Chapter 110

The next morning, after everyone had breakfast, they came to the courtyard. Just as they were about to go out, the courtyard gate was suddenly blown open from the outside with a “bang” and fell directly to the ground inside the courtyard.

Outside the door, a group of people were rushing in aggressively.

Someone shouted, “The Empress of Kun Kingdom is inside! Everyone come quickly and seek justice for Zen Master Kongming!”

“Seek justice for Zen Master Kongming!”

People kept shouting outside, and others rushed into the courtyard, filling most of the yard and forming a semi-encirclement, blocking the way for Qi Fei, Feng Liyao, and the other eight people.

Feng Liyao stood there calmly and casually, showing no sign of impending doom.

Miao Yu stood beside Feng Jianqing, slightly nervous. She knew exactly why these people had come here, what they wanted to do, and the whole story.

Qi Fei scanned the people who had barged in; they were all martial arts practitioners in the world today.

They were led by the Da Chan Temple and the Shao Yue Sect, and mainly consisted of the Four Vajras and Eighteen Arhats of the Da Chan Temple, the Seven True Men of Shao Yue Sect, people from Ao Jian Manor, the Golden-Armored Dragon Guards who were fighting against the imperial court, Tie Yizhou and Zhang Jingzhu of the Danxia Sect, and others.

A bald monk carrying a long sword stepped forward slowly, his tiger-like eyes coldly fixed on Feng Liyao, showing no fear whatsoever.

This man had thick eyebrows, a short, thick mustache, and a burly build. He exuded a fierce and menacing aura, making him look more like a butcher than a monk.

The monk stepped forward, faced Feng Liyao, and angrily said, “Empress of Kun Kingdom, why did you kill my abbot brother!”

Feng Liyao glanced at him indifferently, then looked towards the door.

Seeing that Feng Liyao ignored him, the monk became even angrier and was about to attack when Miaoyu quickly said, “Grandmaster Konghai, the abbot was not killed by Her Majesty the Empress, but by the Emperor and the Sword Saint!”

Upon hearing the monk’s Dharma name, Qi Fei’s heart stirred, and he immediately realized that this person was none other than Master Kukai, the head of the Discipline Hall of the Great Zen Temple.

Kukai was a renowned figure in the martial arts world, known as the “Sword Monk.” He possessed superb swordsmanship and was one of the few sword masters in the Great Zen Temple. Although he did not kill, his methods were extremely formidable. It is said that when the Ten Great Bandits wreaked havoc in Yunzhou City, killing many civilians, Kukai immediately descended the mountain and, with only his sword, pursued the Ten Great Bandits day and night, severing their limbs and crippling them. As a result, he was revered as the “Sword Monk” and the “Heroic Monk.”

“nonsense!”

Kong Hai roared, pointing at Feng Liyao, and said, “Our abbot was killed by the Empress of Kun Kingdom. We all witnessed our abbot’s tragic death on the official road of Yunzhou. Before he died, he left behind the six characters ‘The one who killed me is King Feng Li.’ Heh, that wasn’t the character ‘King’ at all, but the character ‘Yao,’ because our abbot was too weak to write his full name at the time. The evidence is conclusive. Let’s see what she has to say now!”

Miao Yu said, “That was someone framing me…”

Kukai looked at her and shouted, “What a frame-up! You’ve just made things up without any evidence! Where’s the proof? Aren’t you a little nun from Cuiwei Nunnery? Cuiwei Nunnery and my Great Zen Temple are closely connected. How can you be siding with outsiders?! I will definitely find Venerable Suyin and demand an explanation!”

“May the Heavenly Venerable grant boundless blessings…”

A voice rang out, and then an old Taoist priest with an unusual appearance walked in from outside, holding a whisk in his hand, and came to the front of the Shaoyue Sect’s group. It was none other than Xuantian Taoist, the leader of the Shaoyue Sect.

