Chapter 704 685: Standoff

Then, figures arrived from every direction, landing behind Yuwen Ji. Without a word, they stared coldly at the group across from them.

"Yuwen Ji, are you trying to shield him?" The white-haired, white-bearded old man's voice was resonant, carrying far. His face was flushed with anger as he said, "He cruelly murdered a fellow disciple within Celestial Brilliance! As his master, you bear direct responsibility! And now you dare to stand in our way? Yuwen Ji… don't make one mistake after another!"

"What a load of bullshit!" Yuwen Ji's eyes flashed like lightning as he started cursing, "Who the hell do you think you are? An old-timer? A retired Elder? Ptooey! You shameless old dog, what are you barking about? Slandering my disciple… You think you're worthy? Coming to my Medicine Garden to run wild, why don't you piss in a puddle and take a good look at yourself!"

"You… you're courting death!" The white-haired, white-bearded old man was livid. Though he hadn't retired as an Elder, he had once served as a Senior Deacon. His cultivation had now reached the Venerable Realm, and he commanded great respect wherever he went. Who would dare curse him like this?

"Courting death my ass!" Fire seemed to shoot from Yuwen Ji's eyes. He was truly losing his mind with rage. Ever since morning, people had been streaming in from all over, pointing their fingers at Luo Tian as Jin Xian's killer and demanding that he be handed over.

While he was still tied up arguing with those people, this new group had charged straight to the place where Luo Tian was recuperating, intending to take him away by force.

This showed a complete and utter lack of respect for the Medicine Garden. They had trampled all over the Medicine Garden's bottom line!

If he didn't step in and just let this happen, forget what outsiders would think—even he himself would lose all self-respect!

"Yuwen Ji, remember your station! You are, after all, a Grand Elder of Celestial Brilliance. You may be in charge of the Medicine Garden, but it is not your personal property! Your disciple is a murder suspect. What you should be doing is cooperating… and handing him over!"

Standing beside the white-haired elder was another old man. Though lean and wiry, he was full of vigor, with eyes that flashed like electricity. He was dressed in a gray robe.

This was a true figure of the elder generation. His surname was Jin and his name was Jin Shen. In terms of kinship, he was of the same generation as Jin Ming and Jin Xian's great-grandfather.

Jin Shen had once served a term as an Elder of Celestial Brilliance. While his power and status had never reached Yuwen Ji's level, he had been a formidable figure in his day.

Although he had been retired for many years, his old authority lingered. When he spoke, an air of natural dignity and command flowed from him.

There was a crowd of people with him, including Jin Ming. Though he had yet to retaliate after being berated by Yuwen Ji, his eyes glittered with a furious rage. At this moment, they were all glaring at the group blocking their path.

The two sides stared at each other, their expressions icy. The air was thick with tension, ready to explode at the slightest touch.

Yuwen Ji threw his head back and laughed. "Hahaha! A fine 'remember your station'! A fine 'my disciple is a murder suspect'! A whole mob of you bearing down on us, with not a shred of evidence, and you dare to come here slinging mud. Just wonderful!"

"I'll say it again: if you want to get inside, you'll have to do it over my dead body. Otherwise, all of you can just get the hell out!"

The Medicine Garden's Second Elder, Thunderstorm, looked at the crowd and said coldly, "Our Medicine Garden Disciple, Luo Tian, was just ambushed by an assassin. He is heavily injured and recuperating. For you to charge in here so brazenly to arrest him—isn't that going a bit too far?"

"We, the Elders of the Medicine Garden, can all testify to this. Given Luo Tian's injuries, it would normally take twenty days to a month for him to fully recover. Even with his special constitution and powerful physique, he'd need at least a dozen days of rest to be seventy or eighty percent healed. It's only been a day or two, yet you come charging in to arrest him, claiming he murdered a fellow disciple…"

Eighth Elder Lu Xue's gaze was glacial. A sarcastic smile touched her lips as she looked at the opposing crowd. "Even if you don't think you're going too far, you should at least have some common sense, shouldn't you? It's one thing for one or two of you to be brainless, but for so many of you to swarm over here… did none of you bring your brains?"

Lu Xue's words made the expressions of many in the opposing crowd turn even uglier.

It was true. Early that morning, the moment they heard the news of Jin Ming's brother being killed, they had all scrambled to be the first to get here.

They were all supporters of Jin Ming's rise to power, and each was afraid of arriving late and letting someone else get the jump on them. They all wanted to leave a deep impression on Jin Ming, so who had time to think things through?

Besides, the news they received said Jin Xian had been murdered, and that the killer, ten to one, was Luo Tian!

Despite the Medicine Garden's dazzling performance and newfound prestige at this year's annual competition, how could an impression built over so many years be changed so easily?

In the minds of these old-timers, the Medicine Garden was still the same weak, fragile institution it had always been—a total pushover.

'A good performance at the annual competition? They're just a bunch of young disciples at the Saint Realm. Hardly worth mentioning!'

What they hadn't expected was to be met with such fierce resistance upon arriving at the Medicine Garden, at the very place Luo Tian was recuperating. Even the Medicine Garden's Grand Elder, Yuwen Ji, had become incredibly forceful.

This made them all very uncomfortable.

Many even began to wonder, 'Where is Yuwen Ji getting all this confidence from?'

'Could it just be because the Sect Leader holds Luo Tian in high regard?'

