Chapter 31: Li Zhaodi Is Dead

What was buried down there?

It was not some object, but a living human being!

The porcelain-pale complexion, the cyan-tinted lips, and those familiar features—it was Li Zhaodi, whom she had met two months ago.

Song Junyu suppressed the turbulent waves in her heart and quickly reached out to check for a pulse.

...There was not a single sign of life.

Li Zhaodi was dead.

A thousand complex emotions welled up in Song Junyu’s heart, and her mind was filled with the image of the bright-eyed girl from that day. At that time, she had been full of life, declaring that she would surely persevere.

"Your wooden badge is so shiny!"
"Is your name Liu Yu? What a beautiful name."

Song Junyu suddenly realized that those fleeting moments were etched so clearly in her memory. She took one last, deep look at the body, then forced herself to calm down and examine Li Zhaodi.

Since she had been buried in such a hurried and guilty manner, it was clear that there was more to her death. Furthermore, based on her judgment, it did not look like Li Zhaodi had been killed instantly. Her entire body had withered away; there was not a drop of blood left in her, and her forearms and legs were dried out to an unnatural degree.

Song Junyu probed further, stopping instantly when she saw the two distinct blood holes on her wrists.

This...

Her thoughts were instantly dragged back to the time she had been subjected to blood-quenching. At that moment, her own body had looked almost identical to the Li Zhaodi before her! And those two blood holes had appeared on her own body during the early stages of that process.

In a flash of insight, Song Junyu recalled the scene at the assessment grounds: Sheng Shu'er had intended to leave, but had suddenly glanced back at Li Zhaodi, who was lying on the ground, hovering between life and death.

So, this matter likely involved... Sheng Shu'er of Baoluo Peak?!

Qian Lin had said that there was something special about Li Zhaodi that could help them find treasures, and that medium was precisely her blood!

A surge of anger rose in her heart, and Song Junyu clenched her fists at her sides. She did not act rashly; instead, she took out a jade slip and sent a sealed message to Gu Sanshi. This was a grave matter, and she would not let Li Zhaodi die in vain.

This matter had to be investigated!

Half an hour later, the Main Hall.

Gu Sanshi slowly put away the Heavenly Calculation Pearl in his hand. His expression was cold and stern as he looked at Song Junyu. "Her blood is extremely unique. It has natural nourishing properties, though ordinary cultivators should be unable to perceive this."

"So, what do you mean by that?"

Gu Sanshi’s expression grew even colder. "A demon."

Song Junyu looked at Li Zhaodi, her heart aching. If she hadn't had so little contact with her back then, perhaps the demon hidden within might not have noticed her. As for today's tragedy...

"Little Yu, the demonic energy on her was definitely not the work of an ordinary evil cultivator. The concentration is comparable to that of a thousand-year-old monster; even the Peak Masters would find it hard to detect. You need not blame yourself."

Song Junyu steadied herself, her eyes filled with pain. "But I believe this was not done by a demon alone. There must be an inside traitor working in collusion! And it possesses extraordinary concealment methods, which is why it could carry out such an act so stealthily."

Song Junyu calmed down and shared her previous deductions. Gu Sanshi pondered for a long time before issuing an order: "Bring that Qian Lin here."

Outer Court.

Several disciples were fawning over Qian Lin, one of them being particularly sycophantic. "Senior Sister Qian, you said there would be spirit stones as a reward once this was done. We wonder when we brothers might receive them?"

Qian Lin snorted coldly. "Are you sure it was handled properly?"

The lead disciple patted his chest, a flicker of cunning in his eyes. "Absolutely. I guarantee no one will ever find that place. Even if someone were to stumble upon it by chance, the body would have long since turned to dust!"

Qian Lin squinted, choosing to believe him, and took some spirit stones from her storage bag to distribute among them. "Keep your mouths shut. There will be plenty of work like this for you in the future. If any of you dare to let this slip... don't blame me for being ruthless."

The disciples beamed as they clutched the spirit stones. "We will remember, Senior Sister! Please make sure to call us again!"

As they turned to leave, they barely stepped out of the courtyard when they saw Zhang Tian standing nearby, watching them. With a flick of his sleeve, a binding lock wrapped around each of them.

"Gentlemen, come with me."

Before Qian Lin could even open her mouth to argue, in just a few breaths, they were brought into the Main Hall of the Main Peak.

They were thrown onto the floor one after another. Before they could lift their heads, a powerful pressure swept across the space, nearly crushing their bones. Gu Sanshi lowered his eyes, his voice indifferent. "I will give you only one chance. Does the person before you have anything to do with you?"

Qian Lin glanced tremblingly into the distance, and upon seeing the pale, motionless figure, the blood in her body ran cold. She wanted to scream—why was Li Zhaodi here?

Then came the overwhelming panic. This was the Sect Master's residence. This meant the Sect Master knew about the affair involving Li Zhaodi. And that meant she...

"Sect Master, we were wronged! It was the Senior Sister who told us to bury her! We only agreed because we were greedy for small gains!"

"But we had no intention to kill!"

The lead disciple wailed, tears and snot running down his face, as he hurriedly pulled out the fresh, ill-gotten gains he had just received.

Seeing this, Qian Lin felt all hope vanish. It was over, everything was over. In an instant, she slumped to the floor, motionless, as if her soul had been ripped out.

Song Junyu stared at her coldly and suddenly asked, "Do you really think you can shoulder such a massive crime all by yourself?"

"If you don't tell the whole truth, your Qian family will be branded as the culprits who harbored demons!"

Panic-stricken and with no path left, Qian Lin was guided by Song Junyu’s words. She raised her head, trembling. "Sect Master, please investigate! I was only acting on orders!"

"It was Senior Sister Sheng, some time ago..."

Half a month ago, Sheng Shu'er had approached Qian Lin. She wore her usual gentle expression and spoke softly about Qian Lin's current predicament. In the end, Sheng Shu'er said, "I would like to help you, but I am powerless. And now, I am facing a difficult task myself; I do not know who can help me."

Qian Lin, having no reason to doubt her, immediately volunteered. "Senior Sister Sheng, perhaps you can tell me? I will see if I can help you."

Sheng Shu'er appeared surprised, but eventually explained the situation with a helpless sigh. "It is the woman you tied up last time. She has a connection to me, but I do not know how to find her."

Hearing that it was such a trivial matter, Qian Lin immediately expressed her readiness, saying that she could certainly find Li Zhaodi in the Outer Court.

"After I brought Li Zhaodi to Senior Sister Sheng, she was very pleased and gave me many cultivation resources. She said she was only borrowing Li Zhaodi for half a month and would let me take her back afterward. But I never imagined..."