Chapter 1068: Hes a fake (1/2)

Looking at the empty jail cell, both Second and Third Elder thought of one person: that woman!

Long Feiye had long noticed the untouched lock and said, “Who saved him from this place?”

“It’s…” Second Elder didn’t know how to answer, so he went for the direct approach. “A few months ago the sect leader brought a woman back, but we’ve never seen her face because she always wears a black gauze face mask. The sect leader had complete trust in her and she too possessed the key to this cell. She must have brought him away!”

“Yes, it had to be her! Besides us elders, only she has the key!” Third Elder added hastily.

They had no other choice but to tell the truth now if they didn’t want to die.

“Who was she?” Han Yunxi asked.

“We don’t know her origins, but she was very familiar with Celestial Mountain. It’s likely she’s from the sect!” Second Elder professed.

There were so many women in Celestial Mountain that could catch Bai Yanqing’s eye. Would this be one of Abstinence Courtyard’s disciples?[1]

“Where did Bai Yanqing go?” Han Yunxi asked.

The two elders were lost. What Bai Yanqing?

“Your sect leader, where did he go?” Han Yunxi asked coldly. How could Bai Yanqing leave unless he had important business to take care of?

The elders were shocked and blurted out, “Bai Yanqing?!”

“Exactly, Bai Yanqing! What, you two didn’t know he was your sect leader? Isn’t that just a joke?” Han Yunxi probed.

The elders exchanged looks, too stunned to speak beyond shaking their heads.

It seemed that aside from Gong Beichen who knew poisons, no other member of Heretical Sword Sect knew about Bai Yanqing’s origins.[2] How did Bai Yanqing managed to conceal his identity while becoming the leader of Heretical Sword Sect?

Han Yunxi was beyond curious to know.[3]

“West Qin princess, our sect leader is surnamed Hua (华), name Yushu (予叔). He was acknowledged by former Sect Leader Bai to assume the mantle of leadership early. How...how could he be Bai Yanqing?” Second Elder didn’t believe it.

“Old Sect Leader Bai? Would that be Bai Shanqing?” Long Feiye asked.

“Exactly!” Second Elder paused, then said helplessly, “East Qin crown prince, the internal cultivation techniques of our Heretical Sword Sect carries a great flaw--that is, its practitioners are apt to enter deviation. I expect you’ve heard of this as well?”

“So what if that’s the case?” Long Feiye asked.

“Sect Leader Hua has been trying to collude with Celestial Mountain’s Lockheart Courtyard and the two biggest Depositories over the past few years just to obtain the Ganjiang treasure sword. He wanted to use the power of the sword to cultivate to the max level of internal energy so he could find a remedy to the flaw. It was also a way to forge a path ahead for the hundreds of Heretical Sword Sect disciples,” Second Elder explained.

Who knew that Bai Yanqing had researched the internal cultivation techniques of Heretical Sword Sect so thoroughly that he knew the power of treasure swords could make up for their deficiences in cultivation there? But when had he infiltrated Heretical Sword Sect? Had he always been here under disguise, or simply assumed the identity at a later date? Whatever the case, Bai Yanqing had ended up fooling all of the Heretical Sword Sect disciples. Judging from the faked letters they received, his goal of obtaining the Ganjiang sword wasn’t to prevent it from falling into Long Feiye’s hands, but to destroy any chance Long Feiye and Han Yunxi had of completing their dual cultivation.

Fully aware of this fact, Han Yunxi broke into a cold smile. “Your sect leader used poison to take over Celestial Mountain, but you never suspected the origins of his drugs? Did you never harbor any doubts despite his disciple Gong Beichen’s own skills in poisons?”

Second Elder and Third Elder looked at each other before the latter explained, “Gong Beichen had once entered Hundred Poisons Sect to study poisons, but…” he trailed off and cried, “West Qin princess, how are you so certain that our sect leader is Bai Yanqing? Our leader spends most of the year in closed door cultivation and only emerged recently!”

“Do you have a portrait of him?” Han Yunxi asked.

“It’s in the Heretical Sword Depository,” Second Elder replied quickly.

Gu Beiyue made the quick trip there and back to recover Sect Leader Hua’s painting. At the sight of the picture, Han Yunxi’s group immediately knew the answer! The man in the portrait looked nothing like Bai Yanqing!

They had been worried that Bai Yanqing had been part of Heretical Sword Sect since childhood before being recommended for the post of sect leader by Bai Shanqing. Now it was obvious that the true Sect Leader Hua had long been murdered by Bai Yanqing and replaced as his fake!![4] In other words, they had no reservations for Bai Shanqing or his ex-disciple Ye Xiao, because neither of them should be involved with Bai Yanqing. They shouldn’t know the man had taken on the identity of its sect leader, either.

“West Qin princess, this...what is going on?” Second Elder asked.[5]

Although the two elders were behaving very well, Han Yunxi didn’t forget all the things Heretical Sword Sect did against Celestial Mountain disciples or their torture of Master Jianxin. Were they allowed to massacre the disciples of a different sect just to obtain Ganjiang for saving their own disciples? Their former sect leader Bai Shanqing had even discussed combining sects with Master Jianxin in the past, so why couldn’t they put down their pride and do the same?[6]

They had to use poison of all things? Leaving aside the matter of the Ganjiang treasure sword, these Heretical Sword Sect people had nothing but evil intentions![7] But Han Yunxi had no time to explain too much to these two elders. They had to investigate who the Celestial Mountain woman that took away Third Honored Elder could be, which meant returning back to the peak! If these two men didn’t even know Bai Yanqing was their leader, how could they hope to find out anything else? Interrogating them would be a waste of time!

As the situation stood now, they had killed Gong Beichen too soon.

“I expect you two elders haven’t seen the Ganjiang treasure sword yet?” Han Yunxi asked.

The two elders shook their heads. Compared to their previous bluster, they were more servile than servants now.

“Over there. It’s the sword Gu Qishao’s carrying on his back. Take a good look,” Han Yunxi smiled.

The two elders turned as one. At the same time, Han Yunxi plucked two poison needles out of her sleeves and stabbed them into the space between their eyebrows. The elders gave a start before losing unconsciousness. Han Yunxi could cure Bai Yanqing’s poisons, but the reverse wasn’t always true!

Han Yunxi didn’t touch any of the disciples still trying to flee but allowed them to escape. She had Gu Beiyue take the two elders to Heretical Sword Depository. This would be her provocation against Bai Yanqing in poisons![8]