The spacious court was silent, so quiet that one could almost hear a pin drop.

SPLASH.

Bai Yongyan poured himself a cup of tea and leisurely scanned the vivid expressions on everyone's face around the hall before smiling and asking, "Why has everyone gone quiet? Is the food too salty, stuck in your throats?"

"..."

Yu Qingqiu calmly lifted his eyelids, his voice void of any fluctuations. "Bai Zhen, from Yanxian County in Mozhou. His parents died early. As a youth, he was involved in a deadly brawl and mistakenly killed someone. Fearing punishment, he fled and became the disciple of a Warlock.

"Seven years later, he changed his name to Bai Yongyan and appeared in Hongzhou City, specializing in geomancy and alchemy. Three more years passed, and he entered the Shu Palace, becoming a Guest Elder."

"Hm?"

Bai Yongyan raised an eyebrow. "You seem to know a lot about me. What, are you playing matchmaker now, looking for a suitable marriage for me?"

Yu Qingqiu paid no attention to Bai Yongyan's words and continued, "Your Necromancer Master, who has been dead for over a decade, was in truth the Deputy Head of the White Lotus Cult's Hongzhou division.

"After his death, you inherited his legacy and joined the White Lotus Cult."

Bai Yongyan's eyes widened. He gripped his teacup, gulped down the tea, and then said angrily, "Nonsense! You can be reckless in what you eat, but not in what you say.

"My Master was kind-hearted. How could he be a White Lotus Demon Cultivator?

"Now I see! You, a eunuch, are trying to sling mud at me and frame me! It's just like what you do to others. By branding them as White Lotus Demon Cultivators, you can throw them into jail and torture them at will. After sufficient beating, even the innocent will confess under duress."

Hearing the word 'eunuch,'

a vein subtly bulged at the corner of Yu Qingqiu's eye. A chilling aura radiated from him, turning the surrounding guards pale and forcing them to step back in unison.

Long before Yu Qingqiu had become the powerful Xing Qianhu at the Xijishi Factory, others had insulted him by calling him a eunuch. Those people had all died.

Anyone who dared to use those two words to describe him would disappear from this world.

"What did you call me?"

"Eunuch, eunuch, eunuch—" Bai Yongyan taunted, shouting at Yu Qingqiu at the top of his lungs. Then, with a snap, he set down his teacup and, bowing to the Shu King, said, "Prince, this Yu Qingqiu is making a scene at your banquet! He has slandered me as a White Lotus Demon Cultivator.

"By framing and falsely accusing me, he clearly intends to harm you, Prince. This is intolerable. Such malice should be punished, and I suggest he be executed on the spot."

The Shu King's face was dark and unreadable.

Yet Bai Yongyan, as if he had received a signal, nodded and laughed loudly at Yu Qingqiu. "HAHA, Yu Qianhu, Yu Qianhu! Now, all it would take is for the Prince to signal by smashing a cup, and instantly fifty thousand strong axemen would burst from behind the pillars in this hall!

"Blade up, blade down! Blade up, blade down! Blade up, blade down!

"They'll chop you into a pile of mincemeat."

If the mood hadn't been so tense, someone might have already pointed out the absurdity of hiding fifty thousand axemen in the hall.

"HEH."

Yu Qingqiu shook his head, quietly stood up, and bowed to the Shu King. "Bai Yongyan is indeed a White Lotus Demon Cultivator. It's unfortunate that the Prince was deceived by him before and allowed him to secure the position of Guest Elder.

"However, it's not that the Prince was secretly colluding with a demon, but that these White Lotus Demon Cultivators are too cunning and adept at hiding.

"Now that we from the Xijishi Factory are here, he has nowhere to run."

The Shu King nodded silently. He hadn't known Bai Yongyan's full background. Seeing Yu Qingqiu's demeanor, he guessed the Xijishi Factory might have long been aware of Bai Yongyan's affiliation with the White Lotus Cult. They had likely kept it confidential until Bai Yongyan's outburst that evening.

At that thought, a chill ran through the Shu King. The West Factory knew, which meant the Emperor also knew. They had allowed a White Lotus Demon Cultivator to hide within my Royal Mansion! They were probably waiting for the day I developed ambitions I shouldn't have, then they would produce the evidence and crush me in one fell swoop.

"..."

The Shu King exhaled slowly, pushing away the past images of fraternal respect from his mind, and said hoarsely to Yu Qingqiu, "Then I shall entrust this to your capable hands, Yu Qianhu."

Yu Qingqiu nodded calmly and turned to the anxious, nearly fleeing guests in the hall. "Since Bai Yongyan is a White Lotus Demon Cultivator, naturally, his words are but bewitching lies.

"All of you present, you heard nothing tonight; you saw nothing. Understood?"

The crowd in the hall breathed a collective sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted. Many wiped the cold sweat that had beaded on their foreheads.

Thankfully, the banquet was held at the Shu Palace. If it had been at the home of some powerless wealthy landowner, the Xijishi Factory would likely have killed all the guests and the host's entire family to silence them. After all, the story they had heard was a matter of high treason...

"Please proceed," Yu Qingqiu said indifferently, stepping aside slightly. The guests immediately rose and, under the watchful gaze of the Xijishi Factory personnel, quietly departed.

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