Jiang Ning, the man who had been their greatest suspect had been cleared of all suspicion suddenly. What was going on?
Unease churned inside everyone's guts.
Someone as powerful as Ting Chan had been killed. They knew that they were hardly as strong as he had been.
They might be the next one to be killed!
Jiang Ning stood next to the Senior Elder and Liu Chuandao, in front of an army of disciples that were united in will and spirit. If anyone died to step forward and challenge them, they would answer the challenge and fight back fearlessly.
Qingshan Sect was no longer the Qingshan Sect of old. They knew what Jiang Ning meant for them.
As long as Jiang Ning was around, Qingshan Sect had hope. If Jiang Ning was killed, Qingshan Sect would not survive either. No one would be able to.
"Chief, I don't think it's Jiang Ning," said Li
Guang. "He had no reason to kill Master Ting."
He eyed Jiang Ning and arrived at that conclusion. He knew that Jiang Ning wasn't one prone to killing and only fought back when his wrath was incurred. He wouldn't have let Li Guang off that easily otherwise.
"Are you sure?" Li Xuan frowned and asked.
Li Guang didn't say anything more and simply nodded slightly.
He trusted his instincts. Someone else was behind Ting Chan's death. No one knew whom it was, but to put the blame squarely on Jiang Ning now would be to fall for that person's trap. They would be making a terrible mistake.
'Til get to the bottom of this," said Li Xuan. "Jiang Ning, if I find out for certain that you're the murderer, I'll come back again and demand justice for Ting Chan!
Qingshan Sect can't save you then!"
Having said that, he gestured at his disciples and led them away.
It wasn't going to do them any good to get involved in this entanglement recklessly. The other sect leaders kept their silence as they observed the situation.
Besides knowing that Ting Chan had
been killed by the Vajra Fist, they had no evidence to prove that Jiang Ning was the one who killed Ting Chan in addition, Buddha Sect's absence was a blow to their confidence. Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
"Let's go." The chief of the Longkongshan Sect threw Jiang Ning a glance before leading his sect away.
The other sects followed and left, leaving only Tianlian Sect standing there.
The stormy look and twisted features on Luo Qi's face made him look like a demon.
He glared at Jiang Ning with unconcealed hostility in his eyes.
"I'm not going to be taken in by your lies," said Luo Qi.
Jiang Ning didn't bother mincing his words. With a raise of his hand, more than a hundred archers standing behind him got ready to attack.
"Anyone from Tianlian Sect who dares take a step forward will be killed on the spot."
Luo Qi's pupils contracted. He had not expected such aggression from Jiang Ning.
He pulled back the foot that was ready to step forward and nodded. "Fine. I'm going to wait for the day when you're down on your luck and when Qingshan Sect is on the verge of destruction. You'll be on your knees and begging me for mercy then!"
The other sects were long gone. Tianlian Sect couldn't handle Qingshan Sect on its own.
He might not view Liu Chuandao or the rest of Qingshan Sect as a threat, but he knew that Jiang Ning wasn't a character to be trifled with.
He was extremely gifted, powerful
and intelligent as well. The average person wasn't a match for him at all. Luo Qi himself had been duped by Jiang Ning in the past and when he had realized what had been going on, it had been too late.
Liu Chuandao released a sigh of relief after watching the five sects leave.
"I can't believe that Ting Chan is dead." The look on his face was grave. "Did that man do it?"
Jiang Ning had warned him to be wary of Mr Lang. The only person whom he could think of that might have done such a thing was that mysterious man.
The Senior Elder had looked into the man. No one in the mountain had heard of Mr Lang. He wasn't someone from the six major sects. Similarly, other sects had not heard of him before too.
It was as if he had arrived from a place beyond the mountain, like Jiang Ning!