https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-273-The-Awakening-of-He-Tianqing/12536454/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-275-Entering-the-Small-Pavilion-Preparing-to-Face-the-Boss/12536456/
Chapter 274: A Single Slip in Huo Xiu's Meticulous Plan
Chapter 274: A Single Slip in Huo Xiu's Meticulous Plan
Dugu Yihe's eyes narrowed, "What's going on?"
Lu Xiaofeng explained, "Shan Xiyan, under He Tianqing's instruction, went to monitor Huo Xiu's tower in the back mountains. That's when he saw Huo Xiu carrying Shangguan Feiyan's body out and leaving it at the Zhu Guangbaoqi Pavilion."
Shan Xiyan, a descendant of the Shangshan elders, was skilled in light work and palm techniques. Although he may not be a match for Huo Xiu in combat, his surveillance from a distance went unnoticed.
Huo Xiu had many informants within his Qingyi Tower, and Dugu Yihe's group, as well as He Tianqing, were all within his surveillance range. Thus, he was aware that Dugu Yihe had passed by his residence without entering and that Su Shaoying and He Tianqing had met the day before.
That was why he had put on a show in front of Dugu Yihe and refrained from killing Shangguan Feiyan at Jinpeng King's retreat.
If He Tianqing had sent someone from the Zhu Guangbaoqi Pavilion to watch him, he would have certainly known. However, he never expected He Tianqing to resort to using Tianqin Gate's resources and even enlist Shan Xiyan's help.
It's important to note that as Lu Xiaofeng pointed out, although He Tianqing was the leader of Tianqin Gate, he preferred to forge his own path rather than live under Tianqin Elder's shadow. As a result, he hadn't interacted with the members of Tianqin Gate for a long time.
Additionally, Shan Xiyan and Jinbei Shuangxiu were both formidable warriors who frequently operated near Taiyuan, so if Huo Xiu had assigned someone to monitor them constantly, his cover would have been easily blown.
A single slip ruined his meticulous plan.
After capturing Zhu Ting and the others, Huo Xiu sent them to the Zhu Guangbaoqi Pavilion. He then killed Shangguan Feiyan and left her body there, creating the illusion that He Tianqing was responsible for the kidnapping and silencing her to cover his tracks. But he never anticipated that someone would witness his actions!
Su Shaoying nodded, impressed by He Tianqing's meticulousness.
This piece of evidence was even more conclusive than Lu Xiaofeng's analysis in the original story. After all, Lu Xiaofeng's biggest breakthrough was merely that He Tianqing didn't have the opportunity to kill Shangguan Feiyan, which didn't directly implicate Huo Xiu as the culprit.
In fact, Huo Xiu could have easily denied everything, and Lu Xiaofeng wouldn't have had any solid proof.
In the original story, Huo Xiu only admitted his guilt because he realized Lu Xiaofeng suspected him and decided to eliminate him.
Dugu Yihe took a deep breath, "So it really was Huo Xiu?"
Lu Xiaofeng nodded, his expression grim. He felt conflicted because He Tianqing was his new friend, while Huo Xiu was an old one.
Yet, as they dug deeper, they discovered that they had inadvertently become tools for these two friends, new and old, to eliminate their rivals.
Not only had they caused the death of Yan Tieshan, but they had also nearly gotten Dugu Yihe killed. And to invite Xi Men Chuixue, Lu Xiaofeng had even sacrificed his beloved goatee.
Seeing Lu Xiaofeng's glum expression, Su Shaoying laughed.
Not only did she laugh, but she laughed out loud.
"What are you laughing about?" Lu Xiaofeng felt that Su Shaoying was mocking him, and he felt his nose twitch in annoyance, wishing the same would happen to her.
"I'm thinking of something delightful," Su Shaoying replied seriously.
"What's so delightful?" Lu Xiaofeng pressed further.
Su Shaoying blinked and said earnestly, "It's a good thing that Huo Xiu has been exposed. After all..."
"After all, what?" Lu Xiaofeng asked.
