Chapter 6: Trust Is Not Wrong

Maple Forest City belonged to Qinghe Commandery. In terms of scale, it ranked near the bottom among the thirteen cities of the commandery, only ahead of Mao City.

For the academy master of a Dao Academy in a city like this, a middle-rank sixth-grade Daoist would usually be suitable. For Dong A to oversee Maple Forest Dao Academy with fifth-grade cultivation, it was no wonder there were rumors that he had offended someone in the capital of Zhuang.

But for the disciples of Maple Forest Dao Academy, this was undoubtedly a good thing.

“So, aside from Fang Decai’s testimony, before this duel, you could not produce any definite evidence strong enough to be made public proving that Fang Pengju personally arranged the attack and intended to kill you for the pill?”

Dong A wore a black Daoist robe and sat upright on a meditation cushion in the quiet room.

On the wall behind him hung a portrait scroll depicting a Daoist dressed in noble purple robes. The brushwork was delicate, and the image was lifelike, yet the Daoist’s face seemed hidden within clouds and mist, impossible to see clearly.

Jiang Wang stood respectfully before the academy master with his head lowered. Hearing the question, he answered in as calm a tone as possible.

“I knew clearly that it was him. That was enough. As for irrefutable proof, he would naturally give it to everyone before he died. And indeed, he did not disappoint me.”

Dong A knew he was referring to the Meridian Opening Pill Fang Pengju had taken.

“Was that not too hasty and reckless?”

“I should have taken my time, gathered evidence, and awaited the Dao Academy’s judgment. But in two days, it will be the inner academy selection. Since Fang Pengju had already manifested his dao meridian, he would definitely become the academy master’s disciple. Time was short, so I could only take a risk. Jiang Wang dared to kill an outer academy disciple, but he would not dare kill the academy master’s disciple.”

The outer sect was only preparation. Inner academy disciples were the true disciples of the Dao Academy!

As he spoke, Jiang Wang kept his head lowered the entire time, showing the humility and propriety a disciple should have.

But what flashed through his mind was the screaming of that sword that had come from the west outside Return-to-Truth Temple!

That man named Li Yi had taken the head of a prodigy as powerful as Zuo Guanglie with a single sword. Why would he need so many twists and turns?

Compared to the battle outside Return-to-Truth Temple, how weak he was! And how feeble was the swordsmanship he was so proud of!

Where would he have the time to dawdle and slowly contend with Fang Pengju in the Dao Academy just to seek a flawless method?

Besides, if he had not directly charged in today with a single sword and forcefully initiated a Dao-witnessed duel, how could he have held any advantage over Fang Pengju, who had the Fang family of Maple Forest behind him, through any other method of confrontation?

“If the Meridian Opening Pill Fang Pengju used was stolen from you, then where did your Meridian Opening Pill come from?”

Here it was.

Jiang Wang’s heart tightened slightly, but not a trace showed on his face. The battle that had happened outside Return-to-Truth Temple, even if no one had dared approach at the time because of the might of the powerful people involved, would inevitably be investigated afterward. Moreover, since Gongyang Bai and the others had set up a formation inside Zhuang territory, it was impossible that they had not communicated with Zhuang’s experts beforehand. No matter how small Zhuang Country was, it still had the dignity of a nation!

As the publicly strongest person in all of Maple Forest City, it was impossible for Dong A to know nothing about that battle.

Fortunately, there was nothing much for Jiang Wang to hide in the entire matter. In this world with extraordinary power, the traces he left behind could not possibly be concealed.

So he described everything he had heard at the time as objectively as possible, without mixing in any personal attitude. This included the state of his body, his thoughts and decisions, how he had found the Meridian Opening Pill among the blurred flesh and blood, and how he had buried the corpses afterward.

He only omitted the matter of the Void Key.

During the narration, aside from a fleeting flash of anger in his eyes that seemed ready to erupt, Dong A remained silent the entire time.

Of course Jiang Wang knew where that anger came from.

The wilderness outside Maple Forest City, outside Return-to-Truth Temple—this was Zhuang territory! Yet powerful cultivators from Qin and Chu had fought there brazenly without the slightest restraint. In all of Maple Forest City, even all of Qinghe Commandery, no one had dared interfere with that battle. To the cultivators of Zhuang Country, this itself was an immense humiliation.

The reason Dong A suppressed that anger was simply because he did not want to expose the fact of Zhuang Country’s weakness, lest it affect his disciples’ confidence in cultivation.

