Capítulo 76: Scroll of Crimes
Yaan lay there, half dead and slipping in and out of consciousness.
He had gone beyond his physical limit. He was injured, exhausted, and in no state to continue fighting. He no longer possessed enough energy to even move.
Even as flames burned around him, he still didn't move. He was so drained that he could barely even move his eye lids. He was unable to even think right now. Even a life and death crisis would be unable to rouse a reaction from him in this state…all he could do was lay there, waiting to recover.
Perhaps if he had the energy left to think about his current state, he would worry. But, he did not. Yaan just lay there, vaguely aware of the pressure leaving his body when Zue Yin leapt to her feet and turned to him in shock. She seemed to be yelling something, and she looked…anxious?
Yaan had no idea. Slowly, he closed his eyes….
"Oh no you don't! Don't you dare fall asleep! I forbid it, you hear me?! Damnit, if you don't wake up, you'll definitely die, everyone will target you! You can't die before our rematch damnit!"
Zue Yin felt helpless. She knew just how bad a state Yaan was in, because without the mysterious hat, his appearance, body and aura were all fully exposed to the world. She became increasingly stunned as she examined his wounds. She was dumbfounded that he was actually still alive, despite having sustained so many grievous injuries.
"These injuries are insane, and he was fighting with half of them until just now! A stab wound directly through the heart, severe poisoning, multiple abdominal piercings, six broken bones, multiple fractures, multiple organ rupture, multiple severed arteries, and these burns…" When she looked at his burns, she shuddered slightly. As a practitioner of fire-based techniques, Zue Yin understood the pain of being burned all-too well.
But this pain was the only thinking keeping Yaan just about conscious right now.
"Hey look, that kid is…"
"Should we act…?"
"But Ghu Lin, he's-"
"All of you, scram!" Zue Yin suddenly jumped to her feet and shouted out, glaring at everyone who had gathered around her. "Yaan was betrayed by the Ghu Clan, no matter what they say, it's definitely their betrayal! I hereby declare that Yaan is entering an alliance with the Zue Clan for the remaining duration of this inheritance!"
"Zue Clan?"
"What, the Zue Clan, where?"
"Where are they, I thought that they weren't attending this year because of-"
"Me!" Zue Yin turned bright red, fuming as she cried out aggrievedly. "I'm the Zue Clansman! I'm Zue Yin, my grandfather is Zue Yang, the current Zue Clan Lord, and an Origin Soul Realm powerhouse! Since Yaan saved my life, my Zue Clan will obviously treat him as our guest! If anyone attacks Yaan or myself in this trial, I'll use these talismans to send my grandfather a message, telling him exactly what happened here!"
Everyone stared at Zue Yin, hesitating and looking at one another. After some chatter, they realised that she really was Zue Yin, the young prodigy of the Zue Clan.
Whilst some depraved would take pleasure in destroying this young genius, the majority of the rational-minded folk wanted nothing to do with Zue Yin, who was the most doted on granddaughter of an Origin Soul Realm powerhouse.
Of course, Ghu Lin's backing was even grander than Zue Yin's, he wouldn't be as put-off compared to others. As Zue Yin quickly kneeled down and poured some unknown liquid into Yaan's mouth, her eyes darted about anxiously.
From start to finish, Ghu Lin had been staring at the pair of them, unmoving. Honestly, there was no need for him to rush…Yaan was half-dead at this point, and the corrosive poison that he had been afflicted with was nothing to scoff at - Yaan was no longer a serious threat in this trial.
No, in Ghu Lin's eyes, he was basically already dead.
Ghu Lin glanced back at the Ghu Clansmen and their guests. All of the guests were looking extremely uneasy, whilst even the clansmen eyed Ghu Lin uncertainly.
No matter what, he had ambushed a Ghu Clan guest. Even though Ghu Lin was their leader for this exploration, he didn't hold absolute power over them. If they believed that he was misusing his power, they could choose to stop following him.
Of all the discontentment expressed by those present, Ghu Nadda's was by far the strongest.
