Chapter 145: Doubts

The old man Zhan Lan's words instantly left everyone present somewhat startled and puzzled. Judging by his tone, he seemed to recognize Su Yi. Their gazes drifted back and forth between the old man and Su Yi. Yu Li and Qin Shou's eyes finally landed on Su Yi, but their looks became increasingly strange. Could this kid be hiding something else?

Su Yi was likewise baffled by Zhan Lan's remarks, looking at him with undisguised confusion. In his memories, there was no impression whatsoever related to this old man—neither his appearance nor his name was known to him. He was certain he had never met the so-called Master of the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion before. Yet, the other party acted as if they knew him. What on earth was going on?

Suddenly, a flash of lightning crossed his mind as he thought of a possibility. Su Yi's heartbeat accelerated slightly, and he raised his head, asking tentatively, "Master, do you know me?"

"What is your name?" Zhan Lan seemed to hesitate for a moment, not answering Su Yi's question, and instead asked slowly.

"Su Yi."

Upon hearing Su Yi's reply, Zhan Lan fell silent for a while. After a moment, he finally shook his head and said indifferently, "You look very much like a... deceased acquaintance of mine. It seems I was mistaken..."

Su Yi suddenly felt as though he had discerned something from the other's words. Combined with Bei Shan's various suspicious signs earlier and the shocking thought that had just crossed his mind, Su Yi already harbored an inexplicable aversion toward the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion and even the Imperial Pole Sect. Zhan Lan's words involuntarily reminded Su Yi of how he had crossed over three years ago, waking up injured and unconscious. Consequently, this vague aversion unaccountably added a trace of apprehension and hostility.

Could the person the other party knew be the previous owner of this body? While Su Yi was deep in thought, the other party had already issued a silent dismissal. He had no choice but to follow Yu Li out and leave the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion along the original path.

On the way, Yu Li could not help asking with some curiosity, "Su Yi, do you really not know Master Zhan?" Qin Shou beside him also turned his gaze over upon hearing this, clearly showing considerable interest in the matter. After all, given the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion's current standing in Lunluo City, establishing even the slightest connection with them would be a remarkable feat.

Slowly shaking his head, Su Yi said, "I have never seen him before." For the past three years, he had spent the vast majority of his time in Changling City; how could he possibly know someone as far away as Lunluo City? In fact, he recalled that instructor Zuo Yuan had once mentioned that those who secretly nurtured the Corpse-Walking Beetle Beasts were those very people, and it was also those people who had attacked Dragon's Dream over a year ago. Could all of this be related to the Imperial Pole Sect?

By now, Su Yi realized that there were increasingly more things he could not figure out. He thought about it for a moment without finding any answers; after all, many of things were mere guesswork on his part with no supporting evidence to unravel the mystery in his heart. Feeling helpless, Su Yi stopped pondering over it. Without strength, knowing more was of no use anyway. Walking all the way here made Su Yi realize that cultivation was not such a simple matter; at least, he had yet to find a way to advance his tier.

While Su Yi was lost in these thoughts, the few of them had already walked out of the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion. Yu Li had business to attend to and took his leave first. Qin Shou immediately asked Su Yi where he was heading next, adding that if he had nothing to do, he could come over to his house for a visit.

Originally, Su Yi had wanted to see if there were any medicinal herbs in the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion that might be helpful to him, but he no longer had the mood for it. Sighing, Su Yi decided it would be better to follow Qin Shou. The two of them agreed and promptly left the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion, heading toward the east side of the city.

...

Inside a spacious and luxurious grand hall of the Ultimate Medicine Pavilion, Pavilion Master Zhan Lan and Deputy Pavilion Master Bei Shan each sat on a profound wood armchair, appearing to lie there in leisurely enjoyment. However, upon closer observation, one could notice that their expressions seemed somewhat heavy.

Zhan Lan had his eyes closed, his hands resting gently on the armrests on either side, quietly remaining completely silent as if he had been asleep all along. At a certain moment, however, he slowly opened his mouth, his voice even yet somewhat gloomy: "How are things with the corpses?"

Although Bei Shan was also seated there, he still looked toward the Pavilion Master with respectful deference. Hearing the inquiry, he immediately replied, "Reporting to the Pavilion Master, this time it was indeed due to an oversight by our people that those corpses appeared. However, we have long since taken corresponding measures to sever all clues related to us... We have also recovered those Corpse-Walking Beetle Beasts, not a single one missing..."

Zhan Lan, sitting steadily, did not open his eyes upon hearing this, but continued slowly, "The Corpse-Walking Beetle Beasts are already scarce in number and not easy to raise, so not even a single one can be missing... Moreover, judging by the situation, someone should be going to eliminate those corpses before long. I hope no flaws were left behind..."

"Rest assured, Pavilion Master, our people handled matters cleanly and thoroughly, leaving no trace behind... Furthermore, I just questioned Yu Li and his group, and according to them, they did not discover anything else..." Bei Shan nodded immediately, offering his assurance.

