calm Disciples of Han Ming Peak. I didn’t expect it to become an excuse for you to abuse your power.
From today onwards, your identity as a Law Enforcement Disciple will be revoked. You are no longer permitted to claim yourself as a Law Enforcement Disciple,” Mu Zhengting said coldly.
Hearing this, Shen Muqing trembled, his face pale, and he stammered his agreement. Losing the identity of a Law Enforcement Disciple meant losing many privileges and resources. More importantly, being personally stripped of it by the Sect Leader meant the Han Ming Lineage would no longer give him any opportunities.
Moreover, according to unwritten rules, Law Enforcement Hall Elders are concurrently held by various Peak Lords or Grand Elders, which also meant he no longer had any possibility of becoming a Peak Lord or Grand Elder.
But how could he refute the Sect Leader’s meaning? Should he accuse Yu Wei of accepting bribes and knowing that Yu Wei wouldn't lay a hand on him? That would only make things worse!
“Yu Wei,” Mu Zhengting called out again.
Hearing the call, Yu Wei was startled and quickly lowered his head, stepping out of the ranks to say, “Sect Leader, this Disciple can swear to celestial dao that he absolutely did not harm Martial Brother Qing Feng.”
This matter must be explained clearly. Even directly proving his innocence through an oath.
Seeing this scene, Mu Zhengting’s expression changed slightly. For a cultivator, swearing to celestial dao was no small matter. The celestial dao had spirit; it might be fine for ordinary people, but for cultivators, once an oath was broken, they would almost certainly suffer divine retribution.
Immediately after, Qing Feng also said, “This Disciple Qing Feng swears to celestial dao here that I absolutely did not harm myself and then frame Senior Brother Yu Wei, or else may I die a terrible death.”
Hearing this oath, Yu Wei felt a shock, looking at Qing Feng in disbelief: How dare you swear like that?
However, Qing Feng appeared very calm. In his opinion, what was so difficult about swearing? The so-called terrible death meant nothing to him. What he pursued was the path to immortality, either eternal life or death by accident or calamity.
Besides, as a transmigrator, the celestial dao here might not be able to control him. Moreover, he was swearing to the celestial dao in his dreams, not the celestial dao here. What a naive and childish thought!
Mu Zhengting nodded slightly, deciding to believe Qing Feng. This child was so frank, even explaining the consequences of breaking an oath so clearly, showing thorough consideration.
Even if it was truly Qing Feng’s self-directed act, it was not appropriate to punish him at this moment, to avoid unnecessary trouble. Countless Disciples gathered at the temple fair, and Qing Feng’s words would soon spread.
If Qing Feng were punished now, external rumors would turn into a story of an orphan being bullied and then punished.
Even if he could clarify the facts, under the weight of public opinion, the truth would become blurred, ultimately affecting the entire Beast Taming Sect’s atmosphere.
Thus, Mu Zhengting said in a deep voice, “Yu Wei, for privately harming a fellow Disciple and engaging in infighting, go to the Law Enforcement Hall to receive your punishment and then proceed to the Cold Ice Pond for ten years of self-reflection.”
Hearing the judgment, Yu Wei’s expression changed drastically. The Cold Ice Pond gathered dense cold qi; even Disciples of Han Ming Peak were unwilling to go there, let alone him, who cultivated pure Yang techniques.
This meant he would be unable to achieve breakthroughs through combat for the next ten years, and he said anxiously, “Sect Leader, every word this Disciple said is true, absolutely no falsehood.”
“Yes, Sect Leader, what Second Brother said is all true. There is a Heart-Truth Melody in Yixian Palace; once played, it reveals truth from falsehood. We can have an Yixian Palace Disciple verify Qing Feng’s statement.” Zhang Gao quickly said.
Other Disciples also echoed, “Yes, there are indeed Disciples from Yixian Palace inside. We can have someone from Yixian Palace test Qing Feng.”
“When did internal affairs of my Beast Taming Sect become the business of outsiders?” Yuan Qing True Lord’s face was stern. Having presided over punishments for several hundred years, his authority had grown daily, and the awe his Disciples felt for him even surpassed that for Mu Zhengting.
Hearing him speak, Yu Wei and the others involuntarily trembled.
However, considering his ten years of freedom were at stake, Yu Wei mustered his courage, directly knelt on the ground, and prostrated himself, pleading:
“Sect Leader, this Disciple can swear to celestial dao that every word I said is true. Please grant an opportunity to have an Immortal Maiden from Yixian Palace verify Qing Feng’s words. If Qing Feng has not lied, this Disciple is willing to self-reflect for thirty years, without any complaints.”
“Please show mercy, Sect Leader.” The others also knelt down, speaking in unison.
“Qing Feng, what do you think?” Mu Zhengting frowned, turning to Qing Feng. He did not want outsiders to interfere in this matter, but facing everyone kneeling in unison, he couldn't completely disregard their feelings.
“To prove my innocence, I have no objection. Please invite Fairy Su Yan,” Qing Feng replied.
In his heart, he secretly laughed, don’t these people know the relationship between Su Yan and his sixth Senior Brother?
Besides, Fairy Su Yan is merely a Golden Core cultivator; it would be strange if the melody she played could affect me.
Seeing Qing Feng nod in agreement, Mu Zhengting slightly nodded, signaling Yu Wei and the others to invite Fairy Su Yan.
Fairy Su Yan in the corner seemed to realize something and quietly left the scene, as if she had never appeared.
“Martial Brother Zhang Gao, are you confident? According to the original plan, we were supposed to publicly announce our engagement with Fairy Su Yan here to provoke Lu Ran. After all, there’s no substantial relationship between Lu Ran and Fairy Su Yan.”
After entering the secret chamber, Yu Wei asked with some unease.
According to the original plan, they were supposed to act here, intentionally provoking Lu Ran, guiding his team to damage property, and arranging for a Disciple to be severely injured.
Then, people from the Law Enforcement Hall would come and apprehend everyone, imprisoning them for several years, causing them to miss the next martial arts competition, thereby leading to Chen Ming Peak’s defeat and resources being tilted towards Hu Ji Peak.
“Don’t worry, Su Yan has always treated us both equally, even being more polite to me. It’s just Lu Ran overestimating himself. Now that the engagement is announced, she will definitely stand on our side. When the Heart-Truth Melody comes out, Qing Feng, this Foundation Establishment cultivator, will definitely not escape.”
Zhang Gao said confidently.
Receiving Zhang Gao’s assurance, Yu Wei breathed a sigh of relief and went to invite Fairy Su Yan, and the result was unusually smooth.
Fairy Su Yan readily agreed, which made Yu Wei and Zhang Gao very happy, especially Zhang Gao, who felt Su Yan was closer to him than ever before.
“Minor sect affairs, I trouble you, Immortal Maiden,” Mu Zhengting said to Fairy Su Yan.
“I wouldn’t dare. Senior is highly respected and a pillar of our clan. It is my immense fortune to be able to serve Senior.”
Fairy Su Yan quickly bowed in response.
Although Mu Zhengting was very polite to her, out of respect for music cultivators, in terms of status, her Master was far inferior to Mu Zhengting, so she dared not be presumptuous.
“Then please play a melody, Immortal Maiden,” Mu Zhengting said.
Fairy Su Yan solemnly agreed, asked her Senior Sister to take out a guqin, and with her slender fingers, lightly plucked the strings. Several beautiful notes immediately flowed out.
Qing Feng smiled at Fairy Su Yan, then sat down, preparing to listen to the upcoming immortal music.
Yan Yi, who was taking care of Qin Yue, gently frowned, feeling slightly nervous in her heart, hoping nothing would go wrong.