When he glanced at Zhuang Yun again and saw no reaction, he decided to continue with his bold fabrication.
"At four, he harassed the maid, at five, he spied on his stepmother bathing, at six, he was a regular at the brothel, at seven, he spread obscene rumors, at eight..."
This brother was spinning tales for his life, claiming to be seventy years old without repeating a single story.
It made Zhuang Yun laugh heartily.
He was undoubtedly the top scholar in the literary arts of the cultivation world.
Even Xiaosuo, who had extensive knowledge from two lifetimes, felt inferior.
"At seventy-three, he sneaked into the County Magistrate's house, at seventy-four, into the County Deputy's house, at seventy-five..."
Just when it seemed this brother might talk his way to survival, he suddenly fell backward, hitting the floor tiles.
He was dead.
Xiaosuo and the others stared blankly at this eloquent "star of literature" who died with his eyes open.
"You really think I'm that gullible? Nonsense! Zhu Fulu came from a farming family, dirt poor, where would he find a maid to harass at four?"
Everyone fell silent.
It wasn't that they didn't dare to speak; they just didn't know what to say.
Was Zhuang Yun serious?
The man had spun tales up to seventy-five, and you killed him over a discrepancy at four?
Why didn't you act sooner and give him a quick death?
Seems like you just wanted to hear more stories.
Now, fabricating stories won't work.
Xiaosuo wondered if he could try a different approach.
What if he pretended to be a loyal and filial son of the Zhu Clan? Would Zhuang Yun see him differently?
"Next."
Another brother spoke up:
"Master Zhuang, my father, though he had his faults, has returned to dust. You've killed many of the Zhu Clan today; could you spare us and allow my father a peaceful burial?"
Xiaosuo thought this was a bad idea; his new plan was already ruined.
But before he could complain, this brother also fell straight down.
"You went off-topic, courting death. Next."
By this point, out of the first four, three were dead.
Xiaosuo felt less anxious.
There were still six people ahead of him.
If two more died, the first round of testing would be over, right?
He glanced back and saw Wang Zhengwu's nephew standing next to him.
He seemed to have the same thought, no longer pondering but focusing on the answers of the brothers ahead.
They were resigned, probably unable to think of new arguments, and simply hoped enough people ahead would die.
Immortals wouldn't break their word to mortals.
...Right?
At this moment, the next brother spoke up.
"All the Zhu Clan's spiritual materials were stolen, but it wasn't a common thief. It was a female cultivator he kept outside. To please her, he revealed where the spiritual material chest was hidden. My mother managed the Zhu Clan for over forty years, dedicating her life, only for it to be given to an outsider. His actions were truly shameless."
Xiaosuo realized this brother must be the First Madam's son.
Yet, the First Madam didn't look like a woman in her fifties or sixties, more like in her thirties. She must have taken some extraordinary medicine to maintain her appearance.
Zhuang Yun finally stopped his killing spree.
Ignoring his wife and children to please a mistress, shameless.
The First Madam's son passed the test.
"Next."
Another brother began:
"I am the son of the female cultivator mentioned earlier. I can also prove Zhu Fulu's shamelessness. My mother was an orphan, lucky enough to have cultivation potential and join an Immortal Sect, only to be deceived by Zhu Fulu's sweet words and give birth to me. He lied to my mother, saying the spiritual materials in the chest were for us, and had her retrieve them. But he arranged for someone to ambush her outside Mountain Chicken County, causing her to fall on the spot."
What?
Even Zhuang Yun raised an eyebrow at this revelation.
Zhu Fulu was ruthless even to his own.
What seemed like a heartless man now appeared to be a beast in human skin.
Shameless, utterly shameless!
"Next."
Before speaking, this brother looked at the previous two with a complicated expression and sighed.
Xiaosuo's left eye twitched. No way...
"I... I am the grandson of the cultivator who ambushed his mother. Zhu Fulu and my grandfather once went on a mission together. My grandfather thought Zhu Fulu was a decent man, so he betrothed his daughter to him, resulting in my birth. One day, Zhu Fulu told my grandfather that a female cultivator had stolen his spiritual materials, and since he was on a mission, he couldn't go himself, so he asked my grandfather to help eliminate her and retrieve the materials, promising a thirty percent cut. My grandfather killed the female cultivator, took the chest home to verify the contents, only to find it filled with poisonous gas! My grandparents and my mother inside the house died on the spot... I sensed something was wrong and fled. That night, my grandfather's entire family was wiped out by him. Zhu Fulu, utterly shameless."
Hearing this, Xiaosuo gained a new understanding of Zhu Fulu.
Killing his lover, his father-in-law, using others to do his dirty work, cunning and ruthless.
But he couldn't figure out what Zhu Fulu was after.
The brother whose family was wiped out by his father also gritted his teeth in hatred:
"I really don't understand why he's so shameless, killing so many people. What's he after?"
No one present understood either.
At this point, the last brother in line spoke up.
"He was after the Vein Opening Pill. Master Zhuang, I can continue this brother's story. May I participate in the test early?"
"Go ahead."
"Zhu Fulu, this shameless man, wanted to consume the Vein Opening Pill left by the deceased. This brother's mother and grandfather both had Immortal Sect or local authority missions. Dying suddenly, according to sect rules and local laws, they were considered to have fallen during a mission, and a Vein Opening Pill would be issued. All these cultivators' blood relatives either fled or died, leaving Zhu Fulu as the closest relation and sole beneficiary of the Vein Opening Pill."
