Chapter 397: Strategy Planning
Translator: chuchutrain Editor: DavidT, Rock
The moment those words left XiMen Sa's mouth, the crowd burst into an uproar!
Without the backing of a certain family with over a thousand years of history, would the newly appointed young Head XiMen Sa act so unbridled? Everyone present had the same thought, and while they were not too sure if the XiMen family was really going to attach itself to the Yu Family, based on the words of their new family head at least they would have some external help. This sentence helped a lot of the anxious XiMen members to regain their fighting spirit!
And right at this time, the so-called supporter of the XiMen Family, Yu ManLou was still in the process of contemplation!
Northern Wei's Bright Jade City had also turned into a focal point for everyone! Countless intelligence agents flowed into the city like droplets of water, and every movement of the Yu Family, including the guards and the chefs, were all taken down and transmitted back into their sources!
Such a huge ambition caused them to be an enemy of the entire world!
"Things have gone as planned so far, so what will be our next step?" In the Sky Bearing Empire, the Ling Residence, Old Madam Ling leaned back on a soft couch as she stared at the quiet girl before her, a look of praise on her face. "To think that even though Tian'er isn't around, you could still hold up the Ling Family and Courtyard with one hand, and even handle the problem with the Yu Family, making them enter into a messy situation here. This really gives me endless joy. Right now, with just one move from you causing the entire continent to get riled up, this old woman has really underestimated you!"
"All of this was planned ahead by the young noble. Chen'er has just dutifully followed her orders, how would I dare to take credit?" Ling Chen smiled gently, as deep emotions flashed in her eyes.
"Eh?? Why are you still calling him young noble? This lass, why can't you change your way of address?" Old Madam Ling narrowed her eyes as she smirked meaningfully, "Could it be that this old woman's eyes are playing tricks on her? It must be that kid Ling Tian not living up to expectations. If he was just a bit more capable, then this old woman here would already have a grandson to carry…"
"Old Madam!" Ling Chen lost her composure, blushing totally red.
"Hahaha…" A gratified laugh came out from Old Madam Ling, "This old woman will not concern herself with the matters of you youngsters. All shall be left up to fate. I believe Tian'er will not let me down, and even more will not let you down." Her words seemed to carry some deeper meaning.
With a reddened face, Ling Chen changed the topic. "So, based on Madam's thoughts, what should be our next step?"
"That would have to depend on you; whatever you think, will be our plan!" The Old Madam teased her, before turning solemn as she continued, "In front of this old woman, you don't need to hide anything. Speak your thoughts, this old woman will also help you to plan and accommodate. Planning is always slower as compared to action, thus every plan would have to encompass all possibilities, to adapt to the changes as and when needed."
Ling Chen gently nodded as she replied, "What Old Madam is trying to say, is that the situation outside has already reached a state of confusion, to the point that it is on the verge of explosion. While we have used many tricks to bring attention to the Northern Wei's Yu Family, facing their thousand years of accumulation, no other family is willing to make a hasty move. So long as the Yu Family was to stake it all and aim at any one of the families, then they would definitely be unable to escape from their fate. Hence, while the continent is chaotic, it has not reached the tipping point, and all major influences are currently waiting for the family who cannot endure any longer to spark the chaos."
"Wait," Old Madam Ling seemed to have smelled something fishy as she interrupted, "But your plan this time has been too smooth, even to the point that all of your hidden actions seemed to have been rehearsed. Especially the side on Northern Wei, isn't it too smooth actually?" Old Madam Ling frowned. "You've been planning this for a long time, haven't you?"
"I'll not hide it from Old Madam, that's right." Ling Chen light out a small smile, her nonchalant tone letting the experienced old woman feel some shock as she interjected, "How did you people plan so far ahead? How did Tian'er achieve this?"
Ling Chen smiled as she said, "This plan's original purpose was not to be used against the Yu Family in the first place."
"Young noble had long calculated that the position of Sky Bearing was special, and as long as Sky Bearing had any changes, this would immediately attract all sort of major powers flooding to our gates. However, the young noble was not too concerned with the Yu Family at the start, maintaining a respectful stance at a distance from them. He thought that no matter what, with the shackles of the Shui Family binding the Yu Family, they would not behave rashly."
"Not the Yu Family? Then…" Old Madam Ling's face changed, as though she guessed something, but wasn't willing to confirm her thoughts.
"The original target of this plan was the Xiao Family." Ling Chen confirmed her thoughts with a low voice, but she still shattered the last thread of hope that Old Madam Ling held. "The Xiao Family is the real wolf with ambitions, and their strength is hidden even more deeply than one could imagine. Especially towards our Ling Family, they have always been eyeing us covetously like prey. The auction held by the Xiao Family last time here was actually meant to sentence our Ling Family to death! Thus, their strength was supposed to be the greatest impediment in our Ling Family's road to hegemony. In the last few years, the young noble put in a lot of effort to cut off all sources of intelligence for the Xiao Family from Sky Bearing! Cutting off all sources of information was mainly for this plan."
"So long as there was a change to Sky Bearing, young noble would activate this plan, placing the Xiao Family in the heart of chaos, turning them into the public enemy." A respectful smile was seen on Ling Chen's face, before she sighed, "A pity that although young noble was talented, he made an error in his calculations in the end. Because of the Shui Family invading our Heavenly Star Continent, the first to take action became the Yu Family. This was something the young noble never expected. And because of the movement from the Yu Family, the Xiao Family went back to laying low and enduring. This was because they knew that if they were to rise up and clash now, it would result in an all-out war with the rest of the continent. Both the Xiao and the Yu Families were not adequately prepared, and thus they planned to swallow the neighboring smaller countries before going for a full-fledged fight at the end. Their plans were in the end foiled by Wei ChengPing's surprise move in starting a war, hence breaking the delicate balance in the continent. The Yu Family thus had no choice but to extend their claws towards us in order to gain an advantage!"
