"Oh?"
Jun Xiaoyao's eyes gleamed with a hint of playfulness.
"An upright person fears no slander. Why is Fellow Daoist Chu so adamantly refusing?"
"I'm afraid you'll play tricks on me!" Chu Xiao stared at Jun Xiaoyao, his eyes bloodshot.
Jun Xiaoyao's words were calm, yet each sentence was like a sword!
This was forcing him onto a path of utter desolation, where even his closest allies would abandon him!
He could almost feel Tantai Qingxuan's extremely disappointed gaze now.
"Play tricks? Hehe, are you saying that I, the dignified Confucian School Order Holder, would play tricks on you in broad daylight?"
Jun Xiaoyao chuckled.
The group of Disciple from the Academy around them also couldn't help but say,
"Exactly! How could Young Lord Jun Xiaoyao do such a thing? This Order Holder status was personally bestowed by Venerable Master himself."
"That's right. Moreover, if Young Lord Jun Xiaoyao wanted to act, Chu Xiao wouldn't even have the right to resist, so why bother with such an unnecessary step?"
"I think Chu Xiao has a guilty conscience and doesn't dare to open his Sea of Consciousness, fearing his schemes will be exposed."
The Disciple around them looked at him with suspicion, coldness, disgust, and doubt.
This made Chu Xiao feel incredibly stifled and furious.
The reason he was unwilling to open his Sea of Consciousness was twofold.
Firstly, it was naturally because he feared Jun Xiaoyao would play some trick on him.
Secondly, and most importantly, he feared his secrets would be discovered by Jun Xiaoyao.
This included not only secrets like the Qiankun Gourd and Time Book.
He feared the secret of being a descendant of the Chu Clan Emperor Clan would be exposed.
Chu Xiao was certain that if this news were to be revealed, given Jun Xiaoyao's position as the Yun Clan Young Master, he would absolutely not let him go.
Therefore, Chu Xiao naturally wouldn't do such a suicidal thing.
But he couldn't possibly state such a reason in public.
Thus, Chu Xiao was truly in a predicament, like a mute eating bitter herbs—he had suffering but couldn't express it, feeling incredibly stifled.
"Alright then, I'll take another step back. You find someone you trust to open your Sea of Consciousness to. That should be acceptable, right?"
Jun Xiaoyao said, with a hint of playfulness in his eyes.
Having reached this point, if Chu Xiao still refused, it would be absolutely indefensible.
Chu Xiao clenched his teeth tightly.
This Jun Xiaoyao's schemes and wisdom were too terrifying.
He was practically forcing him into a dead end, a desperate situation.
Anyone who made an enemy of such a person would truly be unable to rest or eat in peace.
However, fortunately, Chu Xiao still had one last hope.
His gaze turned to Tantai Qingxuan, with a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
If there was anyone present he could absolutely trust, it was only Tantai Qingxuan.
And now, only Tantai Qingxuan could save him and prove his innocence.
"Qingxuan, I know you believe in me, don't you? I believe in you too."
Chu Xiao looked at Tantai Qingxuan, his eyes filled with anticipation.
However…
Tantai Qingxuan's fair and pretty face showed little expression.
From Tantai Ancient Ancestor's birthday banquet until now, she had realized that she truly couldn't understand Chu Xiao anymore.
Chu Xiao had transformed from a youth she admired into this selfish, narrow-minded, and jealous person.
He had even harmed her own cousin.
Tantai Qingxuan was truly weary at heart.
Coupled with the fact that Chu Xiao was now implicated in Han Ping'an's death, Tantai Qingxuan truly felt that the Chu Xiao before her was no longer the Chu Xiao she had known before.
With a deep sense of disappointment in her eyes, Tantai Qingxuan gently shook her head and said, "There's no need for that. If you want to prove your innocence, just let Young Master Jun examine you."
Tantai Qingxuan did not want to be entangled with Chu Xiao too much now.
