I'd been on tenterhooks ever since I stepped into Banxian Village, afraid Old Liu would mess up and get himself killed.

My earlier outburst about wiping out Cheng Li was half genuine bloodlust, and half a cover for Old Liu.

Looks like this old fox has some tricks up his sleeve!

He's navigating that bunch of Confucian scholars with ease!

So what am I afraid of?

Just keep playing along!

I said slowly, "I'd like to know, what makes you think I'm here to acknowledge a relative? Do you have witnesses, or evidence? Or has Xia Yuting herself admitted it?"

Old Liu chimed in, "What Hall Master Li said is exactly what I want to ask."

Cheng Yuankai said, "The Xia family members are all here in the hall. A simple question will suffice. Xia Chuan, what do you say?"

Xia Chuan, the head of the Xia family, stepped forward and said, "I, Xia Chuan, swear on my honor that my daughter, Xia Yuting, has been focused on her studies and has never married or had children."

Cheng Li couldn't help but say, "It's common knowledge in Banxian Village that Xia Yuting isn't married. As for whether she has children, I'm afraid only the Xia family knows the truth?"

Xia Chuan's face darkened: "Is Senior Brother Cheng implying that my Xia family is lax in its discipline?"

Not only did Cheng Li's expression change drastically, but even Cheng Yuankai couldn't maintain his composure: "Cheng Li, if you continue to spout nonsense, get out."

Cheng Li gritted his teeth: "Village Master, I'm not talking nonsense."

"If Li Po wasn't confident, why would he come to Banxian Village to acknowledge... to seek an audience with Xia Yuting?"

"Furthermore, Xia Yuting and Li Chunfeng were known to be close back then. At the very least, the Xia family can't explain why Li Po insists on seeing Xia Yuting now."

"You..." Xia Chuan's face turned white with anger, but he couldn't refute it.

The phrase "close relationship" was indeed difficult to quantify the extent of their relationship.

When Wang Butcher heard this, he couldn't help but chuckle.

Cheng Li raged, "You woman, in broad daylight..."

Wang Butcher interrupted him with a furious scolding: "What about a woman? If it weren't for women, you'd have been wiped on paper and thrown into the latrine long ago."

Wang Butcher pointed at him: "And I'm warning you, you better not talk nonsense. This Grandmaster's status is equivalent to a great Confucian scholar. Be careful, or I'll make you kneel and slap yourself."

A Grandmaster would be respected wherever they went, and the price of insulting a Grandmaster was too high for many to bear.

Cheng Li was shocked: "You're a Grandmaster?"

Wang Butcher took out his Grandmaster token and slammed it on the table: "Are you kneeling or not? I'll give you three breaths to decide."

Cheng Li's face turned black.

The identity of a Grandmaster meant that Wang Butcher had transcended the boundaries of a sorcerer. Even when meeting the sect leader, he could sit on equal footing.

Old Liu said, "Grandmaster Wang, the disciples of Banxian Village rarely venture into the martial world, so they don't know the Grandmaster's reputation. If there was any offense, I apologize on their behalf."

"You're too kind!" Wang Butcher stood up and returned the greeting, giving both sides face.

Old Liu sat down and said, "May I ask why Grandmaster Wang laughed just now?"

Wang Butcher said, "I laugh because a group of great Confucian scholars are arguing red-faced over a simple problem, unable to find a solution. Isn't this what they call: reading books to death, death reading?"

Cheng Yuankai said with displeasure, "Grandmaster Wang, do you have a solution?"

Wang Butcher said, "Call Xia Yuting out, take a strand of her hair in person, do a paternity test, wouldn't that solve the problem? Is there a need to continue arguing?"

Cheng Yuankai said, "Xia Yuting has already entered the Banxian Village Stele Forest. Unless Banxian Village encounters a major crisis, we cannot disturb the great Confucian scholars in the Stele Forest from their quiet cultivation."

Wang Butcher laughed: "What about Xia Yuting's parents? Did they also go to the Stele Forest?"

"As far as I know, grandparents and grandchildren can also be tested."

"If Xia Yuting is Hall Master Li's biological mother, he and Xia Yuting's parents must have similar genes."

"It shouldn't be difficult to find such an organization nowadays, right?"

"This..." Cheng Yuankai didn't know what to say for a moment.

My eyes suddenly turned cold: "What does Village Master Cheng mean? Are you saying you've been playing me all along?"

Old Liu's face also turned cold: "Village Master Cheng, why are you hesitating?"

Cheng Yuankai said with a troubled expression: "Would you believe me if I said that Xia Yuting's biological parents had passed away long ago?"

I laughed loudly: "Cheng Yuankai, do you think my Two Worlds Hall is too easy to talk to?"

I pointed back at Xia Chuan and said, "Didn't he claim to be Xia Yuting's father just now? Is he a dead man?"

Xia Chuan said with a wry smile, "Hall Master Li, please calm down. I am only Yuting's adoptive father. Her biological parents were my classmates in my early years. They have indeed passed away long ago. They entrusted Yuting to me before they died."

"Yuting herself knows about this."

Before I could speak, Old Liu spoke first, "Everyone, you are all renowned figures in Confucianism. Now, can anyone explain to me why Banxian Village believes that Li Po is here to acknowledge his mother?"

"Are you relying on your subjective assumptions?"

The seven great Confucian scholars led by Cheng Yuankai in Banxian Village all fell silent.

But at this moment, I said slowly, "As I see it, Village Master Cheng may be quite innocent!"