"Since the Yu Family made their move towards us before the Xiao Family, then at that point, we could only employ the original tactic towards the Yu Family. This could be counted as letting the Xiao Family off easy!" Ling Chen loftily spoke. "If it was the Xiao Family which came as planned, then with our plan, even if the Xiao Family were not annihilated from this, their strength would also be greatly diminished. So in actuality, the Yu Family had helped the Xiao Family to take the brunt by being a scapegoat."
"Regarding countering the advances of the Yu Family, because this was hurriedly executed, it cannot be said to be perfect, so loopholes still exist. However, the good point is that it was Yu ZhanShui and Yu ZhanKong who came to Sky Bearing. If it was Yu ManLou or Yu ManTang then they would have long seen through and broken our scheme. While Yu ZhanShui and Yu ZhanKong have good martial skills, they are in the end military personnel, living for the moment. They immediately chased after the small benefits, resulting in the current bedraggled situation of the Yu Family. While the whole plan was meticulously designed by young noble, we cannot deny that heaven has looked after us!"
An intelligent gleam shone in Ling Chen's eyes as she continued, "But the current condition of the Yu Family is only a coincidence, and will not last too long. At that time, the focus of all power will still come back to Sky Bearing, and at this point, they will borrow the chance created to finish making all preparations to deal with us, making it more difficult for our side. Thus, we have to do something during this time. I've been waiting for the young noble to pass his orders back, but until now, there has been no word from him." Ling Chen furrowed her brows in vexation.
When she had received the letter from her young noble, Ling Chen had almost cried out in relief and urgently opened it to see his instructions. However, all that she saw were a few mere words, vaguely pointing out the direction that she should go. As for the concrete plans, there were none!
Since Ling Tian could have gone through Ling Thirty to send a letter, with the power of his intelligence agency, he could send a letter through every day and take control of the battlefield at any point! However, he chose not to do so!
"I believe Tian'er has trusted that you are more than capable enough to handle this." Old Madam Ling laughed as she encouraged, "Chen'er, I believe that you will not disappoint Tian'er. In your heart, you must already have a plan, don't you?"
Ling Chen's face reddened as she whispered, "I have some plans, but this will require Madam to personally act on it, and Chen'er is afraid that I might tire you out. This…"
Old Madam Ling laughed and flicked Ling Chen's forehead, laughingly scolding her, "This lass, there are so many good points to your young noble, but you choose to follow his scheming nature. From the moment you stepped into my room, this old woman already knew that you had a purpose in mind! To actually put on an act of being embarrassed, I should really smack your bottom for this."
Chapter 398: Chasing the Tiger out, Swallowing the Wolf
Translator: DavidT Editor: DavidT, Rock
While Ling Chen was intelligent, she was extremely shy and began blushing when Old Madam Ling teased her. "This is Chen'er's plans. Presently, the more chaotic the continent is, the better it would be for our Ling Family and only then will we be able to receive benefits from it. This is also something that the young noble agrees with. However, while the continent can be in chaos, war must not break out. Without young noble present, our Ling Family lacks the necessary strength and preparations. At the same time, we will not have a clear direction as well. Furthermore, if the continent were to break out into chaos, the ones who will truly benefit are those with sufficient strength and intellect. Even if we have the intellect, we lack the many years of accumulation of a true Great Family. Thus, we must definitely be extremely careful during this period of time. We must pull the various powers into this mess and have them keep each other in check while exhausting each other. But at the same time, we have to ensure that an all-out war will not happen. At the very least, we have to keep this situation up for half a year until the young noble returns. Thus, there are three tasks that we must do perfectly."
A look of worry flashed past Old Madam Ling's face and she asked, "What are the three tasks? Are they difficult?"
Ling Chen organized her thoughts for a short while before saying calmly, "There are definitely some difficulties involved but Chen'er is confident that they can be accomplished. Chen'er will just need Old Madam to keep watch on a few crucial points. The first task involves the number one financial magnate, the Xiao Family. We must definitely drag them into the chaos on the surface so that they can pressure the Yu Family. With one of them in the south and another in the north, they would definitely form a delicate balance and the empires in the central region would not dare to make a rash move. As long as an empire reveals an opening, it would definitely result in destruction by both the superpowers! With regards to the Xiao Family, I believe that there wouldn't be anyone who is more capable of analyzing them than Old Madam."
Old Madam Ling thought for a moment before saying, "Xiao FengHan and Xiao FengYang are both extremely meticulous and scheming individuals. Without sufficient assurance and rewards, the both of them would not be tempted for sure. Just this alone would be difficult to accomplish."
"If it was before, this would definitely be difficult to accomplish or perhaps even impossible. However, it is a different story now." Ling Chen said with confidence, "With young noble being absent, Old Madam would be the backbone of our Ling Family and definitely has the greatest authority. As long as Old Madam were to make a personal appearance and request a promise from Xiao FengHan to protect the Ling Family, he would definitely agree. With the Yu Family that they are most wary about being in the spotlight, the Xiao Family would definitely make use of this opportunity to their advantage and we will be able to stand on the fence."
Old Madam Ling's eyes lit up as she agreed, "That's right, Xiao FengHan would definitely take action with the continent in such a mess. Brilliant plan! Let me think about how I can make my request."
