Zheng Shuanggou: "If the Immortal Palace had not emerged, our three families would have explored it in secret, and we were also prepared to include the Ning Family."
"The City Lord's Mansion taking the initiative to wreck this great situation is entirely unreasonable."
Zhou Nongying's gaze was deep: "No, it's not like that."
"Previously, when we were exploring the Immortal Palace, the City Lord's Mansion was clearly at a disadvantage. Meng Kui could not enter the Immortal Palace, nor could his right-hand men, Chi Dun and Fei Si."
"They did not hold an advantage at the Golden Core level."
"It was only in the Foundation Establishment Stage mechanism cultivators that they had a slight edge."
"In fact, the ones who held the advantage before were your Zheng Family!"
"With the explosion of the Immortal Palace, its defenses greatly reduced, and the standards for recruiting external cultivators also decreased, lowering to the Qi Cultivation Stage."
"And at the Qi Cultivation level, the City Lord's Mansion has individuals with Immortal Aptitude!"
"After the explosion of the Magma Fairy Palace, Meng Kui personally took action, sitting in the depths of the volcanic clouds and smoke, locking down the volcano's summit. From that point on, we were all isolated, unable to enter the Immortal Palace for exploration."
The Golden Core cultivators fell silent upon hearing these words.
Zhou Nongying was speaking the truth. From this perspective, the explosion of the Immortal Palace was entirely beneficial to the City Lord's Mansion.
Zhou Nongying continued, "The explosion of the Immortal Palace and the appearance of the Dharma Transmission Bell and the trial checkpoints might have been unexpected for the City Lord's Mansion."
"But the fact is: on the path of entering the Immortal Palace through the soul, Meng Chong and the renovation team from the City Lord's Mansion firmly occupied the top ten positions on the leaderboard!"
"Perhaps, the soul-entering Immortal Palace path was originally part of the City Lord's Mansion's plan."
"After all, the City Lord's Mansion discovered the Magma Fairy Palace many years before us."
"If the Demonic Secret Manual fell into their hands, it would further prove they knew many secrets we were unaware of!"
Zheng Shuanggou couldn't help but clench his fists in indignation: "Old thief, how insidious!"
"The Black Shadow Demon Cultivator is actually a person from the City Lord's Mansion! Back then, I even went to the City Lord's Mansion to apologize for my failure to guard properly."
"Meng Kui didn't blame me much at the time, and I admired his magnanimity. Now it seems truly ironic!"
Zhou Nongying sighed deeply, "Since Meng Kui took office, have our three families had easy days?"
"He is one of the four generals of the Meng Family, known as the wise general. In terms of scheming and manipulation, we are no match for him."
Zheng Danlian struck his palm with his fist, "This makes sense then!"
"The City Lord's Mansion had long planned to blow up the Immortal Palace."
"They had already investigated and prepared defenses for the future. At that time, Ning Zhuo coincidentally brought out his Mechanical Monkeys."
"Chen Cha reported this to Fei Si, and perhaps Fei Si decided to use Ning Zhuo and his Explosive Flame Monkeys."
"He instructed Chen Cha to flood the market with Mechanical Monkeys. This way, Lord Divine Hunter, using the trace-back method to investigate the real culprit, would face countless leads, wasting endless time and effort."
"If Lord Zhu finally discovered Ning Zhuo, then Ning Zhuo, being from the Ning Family, would also add dirt to the Ning Family's reputation."
Ning Jiufan sneered, "This is Fei Si's style; he has always been so cunning and vicious!"
Zheng Danlian continued analyzing, "Using Fire Essence to blow up the Immortal Palace also had its benefits."
"With the means of the City Lord's Mansion, secretly purchasing large quantities of Fire Essence from the market and then erasing the records of the purchases would be very easy."
"In fact, they didn't need to go to such lengths. They harvest Fire Persimmons yearly, which are another form of Fire Essence."
"By making a fuss over the annual loss of Fire Persimmons in storage, they could obtain a batch of Fire Persimmons. A little processing, and they would have a large amount of Fire Essence. If they operated in this way, we would have no means of uncovering it!"
