Immortal Dao is dead, I am the mastermind behind it all.

Outside Zhou Zhanpeng's study at Kongsang Academy.

The atmosphere was solemn and somewhat oppressive.

Jiang Qingshui wore a plain white robe and stood tall and straight like a pine tree. His face was seven parts similar to Jiang Zhi Qiu's, but his brows had a sharp and brooding air about them, as if he had been in a high position for a long time.

He stood alone at the school gate without any attendants, bowing deeply to the tightly closed wooden door.

"Jiang Qingshui greets Instructor Zhou."

His voice was clear and bright, yet it carried a hint of deep sorrow.

Inside the schoolhouse, Zhou Zhanpeng, with his white hair and beard, sat upright, the tea in front of him already cold. He heard the sound outside the door, and his aged body trembled slightly.

It's here, it's finally here.

"Come in," Zhou Zhanpeng said, his voice a little hoarse.

Jiang Qingshui pushed open the door and entered. The room was simply furnished, but filled with a scholarly atmosphere.

His gaze swept over an inkstone on the desk, his pupils contracting slightly. It was a coming-of-age gift he had given to his younger brother.

"Instructor Zhou, my younger brother owes a great debt of gratitude to you for your meticulous guidance when he was alive." Jiang Qingshui bowed again, his posture impeccable.

Zhou Zhanpeng quickly rose to help him up, sighing, "Young Master Jiang, please accept my condolences. Zhi Qiu... he was my most promising student, intelligent and eager to learn. I never expected him to suffer such a misfortune. I am heartbroken, truly heartbroken!"

The old teacher pounded his chest, his face filled with genuine grief and self-reproach.

Jiang Qingshui looked at him quietly without saying a word.

Only after Zhou Zhanpeng's emotions had calmed down a little did he slowly speak, each word like a nail striking Zhou Zhanpeng's heart.

"Instructor, the Weidao Division's explanation is that my younger brother accidentally entered the territory of the monsters in the Ten Thousand Mountains and unfortunately perished. I've seen the file, and it's written very... carelessly."

He deliberately emphasized the word "sloppy".

This is completely different from what he saw on the Jiuge website.

Jiang Zhiqi was hung on the city gate, his death was extremely tragic.

The Holy Court has officially refuted the rumors, stating that the death image of Inspector Jiang was created by illusion, and that someone with ulterior motives is trying to add fuel to the fire behind the scenes.

Zhou Zhanpeng's forehead was beaded with sweat: "This... the Guardians of the Way may have their own procedures for handling cases."

"Articles of association?!"

Jiang Qingshui's lips curled into a cold smile.

"A rotten skeleton, a few strands of demonic beast hair, and it's declared to be the work of a demonic beast. Not even the type of beast or its rank is specified. Is this the code of conduct for Kongsang County?"

"Even the final image of the soul lamp that appeared before death was defined as an illusion, so how much of what happens in this world is real?"

Zhou Zhanpeng was speechless.

Jiang Qingshui took a step closer, his gaze piercing: "Instructor Zhou, you are my younger brother's most respected teacher. He was in contact with you a few days before he disappeared."

Did he mention any strange people or things when he was leaving?

Zhou Zhanpeng's eyes darted away, the scene of Jiang Zhi Qiu's last visit to him flashing through his mind.

The diligent and studious young man was holding a yellowed county gazetteer and asking him some obscure questions about the ancient rituals and formations of Kongsang County.

Jiang Zhi Qiu also recounted to his mentor his experiences since his early days in the Holy Court, including the Human-Faced Longevity Fruit and its inhumane cannibalism...

He also mentioned the anomaly of the "Kongsang County Four Seasons Grand Array," saying that the moisture in the county town felt much denser than in previous years, which seemed to be related to some kind of water-drawing array recorded in ancient books.

At the time, Zhou Zhanpeng simply thought it was a student's whimsical idea and did not investigate it further.

However, this matter involves the fundamental formation of Kongsang County. If we speak nonsense, it could cause us a huge problem.

He was just a teacher with no background, and his cultivation was only at the Transcendental stage. He didn't have the resources to enter the Purple Mansion realm and couldn't afford such consequences.

After chatting with his master, Jiang Zhi Qiu received his mission and hurriedly piloted his flying boat towards the Ten Thousand Mountains, without even having time to change out of his academic gown.

"No." Zhou Zhanpeng shook his head with difficulty.

"Zhi Qiu didn't mention anything unusual before he left."

Jiang Qingshui gave him a deep look, her gaze seemingly able to see right through him.

He didn't ask any further questions, but silently withdrew his gaze, looking disappointed, and bowed again.

"I apologize for troubling you, Instructor. My younger brother's belongings were once kept at the academy. I hope you will take the trouble to sort them out. I will come to collect them another day."