“This old Taoist greets Your Majesty the Empress.” Xuan Tian Dao Ren bowed to Feng Li Yao.

Feng Liyao said, “Daoist, you may rise.”

Xuan Tian Daoist sighed and said, “I never imagined things would escalate to this point! Alas… I came here only to seek an answer.”

Feng Liyao asked, “What answer does the Daoist Master want?”

“Since that’s the case, then this old Taoist will speak frankly… Was the ‘Wuwei Dao Scroll’ of my Shaoyue Sect created by the Kun Kingdom?”

“no.”

Xuan Tian Dao Ren stared intently at Feng Li Yao, who had one hand behind her back and the other hanging down gently, appearing calm and composed.

Xuan Tian Dao Ren sighed and said, “Last night, the Great Zen Temple sent someone to inform us that Zen Master Kongming had been murdered, and that the murderer was Her Majesty the Empress. I didn’t believe it at the time, but when I saw the six blood-written characters the Zen Master had written, I couldn’t believe it! The Zen Master must have been in great pain at the time, and before he died, he struggled to write the murderer’s name, but unfortunately, he still couldn’t finish it… But this has forced us to come to Her Majesty the Empress. If this matter has nothing to do with Her Majesty the Empress, why would the Zen Master write these six characters? The Zen Master has always been a good person, and there is no need for him to frame Her Majesty the Empress!”

At this moment, Miaoyu said, “Those six characters were not written by the Zen Master at all, but by Emperor Gan and the Sword Saint!”

Upon hearing this, Xuan Tian Dao Ren frowned: “Do you have any evidence?”

“I saw it with my own eyes!”

“So that’s all?”

“this……”

Xuan Tian Dao Ren continued with a sigh: “The friends of Da Chan Temple all believe that the Empress of Kun Kingdom had the ‘Cihang True Scripture’ stolen. Compared to the ‘Wuwei Dao Scroll’ of my Shao Yue Sect, wasn’t it also the work of the people of Kun Kingdom? Come to think of it, that day, the Zen Master and I talked all night with Emperor Gan and the Sword Saint, which gave Her Majesty the Empress an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. Tell me, besides Her Majesty the Empress, who else in the world could steal the ‘Wuwei Dao Scroll’ and the ‘Cihang True Scripture’ without anyone noticing in a single day? Tell me, who has the ability to kill Zen Master Kongming?! May I ask Your Majesty, the Zen Master and I have never offended you, so why did you commit such a heinous act and insist on putting people to death?”

By the end, he was filled with righteous indignation, brimming with anger, and his face was etched with grief and indignation.

“A life for a life! Avenge Master Kongming!” “Hand over the ‘Scroll of Non-Action’ and the ‘True Scripture of Compassion,’ or we’ll raze the Kun Kingdom to the ground!”

The people around them echoed, shouting loudly and pointing at Feng Liyao.

With the support of the Great Zen Temple and the Shaoyue Sect, as well as the people from the Great Gan Dynasty and the Aojian Manor, they were not afraid even when facing the Empress of Kun Kingdom; they were practically ready to spit on her.

Seeing their arrogance, Qi Fei stood up straight and shouted, “My mother said it wasn’t true, and that’s final! Anyone who dares to speak ill of my mother will be severely punished!”

“Yo yo yo, isn’t this Qi Fei, the young hero of the Diancang Sect? Oh, now he’s the little prince of the Kun Kingdom, tsk tsk, what a big mouth you have. Are you planning to wipe out our entire martial arts world?” A sarcastic voice came over, very clearly.

Qi Fei frowned. He recognized Wang Hongyu’s voice and wondered where he was hiding in the crowd.

Qi Fei immediately understood that this whole affair was arranged by the imperial court.

From the very beginning of the martial arts contest to find a husband, their goal was to steal the “Wuwei Dao Scroll” and the “Cihang True Scripture,” then murder Zen Master Kongming and frame the Kun Kingdom—truly killing two birds with one stone.

