âIâve commanded Qi Yuanhua and Lu Lishan to summon you here in regards to todayâs Eldersâ Adjudication Meeting, but youâve disregarded the rules and injured them severely instead. This is you being rude and disrespectful!â
âAnd the most essential point is that you, a Longevity Sect disciple, have flagrantly killed your Senior Brother Lin Haoyu. Youâve deceived your masters to destroy your ancestorsâ heritage. Thatâs cruel and brutal!â
âHow could a beast thatâs disloyal, treacherous, rude, disrespectful, cruel, and brutal like you, not admit your guilt? Get down on your knees at this instance!â
Lin Shanâs imposing manner grew more intense by each minute that when he said his last sentence, the mightiness that came from his Grandmaster Boundary kept on suppressing Ling Xiao. It was as if he was trying to force Ling Xiao to kneel down.
The old manâs scattering Qi and energy intimidated numerous surrounding disciples so badly that color drained from their faces. It was as though Lin Shanâs words were drilled into their minds.
On the contrary, Ling Xiao appeared to be unaffected.
âHahahaâŠâ
Ling Xiao suddenly laughed out loud when his eyes met with Lin Shanâs deathly stare.
âWhat a classic example of giving a dog a bad name and hanging him. The Eldersâ Adjudication Meeting hasnât even begun and the Grand Supreme Elderâs already trumping up charges against me.â
Nangong Xuan who was sitting on the seat of honor also seemed annoyed. âMasterâs Junior Lin, we shall handle the affairs properly and accordingly in an Eldersâ Adjudication Meeting. I donât want anything like this to happen again!â
The Great Elder rose to his feet and spoke slowly, âGrand Supreme Elder, are you going to continue torturing him until he confesses? You have to remember that no matter what, Ling Xiao is a Longevity Sectâs Saint. His position and authority in the sect are not inferior to yours and he definitely has the right to speak for himself. Donât you think your behavior is beyond acceptable?â
Another Elder from the left side stood up as well to give his two cents. âGreat Elder, what you said is far from the truth. Ling Xiao has steeped in iniquity and heâs destroyed the ancestorsâ heritage. How can a person like him maintain his position as a Longevity Sectâs Saint? Ling Xiao, I urge you to confess to your mistakes quickly and maybe youâll be dealt with leniently. Otherwise, your only other option is to be sentenced to death!â
âThatâs right. Ling Xiaoâs steeped in iniquity and shall be punished severely. His brazen and reckless act to take the life of his fellow Senior Brother is sufficient to destroy whatever qualifications he acquires to be the Longevity Sectâs Saint!â
âLing Xiao should die!â
All of a sudden, several other Elders also rose to their feet. Each of them looked glum and their eyes were filled with frosty, mockery expressions.
It was obvious that they sided with Grand Supreme Elder Lin Shan.
Apart from the Great Elder and a handful of Elders who supported Nangong Xuan, the rest of the Elders were all on Lin Shanâs side due to his accumulated prestige over time.
The Eldersâ Adjudication Meeting was originally held to try and sentence Ling Xiao, but it had somehow turned into a confrontation of power between Nangong Xuan and Lin Shan.
âMaster, please right the wrong that had been done to me! At the command of numerous Elders, Junior Sister Lu and I went to Jin Se Pavilion to summon Ling Xiao to participate in todayâs Eldersâ Adjudication Meeting. We did not think that he would behave so rampantly and arrogantly. He insulted me and broke my arm just because we had a slight agreement. Iâve never suffered an affront so humiliating ever in my lifeâŠâ
Qi Yuanhua took the opportunity to complain tearfully. He ran out of the crowd and started wailing while he was on his knees.
His bloody arm also made his plaintive cries more convincing.
Even Ling Xiao sighed silently in his heart as he watched the manâs high-quality acting!
âThatâs unbearable! Disciple Ling Xiao shows no respect to his elders and superiors, offended his seniors, oppressed his fellow disciples, and murdered his senior brother. He needs to be executed!â
âExactly! This man right here is full of evil intentions even though heâs highly talented. Heâll surely become a major trouble to the Longevity Sect in the future, hence we shall nip it in the bud by taking his life now!â
âMy guess is that heâs a spy from the other sect. The rapid progress of his cultivation base in such a short time means that he must have cultivated some methods derived from the evil demons and heretics!â
As if they were suddenly filled with righteous indignation, Lin Shanâs supporters stood up and announced their views.