As she said that, Old Madam Ling suddenly let out a long sigh and said in a depressed tone, "I wonder if Tian'er can escape from this tribulation! If not, wouldn't this old lady's actions be giving the Xiao Family benefits for nothing?"
"Old Madam… you already know?" Ling Chen was dumbfounded as she raised her head.
"Such a huge matter shook the whole continent, so how could it be kept from me? Beyond Heavens, Martial Order Medallion, a medallion for a life…" Old Madam Ling let out a bitter laugh, "Do all of you think that this old lady is a fool? If not for Tian'er facing such a crisis, would the Xiao Family ever agree to my request?"
"Old Madam, since young noble made such a bet and is able to send news back while taking care of the XiMen Family, he definitely has extra energy to spare and is without harm." Ling Chen said with confidence, "Young noble will definitely be alright. Rest assured Old Madam."
Old Madam nodded her head and continued, "What is the second task?"
"The past few years, the Courtyard had secretly established supply stations all over the continent to prepare for future plans. Because the continent was peaceful in the past and to conceal their tracks, these supply stations had only purchased rations moderately. Now that things are developing into a contest of strength, it is time for us to collect rations on a wide scale. However, we will require a huge amount of money for this and our Courtyard's income is far from sufficient. So…"
"This isn't a problem either." Old Madam Ling nodded her head, "I will mention this to Ting'er later. Our Ling Family has been saving up our wealth over the past few years and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that we are the wealthiest family in Sky Bearing. Ting'er had already expanded our gold warehouse a few times and it is time to put our resources to good use. The stored gold and silver are about to turn moldy already."
Hearing that, Ling Chen broke out into a smile, "The difficulty of the last task is the same as the second task. A large amount of money is required as well. We have to purchase a large number of weapons regardless of quality. The moment chaos breaks out, these weapons will turn into rare commodities."
"I can agree to that as well!" Old Madam Ling agreed without hesitation, "No matter how much you need, even if you were to bankrupt the Ling Family, I will accomplish these two tasks to the best of my abilities!"
Hearing Old Madam Ling's promise, Ling Chen let out a bright smile and was extremely gratified in her heart. Young noble, I have made the necessary preparations already and will make sure that everything will be accomplished in half a year. When you return, you plan can be put in motion!
Will you really return half a year later?
Young noble, where are you right now? Are you fine? Chen'er is waiting for you…
I will remain alive for my most beloved…
***
At this moment, both Shui QianHuan and Shui QianRou were waiting anxiously. The Northern Wei imperial family was suddenly wiped out and the Yu Family was ambushed. These two events had shocked the world and while the other parties might not know the source of the disturbance, how could they not know? It was precisely because they knew that Shui QianHuan felt a great deal of regret!
Both of them recalled what Ling Chen said back then, "We have hired the 'First Pavilion'. At that time, the First Pavilion will send out a couple of top-notch assassins to work together with you!" They could not help but take in a breath of cold air! Was this the strength of the First Pavilion? What a shocking and frightening strength!
Thinking about this, both the siblings could not help but let out a bitter sigh as they lamented about the opportune moment which they had missed!
If the elites of their family were here at the moment and they coordinated with the Ling Family and the First Pavilion to launch an attack at the Yu Family, the Yu Family would definitely suffer greatly!
However, it was a pity that they had missed this opportunity!
There wasn't a medicine for regret in this world!
To think that they would miss such an opportunity! Both the siblings let out a sigh of regret as they began to resent the slow speed of their family!
A gust of wind was heard, and a white-dressed teen appeared with a chilly demeanor. Facing them he said with a refined smile, "How have you been after our last meeting?"
"It's you." Shui QianHuan walked forward, "For this little brother to appear here today, I wonder if there is anything we can help you with? Please be straightforward."
The one who had just arrived was Ling Chi and he said with a profound smile, "I am here on my big sister's orders to ask the both of you something. You should both be aware of what happened recently and I wonder if it is enough to display our sincerity and strength! However, I wonder where the Shui Family members who had pulled out of Northern Wei are at this moment? How many of them are there? How are their strengths like? Can we use them?"
Shui QianHuan's face turned color as he said, "How did you know of our men who withdrew from Northern Wei?"
Ling Chi smiled slightly, "As long as one has silver, all information can be bought!"
"From the Crystal Pavilion? The Crystal Pavilion has made its appearance again?!" Shui QianHuan gasped, "You guys bought the news from the Crystal Pavilion? How did you guys contact the Crystal Pavilion?" Shui QianHuan's eyes narrowed at this shocking news!
Just like the name suggested, the news of the whole world was transparent to the Crystal Pavilion. It was said that there wasn't anything the Crystal Pavilion didn't know and it was only a matter of the price! This phrase was widely known in the pugilistic world, but the Crystal Pavilion had disappeared in the past year. No one was able to purchase any more information from the Crystal Pavilion and the world thought that the Crystal Pavilion must have been wiped out. But when they had heard what Ling Chi said, it was as though the Crystal Pavilion was still around but just concealing themselves!
Being able to transact with the Crystal Pavilion was an assurance of strength! It was as shocking as the Ling Family being able to hire the First Pavilion to attack the Yu Family!
Ling Chi broke out in a bright smile and did not deny Shui QianHuan's words as he waited for a response.
Silence obviously represented a tacit agreement! Shui QianHuan let out a sigh and said, "The bulk of our men have retreated from Northern Wei and are currently hidden. Without the orders of our Family Head, they will not make a rash move and we do not have the authority to command them. Furthermore, the martial arts of these individuals aren't outstanding, and they are largely politicians. They would probably be of little use."
