"We didn't do it. I just said it casually at that time. We didn't steal the demonic wolf," Tian Ling'er shouted angrily.
"Didn't steal it? Then why is the demonic wolf gone? It must be you who stole it, killed it, and put it in your storage bracelet," Tang Xiaoyou accused, pointing at Tian Ling'er.
Hearing Tang Xiaoyou's accusation, Zhong Shan raised his eyebrow, immediately discerning the underlying motives. Just a moment ago, Tang Xiaoyou said Tian Ling'er would release the wolf, and now he claims she killed it? It seemed the wolf's disappearance wasn't the work of an outsider but had something to do with Tang Xiaoyou.
"I didn't do it. I didn't," Tian Ling'er was anxious, pulling out her red silk, as if ready to fight Tang Xiaoyou to prove her innocence.
"See, see? The moment I accuse you, you pull out your magical weapon. If it wasn't you, then who was it?" Tang Xiaoyou immediately shouted.
Originally, Zhao Suoxiang hadn't suspected Tian Ling'er. He was more suspicious of the four from Mingjian Pavilion, as from his conversations with Zhong Shan, he felt Zhong Shan wasn't the type to steal. But when Tian Ling'er brought out her red silk, Zhao Suoxiang's mind wavered. If it wasn't her, why was she so agitated?
"Hand it over. Hand over the wolf's corpse and my Kongling Pearl. You even cheated, tampered with the dice," Tang Xiaoyou pointed at Tian Ling'er and Zhong Shan, angrily.
"We didn't steal anything. Zhong Shan, say something!" Tian Ling'er urgently called out to Zhong Shan. Although she had drawn her red silk, Tian Ling'er wasn't one to resort to violence without reason.
"I know who the thief is," Zhong Shan suddenly spoke.
At his words, everyone paused and turned to look at him. A hint of surprise flashed in Zhao Suoxiang's eyes, while Tian Ling'er gazed at him in disbelief.
Among the four people from Mingjian Tower across from him, all except Zhong Di showed a hint of skepticism. However, Zhong Di swallowed hard, a trace of fear flickering in his eyes.
When Zhong Shan said he knew, he definitely knew. This was a habit Zhong Di had developed over many years. No, it wasn't a habit—it was certainty. If Zhong Shan said he knew, he knew.
"You know? If it wasn't you who stole it, how would you know? I bet it was you who stole the demon wolf!" Tang Xiaoyou sneered.
"Zhong Shan, do you really know?" Zhao Suoxiang asked.
"Of course. You'll find out who it was soon enough," Zhong Shan replied solemnly.
Seeing Zhong Shan's confidence, everyone frowned.
"Fetch me ink, paper, and a writing brush. I'll tell you who the thief is," Zhong Shan ordered.
"Ink, paper, and a brush? Hmph, how can those things find the demon wolf thief?" Tang Xiaoyou scoffed.
"Fetch the ink, paper, and a long table," Zhao Suoxiang instructed a servant from the Zhao family.
"Yes," the servant replied immediately.
Soon, a long table was set up in front of Zhong Shan, with all the scholarly tools neatly arranged on it.
Seeing this, Tian Ling'er's big eyes blinked rapidly. In her father's study in the Kaiyang Sect, there were similar scholarly tools, though rarely used. She knew what they were for, but could they really help find the thief?
Tian Ling'er was skeptical, as were the others. How could these tools identify the culprit, unless it was some kind of trick?
Only Zhong Di, seeing Zhong Shan's serious demeanor, began to worry. He believed in Zhong Shan, a trust built over decades. To Zhong Di, Zhong Shan seemed capable of anything except cultivation.
"I'd like to see how you use these things to find the thief," Tang Xiaoyou sneered.
Everyone watched Zhong Shan, who ignored Tang Xiaoyou's mockery. He slowly began to grind the inkstick on the inkstone.
Grinding ink? But there's no water. Isn't water needed to produce ink?
Ignoring their puzzled looks, Zhong Shan continued grinding. Without water, he ground the inkstick into a fine powder. Slowly, he ground the entire inkstick into very fine powder.
Carefully, he poured the powder onto a sheet of rice paper, dividing it into two parts.
Selecting a brush with soft bristles from the set, he took a portion of the ink powder and walked towards the glass cover.
Everyone watched in bewilderment, while Tang Xiaoyou smirked.
Dipping the brush into the ink powder, Zhong Shan began to lightly brush the glass cover.
Under everyone's astonished gaze, he brushed every corner meticulously, as if ensuring he didn't miss a single spot.
Initially, everyone was merely curious. Suddenly, Tian Ling'er noticed something black.
The glass cover, smooth and clean like crystal, now had a patch of black on it. What was that?
"What is this? Circles, circles of black," Tian Ling'er exclaimed, staring at the circular black patterns emerging on the glass cover.
"Those are fingerprints," Zhao Suoxiang immediately realized, his face lighting up with delight.
Fingerprints—indeed, a series of circular fingerprints. Zhong Shan had used up his portion of ink powder, and now all the fingerprints on the glass cover were clearly visible.
"Everyone who touched this glass cover after the rain, come and press your fingers onto the ink powder and then onto the rice paper," Zhong Shan instructed, tossing the brush aside.
