After bidding farewell to the grateful parents and refusing their tokens of appreciation, the two returned to Yuan Wuxing's small courtyard.
"You seemed quite eloquent when you were facing me. Why didn't you say anything in the court? Maybe Lord Zeng didn't even notice you," Yuan Wuxing scratched his head and chuckled, "I'm timid, never seen such a scene before. My mind was a bit blank."
Jiang Li chuckled and said, "You, spending ten years investigating the behemoth that is the Jiang family, knowing the hope was slim but still persisting. If someone says you lack determination, they must be blind. But at crucial moments, you become timid. Today in the Jiang family and in the court, just as before when you tried to break through the Yuanying stage. The Daoist sect emphasizes dual cultivation of life and morality, and now you are only cultivating morality, neglecting your life."
Yuan Wuxing was thunderstruck.
Indeed, as Jiang Li said, when he was breaking through the Yuanying stage, he always hesitated, with a confused mind. He thought to himself that he was still young, so why risk breaking through at the risk of death, why not wait for a hundred years and then try again? What's the use of breaking through the Yuanying stage? There is still the Nascent Divinity stage beyond the Yuanying stage. When will cultivation come to an end? Many people who tried to break through the Yuanying stage failed. Why should I be different? As a result, he failed several times, always falling short at the critical juncture.
"Thank you for your guidance, senior." Yuan Wuxing respectfully bowed to Jiang Li, who simply smiled and said nothing.
Yuan Wuxing remembered something and anxiously asked, "Zhang senior, I suspect the Jiang family will send someone to the space to eliminate the evidence. Let's go stop them!"
"I fear they won't go to the space. Otherwise, how would they make the matter public?" Jiang Li gestured for Yuan Wuxing to calm down but didn't tell him the reason. Nonetheless, Yuan Wuxing started to believe Jiang Li without any reason.
Even though they had only spent a day together, Yuan Wuxing began to trust Jiang Li for no apparent reason.
"But Senior Zhang Li and Senior Yuan Wuxing?" a gentle knock sounded from outside.
The knock was gentle, and after speaking, the visitor didn't repeat it; they simply stood respectfully outside the door. It was evident that the visitor was very polite.
Yuan Wuxing opened the door and couldn't help but twitch his hand. He struggled to control himself.
"The old one knows that he is guilty of the people. If I can be beaten by Mr. Yuan Wuxing to relieve his hatred, I will have no objections," the head of the Jiang clan leaned on a cane, standing outside the door, with a rueful look, as a golden core stage cultivator faced a peak Nascent Divinity cultivator and a peak Yuanying cultivator, without any followers accompanying him.
How could Yuan Wuxing not hate the head of the Jiang clan? If Jiang Yixing was the culprit, then the head of the Jiang clan was the biggest helper, and the deaths of those infants could definitely be attributed to the head of the Jiang clan.
"What are you doing here, threatening us?" Yuan Wuxing finally refrained from acting, simply uttering a sarcastic remark and sitting down in a chair, sipping his tea.
He didn't dare make a move; who knew what this old guy was capable of. If he could avoid unnecessary trouble, he would.
Who would have thought that after the head of the Jiang clan entered the room, he threw his cane to the side and knelt straight on the ground, which startled Yuan Wuxing, almost causing him to drop his teacup.
Jiang Li watched the head of the Jiang clan with interest, wanting to see what tricks this junior could come up with.
"Although the ancestor was wrong, no matter how great the fault, it is still not greater than the Emperor. If news of the Emperor's cousin practicing sorcery spreads throughout the continent, how would the people feel? There would be resentment and even more trouble caused by those who want to fuel the flames. What impact will this have on the Emperor's reputation?"
"Beyond the nine provinces, the eyes of the extraterritorial demon tiger are watching closely. Fortunately, the emperors of the past have raised the banner of the nine provinces to resist the extraterritorial demon, thus sparing the nine provinces from disaster. The power of the emperors lies in faith. If the faith of the human race in the emperor wavers, the strength of the Jiang emperor will weaken. This is a great danger for our nine provinces!"
"I know that both of you care for the common people and are righteous people. My Jiang family may be scheming in the dark, but our stance against the extraterritorial demon is the same. I implore both of you to consider the well-being of the billions of people in the nine provinces, and let go of this matter. I want to express my gratitude to the two gentlemen here first!" After speaking, the patriarch of the Jiang clan surprisingly kowtowed three times, with three dull thuds echoing. Blood marks appeared on his forehead, and when he stood up and raised his head, tears were streaming down his face.
Yuan Wuxing was touched by the genuine words and actions of the patriarch of the Jiang clan. He couldn't help but think, should we let go of this matter? It wouldn't be good if it had any impact on people's faith in the emperor.
Stepping back, even if the emperor practices demonic arts, it is for the purpose of resisting the extraterritorial demon and protecting the common people.
Yuan Wuxing was truly being persuaded by the patriarch of the Jiang clan. After all, what the patriarch said made sense, and the possibility of wavering faith in the emperor was real.
Half of the emperor's strength comes from his own formidable power, while the other half is due to the faith bestowed by the emperors of the past. The combination of these two factors makes the emperor's power reach a terrifying level, akin to an immortal despite not having achieved immortality.
The space beyond the nine provinces is chaotic, and it takes hundreds of years for an extraterritorial demon incursion. However, each time poses a grave danger to the nine provinces, and the emperor, as the strongest in the nine provinces, is the first to fight against the extraterritorial demon. More than half of the emperors have died in this process, with few emperors meeting a peaceful end.
If the faith in the Jiang emperor declines and leads to his downfall in the future battle against the extraterritorial demon, Yuan Wuxing would truly feel guilty for the rest of his life.
"What the patriarch of the Jiang clan said is reasonable. However, since the Jiang family knew that it could potentially shake people's faith in the emperor, why did it still conduct the blood sacrifice of infants?"
Shamefaced, the patriarch of the Jiang clan explained, "The ancestors were greedy for worldly pleasures and sought to break through their infant cultivation. They never expected it to become a timeless regret. It's too late to turn back now."
Jiang Li was greatly surprised, "The patriarch of the Jiang clan speaks like this. If the Jiang family intends to turn over a new leaf, how can I not support it?"
The patriarch of the Jiang clan was delighted. It seemed that these self-proclaimed righteous individuals couldn't be swayed by coercion or temptation. They needed to be convinced using righteousness.
Little did he know, Jiang Li continued, "Even if Yuan Wuxing and I do not press charges against the Jiang family, other cultivators will come to investigate this matter. I can show the way for the Jiang family. According to the laws of the Great Zhou, responsibility cannot be attributed to the deceased. I request that the Jiang clan admit their mistake and commit suicide."
The patriarch of the Jiang clan was at a loss for words, his smiling face frozen. Indeed, once the ancestor died, this matter would come to an end. But how could that be possible? He came here to act and prevent further disturbances, not to inadvertently orchestrate the death of his family's ancestor!
"Master Zhang Li is jesting."
"It's a heartfelt speech."
The face of the patriarch of the Jiang clan was as dark as water, and he stood up slowly, losing the earlier posture of pitying the world.
"It seems that Master Zhang Li truly wishes to end this matter."
Only now did Yuan Wuxing realize that the patriarch had been pretending the whole time. He felt a surge of dread. This old fox was indeed formidable; nothing he said or did could be trusted. Fortunately, there was Senior Zhang Li.
"It's not about ending it, but I do like to see things through. Patriarch Jiang, please."
The patriarch of the Jiang clan snorted coldly and left, disregarding the others.