"Hahaha…" Ling Chi laughed out loud, "The Northern Wei imperial family has already been wiped out and Northern Wei is without a head at the moment. Since young noble Shui has such an important force under your control, why don't you make use of it! Why not make use of this opportunity to let them come out of hiding and take over Northern Wei from within! Big sister said that in our alliance, our Ling Family has already displayed our sincerity but your family doesn't seem to be very sincere! Are you going to let such a good opportunity pass you by? If nothing can be determined by either of you, could it be that you are here for a vacation?"
Shui QianHuan's eyes gleamed for a moment before becoming dim again, "While your words do make sense, how would it be an easy affair with the Yu Family present in Northern Wei? If we aren't careful, all of these chess pieces which we have placed in Northern Wei would be lost! The loss would then exceed the gains!"
Chapter 399: Divine Bone Shrinking Art
Translator: DavidT Editor: DavidT, Rock
"If these people are useless, what is the point of keeping them alive? Since all of their roots are in Northern Wei, do you expect them to be useful in Eastern Zhao or Western Han instead?" Ling Chi snorted, "We have only managed to hire the First Pavilion to work with us after spending millions of gold. Presently, the First Pavilion people have hidden in Northern Wei and assassinated the eldest son of the Yu Family Head, Yu LiuYun. As a thousand-year-old family, all of you actually remain insincere and refuse to cooperate at such a moment, giving up on such a precious opportunity. What a joke!"
Shui QianHuan felt a jolt through his body as he exclaimed, "You mean to say… the First Pavilion isn't going to retreat after the assassination? They are going to aid us?"
"Retreat after the assassination? What a joke! If that was the case, why would it require such a hefty price?!" Ling Chi pursed his lips and said, "After the First Pavilion assassinates the targets, we have to control the positions which have been vacated and grasp the authority of Northern Wei in our hands to crumble the authority of the Yu Family. This is our full plan in Northern Wei! When the matters in Northern Wei are settled, your Shui Family experts should have arrived at Sky Bearing and we can launch our attack against the Yu Family's forces in Sky Bearing. If not, how will we be able to deal with three hundred white jades and five hundred purple jade cultivators?!"
As Shui QianHuan heard what Ling Chi said, his eyes began to light up and he stood up abruptly, "Miss Chen has great foresight indeed! If that's the case, let us not waste any time and rush to Northern Wei for the next step of the plan! Haiz, brother, why didn't you inform us about such a huge matter beforehand?" Shui QianHuan was filled with excitement but grumbled at Ling Chi.
"Young noble Shui, these are things that you should have understood and taken the initiative on yourself. We thought that the thousand-year-old Shui Family would definitely understand the logic of fishing in troubled times but never expected you to remain motionless. You have really disappointed us greatly." Ling Chi let out a sigh and lamented. Shui QianHuan immediately began to stutter with his face turning bright red.
"Also, I believe it is sufficient for young noble Shui to head to Northern Wei alone right?" Ling Chi reminded, "Miss Shui should remain in Sky Bearing to preside over the matters here so that you do not forget about the matters in Sky Bearing. If that's the case, it is best that only one of you goes to Northern Wei."
The siblings looked at each other and felt that Ling Chi's words made sense. Furthermore, the Ling Family had already displayed their sincerity with their actions, and it wouldn't be appropriate for them to remain motionless. Thus, they agreed without hesitation.
However, Shui QianRou felt a sense of unease in her heart and felt that something was wrong with the plan. But even after thinking through the plan multiple times, she was certain that there were only benefits to their Shui Family despite the risks. Thus, despite the doubts in her heart, she did not mention them to her brother and instead reminded him to pay attention to his safety and not take any risks.
Shui QianHuan naturally knew of the dangers involved in is trip. However, how could he receive any benefits without taking risks? For the past thousand years, when had it been a safe affair when both the Yu and Shui Families gathered? What could the little dangers in his present trip be considered? If he could make use of this opportunity to greatly weaken the Yu Family, even his death would be worth it! Furthermore, his family had great expectations of him, but he had failed his family twice after arriving in Heavenly Star. If this were to continue, his position of successor would definitely be in peril. Be it for his family or himself, he had no choice but to accomplish this task! The trip to Northern Wei had to go smoothly!
Thus, Shui QianHuan didn't have a single shred of hesitation!
***
A secret chamber in the Ling Family Courtyard.
Yu BingYan's eyes were blindfolded by a thick black cloth and in front of her was a brush, ink, and canvases on the walls surrounding her. At this moment, the canvases on two of the walls were already filled with painting.
By having her eyes shut, her memory, concentration, and stability were put through a rigorous test and the paintings on the walls were all of medium difficulty. For Yu BingYan who had never come into contact with such a task before, her current achievements were already considered outstanding, and it was thanks to her hard work and the bitterness she had to suffer!
The corners of Yu BingYan's lips were raised slightly as a gentle yet resolute tone sounded in her ears, "Entering the martial arts realm through painting to aid me, Ling Tian!"
She would only have the right to help Ling Tian if she could meld her martial arts into her paintings and painting into her martial arts! If not, what was the point of her existence if she couldn't help her most beloved man? Ever since she arrived at the Ling Family Courtyard, Yu BingYan had hidden herself in the secret chamber and dedicated her time to the studying of painting. All of her daily activities and needs were taken care of in the secret chamber ever since she had arrived!
Yu BingYan stretched out her hand and grasped the brush on the table. She lifted the brush, stained it with ink, shifted her body, and made her first stroke in a single fluid motion without pausing for a moment or making the slightest error! A short while later, a majestic painting of mountains and rivers appeared on the canvas in front of her with the mountains towering with a lofty aura and the rivers vast and mighty!