"...after all, he's also a friend of my master's," Su Shaoying managed to maintain a smile.
The faint smile in Dugu Yihe's eyes suddenly vanished, and his expression turned solemn as he stood up abruptly, "Let's go find Huo Xiu!"
...
Qingyi Tower was said to have 108 towers, each with 108 people, totaling over ten thousand members. It was a tightly organized and immensely powerful group.
However, in the original story, aside from the Hook-Soul Hand and the Iron-Faced Judge who appeared at the very beginning, the only other member of Qingyi Tower who made an appearance was the leader, Huo Xiu.
Well, this was a characteristic of Gu Long's works. Take the Jinqian Gang, for example, which claimed to monopolize the martial arts world. Aside from Shangguan Jinhong and Jing Wuming, who else frequently appeared in the story?
Just like in 'The Sentimental Swordsman and the Cold-Blooded Sword,' the Jinqian Gang cast its shadow everywhere—by the rivers, in the central plains, in Qilu, and in the Jiangnan region. Yet, only Xi Men Rou had the capability to take down their leader.
The Qingyi Tower in 'The Legend of Lu Xiaofeng' was no less formidable. Over the past decade, they had been involved in numerous significant events, and many famous figures had fallen to their hands.
Nevertheless, their intimidation factor fell far short of the Jinqian Gang's.
Because, in the case of the Jinqian Gang, there was the invincible Shangguan Jinhong, while no one in the martial arts world knew who the leader of Qingyi Tower was.
This situation was similar to that of the Demon Sect. Although it added an air of mystery and fear among the lower-level martial artists, it was considered an underhanded tactic by true masters.
Just as genuine martial arts masters might not necessarily be concerned about the Demon Sect, they would never underestimate the Shaolin and Wudang sects.
...
"He Tianqing isn't innocent himself. What gives him the right to confront Huo Xiu?" Ma Xiuzhen scoffed.
At this point, the truth had become clear.
The mastermind behind the scenes was none other than Huo Xiu. He had used Shangguan Feiyan to manipulate He Tianqing like a puppet. With clever schemes, he had lured Lu Xiaofeng to deal with Yan Tieshan and Dugu Yihe, only to later use He Tianqing as a scapegoat.
However, He Tianqing wasn't entirely blameless either. Aside from not knowing Huo Xiu's true identity, he had willingly gone along with the plan. Ye Xiuzhu was his spy within the Emei Sect, which was how he had known about Dugu Yihe's itinerary and appeared at the right time.
If it weren't for Su Shaoying exposing He Tianqing's scheme on the spot, Dugu Yihe would have already perished under Xi Men Chuixue's sword.
Lu Xiaofeng sighed, "Perhaps it's the anger that comes after being played for a fool."
He Tianqing, too, was someone with an unyielding inner strength. To have cultivated his martial arts to such a high level, he must possess a strong will and a sense of pride.
This was evident when his plan was exposed by Lu Xiaofeng, and he realized that Huo Xiu was the mastermind. Instead of directly confronting Lu Xiaofeng, he chose to confront Huo Xiu alone.
However, the situation was different this time. To avoid arousing Huo Xiu's suspicion, He Tianqing had no choice but to involve Tianqin Gate. Now that the truth was out, even if he didn't want to bring the members of Tianqin Gate along, they wouldn't stand by and watch their leader challenge the leader of Qingyi Tower alone.
Therefore, although He Tianqing broke the bamboo plaque, the symbol of leadership of Tianqin Gate, and told Lu Xiaofeng that he would give everyone an explanation after killing Huo Xiu, the members of Tianqin Gate still followed him under the leadership of Shan Xiyan to the tower in the back mountains.
Thus, when Dugu Yihe, accompanied by the Emei Sect disciples and Lu Xiaofeng, rushed to the tower in the back mountains, He Tianqing and the members of Tianqin Gate had already arrived at the tower's entrance.
Not far behind them were Hua Manlou, Zhu Ting and his wife, and an individual named Shangguan Xue'er.
(End of Chapter)
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