Immortal Huiyan cast a curious glance at Shen Qing, then feigning curiosity, asked Lin Yibai, "Oh? You were wrongly accused?"
Shen Qing sighed inwardly and met Lin Yibai's venomous gaze.
That sense of powerlessness, like being coiled by a venomous snake with no way to break free, made Shen Qing really want to kill Lin Yibai.
"After I was ejected from the secret realm, I landed in a pack of demonic beasts. I was really unlucky and happened to land beside that huge demonic beast," Lin Yibai said.
"To protect myself, I had no choice but to draw my sword and slay the demonic beast. But the blood of the demonic beast was corrosive. After it got into my wound, it contaminated me with demonic qi!"
"I was extremely panicked when I saw this. I even wanted to commit suicide to atone for my sins and uphold the Great Dao. But I don't know why Shen Qing, together with Li Xian from the Five - Element Dao Sect, targeted me. They also spoke sweet words in front of my senior brothers and slandered me for falling into the demonic path!"
As she spoke, Lin Yibai shifted her gaze to Pei Xuanjing, He Yu and the others, hoping they would speak up for her.
Only Pei Xuanjing and Shen Chuyun had witnessed Lin Yibai's fall into the demonic path with their own eyes. Nan Zhijin and He Yu had only seen Shen Qing and Li Xian chasing after Lin Yibai.
So, upon hearing Lin Yibai's explanation, Nan Zhijin and He Yu believed her immediately.
He Yu said indignantly, "I can testify that Junior Sister Lin showed no signs of abnormality. But Li Xian and Shen Qing kept chasing after Junior Sister Lin. It's really despicable!"
He Yu hesitated for a moment, his gaze shifting between Shen Qing and Lin Yibai. Then he gritted his teeth and said, "I... didn't see Junior Sister Lin fall into the demonic path either..."
Immortal Huiyan turned his gaze to Pei Xuanjing and Shen Chuyun. "What about you two?"
Facing Lin Yibai's pitiful gaze, Shen Chuyun's mind was once again filled with jealousy towards Shen Qing for her advancement to the Nascent Soul stage.
When he came out of the secret realm, he had been determined to repent. But after returning to the Azure Cloud Sword Sect, his feelings towards Shen Qing were still complicated.
"Disciple..." Shen Chuyun had just opened his mouth when he suddenly met Shen Qing's cold gaze. The words on his lips changed, "I did see that Junior Sister Lin showed signs of falling into the demonic path!"
Lin Yibai opened her eyes wide in shock. Her eyes were filled with tears, as if she had been slandered by her beloved senior brother.
But secretly, she almost gritted her teeth to pieces and cursed Shen Chuyun for being brainless in her heart.
Pei Xuanjing closed his eyes. His mind was full of the scene of his parents being brutally killed by demonic cultivators.
He pursed his lips and looked at Lin Yibai apologetically. With difficulty, he said, "I saw with my own eyes... Junior Sister Lin showed signs of falling into the demonic path!"
Hearing this, Immortal Huiyan chuckled twice. Looking at the different expressions on the five people's faces, the playfulness at the corner of his mouth grew even stronger.
"The four of you are divided into two teams and hold different opinions. It's really interesting," he said.
Immortal Huiyan turned his gaze to Shen Qing and asked, "Shen Qing, what do you have to say?"
Shen Qing felt the ill - will of the person in front of her. Suppressing her inner discomfort, she began to explain.
"I saw with my own eyes that Junior Sister Lin had fallen into the demonic path, so I and Fellow Daoist Li wanted to subdue her. I don't know why Junior Sister Lin said that I was slandering her. Junior Brother Pei and Junior Brother Shen also saw it on the scene. Could it be that the two junior brothers are also wronging her?"
Now that Shen Qing had left Worry - Free Peak and advanced to the Nascent Soul stage, Pei Xuanjing and Shen Chuyun's cultivation levels were lower than hers. So Shen Qing changed her address for them to junior brothers.