What a beautiful painting!
If anyone were present currently, they would be shocked to realize that after Yu BingYan had finished her painting, be it the lofty mountains or vast rivers, they all exuded a dense sword qi! It was as though the mountains and rivers were made from thousands of swords and would swallow anything that entered it! Just by taking a single glance at the painting, one would feel his soul shudder!
Melding martial arts into painting! Forming mountains and rivers with the sword in her heart!
She had finally taken the first step!
Yu BingYan who was still blindfolded revealed an excited smile and her blindfold became damp from tears…
Ever since she was young, she had been inflicted with the Divine Black Negative Meridians and had turned into a true martial arts cripple. Why was she so unlucky to contract such an incurable ailment?! However, the heavens were kind to her and had allowed her to meet Ling Tian! Her beloved man had not only helped her to walk out of the shackles in her heart but had also helped her to raise her head in her martial arts! The incurable Divine Black Negative Meridians also showed signs of recovery!
Miracle! He is truly my miracle!
From today onwards, I will not be just a beautiful flower vase but will become Tian'ge's capable aide! The strong sense of inferiority that she had felt since young and the hurt she had suffered from the decisions of her family seemed insignificant when compared to her current resolution!
***
Ling Tian sat beneath a tree panting heavily to catch his breath. At this moment, blood was trailing down his lips and he felt as though his body was about to collapse.
In the final clash with Justice, while Ling Tian was able to use his momentum to slightly reduce the strength of Justice's strike, Justice's dense cultivation still heavily injured him! Despite using fire to block Justice, Ling Tian knew that the blaze wouldn't hold Justice back for a long time, and the moment Justice saw through his plan he would definitely quickly give chase to him. Thus, Ling Tian ignored the severity of his wounds and unleashed his movement technique to the maximum. He sped away at full speed and had tried his best to mislead Justice along the way. In fact, Ling Tian did not even consider which direction he should escape towards and followed the direction his heart would take him. Escaping up to this point had already sapped him of all his strength and if he were to exert his body any further, even without Justice to kill him, he would probably meet his end right here.
Ling Tian felt his chest begin to ache again and he pulled himself up to observe the surroundings. Ling Tian then couldn't help but laugh bitterly to himself as he thought, If I am not wrong, I am by the side of a mountain. I originally wanted to enter the forest to avoid Justice with my different means. Who would have thought that I would have escaped to a mountain instead! While I am already among the mountains, the terrain in front of me isn't very secure! Facing an enemy like Justice, Ling Tian did not dare to let his guard down in the slightest. However, Ling Tian did not know that the lady whom he had never met had risked her life to help gain some time for him.
Since there was a road here, there would definitely be people passing by! In fact, there might even be a village somewhere near here. Ling Tian let out a sigh as he tapped onto the tree beside him. It is probably best for me to endure my injuries for a while more and find another hiding place. It's best for me to not overexert myself so my body will be able to endure the stress.
'Weng'. As Ling Tian slapped the tree, he realized that it was not the usual 'peng' sound but a hollow 'weng' sound. He couldn't help but be stunned for a moment and turned around to study the tree carefully. Under the cover of the shrubs and near the roots of the tree, there was actually a small opening about the size of a bowl. To think that this huge tree in front of him was actually hollow!
If he did not witness it himself personally, he would never believe that this several hundred feet tall tree that looked lush on the surface had actually rotted to the point it had a hollow interior.
Ling Tian's eyes lit up as he snapped a branch of the tree to test the depths of the tree and couldn't help but laugh heartily.
A chance! A chance for me to survive! Even the heavens are helping me!
An hour later Ling Tian looked at a few squirrels running in all directions while carrying strips of cloth with his blood on it and snickered to himself. He then activated his Divine Bone Shrinking Art, and with a few cracking sounds, his body had shrunk to half its normal size. As he approached the opening to the tree's interior, an even more incredulous matter happened.
Ling Tian actually disappeared without any difficulty into the entrance of the hollow tree where even a seven to eight-year-old child wouldn't be able to get through!
There wasn't a single trace left behind!
Chapter 400: Sky-High Price
Translator: chuchutrain Editor: DavidT, Rock
Inside the hollow tree might be moist and cramped, but it could roughly fit one person seated. To have such a safe place to hide oneself could be considered a silver lining, but the problem was that there was a terrible smell inside, making people nauseous! Ling Tian sighed and revolved his Divine Shocking Dragon Formula at a rapid speed. Instantly, the temperature of the cubby hole rose shockingly, and the moist area began to dry out. At the same time, the unbearable stink was expelled outward with the activation of his internal energy!
Ling Tian then went back to the entrance and gestured with his palm. From the grass opposite the hole, a piece of bark was attracted to his palm, flying in the air and smacking onto the tree, seamlessly closing the gap. The entire tree then seemed to become a natural whole, without the existence of any cubbyholes visible...
In the darkness, Ling Tian sniggered, thinking that it was a pity that he had too many things to handle. If he had no problems to settle and with enough rations, he believed that he could easily hide for a year at least in the hole, and Justice would still probably not be able to find him!
Justice, do you think you can represent the will of the heavens?
Ling Tian slightly shook his head with a bitter smile on his face. No matter what, he had to first recover, so treating his internal energy was his priority!
Entering a cultivating state, a wisp of pure internal energy slowly rose up from within his dantian, and after winding along for a cycle, Ling Tian once again entered a profound mental state. In a short moment, his head began to emit white steam, congealing without dissipating. His breath began to slow down and finally disappear, and only his chest area twitched slightly from time to time. He had entered the mysterious XianTian fetal state...
