One of the elders on the left spoke first, staring intently at the three of them, the implication as clear as day!
For a moment, all suspicious gazes turned to them, and Lan Yingqing frowned.
"Grand Elder, you worry too much. My junior sister would never do such a thing... Besides, the one who injured my father was... those things! My junior sister is even less likely to be involved with them!"
Before the Grand Elder could speak, the Seventh Elder chimed in, his lecherous middle-aged face filled with concern, as if worried for them.
"I believe the three young friends would certainly not do such a thing, but those things are adept at manipulating people's minds. What if the three of you did something unknowingly? Perhaps it's best... to search yourselves?"
Yun Mo Linglong, naturally unwilling to be so falsely accused, was about to retort when she heard Jin Bao'er chuckle.
"Seventh Elder is right. Searching is the only way to completely prove our innocence! Why don't we start with my room?"
Seeing her so cooperative, the Seventh Elder's eyes gleamed with triumph.
Before long, they arrived at her room. After a simple search, they quickly found something!
"Found it, found it!"
With a cry of surprise, everyone looked over and gasped. Poisonous insects, cicada parasites, and intestinal-breaking gu...
Each one was capable of making a cultivator wish they were dead!
Upon seeing this, the Grand Elder roared, his Nascent Soul stage pressure spreading rapidly... The Seventh Elder wore an expression of utter shock at their wickedness.
"It really was you?!"
All the disciples instantly glared at them, as if looking at their father's murderer.
The sudden turn of events also stunned the other two beside them. Jin Bao'er pursed her thin lips, picked up a piece of something from the corner, and looked with cold eyes.
"With just these few items, you conclude we were controlled assassins? Hmph... Sixth Senior Brother, do you believe this too?"
Lan Yingqing stood at the doorway, his gaze fixed on Jin Bao'er, his expression extremely serious. After a few seconds, he finally looked at the Grand Elder.
"It can't be hers! Those things can only control creatures with weak willpower!"
The implication was that Jin Bao'er's willpower was not weak, though no one thought about it. With the physical evidence gathered, they couldn't deny it. The Seventh Elder shook his head as if it were a foregone conclusion.
"Why don't we do this? To clear your suspicions, the three of you should leave tomorrow morning! Whether you were controlled or not, it's better to leave."
Jin Bao'er had been waiting for this very statement, a cunning glint flashing in her eyes.
"Very well, then we shall leave tomorrow..."
As soon as the words left her mouth, the Seventh Elder and the Grand Elder simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief. Following this, Jin Bao'er let out a mocking laugh, her aura suddenly becoming sharp and fierce, her gaze fixed piercingly on him.
"This is what Seventh Elder wanted to hear, isn't it? Your goal is for the three of us to leave? I'm becoming more and more curious, what exactly has happened to this Carefree Palace?"
Hearing this, the Seventh Elder's expression flickered for a moment before quickly returning to normal, and he looked at her with a bewildered expression.
"I don't understand what Junior Daoist Jin is talking about?"
His acting was so superb that the surrounding disciples also glared at Jin Bao'er.
"How dare you be so insolent! The three of you already have suspicious identities, and you appear at the sacred land at this precise moment... Who knows what your intentions are?"
Jin Bao'er, too lazy to explain, raised her hand and took out a stone. After injecting spiritual energy into it, she placed it aside.
"This is... a留影石 (Liuying Stone)?"
Instantly, the Seventh Elder's face changed drastically. A disciple at the doorway also widened his eyes and instinctively tried to leave...
A gust of wind blew, and a hand landed on his shoulder!
"Why is this fellow daoist leaving? Don't you want to see what's inside?"
As the contents within became clear, everyone watched in disbelief as, shortly after Jin Bao'er left the room, a short figure secretly sneaked in, placed the three items down, and quickly departed...
The result was self-evident: they had been framed!
For a moment, everyone was stunned. These three had only arrived today, so why frame them?
"Sixth Senior Brother, have there been any major events in the Carefree Sect recently? I suspect it's because certain people want to drive us away."
As soon as she spoke, everyone seemed to recall something, their expressions turning extremely ugly.
"This matter is a sect secret, not to be told to outsiders!"
"Bah! Because of this matter, I was unjustly slandered by you all! And now it has something to do with us!"
After the Grand Elder said this with a solemn expression, Yun Mo Linglong, who had been holding back her words, immediately retorted!
Qiao Qianshan didn't even have a chance to intervene before he was inexplicably dragged into some matter...
Jin Bao'er's gaze then shifted to Lan Yingqing. What was it that made him so strange? From the very beginning, he had likely realized the truth of being framed, yet he acted as if he were going along with others' play to drive her away!
What kind of matter was it? And what were those things?
The Grand Elder was so enraged he wanted to act, but Lan Yingqing stopped him in time, his expression serious as he looked at the three of them.
"Since that is the case, I will tell you the truth! Follow me."
With their hearts full of doubt, the three followed him into the inner chambers, which was precisely where all the disciples had rushed to first.
The dimly lit room was bare, without a single decent piece of furniture, except for the bed in the innermost corner...
Lan Yingqing's steps grew heavier until he reached out and lifted the bed curtains, revealing the person within...
"What... what is this?!"
Not to mention Yun Mo Linglong, who was greatly startled, even Jin Bao'er couldn't help but avert her gaze, and Qiao Qianshan frowned deeply, finally realizing the gravity of the situation.
The creature on the bed was neither human nor monster, its face covered in pustules, its head adorned with small spikes, its entire body green and emitting a foul odor. Its fingernails were extremely long, tinged with a dangerous purple light, brimming with poison.
"This is the work of the Soul Devouring Elder!"
Lan Yingqing said with a somber face, and Jin Bao'er's eyes immediately widened, while the other two looked completely bewildered...
The Soul Devouring Elder, a legend who fed on souls, was monstrous in appearance and roamed the Ghost Realm and Human Realm year-round. His puppet manipulation skills were so exquisite that people would be unknowingly controlled without being able to resist...
Recalling her past life, before she was captured, she had heard of this person. Although she had never seen him, she knew how terrifying he was! But why had someone who was supposed to appear seven or eight years later appeared now? And had turned a Nascent Soul stage expert into this state.
"Not long ago, the Soul Devouring Elder happened to encounter my father and declared he would not live for more than three days. They fought fiercely, and I don't know what that monster used to cripple my father like this. Tomorrow is the time he predicted..."
Tonight, was destined to be sleepless!
It wasn't until dawn the next day that a strange dark mist enveloped the entire Carefree Sect. All the disciples panicked. The Grand Elder gathered the remaining people in the square, but the Seventh Elder was nowhere to be found.