This address made Pei Xuanjing and Shen Chuyun feel a bit strange, but neither of them spoke up to refute.
Lin Yibai shed tears and looked at Pei Xuanjing and Shen Chuyun pitifully.
"Two senior brothers, I don't know what deal Shen Qing made with you. But think carefully. Did I really show signs of falling into the demonic path?"
Pei Xuanjing and Shen Chuyun didn't dare to look Lin Yibai in the eye, afraid that if they did, they would soften their hearts.
"Junior Sister Lin... we did see demonic qi on you. As for whether you have really fallen into the demonic path..."
Shen Chuyun lowered his head and gritted his teeth as he said this, but Lin Yibai seemed to have grasped a life - saving straw.
She crawled forward a few steps on all fours and grabbed Shen Chuyun's sleeve tightly.
"Senior Brother Shen, please testify for me. I only had demonic qi on me. I didn't fall into the demonic path, right?"
Shen Chuyun was in a dilemma. He looked up at Shen Qing, afraid that she would misunderstand him, and at the same time, he couldn't bear to push Lin Yibai's hands away.
"I... I..."
Beside him, Pei Xuanjing recalled Lin Yibai's appearance in the pack of demonic beasts. His mind was in a complete mess.
He only glanced at Lin Yibai, and the image of Lin Yibai in his mind overlapped with the demonic cultivator who had killed his parents. But the next second, he remembered Lin Yibai, who had pulled him and sweetly called him senior brother, so innocent and beautiful, without a trace of dust.
As if sensing Pei Xuanjing's entanglement, Lin Yibai turned to tug at Pei Xuanjing.
"Senior Brother, you picked me up at the foot of the mountain. I was helpless at that time. It was you who gave me hope. We grew up together. You should know that I'm not such a person, right?!"
Lin Yibai's voice seemed to have a magic power that made his head ache so much that the image of his parents' tragic death in his mind was gradually disappearing.
Seeing Pei Xuanjing's expression soften, Lin Yibai said triumphantly to the system in her heart, "Increase the affinity strength for me. I don't believe he won't forgive me!"
The system paused for a moment. Its calm electronic voice sounded sinister. "Host, don't forget that if you can't successfully restore your reputation this time, all your debts will be added up, and you will instantly age fifty years."
Lin Yibai said impatiently, "I remember! Don't remind me. Hurry up!"
With the help of the system, the image of his parents' tragic death in Pei Xuanjing's mind was completely replaced by the image of Lin Yibai being kind to him and suffering grievances for him.
A voice in his heart told him that this was his junior sister and he must protect her well!
His head felt as if it was being squeezed, as if it would explode the next second.
"I... I only saw demonic qi on Junior Sister Lin..."
After saying this, Pei Xuanjing felt a sudden relaxation. The intense pain and squeezing sensation in his head dissipated a little.
Lin Yibai broke into a smile through her tears and shouted at the person on the seat, "Immortal Huiyan, listen! They admitted that I only had demonic qi and didn't fall into the demonic path!"
Pei Xuanjing felt the shackles in his mind disappear and looked at Lin Yibai in surprise.
He could clearly feel that something seemed to be controlling his words and thoughts. Once he had or said something unfavorable to Lin Yibai, his life would be threatened.
Just like just now, he clearly didn't want to say that, but he couldn't help it.
Lin Yibai... she was a demonic creature!
She was so terrifying!
Thinking like this, Pei Xuanjing's gaze towards Lin Yibai was filled with scrutiny and fear.
On the high seat, Immortal Huiyan curled his lips into a smile and raised his finger.
Suddenly, Shen Qing felt a powerful pressure pushing her to the ground. Her knees, just like Elder Yaoyue's, knelt heavily on the ground.
"Shen Qing, a disciple of the Azure Cloud Sword Sect, colluded with outer - sect disciples to bully and slander fellow disciples. It's really despicable..."