No void, no sound; no body, no me!
It was unknown how much time had passed, but a warning bell suddenly rang in Ling Tian's mind. His internal energy turned sluggish, and he suddenly woke up. Turning his gaze inward, he felt that the internal energy in his body was bubbling excitedly, as though he had been reborn. His body felt so light as though he could literally soar into the air right now, and the suffocating feeling he had in his chest had disappeared completely. Sensing that his injury had completely recovered, he could not help but rejoice.
Ling Tian suddenly picked up a cluster of footsteps coming from afar, walking towards his general direction. Some footsteps were light, some heavy and clumsy. Obviously, it was a group of people together. All of them seemed to be versed in martial arts, though their skills differed. A rough voice sounded, "Elder Brother, I don't understand why we're searching around like headless flies. Do you think we still can coincidentally meet with that thief Ling Tian? Isn't this wasting our time?"
Looking for me? Ling Tian's heart jumped. Which of the major powers are they from? Why are they looking for me, and why am I being labeled a thief? This is outrageous!
A mature voice replied, "Why are you so anxious? The intelligence stated that he is still within Western Han, so how could you say that we're blindly searching? Besides, our head only wants to confirm the death news of Ling Tian himself and didn't say that we have to personally kill him! No matter what, so long as we receive news of his demise, then we can return to report. Being hunted by the Martial Order Medallion owner, how long can he live even though he is highly skilled? From past to present, who has ever escaped the grasp of the Martial Order Medallion owner's pursuit? Who knows, maybe he has already lost his life!"
But the rough voice continued to grumble, "D*mmit, I've ridden on horseback so many days that my butt is hurting, and now we have to run all around to search blindly, this is killing me! Elder brother, let's rest here for a while. Since we only need a confirmation, why bother to search as though our lives depended on it?" A thud was then heard as a weapon was thrown on the ground nearby Ling Tian. Following that was a sigh as a person heavily sat down with his back leaning against the tree Ling Tian was in.
The other people sat down one after another, and Ling Tian silently counted in his heart. Six people, all coincidentally huddling against the same tree that Ling Tian was hidden in.
Who out of the six would have thought that the very person they were searching for was actually encircled by them right now, just like a group of rowdy soldiers encircling a bomb and setting up a campfire right there...
The steady voice sounded again, "Aiii, you guys. Fifth bro, it's not that I want to pick at you, but think about it, how many times have you suffered because of that temper of yours? Can't you change a little? Because of your hot-headedness, the head has never entrusted you with something important. Every time the head presents rewards, have you ever been called up?"
The rough voice chuckled awkwardly before a shuffling sound was heard. Likely, the person had actually laid totally down on the ground. A low muffled voice was heard, "What's the point of passing any important tasks to me? Isn't it more fun to come out with a bunch of people? So long as I, Old Fifth, have wine to quench my thirst and food to ease my hunger, that's good enough for me. Why do I have to care so much? Rising as an official and getting rich, this brother here knows his limits, and I have not even considered it. When any of you brothers strike it rich, if I still have my life, then just let me come over to your house to eat my fill, that would be enough."
The rest of the people let out sounds of laughter and assent, speaking out, "That's right, Old Fifth is someone who can be revived by drinking horse piss. It's ok if he has no interpersonal skills or talent. Hahaha!"
Another one said, "Old Fifth just wants to mooch off someone, but likely it's only Big Bro that can do so. Not only Old Fifth, the rest of us brothers don't have much to brag about, and besides, what's so good about an official position? When the time comes, I would rather forsake my position and gather with my good brothers to drink and spar, living the rest of my life out this way. One must know how to be content!"
"One must know how to be content?! What a bunch of good-for-nothings!" The big brother could not help but laughingly scold, and the bunch of brothers let out more laughter. Halfway through, one of them spoke in a heavy tone, "Big brother, I feel however that this mission is quite weird. That Martial Order Medallion owner is already bent on killing Ling Tian, so what is the point in our head asking us to investigate so early? As long as we wait, news will come eventually. For the head to send us out, and with such a severe command, what is his true purpose? If it's to deal with the Martial Order Medallion owner, then how could we even be able to do so? While us brothers think highly of ourselves, we all know our limits. If it's just to investigate, then it's not only superfluous but also using a sledgehammer to crack a nut!"
"Naturally, this does not involve pure investigation. Our purpose out here is mainly the wishes of the second master." The big brother's voice sounded, "I don't know why, but the second master has a premonition that the Martial Order Medallion owner might not be able to kill Ling Tian! Thus, he has insisted that we send someone out. Other than us, the second master has also secretly sent a few other experts, and even he himself might personally act! There is only one objective, that in the event Ling Tian still remains alive, then we have to sacrifice our lives to ensure his death!"
Within the tree, Ling Tian let out a bitter laugh in his mind. He thought, This second master really overestimates me, but who could it be? Xiao Family? Yu? NanGong? Or some others? Ling Tian could only laugh to himself. It was all good when he didn't count, but once he started counting, he realized that there were just too many!
"The Martial Order Medallion owner cannot kill Ling Tian? Hahahah…" One of them laughed as though he had heard the world's biggest joke. "Second master might be overly cautious this time. Even if Ling Tian had descended from the heaven and started to cultivate in the womb, he has only cultivated for a total of sixteen years. Others might not know this, but the Beyond Heavens Martial Order Medallion owner was acknowledged a long time ago as the number one expert of the world, at least for sixteen years and even longer! How can they be compared? The second master really is… hahaha!!!" A bout of frenzied laughter sounded, and he did not continue, but the crowd could easily guess his meaning.
