Chapter 277: Chapter 277: Interrogation, the Crisis of the Truth-telling Skill

The Little Bone Dragon could talk now.

It also told Li Wei that it had awakened a Dragon Race Extraordinary Trait.

The Little Bone Dragon spat out a white Dragon Flame.

The Dragon Flame, which should have been scorching hot, instead felt icy cold.

This was Corrosive Dragon Flame, capable of stripping away life.

A power unique to the Bone Dragon, an Undead Creature.

The white Dragon Flame landed on a scrapped Magic Puppet nearby, and the Magic Puppet’s body was rapidly corroded.

It was incredibly powerful.

Li Wei showed a gratified expression. ’The Little Bone Dragon finally has some real strength.’

"Hmm, not bad."

"Continue guarding the Dragon Blood Tree."

"Yes, Master."

The Little Bone Dragon lay back down in its spot. The Soul Flame in its eyes went out, and its power grew still.

Li Wei glanced at the Little Bone Dragon and subconsciously shook his head.

He still wanted to ride a dragon.

However, the Little Bone Dragon’s body was so small it wasn’t suitable for riding.

It completely lacked the imposing aura of a Dragon Knight.

Instead, it just looked a little goofy.

The Little Bone Dragon sensed Li Wei’s thoughts. ’I can grow bigger,’ it thought.

As long as it devoured the flesh and blood of other adult Giant Dragons, its body could grow.

Sooner or later, it too would become a Giant Dragon.

The Little Bone Dragon yearned to grow.

"Master, before my consciousness was fully formed, I sensed a pure power belonging to the Dragon Race. If I can devour that power, my body can grow much larger."

The Little Bone Dragon’s voice rang in Li Wei’s mind.

Li Wei thought for only a moment before realizing what the Little Bone Dragon was talking about.

’This little guy actually has its sights set on the Dragon Heart.’

Naturally, Li Wei couldn’t just hand the Dragon Heart over to it.

He ignored the Little Bone Dragon and turned to leave.

Li Wei suddenly felt that the Dragon Heart might not be that important to the Legendary Witch Lich after all.

He had only recently learned that a Witch Lich could have more than one Life Box.

If the Dragon Heart was the Legendary Witch Lich’s only Life Box...

...it would have found a way to take the Dragon Heart back long ago.

It wouldn’t have waited until now to make a move.

The Legendary Witch Lich clearly knew he had the Dragon Heart.

The Golden Bone Ring had also been delivered into his hands.

The Legendary Witch Lich must have a way to pinpoint his location, yet it hadn’t come after him.

Li Wei didn’t understand what it was planning.

In fact, it seemed as if it wasn’t in a hurry to get the Dragon Heart back at all.

More than the Legendary Witch Lich, Li Wei was currently worried about the fact that he’d killed Crook and Lawson being exposed.

’I have to find a way to deal with the Disciplinary Committee’s interrogation,’ Li Wei thought.

The effectiveness of the Truth-telling Skill depended on the difference in Spiritual Power between the two parties.

If the caster’s Spiritual Power was stronger than the subject’s, the subject would be forced to tell the truth.

If their Spiritual Powers were roughly equal, the caster could sense truth from falsehood.

If the subject’s Spiritual Power was stronger than the caster’s, the caster might not detect it even if the subject lied.

’On the surface, my strength is that of a newly advanced Tier Three Mage.’

’Even if the Disciplinary Committee plays it safe and has a Tier Four Spirit Mage examine me, I should be able to resist it.’

Li Wei’s Spiritual Power was nearly at the Tier Four High Level.

However, he couldn’t just pin his hopes on the Disciplinary Committee being lenient.

After much thought, Li Wei came up with a plan.

It had a high chance of success.

That afternoon, law enforcement officers from the Disciplinary Committee found Li Wei and invited him to the Judgement Hall for questioning.

"This is just a routine inquiry, Mage Li Wei. No need to worry," one of the officers kindly explained.

After Li Wei’s status had changed, the Disciplinary Committee members’ attitude toward him had also shifted significantly.

