Another Day of Missing "A Gentleman Keeps His Tools Hidden About His Person"

Two and a half days passed in the blink of an eye.

Su Ji had polished the translucent white Shunguang Stone spear until it gleamed, leaving not a trace of bloodstains.

Then he placed it openly by his bedside.

Though he had left his name on the corpse—an act of sheer audacity—he couldn’t predict how the Love-Longing Sect would react.

Yet, two days later, everything remained eerily calm.

This unsettling silence only deepened Su Ji’s unease.

Just as he thought the waiting would drag on, a series of knocks—thud, thud, thud—rapped against his wooden door.

Su Ji’s heart lurched.

They’re here.

He took a deep breath, steadying his turbulent emotions, and strode over to pull the door open.

Outside stood a figure clad in familiar crimson robes.

Su Jiu stood there, her delicate face icy and expressionless.

Her eyes held no warmth as she regarded Su Ji—clearly, she had no desire to see him.

But this time, she had no choice.

"The mess you made has come to light," Su Jiu cut straight to the chase, her voice frosty. "You’d better lay low and stop stirring up trouble."

Hearing this, Su Ji instantly adopted an expression of utter innocence, his voice dripping with grievance. "Junior Sister, I didn’t kill that guy! It’s obvious someone’s trying to frame me!"

Su Jiu: "…"

Her clear eyes flickered with momentary confusion.

"I haven’t even said what it’s about yet…" she replied flatly.

Su Ji’s feigned innocence froze on his face.

Damn. Jumped the gun.

He coughed awkwardly, his expression turning sheepish. "Ah… So it’s not about that fat guy?"

Su Jiu gave a slight nod, her face twisting into a look of exasperation, as if she were staring at an idiot.

"The fat man’s body was discovered yesterday morning," she said, her tone indifferent, as though discussing trivial gossip. "He’d exploited his position in the Personnel Hall to peddle so-called ‘local specialties’ to too many disciples. Made plenty of enemies."

"The sect’s aware. They usually turn a blind eye, but now that he’s dead, the list of suspects is too long to investigate properly."

She paused. "As for the name you left on the corpse, the Enforcement Hall’s initial assessment is that someone deliberately framed you. The power gap was too wide, and your motive was insufficient."

"So, don’t worry about such a minor matter."

Su Ji: "???"

Minor?

A foreign hall’s steward was dead, his corpse defaced with a blatant taunt—and it was just a minor matter?

Had the sect’s culture really rotted to this extent?

"Then… why are you here?"

"A major matter…"

Su Jiu’s voice remained cool, but Su Ji detected a trace of… discomfort in her words.

He adjusted his mindset and asked curiously, "What could be bigger than murder?"

Su Jiu averted her gaze, her eyes settling on the lone rickety table in Su Ji’s room, as if its grain patterns were far more captivating than his face.

She fell silent for a moment, as though carefully choosing her words.

"Recently, several female outer disciples have reported…"

Her voice hitched slightly, as if the next words were too repulsive to voice.

"Unidentified filth appearing on their drying laundry… and their residence doors."

Su Jiu ultimately couldn’t bring herself to say the explicit term, substituting it with "filth."

But she added a critical detail: "The sect’s investigation confirmed that the substance… appears to be spiritual root-derived."

Su Ji’s expression shifted from curiosity to bewilderment, then to shock.

Finally, it settled into something indescribably bizarre.

Spiritual root-derived?

Since when did cultivators in this world get so… creative?

Wait—

Weren’t all outer male disciples supposed to have their spiritual roots severed?

"So…" Su Ji ventured cautiously, "Junior Sister, you’re not here because you suspect… I did this, are you?"

Su Jiu finally tore her gaze from the table and met his eyes again.

"These incidents actually began over two months ago."

"The first female disciple didn’t report it—it would’ve been too humiliating."

"The timing coincides with your enrollment as an outer disciple."

She didn’t finish, but the implication was clear:

You’re the only outer disciple still carrying the… ‘equipment.’

Su Ji felt a surge of exasperation lodged in his throat, begging to be let loose.

"Junior Sister, be reasonable!" This time, his indignation was genuine, devoid of any acting.

"Why would I risk exposing myself like this? It’d be a dead giveaway that my ‘severance’ was faked!"

Su Jiu replied icily, "I know you didn’t."

"You value your spiritual root too much to take such disproportionate risks."

"If only my door had been targeted, then I’d suspect you."

"Because you’d use it to blackmail me, knowing I couldn’t retaliate."

"That’s precisely why I’m here."

Her tone softened slightly, though the warning remained.

"This matter is far graver than the steward’s death."

"The sect can dismiss a steward’s murder as personal vendetta, but this is a direct challenge to the Love-Longing Sect’s laws—a slap to every elder’s face!"

Su Jiu took a deep breath before delivering the final blow.

"The Enforcement Hall has issued an ultimatum: a full-scale investigation. To catch this brazen pervert, they’ve decided to… re-examine every outer male disciple recruited in the past year."

Re-examination.

The word struck Su Ji’s mind like thunder.

All traces of feigned innocence vanished from his face, replaced by grim realization.

The steward’s death was trivial.

This absurd, revolting scandal, however, was a blade poised to shred his disguise and plunge him into ruin.

If re-examined, his secret would be laid bare.

The charges—deceiving the sect, falsifying his spiritual root severance—would leave him no room for defense.

Su Jiu watched his expression darken, satisfied he finally grasped the severity.

"If you’re exposed, I—the one who ‘performed’ your severance—won’t escape punishment either."

A cold sweat had already drenched Su Ji’s back.

Su Jiu continued, "The Enforcement Hall’s re-examination begins in three days."

"When it does, I’ll return. From then on, you must stay by my side at all times."

"So I can cast an illusion the moment you’re examined, masking the truth."

Su Ji frowned. "Why not cast it now? Like the fake spiritual root I submitted."

Su Jiu shot him a look reserved for idiots. "Impossible. If they suspect deception, they’ll screen for illusions too."

"I’ll need to sustain the spell continuously to avoid detection."

Su Ji exclaimed in alarm, "Oh no! What about that piece of wood I handed over? Won’t they figure it out if they inspect it closely?"

"It’s long been burned. Did you think the sect would keep it enshrined for you?"

Well, another day of missing the days when "a gentleman keeps his tools hidden within himself"...