Chapter 3424 — Four Masters Come Knocking

"I don't have any grudge against him personally, but his feud with the Overseas Cultivators Association runs deep. For the sake of a man named Tang Yuyi from our parts, he killed one of our elders. After that, he wounded President He's son, then played President He and the general manager of the Red Conch for fools, setting them against each other until they butchered one another. That is a debt the Overseas Cultivators Association will never, ever let go..."

"Tang Yuyi?" Qiu Lingshan was taken aback—she had not expected it to be that affair! In truth, Wei Zhao's killing of those men from the Overseas Cultivators Association was tangled up with her as well, for Tang Yuyi had challenged Wei Zhao to a duel on her account. Had Wei Zhao not gone to that duel, how would he ever have run into that so-called elder of the Overseas Cultivators Association? How could he possibly have struck a blow? It was sheer calamity fallen from a clear sky. So Qiu Lingshan hastily said, "Xiao Rui, speaking of this Tang Yuyi—the truth is, Wei Zhao acted because of me!"

"Because of you? What do you mean?" Song Lingwei was startled.

"It's like this. Tang Yuyi came back to look for his kin, and at the time I happened to be the one handling it. You see, back when I was with the Songshan City police, I had dealt with a case involving his relatives, so Tang Yuyi asked me to help him find his family. Wei Zhao, my colleague, was there at the time. That was when the elder of the Overseas Cultivators Association showed up, demanding to take Tang Yuyi away, and when Tang Yuyi refused to go, they meant to kill him on the spot!" Qiu Lingshan fudged the timeline—she did not say she had been at the Donghai police then, but pretended she was already with the Mystic Investigation Bureau; otherwise, how could Wei Zhao have been her colleague? She went on: "Now tell me—I'm a police officer, and now the deputy director of the Mystic Investigation Bureau in charge of cultivator affairs. How could I just stand by and watch them commit murder? So I had Wei Zhao kill one of their elders. And so... if you want to trace it back, this is your sister's fault. Are you going to kill me too?"

"This..." Song Lingwei had not expected such a hidden story behind it all. And she had vaguely heard that Tang Yuyi had returned to seek his kin, which did fit with what Qiu Lingshan said. But this left her in a difficult spot. After thinking it over, she said, "Hehe, but who's to know? As long as the people of the Overseas Cultivators Association don't find out, it's fine. If I finish off Wei Zhao, he becomes the scapegoat—after all, he's the one who did it!"

"Xiao Rui, that's not right. How can you just kill people as you please?" Qiu Lingshan had not expected Song Lingwei to do such a thing.

"Sis, I'm with a mercenary organization, and this is the cultivation world—do you really think there's that much right and wrong in it?" Song Lingwei said with a bitter smile. "I'm only doing this to pay back the last shred of obligation I owe them. I won't call myself a good person, but when I've promised someone something, if I don't do it, there has to be a reason, doesn't there?"

"This..." Qiu Lingshan wanted to say, Your brother-in-law is Wei Zhao! But she feared that once she said it, it would backfire—what if Song Lingwei still insisted on killing Wei Zhao? Then there would be no room left for compromise between the two sisters at all!

"All right, Sis, just stay out of this. Pretend you don't know anything, and once I finish my task I can report back. If I don't finish it, who knows what they'll have me do next—I won't have any peace here in the country either!" Song Lingwei said.

"Ah..." Qiu Lingshan could not help but sigh, then said, "How about this—let's put this matter aside for now, and you think it over carefully. Is it really worth offending the Mystic Investigation Bureau just to kill one man? You tell me to pretend I don't know, but that's impossible. You're my sister. If you really do kill him, my days as deputy director are over—and not only that, I'd face disciplinary action, and the Song family wouldn't fare well here either..."

"Hehe, Sis, I've already thought about all that," Song Lingwei said with an indifferent grin. "There are policies from above, and countermeasures from below! In a little while there's an ancient trial, isn't there? I'll be taking part too—the Overseas Cultivators Association has already secured my registration. And Wei Zhao will surely take part as well, because only the winners get the chance to join the Cloud Terrace Island Heavenly Dao Project. A man riding the crest of fame like Wei Zhao—how could he not join the Cloud Terrace Island Project? How could he give up the chance to advance to the Heavenly Dao? And if I finish him off during the trial, that doesn't break any rules! If you want to enter the trial, you have to follow the trial's rules. Dying in the trial—well, that's just his bad luck. No matter how powerful the Mystic Investigation Bureau is, it can't interfere with the ancient trial! That trial is jointly launched by countless ancient sects."

"What?" Qiu Lingshan was stunned. Her first thought was that Wei Zhao should not take part in that trial—but from what Song Lingwei said, this trial was the very gateway to the Cloud Terrace Island Project. Then Wei Zhao would surely go!

After all, many of the girls around Wei Zhao were inheritors, and all of them would take part in the Cloud Terrace Island Project. How could Wei Zhao possibly not go? Even if Qiu Lingshan tried to talk him out of it, Wei Zhao probably would not listen.

At this thought, Qiu Lingshan could not help but feel worried, yet she could hardly say so plainly to Song Lingwei. She could only say, "Then don't act rashly—better to think it over carefully! Wei Zhao is one of the Mystic Investigation Bureau's most important talents. If anything happened to him, then..."

"Oh, Sis, when did you become such a fussbudget?" Song Lingwei said with some impatience. "All right, all right, I'll think about it!"

Qiu Lingshan could only shake her head. From the look of Song Lingwei, her words had gone in one ear and out the other. "I'll think about it," she said—but in truth she had probably already tossed the whole matter to the back of her mind!

The two sisters were still talking when suddenly a tremendous roar came from the gate of the Song family compound!

"Hear this, you Song family people—you have one minute to roll out here, or you'll bear the consequences!"

The voice was deafening, shaking Qiu Lingshan so much that her head swam, and even Song Lingwei's expression turned grave! So it was... a master at the peak of the late Heaven Rank, at the level of Great Perfection! How had such a master come knocking at their door?

Song Lingwei did not believe the Song family could have offended such a master—if they had, the Song family would have ceased to exist long ago, and there would be no need to wait until now! She rose to her feet and walked quickly toward the gate, intending to see what was going on.

"Xiao Rui, what are you doing? Don't be rash!" Qiu Lingshan had also sensed the power contained in that roar, and said with sudden worry.

"Sis, I have to go and look. Didn't you hear? If we don't come out, we bear the consequences," Song Lingwei said with a bitter smile. "I suspect whoever's come means no good—and it may have something to do with me, or with Second Grandfather!"