CHAPTER 116: YOU SAY I'M A SPY?

"My grandfather has a treasure map? There's no way that's true! Brother Su isn't that type of person! Everyone in Green Wave City knows how good Brother Su has been to me! Why are you slandering him? Did something happen to him?"

"I'm the one asking the questions!" Xiang Xinghe snapped in a stern and authoritative manner.

"Brother Su is a good person, and that will never change in my heart! He will remain my brother for the rest of my life!" Fang Che declared in a resolute voice.

Xiang Xinghe fixed a hawk-like gaze on Fang Che, but he saw nothing but pure sincerity in Fang Che's eyes.

"After the Su Clan's demise, it was discovered that the Su Clan was a subsidiary clan to the One Heart Church!" Xiang Xinghe declared.

"What?!" Fang Che exclaimed in astonishment.

"You didn't know that?"

"No! How could that be? There must've been a mistake!" Fang Che yelled in a frantic manner.

"Over a hundred members of the Su Clan went out one night, only to disappear without a trace, and Su Yue was among them," Xiang Xinghe said.

"I don't know anything about that, either," Fang Che said, making a show of struggling to rein in his own emotions.

"Prior to their departure, Su Yue paid you a visit. I want to know what he said to you that day."

Fang Che's brows were tightly furrowed in recollection as he said, "The last time I saw Brother Su was on the day when I woke up after being beaten unconscious by my cousin. He brought me a bunch of stuff to aid me in my recovery, and I was still feeling rather weak at the time, so he didn't stay for long before he left."

"What did you talk about with him?"

"Brother Su asked if I was feeling better, to which I replied yes, and I thanked him for visiting me, but told him that he really shouldn't have brought all that stuff. Brother Su said it was only right for brothers to look out for one another. After that, I went to the lavatory, and..."

Fang Che gave a detailed recount of events, while everyone listened intently.

Finally, he concluded, "Brother Su told me to rest and get well soon, and he stood up to leave. I offered to keep him for dinner, but he refused and left."

"That's it?"

"That's it!"

"How do you remember all of this trivial stuff so clearly?"

"That was the last time I ever saw Brother Su before the Su Clan was wiped out, so I often thought back to our interactions on that day. Thankfully, I found out later that Brother Su was alive and well, and that was a massive relief for me."

"That same night that those members of the Su Clan disappeared, you also left the city. Where did you go?"

"Which night is that?"

"Do you need your memory jogged a little? That night, you told the guard at your door that you were going out to see a girl, but that was a lie! Instead, you left the city, and it was unclear where you went from there. Care to explain?"

"I... I still don't remember which night you're talking about."

"In that case, let me give you another hint. After you left that night, you returned with a deer several days later."

"Ohhh, I remember now!" Fang Che exclaimed. "I was really bored on my own at home that day, and I had just reached the Warrior tier, so I wanted to treat myself to a good meal. Hence, I went out on a hunting trip to have some fun and get some fresh ingredients. My mother wasn't at home, so I had a lot of freedom."

"Why did you lie to that guard and tell him you were going to see a girl?"

"That guard is way too nosy! Why do I have to report to him every time I go out? I told him I was going out to see a girl just to spite him and make him jealous! Is there a problem?"

"Of course there is! Why would you lie to your own guard?"

"I lie even to my mother, is there a problem?"

"......"

Xiang Xinghe had no response to that.

"You had only just recovered from your injuries at the time, yet you had no qualms going out hunting?"

"What does that have to do with anything? I was a Warrior at the time, I could easily look after myself on a hunting trip!"

Fang Che's answers were infallible, so Xiang Xinghe could only change the subject.

"Where did you go?"

"I went into the mountains outside of the city and caught myself a deer to eat."

"It took you two days to catch a deer?"

"What kind of question is that? I could've taken ten days if I wanted!"

"The significance of this question is that you went out on the same night as the people from the Su Clan, yet you returned safe and sound, while none of them managed to come back!"