Zheng Shuanggou was lost in thought and then showed a puzzled expression: "Wait, there's one thing I don't understand."
"Since the Magma Fairy Palace was blown up by the City Lord's Mansion, why would the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator reappear in Fire Persimmon Immortal City and be chased by Chi Dun? He could have left after the deed was done, wouldn't that be redundant?"
Zheng Danlian fell silent, unable to figure this out either.
At this moment, Zhou Nongying laughed and spoke, "I get it! This is exactly the brilliance of the City Lord's Mansion's plan!"
"Under Meng Kui's rule, the appearance of a Black Shadow Demon Cultivator in Fire Persimmon Immortal City, who blew up the Immortal Palace, would be a political stain for Meng Kui."
"Moreover, the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator is the most obvious clue and would eventually be investigated by the Divine Hunter Office."
"So, the City Lord's Mansion arranged for the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator to appear again after blowing up the Immortal Palace and confront Chi Dun in public."
"Chi Dun chased him into the Fire Persimmon Forest, showcasing the capability of the City Lord's Mansion and highlighting the impotence of Daoist Friend Zheng Shuanggou. On the other hand, it also created an impression in the public mind of the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator opposing the City Lord's Mansion."
"None of us knew this was just a show arranged by the City Lord's Mansion!"
"Chi Dun intended to chase into the Fire Persimmon Forest to fight the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator but was stopped by Fei Si."
"After that, Fei Si secretly let the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator slip away. He was already in charge of all the arrays in the Fire Persimmon Forest, so this was extremely easy for him."
"As for whether Chi Dun was aware of this... I am familiar with his personality and tend to think he was not aware."
"If he knew this secret, it would be hard to hide; his expressions and words would give him away. So I boldly speculate that this plot should have been masterminded by Fei Si."
Ning Jiufan also understood and added, "Exactly because Fei Si let the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator go in advance, we couldn't find any trace of him in the Fire Persimmon Forest."
"Even digging three feet into the ground, we discovered nothing."
"Throughout the entire process, Lord Zhu Xuanji used his Immortal Aptitude Golden Eyes to investigate. There's no way such a method wouldn't uncover a Black Shadow Demon Cultivator."
"This incident tarnished the reputation of the entire upper echelon of Fire Persimmon Immortal City. No one knew how the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator disappeared or where he went."
"But it was precisely this that cleared the City Lord's Mansion of suspicion."
Analyzing to this point, Ning Jiufan frowned and murmured, "But why would the City Lord's Mansion kill Yuan Dasheng in broad daylight?"
Zhou Nongying smiled lightly, "Who would think that Yuan Dasheng's death was caused by the City Lord's Mansion?"
"I believe they attacked Yuan Dasheng to create the illusion that the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator was still present, thereby shifting the subsequent blame onto all of us."
"After all, those present at the time weren't just the Golden Core cultivators from the City Lord's Mansion, but also us three families and even Lord Zhu Xuanji! None of us detected the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator."
"Aside from that reason, attacking Yuan Dasheng was certainly for the Demonic Secret Manual he possessed."
Ning Jiufan frowned, "Why kill Yuan Dasheng in broad daylight? If I were Fei Si, I would be more cautious and choose to strike secretly after the Fire Persimmon Festival."
Zhou Nongying replied, "Perhaps they discovered the Demonic Secret Manual at that moment. To avoid complications from delays, they decided to act immediately!"
"Or, they had long known about the Demonic Secret Manual on Yuan Dasheng and had already taken it. Attacking Yuan Dasheng at the Fire Persimmon Festival was to eliminate him and remove all traces."
"However, they didn't anticipate an unforeseen incident."
"And that incident was Lord Zhu Xuanji."
At this point, Zhou Nongying and the others turned their gazes towards Zhu Xuanji.
Zhu Xuanji nodded slightly, "At the time, I was moved by Yuan Dasheng's loyalty and decided to show up and personally save his life."
"I remember very clearly when I asked Fei Si to open the array formation. He was hesitant and reluctant to obey my orders."
"I did save Yuan Dasheng from the brink of death, but ultimately, Fei Si still succeeded in his plan."
