Chapter 65: Conjecture

Jiang Fan had already seen Di Wenjun head to the back of the mountain twice.

If it was in the past, he wouldn’t have thought much about it. But ever since Little Junior Brother had almost lost his life and it was known that there were traitors among the outer sect disciples, Jiang Fan had been taking notes on everything.

Other than the disciples who patrolled the back of the mountain everyday, it was not a place people usually went. Especially after that incident, the back of the mountain had almost become a forbidden area.

Jiang Fan was unwilling to suspect disciples of his own sect, but not only did Di Wenjun head there twice already, he had intentionally avoided everyone else every time.

Just what reason was there to sneak around?

What should Jiang Fan do now?

Jiang Fan was in a slight dilemma.

Should he discuss this with Eldest Senior Brother, or should he directly look for Di Wenjun and openly ask the rationale behind his behavior?

Jiang Fan was momentarily undecided. Seeing the rain outside had stopped, he opened the door and looked at the greyish blue sky. As the clouds began to scatter, sun rays were scattered over the earth. The winds that blew across his face were still rather cooling. Now that the rain had stopped, the day was about to become warmer.

Jiang Fan decided that he should first meet with Eldest Senior Brother.

Eldest Senior Brother’s decision definitely wouldn’t be wrong. Discussing it with Eldest Senior Brother would be much better than having weird ideas by himself.

Not just Di Wenjun’s matter, there were also matters about Master that had to be discussed.

Master had already been gone for several months, yet they had only received three letters. Jiang Fan was really concerned.

After taking about two steps, Jiang Fan stopped and turned around. He flipped through his room, found a bag of dried fruits and, carrying it in front of his chest, headed off to Eldest Senior Brother’s compound.

The moment Jiang Fan entered the compound, Xiaodong poked his head out of the window and shouted with a smile, “Senior Brother Jiang.”

Jiang Fan’s mind was filled with worries, but when he saw Xiaodong’s smile, he could not help but smile back.

“What are you doing in the room? Are you slacking off again?”

Xiaodong’s little face frowned. “Who slacked off? I practiced my martial arts today too.”

Jiang Fan chuckled as he entered the room. Then, he passed the bag of dried fruits to Little Junior Brother. “Here, this is for you. The fruits might be small, but they’re rather sweet.”

Xiaodong did not stand on ceremony with him either and replied with a smile, “I haven’t even finished the dates that you gave me previously.”

Ever since Little Junior Brother moved here, Jiang Fan often dropped by and made conversation. Every time he visited, he would notice slight changes to the room.

When Eldest Senior Brother lived here alone, the number of items in the room was pitifully low. Other than the standard tables and chairs, a bed and bookshelves, there was only a single set of tea cups lying around. It could be seen just how simple and frugal his life was. Sometimes, Jiang Fan would wonder, with how talented yet hardworking Eldest Senior Brother was, if he couldn’t accomplish great things, who else could?

However, ever since Little Junior Brother moved here, he saw that the number of things in the room began to increase as the days went by. A jar today, a pot of flowers tomorrow. Unconsciously, the room actually began to feel full and vibrant.

Jiang Fan instantly noticed the stack of books on the desk the moment he came into the room.

Old books would give off a musty smell during rainy weather, and Jiang Fan smelt it when he came in. It was impossible to ignore it.

“These are…” Jiang Fan had thought that they were some important, spectral sword art manuals, but when he looked at them closely, he realized that they were all unimportant, miscellaneous books.

Eldest Senior Brother would not get distracted by such miscellaneous books, so that that Little Junior Brother was the one reading them?

But would Eldest Senior Brother allow Little Junior Brother to read these books? Wouldn’t this just make him lazy and waste his youth?

Jiang Fan was confused. When he sat down, he could not be bothered to talk about anything else, as he pointed at those books and curiously asked, “Senior Brother, why is Little Junior Brother reading these books?”

He really couldn’t figure it out.

Though Eldest Senior Brother had always treated people kindly, he would never tolerate tardiness when it came to huge matters concerning sword techniques and cultivation. Even if he usually pampered Little Junior Brother a little more than others, he wouldn’t allow Little Junior Brother to fool around, right?

Mo Chen simply said, “Ning Yu put them here when he came over today.”

His reply was considerably artful.

Mo Chen could not casually expose Little Junior Brother’s secret, but he was unwilling to lie to Junior Brother Jiang.

When Jiang Fan heard this, he immediately had a realization.

“So that’s how it is. Really, only people from the Heavenly Secrets Mountain would care about such things. When it comes to ghost sightings and demon captures, it’s like them hearing a heavy downpour while all we hear is the wind.”

“Why are you here? Is there a problem?”

Jiang Fan said, “Not really…” The moment he met Mo Chen’s gaze, he changed his words, “There is a small matter. Why don’t we talk about it in the quiet chamber?”

It wasn’t a small matter then.

If it was just a small matter, why was there a need to avoid Xiaodong?
Xiaodong very consciously carried the books off the desk and gave the area to them.

“I’m going to read the books. Senior brothers, you can talk about it here.”

Jiang Fan rarely had such serious moments. The moment Xiaodong left, he sat straight up and quietly said, “Senior Brother, I realized that there’s someone who has been heading to the back of the mountain these few days. Every time, he would intentionally avoid people, which makes his actions suspicious.”

Mo Chen’s expression instantly turned stern. “Who is it?”

“Junior Brother Di, Di Wenjun. It’s already the second time I saw him going there. During these two times, he never took the main pathway. The first time, he circled around the stone pavilion, while this time, he took the stone tower’s path. Clearly, he’s doing this to avoid people. If it isn’t for a suspicious reason, why would he intentionally conceal his traces?”

“Did you see where he went?”

Jiang Fan shook his head. “I didn’t. I saw him from afar and was unable to catch up to him.”

Mo Chen was silent for a moment. “I am aware of Junior Brother Di’s history. He shouldn’t be related to those people from before.”

Mo Chen knew the histories of all the disciples on Returnflow Mountain. Even Li Fulin might not remember them as clearly and accurately as Mo Chen.

“Junior Brother Di’s father passed away early, making him a posthumous child. When he was eight years old, his mother passed on as well, forcing him to beg on the streets to live. He was then bitten and heavily injured by a vile dog raised by a wealthy family. Back then, Master was passing by Beifu City and, seeing him so alone and pitiful, Master helped to heal his injuries and brought him back to the mountain. Junior Brother Di’s has a loyal personality, and his aptitude is pretty good as well…”

Jiang Fan was aware of what happened after that. Master took him in as an outer sect disciple of Returnflow Mountain. Among the outer sect disciples, Di Wenjun could be considered top-notch. Towards Master and the sect, he had always been passionate and loyal, never bearing any selfish wishes.

Others might harbor ill will, but Mo Chen believed that he wouldn’t.

Junior Brother Di should have his own reasons for doing so.

Xiaodong was unaware of what his senior brothers was discussing. He sat in the lotus position and silently recited the heart cultivation mantra in his heart. Very quickly, he had forgotten everything around him, as he focused on training his own martial arts.