After he finished speaking, Zhang Chaofeng idly rubbed the ring on his finger, his tone a mixture of mockery and indifference.
"I thought I had hidden myself well enough. This Deceitful Object ring can conceal my Qi, hiding itself in the process. No one should be able to discover it—not even a Cultivator could tell this ring is a Deceitful Object. So, how did you find out?"
"Don’t tell you have so ability to probe others. Shopkeeper, you truly surprise . What turned you from an ordinary man into a Cultivator in such a short amount of ti?"
As he spoke, Zhang Chaofeng tapped his fingers on the arm of the chair, the mocking glint in his eyes growing more intense.
Shen Bai’s gaze fixed on the ring on Zhang Chaofeng’s middle finger. "Everyone in this world has a flaw," he said coolly. "And flaws are ant to be found. Is it so strange that I found yours?"
To be fair, Zhang Chaofeng had hidden himself exceptionally well from start to finish.
Anyone else would likely have been completely fooled, unable to see through his disguise.
But Shen Bai was different.
Before Shen Bai’s very eyes, words ford from smoke materialized in the air.
[Antique Ring]
[Appraisal Progress: 0%]
[A wisp of Evil Qi is required for rapid appraisal.]
That’s right. A Deceitful Object could conceal its Qi—even hide its own presence so that no one could detect it.
But all of that was useless before Shen Bai.
The reason was simple: Shen Bai’s Golden Finger was designed specifically to inspect Deceitful Objects. No matter how well one was hidden, his Golden Finger would still display its information.
’I had always wondered why Zhang Chaofeng seed unaware that he possessed a Deceitful Object.’
Connecting the dots, Shen Bai suddenly realized sothing.
During the period when Zhang Chaofeng had vanished, the mastermind from the Upper Evil Sect began to stir up trouble.
Then Zhang Chaofeng reappeared, claiming his village had been massacred. And when they rushed to the village, they encountered the Fox Demon.
Combined with the ring Zhang Chaofeng was now wearing, it was hard for Shen Bai not to connect all the pieces.
Hearing Shen Bai’s words, the interest in Zhang Chaofeng’s eyes grew.
"Shopkeeper, you still haven’t answered my question. What exactly transford you from an ordinary man into... this? Was it that Lady Painting? It’s true the Lady Painting is a Deceitful Object, but it’s impossible that it alone could have allowed you to cross the threshold into Cultivation."
Shen Bai smiled. "Is that really so important?"
"Not at all." Zhang Chaofeng shook his head. "Just a bit of curiosity on my part. What’s important is what you plan to do now, Shopkeeper. You and I have known each other for many years, after all. To be honest, I’ve always been quite fond of you."
"If you hadn’t brought this into the open today, we could have just let it slide. When that great tomb is opened, I might have even cut you in on so of the good stuff."
Shen Bai laughed. "Do you really think I’d believe that?"
"You’ve been at my pawnshop all this ti, and now you pull this stunt. It’s all just to successfully distance yourself from what’s coming, isn’t it?"
"What do you an by that?" Zhang Chaofeng asked, his interest piqued. "It seems you’ve figured a few things out, Shopkeeper."
Shen Bai spoke slowly, "Whether it’s you returning to the pawnshop, or you slaughtering your own village, and then personally joining the investigation—it all makes people think you’re an innocent victim."
"After the great tomb is opened, you’ll definitely make your move. When that happens, the Observatory will start investigating, and the safest person of all will be you. Am I right?"
"HAHAHAHA!" Zhang Chaofeng burst out laughing. "Shopkeeper, I see now I’ve underestimated you. You’ve not only got the strength, but a sharp mind as well. You’re absolutely right. I would have been the first one to walk away clean. But you shouldn’t have said all this today. It looks like only one of us will be leaving here alive."
"And who do you think that will be? You, or ?"
Shen Bai flicked his fingers. He gripped the hilt of the longsword at his waist, a crimson Sword Qi shimring around it, ready to be unleashed at any mont.
Zhang Chaofeng held up a hand. "Today is not the day for a fight. Besides, you can’t kill ."
At that, Zhang Chaofeng made a bizarre gesture.
He reached out and ripped open the front of his robes.
There was no flesh and blood underneath, only a body made of straw.
"See? I am not who you think I am. What you’re seeing is nothing more than a scarecrow decoy."
"I’m not foolish enough to et you in person, Shopkeeper. With the speed you displayed when you killed that Fox Demon, killing would be child’s play."
"Then what was the point of this?" Shen Bai’s eyes narrowed. "Your cover is blown. You can’t separate yourself from the plot now. In the end, you’ll still be hunted down by the Observatory. There’s no benefit for you in any of this."
"That’s right, there’s no benefit. But as long as I get my revenge, that’s all that matters." Zhang Chaofeng sighed. "Everyone in Shengyun County must die. After I’ve had my revenge, whether I live or die is irrelevant to ."
"If I can live, that’s great. If not, so be it."
Shen Bai stroked his chin. "It seems the letter you left was half-truth, half-lie. Shengyun County really did you wrong."
At the ntion of this, the once-calm Zhang Chaofeng’s deanor shifted.
His face turned crimson, and a furious fire threatened to erupt from his eyes.
"Over a decade ago, my entire family—the old and the young, orphans and widows—were all killed by a supernatural entity. My whole village was slaughtered by it, utterly wiped out. But the Governnt Office couldn’t find a single clue, not a trace of information. They didn’t even catch the monster."
"When the n from the Observatory ca on their inspection tour, I intended to report it to them, but the County Magistrate at the ti stopped . He threatened , telling not to report it."
"Tell , does a county as corrupt as this even deserve to exist?"
Shen Bai fell silent upon hearing this.
Zhang Chaofeng continued, "Back then, the County Magistrate from the County Magistrate’s Office told that if I reported it, he would make sure I disappeared from the face of the earth. I didn’t even have the right to report what happened! They detained , forcibly keeping locked up and preventing from leaving my house until after the inspection was over."
"Who could right such a wrong for ?"
"That was over a decade ago. It seems the current County Magistrate isn’t the sa one, and these aren’t the sa constables either," Shen Bai pointed out.
The cold glint in Zhang Chaofeng’s eyes intensified. "They’re all dead. Killed by another one of those entities. Isn’t it hilarious? They failed to find the monster, covered up the incident, and in the end, died at the hands of one themselves."
"That ti, thirty percent of the population of Shengyun County died. The people from the Governnt Office, including that County Magistrate, all died at the hands of that entity."
"In the end, it took the Observatory to step in and exterminate the entity. That part of history wasn’t even allowed to be recorded in the county annals. Only the common folk who survived know the truth."
"Since they’re all dead, your revenge has been served," Shen Bai said. "Why drag the innocent into this?"
Zhang Chaofeng shot to his feet. "This rotten world deserves to be cleansed in blood! After that, I wandered aimlessly. I eventually found the threshold of Cultivation, joined the Thief Sect, and later, the Upper Evil Sect. It was only then that I realized the only way for things to truly start over is for everyone to die."
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