Chapter 346 173: Jiang Ran, You Brat

"Who's this now?"

Dao Wuming explained.

After hearing Dao Wuming's story about Golden Bell and Mr. Yin Xian, the full picture of the incident finally became clear.

Just as he had guessed, the pair had indeed submitted to the Court for the sake of the Falling Star Pearl.

Only after that did the matter of seeking an elixir of immortality for the late emperor arise.

In the end, it was unknown whether they had found the elixir of immortality.

But they did find the "Greatest Sorrow of All Time" from the Eighteen Celestial Demon Records.

And that led to the tragedy of their family, and of the countless people who had passed through this place over the years.

Thinking of this, Jiang Ran glanced at Tang Huayi.

'This Tang Huayi may be charming and cute,' he thought, 'but the Demon Sect's methods are still absurd and bizarre. They seem casual, but they are capable of the utmost cruelty.'

'I absolutely cannot let myself be bewitched by this little demoness from the Demon Sect.'

But then he remembered how everyone else had been fleeing just moments ago, while Tang Huayi had waited for him, even as the lava surged right before her eyes...

A wave of complicated feelings washed over him.

Tang Huayi didn't seem to notice Jiang Ran's gaze. She reached out and patted down Zhi'Er's body for a moment, then suddenly said softly,

"There's something here."

She pulled out a scroll.

She glanced at Jiang Ran.

"Feng Wu, the young master of Qifeng Manor, had a steel needle inserted into his brain by Mr. Yin Xian.

"Since this scroll was taken from his son's body, it might contain a way to save him..."

Hearing this, Ning Jiuyuan's eyes lit up.

Mr. Yin Xian's death had been too sudden; she hadn't had time to capture him and force him to remove the needle.

Now that there was a new clue, it was the best news she could hope for.

She subconsciously reached out to snatch it, but then controlled herself.

"Young Hero Li, may I see it?"

Tang Huayi said nothing, simply tossing it to Jiang Ran with a flick of her wrist.

Jiang Ran checked it briefly to confirm it wasn't poisoned before slowly unrolling the scroll.

Following the text, Jiang Ran's brow furrowed as he read.

"This actually happened?"

"What is it?"

Ning Jiuyuan asked hurriedly, "Young Hero Jiang, what does it say?"

"It records some events from the past."

Jiang Ran said softly,

"The official who came here back then was indeed from the Astronomical Bureau. Their purpose in coming here was to find the 'Sorrow.'

"Golden Bell and Mr. Yin Xian used their secret Feng Shui technique to be the first to find the 'Sorrow.'

"But they didn't plan to hand it over to the late emperor. Instead, they killed the leading official from the Astronomical Bureau.

"After cutting off his head, the matter was, for them, concluded..."

Hearing this, everyone frowned.

After all, given the circumstances, the events of that year must have been a major affair. It involved the life and death of the late emperor—how could it have been dropped so easily?

Jiang Ran glanced at Dao Wuming.

"He also wrote a line here: 'Matters in the Court are all being handled by them; I expect no issues.'"

"Them..."

Dao Wuming's expression changed, and he hurried over to look.

"So, they weren't acting alone back then. They were colluding with others... These people dared to scheme against the late emperor. What on earth are they trying to do?"

What on earth are they trying to do...

The question was asked, but no one answered.

They dared to plot against an emperor. What else could they possibly want?

Dao Wuming's gaze grew distant. He seemed to have thought of something, but then he just sighed.

"Never mind, never mind. It's best to let this matter drop."

"I have a guess what you're thinking,"

Jiang Ran said, giving him an odd look.

"...Unspeakable!"

Dao Wuming shook his head. "Even if you are part of the martial world, you shouldn't speak carelessly."

But Jiang Ran waved his hand.

"What I meant to say is, I suspect you've guessed wrong."

"Wrong?"

Dao Wuming froze. He glanced around, then pulled Jiang Ran into a corner and asked in a low voice, "Why? Logically speaking, with the late emperor lingering on his deathbed, the one who would least want him... want him to recover... would have to be *that* person!"

Jiang Ran just smiled and said,

"But if that were the case, *that person* would surely know the secret of this place.

"Why would they let it be?"

"..."

Dao Wuming stared blankly, suddenly realizing that Jiang Ran made perfect sense.

Besides, the current emperor loves his people as if they were his own children. If he truly knew what was happening at Qiuci Posthouse, he would never let it continue, for reasons both public and private.

Thinking of this, Dao Wuming took a deep breath, feeling a renewed sense of purpose.

But Jiang Ran clapped him on the shoulder.

"However, if you really want to investigate this, you'd better watch your own head.

"You absolutely must not leave any traces...

"Because if *that person* was behind this, investigating them would be suicide.

"And if they weren't... then this group is hidden within the royal Court, manipulating the life and death of the late emperor. Their ambitions are far from ordinary.

"If you leak even the slightest detail, you could bring a fatal disaster upon yourself.

"Finally, as for what happened at Qiuci Posthouse, you'd best keep your mouth shut. It's better if we all just pretend it never happened.

"Otherwise, it involves the late emperor's scandal... The imperial family's reputation, heh heh."

Dao Wuming pursed his lips.

"Why does it feel like you're more of a court official than I am?"

"I'm just well-traveled and experienced."

Jiang Ran felt for the Falling Star Pearl in his breast pocket and continued to read the scroll.

The next section revealed that they had not actually found the "Greatest Sorrow of All Time" here.

They had only found the 'Method for Forging Sorrow.'

They studied it painstakingly but repeatedly hit dead ends. Finally, Lady Golden Bell proposed that Mr. Yin Xian use it to forge her into the 'Sorrow.'

It was from this point on that many of the entries became disjointed.

Jiang Ran guessed that this was when Mr. Yin Xian's mind began to collapse.

The subsequent entries were chaotic and disorganized.

Many of them expressed a will to die, a desire to end it all... but then the following entries would ramble about other things.

Jiang Ran speculated that Mr. Yin Xian had probably lost the will to live back when Lady Golden Bell died to become the 'Sorrow,' and their son was left to cling to a half-life in this world, sustained only by the Falling Star Pearl.

But he tried the "Greatest Sorrow of All Time" on himself and ended up driving himself mad.

His obsession took over, suppressing his suicidal thoughts, and so he wasted away for years, single-handedly creating a trail of bloody murders.

Reading further, Jiang Ran found Mr. Yin Xian's years of research, which did indeed contain a method for saving Feng Wu.

Just as he was about to try and save the man, a voice slowly echoed into the hall:

"Jiang Ran, you brat, come out and meet your death!!"