The whole thing was driven by the imperial court and the Aojian Manor.

He knew it was useless to reason with Wang Hongyu, that shameless scoundrel, so he had already prepared a lot of rhetoric to incite people.

Upon realizing this, Qi Fei immediately mustered his inner strength, let out a loud shout that silenced everyone present, and then said, “You all keep saying that my mother killed Zen Master Kongming, but who saw it with their own eyes?”

“This…” As soon as he said this, the entire room fell silent.

At this moment, someone said, “The blood-written words that Zen Master Kongming wrote before his death are irrefutable proof!”

Upon hearing Wang Hongyu’s voice, Qi Fei sneered, “I raped your mother and afterwards wrote ‘rapist Wang Hongyu,’ so Wang Hongyu is the one who raped your mother?”

“You…” The voice suddenly weakened.

Qi Fei pointed at Miao Yu and said, “Yesterday, this little nun Miao Yu witnessed with her own eyes that Wang Tianlong and Bai Xifeng led people to kill Zen Master Kongming, and then spread rumors to frame my mother. You can’t even tell the difference in such a simple matter. Are you all pig-brains?”

Seeing his impolite words, Xuan Tian Dao Ren’s expression changed slightly. He said, “Young Hero Qi, although what Little Master Miao Yu said makes some sense, it is only one side of the story and there is no substantial evidence. However, if we are talking about one side of the story, are all the people in the Great Zen Temple, the Great Gan Dynasty, and the Proud Sword Manor really inferior to a mere little Miao Yu?”

“Thank you for your trust, Daoist Master!”

At that moment, a deep voice came from outside the door.

As everyone looked, they saw a square-faced middle-aged man wearing a flat-topped crown and a tall, thin middle-aged man wearing a white robe walk in together.

It was none other than Emperor Tianlong and Sword Saint Bai Xifeng!

“Your Majesty!”

“Sword Saint Senior!”

The crowd made way for the two of them.

Wang Tianlong stepped forward, scanned the area, and said solemnly, “To be honest, at first I didn’t believe that the Empress of Kun Kingdom was responsible for this. Although Da Gan and Kun Kingdom are enemies, I’ve always believed that the Empress of Kun Kingdom is an upright and honorable person, not the vicious person the outside world portrays her to be… It wasn’t until I saw the Zen Master’s miserable state and the blood-written words he left behind that I had to change my mind. Perhaps the Empress of Kun Kingdom really could do such a thing. After all, many people are two-faced…”

Qi Fei retorted angrily, “Are you talking about your own?!”

Wang Tianlong remained silent, revealing an expression of uprightness and righteousness.

Someone shouted, “His Majesty the Emperor is a dignified and upright Son of Heaven, always open and aboveboard, and loves his people. How could he be as despicable as your Kun Kingdom’s Empress?”

“Beauties have always been venomous; the more beautiful a woman is, the more likely she is to deceive people. It’s true!”

Everyone was talking about it.

Wang Tianlong said, “There’s no need for this, everyone. I’m not a perfect person either, and the Empress of Kun Kingdom isn’t entirely without merit. However, regarding this matter, right and wrong will be judged in its own time. I believe the eyes of the masses are discerning and they will never wrong any good person.”

“His Majesty’s words are reasonable!”

Xuan Tian Daoist said, “As everyone has seen, His Majesty the Emperor is magnanimous; how could he possibly do such a thing? He would certainly not frame someone else, so this matter…”

“Senior Xuantian, Zen Master Kongming was indeed killed by Emperor Gan and the Sword Saint. I saw it with my own eyes!” Miaoyu exclaimed.

Seeing Miao Yu’s stern expression, Xuan Tian Dao Ren frowned slightly. He suddenly became uncertain. Could there really be some hidden story behind this?

