The others, seeing that Gui Liugang and the scholar, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle, had already taken the lead into the courtyard, exchanged glances and also followed. Li Yan was the last to step out. As he walked out of the room, he inadvertently saw the Foundation Establishment cultivator who had returned from patrol walk up to Daoist Gong and hand him a Jade Slip. There was only a slight fluctuation of Divine Sense from Daoist Gong, and then his eyes turned to the two black-robed figures in front. The two black-robed figures seemed to sense it, and one of them even tilted his head slightly, a hint of a smile revealed at the corner of his mouth under the shadow of the hood. All of this happened extremely quickly, but it was seen by Li Yan, Sect Master Yue, and only a few others.
Li Yan saw it clearly and knew that the Jade Slip must contain information recorded when he entered the temple. Although the authenticity of the information was difficult to discern, as long as one paid attention, one could still guess some things. One could even follow the clues to trace the source. For example, his own Bloodleaf Sect identity would be exposed if someone really went to the Bloodleaf Sect to inquire.
After Gui Liugang entered the courtyard, he began to examine the points where the courtyard wall's formation was laid out. He would occasionally release his Divine Sense and close his eyes to sense carefully. Sometimes he would squat down to observe, and sometimes he would even release his spiritual power to tap the ground or the wall.
Most cultivators knew a little about formations. The others also released their Divine Sense to probe the courtyard. Li Yan had recently delved into the way of formations due to his research on puppets, so he could be considered to have entered the gate of formation arts. He also began to look around the courtyard. Of course, with this kind of inspection, unless one was extremely proficient in formations, it was absolutely impossible to learn the essence of another sect's formations. Therefore, most people here were just checking for obvious signs of damage to the formation.
After making a round, with his knowledge of formation arts, Li Yan found no abnormalities other than the signs of being bombarded at the front of the courtyard gate. Even the eight spirit stone slots in the courtyard that drove the formation had been powerfully attacked, and the spirit stones had eventually turned into gray powder due to the depletion of their spiritual power. It was clear how fierce Luo Sanpang's attack had been at the time.
After making a round, Gui Liugang still had a look of doubt. He pondered for a long time before speaking, "Fellow Daoist Gong, there is nothing wrong with this formation. At least, I can't find any problems. Except for the few explosion points at the front, which were caused by external attacks, I haven't seen any other signs that this formation has been modified to allow for secret entry and exit. In other words, no one should have been able to break through the restriction from within and leave. The entire courtyard is like a cage after the formation is activated. Even Earth Evasion is wishful thinking.
I think it should be impossible to find clues from the formation. It would be better to work on the cause of that Junior Brother Liu's death. I remember that there was still some spiritual power remaining on the ruptured part of that Junior Brother Liu's heart. Can we find the corresponding cultivation technique from this?"
After hearing this, Daoist Gong glanced at Gui Liugang and, after a moment, also nodded. This time, he was just using Gui Liugang's knowledge of formations to see if he could really find anything. He had already checked several times before. As the Sect Master of Xuanqing Temple, although the temple had declined, its heritage in the way of formations was still ancient. If anything, his formation skills were several times stronger than Gui Liugang's. He was just holding the idea that the stones of other mountains could be used to polish jade.
Li Yan was originally standing in a corner of the courtyard, thinking about all the strange things here. He was also confused by the few questions Daoist Gong had raised earlier. The killer could have entered by being tricked in by an acquaintance, but how did they leave a cage-like place without any exit after the murder, with the formation completely intact, disappearing into thin air? This matter was strange. Should he really find an opportunity to take out his Malevolent Spirit Sect token and leave?
As he was thinking, Gui Liugang's words reached his ears, causing Li Yan's body to tremble slightly. A bolt of lightning seemed to flash through his mind. He remembered a passage he had once read in a classic text. He couldn't help but probe the deceased Daoist in the room with his Divine Sense again. He did not conceal his actions this time. After hearing Gui Liugang's words, many of the cultivators here felt it was very reasonable and all probed the room with their Divine Sense.
Li Yan's Divine Sense quickly swept over the wound on Senior Brother Liu's heart and then expanded to the surroundings again. A moment later, although his expression did not change, he was astonished in his heart.
And just as everyone's Divine Sense was probing again, the purple-robed youth who seemed to be the master in the master-servant pair muttered to the side, "Attacker..." His words were almost inaudible. Although a few people nearby heard him, they thought he was just talking about the attacker. But Li Yan had been keeping a wisp of his Divine Sense on this area. He heard it clearly, and his heart trembled even more. He couldn't help but look up at the purple-robed youth over there. And just as he looked over, the somewhat dull, hunchbacked old man actually raised his head as well, and his pair of cloudy eyes looked at Li Yan.
