That Fair-Faced 'Sage' {Completed}

83. Shuǐ ChangSheng's Trap

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"Lin Liangfang. What exactly did you lack, to do a thing like this? Why did you betray the Shuǐ Clan?" Shuǐ ChangSheng's voice rang out in the large hall.

Shuǐ ChénLín, Lu FengHo and LanFen looked at each other in shock.

They had suspected one of the Shining Four was the spy, but not Lin Liangfang.

He was Clan Leader Shuǐ's clear favourite, and was supposed to be Shuǐ ChénLín's brother-in-law.

Lin Liangfang's eyes had widened, and he fell to his knees at once, cupping his hands and bowing.

"Master! Forgive my confusion. I don't know what you're speaking about! I would never betray the Clan! Please investigate and judge fairly!"

But Shuǐ ChangSheng just shook his head. "When I first heard one of you might be a spy, I didn't want to believe it. I practically raised you... Wouldn't I investigate, even if you do not ask?

"In the end, you're the one who revealed yourself to be a traitor. You who were my favourite!"

"Master! I'm being framed! I did nothing to betray the -!"

"Silence!" Shuǐ ChangSheng had risen to his feet, and his aura washed through the entire hall.

He rarely displayed his anger, but now it rolled off him in dense, light blue waves.

"Will you still deny it?! We indeed caught the guilty disciple, but he hated the fact that someone as young as Zhao LanFeng could easily surpass him, and in a false sense of honour, he ended his own life, after confessing to his crimes!"

Lin Liangfang's eyes widened further. 'If the disciple died, who has been in the sealed room?!'

Shuǐ ChangSheng scoffed. "Hmph. Are you wondering who it was you tried to kill? Everything from the beginning was a falsified act, to bait out the traitor..."

Shuǐ ChangSheng had known the traitor would feel threatened by the 'disciple' and probably try to kill him.

So he had asked someone else to pretend as the disciple, and had put him in the array chamber, so no one would ever see him.

Then he had announced that the disciple would only speak to Zhao LanFeng, so he could use the fact that LanFeng was still in a coma, to buy time.

In that time, he had secretly arranged for the much stronger cultivators to hide themselves near four of the six routes leading out of Jade city, when the time was right.

After Zhao LangFeng had awoken, he had revealed the plan to the four of them (Shuǐ ChénLín, Lu FengHo, LanFeng and Shuǐ YiShan), then had each of them, lead the cultivators at the four routes.

"I held four different discussions beforehand." Shuǐ ChangSheng was saying. "But I arranged things so each of you overheard only one, and I mentioned a different province each time."

Shuǐ ChénLín, Lu FengHo and LanFen had just returned to report that there had been no trouble on their routes.

Which left Luo Province, which Shuǐ YiShan had been sent to...

"You were the only one Who I allowed to overhear 'Luo Province', and that was the route which was attacked. Will you still deny it!"

The remaining three of the shining four fell to their knees, realizing that Lin Liangfang was indeed guilty. "Forgive us, Master! We didn't pay attention to our brother!"

"Forget it! I can't blame you for something like that. The three of you should leave us." Shuǐ ChangSheng waved a hand to dismiss them.

His eyes fell on Shuǐ YiShan.