Niu Miao was dead.
The fifth martial arts academy student to die within two days. Less than half an hour after Fang Jie and his group left Grand Secretary Niu Huilun's residence, the Imperial Guards took away Niu Miao's body. The Grand Secretary collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down his face, and fainted several times. He never imagined that sending his daughter to the martial arts academy would be a path of no return.
A somber atmosphere hung over the Niu residence.
Leaving aside the identities of the other three students, just considering Yuan Chengshi and Niu Miao—one the son of Yuan Chongwu, the Governor-General of Hebei, and the other the beloved daughter of Grand Secretary Niu Huilun of the Wenyuan Pavilion—their untimely deaths were enough to stir up ripples throughout Chang'an.
The one who came to take Niu Miao's body from the Grand Secretary's residence was Meng Wudi, the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guards, an acquaintance of Fang Jie. During their time in the secret prison, Meng Wudi was a frequent visitor to Fang Jie's stone chamber. Although Fang Jie could see the dislike in Meng Wudi's eyes, there was no hostility. He knew that because of him, Meng Wudi's position in the Imperial Guard was far from what it used to be, and most tragically, he had lost an arm.
Meng Wudi, following routine procedures, led Fang Jie, Marilyn, and Qiu Yu back to the Imperial Guard.
Here, Fang Jie saw four more corpses.
And there was Mo Wanwu, his eyes red, like a raging wolf. Fang Jie didn't think Mo Wanwu was a qualified professor, but he could see that this incident had truly angered and saddened him.
"No matter how you look at it, their deaths seem inextricably linked to the events at Half-Moon Mountain."
Hou Wenji squatted beside Niu Miao's corpse, uncovering the white cloth wrapped around her body. A beautiful female body was revealed, though cold and stiff, its beauty remained. But this beauty evoked more pity than anything else. Such a woman should have had a bright future; marrying into a noble family would have been a certainty, and she would have lived a carefree life. Niu Miao's body had no obvious wounds, only two shallow finger marks on her neck. Her expression remained frozen in the moment before her death, showing little shock. But this didn't mean her killer was someone she knew, nor did it mean the attacker was incredibly fast. Before Niu Miao could even react, her throat had been crushed. She didn't even have time to be surprised before her vibrant life was taken away.
"This killer's finger strength was considerable, his internal energy concealed. If he had used internal energy, perhaps no wounds would be visible on the surface of the body. Perhaps he did this simply to mislead us."
Hou Wenji stood up and walked to another corpse, examining it closely: "The method was different. It was a sneak attack from behind, a palm strike shattering the heart meridian, internal energy gushing out from the back, directly crushing the person's heart into a pile of mangled flesh."
The third person had no wounds or marks whatsoever. Hou Wenji squatted beside the victim, watching for a while before letting out a soft sigh. "The person who did it clearly knew how to deliver a fatal blow. Such a stealthy method seems only found in suspenseful cases. If it were two martial artists fighting, there would never be such a way of dying. Internal energy was poured into the victim's left ear, directly crushing his brain. So on the surface, nothing is visible, but..."
Hou Wenji stood up and said, "The murderer is a novice killer. Although he knows many methods of killing, his movements are clumsy; clearly not an experienced hand."
He pointed to a small spot of blood in the third corpse's ear and said, "Moreover, this person's control over his cultivation power is terrible. If he used it properly, there would be no bleeding. Someone familiar with many killing methods, yet a novice killer... and unable to control his own cultivation power—this person is very strange."
"Could it be that old monk who did it?"
Mo Wanwu, standing to the side, interjected. "No."
"Even though Zhihui fled in a sorry state, he still maintained his dignity. He wouldn't do such a thing. If he wanted to kill and provoke, he wouldn't deliberately hide his cultivation level and identity."
If it wasn't Zhihui, then who else could it be?
"This is the first person killed."
Hou Wenji walked to Yuan Chengshi's body, lifted the white sheet covering it, and said, "Because he was the first person killed, we can find a lot of clues on this body. Almost everything I mentioned can be found on this body. If I'm not mistaken, Yuan Chengshi was the first person the murderer killed in his life. The method was crude, completely amateurish."
