Cannon fodder in a classic cultivation story

9. Sword flying

Though cultivators possessed immense strength, they were expected to never stir unnecessary discord or violence against one another. Straying from this path was not only frowned upon but could have severe consequences, both in reputation and karma.

This unspoken agreement kept the balance of the immortal realm intact, ensuring that even in competition or conflict, outright murder was rarely an option.

The only exception to this rule was when it was decided that the best punishment for a sinner was death. Such a decision was not made lightly; it required a formal gathering known as the Immortal Convention, where the severity of the offender's actions would be debated and weighed.

It was a stern reminder that even the most powerful cultivators were not above the laws of their realm.

That except Feng Zhihao. As much as she was a heroine, she was also a murderer. She was smart enough to cover her tracks and escape accusations by either using her enemies or using the facade of a good-natured doctor.

Of course, all her victims weren't randoms but persons she had a personal feud with, like what happened at the Mount Shun staircase to the immortal realm. So, in a way, her murder was excused as a "good thing," abiding by the realm rules. She punished evildoers.

This small story arc marked how Feng Zhihao started being on the other side, the one who investigated murder cases with the help of her medical knowledge. Doing autopsies and helping the high judges in the Immortal Convention find the criminal, she was able to make herself shine easily.

This particular case wasn't that complicated. After Feng Zhihao left the Grey Skies forest, she reached Twelve Roads City, where she encountered a mess since a cultivator died for unknown reasons. No blood, wounds, or signs of poisons were seen, and this made everybody, even the highest local cultivators, decide the cultivator's death was because of natural causes since he was also quite ill before.

However, it just happened that before arriving in the city, Feng Zhihao had met this man in the forest, along with some other cultivators who were his companions. Of course, being the main character, she was accused of murder, since in the forest, Feng Zhihao helped them kill a monster by using poisonous needles.

And that very accusatory was no one else but the jealous and mean Chunwan, who was another character besides Qingwu in this scene.

She was loud, mean, and quick to judge, quickly becoming a flame over the least things possible, mainly involving Qingwu. From the story's perspective, she loved him, though she had the basic annoying stereotype. Thats why she accused Feng Zhi Hao stupidly, creating her own pitfall.

Su Jing couldn't help but side glance at Yawen, especially at his cane and feeble body. Reminiscing how Lord Qingwu planned to go to the forest together with Mingmei, Chunwan and Yan Wen, Su Jing, as much as she felt bad for Yawen, was very certain her worries were right.

Yawen was the one meant to die soon.

The reason for his meeting with Lord Qingwu and the Chunwan and Mingmei wasn't really explained since from Feng Zhihao's perspective they looked like close companions. They were attacked by some monsters, and while Yawen had an episode of fainting which made him unable to defend himself, Lord Qingwu and the other two girls didn't have enough time to reach him since they were too far away.

Feng Zhihao saved Yawen, helping him with some other meds that stabilized his condition.

Of course, Chunwan and Mengmei played their usual roles as mean villainesses, dissing Feng Zhihao and calling her a ruffian. It was predictable—characters like them were always there to highlight Feng Zhihao's superiority.