Chapter 22: Brother~ Framing Someone Doesn’t Need a Reason…

The Xin Nan Sect Master shook his head with a light sigh. “The young manor lord originally wanted to seek refuge in our sect during the Heaven Discussion Assembly, but who would have thought he’d encounter such a disaster? Yesterday morning, the demonic energy that had been suppressed in his body suddenly flared up. I checked on him just now, and that demonic energy is incredibly stubborn. We’ll need to join forces later to purge it.”

Rong Ye nodded. “Very well.”

The Xin Nan Sect Master stroked his beard. “The young manor lord of Red Feather Manor is still young, at most a bit arrogant in temperament. How did he end up provoking the Yin-Yang Twins?”

Gu Changhuai, sprawled on the wall, wondered the same thing.

…How had the Yin-Yang Twins gotten provoked?

Back then, he and Hua Mei had carved a bloody path through the Demon Realm using that name, and later, the denizens of the Demon Realm dubbed them the Twins.

During their massacre of a snake-type city lord midway through, bystanders overheard Hua Mei’s feminine voice. From then on, “Yin-Yang” was added to Twins, making them the Yin-Yang Twins.

But they hadn’t acted together in a long time.

And now, out of nowhere, the blame had been pinned on them.

Gu Changhuai couldn’t swallow this injustice, and neither could Hua Mei.

Hua Mei’s teeth ground together with a creak as he said aggrievedly, “Who the hell is framing us? We didn’t do anything.” He poked Gu Changhuai. “Big official, you have to stand up for your little servant. This is so unfair!”

Gu Changhuai was puzzled. “I checked on him after he was knocked out at the Stone Long Platform that day, and I didn’t detect any demonic energy in Flower Peacock’s body.”

He lowered his voice. “Let’s listen a bit more.”

What exactly was going on here?

…

Meanwhile, the Xin Nan Sect Master continued, “The young manor lord is still young and doesn’t know the depths of these matters. The Twins are elusive and hard to deal with—once targeted, you’d lose at least a layer of skin. We’ll have to be extra vigilant for the remaining half month.”

A black chess piece spun once in Rong Ye’s fingers. “How did Xuan Yao provoke this trouble?” Though it was a question, his tone held no fluctuation, more like going through the motions.

“The reason is unclear for now.” The Xin Nan Sect Master frowned in headache. “Young Manor Lord Xuan couldn’t explain it clearly either. Perhaps the young master acted rashly and offended the Twins while out and about.”

Rong Ye let out a soft “Mm.” “Indeed bold.” It was unclear if he referred to Xuan Yao, the Yin-Yang Twins, or something else.

The words were ambiguous, double-edged, impossible to fathom his thoughts.

The conversation stopped there.

The two lowered their heads to resume their game, speaking no more.

…

Atop the wall.

“What riddles are those two playing?” Hua Mei was utterly confused, his handsome yet alluring face full of ‘I understand every word but not when put together.’

Gu Changhuai propped his cheek. “I don’t know about the rest, but I do know this pot’s already on our backs.”

Hua Mei was filled with righteous indignation but didn’t dare shout aloud, so he vented through transmission: “Slander! This is blatant slander!”

Then he pondered carefully. “Big official, did we offend anyone recently?”

Gu Changhuai drawled lazily, “Framing someone doesn’t need a reason.”

“Don’t rush.” He said, “The sect master still needs to go purge the demonic energy from Xuan Yao’s knife wound, right? Let’s follow and see the specifics later.”

As he spoke.

Suddenly, a head popped up between the two, forcing Gu Changhuai and Hua Mei to shift aside. Jin Shuang joined the wall-sprawling team.

Now three people lay in a row atop the wall.

“What’s it to you? Why squeeze in?” Hua Mei grumbled. “Didn’t Wuding Pavilion assign you a task?”

Jin Shuang was full of righteousness, showing no trace of the ferocity from his fight with Pei Tianyi a few days ago—if not for the bruise on his face.

He still seemed the upright gentleman, transmitting elegantly, “Just passing by, saw you here, came to hear your little secrets.”

Gu Changhuai shot a glance toward the tree shadows. Through the gap, the two playing chess in the courtyard were fully visible. “Just peeping.”

