His face went pale in an instant. Wu Qianyan, on the other hand, gaped at Gu Xijiu in silent wonder. She was so shocked that she almost called out to Gu Xijiu in public.Among the people in the crowd, only Fan Qians.h.i.+ and Wu Qianyan could see through Gu Xijiu"s disguise. No matter what disguises Gu Xijiu chose to use, there would always be a mole next to her lips, though in varying sizes. Years of traveling with Gu Xijiu in disguise had left them with a strong impression of her. The unchanging position of the mole was how they recognized her.
She never thought they would both be in the Devil Kingdom. The sudden turn of events would make it an inappropriate time to discuss the break-up with Di Fuyi. Otherwise, her entire effort of distancing herself from Fan Qians.h.i.+ would go to waste.
"There she is! Miss Jiu is really here!"
"That is right! The National Master has been looking for her!"
"Hey, she is absolutely fine being alone in the Soulless River. It looks like she has got some qualities in her Kung Fu."
"Humph! What quality is there to be proud of? Can"t you see there is a layer of wizardry barrier around her body? National Master Di must have made it for her," the little princess sarcastically commented.
"That is right; she would never have made it out with her lousy Kung Fu," someone chimed in along with the princess.
The discussion went on with many different opinions from different parties.
Unfazed, Gu Xijiu rose from the water amid the talks and stopped right there in the air, gazing at the crowd in an unconcerned manner.
Di Fuyi emerged later with a leap and stopped by her side.
"Congratulations, master, for finally locating Miss Jiu." The servants chanted in unison.
"Miss Jiu, master has been looking for you everywhere. Every inch of the Devil Kingdom had been thoroughly searched. I am glad that you are fine."
Gu Xijiu turned to look at Di Fuyi. "Did you bring them here?"
She was happy that he came to her rescue but was annoyed by the ma.s.ses of people around.
Di Fuyi answered with a hesitant nod, "Yes, but I had no choice."
"No choice?" Gu Xijiu was puzzled.
The emergence of Meng Wuya interrupted their conversation. "Who are you, exactly?" Meng Wuya asked while staring at Gu Xijiu with undivided attention.
Gu Xijiu"s furrowed her brows with disapproval. Surely, he already had some doubts about her ident.i.ty. The regent suddenly raised his voice and said, "Miss Jiu is really here! It has been a tough search, hasn"t it?"
He then turned to look at Di Fuyi. "Nevertheless, her presence here still does not prove that she is not responsible for the king"s a.s.sa.s.sination. She could have gone into hiding after murdering the king."
Gu Xijiu understood nothing from his accusation. When did she become a suspect? When the king was murdered, she was busy collecting the spiritual stones on her own.
The officials who stood by the regent started chiming in. They were already a.s.suming Gu Xijiu was the murderer for four reasons. First of all, she had great Kung Fu, which made her capable of the king"s a.s.sa.s.sination. Secondly, she did not have any evidence in support of an alibi. Thirdly, she disappeared right after the king was murdered, as if fleeing to avoid punishment. Lastly, a loyal escort of the deceased Devil King saw her fleeing from the palace, and her hairpin was found at the scene of the a.s.sa.s.sination.
Gu Xijiu listened on to their well-prepared arguments. Apparently, she had become the victim of their false claims. Amused, she started defending herself without even looking at Di Fuyi for help, "There are at least 88 people here in the Devil Kingdom that are known to have better Kung Fu than the Devil King, so all of them have equal chances of murdering him. Also, the a.s.sa.s.sination took place during the midnight hours, the time when people are usually sleeping."