Senior sister, stop working and go home for dinner.

Chapter 273 A Hidden Oath as Witness

The phone's light was on, illuminating the inside brightly.

The cave is narrow at first, but after walking a few dozen feet, it suddenly opens up into a natural stone chamber about ten feet in diameter. In the center of the chamber, a dim candlelight flickers, illuminating a slender figure sitting with her knees drawn up to her chest.

It was a bell.

She was still wearing the same dress Chen Anran was familiar with, but now it was covered in dust and bits of grass, and even had several obvious tears. Her face was pale, almost transparent, her lips were tightly pressed together, and her usually bright and mischievous eyes were now filled with exhaustion.

Hearing footsteps, she jerked her head up and saw Chen Anran. Her eyes lit up for a moment, then quickly dimmed, replaced by a deeper tension. She quickly made a "shush" gesture, pointed towards the cave entrance, and mouthed silently, "Is someone following us?"

Chen Anran shook his head, walked to the opposite side of her, but did not approach her. He simply observed her by the candlelight. He could clearly sense the disorder in Lingdang's aura, the weak and unstable fluctuations of her spiritual energy, indicating that she had suffered a serious injury and had been trying her best to suppress it.

"Why use this method?" Chen Anran lowered her voice and cut to the chase, "We could have contacted each other by phone."

Bell forced a smile that looked more like a grimace. "A cell phone? Is that even usable? It's probably being tapped."

Chen Anran sat cross-legged in front of the bell and said half-jokingly, "Okay, but your archery skills are pretty good. You can shoot so far without anyone seeing you."

"Yeah, yeah, it can change lanes and accelerate."

Hearing Lingdang's teasing, Chen Anran laughed and said, "Looks like you're alright."

Lingdang rolled her eyes, then stared at Chen Anran for a moment before speaking, "Old Zhang was right. You really can help me."

Chen Anran waved his hand, "Alright, stop with the nonsense. Tell me, what really happened? How did Zhang Tianshi die? And why did He Qingyun say that he personally witnessed the murderer as the Holy Maiden of the Crimson Spirit Sect, 'Ling Caiyou'? Don't tell me that 'Ling Caiyou' isn't you."

Lingdang's breathing visibly faltered, and her arms, which were wrapped around her knees, tightened slightly. She neither immediately denied nor admitted it, but simply lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes casting shadows on her pale face.

"What he saw was me." After a long silence, she finally uttered these words, her voice hoarse.

Chen Anran's pupils contracted sharply, but she did not interrupt her, simply waiting quietly for what followed.

"But I didn't kill Old Man Zhang." Lingdang suddenly raised her head, her eyes quickly reddening, not with resentment, but with a redness that was a mixture of anger, grief, and helplessness. "That night... I did go to the back mountain. Old Man Zhang invited me there."

"Did Master Zhang invite you?" Chen Anran frowned.

"Yes." Bell sniffed, trying to hold back her emotions. "He used a method of communication that only he and I knew..."

Chen Anran couldn't help but interrupt, "Wait, what do you mean by a contact method only the two of you know?"

So Lingdang had no choice but to be frank and say, "I was an undercover agent planted in the Red Spirit Sect by Longhu Mountain five hundred years ago. Zhang Nanshan is the second person to know my identity."

"..." Well, are you trying to play Infernal Affairs on me?

"Then who is the other person who knows your identity?"

"The other one is the previous generation's Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain."

"..."

Seeing that Chen Anran remained silent, Lingdang assumed he didn't believe her, so she quickly said, "Although no one can verify my identity right now, I have a way to prove it myself!"

After speaking, Lingdang took a soft breath and closed her eyes. A hazy light emanated from her, and her figure rapidly lengthened and changed in the light and shadow.

Her once petite figure had grown taller, her slender limbs had become long and strong, and her childish face had gradually lost its innocence, her eyebrows and eyes had become more relaxed, her nose more delicate, and her jawline more defined, transforming into the aloof yet alluring beauty of a mature woman. Most strangely, her dress now clung to her curvaceous body, only the torn parts making her look even more disheveled.

She opened her eyes, looked down at her tall figure, then looked at Chen Anran, her voice becoming slightly magnetic: "See? This is my original appearance. 'Ling Caiyou' is my alias. This form... is what the Holy Maiden of the Crimson Spirit Sect should look like."

Chen Anran looked at her current appearance and fell silent.

So, "Lingdang" is her real name, and "Lingcaiyou" is an alias? Isn't that backwards...?

Chen Anran raised her hand and pressed her temples, her tone carrying a sense of helplessness, as if to say, "Are you kidding me?"

"You call this 'self-proof'?"

Bell paused, startled: "Isn't that right?"

"No." Chen Anran's gaze swept over her tall and slender figure, which almost perfectly matched He Qingyun's description, and he said slowly, "What you did not clear your name, but instead made me feel that... He Qingyun's accusation was even more convincing."

He leaned forward, staring into Lingdang's astonished eyes, and said, word by word, "How is there any difference between you now and the 'slender, tall woman with a red tassel around her waist and familiar features' that He Qingyun saw? The fact that you can transform proves that the 'Ling Caiyou' who appeared in the back mountain that night and was seen running away by him could very well be you. This isn't proving your innocence; it's practically delivering evidence to my door, slapping 'I am the murderer' right in my face."

Lingdang suddenly realized what was happening, then turned her back to Chen Anran and slowly lifted her skirt.

Chen Anran was taken aback, then frowned: "What are you doing?"

Lingdang didn't turn around, but simply pulled her clothes down a little further, revealing her entire smooth back. The candlelight flickered, illuminating the center of her back, where it wasn't ordinary skin, but rather a complex and ancient dark gold pattern, neither a symbol nor a picture, with a faint spiritual light hidden in the flowing lines, resembling a coiled dragon and tiger.

"This is..." Chen Anran's pupils contracted slightly.

"This is the 'Hidden Oath Seal' of Longhu Mountain." Lingdang put down her clothes, turned around, her face still pale in the candlelight. "Only the Celestial Masters of each generation and a very few core agents who have undergone the most rigorous screening can have this seal implanted. This seal is connected to the origin of Longhu Mountain's protective array and cannot be forged. Once the holder betrays or dies, the seal will automatically collapse and transmit the last image and aura back to the mountain gate."

She paused, her voice low: "The night Old Zhang had his accident, this mark wasn't triggered. That's enough to prove I wasn't his killer. On the contrary, if I had been there and tried to harm him, or if he were already dead and I was nearby, this mark should have reacted long ago."

Chen Anran remained silent, carefully sensing the residual fluctuations of the patterns with his divine sense. Indeed, the aura was pure and vast, consistent with the Daoist lineage of Longhu Mountain, and faintly resonated with the mountain beneath his feet. To fake it to this extent was almost impossible.

"Even if you're not the murderer," Chen Anran slowly began, "it's a fact that He Qingyun saw you fleeing the scene. What exactly did you see then? What did Master Zhang want with you?"

Lingdang sat down again, hugging her knees and burying her face in her arms. Her muffled voice came through: "He asked me out because he noticed something unusual happening within the sect... no, within the Crimson Spirit Sect. So he asked me to discuss the next steps in reforming the Crimson Spirit Sect."

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