"Ghu Lin…!" Nadda growled out. He was feeling aggrieved and confused, but not because of Ghu Lin himself. He felt pained because he knew that Ghu Lin would only do this if he had been ordered to do so by an elder of the clan. And it seemed that the perpetrator…was the North Ghu City Lord.
"Nadda." Ghu Lin turned towards Nadda and spoke plainly. If this had happened back in the 1st trial, Ghu Lin wouldn't have even bothered himself with Nadda. Now though, things were different. He had witnessed Ghu Nadda's abilities in the 3rd trial, Ghu Lin understood that he could not be underestimated.
"Why…? Yaan is a Ghu Clan Guest…no matter what, we do not harm our guests…what reason could you have for doing this? If this was your own decision, then you have broken clan law…if this was an order from above, then is this not clan corruption…?!"
The Ghu Clansmen all stared at Ghu Lin silently. The others wouldn't put themselves at risk by speaking out, but Nadda had said exactly what they were all thinking.
Of course, there was still the official looking scroll in Ghu Lin's hand…
"Ghu Lin, we need an explanation…!" Nadda stared at Ghu Lin fiercely, not backing down by an inch.
After a long moment of silence, during which time Ghu Lin stared at Yaan without responding to Nadda, a faint smile finally appeared on his lips. Startled, Nadda followed the direction of his gaze. Nadda's jaw dropped when he saw that Yaan was slowly sitting up. His movements were slow and painful to watch, but in the end, he actually managed to get back up to his feet! Yaan's body was trembling and he could barely stand, but this was enough to shock most of the people present senseless.
The atmosphere in the 3rd trial became quite strange.
On one side was the Ghu Clan, where Ghu Lin and Ghu Nadda stood at the front, whilst the surviving clansmen and guests lingered behind them.
On the other side, Aque Li led the Aque Clan, along with almost everyone else present. Aque Li stood at the forefront of this group, silently holding the line and preventing anyone from making any movements.
Once Yaan made it to his feet, he exhaled deeply, then briefly moved his gaze towards Aque Li. For a moment, the pair made eye contact. This contact only lasted for a moment, but in this moment, a strange looked flashed through both of their eyes…
Yaan shifted his gaze away, back towards Ghu Lin.
Yaan and Zue Yin stood between the two sides. The pressure that they both felt could not be easily described. This was especially so for Zue Yin. She was struggling to hold herself together mentally with so many unhinged gazes directed towards them. In the end, she decided to focus her attention on Yaan.
"You…how are you standing?" Zue Yin asked him incredulously. Yaan didn't answer at first, but instead consumed another three pills. She recognised all of these pills, causing Zue Yin to swallow. At this point, she looked at Yaan like he was truly a monster.
"Forcing yourself to remain conscious with medicines won't last forever…" She murmured.
"It only needs to last until my body dispels this poison…" Yaan muttered back. The poison was preventing his body's natural healing ability from kicking in, forcing him to sustain himself with recovery pills for now.
"And the burns?" She asked, shivering when she examined the terrifying burns across his body once again.
"They can wait. Burns won't affect my ability to survive."
Zue Yin stared at him in awe for a while. She knew how horrifyingly painful it must be, so she unable to comprehend how someone could stand there with full body third degree burns without so much as batting an eye. In fact, his gaze was actually serene…
No, that was not serenity…his gaze was as cold as ice. Unlike the burning sensation that wracked Yaan's body with agony, his heart turned into a frozen abyss, like a vacuum which had been drained of any emotion.
When he saw this gaze, Ghu Lin's faint smile turned into a light chuckle, before he stepped forwards unhurriedly, returning once again to his unreadable expression.
Yaan stared at Ghu Lin and waited.
Ghu Lin once again pulled out that same scroll from before, before unrolling it and reading out the contents. At this moment, the entire 3rd trial became silent. In the next moment, only Ghu Lin's voice could be heard, but this only made his words sound all the more shocking.
