The three of them were shocked again. Jade Luosha asked,""May I ask, when did Jingmiao go missing?”
Nun Jingye said," When disciples of Emei go down the mountain to travel in Jianghu, we will send a message to the sect every five days. Ten days ago, when Senior Sister Jingmiao's body was sent back, she was very sad and then very angry. She said that she must find the real murderer and avenge Senior Sister Jingmiao. The next day, she left the mountain alone in a hurry. Now, it has been more than seven days since she left the mountain, but there is no news. Senior Sister Jingmiao never acted like this before. She would send someone to send a message back every five days to tell her that she was safe. But now…we're all worried that Senior Sister Jing Miao might meet with an accident, so we sealed the mountain and forbade all Jianghu people from entering Emei.”
Jade Raksha consoled them." Don't be too sad. Perhaps Jingmiao had something else to do and delayed the delivery of the letter. She has only left the mountain for seven days. We might as well wait and see."”
"Priestesses, I want to go to Priestess Jingxiang's…mourning hall to take a look. Is it convenient?" Xu Zhutao said.”
Nun Jingyu said," That's not inconvenient. After Junior Sister Jingxue's body went missing, we all wanted to find the body and let Junior Sister rest in peace, so we didn't touch any of the arrangements in the mourning hall."”
Jing Yu and Jing Ye led the three of them through the main hall of the hall and to the left to a side room. The three of them looked around and saw a row of hanging curtains on both sides of the mourning hall. In the middle was a coffin. The room was decorated with elegiac couplets, memorial tablets, and sacrificial tables. On the sacrificial table was a tribute. There was a window on the left side of the mourning hall, and outside the window was the back mountain of the hall.
Xu Zhutao walked closer to the coffin and saw that it was a coffin made of high-quality nanmu wood. It was painted black, and the lid of the coffin had been opened. The coffin lid fell to the ground. It was obvious that the coffin was not nailed. The inside of the coffin and the back of the coffin lid were decorated with a very clean layer of yellow satin. There was a jade pillow on the wider end of the coffin, but there was no jewelry or other things. Xu Zhutao thought that they probably advocated simplicity and thrift, so it was not strange that there were no burial items. He looked at the coffin carefully again and saw that there seemed to be a few faint stains on the yellow satin on both sides of the coffin near the jade pillow. He then looked at the yellow satin on the back of the coffin cover. There seemed to be a faint stain on the yellow satin on the wider end of the coffin cover. He thought for a long time and still couldn't understand. The yellow satin in the coffin was so clean and tidy. How could there be a stain on the head of the coffin?
"May I ask the two nuns, how long did it take for her body to disappear?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
Nun Jingyu said," Ten days ago, on the night the corpse was sent back, the spirit stopped here. Two days later, a disciple came to offer incense to pay his respects but found that the coffin lid had been opened. Junior Sister Jingchen's corpse had disappeared."”
Xu Zhutao continued," The Dabie Mountains are not close to here. It must have taken a long time to send the corpse back, and the spirit was stopped for two days. Senior, did you use any medicine to preserve the corpse?"”
"The corpse was sent back by a fast horse. It will be back here in four days."”
Xu Zhutao scratched his head and pondered." It's summer now. It took four days for the corpse to be sent back, and the spirit had stopped for two days. In this weather, the corpse's flesh is not far from rotting after six days of death. Moreover, the nuns didn't use any special medicine to preserve the corpse..."
Nun Jingyu said," This matter is quite strange. When we sent Junior Sister Jingxiang's corpse back, we checked if there were any injuries on her body, but there was no strange smell at all. Even after she stopped breathing for two days, there was no strange smell at all."”
"Then did you clean Nun Jingxiang's body when she was sent back?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
Nun Jingyu said,"It was slightly cleaned. I instructed my disciple to wipe it with a wet cloth."”
"Senior, do you suspect that the death of Nun Jingxiang and the disappearance of Nun Jingmiao are related to the Demonic Sect?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
Nun Jingyu said," Our sect only has a grudge against the Demonic Sect. The incident happened after our disciples went down the mountain to investigate the traces of the Demonic Sect. Moreover, the first person who attacked was an elder of our four sects. Such a deep grudge. If it wasn't for the Demonic Sect, who else would be so bold?"”
Xu Zhutao pondered for a moment and said,"Priestesses, I want to see the disciple of your sect who followed Priestess Jing Huang to the Dabie Mountains. Can you arrange it for me?"”
"My sect's disciple is called Ju Jianshuang. She's Junior Sister Jingchen's disciple," said Nun Jingyu.”After a pause, he said to Nun Jingye,"Junior Sister, ask Ruohua to bring that girl here!”
Nun Jingye went to make arrangements.
Nun Jingyu's expression was rather solemn as she fell into deep thought.
Not long after, Lu Ruohua brought back a woman. She was about twenty years old and had delicate features. She looked haggard and wore a white dress. She came in and bowed to Jingyu and Jingye.
Nun Jingyu pointed at Xu Zhutao and said," Jian Shuang, this is the White Horse Prince Xu Zhutao. If he has any questions later, you must answer truthfully. Don't hide a single word!"”