Jin Shuang, now seeing clearly: “…”

He’d been careless; he shouldn’t have come.

But since he was here, the Immortal Venerable and sect master had likely noticed them long ago.

So he chose to join.

“Sigh…” Hua Mei let out a long sigh, twirling a lock of hair around his finger, mumbling, “We’ve always been the ones framing others—when did it become others framing us? We’ve been out of the mountains too long; people have forgotten the Twins’ temper.”

Gu Changhuai smiled, lips curling noncommittally. “It’s precisely because our reputation stinks that they dare sling the pot at us so boldly.”

Jin Shuang glanced at Hua Mei, then at Gu Changhuai, hesitating. “…Aren’t the Twins one male and one female?”

Though Wuding Pavilion had good intel, they clearly lacked confirmed internal info, or Jin Shuang wouldn’t be clueless.

Gu Changhuai glanced at Jin Shuang, commenting flatly, “Looks like Wuding Pavilion’s intel isn’t that accurate.”

Jin “Fake” “Wuding Pavilion” “Unofficial” “Undercover” Shuang shamefully lowered his head.

He didn’t dare admit he wasn’t from Wuding Pavilion.

“Brother~” In the transmission, Hua Mei had already shifted to his female appearance. His soft, boneless body leaned limply toward Jin Shuang. “Do I look…” He threw a coquettish glance at Jin Shuang, face full of shy allure. “…good?”

“!”

A living transformation!

Shock filled Jin Shuang’s eyes.

Gu Changhuai chuckled. “Just as you’re seeing.” That was his expression the first time he’d seen Hua Mei turn into a girl.

Jin Shuang quickly recovered and silently shifted farther from Hua Mei. He turned to Gu Changhuai. “Was it really you who did the young manor lord’s thing?”

“As if we had the time.” Hua Mei reverted to his male appearance.

Gu Changhuai shrugged. “He was busy seducing Shi Ying, I was busy killing my clansmen—who’d be bored enough to mess with a pampered young manor lord?”

The time Xuan Yao was hunted coincided exactly with his generation’s Shadow Clan infighting.

Jin Shuang blanked. “Ah…?”

Killing…

clansmen?

Suddenly recalling the Yin-Yang Twins’ notorious reputation…

From massacring a city in the Demon Realm, skinning the city lord to make snake stew, and sharing it from a pot at the gates—to stripping countless cultivators naked like sausages and hanging them swaying at their sect gates… Capricious and ruthless, treating all the same, acting on whims.

Thinking that way, nothing they did seemed surprising.

Jin Shuang wiped cold sweat from his brow and shut up.

The topic ended there.

Seeing the two chess players wouldn’t finish anytime soon, Gu Changhuai continued sprawling on his arms, enjoying the rare quiet.

…

A peaceful afternoon.

Gentle breeze, warm sun.

The waiting trio stopped talking and lay in a row sunbathing, turning into wall bugs. Fine sunlight filtered through dense leaves overhead; Gu Changhuai contentedly narrowed his eyes.

Finally, the two in the courtyard finished their game.

As they rose, the three on the wall immediately shrank back.

Xuan Yao lived at Pill Peak.

Rong Ye and the Xin Nan Sect Master headed that way. Jin Shuang and Hua Mei didn’t dare follow too closely, hanging back. Only Gu Changhuai naturally fell in step behind them. Sensing the little tail, Rong Ye paused briefly but ignored it.

They hadn’t gone two steps when the tail strolled up beside him, asking despite knowing, “Where’s Immortal Lord headed? Take me along.”

Rong Ye’s gaze shifted, landing on Gu Changhuai.

Gu Changhuai smiled openly.

“…” Rong Ye’s eyes darkened, suppressing a flicker of gloom.

Seeing Rong Ye say nothing, Gu Changhuai knew it was assent and reached to grab his sleeve hem. Feeling the Xin Nan Sect Master’s stare, he turned and met the old man’s teasing smile.

After a thought, he smiled back at the sect master.

Suddenly, his wrist tightened.

Gu Changhuai looked down to see it gripped by a large hand. He blinked, looked up without reacting in time, and met Rong Ye’s glance. “Let’s go.”

In the next instant, they rose on the wind.