Li Yan was startled. He didn't expect this hunchbacked old man to be so sensitive. He had just glanced over, and he was discovered. However, his expression remained unchanged. He shifted his gaze elsewhere, as if casually glancing past. At the same time, he also made a judgment about this hunchbacked old man whose cultivation he couldn't see through. The other party couldn't detect his Divine Sense, yet was so sensitive to his casual glance just now. His cultivation was probably at the great circle of Foundation Establishment, or even, like that Daoist Gong, a Pseudo-Core cultivator. After roughly judging the other party's strength, Li Yan relaxed a little. His thoughts quickly returned to his discovery just now, and he couldn't help but lower his head in thought at the side.
Just then, Gui Liugang had already spoken again, "The spiritual power fluctuation on your junior brother's wound should be of the wood attribute, and it should also have water spiritual power. Although the edge of the wound seems to have been shattered very finely, showing that the spiritual power was extremely domineering, the outside of these fragments is wrapped in a water mist, making the edges of the fragments look sharp and clear, yet also rounded."
"Yes, my judgment is the same as Brother Gui's. At the same time, this immortal art should be a finger-wind, not a palm or fist. All the cracks on the heart were formed by the force spreading out from a single point, forming the cracks," Sect Master Yue also said.
"It should be so. In this case, the killer has at least wood and water dual-system spirit roots, or killed with wood and water dual-system magical treasures," the scholar, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle, also said faintly, fanning his folding fan lightly. But as he opened the fan, the thick, somewhat nauseating smell of blood once again filled everyone's nostrils, causing many to frown slightly. He, however, paid it no mind.
With the judgment of these three Foundation Establishment cultivators, the other visiting cultivators did not speak again. For a moment, the courtyard fell silent. Everyone here who could cultivate to this level was a clever person. The words of these three had already pointed out that the killer was at least a wood-water dual-system cultivator. This could be found out with a little investigation. But this only narrowed the scope a little and could not completely rule out that it was not done by a cultivator of these two systems. As the scholar, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle, said, a wood-water dual-system magical treasure could also produce such a result. But they were not like Qin Chengyi, who was a member of the temple. Everyone had their own trump cards, most of which were kept in their storage pouches. How could they let outsiders know? Besides, there were other secrets, such as their wealth, which also could not be known by outsiders. Unless the Xuanqing Temple cultivators used their cultivation realm to pressure them and forcibly inspect, even Xuanqing Temple couldn't do that.
Li Yan sighed inwardly. His storage pouch could be inspected by these Daoists. Anyway, his important things were all in the Earthen Mark. No matter how they looked, it would be fruitless. But he had a five-system miscellaneous spirit root, so he couldn't escape the wood and water systems no matter what. Pen Down Chinese
Daoist Gong's brow was tightly furrowed, but for a moment, he couldn't really propose inspecting others' storage pouches. The few Qi Condensation cultivators were one thing; he reckoned they wouldn't dare to resist. But these visiting Foundation Establishment cultivators gave him a headache. If things went wrong, the other party might really turn hostile. Someone like the scholar, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle, was also from a second-rate sect. Once offended, it would not be a matter of one person, but very likely the entire sect.
He pondered for a while, then cupped his hands to the crowd. "Fellow Daoists, how about this? As long as you can give me a convincing reason, you can leave later. And this time, the teleportation fee will be waived as an apology for today's offense." He paused here, his gaze becoming somewhat sharp.
"If you can't give me a convincing reason, then I ask this fellow Daoist to stay. Since I can't figure out how the killer murdered someone here, then we will wait for Master's return tomorrow evening. At that time, everything will be clear. After there is a result, if it really has nothing to do with this fellow Daoist, then not only will this teleportation be free of charge, but our temple will also have some compensation. I hope you fellow Daoists will be magnanimous about the offense. But I'll say the unpleasant words first. If any fellow Daoist tries to leave by force at this time, then I will have to be impolite." Daoist Gong's words were extremely cold by this point.
Hearing this, Li Yan and the others fell silent again, but soon someone spoke up.
"Fellow Daoist Gong, my two disciples and I have been in the main hall from the beginning. Later, Fellow Daoist Gui also came in. Finally, when everyone was gathered, we left the main hall directly and then left the courtyard with Fellow Daoist Lin and the others. All of this can be testified by your two young servants. And with our meager cultivation, we could never do something like creating a doppelgänger, which only a Nascent Soul cultivator possesses." The speaker was Sect Master Yue of the Qinggu Sect. His words revealed that he had been in the resting hall the whole time, and with his and his two disciples' cultivation, they did not have the ability to create a doppelgänger to go out and kill someone.