He should be a good academy master.

Jiang Wang silently observed in his heart this middle-rank expert who, for a long time to come, would guide his cultivation path—before today, he had never had such an opportunity.

As he observed and summarized, he finished recounting the experience he had already prepared in his mind.

“The origin of your Meridian Opening Pill is clear. I have reviewed the records of all your missions in the outer academy. You have a sense of measure and decisiveness. That is rare.”

Dong A glanced at Jiang Wang indifferently before saying, “In the future, when speaking before me, you may refer to yourself as disciple.”

Jiang Wang’s tense heartstrings loosened at once. He knew this hurdle had passed. And he had already received the recognition of the academy master of Maple Forest Dao Academy and had been directly selected into the inner academy.

He crossed his thumbs, left hand outside, right hand inside, clasped his hands before his chest in the gesture of holding yin and embracing yang, lowered his head slightly, and saluted.

“Thank you, honored teacher.”

Confucianism valued heaven, earth, sovereign, parents, and teacher. But to Daoism, the teacher came before even sovereign and parents, because the teacher transmitted the Dao and was the one who expounded the Great Dao.

To all inner academy disciples of Maple Forest Dao Academy, Dong A was their honored teacher.

Dong A slightly closed his eyes and said no more.

“Go.”

…

After leaving the academy master’s meditation room, Jiang Wang walked side by side with Ling He and Zhao Rucheng, who had been waiting outside the whole time.

For a while, none of the three spoke. The atmosphere was heavy.

Jiang Wang had returned, but Fang Pengju was dead. The so-called Five Heroes of Maple Forest still existed only in name.

Since Du Yehu was not here, he must have hidden away in some corner to drink. Among them, he looked the most carefree, but when faced with something like this, he was probably the one who least knew how to face it. No matter how harshly he cursed or how deeply he hated, he could not erase the fact that he had once regarded Fang Pengju as a true brother.

As the eldest brother, Ling He was the first to break the silence.

“You two go back to the dormitory first. I still have to send Pengju’s body back to the Fang residence.”

Outer disciples of Maple Forest Dao Academy lived six to a dormitory. Because the Five Heroes of Maple Forest were kindred spirits, they had simply moved into the same dormitory. Others could not enter their circle either, so the five of them had always occupied one dormitory together.

Jiang Wang said nothing.

That was Ling He’s personality. No matter how many wrongs Fang Pengju had committed, it was impossible for him to ignore his corpse.

“Do you still hate Fourth Brother?” Ling He asked.

“Don’t keep calling him Fourth Brother.”

A trace of disgust appeared on Zhao Rucheng’s handsome face.

“I am ashamed to even speak of someone who plotted against his own brother, someone so vile and despicable.”

Compared to his age, Ling He’s face looked somewhat overly mature, and that was probably one reason he more easily earned trust and respect. Among the five, he had always played the role of the eldest brother, taking care of his younger brothers in many ways.

It was also because of his steady and mature side that people often forgot he was actually only nineteen, merely two years older than Jiang Wang and three years older than Zhao Rucheng.

It was just that children of poor families matured early.

Looking at Ling He, Jiang Wang shook his head and said, “Hating him is not worth it. I only hate my own stupidity. I hate that I trusted wrongly.”

Even though he behaved so calmly, Ling He still heard that trace of resentment he could not let go of. He understood it completely.

“Trust is one of the brightest things in this world. Trust is not wrong, Jiang Wang,” Ling He said. “The one at fault is the person who betrayed your trust.”

He did not continue speaking, but his earnest eyes told Jiang Wang this:

The brotherhood between us was not wrong either, nor was it false. The wrong and false one was only the person who betrayed all of it. Only Fang Pengju.

That was why he wanted to send Fang Pengju’s body back, so that he would not be left without a place after death. This was not out of recognition or sympathy for Fang Pengju, but simply respect for and protection of the brotherhood they had once shared and that should not be changed in the future.

This was Ling He.

Whether it was someone as hot-tempered as Du Yehu or as arrogant as Fang Pengju, they had all willingly called him eldest brother. How could that have been only because of age?

“Go,” Jiang Wang stopped walking. “When a person dies, it is like a lamp going out. Grudges and debts are all extinguished. But I cannot accompany you.”

“I cannot either,” Zhao Rucheng suddenly said.

Ling He patted Zhao Rucheng’s shoulder, then looked deeply at Jiang Wang before turning and leaving.

[End of Chapter]