"He handed the waist token to Ning Zhuo, taking advantage of Ning Zhuo's selfish motives, making him act for him. Ning Zhuo went to the Monkey Head Gang's stronghold, convincing Yuan Er not to save Yuan Dasheng, which eventually led to Yuan Dasheng's fatal injuries."
"Looking back now, this was a small flaw that Fei Si left behind."
After a brief pause, Zhu Xuanji continued, "When Yuan Dasheng died, Yuan Er and Ning Zhuo were both present. If the Demonic Secret Manual had leaked at that time, Yuan Er should have known."
"Ning Zhuo took Yuan Dasheng's body and immediately went to Chen Cha's Mechanical Workshop. When we arrived, they had already finished processing the essence blood."
"Looking back now, we were just a bit too late. If we had been a little faster, perhaps we could have discovered something."
Zhu Xuanji sighed deeply with regret.
If he had been faster, he wouldn't have been kept in the dark for so long.
The three Golden Core cultivators were speechless.
Because of the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator incident, they had lost face considerably.
Now, with the truth revealed, they wouldn't have expected this! It was actually orchestrated by the City Lord's Mansion, who were acting as they cried thief.
Although the Fire Persimmon Festival incident also embarrassed the City Lord's Mansion, they gained more.
On one hand, they cleared themselves of suspicion. On the other hand, they also eliminated Yuan Dasheng.
"So, the City Lord's Mansion obtained the Demonic Secret Manual?" Zheng Danlian asked.
"This is Golden Core level demonic cultivation. Although we don't know its contents, since it was created by the Three Ancestral Masters, it must be an exceptionally excellent technique."
When the demonic secret manual was mentioned, all the Golden Core cultivators couldn't help but show a hint of desire and curiosity.
"When exactly was the manual taken?" They continued discussing.
"It might have been stolen secretly beforehand. After all, Yuan Dasheng was a Magma Demon Ape. How could he dare to announce the theft of the manual in a human Immortal City?"
"I lean towards it happening during the Fire Persimmon Festival. In hindsight, Yuan Dasheng's mistake seems quite suspicious."
"Fei Si, who controlled the arrays in the Fire Persimmon Forest, had the capability to disguise it, making us believe it was Yuan Dasheng's mistake."
"The explosion caused by the mistake also diverted our attention temporarily."
Zhu Xuanji suddenly spoke, "Did you know that not long after, Yuan Er also died."
"After that, the entire Monkey Head Gang was forcibly taken over by Ning Zhuo. Today, they all work for him, helping him manage the black market."
In an instant, similar thoughts flashed through the minds of the three Golden Core ancestors—kill to silence, and destroy the evidence!
"The City Lord's Mansion wanted to extinguish all clues."
"So why is Ning Zhuo unharmed?"
"Yes, if I were Fei Si and devised such a scheme, even if Ning Zhuo was merely used and knew nothing, he was involved too much. To be cautious, I would still kill Ning Zhuo."
Zhu Xuanji smiled slightly, "You seem to have forgotten that not long after the Fire Persimmon Festival, the talented cultivators of your three families were also simultaneously assassinated."
"Meng Chong was attacked but dealt with the assassin perfectly."
"Your three families suffered significant losses."
"Ning Zhuo was also targeted. His entire residence was blown up, and he narrowly escaped with his life."
"I participated in the investigation and felt a persistent sense of strangeness."
"Thinking back, I finally understand where that strange feeling came from."
"Other talented cultivators faced controlled assassination attempts like poisoning or stabbing."
"Ning Zhuo alone was attacked by an explosion, entirely different from others."
"If the City Lord's Mansion merely aimed to delay the exploration progress of other cultivators, their intent to kill Ning Zhuo was clear—aimed to take Ning Zhuo's life."
With this, Zhu Xuanji swept his gaze around the room, "I've explained everything to you."
"Now you should understand why I made such a big fuss looking for Ning Zhuo."
The hall fell silent.
"Stirring the grass to startle the snake."
"Luring the snake out of its hole!"
Zhou Nongying and Zheng Danlian each said a sentence simultaneously.