The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

’Yan Zui really knows how to mess things up...’ Lu Sangjiu thought to herself. She shot Ye Zhiyao a regretful look. ’Oh well, maybe next time.’

"Elder, your timing is perfect."

Lu Sangjiu said with a chuckle, "Since you’ve already heard about this from Mr. Yan, and we have absolute trust in you, Elder, we can rest assured leaving the follow-up in your hands."

"However, this matter has wide-ranging implications, so we hope you’ll understand, Elder, that we will also be notifying our respective sects."

Hua Jianzhi had no objection, nodding as she said, "Even if you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have sent word. An affair of this magnitude is too much for the Joyful Union Sect to decide on its own."

Lu Sangjiu nodded, then turned to Ye Zhiyao, a smirk playing on her lips. "Senior Sister Ye, you’ve been away from the sect for so long. You must miss it, right? Why don’t you come with us."

A flicker of panic showed in Ye Zhiyao’s eyes. "I..."

She was just about to refuse when she heard Lu Sangjiu look to Hua Jianzhi with a smile. "Oh, by the way, Elder Hua, shouldn’t everyone else here be taken back for a thorough interrogation?"

Hua Jianzhi nodded. "But of course. Rest assured, we will interrogate everyone involved in this affair with the utmost rigor. We won’t let a single person get away."

She had arrived late and didn’t know what role Ye Zhiyao had played, so she simply agreed with Lu Sangjiu without thinking much of it.

But when Ye Zhiyao heard this, her expression changed instantly. She understood Lu Sangjiu’s threat. ’She’s telling me that if I don’t go with them, I’ll have to face a harsh interrogation too!’

’These people definitely wouldn’t be gentle during an interrogation; they had their ways of making people tell the truth.’

’At that point, everything between her and True Monarch Liu Feng would be impossible to hide... She had gone through so much trouble to kill True Monarch Liu Feng. How could she let him ruin her reputation now?’

She wasn’t afraid of what the others might say. After all, before she revealed herself, she had killed all the attendants who served her personally. The remaining people only knew that she’d been captured and imprisoned here by True Monarch Liu Feng—nothing more.

In fact, the only reason Ye Zhiyao had revealed herself upon learning of Lu Sangjiu’s arrival was that she wanted to use them to escape True Monarch Liu Feng.

Having been with True Monarch Liu Feng for so long, she was well aware of his illicit activities and knew that if he were ever exposed, he would die without a proper burial.

To avoid being implicated, she had started plotting her escape from his side long ago. The arrival of Lu Sangjiu and the others was the very opportunity she had been waiting for.

After killing her attendants, she had deliberately pleaded on behalf of Lu Sangjiu’s group, all to draw a clear line between herself and True Monarch Liu Feng. She wanted them to believe she was merely an innocent victim who had been abducted.

It didn’t actually matter to her whether Lu Sangjiu’s group succeeded or not.

If they succeeded, all the better—she could use the opportunity to leave. If they failed, that was fine too. She could just sweet-talk True Monarch Liu Feng a bit, and he wouldn’t pursue the matter.

Her plan was perfect in every way. She couldn’t afford to fail at the final step.

Her mind raced. In the end, Ye Zhiyao decided to take the gamble.

’They’re taking me away in front of Hua Jianzhi... they wouldn’t dare kill me.’

And so, Ye Zhiyao managed to force a smile at Lu Sangjiu. "Fine... I’ll go with you."

She paused, then deliberately added, "Although Junior Sister Lu and I have had many misunderstandings in the past, I trust she wouldn’t go so far as to harm a fellow disciple... right?"

Hua Jianzhi froze for a second, her gaze flicking toward them imperceptibly.

Lu Sangjiu smiled, her expression unchanging. "What are you saying, Senior Sister Ye? Why would I ever do something like that?"

After a moment, she added, "My First Senior Brother has already notified the Sect Leader, who should be arriving shortly. If you’re still not at ease, Senior Sister Ye, you can wait for him to get here."

Of course, Lu Sangjiu’s reason for wanting to take Ye Zhiyao away was to extract more useful information from her.

She trusted Hua Jianzhi, and she trusted her own Sect Leader, but she didn’t trust everyone else who was about to get involved in this affair.

She’d feel most at ease keeping this matter in her own hands, which was why she was willing to hand over the other people and the evidence, but still wanted to keep something back for herself.

Therefore, to put Ye Zhiyao at ease, she didn’t mind waiting a little longer.

Of course, she wasn’t afraid of Ye Zhiyao going back on her word after the Sect Leader arrived. After all, Ye Zhiyao didn’t want to be handed over along with the rest, did she?

Ye Zhiyao thought it over and decided it would indeed be safer to wait for the Sect Leader to arrive. She nodded and said, "In that case... let’s wait for the Sect Leader."

A short while later, the Sect Leader of Lingyin Pavilion, an elder from the Ten Thousand Buddha Sect, and the Sect Leader of the Seven Emotions Sect all arrived in succession.

It would be up to them to notify the other sects in turn.

Lu Sangjiu and her group exchanged a few words with their own Sect Leader and mentioned their intention to take Ye Zhiyao with them, which finally put Ye Zhiyao’s mind at ease.

Unexpectedly, however, the elder from the Ten Thousand Buddha Sect spoke up as soon as he saw Xie Ningyuan. "Jichen, something has happened to your master. You must return at once!"

In the Ten Thousand Buddha Sect, the two people Xie Ningyuan cared for most were the Abbot and his master. The moment he heard his master was in trouble, his expression changed dramatically.

"What’s wrong with Master?"

"Alas, Master of Hearing was gravely injured while traveling two days ago. We’ve given him many Elixir Pills, but he’s still not showing any improvement. I was just trying to figure out how to contact you and have you return, so it’s quite a coincidence that you reached out to me."

At these words, Xie Ningyuan’s face fell, his expression filled with worry.

He turned his head to look at Lu Sangjiu, seeming hesitant. "Little Jiu, I..."

Lu Sangjiu was also worried for the Master of Hearing, whom she had only met once. Frowning slightly, she tried to reassure him. "Master of Hearing will be all right. Try not to worry too much."

"You should go back and look after him. We can handle things here."

’Lu Sangjiu wanted to accompany him, but for a young woman like her to follow Xie Ningyuan back to the Ten Thousand Buddha Sect would undoubtedly invite criticism.’

’It wasn’t that she was afraid for herself, but Xie Ningyuan was the Buddha Son. He had just managed to overcome his Heart Demon with great difficulty; it wouldn’t be good for him to become the subject of gossip over something like this.’

’Besides, her work here wasn’t done. She still needed to interrogate Ye Zhiyao, and she had to figure out a way to send Ah Ming and the other Demon Cultivators back to the Western Demon Realm.’

After a moment of thought, Xie Ningyuan took a hairpin from his robes and fastened it in Lu Sangjiu’s hair.

"The gemstone on this hairpin resonates with a Magic Treasure in my possession. It will allow me to find you."

"If you run into any trouble, contact me with a Communication Talisman at once. I’ll be able to come to you immediately. Stay safe."

Lu Sangjiu nodded and gave him a smile. "Don’t worry, I’ll be fine."

Without another word, Xie Ningyuan turned and left.

Since there was nothing more for Lu Sangjiu and her group to do there for the moment, they said a word to their Sect Leader and departed, taking Ye Zhiyao with them.

The city gates were closed for the night, so they couldn’t leave just yet. They would have to wait until morning to exit the city and rendezvous with Yan Zui’s group.

So, Lu Sangjiu led her group back to the inn where they were staying, preparing to give Ye Zhiyao a thorough interrogation before the sun came up.

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