'That would be too naive!'

'Don't they know that the real power in Celestial Brilliance lies with the Heritage Clans and the old-timers?'

A furious rage blazed in Jin Ming's chest. He and his brother had always been close. Though Jin Xian could be a blockhead and do foolish things at times, his intentions… they were always for his elder brother's sake.

Most importantly, he had been with his brother just last night. He had even brought him that Defense Array, and had only left after watching it being set up.

And then, early this morning, he received the devastating news that his brother was missing.

Jin Ming simply couldn't accept this cruel reality.

The first person he thought of was Luo Tian.

Because he knew better than anyone that the assassin, Wind… had been hired by his brother! And Jin Ming was convinced that Luo Tian, ten to one… knew about it as well!

'In that case, with his brother murdered… was there any doubt about the killer's identity?'

"It was Luo Tian!"

Jin Ming's eyes were bloodshot. He gritted his teeth and said, "There's nothing more to say. The killer must be Luo Tian! Otherwise, why won't you let us inside to see for ourselves?"

"See for yourselves? See what? What a joke. Is it true just because you say it is?" Elder Qi, Zou Yuan, looked coldly at Jin Ming. He was starting to see this famous young prodigy of Celestial Brilliance in a new light.

Ever since joining Celestial Brilliance, Jin Ming had borne the title of the number one prodigy of the younger generation. His talent was exceptional, his cultivation speed was astonishing, and in every respect… he had always been outstanding.

For a long time, many people, including Zou Yuan, had thought very highly of Jin Ming, believing it was only natural that he would become the successor to the next Sect Leader.

But ever since Luo Tian appeared, Jin Ming had come out on the losing end of all their indirect confrontations.

This had led many people to start doubting the abilities of this so-called number one genius of Celestial Brilliance's younger generation.

It felt as if the various halos that once surrounded Jin Ming… were becoming illusory, not quite so real anymore.

The recent assassination attempt on Luo Tian, in particular, had cast suspicion directly onto Jin Ming.

There was no proof, of course, but when did the human heart… ever truly need proof?

A gut feeling… was enough.

It was just like with Luo Tian's injury; there was no direct evidence linking it to the Jin brothers. Although they had tracked down one of Jin Xian's attendants, the man had vanished. A dead end.

By the same token, there was actually no evidence that Jin Xian's death was related to Luo Tian, yet here this crowd was.

And they were aggressive, impossibly so.

Elder Qi's gaze was icy. He sensed something in Jin Ming that reminded him of his own deceased disciple, Chu Lin.

'Magnificent and grand on the outside, but acid-tongued and mean-spirited to the bone! Full of spirit when they haven't faced a setback, but the moment they meet the slightest opposition, their narrow minds can fixate on nothing else!'

Elder Qi looked at Jin Ming with a hint of pity. He suddenly felt that no matter how he looked at it… the man simply didn't have the bearing of a successor to the Sect Leader.

'I was so blind before! I didn't see Chu Lin for who he was, and I didn't see Jin Ming either!' Elder Qi, Zou Yuan, sighed internally.

Jin Ming had nearly lost all reason. Ever since Luo Tian had appeared in Celestial Brilliance, nothing had gone his way. He had watched as the halos of glory that were once his were snatched away one by one, and his heart was already filled with a deep-seated hatred for the man.

Now that he was convinced this was the man who had killed his brother, how could he possibly let it go?

Jin Ming took a step forward and said coldly, "The truth of the matter isn't for you to decide. Even if you are respected Elders, you can't just cover up the truth. The fact that you're obstructing us proves you have something to hide!"

"Brat, it's not your place to pass judgment on us! Remember… you are currently just a disciple of Celestial Brilliance! You… are not qualified to speak to us this way!" Third Elder Gu Ning's tone was peaceful, but his words only made Jin Ming even more furious.

"So you're saying… you refuse to step aside?" Jin Ming's voice grew colder, and his aura intensified.

More and more people arrived from all directions, gathering behind Jin Ming until their numbers swelled to several hundred.

These were all Jin Ming's supporters. Their eyes were cold, brimming with battle intent. In their view, the Celestial Brilliance Medicine Garden was utterly insignificant. They were certain that even if the Sect Leader himself showed up… he would never risk a conflict with the powerful Jin Family of Xi Hezhou for the sake of the Medicine Garden.

However, to the surprise of many of Jin Ming's supporters, a large number of people who weren't even Medicine Garden disciples also arrived from all over, taking a stand with the Medicine Garden.

Even Yuwen Ji and the other Elders were astonished. Only now did they suddenly realize that, without them even noticing, Luo Tian had already built up a terrifying amount of influence within Celestial Brilliance.

This wasn't some trivial matter, after all; it was a murder case, and incredibly sensitive. If it was truly confirmed that Xu Luo was Jin Xian's killer, then these supporters who had rushed here would inevitably be implicated.

Everyone surely understood this… but still, they came without a moment's hesitation.

Just then, another figure descended from the sky, causing a stir in the crowd.

It was none other than Lv Di—the very person who had cultivated the True Dragon Armor during the annual competition, only to be defeated at Luo Tian's hands.

His arrival made Jin Ming's expression… even more unsightly.

Because Lv Di walked directly over to Yuwen Ji's side and stated calmly, "I believe Luo Tian. I support him!"