After saying that, he turned and left, his back view resolute and lonely.

Zhou Zhanpeng stared in the direction he had left, then slumped into a chair, his body drenched in cold sweat.

He knew he was hiding something.

He also knew that the other party must have noticed his concealment.

Shen San, hiding in the crowd outside the academy, witnessed the entire scene.

Shen Moyan's true self clearly sketched in his mind Zhou Zhanpeng's guilty expression and Jiang Qingshui's cold gratitude that didn't reach her eyes.

"Interesting," Shen Moyan thought to himself, "They both know the truth, but neither of them exposes the other."

Shen Moyan was somewhat surprised.

Unexpectedly, the Holy Court's Guardian Division did not act because of public opinion, but instead tried to distort the cause of Jiang Zhi Qiu's death.

Shen Moyan clearly saw how Jiang Zhiqi was hung at the city gate that day. How could such an obvious truth be distorted?

"Who exactly is it? Who possesses such power, able to cover up the truth and distort the facts?"

Shen Moyan fell into deep thought, then suddenly jolted awake.

After Dongshan City was destroyed that day, all mortals died. Apart from the people of Biyang Sword Sect, the only witnesses were those rogue cultivators.

But Ni Gaoyuan and his group had already been killed by him.

In other words, there were no witnesses to Jiang Zhiqi's death, and no one could testify to the truth.

Only Shen Moyan knew that the rumors circulating on Jiuge.com were true.

…………

The Cen family mansion was shrouded in gloom and despair.

"Shen Er" was disguised as Cen Zhiyuan and hid in a corner of the Cen family's backyard, quietly listening to the sounds inside the main hall.

After learning that the Cen family had a formation that could monitor the entry and exit of their clansmen, he searched in secret for three days and finally found the Cen family's formation eye, a blind spot in their surveillance.

This location is excellent; it allows one to use their divine sense to perceive the activity within the mansion and to observe the people entering and leaving the Cen family residence.

At this moment, inside the main hall of the Cen family.

The crisp sound of porcelain shattering was accompanied by Cen Jing's furious roar.

"Don't think I don't know what you've been doing behind my back! This time, your entire family will be ruined!"

Cen Jing's voice was filled with fury; he was like an old rabbit cornered on the edge of a cliff, his fur standing on end.

Cen Gewu knelt in the main hall, kowtowing and prostrating himself on the ground.

When the head of the family learned that he had taken over the property of a branch of the clan, Cen Gewu was not surprised.

But this little thing of mine only affects me at most; compared to that other matter, it's nothing.

What enraged Cen Jing was not the embezzlement of his clansmen's property, but a deal he had accepted four years ago out of greed.

If someone commissions the Kongsang Merchant Guild to secretly transport goods to Dongshan City, which is located around the Ten Thousand Mountains, they will be given 10,000 spirit stones.

Cen Gewu initially thought this was a windfall, so he sent Cen Zhihong and his son Cen Zhiyuan to do it.

Even if there are problems, the money is still in my own hands. Anyway, I'm not the one who's at risk, so I won't lose anything.

Although he received a substantial commission, he never expected that the goods would cause such a stir.

"What is a True Lord? A being who can destroy the world with a mere wave of their hand!"

"Even if we're just implicated, we'll be found out. Now that the Jiang family has come knocking, if the investigation traces back to us, the entire Cen family will be dragged down with you!"

The location where Cen Zhihong and his son delivered goods was a city that had fallen, where a city lord with a True Monarch background and an inspector with a powerful clan background had died.

The Cen family was completely innocent victims, becoming pawns used by someone behind the scenes to avoid the consequences.

If those two parties investigate thoroughly and find out the Cen family's involvement, even if Cen Jing brings out his ancestor, he won't be able to resolve the matter.

One cannot fathom the thoughts of important figures; it would be disastrous if that True Lord wanted to vent his anger by killing the Cen family.

"Master, are we... truly at our wits' end?"

Cen Gewu knelt on the ground, trembling all over.

"That's why I asked you to do your best to compile the list provided by the Construction and Maintenance Department."

"As long as we get involved with the Demon Suppression Division, even if it's just helping them a little, the Jiang family will give my Cen family a chance to survive out of respect for them."

"After the handover of 'Cen Zhiyuan' is completed tomorrow, you should lead your clansmen out of the city." Cen Jing sighed and slumped into the patriarch's chair.

If the Cen family hadn't been facing a generational gap, he wouldn't have entrusted this important matter to Cen Gewu.

"If my Cen family cannot survive this calamity, the future will be in your hands."

Mistakes lead to profound growth. Having experienced today's calamity that has affected the entire clan, Cen Gewu will surely learn from this profound lesson and lead the Cen family away from this place of trouble.