Her expression darkened as she pulled back her hand.
The black dog also seemed disappointed. It shook its head, stood up from the ground, and glared angrily at the people outside with its golden eyes.
More than ten people were standing in the small courtyard outside the confinement room. All of them wore the uniforms of the Enforcement Hall disciples.
Leading them was a man with his chin raised proudly.
He was Si Huizhou, the Enforcement Hall’s managing disciple.
He glanced at the broken door and the charred room, feeling puzzled.
The three confinement rooms were connected, yet the other two rooms were completely unharmed.
Could Zhu Mingyan have controlled the fire on purpose?
But everyone said she could no longer control her spiritual flame.
Before he could speak, he noticed the fierce black dog standing in the doorway.
The dog’s powerful hind legs were tense. Dark red bloodstains marked its glossy black fur. A low, threatening growl came from its throat, and its golden eyes glowed in the darkness.
The dog bared its sharp teeth.
A powerful gust of wind suddenly shot toward Si Huizhou, forcing him to take a step back.
Not only was Si Huizhou shocked, but even Zhu Mingyan was surprised.
She knew the dog must be powerful if it could break through the protective barrier, but she had not expected it to protect her.
It behaved almost like a spirit beast trained by a beast tamer.
Her heart skipped a beat.
Could it already have an owner?
“Zhu Mingyan, what are you trying to do now?” Si Huizhou shouted angrily after being forced back by a dog that was not even as tall as a person.
“First you set the confinement room on fire, and now you’ve released a vicious dog to attack people. You truly refuse to repent!”
“I know you’re the Sect Master’s personal disciple and look down on ordinary disciples like me. But even so, you shouldn’t ignore the sect’s rules!”
“I will report this matter to the Punishment Elder immediately. Your behavior is terrible. Even if the Sect Master returns and asks about it, I won’t be afraid!”
Zhu Mingyan seemed completely prepared.
She slowly reached out and patted the black dog, signaling it to step back.
The dog rubbed affectionately against her palm before reluctantly retreating several steps and sitting down.
However, its golden eyes remained fixed on Si Huizhou.
This dog was surprisingly loyal.
Zhu Mingyan smiled slightly before looking at Si Huizhou.
“Si Huizhou, say that again. Who exactly has behaved badly?”
“What crime did I commit that deserved being locked in this confinement room?”
Si Huizhou had been about to leave, but her words stopped him in his tracks.
He stared at her in disbelief.
“Are you mocking me?”
“I truly don’t know,” Zhu Mingyan replied politely with a smile.
“Please explain.”
She had been locked up many times before.
Sometimes she was accused of hurting others.
Sometimes of stealing.
Sometimes even when a dog ate someone’s spiritual plants, the blame somehow ended up on her.
Who knew what the reason was this time?
Si Huizhou looked completely furious.
“Let me ask you this. Are the spirit beasts on Sighing Peak yours?”
“They are my spirit beasts.”
“Good. Since they belong to you, you are responsible for controlling them. If they cause trouble, you should take responsibility.”
“Sighing Peak is rich in spiritual energy and full of spiritual plants.”
“One of your spirit beasts broke into a medicinal field and ate the plants there. It completely destroyed the Flowing Radiance Grass that took four years to grow.”
“As the owner, shouldn’t you be held responsible?”
He paused, then sneered.
“I know your cultivation has greatly declined since that incident. It’s understandable if you can’t control your spirit beasts anymore.”
“After careful consideration, I only punished you with one night of confinement. You could leave at dawn.”
“That was already a light punishment out of respect for the Sect Master.”
“If you ask me, if you can’t manage your spirit beasts, you should get rid of them before they cause even greater trouble.”
Zhu Mingyan almost laughed.
So it really was another case of “the dog ate the spiritual plants.”
In just a few sentences, Si Huizhou had accused her of multiple offenses, painted her as a bully who relied on her status, and mocked her weakened cultivation.
In her previous life, she would only have been angry and unable to respond.
