The Whole World Knows That the Crown Prince Loves Her

Moreover, if it were a beast that could cultivate enough to transform into a human, why would it need to be so sneaky?

It could appear openly, as these spiritual practitioners wouldn’t pose any threat to it.

Even if it were injured, there would be no need to hide.

While it was challenging for beasts to cultivate to the point of transforming into human forms, once they achieved this, it clearly demonstrated their power!

They wouldn’t fear practitioners at all.

Most importantly, there was no scent of beasts in the vicinity.

If it wasn’t a beast, then it must be a demon…

There were demons in the continent, but there was also no demonic aura in this room…

After inspecting the body, Huang Quan glanced around the room and said, “There are no signs of a struggle in here, indicating that the intruder was someone the victim recognized. The assailant killed him without him being on guard, delivering a fatal blow.”

“After the man died, the intruder removed his heart and drained his spiritual energy.”

Upon hearing Huang Quan’s words, the young woman in the room exclaimed, “Huang Quan, are you implying that the person who killed him is very likely one of us?”

Huang Quan looked at the woman, but before she could respond, the woman continued, “What nonsense are you talking about?”

“How could one of our own kill another?”

“Qian Rou!”

The old man reprimanded, “Be quiet!”

The young woman, chastised, fell silent.

The old man then turned to Huang Quan and said, “Miss Huang, please continue.”

Huang Quan replied, “I said the intruder was someone he knew, but I didn’t say it was one of you.”

“After all, one could easily disguise themselves.”

The old man nodded after hearing this. “Miss Huang, I agree with what you said; the person who killed him must have disguised themselves as someone from our side.”

“It’s impossible for it to be one of us,” the old man continued. “Our people had no reason to kill him.”

“If the intruder disguised themselves as one of your people to deceive him, then who would let their guard down?” Huang Quan said. “Even a familiar person, if they came to find you in the middle of the night, would likely be on guard. There’s no way they wouldn’t have any defenses at all.”

After hearing Huang Quan’s words, the old man looked at the young woman standing beside him.

Qian Rou, seeing her grandfather look over, hurriedly asked, “Grandfather, what are you looking at me for?”

“Can’t you be a bit more composed?” the old man frowned. “I’m not looking at you because I think you killed him, but because he wouldn’t have been on guard against you, and it’s possible the assailant disguised themselves as you to approach him.”

The deceased man had feelings for Qian Rou, and they all knew that he had come to participate in the competition in hopes of making achievements and then proposing to the family head for Qian Rou’s hand in marriage.

So among them, the man who would be least likely to be on guard would be Qian Rou.

Upon hearing this, Qian Rou fell silent.

Huang Quan said, “Assuming the intruder disguised themselves as her, there are two issues.”

“First, the height issue.”

“Facial features can be changed with disguise techniques, but height cannot be altered, especially in terms of being tall or short,” Huang Quan explained. “When you see someone you like, even in joy, it’s impossible not to notice if the height seems off.”

“So it’s likely that the technique used wasn’t an ordinary disguise,” Huang Quan said, looking at Xuan Yong. “Prince Xuan Yong, do you have any suggestions?”

Xuan Yong replied, “The Bone Shrinking Technique.”

“The Bone Shrinking Technique, combined with disguise techniques, can change one’s appearance into that of anyone.”

“The second issue,” Huang Quan continued, “is that the intruder is quite powerful.”

“Putting aside their disguise techniques, the fact that they came directly to your place means they’re not afraid of encountering others?”

427

“It’s quite late,” the old man said. “The intruder might have thought that everyone was resting and wouldn’t be noticed at this hour.”

“But he was able to kill a Spirit Master with one strike,” Huang Quan replied. “Although this Spirit Master was heavily injured, being able to kill him with a single blow indicates that the intruder’s own cultivation level is not low.”

Upon hearing Huang Quan’s words, the old man furrowed his brow.

“This person is among us,” Xuan Yong said casually. “To disguise themselves as someone from your side, they must have observed whoever they’re trying to imitate.”

“Since everyone arrived at the academy today, the best opportunity for observation was during the daytime competition,” Xuan Yong explained. “At that time, everyone was present, allowing the intruder to observe everyone.”

“With this, they could disguise themselves as anyone.”

Qian Rou responded, “So, it means that anyone could be that person?”

Huang Quan nodded. “That’s one way to put it.”

“If that’s the case, then you’re very suspicious!” Qian Rou looked at Huang Quan. “Even if you came after hearing the scream, didn’t you arrive a bit too quickly?”

“I remember that the courtyard where you’re staying is a good distance away from ours. If you got here this fast, it means you were outside before, so what were you doing out in the middle of the night?”

“It’s impossible for Miss Huang Quan to be the one,” Xuan Yong quickly denied as soon as Qian Rou finished speaking.

Qian Rou said unhappily, “Prince Xuan Yong, you can’t just think it’s impossible for her to have done it just because she’s pretty!”

Xuan Yong cast a heavy gaze at Qian Rou and replied coldly, “How could Miss Huang Quan drain someone’s spiritual power when she herself has no spiritual power?”

Qian Rou was taken aback by this remark and fell silent.

Huang Quan glanced at Xuan Yong before shifting her gaze away. “Anyone could be the murderer, but personally, I think the most suspicious party is the Nanyuan Empire Academy.”

The old man looked at Huang Quan and asked, “Miss Huang, what do you mean by that?”

Huang Quan replied, “The Nanyuan Empire Academy brought out a dark element cultivation method and used a competition to attract everyone. The first place in the competition can take that cultivation method. To this day, we still don’t understand why they did this.”

“This is the first reason.”

“The second reason is this barrier.”

“The reasons they provided for the barrier are quite convincing; they might even be true, but I personally have doubts,” Huang Quan continued. “After all, after someone dies, this barrier looks like a prison trapping us.”

“We have to stay within this barrier for who knows how long, unable to leave. Who knows if more people will die during this time?”

“Of course, I’m most suspicious of the dean of the Nanyuan Empire Academy,” Huang Quan said. “The vice dean said that this matter was ordered by the dean.”

“By the time the news reached us, it had been less than half a month. The dean had already closed himself off without explanation, and after giving this order, he went into seclusion without providing the vice dean with a reason. It’s hard not to be suspicious of him.”

“In half a month’s time, I believe everyone can afford to wait,” Huang Quan added. “If the dean had provided a reason for why this event was organized before going into seclusion, it wouldn’t make people so suspicious.”

“Yet he said nothing and went into seclusion immediately after giving the order. It looks like he’s trying to avoid scrutiny.”

“Miss Huang Quan, be cautious with your words!”

Just as Huang Quan was saying this, the vice dean and a few others arrived.

Hearing what Huang Quan said, the vice dean’s expression was not pleasant. “Miss Huang, you cannot take advantage of the fact that you have Prince Diqin backing you to recklessly accuse others and tarnish our academy’s reputation.”