"Yaan, the crimson robed child, whilst a Ghu Clan Guest in name, only gained this position via extortion and manipulation. His five crimes against both the Ghu Clan, and the Ghu Province as a whole, are as follows:
First: withholding information regarding the root cause of the beast tide in the North. Second: selling this information to the Ghu Clan at an exorbitant price, a price that the Ghu Clan had no choice but to accept, in order to quell the beast tide in the North. Third: forcing myself, the North Ghu City Lord, to agree to a poison oath, in order to extort an exorbitant sum of wealth from the Ghu Clan whilst protecting himself from all repercussions. Fourth: Inciting a war between the Ghu Clan and eight of the Northern factions against the Yuso Clan, resulting in the complete annihilation of the Yuso Clan. Fifth: scheming against the Ghu Clan and a Ghu Clan Grand Elder, and making use of the Ghu Clan forces for his own benefit. In summary, the title 'Ghu Clan Guest' was unjustly extorted by Yaan himself, and as such, he should not be considered a true 'Ghu Clan Guest'."
As Ghu Lin read through the list, every syllable that tumbled out from his mouth resonated with the ink on the parchment. The words then appeared high above Ghu Lin's head, such that everyone in the 3rd trial could read the scroll for themselves.
As Ghu Lin spoke, Yaan's eye continually twitched. Whilst everything written on the scroll was technically true, it was a bit of a stretch to say that he had 'extorted' the Ghu Clan, wasn't it? They had engaged in a fair trade, how was that 'extortion'?
However, it was his second 'crime' that allowed him to understand the true reason for the North Ghu City Lord betraying him like this.
'Selling this information to the Ghu Clan at an exorbitant price, a price that the Ghu Clan had no choice but to accept.'
"Hahaha…hahahaha!"
Yaan started laughing. People slowly turned towards him, their expressions now completely different compared to before.
This child…this child with a black corrosive hole in his chest, this child with a body soaked in blood, this child with his flesh burned black all over body, this child with his cold gaze and a mocking smile that seemed to look down on everything around him…
Terrified them.
If everything on the scroll was true, then the recent war in the North, which was responsible for the deaths of three Origin Soul Realm powerhouses…was all because of him?
As Yaan's eery laughter rang out and his smile became exceedingly cold, the abyssal darkness in his eyes became so deep that people would feel lost upon looking into his eyes.
Yaan stared at Ghu Lin and sneered.
"So the city lord decided that rather than paying me back for the Spirit Heart, he would just have me killed in the inheritance? I see…"
Seeing Yaan's smile, Ghu Lin remained silent. Yaan noticed that Ghu Lin had at some point retrieved a concealed blade and hid it in his sleeve as he slowly approached, but he ignored this and went on.
"Hah…I was too foolish. I only wanted to engage in a fair trade for the Spirit Heart, but in the end, the Spirit Heart is too valuable, and I am too weak."
When Yaan mentioned the Spirit Heart out loud, most people had no clue what he was talking about. However, a select few elite's felt their hearts skip a beat. Those people, enticed by the talk of such a rare treasure, suddenly drew in closer, now involving themselves in the battle, which had already started as soon as Ghu Lin started reading the scroll. Ghu Lin noticed this and hurried up his footsteps.
"I was too naive…" Yaan muttered, shaking his head. "I thought that my scheme was so perfect, without a single flaw. It went off without a hitch, it really felt like everything went according to plan…"
Ghu Lin stared at Yaan, not removing his gaze for an instant.
"To dare scheme against an Origin Soul Realm powerhouse, an old monster with hundreds of years of experience…indeed, you were too naive."
"That's true." Yaan smiled, not denying it. His smile made Ghu Lin feel a faint premonition, causing him to halt his approach momentarily. "But scheming against you? Now that…is something I can handle."
Whoosh!
Yaan leapt backwards, ignoring his worsening injuries and using his Agile Sword Arts as he retreated towards the crowd behind him. He stopped before getting too close, because he wanted to be sure that his new 'allies' truly intended to help him.