His words were not false. To refine a doppelgänger, apart from a very few special cultivation techniques that might make it possible at the Golden Core stage, only a Nascent Soul old monster had this ability. This meant that the ones who remained in the main hall must be their true bodies.
Hearing this, Daoist Gong looked at Gui Liugang. Gui Liugang just smiled faintly. "That's not false. When I entered the main hall, Sect Master Yue was already inside with his two disciples. After that, we stayed together until we left. My nephew and I also stayed in the main hall. Sect Master Yue and the young servant can also testify." This way, the two had direct corroboration for each other. And Gui Liugang's words only admitted that after he arrived, Sect Master Yue and his disciples had not left. His words were also watertight.
Soon, the two green-robed servants from outside the main hall were called over. After looking at the two groups, the two green-robed servants both nodded. These people had been in their line of sight the whole time. Even if one of them went to call a cultivator from a side room, the other had always been guarding outside the main hall.
Daoist Gong called over Hall Master Ji. The Disciplinary Hall was in charge of the rules and disciple entry investigations in Xuanqing Temple. After looking at the two young servants, Hall Master Ji whispered to Daoist Gong, "There's no problem with the background of these two disciples. Hmm, but please wait a moment, Sect Master Senior Brother." Then, under the terrified gazes of the two green-robed servants, Hall Master Ji directly led the two of them out of the courtyard. After the time it takes to burn a small stick of incense, Hall Master Ji walked in with a normal expression and nodded to Daoist Gong.
Apart from some Qi Condensation cultivators, how could the Foundation Establishment cultivators not know what Hall Master Ji had just gone to do? He must have used some secret technique to confuse the minds of the two young servants and make them tell the truth. Although Foundation Establishment cultivators did not have the soul-searching methods of Golden Core cultivators, they did have spells that could make people lose their minds. Whatever you asked, they would answer, without any lies. However, this kind of spell was only suitable when there was a huge difference in cultivation between the two parties. These two young servants were only at the second layer of Qi Condensation, which was very suitable for Hall Master Ji.
"Oh, in that case, Sect Master Yue and Fellow Daoist Gui are cleared." Daoist Gong nodded. As long as there was some evidence, he would not offend a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
"I ask the two fellow Daoists and their disciples to wait at the side for a moment. You will leave with the others later." Daoist Gong then gave a Daoist salute to Sect Master Yue and Gui Liugang respectively, then turned his gaze to the others. The other Xuanqing Temple Daoists behind him also had sharp glints in their eyes, staring intently at the remaining people. As the scope narrowed, the possibility of the remaining people being the killer grew larger, and they were naturally expectant. A Foundation Establishment cultivator was too important to a second-rate sect. They had long regarded the killer as someone who must be killed, wishing they could find him immediately and make his life worse than death. Especially since Senior Brother Liu's previous generation had a relationship with their Master. When their Master returned and learned of this, they didn't know what kind of punishment they would receive. If they found the killer, they would have something to report. Otherwise, what awaited them would be a thunderous rage, which they were not willing to bear.
"I, on the other hand, have been meditating and resting in a side room the whole time. There's no one to testify for me during this period. Hehe, do Fellow Daoist Gong and Hall Master Ji think it was I who did it?" The scholar, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle, seeing Daoist Gong look at him, couldn't help but say with a cold laugh.
Hearing this, Daoist Gong pondered for a moment and then spoke slowly, "Actually, Fellow Daoist Lin, from the very beginning, I did not list you as a suspect. Anyone who knows you, Fellow Daoist Lin, knows that the cultivation technique you practice is special, the 'Burning Fire Blood Sea' secret transmission of the 'Bloodhand Sect.' Whether you are driving a magical treasure or using an immortal art, it will carry a very strong blood qi. And your spirit root is a three-lineage earth spirit root with fire as the main element, which does not include the water system. Hall Master Ji is more familiar with this. The two of you participated in many sect competitions together when you were young."
Regarding Daoist Gong's words, Hall Master Ji on the other side also nodded slightly. He had fought with the Bloodhand Flying Sickle quite a bit, and both sides were very familiar with each other's cultivation techniques. Moreover, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle had been famous for a long time, and there were no secrets between many of the old-brand Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Seeing this, the scholar, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle, said no more and looked at the remaining people with interest.
Of the remaining people, only the master and servant pair, the two black-robed figures, the middle-aged Qi Condensation couple, and Li Yan, who had been standing in the corner, were left.