Just then, a voice suddenly came from outside again: “Miaoyu, what are you meddling in here for?” As this clear and melodious voice rang out, everyone turned to look and saw a nun wearing a moon-white monk’s robe walk in. The appearance of this nun was refreshing to everyone. Although her appearance was not as beautiful as Feng Liyao or Qi Tingqin, she still had delicate features, a plump figure, and bright and sparkling eyes. In particular, she exuded a gentle and peaceful aura, which made people feel as if they were bathed in a spring breeze. Just seeing her would make people feel comfortable all over.

“Master!” Miaoyu stepped forward and took the middle-aged nun’s arm.

“So it’s Master Suyin.” Xuantian Daoist and the others stepped forward to greet him.

However, she is Su Yin, the abbess of Cuiwei Nunnery. She was once a prominent figure in the martial arts world, and even now, despite the passage of time, she remains a well-known figure in the martial arts world, and no one dares to underestimate her.

Master Suyin looked at Miaoyu with a slight reproach and said, “I told you to go to the Great Zen Temple, why did you come here?”

Miaoyu said, “Master, I saw yesterday…” She recounted her experience to Venerable Suyin in front of everyone.

Su Yin frowned slightly. She looked at Wang Tianlong and Bai Xifeng and said, “Your Majesty, Sword Saint Bai, why is what my disciple said different from what you told me?”

Bai Xifeng didn’t explain, but simply smiled and said, “I believe the superior has his own conclusion.”

Master Suyin held Miaoyu’s hand and asked earnestly, “Can you recall any information that can corroborate this? This matter is of utmost importance, as it relates to the situation in Kun Kingdom and Gan Dynasty. You must think carefully.”

“This…” Miao Yu’s beautiful eyes flickered, and she hesitated.

At this moment, Wang Tianlong sighed and said, “Last year at Taoli Mountain, I promised the Zen Master and the Taoist Priest that I would not wage war against the Kun Kingdom for three years. Even if this matter was done by the Empress of the Kun Kingdom, I will carefully consider whether to help the Great Zen Temple and the Shaoyue Sect seek justice. I hope the Taoist Priest will understand!”

Xuan Tian Daoist hurriedly replied, “His Majesty the Emperor is truly wise and righteous; this old Daoist admires him greatly!”

Master Konghai also said, “Your Majesty, rest assured, there is no need for the Da Gan court to interfere in this matter. Even if we are no match for the cruel and vicious Kun Kingdom court, can Feng Liyao really kill us all? Is there no law in the world? I believe that any Da Gan martial artist with backbone will stand up and uphold justice!”

“Indeed, upholding justice on behalf of Heaven!”

Everyone was filled with righteous indignation and echoed his sentiments, almost drawing their swords.

At this moment, Miaoyu’s eyes suddenly lit up, and she said, “Ah, that’s it! I want to ask the seniors of Dachan Temple, when you sent Master Kongming’s body back to the mountain, did you examine his wounds?” Konghai said, “Of course we examined him. Senior Brother Kongming was covered in wounds, and he died from internal organ damage!”

Miao Yu said, “It was a gunshot wound and a sword wound, right? I saw with my own eyes that the Zen Master was killed by the Emperor’s spear and the Sword Saint’s White Rainbow Sword!”

“This…” Kukai frowned upon hearing this, seemingly lost in thought.

As soon as Miaoyu said this, everyone around her exchanged bewildered glances. Indeed, Zen Master Kongming’s fatal wounds were caused by the spear and longsword.

“Hehe, such petty tricks can only fool ordinary people.” Wang Hongyu suddenly stepped forward and said with a light laugh, “The Empress of Kun Kingdom is truly cunning. After Zen Master Kongming was powerless to fight back, she used a spear and a longsword to pierce his body, killing him. It’s cruel just to think about! Senior, everyone… Little Master Miaoyu must have been fooled by Feng Liyao. I really don’t know what benefits she gave you that made you protect this poisonous woman like this!”

“You…you’re talking nonsense!” Miao Yu was truly astonished by Wang Hongyu’s ability to distort the truth. She was furious.