After the Ghu Clan turned on him, Yaan could no longer fight with them. And so, the natural choice was to switch sides. Earlier, when he made eye contact with Aque Li, they had both immediately understood this point. Just from the look in one another's eyes, they had come to this agreement.
Of course, Yaan wouldn't trust him so easily. It was only when he saw Aque Li step forwards and strike forth with unrestrained might against Ghu Lin, that he had some assurance that Aque Li truly intended to join up with him.
Boom!
"Good." Yaan smiled coldly. He watched as Ghu Lin was sent flying backwards through the air. As the Ghu Clansman flew back, the shockwaves of the impact caused him to drop multiple concealed weapons to the ground.
Yaan briefly glanced back at Aque Li and gave him a faint nod. Aque Li smiled and nodded back as Yaan finally crossed the last few steps, before standing by his side.
"It's funny how things change, isn't it?" Aque Li half laughed and half sighed. Yaan couldn't help but nod.
"Gah! You left me behind! Since when did you make this sort of arrangement, I didn't hear a thing?!" Zue Yin rushed after Yaan. There were a few minor cuts on her arms, but she was otherwise unscathed. She glared at Yaan and Aque Lin, before turning back towards the front. As Ghu Lin was launched backwards, the Ghu Clansmen were all caught off guard. They didn't give chase, but stopped.
Soon after Zue Yin, there were three others who quickly arrived beside their newly formed group. All three were staring at Yaan intently.
"The Spirit Heart, where-"
"I'll tell you before I leave the trial. If I tell you now, there's no way to be sure that you won't immediately turn on us." Yaan cut off the short haired woman bluntly. She became silent and frowned, causing her earrings to shake slightly, but after a moment, she nodded.
The other two men, both of whom hid their faces behind masks, didn't say anything, only nodding to show their agreement.
Zue Yin looked back and forth between everyone, feeling totally lost at this point.
"What's going on, what's a Spirit Heart?!"
"That's not important. What's important is convincing the Ghu Clan to leave us alone for the next 20 hours." Aque Li sighed.
Yaan glanced back towards the Ghu Clan side and saw that Ghu Lin had regathered himself, recovering quickly after taking on Aque Li's attack. He was now speaking to the other Ghu Clansmen, he didn't appear to be in any rush to dive back into the battle.
Following his gaze, Zue Yin saw what was going on, leaving her feeling even more confused.
"What are they doing now…?"
"The Ghu Clansmen are all self-serving to the extreme. Before, the battle was advantageous to their side, because they had me…since I'm a body temperer, the rewards that I receive from killing are a full rank higher than those obtained by Qi refiners." Yaan explained.
It seemed that the others hadn't realised this, because they all stared at Yaan in shock.
"You must be rich! Is that why they had you finish all of the kills?!" Zue Yin asked eagerly.
"Yes, but they also stole about 75% of everything that I earned."
"Still…that's a lot…" The short haired woman looked at him with a flash of greed.
"Try to rob me and you're out of this group." Yaan replied directly. She snorted coldly, but said nothing else.
Turning back to the Ghu Clan, Zue Yin was still confused.
"So you're saying that without you on their side, they won't engage in battle? But don't they still need to kill you? I'm sure that the North Ghu City Lord would reward them, right?"
At this point, Yaan and Aque Li shared a look. They knew what needed to be done. There was only one way to escape from this calamity.
Suddenly, everyone became tense as Ghu Lin started making his way towards them. Behind Ghu Lin was Ghu Nadda, whose expression had turned extremely dark. When he glanced at Yaan, he looked pained, apologetic, conflicted….and enraged.
By Nadda's side, there were two others; a small girl with purple hair, who seemed to be in a daze and not paying much attention to the happenings around her, and a tall and muscular woman, who wore leopardskin around her body…
Both of these individuals were at the 4th Layer Qi Palace Realm.
Yaan's side became extremely solemn. The Ghu Clan was too formidable…who knew how many other hidden characters they still had at their beck and call!
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