The Grand Elder's gaze, like a sharp blade, pierced directly at Xiao Man, who stood beside the Third Elder. "Lan Xiao!"
"Lan Xiao?" The Third Elder looked at Xiao Man. "Are you sure it's her?"
"Of course, my disciple personally witnessed Lan Xiao killing my grandson, Jin Quan!" The Grand Elder's eyes were filled with rage, wishing he could tear Xiao Man into a thousand pieces.
"Which disciple witnessed it?" The Third Elder asked unhurriedly, his eyes betraying an unmistakable disappointment. This Jin family was truly suffocating. If he hadn't known that Xiao Man had not left the premises since her return at the second watch of Mao (5:00-7:00 AM), he might have believed the Grand Elder.
The Grand Elder narrowed his eyes. "What, do you intend to bend the law for personal gain?"
"To convict someone, one should make them die with clarity. To accuse her of murder, one must present witnesses and evidence. As the Elder of Punishments, the Grand Elder surely knows this? Or perhaps the Grand Elder intends to extract a confession through torture?" The Third Elder spoke very calmly.
"You few, tell the Third Elder how Lan Xiao killed my poor grandson." The Grand Elder gnashed his teeth fiercely. Normally, the Third Elder didn't dare to speak a harsh word to him, but because of this new disciple, he had repeatedly challenged him. It must be this brat instigating discord!
"Yes, Grand Elder." Several disciples from the Martial Arts Hall stepped forward, pointing at Xiao Man. "We personally saw her kill Senior Brother Jin Quan."
"I killed him?" Xiao Man said with a smiling face. "May I ask, how did I kill him?"
"You beat him to death alive!"
"Oh, beat him to death alive? May I ask, what was the murder weapon?"
"The Swaggering Stick!"
"If I remember correctly, the Swaggering Stick is something unique to your Martial Arts Hall. Where did I get it from?"
"You snatched it from our hands!"
Xiao Man appeared to be deep in thought. "May I ask, did I strike him from the front, or the back?"
"The front."
"The back."
The few disciples said in unison, but their answers were not consistent.
The Grand Elder looked at them. The disciples flinched slightly and quickly corrected themselves.
"The back."
"The front."
"Was it the front or the back?"
"The back, it was the back. She knocked Senior Brother Jin Quan to the ground from behind and then brutally beat him to death."
"Then what were you doing at that time, just watching me kill him?" Xiao Man asked playfully. "Then aren't you, his fellow disciples, extremely negligent?"
"We were all beaten down by you!"
"Oh, you were all beaten down by me, and I killed Jin Quan in front of you, yet you didn't kill me to silence you." Xiao Man clicked her tongue twice. "Could it be that my brain is malfunctioning?"
The Grand Elder also felt suspicious. He looked at the disciples. The disciples frantically dodged the Grand Elder's gaze, not daring to meet his eyes, afraid he would see through them.
"Speak, what exactly happened?"
"Also, the disciples of the Alchemy Hall all returned to the Alchemy Hall in the evening and were subsequently confined there by the Fifth Elder. They haven't left since. Are you sure it was our Alchemy Hall disciples who killed Jin Quan at night?"
"We misspoke, it was during the day. Lan Xiao killed Senior Brother Jin Quan during the day."
"I killed Jin Quan during the day, so why are you reporting it now?" Xiao Man's tone was slow, carrying an irrefutable air. "Is there some unspeakable secret here?"
"Grand Elder, we are not lying. She killed Senior Brother Jin Quan, it was her!"
"Grand Elder, you are an Elder of the Martial Arts Hall and in charge of punishments. Are you allowing someone to disregard you so openly and trick you like this?" The Third Elder understood clearly. This was a blatant frame-up by the Grand Elder. But to frame their Alchemy Hall with the murder of his own grandson, was that not too vicious?
"What exactly happened?" The Grand Elder roared, startling the disciples into kneeling on the ground, trembling. Yet, they still pointed at Xiao Man.
"Grand Elder, she is the one who killed Senior Brother Jin Quan, truly she is!"
"Are you sure?"
"Sure!"
"Grand Elder, have you examined the body?" Xiao Man interjected, asking unhurriedly. "Or, have you had someone perform an autopsy?"
The Grand Elder's expression changed drastically. However, the ones accusing the murderer were disciples of the Martial Arts Hall, and his grandson had indeed been killed. His gaze fell on Jin Quan's corpse. "Bring up the body."
Immediately, someone carried Jin Quan's body forward and placed it before everyone. "My grandson was indeed beaten to death alive. Lan Xiao, do you dare to act but not to admit it?"
"I did not kill him," Xiao Man said coldly. "Elder, I am wrongly accused."
"I know," the Third Elder stepped forward. "Grand Elder, as the Elder of Punishments, you should be fair and just. Yet, not only do the disciples in your hall bully the disciples of other halls, but now you are framing my disciple with such a serious crime as murder. Do you resent us this much?"
"Third Elder, are you insisting on protecting your disciple? Even if she is the murderer of my grandson?"
"She did not kill your grandson; you are slandering her!" the Third Elder rebuked. "You used such a despicable method to eliminate your rivals!"
"Hand over the murderer!" the Grand Elder said coldly. "Today, no one can save her!"
The Third Elder gave a bitter smile. Jin Yi was right. The great Jin family was rotten from the core. With people like Madam Jin and the Grand Elder, how could the Jin family prosper? It was truly a pity for the eldest young master!
"If you want to touch her, you'll have to step over my corpse!" the Third Elder said coldly. "I know you are a Nascent Soul expert, and in terms of cultivation, I am far inferior to you, but I will never allow you to harm my disciple wantonly!"
"Good, good, good. Since you insist on protecting her, then I don't need to be polite!" As he spoke, the Grand Elder charged forward. Xiao Man's expression changed, and she immediately pushed aside the Third Elder blocking her way. She used a hidden crossbow against the Grand Elder, but a hidden crossbow against a Nascent Soul expert like the Grand Elder was useless. It couldn't even break through his defenses, let alone injure him!
"Lan Xiao!"
Xiao Man watched as the Grand Elder's attack was imminent. The Third Elder was also rushing towards her. Xiao Man quickly retreated and scattered a handful of poison. The Grand Elder waved his sleeve, and the poisonous powder flew back towards Xiao Man.
Xiao Man immediately covered her mouth and nose with her sleeve and retreated to the doorway. She stepped on a mechanism on the ground, and a net rose from the floor, trapping the Grand Elder. The Grand Elder, caught off guard, was ensnared and fell to the ground with a loud thud.
"I will skin you alive!" The Grand Elder reacted and actually tore through the Immortal Trapping Net that Xiao Man had set up with brute force. He charged directly at Xiao Man, gathering ten parts of his power, intending to kill Xiao Man with a single blow!