"So you're saying I killed them all?"

"At the very least, we strongly suspect their disappearance had something to do with you."

"In that case, why don't you bring out some evidence to link me to their disappearance?" Fang Che challenged. "I was only a first-rank Warrior at the time, and I decided to go out hunting to celebrate my breakthrough, yet I'm now being accused of killing a bunch of Warrior Masters and Lesser Grandmasters? This is insane!"

"You may not have been able to do it, but the same doesn't apply to your master!"

"That's where you need to do your homework. I only met my master after I returned to the city. Prior to that, I didn't even know him."

"Very convenient timing, isn't it?"

"What are you trying to say?" Fang Che sneered. "If you have evidence, then feel free to use it against me. Why go around fabricating these stories to try and slander me? I have suspicions that you're a spy for the Church of the Self-Righteous, how are you going to prove your innocence?

“You just said that the Su Clan was a subsidiary clan to the One Heart Church, could it be that you're a One Heart Church talent scout? Is this all a massive, elaborate ruse to recruit me?"

Xiang Xinghe's expression had darkened considerably.

Zhao Shanhe cleared his throat, and Xiang Xinghe immediately pulled out another sheet of paper as he said, "After the Su Clan's demise, you claimed the Su Clan's estate through underhanded means..."

"Hold on a second! What's that supposed to mean? I'm only holding onto the Su Clan's estate for safekeeping for Brother Su!" Fang Che protested.

"But you've claimed the entire estate for yourself."

"Is that right? What evidence do you have of that? I have kept Brother Su's estate intact this entire time, and all I've used are some silver vouchers, which I've already replaced with natural treasures of equal or greater value.

“I can confidently say that Brother Su's wealth has only been appreciating in my hands! Someday, Brother Su will return, and I will return his entire estate to him with interest! Brother Su has told me that I'm free to spend his wealth as I see fit, but that wouldn't sit right with me!"

"Do you have evidence of these claims?"

Fang Che had repeatedly challenged Xiang Xinghe to provide evidence, and now, Xiang Xinghe was using the same trick against him.

"Of course! I secured an asset confirmation document from the Hall of Guardians at the time, and that document is currently in my Virtue Manor along with Brother Su's entire estate, so I can show you everything even without having to go back to the Green Wave City! I used some of the money, but I made sure to replace everything I used with natural treasures and spirit crystals of an equal or greater value. I made a list for all of that as well!"

Everyone was stunned into silence.

Fang Che was telling the truth.

He had already considered the possibility that this could come up as an issue at some point, and he had prepared accordingly.

"In that case, for now, I'll accept the notion that you're holding onto the Su Clan's estate for safekeeping, but how do you explain the annihilation of the entire Su Clan shortly after these events?"

An exasperated look appeared on Fang Che's face.

"Do you understand what you're saying? Everyone knows that the Su Clan was eradicated by a demonic church, and you just said that the Su Clan was a subsidiary clan to a demonic church. How am I supposed to know why the demonic church decided to wipe them out? Are you suggesting that I pulled the strings behind all of this?

“ First, you say that the Su Clan was a subsidiary clan to a demonic church. Then, you accuse me of murder, of being an economic offender and a spy for the demonic churches. At this point, it really just sounds like you're throwing every accusation at the wall to see what sticks!"

"Your master, Soaring Saber King Sun Yuan, has already been confirmed to be a member of the One Heart Church!" Xiang Xinghe suddenly declared as he stared intently into Fang Che's eyes.

Fang Che faltered slightly upon hearing this, then said, "I don't know anything about that. He's always been really good to me."

"That's beside the point!"

"Alright, what do you want me to say then? My master took me under his wing as his disciple, and I'm very grateful for that. As for your claim that he's a member of a demonic church, what does that have to do with me? All I know is that he's my master. Are you trying to say that I must also be a member of a demonic church by association?"