After discovering that most of the Elders were on his side, Lin Shan threw Nangong Xuan a contemptuous look and revealed a cold smile.
âLing Xiao, what else do you have to say?â
Ling Xiaoâs expression did not change after hearing the words of those Elders, but his cold-eyed grew more intense.
âVery well! At last, Iâve had a chance to gain a better understanding of the Elders and I finally understand why Longevity Sect has been going through a steady decline until now. You behave like tyrants in the sect, forming cliques for personal interests to suppress outsiders, all while disregarding the foreign enemy of Longevity Sect! If this continues on much longer, Longevity Sect will be doomed to destruction!â
Ling Xiao said with a cold smile.
âHow dare you!â
âYouâre asking for death, you little rascal!â
Suddenly, several Elders stood up from their seats and yelled at Ling Xiao.
Ling Xiao rebuked while he glared at Lin Shan, âYou call me disloyal, treacherous, rude, disrespectful, cruel and brutal? I think youâre a deceiving old beast whoâs unable to distinguish right from wrong and always abuse his authority to revenge personal enemies!â
He took one step forward and a disdainful manner permeated the room. The Elders who shouted at him earlier were stupefied by the rash comment.
âFirst and foremost, Iâm a Longevity Sectâs Saint, whose authority is comparable to that of a Sect Leader. This rule has been established by the Sky Devouring Supreme Patriarch from ten thousand years ago. You, forcing me to salute you is a condemn to the Patriarch! In my opinion, youâre the one whoâs not abiding by the rules and disrespecting the seniors!â
âSecondly, Qi Yuanhua and Lu Lishan are mere legacy disciples but they were impertinent to me. Not only did they not greet me with proper salutations, but they also shouted at me using filthy language. Did he show any respect to me, the Saint? And now youâre telling me off because, apparently, I didnât follow the sect commandments? Can you even see clearly with your eyes? Youâre the one whoâs unable to distinguish right from wrong!â
âThirdly, just because he was a legacy disciple, Lin Haoyu abducted my maidservant and burnt down my Jin Se Pavilion into ruins. After being defeated, he even attempted to kill me with the Torrential Pear Blossom Needle. Itâs absolutely right and proper of me to take his life, so whoâs got another word to say about that? Youâre only trying to sentence me with severe punishments because heâs your grandson. Itâs plain as day that youâre abusing your authority!â
Ling Xiao took a stride forward with every sentence he spoke. His eyes widened in rage and his voice was deafening. It was as if he was exuding inviolable righteousness.
He sounded like an honorable ancient Saint that was reprimanding evil demons and heretics; every sentence and every word that came out from his mouth were truth and justice.
This forceful interrogation made numerous Elders trembled with fear, even the expression on Lin Shanâs face suddenly changed to an expression of bewilderment.
âIt seems to me that an old beast like you who disrespect the ancestorsâ heritage, misjudge right from wrong, and abuse authority for personal revenge, is not fit to even be in the Longevity Palace. Youâre not qualified to be Longevity Sectâs Grand Supreme Elder, not to mention interrogating me. Your presence is a disgrace to the Longevity Sect, as well as an insult to the generations of masters and our pioneer!â
Ling Xiaoâs words were like arrows shooting directly into Lin Shanâs heart. Besides, his imposing manner made him much stronger and taller, even his life force was more robust than Ling Shanâs.
âYou⊠You little rascal⊠Iâm exasperated!â
The color drained from Lin Shanâs face and his whole body was shaking. His eyes were simmering with rage as he pointed a finger at Ling Xiao. At last, he bellowed and blood spurted out from his mouth.
He was so enraged by Ling Xiaoâs words that he spat blood.
Many Elders in Longevity Palace looked at Ling Xiao as if he was a ghost. On top of being an extraordinary martial artist, Ling Xiao was also really powerful with words. Not only did he refute Lin Shan without mercy, but those harsh words had also attacked the old man gravely.