Chapter 17: Found It

"Who?! Who?!" A savage roar echoed through the cave. It was Danyangzi’s voice, and this was the first time he had flown into such a rage.

Danyangzi hadn't been angry when someone escaped earlier, nor when Li Huowang unintentionally offended him with his words. But now, he was furious.

The entire Qingfeng Temple was filled with an oppressive atmosphere. Even the oil lamps hanging on the walls seemed dimmer than usual.

Under Danyangzi’s command, everyone gradually gathered in the main hall for morning lessons.

The air was thick with the smell of blood. The scattered corpses on the ground already proved that Danyangzi had unleashed his unvented fury on some innocent people.

Killing made him feel better, but it wasn't enough, nowhere near enough.

*Plop!* A bloody, head-like mass splattered before everyone.

It was the "Vase Head" Li Huowang had previously broken. Death had dulled her blush, and a deep fear was etched in her vacant eyes.

"Who did this? Who snuck into my room while I was refining pills?!"

Danyangzi’s voice was low and suppressed, like a lion on the verge of erupting. "If you step forward honestly now, I'll grant you a swift death. But if I catch you myself, hmph! I'll make you beg me to kill you!"

The cave was silent. Neither the medicinal ingredients, nor the disciples, nor the child attendants dared to move.

"Fine! No one's speaking, are they? Then I'll ask you one by one! Changming, Changren, what were you doing when I was refining pills?"

The two sword-carrying disciples immediately bowed to Danyangzi. "Reporting to Master, we guarded the main gate of Qingfeng Temple as you instructed, not slacking for a moment!"

Danyangzi, expressionless, walked up to them, scrutinizing their demeanor. After staring until cold sweat dripped from them, Danyangzi slowly looked away. "Xuan Yuan! And you?"

Li Huowang, standing next to Xuan Yuan, felt his heart tighten. He knew it would be his turn next and quickly braced himself internally. *Hold on! As long as he doesn't see through me, I'll win for sure!*

"Xuan Yang! Your turn. Where did you go after delivering the medicinal ingredients today?"

The moment he heard this, Li Huowang blurted out, "This disciple was in the ingredients room, preparing the next batch of medicinal materials for Master."

"Is that so?" Danyangzi walked over. The nauseating stench from him and his suffocating oppressive aura made Li Huowang's body tense to its limit. He finally understood why his senior brothers had been sweating so much earlier.

Time passed minute by minute. Under the immense pressure, beads of sweat accumulated on Li Huowang’s forehead.

Suddenly, he felt a lightness in his body. Just as he thought he had escaped, Danyangzi’s voice rang out again. "Did any of you actually see Xuan Yang in the ingredients room?"

Li Huowang’s gaze followed Danyangzi, who was now standing before Bai Lingmiao and the other medicinal ingredients. He was addressing those "ingredients."

"Think carefully before you speak. Anyone who helps me find out who did this will not only be sent home by me but will also receive travel money."

At these words, the remaining dozen or so disabled individuals in the ingredients room widened their eyes. They wanted to go home, dreaming of escaping this cursed place.

"Master... Brother Li was indeed with us at the time..." Bai Lingmiao, sensing the shift in morale, spoke first.

Danyangzi cast a deep glance at her face. "Oh? What about the others?"

Gou Dan's breathing was ragged, his expression struggling. Finally, he gritted his teeth, stomped his foot, and stepped forward. "Um, Immortal Grandfather, I'll speak! Xuan Yang didn't come to the ingredients room once today! It must be him!"

At this, Xuan Yin, whose face had been deathly pale in the crowd, almost smiled out loud, his lips subtly curving upwards. His life was saved.

Danyangzi turned to look at Li Huowang, then slowly walked to Gou Dan. He swung his right hand, giving him a resounding slap across the face. "Nonsense! Xuan Yang personally delivered the medicinal ingredients this morning! If he didn't go to the ingredients room, where did he get them? Are you trying to die?!"

Gou Dan seemed terrified. He immediately knelt on the ground, snot and tears streaming down his face, kowtowing repeatedly. "Immortal Grandfather, I was wrong. I was momentarily blinded by greed and lied."

Danyangzi looked expressionlessly at Gou Dan, who was so scared he was about to wet himself. The next moment, he suddenly turned and looked at Xuan Yin. "What were you laughing at just now? Are you happy that Xuan Yang was falsely accused?"

At these words, Xuan Yin trembled. The immense pressure emanating from Danyangzi made it almost impossible for him to breathe.

As Danyangzi slowly walked towards him, Xuan Yin’s expression became increasingly frantic. He was so panicked that even those unaware of the truth could tell he was clearly distraught.

Just as Danyangzi reached him, he completely collapsed, slumping to the ground. Yellow urine slowly seeped from beneath his Daoist robe. "Master! This wasn't my idea! Senior Brother Zheng Kun forced me to do it!"

At this, Zheng Kun's expression twisted. He pushed off the hard ground with his feet, bolting towards the cave entrance like a cheetah, leaving a blur behind him.

"So, it was you!" Danyangzi scoffed. He flicked his right sleeve. Amidst the crisp jingle of bells, a verdigris-covered copper coin tumbled and landed on the ground, spinning like a top.

Just as Zheng Kun was about to escape the cave entrance, Danyangzi suddenly lifted and stomped his cloth-shoed right foot, kicking up a cloud of dust.

*Crack!* The copper coin instantly shattered and flew apart. It wasn't just the coin that was torn to pieces; Zheng Kun in the distance suffered the same fate.

His limbs, as if subjected to dismemberment by five horses, were directly ripped off.

Without limbs and bleeding profusely, Zheng Kun was astonishingly still alive, wriggling like a maggot towards the entrance.

"My child, you've been with me the longest. Why did it have to be you?! I should have known; only you could have disabled the restrictions in my room." Danyangzi's grotesque foot pressed down on Zheng Kun's head, stopping his wriggling.

"Master. I... I was wrong, Master. I'm a cripple now, please spare me this one time!"

"Master, when those monks from Zhengde Temple were chasing us, my two blood brothers sacrificed their lives for our escape! Master!"

Danyangzi's foot shifted slightly, pressing Zheng Kun's purplish-red, strained face directly into the ground, completely silencing him.

"My child, do you know? What you think in your heart, I, this Daoist master, knew it all along. You, just like your two brothers, are ungrateful ingrates who can never be truly tamed!" Danyangzi spoke each word distinctly, his foot continuously increasing the pressure.

*Bang!* With an explosive sound, a drop of viscous blood splattered onto Li Huowang's face.