"How can this be? What's going on? How are there fingerprints on this? You must have painted them just now!" Tang Xiaoyou exclaimed in astonishment.
"Painted? Hmph. Try painting them yourself. If your hands aren't clean, they'll leave traces wherever you touch. Those traces are invisible to the naked eye, but the ink powder reveals the fingerprints. It rained heavily yesterday, so any old fingerprints would have been washed away. Whoever touched the glass cover after the rain left their fingerprints. Besides Tang Si, who fed the demon wolf, anyone who touched it is the thief. To clear everyone's name, let's all press our fingerprints," Zhong Shan explained.
"Zhong Shan, you're so clever!" Tian Ling'er exclaimed excitedly, grabbing Zhong Shan's arm. She was sure she hadn't touched the glass cover, so there would be no fingerprints from her.
Zhong Shan demonstrated first, pressing all ten of his ink-stained fingers onto the rice paper, leaving ten clear fingerprints.
Tian Ling'er followed suit, as did Zhao Suoxiang.
Tang Xiaoyou, however, remained skeptical. He was convinced Zhong Shan was trying to trick him into confessing. He was certain that after his bath the previous night, his body and hands had been impeccably clean, leaving no traces.
One by one, everyone pressed their fingerprints onto the rice paper.
Tian Ling'er immediately began comparing the prints.
"I found it! It's Tang Xiaoyou! It's Tang Xiaoyou!" Tian Ling'er cried out excitedly, her face beaming with joy as if she had personally solved the case.
"Impossible! That's impossible!" Tang Xiaoyou protested vehemently.
Rushing to the glass cover, Tang Xiaoyou examined the fingerprints, his face filled with disbelief.
"It can't be. You must have painted them on just now. You must have!" Tang Xiaoyou insisted, pointing at Zhong Shan and accusing him repeatedly.
"Hmph, there's only your fingerprint on it. How could he have painted it? Men, search every room here!" Zhao Suoxiang ordered angrily, his spear pointed forward.
"It can't be. It can't be. I washed my hands. I washed them clean!" Tang Xiaoyou yelled.
Zhong Shan coldly sneered at the disbelieving Tang Xiaoyou. Washed clean? Did he really think that would leave no trace? These marks weren't from external dirt but were secretions from within his own body. At the Xiantian stage, the body expels impurities more rapidly and abundantly.
"Stop!" Liu Ming shouted angrily.
"Continue!" Zhao Suoxiang roared back.
After all, half of the guards here were from the Zhao family. They immediately obeyed, rushing into the rooms to search.
"Bastards!" Liu Ming cursed, turning to intercept them.
"Whoosh!" Zhao Suoxiang's spear pointed directly at Liu Ming.
"Brother Liu, could it be that your group really stole the demon wolf?" Zhao Suoxiang asked sternly.
"We found it! We found it!" A servant suddenly emerged from a room, holding the demon wolf in his arms.
"Liu Ming, I can't believe it was really you. According to the rules, this demon wolf will no longer be shared with you," Zhao Suoxiang said, his eyes narrowing with a hint of regret.
"It's all your fault! It's all your fault! Archers, shoot them! Kill them!" Tang Xiaoyou shouted.
At Tang Xiaoyou's command, a large number of Tang family guards charged from the distant corridor.
Facing Tang Xiaoyou, Zhong Shan didn't argue. Instead, he raised his large blade, the Nightmare.
"Mountain-Cleaving Strike!"
He slashed down fiercely. Framing him for the theft? Their enmity had deepened beyond words. In the world of immortal cultivation, where lifespans were extended, grudges only grew stronger. Settling scores was not just about the present but about preventing future threats. Kill or be killed!
"Clang~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~!"
Tang Xiaoyou reacted quickly, raising his sword to meet Zhong Shan's blade. However, Zhong Shan's strike was too fierce. The force sent Tang Xiaoyou flying two meters back, his foot stomping down and turning the floor tiles beneath him into powder.
"Xiantian third level? Hahaha!" Tang Xiaoyou laughed grimly, lunging at Zhong Shan with his sword.
At that moment, Liu Ming and Wang Gui also drew their swords.
Seeing Zhong Shan engaged in battle, Tian Ling'er naturally joined in, hurling her red silk ribbon towards Wang Gui.
"Boom~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~!"
The red ribbon, imbued with tremendous power, collided with Wang Gui's sword. Initially, Wang Gui underestimated Tian Linger's strength. But as the ribbon clashed with his sword, he realized too late that her power was on par with his own. The impact nearly knocked his sword from his hand.
"Liu Ming, back off!" Zhao Suoxiang's sword angrily pointed at his senior brother, Liu Ming.
"Clang, clang, clang..." The clash of sword and blade between Zhong Shan and Tang Xiaoyou echoed loudly. They attacked each other relentlessly. Tang Xiaoyou was at the fourth level of Xiantian, while Zhong Shan was at the third. However, Zhong Shan's ferocious swordsmanship made up for the difference in their levels, his strikes carrying the power of the fourth level. Remarkably, Zhong Shan hadn't even employed his Demonic Body Tempering Technique yet.