Wang Hongyu looked up at the rising sun and sighed, “If it weren’t for that, the Zen Master would never have written those bloody words before his death. If it weren’t for those bloody words, no one would have guessed that the murderer was actually the Empress of Kun Kingdom. It can be seen that the net of heaven is vast and its meshes are wide, yet nothing escapes it!”

His righteous words, coupled with his hypocritical expression and his awe-inspiring defense of the Great Zen Temple and the Shaoyue Sect, impressed everyone in the martial arts world. Now, not only Miaoyu, but even Qi Fei didn’t know how to clear Feng Liyao of suspicion.

Qi Fei said, “Wang Hongyu, stop talking nonsense here. My mother stayed in the courtyard all day yesterday and didn’t go out.”

Li Yuyao and Ye Ruiyun nodded in agreement. Ye Ruiyun said, “Her Majesty the Empress was teaching us martial arts all day yesterday!”

Wang Hongyu sneered: “You’re all in cahoots; your words are completely unreliable!”

Qi Fei roared, “Wang Hongyu, you bastard! Your words are not to be trusted! You’ve framed me time and time again, and I haven’t even settled that score with you yet. Now you want to frame my mother? Don’t even dream about it!”

Wang Hongyu retorted sharply: “You little brat, I will never forget what you did in the Da Gan Imperial Palace that day. Only your blood can wash away the humiliation of my Da Gan Imperial Palace!”

“Want to fight? Come on!” Qi Fei tightened his grip on the Panlong Sword.

Wang Hongyu sneered, “Even if you can beat me, can you beat the thousands upon thousands of heroes and warriors in the martial arts world?”

Knowing he was no match for Qi Fei, he tied himself to the martial arts world to divert hatred.

“Alright, stop arguing.” Feng Liyao’s voice echoed around her. She looked up at the white clouds in the sky and said, “Since Da Gan doesn’t welcome us, let’s go back to Kun Kingdom. Jian Qing, Fei’er, let’s go—” After saying that, she lifted her foot to walk towards the door.

“Hmph, you think you can just kill someone and leave? There’s no such thing as a free lunch! You poisonous woman, leave your life behind!” The sword monk Kukai was a man with a fiery temper. Seeing that Feng Liyao was about to leave, he didn’t care about anything else and swung his long sword to slash at Feng Liyao.

“presumptuous!”

Feng Liyao suddenly shouted coldly, her phoenix eyes flashing like lightning as she landed on Kong Hai. She reached out and grabbed him, and Kong Hai felt as if the space in front of him had collapsed. He fell forward, his mouth and nose enveloped by a powerful aura, making it impossible for him to breathe!

The next moment, a muffled “thud” was heard, and everyone saw that Kukai seemed to have offered himself up. He loosened his grip on the sword, leaving his defenses wide open, and was then kicked in the chest by Feng Liyao. The sound of bones breaking rang out, and Kukai flew backward and crashed heavily to the ground.

“ah……”

“Uncle-Master!”

“master!”

This happened so fast that no one could react in time. They watched helplessly as Kukai was kicked away. When he landed on the ground, his hands loosened, his long sword fell to the side, his chest caved in, and blood flowed from all seven orifices of his face. He looked terrifying and died instantly.

Seeing Feng Liyao kill Kong Hai, almost everyone was moved, filled with righteous indignation, glaring angrily at Feng Liyao.

“The Empress of Kun Kingdom has killed someone!”

“Everyone saw it. Feng Liyao is so cruel and vicious. She must have killed Zen Master Kongming!”

Disciples of Dachan Temple, disciples of Shaoyue Sect, members of Aojian Manor, and even those who opposed the imperial court all voiced their accusations and curses.

Wang Hongyu gloated from the sidelines, while Wang Tianlong and Bai Xifeng exchanged a knowing smile. This time, even if Feng Liyao jumped into the sea, she wouldn’t be able to clear her name