"Judging from these bodies, the murderer's cultivation level is very high, but he couldn't use it flexibly at all, especially evident in Yuan Chengshi's body… Yuan Chengshi was a fifth-rank upper-level cultivator, of course, this was just the record he left at the Martial Arts Academy; his actual cultivation level was probably even higher. But even so, he was far inferior to the murderer. To kill him with a single blow, yet leave so many wounds on Yuan Chengshi's body, many of which were unnecessary."
"At the time, Yuan Chengshi was in the Crescent Moon Pavilion having sex with a courtesan. Logically speaking, this is when a man's guard is lowest, making him the easiest target for murder, and the murderer…" "His strength far surpasses Yuan Chengshi's... Under these circumstances, there was still a fight. His first strike only broke three of Yuan Chengshi's ribs, evidence of poor control over his cultivation power. The injured Yuan Chengshi could still jump up and fight back, even grabbing a thin blanket to wrap himself in... It can only be said that this murderer is a powerful idiot."
"I even suspect that when killing Yuan Chengshi, the murderer was more afraid than Yuan Chengshi!"
Hou Wenji walked to another corpse: "This is the second victim. Obviously, the murderer has become much more skilled. At least, a single blow kills. The third, fourth, fifth... It can only be said that the murderer has become increasingly adept at killing. Such a person doesn't need to be sought among renowned assassins in the martial arts world."
"So it's even more difficult."
Fang Jie couldn't help but say, "I told the master this afternoon that even if the murderer swaggered past us now, we wouldn't know he was the murderer."
"That day, when Zhihui escaped, he also took a young man with him, a Sui man!"
Mo Wanwu suddenly exclaimed loudly. "It can't be him."
Hou Wenji shook his head. "That person doesn't understand cultivation, and it's been confirmed that he's indeed a constable from a small county in Jiangnan. Even if Zhihui took him as a disciple, six months... in just six months, he could become a first-rate expert? That's absolutely impossible."
...
...
When Fang Jie and Qiu Yu returned to the Martial Arts Academy, the sky was already as dark as ink. Mo Wanwu seemed to want to say something to Fang Jie, hesitating several times. Fang Jie knew Mo Wanwu felt apologetic, but he truly had no good feelings towards him anymore, so he deliberately kept a distance from him as they walked.
Ma Lilian hadn't recovered from her grief. After returning from Half-Moon Mountain, she and Niu Miao, who had previously been her rivals, became good friends. Because of this, these two people with completely opposite personalities carefully cherished this hard-won friendship, trying their best not to touch anything that might displease the other. In the past six months, their relationship had become extremely close. This time, during the Martial Arts Academy's break, they returned together.
Unexpectedly, less than two days after parting, they were separated forever. Fang Jie wasn't particularly good at comforting girls, so he simply walked silently behind Marilyn. Qiu Yu held Marilyn's hand, offering a few words of quiet comfort, but it didn't make her feel any better. Mo Wanwu walked in front, clearly slowing down several times to wait for Fang Jie to catch up, but Fang Jie didn't give him the chance. Mo Wanwu was slow, and so was Fang Jie.
Qiu Yu told Mo Wanwu to take Marilyn home first, while she and Fang Jie went directly to Dean Zhou's room. Outside the door, Fang Jie couldn't help but glance at the room. Qiu Yu knew what he was thinking and casually said, "Havingn't been able to repair a house in half a year, do you think everyone in the Martial Arts Academy is useless?"
Fang Jie actually nodded seriously and said, "If I could see this dilapidated house, maybe I could still laugh right now."
Dean Zhou sat in the room with a grave expression. Seeing Qiu Yu and Fang Jie enter, he casually pointed to a chair not far away and said, "Sit down and talk, away from my desk."
Fang Jie was startled and loosened his clenched fist from his sleeve. "Since the founding of the Great Sui Dynasty, there has never been a case of students from the Martial Arts Academy being killed one after another. This is the first time… I already know that all five who died were people from the Buddhist sect I met on Half-Moon Mountain."