"What are you laughing about?" The big brother snapped. "Second Master has always been prudent, and he has a reason for everything. Since he believes that the Martial Order Medallion owner might not eliminate Ling Tian, he definitely has a reason for suspecting otherwise! Cautiousness will allow a ship to sail for ten millennia. If there's anything to be suspected, then we should rather believe in that minor chance than to ignore the danger! Furthermore, before we left, I overheard something. It's because of this that I too feel that there exists the possibility of Ling Tian surviving."
"What did you hear?" The other five chorused.
"Regarding the Martial Order Medallion owner chasing Ling Tian, the second master had contacted the famed Crystal Pavilion, the number one intelligence organization, and was willing to offer the shocking amount of one million taels of silver in order to obtain a definite report. However, not only did the Crystal Pavilion refuse his price, they requested a sky-high price of a million taels of gold in order to get a proper report on this matter! That's as good as paying 20 million taels of silver!" The big brother spoke in an odd voice.
"One million taels of gold! 20 million taels of silver! Why don't they go and rob the state treasury, d*mmit, even the filthy rich Xiao Family couldn't possibly afford such news! The Crystal Pavilion must be so poor that they've gone crazy!" The other five people clamored and began to grumble. "This old me has lived my whole life trying to save up money, and I probably can't even get together 10,000 taels of gold, but one report from the Crystal Pavilion would require 1 million taels of gold immediately! This is completely ridiculous!"
Hiding inside the tree hole, Ling Tian could not help but snigger silently. If the Crystal Pavilion were to sell this information so easily, then that would really be ridiculous!
The big brother's voice was heard once again, "It's because of this incident that the second master was even more sure of his own conclusion. You guys must understand that if the Crystal Pavilion dared to ask for such a price, then it means they outright rejected the huge amount offered to them. And why would they do so? There are only two reasons. The first is that the Crystal Pavilion has no guarantee in tracking them and being the first to obtain the news. The second is that they have no idea who between them would actually be the final victor. So, tell me, which one is it?"
Chapter 401: Gathering of Experts
Translator: DavidT Editor: DavidT, Rock
"What does it mean? How would I know? Aren't I listening to what big brother has to say?" asked that boorish fifth brother.
"Stupid! This means that the Crystal Pavilion thinks that Ling Tian has the strength to compete with the Martial Order Medallion owner!" The big brother said, "No wonder Second Master wants to kill Ling Tian! This must be the reason! Having such strength at such a young age! Ling Tian is definitely the most dangerous character in the world! The moment he is full grown, who in the world would be able to block him?"
"However, Ling Tian is extremely crafty and cautious and it wouldn't be easy for us to kill him. Making use of the Martial Order Medallion would be our best chance! Perhaps, it may also be our last chance to kill him!"
The other five took in a long deep breath in unison. They all understood their big brother well and knew that he wouldn't make a baseless conclusion. If Ling Tian was really so extraordinary, wouldn't the six of them be nobodies in his eyes? How then could they kill him?
As they went silent, Ling Tian, who was in the tree, grew confused. By hearing the breathing of these six individuals, Ling Tian was certain that they were all martial arts experts. However, just what power did they belong to? Just who was that Second Master? After talking for such a long time, there wasn't anything that made Ling Tian interested.
The most mysterious information organization in the continent, the Crystal Pavilion, didn't seem to interest Ling Tian in the slightest. Despite the news that was very shocking to that 'big brother', it was not able to incite Ling Tian's interest…
A fragrant wine aroma suddenly filled the place, and the fifth brother began laughing, "Screw that Martial Order Medallion owner and Ling Tian. This daddy here would rather enjoy some wine."
"D*mmit, you actually dare to bring wine on such an important mission… quickly give me a sip of it."
"Stop… stop… there's no need to snatch! D*mmit, everyone will have a share! I brought two bottles of wine!"
"Hmph! How lawless for you to bring wine out on a mission. If Second Master finds out about it, all of us brothers will definitely be dragged down with you! Bring it here, I will confiscate it!"
"Hahaha… big brother, you are just trying to take the wine for yourself. You have used this trick far too many times already and it won't work anymore." The six brothers began laughing as they teased each other.
These six people are pretty loyal to each other. Interesting. Ling Tian thought to himself as he gulped a mouthful of saliva after smelling the fragrant wine. All of a sudden, even he felt like drinking some wine.
From a distance away, the sound of fluttering clothes could be heard, and more people seemed to be approaching this direction. However, the six brothers on the outside were only concerned about fighting over the wine and didn't hear it at all.
There weren't many of them approaching the place, only a mere three of them, but their cultivation was far higher than the six brothers! From Ling Tian's spiritual sense, he could detect that the three individuals were 150 feet away from him before they took their last step, but the moment they landed again, they were only 100 feet away from him. Only then did they stop their movement techniques and walk over normally.
This meant that these three individuals were able to traverse at least 50 feet with a single step! Among Ling Tian's subordinates, the only ones who could accomplish this feat would be Ling Chen, Jian, Feng, Yun, Lei, Dian, and Chi. As for Nineteen and the others who had joined the First Pavilion at a later time, they were not capable of such a feat.
Where did these three strange experts come from?
"Who are you?" The big brother finally detected the presence of the three individuals.
Someone then said, "Good wine! My fellow brothers are really refined individuals. Leaning on a tree while facing the mountains, having a leisurely conversation while enjoying such fragrant wine! Can we ask all of you about something?"
