Chapter 5000 — A Letter of Accusation
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 3
Accompanied by Wu Che, Zheng Dongyang went straight to the Island Lord's Pavilion and made his way directly into Hall One to find Oda Zhou.
"To what do I owe the honor of this visit from Master Zheng?" Oda Zhou gestured for the two of them to take seats. In his original station, he would have had no need to show such courtesy to a seventh-grade alchemist—a Mystic-rank alchemist might have warranted it, perhaps—but in his present role as acting island lord, he naturally could not slight a guest.
"Island Lord Oda, I happen to know a thing or two about this business with Tian Pill Pavilion. I hear the island lord believes all those seventh-grade pills at Tian Pill Pavilion came by lawful means?" Zheng Dongyang came straight to the point.
"That is correct. It is indeed so." Oda Zhou glanced at Wu Che beside him and gave a faint nod.
"Does the island lord have proof?" Zheng Dongyang pressed.
"Proof?" Oda Zhou suddenly smiled, and instead of answering, asked in return, "Master Zheng means to say the pills at Tian Pill Pavilion were all smuggled in from the Eastern Continent, I take it. And what evidence might you have? Proof is what proves a man guilty; conversely, if a man is innocent to begin with, Central Island has not sunk so low into chaos that an innocent man must furnish proof of his own innocence."
"I examined those five seventh-grade Great Rejuvenation Pills at Tian Pill Pavilion myself. Every one was of top-grade quality—the odds of their coming from any other Cloud-rank island are vanishingly small. They could only have come from the Eastern Continent. Moreover, none of these pills bear a spiritual-sense mark, and that alone is excellent testimony. Even if it is not ironclad proof, common sense alone is enough to reach the conclusion, is it not?" Zheng Dongyang spoke with righteous confidence.
"To convict a man on common sense alone—does Master Zheng take Central Island for a body that conducts its affairs so childishly? Central Island has always been a gathering place for the great merchant guilds. Were we to set such a precedent, would not every one of those guilds be forced to shut its doors? The world is full of things that defy common sense, Master Zheng. There is no need for such alarm."
"Alarm?" Zheng Dongyang's expression darkened at once. He stared straight at Oda Zhou. "With evidence this conclusive, the island lord actually calls it alarm on my part? I came a long way to Central Island, and as a guest I ought by rights not to meddle in such matters—but Wei Zhao of Tian Pill Pavilion falsely claimed to be the master of Qing Xuanzi, chief alchemist of my Morning Star Academy. By every principle of feeling and reason, I cannot stand idly by. I hope the island lord will handle this impartially and by the book, and on no account show favoritism or bend the rules."
"Is Master Zheng threatening me?" Oda Zhou showed not the slightest sign of anger, yet with those words the atmosphere in the hall turned abruptly grave. An omnipresent aura of authority pressed down upon Zheng Dongyang and Wu Che, and both men at once found themselves unable to sit easy.
But Zheng Dongyang was no ordinary man either. Though the pressure bore down on him painfully, he forced himself to endure it. His face ugly, he said, "The island lord must not misunderstand. I speak only out of public principle, on the merits of the matter, with not the slightest intent to threaten. It is only that this concerns the reputation of my Morning Star Academy. If the island lord will not come forward to set the record straight, then I shall have no choice but to report it to the Eastern Continent and let the Eastern Continent Academy impose sanctions on Central Island."
To have spoken thus was already a threat through and through—and a threat aimed directly at all of Central Island!