The Grand Elder and Jun Shuxue's affairs were not something Fairy Jinwu wished to announce.
After all, family scandals were not to be aired publicly; it was an internal matter of the Jinwu Palace. Even if Jun Shuxue deserved her punishment, and the Grand Elder had brought it upon himself, in the eyes of outsiders, they were still members of the Jinwu Palace. If they became a laughingstock, the Jinwu Palace would lose face.
She had planned to announce the Grand Elder's death as a result of cultivation backlash after Ji Shiyou returned with his body. This way, both the Jinwu Palace and the Grand Elder's lineage could preserve their dignity.
She never expected Jun Shuxue to be so ambitious, not only twisting the facts but also biting back and falsely accusing her of killing the Grand Elder to seize power. Furthermore, Jun Shuxue had summoned the former Grand Elder, Yong Gaoya, who had been in seclusion for a long time.
No wonder she had been so fearless in the face of the pressure earlier, putting on a show of sacrificing herself for righteousness, knowing all along that the elder with the long eyebrows, Yong Gaoya, would protect her.
Seeing her martial uncle appear, Fairy Jinwu felt impatient. However, she suppressed her anger and explained patiently. It wasn't due to fear of his cultivation, but for another reason.
According to the rules of the Jinwu Palace, the Palace Master held the highest authority. However, to prevent a generation of incompetent Palace Masters from leading the Jinwu Palace to ruin, the founding ancestor had established a rule: while the Palace Master made all decisions regarding palace affairs, every Grand Elder had the right to replace the Palace Master once. This was why Fairy Jinwu had tolerated the Grand Elder's rampant behavior for so many years.
She had assumed that with the Grand Elder's death, this restriction would be gone. This time, to elevate Mingyue's status in the immortal sects and pave her way, she intended to let Mingyue take over the position of Grand Elder. Unexpectedly, Jun Shuxue interfered, bringing out Yong Gaoya to disrupt things.
It was known that Yong Gaoya, as the former Grand Elder, had never used that special privilege. Therefore, Fairy Jinwu no longer concealed anything from Jun Shuxue and revealed everything.
To her surprise, Yong Gaoya directly demanded evidence. Jun Shuxue's past actions had witnesses, but Ji Shiyou and the others had not yet returned to testify. The two disciples who had escorted Jun Shuxue back could have testified, but they had unfortunately been struck down by the lightning unleashed by He Lianbiao's wind and thunder techniques. Where was she supposed to find evidence now?
The matter of the Grand Elder being burned to death at Furong Peak could be testified by disciples from the Sword Sect and Hundred Flowers Palace. However, that battle had involved the Five Elements Demon Lord and a fight against the Underworld River, and they had all been injured. They were now recuperating in their respective sects and had not accompanied their sect leaders to the Jinwu Palace.
Distant water could not quench immediate thirst. With no witnesses or evidence, Fairy Jinwu was temporarily speechless.
"Elder Yong, I am unaware of Jun Shuxue's affairs. However, the Grand Elder of the Jinwu Palace did indeed attack Ji Shiyou unsuccessfully and perished by colliding with the Jinwu Fire. Disciples of the Sword Sect witnessed this firsthand that day, and I can attest to it. The Jinwu master and disciple would never deliberately harm the Grand Elder for the sake of seizing power."
Seeing Fairy Jinwu cornered by Yong Gaoya's demand for evidence, Fan Ye quickly stood up to testify. Nong Qing also echoed his statement, adding that the Hundred Flowers Palace could also attest that the Grand Elder's death was not directly related to the Jinwu master and disciple, but rather a consequence of his own actions, akin to suicide.
"The two of you, were you present at Furong Peak when my disciple died? Did you witness these events firsthand?" Yong Gaoya waved his floating whisk, and two beams of light shot from his cloudy old eyes, fixing on them as he asked.
"No."
"We did not witness it firsthand, but merely heard reports from disciples who returned from the mission." Both Nong Qing and Fan Ye shook their heads. They had indeed not been present.
"Since you were not present, what you heard is hearsay and cannot be counted. Everyone knows you are sworn friends with Jinwu. Even if you were present, your testimony would not be objective. Although this old man has not emerged from seclusion for a long time, I am not easily fooled. Do not try to deceive me with baseless rumors. Otherwise, do not blame this old man for bullying the young and harming you." Yong Gaoya let out a cold laugh, implying that Fan Ye and the other were providing false testimony for Fairy Jinwu. Then, with a flick of his floating whisk, without any apparent display of power, Nong Qing and Fan Ye, who had risen to their feet, involuntarily sat back down.
Although Yong Gaoya was a senior, and Nong Qing was a great beauty, the fact that he accused them of false testimony and then attacked them, they were still sect leaders. They immediately prepared to stand up, but their bodies were half-numb. They found they could not stand up. It turned out that it was not Yong Gaoya's cultivation that was so high, but rather that their powers had been depleted from the earlier fight with He Lianbiao, leaving them with only twenty percent of their cultivation. Yong Gaoya had taken advantage of this, making it appear as though he had easily defeated them with a mere wave of his whisk.
Yong Gaoya's move shocked everyone. After all, Nong Qing and Fan Ye were both sect leaders who had recently displayed great power and defeated the Four Manifestations Envoys. Now, they could not withstand a casual wave from Yong Gaoya. What level of cultivation had this former Grand Elder of the Jinwu Palace reached? Everyone's hearts were filled with curiosity.
However, Yong Gaoya's words served as a reminder to everyone. They had believed Fairy Jinwu and never believed Jun Shuxue's words. But now, thinking about it, both sides presented conflicting accounts, and neither had produced conclusive evidence. Someone must be lying. And Yong Gaoya's words received their agreement. No one trusted anyone; only evidence mattered.
"Martial Uncle, I currently cannot produce evidence. But every word I speak is the truth, and I can swear to it! But does Jun Shuxue have any evidence for what she said?"
Seeing her friends being put in a difficult position while defending her, Fairy Jinwu flew down from the high platform, placed her hands on the shoulders of the two who were struggling to stand, and channeled some of her cultivation into Nong Qing and Fan Ye. She then gestured with her eyes for them to rest well. They, along with Ling Ge, instantly understood her meaning. They remained seated, closed their eyes, and began to recuperate.
Fairy Jinwu then walked to Yong Gaoya and Jun Shuxue and retorted, "Martial Uncle, I cannot produce evidence at this moment because Ji Shiyou and the others have not returned. But I believe Jun Shuxue cannot produce any either."
"Who says I have no evidence? I say she is a thief, and she is a thief because the evidence is right before your eyes. Look, the golden hairpin on her head is the proof."
With the backing of an ancestor, Jun Shuxue became full of confidence. Coupled with the ancestor's resistance to Fairy Jinwu's pressure, she became arrogant. She pointed triumphantly at Mingyue's head and said smugly. Originally, her plan did not include accusing Mingyue of being a thief. She had intended to frame Mingyue and Ji Shiyou for having an illicit affair, colluding with Fairy Jinwu to seize power, eliminate rivals, and kill the Grand Elder. But upon seeing the golden hairpin on Mingyue's head, she impulsively added another charge to destroy Mingyue's image.
"A golden hairpin?"
"Isn't that the standard issue golden hairpin of the Jinwu Palace? What's wrong with it?"
...
Everyone looked at the hairpin on Mingyue's head and murmured amongst themselves. They saw nothing special and could not discern any clues.
"This is bad!" Mingyue secretly exclaimed upon hearing Jun Shuxue's words.