Chapter 5000 — A Letter of Accusation

Accompanied by Wu Miao, Zheng Dongsheng 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 Dongsheng came straight to the point.

"That is correct. It is indeed so." Oda Zhou glanced at Wu Miao beside him and gave a faint nod.

"Does the island lord have proof?" Zheng Dongsheng 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 Dongsheng 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 Dongsheng'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 Danzi, 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 Dongsheng and Wu Miao, and both men at once found themselves unable to sit easy.

But Zheng Dongsheng 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!

One had to understand that the sanctions Zheng Dongsheng spoke of were no idle talk. They bore on the quota of disciples the Eastern Continent Academy allotted to Central Island. Even Oda Zhou, who came from a top-tier clan, had to send his family's young to the Eastern Continent for advanced study. Should sanctions truly fall, both his clan and Central Island would suffer enormous losses—a result no one could bear, and Oda Zhou was no exception.

Had he not yet seen his third brother Oda Ba, Oda Zhou might well have had to weigh Zheng Dongsheng's threat a little. But now that he knew the reach and power of Wei Zhao, those words were nothing but a joke to his ears.

"Report to whom?" Oda Zhou asked blandly, without the least concern.

"To the Morning Star Academy, of course, and thence to the Eastern Continent's Yellow-rank Academy Alliance. If Central Island remains indifferent to a matter that so plainly ruins my academy's reputation, sanctions will surely be unavoidable. I hope the island lord will not ruin himself," Zheng Dongsheng said, his face full of smug satisfaction.

He would not have dared speak so before, but now that he had invoked the mighty name of the Eastern Continent, he felt a natural superiority in the face of Central Island. So what if the man before him was Oda Zhou? Did he not still have to dance to the tune of the Eastern Continent Academy?

"Very well, then—go." Oda Zhou raised his cup on the spot to see them out.

"Huh?!" Zheng Dongsheng was struck dumb, unable to react for a moment; he thought he had misheard. Only when he saw that Wu Miao beside him wore the look of a man who had seen a ghost did he finally assure himself his ears were not deceiving him.

Oda Zhou had not bought it in the least. Had the man taken the wrong medicine? Zheng Dongsheng stared at him in disbelief. Whenever he had used this threat on others from the Cloud-rank islands, it had never once failed him—so why did this fellow seem utterly unconcerned? Could a top-tier clan truly have grown so lofty that it did not even put the Eastern Continent Academy in its eyes?

"What is it? Do the two of you still wish to stay for a cup of tea?" Oda Zhou looked at them with a smile that was not quite a smile.

By now Wu Miao's head was nearly hanging down into his own trousers. Had he known Zheng Dongsheng would argue his case like this, he would never have dared come along for anything in the world. Now look at the mess: Oda Zhou had not only refused to budge an inch, but had put him on the blacklist as well. From now on there would be no easy days for him in the Island Lord's Pavilion.

"Island Lord Oda, I have made myself perfectly clear. You and I have never met and bear each other no grudge—why drag yourself down to such a pass for the sake of an insignificant Wei Zhao? Let me warn you plainly: do not refuse the toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit!" Zheng Dongsheng fumed.

High-grade alchemists like him were, as a rule, exceedingly mindful of face—such was the temper of the Cloud-rank islands, after all; a man grew unaccustomed to anything but being deferred to. To have been snubbed so roundly before Oda Zhou, it was no wonder he was furious.

Had he not been acting island lord and mindful of Central Island's image, Oda Zhou would long since have slapped Zheng Dongsheng dead for such insolent words. A mere seventh-grade alchemist—did the man really fancy himself somebody?

But at Oda Zhou's level, his temperament had long since been tempered to perfect composure; it was all but impossible to provoke him to his face anymore. Still wearing his bland expression, he waved a hand and said, "Do as you please."

"Fine—you said it." Zheng Dongsheng was so furious he flung his sleeves and stormed out on the spot.

Wu Miao awkwardly made his apologies to Oda Zhou, then hurried after him, escorting Zheng Dongsheng to Hall Two, the private chamber reserved for his own office as executive deputy island lord.

Without another word, Zheng Dongsheng, his face cold, at once set about drafting his letter of accusation! (To be continued.)

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