Zhuang Yun asked:
"How do you know this?"
"My mother was his trained assassin and lover, involved in wiping out that brother's grandfather's family. Later, he killed my mother and all those involved. My mother saw through Zhu Fulu's ambition, knowing he wanted the Vein Opening Pill to exchange for his own cultivation materials, not to nurture descendants. So she hid me away, allowing me to survive."
After hearing the whole story, Xiaosuo shook his head repeatedly.
Zhuang Yun said:
"Zhu Fulu's shamelessness is truly outrageous! I underestimated him. But heaven is just; his aptitude was too poor, and he remained at the Rebirth Stage until his death."
Zhuang Yun didn't know if he was lamenting to himself or speaking to the sons of Zhu Fulu.
"Next."
Another brother began.
"My mother said... said Zhu Fulu had a peculiar fetish in that matter, utterly shameless..."
This brother spoke for nearly half an hour.
Except for Xiaosuo, who had studied diligently in his past life, everyone else had only one thought.
Eye-opening.
Even Xiaosuo was amazed at a few points.
Clearly, this brother also passed.
Now, only four remained: two unfamiliar Zhu Clan brothers, Xiaosuo, and Wang Zhengwu's nephew.
They all stared at each other.
All were from humble backgrounds, their mothers from small families, killed, and they escaped, lacking the remarkable stories of the previous ones.
Their experiences without mothers were too ordinary, unremarkable among these brothers.
"Next."
"Master Zhuang, I can't tell any new shameless deeds of Zhu Fulu. But I believe the remaining three brothers can't either. Since you said this round only eliminates five people, with four of us needing to die, could we draw lots and let fate decide?"
Xiaosuo disagreed.
He was third in line among the four.
He had already observed the two brothers ahead scratching their heads for a long time, clearly unable to come up with a story.
He just needed to stay silent to survive, but now he had to draw lots.
Ridiculous!
Afraid Zhuang Yun might agree, he quickly said:
"Master Zhuang, I believe our random lineup is already heaven's best arrangement."
The brother second in line immediately retorted:
"Don't talk nonsense. If you two can tell of Zhu Fulu's shamelessness, I'll die right away!"
Xiaosuo countered:
"Nonsense, if we could tell, how would you survive? Our lineup is heaven's arrangement; can you defy fate?"
The first in line said:
"Who do you think you are, a mere mortal, to invoke fate? Fate is for immortals like Master Zhuang!"
"What Master Zhuang possesses isn't for a waste like you to comment on! If not for fate, would you be alive today?"
"Don't add false charges. This round is about Zhu Fulu's shamelessness. I won't force you, but if either of you can satisfy Master Zhuang, I'll die immediately!"
Hearing this concession, Zhuang Yun smiled slightly and looked at Xiaosuo.
The other brother in front also agreed:
"Me too!"
They were sure Xiaosuo and the other couldn't come up with anything new.
Just gamble your lives with us.
Hearing their words, Xiaosuo immediately bowed to Zhuang Yun:
"Master Zhuang, they proposed this, and you witnessed it! If either of us can tell of Zhu Fulu's new shamelessness, they will willingly die!"
The two Zhu Clan brothers in front were stunned.
Could this kid have something up his sleeve?
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If he did, why did he argue so hard earlier?
Zhuang Yun nodded:
"Yes. Do you agree?"
"Of course!"
"Good, if either of you satisfies me, they will die."
Xiaosuo stepped back, giving way to Wang Zhengwu's nephew.
"Brother, I have nothing to say. It's your turn."
Wang Zhengwu's nephew was surprised; he thought Xiaosuo had a story.
Now he was being pushed to save him?
Xiaosuo's actions were uncharacteristic, not very dignified!
Xiaosuo had already made up his mind.
While arguing with the two brothers, he wondered why Wang Zhengwu's nephew, fourth in line, didn't join the argument or even support him.
Logically, he should have supported his statement.
Calm in the face of life and death, either he wasn't afraid to die or wouldn't die.
Wang Zhengwu's nephew wasn't the fearless type. When Zhu Liucai's men chased him, he fled in tears.
So Xiaosuo concluded that this kid had something.
He could tell a story.
Otherwise, he wouldn't act so detached.
He decisively chose to bind himself to him.
In the face of life and death, dignity wasn't as important.
Wang Zhengwu's nephew gave Xiaosuo a disdainful look.
Xiaosuo accepted it calmly.
Then, Wang Zhengwu's nephew used just three sentences to save both himself and Xiaosuo.
"When Zhu Fulu was still a farmer, he had a wife who hadn't borne him children, whom he divorced after entering the Immortal Sect."
"Years later, he learned this woman had a new family and children, so he killed her husband in anger and took her children."
"This woman was my grandmother."
Silence.
Zhu Fulu's previous actions could be explained as self-interest.
But his ex-wife had done him no wrong, yet he couldn't bear to see her happy and...
This could only be explained as psychological distortion.
The word "shameless" reached new heights with Zhu Fulu.
The two brothers in front realized the situation was dire and tried to struggle.
"You're making this up! Zhuang..."
Both fell straight down, hitting the floor.
Dead.