Dean Zhou stared blankly at the steam rising from his teacup.
"Are you regretting it?"
Fang Jie asked.
Dean Zhou glanced at Fang Jie: "Regret what?"
"Regret that I didn't kill those two guys from the Buddhist sect."
Fang Jie shrugged. "If it really was someone from the Buddhist sect who did the killings, then without a doubt… you, and that Daoist Master Xiao who's hiding in Qingfeng Temple pretending to be a big shot, are the culprits. If you hadn't condoned it, would that old bald monk from the Buddhist sect named Wisdom have escaped?"
"He wasn't the one who killed them, and it shouldn't have been the Sui person he captured."
Dean Zhou didn't seem angry; instead, he answered Fang Jie very seriously. Fang Jie sneered, "Are you sure?"
Dean Zhou nodded, "Although I haven't seen the body, the autopsy report from the Imperial Guard is in my hands. I trust Hou Wenji's judgment; he won't be wrong."
"What you see isn't necessarily the truth, let alone a judgment."
Fang Jie stood up, looking at Qiu Yu, and said, "Sir, I'll go back first. I really can't stand the brand-new smell of that table in this room. Before I impulsively smash it, I'd better leave."
"Smashing that table might calm you down, perhaps," Dean Zhou said calmly.
Fang Jie snorted, curling his lip, "You think you can get me to let it go with a broken table? Even if you're the dean of the Martial Arts Academy, you're dreaming."
He turned and left, extremely nonchalant. Qiu Yu smiled helplessly and said, "He... his resentment is hard to quell."
Dean Zhou smiled and said, "I really am getting old."
Qiu Yu asked, puzzled, "Why do you say that, sir?"
Dean Zhou watched Fang Jie's departing figure and said with some emotion, "If I were twenty years younger, or even ten, would I have such a good temper? A student who dared to be arrogant in front of me would most likely be beaten half to death. But now I don't even have the desire to fight. Aren't I really getting old?"
Qiu Yu was taken aback, and after a moment of silence, said, "Yes... I seem to have gotten beaten up quite a bit, haven't I?"
...
...
The next morning, the students of the Martial Arts Academy returned one after another. After counting the number of students, they found that no more numbers had been added to the list of the dead, and the professors felt slightly relieved. These students were the future pillars of the Great Sui Dynasty; even if they weren't, the death of each of them was a sad loss. Life is only once, and flowers that wither before they bloom are especially heartbreaking.
Just as Fang Jie was about to return to the classroom to teach, someone suddenly called out to him from afar. Fang Jie turned around and saw a carriage, a symbol of royalty, parked not far away. A smiling middle-aged man walked towards him, followed by two beautiful women. He appeared refined and cultured, especially when he smiled, exuding a warm and approachable aura. He had a beard and, despite the cold winter, carried a folding fan.
He wore a sky-blue brocade robe and walked with a steady gait. A careful observer would be astonished to notice that each of his steps was perfectly measured, as if measured with a ruler.
"Young Master Fang."
The man bowed slightly, then smiled and said, "I am the steward of Prince Yi's residence, my name is Qin Liuqi."
Seeing Fang Jie's unusual expression, he said gently, "Do you find my name strange? His Highness once said that everyone has a natural tendency to be lazy; if one can be six or seven parts diligent, one will be an outstanding person. My surname is Qin, so I used the two characters 'six or seven parts'."
He beckoned, took a package from the beautiful woman behind him, and handed it to Fang Jie, saying, "This..." "This is a gift my lord specifically sent for Lord Fang. Things haven't been peaceful in Chang'an these past few days. Lord Fang, you've returned to the Martial Arts Academy, so there's not much to worry about. But my lord said that caution is essential for safe navigation. This soft armor, made of Western Region black silk, is impervious to swords and spears, and impervious to water and fire. It was originally worn by my lord himself, but considering the events of the past two days, he specifically instructed me to send it to you, Lord Fang, as soon as possible."
Fang Jie couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that what can't be avoided will ultimately be avoided.