usatvline Chapter 167: Cheating Exposed, Justice Defeated the Evil Plot
Chapter 167: Cheating Exposed, Justice Defeated the Evil Plot
Lei Yi's hand reached out firmly to Miss Roushui's chest without the slightest hesitation. His eyes were fixed on the jade pendant, the jade pendant that concealed the truth!
"How dare you!" the ghost-faced strategist roared, his figure darting like a ghost, aiming straight for Lei Yi's face. However, his attack missed, as Lei Yi, as if he had eyes on his back, dodged sideways in the nick of time, his speed astonishing.
"You!" The Ghost-Faced Strategist was shocked. He hadn't expected Lei Yi to dodge his attack. After all, he was a late-stage Jindan expert, while Lei Yi was just a useless loser!
"Hmph!" Lei Yi snorted coldly, ignoring the ghost-faced strategist's shock, and continued to reach out to take the jade pendant.
"Stop! You are looking for death!" Seeing this, the family patriarch could no longer remain calm. He roared, flashed in front of Miss Roushui, and slapped Lei Yi in the chest with his palm.
Lei Yi had been prepared for this and retreated violently, dodging the palm strike from the clan leader. He sneered, "What? Are you feeling guilty? You don't dare let me take off this jade pendant?"
"You're talking nonsense!" The clan leader was furious and pointed at Lei Yi's nose and cursed, "You're slandering my clan! You're slandering my disciples!"
"Slander?" Lei Yi sneered, pointing at Miss Roushui. "How could a little girl who just broke through to the Qi Refining Stage possibly possess such formidable strength? This jade pendant must be hiding some secret!"
"You're slandering me!" the Ghost-Faced Strategist exaggerates. "This jade pendant is our family heirloom. How could it possibly hold a secret? It's obvious you have ulterior motives and want to steal our family's treasure!"
"Whether it was stolen or not, we'll know after taking it down!" Lei Yi said, no longer paying attention to the ghost-faced strategist's sophistry, and reached out again to grab the jade pendant on Miss Roushui's chest.
This time, he succeeded.
Under the horrified gaze of everyone, Lei Yi pulled the jade pendant off Miss Roushui's neck.
"You..." Miss Roushui's face was pale and her eyes were full of fear.
Lei Yi ignored her and held up the jade pendant, showing it to everyone, and said loudly: "Please look, everyone, what secret is hidden in this jade pendant!"
Everyone looked up and saw that the jade pendant was crystal clear and exuded a faint spiritual aura. It looked ordinary and there was nothing special about it.
"Is this the secret you were talking about?" The family patriarch laughed. "I think you're crazy. You actually slandered my family's disciples for such an ordinary jade pendant!"
"Yeah, I think he's crazy!"
"You really don't know how to live or die. How dare you offend the family!"
……
The family disciples around him also began to accuse Lei Yi, looking at him with eyes full of anger and contempt.
However, Lei Yi's face didn't show any panic at all. He raised the corner of his mouth slightly, revealing a mocking smile, and slowly said, "Really? Do you really think this is just an ordinary jade pendant?"
As he spoke, he slowly injected his true energy into the jade pendant...
Lei Yi slowly channeled his zhenqi into the jade pendant, and the previously translucent jade suddenly glowed with a faint white light. Before anyone could react, the white light rapidly expanded, casting a curtain of light above the jade pendant. Within the curtain of light, a few small words were clearly displayed: "Gathering Spirits."
"Gathering spirits? What does this mean?" someone in the crowd asked in confusion.
"Gathering spirits..." The family elder frowned and muttered to himself, "Could it be..."
"That's right, this is the family's secret magic weapon for gathering spirits!" Dongfang Liuli suddenly stood up. She looked at everyone with a firm gaze and said in a clear and powerful voice, "Every word Lei Yi said is true. This jade pendant does indeed hold a secret!"
"Miss Dongfang, you..." The family patriarch's face changed. He didn't expect Dongfang Liuli to stand up and speak for Lei Yi.
"Clan leader, I guarantee on the reputation of our Dongfang family that Lei Yi will never slander a family disciple without reason." Dongfang Liuli's tone was calm, yet it carried unquestionable authority. "Although this spirit-gathering magic weapon is not a valuable item, it has always been stored in the family treasury and has never been loaned out. It is even more impossible for it to appear in the possession of a disciple who has just broken through to the Qi Refining Stage!"
As soon as Dongfang Liuli finished speaking, an uproar broke out around them. Everyone looked at Miss Roushui with suspicion and distrust.
"Also, haven't you noticed that Miss Roushui's cultivation has advanced by leaps and bounds since entering the secret realm, even winning several matches in a row? Isn't there something fishy about this?" Dongfang Liuli continued, her eyes sharp, as if she could see through any disguise. "If she hadn't relied on external forces, how could she, a disciple who had just entered the Qi Refining Stage, possess such powerful strength?"