By now, many people knew Li Wei was a member of the Hall of Truth.

And that he held an important position within it.

This was especially true after the Vice Hall Master of the Hall of Truth had personally arranged his rescue.

Li Wei’s reputation had grown even greater.

"Mm, what is this about?"

Li Wei asked, feigning ignorance.

The officer replied, "I’m not too sure myself. You’ll find out when you get to the Judgement Hall."

Li Wei followed the officers to the Disciplinary Committee’s Judgement Hall.

Walking into the Judgement Hall, Li Wei saw the Judge sitting in the high seat, and a trace of nervousness flashed in his eyes.

This person was a bigger deal than he had imagined.

It was actually a Tier Five Spirit Mage.

’Good thing I came prepared. If I’d planned to just resist with my Spiritual Power, I would’ve been done for.’

Even with the High Level Mana Control Extraordinary Trait enhancing his Spiritual Power...

...there was still a significant gap between him and a Tier Five Mage.

The Judge looked at Li Wei calmly and said, "Sit. Let’s talk."

Li Wei sat opposite the Judge, a distance of three or four meters between them.

The Judge asked, "Why did you go to rescue Sean?"

"Because he’s my teacher. He’s helped me in the past, so I couldn’t just watch him die. Besides, I was fairly confident I could return safely," Li Wei answered.

The Judge continued, "And what did you see when you went to rescue Sean?"

Li Wei replied, "When I arrived, my teacher Sean was surrounded by Undead. I used Magic to clear out the nearby Undead, buying him enough time to use a Town Recall Scroll."

The Judge asked, "You didn’t see anyone else?"

Li Wei shook his head. "No."

The Judge stared at Li Wei and suddenly asked, "Why is your spirit injured?"

Li Wei replied, "I ran into some problems during my Cultivation and accidentally injured my spirit."

"Is that so?" The Judge didn’t press further.

He continued asking about the matter.

After confirming that Li Wei hadn’t seen Crook or Lawson, the Judge let him go.

Watching Li Wei’s back as he left the Judgement Hall, the Judge felt something was strange.

He had a faint feeling that his Truth-telling Skill hadn’t worked.

Li Wei’s answers seemed normal enough, but they felt a little false to him.

But the Truth-telling Skill couldn’t be deceived.

Li Wei’s Spiritual Power couldn’t possibly be stronger than his. Under the influence of the Truth-telling Skill, Li Wei’s words had to be true and reliable.

The Judge reined in his thoughts.

Compared to a vague intuition, he trusted the Truth-telling Skill more.

After leaving the Disciplinary Committee, Li Wei walked along a street crowded with pedestrians and slowly let out a sigh of relief.

Back inside his manor, Li Wei stood before a mirror. His figure gradually separated, becoming two identical people.

One of them was an Illusory Body. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Li Wei had split his Spiritual Power in half, lodging one part in the Illusory Body.

This had been an extreme trial for him.

In the past, he had only ever infused a small portion of his Spiritual Power into an Illusory Body.

Splitting his Spiritual Power in half... the process alone had been sheer agony for Li Wei, nearly causing a psychotic break.

He had to split his Spiritual Power in half. Otherwise, the Judge would have noticed.

His Spiritual Power was stronger than that of an ordinary Mage.

After splitting it, the strength of his Spiritual Power was about the same as an ordinary Tier Three Mage’s.

Still stronger, but within a normal range.

The Illusory Body and his real body were superimposed, merged into one.

When the Judge cast the Truth-telling Skill on Li Wei, the Illusory Body took the spell’s effect.

When the Judge asked questions, Li Wei’s real body answered.

The Truth-telling Skill only restricted the Illusory Body.

His real body remained unrestricted.

And because the Spiritual Power of the Illusory Body and his real body were equally strong, the Judge couldn’t tell them apart.

He couldn’t have imagined that someone’s Spiritual Power could be that strong.

Even so, the Judge had still noticed the anomaly in Li Wei’s Spiritual Power, but Li Wei had managed to fool him.

This was mainly because the Judge had too much faith in the effectiveness of his Truth-telling Skill.