Ju Jianshuang cupped her fists at Xu Zhutao and said,"Young Master, if you have anything to ask, I will definitely answer it!”
Xu Zhutao stared at her coldly and asked,""May I ask Miss Ju, has the four seniors decided to meet in the Dabie Mountains? Or did he choose the Dabie Mountains on a whim?”
"Before I set off, my master told me that I was going to the Dabie Mountains." Ju Jianshuang replied.”
"In other words, the four Seniors already knew that they were going to gather at the Dabie Mountains before they set off. So, who was the first to propose the location of the Dabie Mountains?" Xu Zhutao asked. Other than the four of you accompanying disciples, does anyone else know that the four seniors are heading to the Dabie Mountains?”
Ju Jianshuang replied," I don't know who first suggested the location of the Dabie Mountains. I asked my master before I set off, but he didn't say anything." On the night of the death of the four elders, the four of us accompanying disciples also discussed this issue. The four of us knew that it was difficult to escape suspicion.”Her eyes were clear and her expression was not flustered as she spoke.
"Then, did any of your four accompanying disciples leave halfway?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
Ju Jianshuang said," When my master and I arrived at the Dabie Mountains, the other three elders and their disciples were already waiting for us. After we gathered, no one left midway. However, when we talked about our suspicions later, Wudang's Senior Martial Brother Cha Yu and Shaolin's Senior Martial Brother Hui Ming both mentioned that their master had been summoned by their sect master before he left.”
"What did the four seniors eat after entering the Dabie Mountains?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
"We packed food before entering the mountain, and we also brought our own dry rations." Ju Jianshuang said.”
Xu Zhutao's eyes became sharp, staring at Ju Jianshuang like two sharp blades. He said,"Is your teacher's food and daily life taken care of by Young Lady?”
"Yes," Ju Jianshuang replied. I took care of my master's daily life along the way.”Her expression was calm and her eyes were clear. She did not show any discomfort because of Xu Zhutao's sharp gaze.
"Did you notice anything unusual when you were taking care of your teacher?"”
"My master didn't have any abnormalities before he passed away," Ju Jianshuang replied.”
Xu Zhutao thought for a while and said,"Her eyes were clear, and she didn't seem to be lying. If no one leaked the location of the four seniors, how would the murderer know that they were in the Dabie Mountains? If there was one person who leaked the whereabouts of the four seniors, who was the most likely person? The death of Nun Jinghong and the disappearance of Nun Jingmiao happened after Miss Xiang and the others left the mountain. It seems that the Devil Cult is the most suspicious, but it seems to be a bit arbitrary to directly determine that it is the Devil Cult. I must not be prejudiced.”"Thank you for your cooperation, Miss Ju. If your master knows, he will bless us and help us find the murderer to avenge her."”
"Could it be that Young Master suspects that someone intentionally leaked the whereabouts of Junior Sister Jing Ran and the others, thus causing a vendetta?" Jing Yu asked.”
Xu Zhutao sighed and said,"That's possible. The four seniors were all top-notch masters in the martial arts world. There was absolutely no one who could kill the four seniors in an instant with martial arts at the right time. The four seniors died in a bizarre way, without a single wound on their bodies. I think the murderer must have gone through an extremely detailed plan to succeed in one fell swoop. I'll do my best to find out the truth about this matter. In addition, I'll also help you find the whereabouts of Nun Jingmiao. Please accept my condolences!"
Nun Jingyu said,"Thank you, Young Master. My Emei is extremely grateful!"”
The few of them walked out of the mourning hall. Xu Zhutao said,"Abbesses, I wonder if you can arrange two guest rooms for me. I want to stay with the two Shangguan girls for the night.”
Jingye Nun said," Of course. Please wait a moment, Young Master. I'll ask Ruohua to arrange a guest room for you."”As she spoke, she went to look for Lu Ruohua.
Not long after, Lu Ruohua arrived. Xu Zhutao and the other two bade farewell to Jing Yu and Jing Ye, then followed Lu Ruohua. They soon arrived at a courtyard on the right side of the palace hall. They were led into two guest rooms. The three of them liked the quiet environment here.
Lu Ruohua said," Esteemed guests, my master and uncle have already told you what happened in Emei. One of the two elders is dead and the other is missing. Emei is now in a state of panic. That's why we forbid Jianghu people from going up the mountain to play."”
Xu Zhutao said," Our fellow martial artists naturally sympathize with Emei's misfortune. We won't take the small matter at the foot of the mountain to heart. Please rest assured."”
Lu Ruohua sighed and said,""The people of the Demonic Sect are too vicious. They attacked two elders of our sect in a sneak attack. Our Emei Sect wants to kill all the people of the Demonic Sect. Now, Martial Uncle Jingchen is urging the disciples to practice martial arts diligently every day. We must take revenge!”
"Miss, you're right. No matter what the Demonic Sect is plotting, we won't let them succeed." By the way, I wonder who are the disciples of Nun Jingxiang and Nun Jingmiao. I might ask them about the two Nun.”