She had already helped Chu Xiao a great deal.
But Chu Xiao, in turn, had harmed her kin, causing her to be disappointed again and again.
"How could this be? Qingxuan, even you don't believe me anymore?"
Chu Xiao's mind went blank.
He had clearly done nothing.
He was clearly innocent.
Why wouldn't Tantai Qingxuan believe him?
At this moment, Tantai Qingxuan's face seemed to overlap with the face of the Heart Demon in the Sacred Realm Space earlier.
Tantai Qingxuan had become the Heart Demon he couldn't overcome!
"Haha, hahaha, Tantai Qingxuan, I, Chu Xiao, treated you with such sincerity, yet you treat me like this!"
"You don't even want to believe me!"
"You just love to fawn over Jun Xiaoyao, you just love to throw yourself at him!"
Chu Xiao roared.
"Chu Xiao, you bastard!"
Upon hearing Chu Xiao utter such insulting words in public, Tantai Qingxuan's eyes instantly turned red with anger, and her silver teeth were almost ground to dust.
Any woman would be unable to bear such verbal humiliation!
"Fellow Daoist Chu, your words have gone too far." Jun Xiaoyao's tone also turned cold.
"Jun Xiaoyao, you just wait for me!"
Chu Xiao took out the Qiankun Gourd and directly activated it.
Brilliant Dao runes spewed forth from the Gourd, enveloping Chu Xiao's figure.
This was a Divine Ability he had comprehended from the second fragmented page of the Time Book.
Spatial Teleportation, this was also his trump card for survival, requiring a lot of his foundation to use once.
A Son of Destiny has many things, but especially many life-saving trump cards.
The next moment, Chu Xiao's figure directly vanished from his original spot!
"Damn it, that scoundrel!"
Mr. Yuan and the others' expressions also changed.
They couldn't stop him in time and hadn't expected Chu Xiao to possess such a method.
He had escaped right under their noses.
"Immediately notify the Enforcement Hall and place Chu Xiao on the wanted list. This person plotted against Han Ping'an; we absolutely cannot let him go!" Mr. Yuan shouted.
Chu Xiao could be said to have completely offended Jixia Academy.
Jun Xiaoyao showed no expression.
Even though Chu Xiao had escaped, he wasn't too surprised.
Because he had left a trick on Chu Xiao's Qiankun Gourd.
Finding him would be incredibly simple.
And why did Jun Xiaoyao force Chu Xiao like this?
It was because it was better to force Chu Xiao out to find the fragmented pages of the Time Book than for him to stay in Jixia Academy.
Additionally, Jun Xiaoyao was also somewhat interested in the person who killed Han Ping'an.
He could tell that Chu Xiao didn't seem to be lying.
He should have no connection with the person who killed Han Ping'an, at least not before this.
And forcing Chu Xiao out might also bring him some unexpected surprises.
"Chu Xiao, oh Chu Xiao, you're not just a treasure-hunting rat anymore."
"You're also a key figure in collecting clues. Perhaps you'll bring me some surprises then." Jun Xiaoyao thought to himself.
Chu Xiao's escape undoubtedly further confirmed his suspicion.
But this was also good.
For a Son of Destiny, things going too smoothly wasn't good.
On the contrary, adversity could stimulate the potential of a Son of Destiny.
Perhaps Chu Xiao could even use this adversity to find the other fragmented pages of the Time Book faster, allowing Jun Xiaoyao to harvest them.
It could be said that Jun Xiaoyao's cunning was truly terrifying.
If Chu Xiao knew Jun Xiaoyao's inner thoughts, he would definitely think he was a devil.
After Chu Xiao escaped, Jixia Academy also issued a warrant to apprehend Chu Xiao.
Of course, according to the usual tropes, it wouldn't be so simple for Jixia Academy to capture Chu Xiao.
And this was exactly what Jun Xiaoyao wanted.
In addition, Jun Xiaoyao did one more thing that shook the entire Jixia Academy.