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The one who started shouting from afar was Du Yehu. As he ran, the muscles on his body seemed ready to burst through his training clothes. His appearance was also distinct from the others, with a full face of bristly whiskers. Standing there, just by looking at his face, he seemed two or three sizes larger than the surrounding outer sect disciples, someone might believe he was a mountain king from somewhere, not an eighteen-year-old youth.
Because his development was too rushed, he was known as the precociously bearded youth.
He burst through the crowd like a bear, wrapping his arms around Jiang Wang, not minding the faint sour smell on him, and kept repeating out loud, "Damn straight! Damn straight!"
"It's good you're back!"
In saying it's good you're back, his eyes were bloodshot, and his lips quivered, that was Ling He.
His face was handsome, with a full forehead, giving off a sense of composure and tranquility. Now dressed in a whitewashed training outfit standing behind Du Yehu, he just stared steadily at Jiang Wang.
Only a handsome young man came close, sized up Jiang Wang from top to bottom before pointing at his tattered clothes with a chuckle, "How did you end up looking like this mess?"
His name was Zhao Ru Cheng. His appearance was the most outstanding, and the smile on his face seemed somewhat frivolous. But only those truly familiar with him could see the hidden trace of tears in his charming eyes.
These few individuals were distinct in appearance and personality, but they all had life-and-death friendships with Jiang Wang,
In the many trial missions of the outer sect, they had worked together through countless dangers and difficulties, forging deep bonds of camaraderie.
But Jiang Wang's gaze passed over them, only landing on the handsome young man in the crowd whose eyes seemed to be tinged with red.
He didn't speak or make any motion, but just by standing there, he became the implicit center of the crowd.
"Peng Ju, fifty-seven days," Jiang Wang said, almost pausing after each word, "I thought of you every single day."
"Thinking only of Peng Ju, don't you miss Second Brother?" Du Yehu shook Jiang Wang's shoulders wildly, crying out loud.
Ling He and Zhao Ru Cheng, however, fell silent.
Fifty-seven days was a very specific and sensitive duration—it had been exactly fifty-seven days since Jiang Wang disappeared.
Fang Pengju, dressed in luxurious brocade, stepped forward with a smile, "It's good you're back, everyone's been worried about you."
"Indeed," Jiang Wang also began to smile, "How could you not be worried without seeing a corpse?"
Fang Pengju's expression changed rapidly, "What do you mean by that? After your incident, I was beside myself with worry! I sent people everywhere to look for you!"
Jiang Wang said solemnly, "That's why I dared to show my face only today."
"Jiang Wang! The ones who attacked you were the remnants of the Western Mountain Bandits, everyone knows this! Are you actually suspecting me?" Fang Pengju's face flushed with surprise and anger, "We of the Fenglin Five Heroes are close as brothers! Could you have been deceived by some rumor?"
Ling He, Du Yehu, Jiang Wang, Fang Pengju, and Zhao Ru Cheng—these five were the most outstanding disciples of the outer sect in Fenglin City's Daoist academy. Because of their like-mindedness, they often teamed up to fight bandits and moved together. They were called the Fenglin Five Heroes.
Feeling the suddenly tense atmosphere, the outer sect disciples who had come to greet Jiang Wang started to feel uneasy.
"Could it be Fang Pengju who harmed Jiang Wang?"
"Don't talk nonsense. Fang Pengju is always righteous, how could he do such a thing? It must be a misunderstanding!"
"I don't think so... Brother Jiang isn't someone who can be fooled that easily."
Whispers spread through the crowd.
"We are all brothers here, don't talk nonsense!" Du Yehu looked anxiously at Jiang Wang, visibly agitated. His intuition was very bad, but he could do nothing to stop what was to come.
After thinking for a moment, Ling He spoke up to persuade, "Third Brother, you must have gone through a lot and suffered much recently. Why don't you settle down first? The inner sect selection is in a few days—it's a matter that affects your whole life and should be treated with care. The remaining bandits from Western Mountain have been eradicated by us together. If there's any hidden information, we can sort it out slowly. If you have any grievances, any resentments, we your brothers will surely help you, even if it means causing uproar in the county or national Daoist academies!
But Peng Ju is a brother with whom we've made a blood oath. I believe there must be some misunderstanding. Perhaps someone is stirring up trouble..."
"Big Brother," Jiang Wang interrupted, "When have I ever spoken out of turn? I cherish this brotherly bond no less than you do. So if I speak like this today, it means the matter is indeed as such."
"Fang Pengju!" Jiang Wang turned to look at the brocade-clad youth, pointing, "I hope you can still be so self-righteous after opening this chest!"
Only then did people notice the large chest that was placed behind Jiang Wang.
"No matter what happens, I, Fang Peng, will never hurt a friend!" Fang Pengju was only briefly startled before boldly stating, "I will personally see what evidence could make Third Brother doubt his own brother!"
He strode out to the courtyard, drew his longsword from his waist, and flung open the chest with one stroke!
A man emerged from the box, trussed up and gagged with rags, his expression desperate upon seeing Fang Pengju, frantically making muffled noises.
Du Yehu and Ling He also fell silent; they recognized him as Fang Pengju's close house slave, Fang DeCai.
"That day your house slave brought an invitation, saying you had asked me to meet at the Moon Viewing Pavilion for a drink. When I got there you hadn't arrived yet, and he persuaded me to have a few drinks first, to try the fine wine you had specially sent. That wine... contained a poison called 'Yin and Yang Dissipate.'
The poison had just begun to take effect when the bandits broke in and attacked... I personally eradicated the Western Mountain Bandits, but I hadn't expected that here, in Fenglin City, I would almost be killed by a bunch of their remnants!"
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