Whenever people mocked her cultivation, she could never find the words to fight back.
No wonder she had been bullied more and more.
She stepped forward and stared at Si Huizhou.
“If my spirit beast caused trouble, then of course I should take responsibility.”
“But was it really my spirit beast?”
Si Huizhou immediately looked nervous and avoided her gaze.
“What… what do you mean?”
“I do keep spirit beasts on Sighing Peak,” Zhu Mingyan said coldly.
“But I’m not the only person who can enter the mountain.”
“How do you know it wasn’t someone else’s spirit beast?”
“How do you know I wasn’t framed?”
She sneered.
“According to your logic, if anything on Sighing Peak is damaged, should all of it be blamed on me?”
“What evidence do you have?”
For a moment, Si Huizhou had no answer.
The person who had brought Zhu Mingyan to the Enforcement Hall was Du Wenqing, a direct disciple of the Vice Sect Master.
Du Wenqing came from the powerful Du Family of Lizhou and had an important background.
Since Du Wenqing personally delivered Zhu Mingyan and claimed she was responsible, Si Huizhou had not dared to question it.
He was cautious because Zhu Mingyan was the Sect Master’s personal disciple.
However, the Sect Master was currently away, and all sect affairs were being handled by the Vice Sect Master.
The fact that a direct disciple of the Vice Sect Master was involved made it obvious that powerful people were fighting behind the scenes.
A small disciple like him had no reason to interfere.
Besides, ever since Zhu Mingyan lost her cultivation, she had become very easy to bully.
She had been locked up several times before.
At first, Si Huizhou had been nervous.
But later he realized that she always endured everything quietly.
The Sect Master never asked about it either.
Eventually, he stopped worrying completely.
If he had to offend someone, anyone would choose Zhu Mingyan.
That was exactly what he had done this time.
He had followed the simplest procedure and locked her up.
Earlier that night, someone reported that the confinement room had caught fire.
His first reaction was fear that he would be blamed.
Then he remembered Zhu Mingyan was inside.
Everyone in the sect knew her spiritual flame was unstable.
And everyone knew she was easy to push around.
He immediately decided how to handle the situation.
Who could have guessed that today’s Zhu Mingyan would be completely different?
Not only was she questioning him directly, she also had a frightening spirit beast that kept baring its teeth at him.
Seeing Si Huizhou remain silent, Zhu Mingyan quickly understood most of the situation.
He had no evidence at all.
He simply wanted to make her take the blame because she was easy to bully.
The matter of the Flowing Radiance Grass certainly needed an explanation.
But another question troubled her.
Si Huizhou was only a managing disciple.
How had he become bold enough to repeatedly mistreat her?
After thinking for a moment, she spoke sharply.
“No matter how miserable my situation is, I am still the Sect Master’s personal disciple!”
“I never complained to my master before because I didn’t want to disturb his cultivation.”
“I never expected that would only encourage you to bully me even more!”
“You have no evidence, yet you openly accuse others.”
“Doesn’t that violate the sect rules?”
“Si Huizhou, I think you are the one who should be locked in confinement!”
The black dog behind her barked twice in agreement.
The sound frightened Si Huizhou badly.
“Du Wenqing, a direct disciple of the Vice Sect Master, personally brought you here and stated that you were responsible. How could it be false?”
Knowing the situation was getting out of control, Si Huizhou forced himself to remain calm.
“Even if that matter is still disputed, you can’t deny setting the confinement room on fire.”
“Oh, that?” Zhu Mingyan smiled calmly.
“The fire was indeed my fault.”
“But it wasn’t intentional.”
“My spiritual flame lost control.”
The moment Si Huizhou heard her admit responsibility, he secretly relaxed.
He immediately put on a generous expression.
“Although you accidentally burned the confinement room, no serious damage was done.”
“For the Sect Master’s sake, I can overlook it and release you from confinement.”
“Let’s just forget about everything.”
Zhu Mingyan immediately let out two cold laughs.