" Senior Martial Sister Xiang is Martial Uncle Jingxuan's last disciple," Lu Ruohua said." She was an orphan that Martial Uncle Jingxuan picked up and raised her single-handedly. Senior Sister Tao was the last disciple of Martial Uncle Jing Miao and was also an orphan that Martial Uncle had picked up. The two Senior Martial Sisters and their Master are like mother and daughter. Therefore, after the accident of Senior Martial Uncle Jingchen and Jingmiao, Senior Martial Sister Xiang and Senior Martial Sister Tao are very sad. You can see how haggard they look. Not only them, but all the Emei disciples are worried every day.”
The three of them returned to their rooms to rest. Xu Zhutao thought of the mysterious death of the elders of the four major sects and the disappearance of Nun Jingmiao. He was confused. He also thought of the Demon Cult's secretive and vicious actions. Was the murderer from the Demon Cult? If it was the Devil Cult who did it, why did they let the four accompanying disciples go? Was Jing Miao really missing? He didn't know how to find out the truth about these strange things, but he still couldn't figure it out, so he practiced internal energy in his room.
After dinner, the three of them returned to their courtyard. There were pavilions in the courtyard, and the environment was quiet. There were flowers and trees planted against the wall. At this time, the three of them sat in the pavilion and discussed the strange incident they had heard today.
"Aunt, what do you think about the mysterious deaths of the elders of the four big sects?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
" There's a high possibility that it's the Devil Cult," Jade Raksha said." But it's not certain. If we follow the Devil Cult's past style of doing things, they would definitely kill everyone. Those four accompanying disciples would not be alive."”
Shangguan Wanqian said," These four seniors died in a strange way. They didn't have any internal injuries or external injuries, and they didn't seem to be poisoned. It's really hard to guess what kind of plot they fell for."”
"Aunt, I want to go to the Dabie Mountains in Henan," said Xu Zhutao.”
Shangguan Wanqian said," Eldest Brother, it takes four days to travel there. Is there a need to go?" Moreover, it had happened so long ago. What traces could be found at the scene?”
"I want to go there and see if there really is some very powerful vicious poison." However, Qian 'er, you're right. I'll go and take a look when I pass by Henan in the future.”
In the third watch, the empty mountain was quiet and silent.
Xu Zhutao got up to wash his hands when he felt the need to relieve himself. When he walked out of the courtyard, he saw a black shadow flash past the main hall of the hall in front of him. It seemed to be heading towards the hall. He didn't care, but when he came back, he suddenly remembered that the body of Nun Jingchen had disappeared. Could that person be the one who stole the body? But since he had already stolen the body, why did he come back?
He was surprised. He used his Lightness Skill to reach the door of the hall with a few ups and downs. Looking into the hall, he saw black shadows moving. He walked into the hall gently and found that those black shadows were just the pillars of the hall. He went to the middle of the hall and looked around. He saw a very weak light shining from a side room on the left. That was where Nun Jingxiang had stopped. Xu Zhutao thought to himself, What a great corpse thief. I'll catch you this time! He tiptoed through the corridor and suddenly saw the hanging curtain of the mourning hall floating out of the corridor. Xu Zhutao was shocked and quickly stopped with his back against the wall. After a long while, he saw that there was no other movement before he slowly walked over. When he approached the door, he heard the sound of sobbing coming from inside. Xu Zhutao felt very strange. Why would the corpse thief come here to cry? Suddenly, he heard a voice say,"Master! It's all my fault for being incompetent and letting the murderer go unpunished. If Master knows, please bless me to kill the murderer!”
"Who is it?" The voice inside shouted softly.
"Miss Xiang, it's me!" It turned out that the people inside had heard the footsteps just as Xu Zhutao stepped in. Xu Zhutao walked in and saw a woman kneeling in front of the memorial tablet of Nun Jingchen. At this moment, he turned around and saw that the originally beautiful face was now full of tears. Her eyes were deep and her face was haggard. Who else could it be but Xiang Jingyu?
Xiang Jingyu stood up and wiped his tears."Young Master Xu, why are you here?"
"Just now…my hands were clean. I saw a figure enter the hall, so I came to take a look." Miss Xiang, you…"
"Oh, I still can't sleep, so I came to see my master."”
Xu Zhutao said," Miss Xiang, your filial piety is touching. If you're so…sad, won't your body be exhausted? If your teacher knows about this, he will definitely hope that you can cheer up!"”
"Young Master is right," Xiang Jingyu said."If I don't take revenge, I swear I'm not human."”
"Don't the doors of this palace close at night?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
"Yes, there's nothing valuable in this hall, and no one lives here…" Xiang Jingyu said.
"I see," Xu Zhutao said,"I saw a black shadow come in just now and thought it was…a bad guy…"
Xiang Jingyu smiled and said,"Does Young Master think that it's the person who stole the corpse?”
"Do you often come here late at night?" Xu Zhutao asked.”
"Occasionally," Xiang Jingyu said,"Young Master should go to bed early."”She seemed a little embarrassed to be known to cry in front of her master's grave in the middle of the night.
Xu Zhutao walked out and said,"Young lady, you should sleep early. Remember, only by pulling yourself together can you not be beaten down."”
"Thank you, Young Master!"
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