Fantasy: I Am the Villain.

Chapter Sixty-One: What Happened Back Then

"Amitabha!" Master Xuanci murmured a Buddhist chant. "Benefactor Xiao, every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt its debtor. Why take your anger out on others?"

Xiao Yuanshan sneered twice, "Transferring my anger? How am I transferring my anger? You kidnapped my child and made him recognize a thief as his father, how am I transferring my anger?"

After saying that, he coldly looked at the group of martial arts masters around him, "Since you say that I, Xiao Yuanshan, came to the Central Plains to steal martial arts, then I will grant your wish."

Hmph! I have been hiding in the Shaolin Temple's Sutra Pavilion for many years and have already learned all 72 Shaolin Arts.

"If you've got the guts, leave me here. Otherwise, just wait for my revenge! Hmph! There's a reason for every wrong, a debtor for every crime. It's not that simple!"

He became increasingly agitated as he spoke, and seemed to be possessed. Bai Ke sighed softly and used his divine sense to probe Xiao Yuanshan's mind to help him calm down.

"Amitabha, Benefactor Xiao, what happened back then was truly a misunderstanding. To ascertain the truth of the matter, we would probably need to summon another party involved. Don't you agree, Benefactor Murong?"

Murong Bo watched the show for quite a while, never expecting that the man in black he had fought several times was actually Xiao Yuanshan. It was truly strange.

He wasn't surprised when Master Xuanci suddenly revealed his identity. Since things had already come to this point, it didn't really matter whether he kept his identity hidden or not.

"Master! Murong Bo only asks how you discerned my origins?" Murong Bo looked at Master Xuanci with curiosity.

Murong Fu, standing to the side, looked utterly shocked. He had clearly witnessed his father die, so how could he have come back to life today?

Master Xuanci clasped his hands together and whispered a Buddhist chant, "Amitabha. Actually, not long after the incident happened, this humble monk gradually came to understand."

But a terrible mistake has already been made, causing the Xiao family to be separated by death, their home destroyed, and their lives ruined. Alas!

Xiao Yuanshan twisted his neck. Over the years, he had already investigated everything that happened back then. Although the Murong family was the mastermind, it was Master Xuanci and his group who did it. They could not be let off easily.

"Originally, this humble monk thought that Benefactor Murong was just an unknown monk from my Shaolin Temple, but when Benefactor Murong spoke with young Benefactor Murong Fu, this humble monk became somewhat suspicious."

Then came the masterful use of the "Shen Shang Finger" technique by Benefactor Murong. Its masterful execution required decades of dedicated practice; upon reflection, it could only have been achieved by Benefactor Murong himself!

"Master, your reasoning is indeed excellent. I admire you. The events of that year were indeed a fabrication by me. However, the fact that the Song and Liao dynasties are irreconcilable is undeniable. What's wrong with us targeting the Khitans?"

Master Xuanci shook his head. "Elder Murong, you are mistaken. The Song and Liao kingdoms cannot coexist. Although I am a monk, I know a little about this."

Anyone could believe these words, but not Benefactor Murong. Don't try to deceive the martial arts world!

Hearing Xuan Ci say this, Murong Bo became less calm. Was the secret that the Murong family had kept hidden for many years about to be revealed?

He was about to say something when he heard Master Xuanci speak first, "Not long after the incident, I felt something was very strange."

Since Benefactor Xiao had no intention of learning the Shaolin Temple's secret techniques, why did Benefactor Murong try to bewitch this humble monk in such a way?

Upon hearing that there were actually more details to the tragedy from back then, Xiao Yuanshan quickly stopped Murong Bo, who was about to refute the story, and continued to listen to Xuan Ci recount the inside story.

"After making numerous inquiries, I heard the tragic news of the passing of Benefactor Ke Baisui and my junior brother Xuanbei. Only after much investigation did I discover some clues."

"But Benefactor Murong, you and this old monk have been friends for many years. Why must you disturb the peace of the martial world for the sake of your Yan Kingdom's affairs?"

Murong Bo lowered his eyelids. "It's for no reason. Man proposes, God disposes!"

Upon hearing his father's words, Murong Fu immediately understood that his father was willing to incite a war between the military forces of the Song and Liao dynasties in order to revive the Great Yan Dynasty.

But rumors always come to light eventually. In order to protect the reputation of the Murong clan, he had no choice but to fake his death and disappear from the world. Given Xuan Ci's character, he would surely keep it a secret for him.

And that is indeed the case. When Master Xuanci investigated Murong Bo, he found that the mastermind was dead, so he did not pursue the matter any further. He simply ordered people to take good care of Qiao Feng and raise him as a Han Chinese.

This matter had originally been settled, with the parties involved either dead or old, but it was only today, when several key figures gathered together, that it was brought up again.

Upon hearing the inside story of what happened back then, Xiao Yuanshan could no longer tolerate it. He immediately flew into a rage and, along with the emotionally charged Qiao Feng, attacked Murong Bo.

Murong Bo let out a long roar and leaped into the Shaolin Temple. Xiao Yuanshan and his son hurriedly got up and chased after Murong Bo.

Seeing this, Murong Fu broke free from the crowd and chased after the three, but his lightness skill was several levels below theirs, so he could only follow them from a distance.

As for Shaolin Temple, because of Abbot Xuanci's past, they were unsure how to deal with Xuzhu, who was shirtless.

Xuan Ci stroked Xu Zhu's head and sighed softly, "Xu Zhu, Xu Zhu, it's pitiful that you live under my watchful eye every day, yet you don't know that you are my son..."

With tears welling in his eyes, Xu Zhu didn't know whether to call the kind old monk in front of him the abbot or his father, and forced himself to sob:

"Execute him! Xu Zhu will not make things difficult for Shaolin. I will accept all the punishments I deserve. I only wish that Shaolin will allow my family to live in peace and health and pardon my father's crimes!"

Because of Abbot Xuanci's status and position, no one dared to mention it before. Now that Xuzhu brought it up, everyone looked at Xuanci.

Bai Ke knew that in the original novel of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, Abbot Xuanci severed his own meridians and died after being flogged, in order to protect the reputation of Shaolin Temple.

That's how it is in the original story, but Bai Ke wouldn't let Master Xuanci sever his own meridians again. His experiments are one thing, but the future arrival of the Tian Ce Palace will also require the cooperation of this world.

When Xu Zhu was being punished with caning, Ye Erniang rushed to the side and desperately tried to stop the monks who were enforcing the law, but was stopped by Master Xuanci.

Without using his internal energy to protect himself, Xu Zhu was quickly beaten until he was covered in blood, but he managed to suppress it.

He felt that his abbot was getting old and that if he were to be punished again for what happened back then, he might not survive until today. So he wanted to take the punishment in his father's place.

Master Xuanci, holding the weeping Ye Erniang in his hands, murmured a Buddhist chant with compassion in his eyes.

Just as he was about to step forward to accept his punishment, he saw the young man who had previously excelled step forward first.

"Hmm! As expected of Shaolin Temple, truly upholding justice even at the cost of family ties. I admire you greatly. However, I have other important matters to attend to with the Palace Master of Lingjiu Palace. How about we call it quits here?"