"Clean? Thorough?" The old man, still with his eyes closed, curled the corners of his mouth into a sneer and said, "If that were truly the case, this matter wouldn't have happened! It would be fine if the corpses were eliminated, but if they weren't and instead blew the matter out of proportion, the consequences would be quite severe! You should also know that this is going against the whole world. Once attention is drawn and we are investigated... Hehe..."

"Yes! Yes! What the Pavilion Master says is entirely correct..." Bei Shan hurriedly expressed his agreement. Then, seeming to hesitate for a moment, he tentatively asked, "Since this matter is so serious, why are we... and what is the use of it?..."

It appeared that although Bei Shan knew these classified secrets, his clearance did not grant him much detailed knowledge. Hearing this, Zhan Lan's expression did not change as he slowly stated, "This matter was assigned to us by those people. You also know that over these years, it is precisely with the help of those people that our Imperial Pole Sect has experienced such rapid development and expansion, coming close to rivaling the Night Void City. Furthermore, according to some internal news I recently probed within the sect, I suspecting that the higher-ups are about to make a move against Night Void City..."

"Does that mean a war is extremely likely to break out?!" Bei Shan had evidently just learned this news, and a look of shock briefly flashed across his face. One had to know that Night Void City was the most renowned top sect in the empire, one that even the imperial court had to treat with three parts of courtesy. Their Imperial Pole Sect was hardly weak either, and if two such colossal entities went to war, the momentum would be astonishing and the ramifications extensive.

"We don't need to worry about such matters for now; we should steadily handle the task at hand... Hmph, news only just came from the sect a short while ago saying that someone might have noticed some of our affairs, and now such a blunder occurs!" The old man closed his eyes and gave a light snort.

Seeing that the other party did not intend to pursue the matter harshly, Bei Shan couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief. Yet, when all was said and done, the old man hadn't fully answered his previous question. However, since the other party didn't want to tell him, there was nothing he could do. Who asked the other party to possess greater strength and status than him? Moreover, he seemingly had some connections within the sect, and it was even rumored that he had an elder brother named Zhan Hai who was even more formidable—none of which Bei Shan could hope to compare with.

"Right, Pavilion Master, what was going on with that Su Yi just now? Does he really have some connection to you?" Remembering the earlier incident out of the blue, Bei Shan couldn't help asking with growing curiosity.

As soon as Bei Shan uttered those words, the old man's tightly closed eyes suddenly trembled slightly before slowly opening. A flash of inexplicable flicker crossed his gaze, which gradually settled into calmness as if he were deep in thought. After a long while, he finally said slowly, "More than three years ago, some details of that incident have already grown a bit hazy in my mind... Actually, more than three years ago, I participated in an assassination raid—well, to be precise, my eldest brother and I participated together... However, we didn't personally engage in the slaughter; instead, we gathered and organized clues and intelligence. Therefore, I am quite familiar with the appearances and relevant features of those targets. Among them, a target of about fifteen years old looked extremely similar to the young man named Su Yi just now. At first glance, I really thought they were the same person, but that person should already be dead..."

Having listened to this account, Bei Shan fell silent for a moment before speaking in a low voice, "Pavilion Master, is it possible that this young man named Su Yi is the very person you mentioned? While one cannot deny that people can look alike in this world, isn't the coincidence right now a bit too striking? Fifteen years old, three years later makes eighteen, matching this Su Yi..."

Zhan Lan's gaze flashed, and his brows furrowed slightly with a hint of suspicion: "Put that way, it is indeed rather coincidental... However, that target possessed some strength at the time. Judging by his age and talent, had he not died, he should be at least a Level Seven or Eight Dou Zhe by now. Yet this Su Yi is an ordinary person without a shred of Dou Qi or even Dou Zhi Qi."

"Perhaps he survived with heavy injuries, but his Dou Qi was crippled, leaving him unable to cultivate anymore?" Bei Shan pondered for a moment before speaking.

"Then your meaning is..." The old man narrowed his eyes slightly, turning his head to look at his subordinate not far away as he slowly asked.

Bei Shan immediately bared his stark white teeth, speaking with a grim, chilling tone: "Better to kill by mistake than to let anyone slip away!"

Hearing this, a sudden jolt stirred within the old man's heart. Indeed, although he was half an outsider during that assassination raid three years ago, he deeply sensed how momentous that affair was. Otherwise, they wouldn't have dispatched so many experts and thoroughly wiped away every single trace afterward! If they had merely killed ordinary people, why would their Imperial Pole Sect and those people need to go to such great lengths? Wasn't it precisely to ensure the target's complete annihilation without leaking any information? In other words, once certain people learned of this matter, it would undoubtedly draw endless trouble and even severe consequences!

Since a suspected survivor had appeared, they had to find a way to nip this bud in the cradle. The old man nodded with a heavy expression and said, "Then send someone to handle it... I vaguely recall that if that Su Yi is indeed that person, he should have a jade pendant on him..."

"Rest assured, Pavilion Master, I actually already found out where Su Yi is heading; he's going to that Qin Shou's home." Bei Shan smiled then and said, "Although that Qin family isn't much, they are now a part of our Ultimate Medicine Pavilion and our Imperial Pole Sect. This gives us a righteous and proper pretext... Furthermore, given Su Yi's condition, dispatching a single Dou Cultivator should be more than enough..."