Wang Jingyuan sat alone by a small campfire at the center of a small clearing. About three meters away on all sides were other small campfires, where martial artists from a handful of sects gathered in threes or fours. They surrounded her like planets around a sun in the solar system, and they would sometimes cast a suspicious glance at her before returning to their own conversations.
Because no one had any better ideas about how to prove Wang Jingyuan's innocence (or guilt), they went along with her idea. Liu Xiaochen disagreed with having her be alone with all the martial artists at the inn all the way at the bottom of Xuanyan Mountain. He did not trust them, and he wanted his junior sister close by so he could rush to her aid if necessary. So a compromise was reached between Liu Xiaochen, Wang Jingyuan, and the martial artists—they would set up camp on Xuanyan Mountain, about halfway down, and the different sects would volunteer some pupils to watch Wang Jingyuan.