Every word Dongfang Liuli said struck like a hammer, hammering down upon everyone's heart. The family elder's expression grew increasingly grim. He carefully examined the jade pendant and discovered that it was indeed engraved with the family's secret seal. This proved that the jade pendant was indeed a family possession, and very likely the legendary spirit-gathering magic weapon!
"This..." The family patriarch opened his mouth and wanted to defend himself, but found that he was speechless.
"Chief, the facts are already before us. What else do you have to say?" Lei Yi sneered. He threw the jade pendant in front of the patriarch of the family, his eyes full of ridicule.
The family patriarch's face turned ashen. He clenched his fists and glared at Lei Yi fiercely, but in the end he said nothing.
"This matter is of great importance. I will investigate it thoroughly!" the family elder said solemnly. He swept his gaze over the crowd and finally landed on Miss Roushui. "Roushui, tell me, what exactly is going on with this jade pendant?"
Miss Roushui's face was pale and her lips trembled slightly, but she never spoke.
"Miss Roushui, you don't have to be afraid. As long as you tell the truth, the family will definitely stand up for you." Dongfang Liuli said softly. She knew that Miss Roushui must have been used by someone, which is why she ended up in this situation.
"I..." Miss Roushui raised her head, looked at Dongfang Liuli, then looked at the family patriarch, her eyes full of struggle.
"Clan leader, I think Miss Roushui must have been framed. This magic weapon was secretly placed on her by someone else!" The clan leader suddenly spoke, a gleam in his eyes, as if he had found a way to escape...
Lei Yi sneered, staring at the clan leader with a sharp gaze, and asked, "Oh? Clan leader, you are wrong. If someone was framing her, why did they choose Miss Roushui and not someone else? Moreover, this magic weapon is so well-matched with Miss Roushui's own vital energy flow. How could someone else just place it there and do that?"
Lei Yi's words were like a bucket of cold water that extinguished the hope that had just been ignited in the heart of the family patriarch, and also caused some of the family members present to start whispering.
"Yes, if this magic weapon can be used on anyone, wouldn't it be a mess?"
"That's right. I saw Miss Roushui fight with others before. She was in danger several times, but she relied on this strange power to turn defeat into victory. How do you explain this?"
"Also, I remember Miss Roushui had been unknown before, so how did her cultivation suddenly increase so dramatically? It turns out that she used this method!"
Hearing the questioning voices coming from all around, the family patriarch's face became more and more ugly. He glared fiercely at the family members who were talking about it, but he could not stop them from saying what they were thinking.
The family elder, seated high up in his seat, observed all of this. His brow furrowed, a mixture of emotions welling up within him. On the one hand, he had watched Roushui grow up, and naturally, he didn't want to see her do such a thing. On the other hand, Lei Yi's words made perfect sense, and Dongfang Liuli had vouched for it with the family's reputation. Furthermore, the jade pendant bore the family's secret seal. He couldn't ignore all of this.
"Elder, you must make the decision for me! I really didn't cheat, and this jade pendant is really not mine!" Miss Roushui panicked when she saw that the family elders had not expressed their opinions. She knelt on the ground and cried.
"Roushui, stand up and talk." The family elder sighed and gestured for Miss Roushui to stand. He looked at Lei Yi with a deep gaze and asked in a deep voice, "Lei Yi, now that you have found the evidence, how do you want to deal with this matter?"
Lei Yi smiled faintly and said, "I came here only to prove my innocence, not to put Miss Roushui to death. As for how to deal with her, it is entirely up to the elders to decide."
Lei Yi's words seemed light, but they held a sharp edge. He knew that this matter was no longer just about Miss Roushui, but concerned the reputation and prestige of the entire family.
The family elder was silent for a moment, as if weighing the pros and cons. He looked at the pale-faced Miss Roushui, then at the calm Lei Yi, and finally made a decision.
"Roushui, considering this is your first offense and you meant no harm, I'll forgive you this time. But you must explain the whole story in detail, without hiding anything!"
As soon as the family elder finished speaking, Miss Roushui felt relieved. She looked at the family elder with gratitude and nodded quickly in response, "Yes, Elder, I will tell you everything I know!"
"As for Lei Yi..." The family elder paused and looked at Lei Yi with a complicated look, "Although you were framed, you are the challenger of this family trial after all. According to the rules, your duel with the sword-crazed boy..."
Before the family elder could finish his words, a sudden commotion erupted from outside the door. Then, a young man in green, holding a longsword, strode in. He glanced sharply at everyone present, finally locking his gaze on Lei Yi, a sneer curling his lips.
"Lei Yi, I've been waiting for you for a long time!"