The big brother obviously realized that these three individuals weren't characters who they could offend and said respectfully, "This brother is being too courteous. Just like the saying, 'rely on your parents at home and rely on your friends outside', every one of us who roam the pugilistic world are akin to brothers. I wonder what question does this brother have? As long as we are able to answer it, we will definitely not hold anything back."
"If that's the case, I will have to give my thanks." That person said amiably, "I wonder if anyone of you has seen a young hero pass by here? This young hero is pretty tall and suave, and he likes to wear white robes and a golden circlet. His actions are extremely carefree, and he has an elegant bearing. His martial arts are…"
Before that person could finish what he had to say, the big brother laughed, "Are you asking about young noble Ling from Sky Bearing?"
The other party was obviously elated, "That's right, I am looking for Ling Tian indeed! It turns out that this brother here does indeed recognize him. I hope that this brother will point me in the right direction."
That big brother shook his head and laughed, "Being honest with you, my brothers and I are also here for Ling Tian but have not found a single trace of him yet."
"Oh," The other party like out a disappointed sigh before asking, "I wonder why fellow brothers are looking for him?"
"Ah ah, we are here on orders, and it isn't convenient for us to talk about it. I hope that this brother will understand that." The big brother bowed respectfully and said in a calm tone.
"Oh? If that's the case, our mission would definitely be the same." As though the other party wasn't wary about the six brothers at all, he said calmly, "The three of us are here for a single reason: we have to ensure that Ling Tian will never return to Sky Bearing! We have to get rid of the biggest disaster in the world!"
As Ling Tian heard that, he began to fume. This person had called him a disaster without any hesitation, and Ling Tian had the urge to charge out of the tree and kill these few fellows with a single palm strike. However, on account of the fact that these two groups of people might reveal some information in their conversation, their deaths wouldn't be worth it and Ling Tian could only rein in his anger.
"Oh, it turns out that we have the same goal as well. Since our goals are aligned, why don't the three of you take a seat and have a drink with us?" That big brother invited the three of them and they all sat by the tree. With two groups of people who wanted to kill him seated right beside him, Ling Tian couldn't help but find it amusing. At the same time, he also wanted to know just what kind of means they had.
The big brother then began to introduce himself and his brothers to the other three individuals. It turns out that the six of them were sworn brothers with the eldest brother called Yue ZiFeng, second brother Zhang ChangGong, third brother Ning XiaoXing, fourth brother Zhu YouPeng and sixth brother Chen FengFa. As for the boorish fifth brother, his name was the most valiant one and was actually called Wang Wu. Who knows if his weapon was a great sword? 1
Yue ZiFeng was extremely clear that if even the Martial Order Medallion owner couldn't kill Ling Tian, death would be the only outcome should he and his five brothers meet Ling Tian. They wouldn't even have the chance to fight for their lives. Thus, he didn't have the intention to urge his brothers to pick up their speed and instead had the intention of slowing down. If they were to really meet Ling Tian along the way, he would have nothing more to say. But if he couldn't find Ling Tian, there wouldn't be a reason for him to seek his own death. Thus, this search of his was no more than a vacation for him and his brothers. His biggest wish was for him to receive news of Ling Tian's death before he could find Ling Tian. All the merits and rewards are only for those who are alive. If he couldn't even protect his life, what would be the point of all these material items?
Seeing these three green-dressed individuals in front of them right now, another thought began to sprout in his mind. Regardless of which organization they belonged to, their enemy's enemy would be their friends. Furthermore, the martial arts of these three individuals were far above him and his six brothers. If he could travel alongside them and had the aid of these three experts, they might have a fighting chance if they were unlucky enough to meet Ling Tian. If these three individuals were extremely outstanding and could kill Ling Tian, that would be even better. At that time, regardless of whether he and his brothers were watching from the side or beating a dog when it was down, it would be huge merit falling from the sky! Even in the worst-case scenario, Ling Tian would definitely pay more attention to these three individuals who could threaten him and he would be able to have the chance to escape with his brothers.
The more he thought about it, the more he felt that it was a great plan. Thus, he began to flatter the three other individuals and for some reason, the three of them seemed to have their own plans and agreed with Yue ZiFeng without hesitation.
"Since all of our targets are aligned, we can be considered comrades and there isn't a need for us to hide things from each other. May I know where these few brothers are from?" Yue ZiFeng had already said their names but the three other individuals refused to speak of their names and continued to question. At the same time, their tone made it seem as though they would not tolerate others to defy them.
Yue ZiFeng felt a tinge of dissatisfaction in his heart and noticed the look of anger on the faces of his brothers. Thus, he quickly sent them an eye signal to them to hold in their anger. After all, the world was a place where the size of their fists mattered. Since they weren't a match for the other party, the other party would naturally be uninterested to reply them. Yue ZiFeng didn't have a choice but to say with an apologetic smile, "We are from the DongFang Family and are here on orders of our second master to search for Ling Tian. I wonder what are the names of these three seniors? With seniors' demeanor, all three of you must definitely be leaders in your family, right?"
"DongFang Family? The brat DongFang JingLei was the one who sent you guys here?" a green dressed elder said calmly with his hands behind his back, "Who would have thought that a brat would have such foresight?" With his gaze sweeping past the six individuals, he said, "We are from the Xiao Family. You can call me Xiao One. He is Xiao Two and the one farthest is Xiao Three."
"So you are the elders of the Xiao Family. I pay my respects to the three Xiao elders." Yue ZiFeng said with respect.
As Ling Tian heard the conversation among both parties, he grew more and more confused. He never expected the six brothers to be from the DongFang Family and for DongFang JingLei to issue a kill order. That didn't seem to make sense!
Chapter 402: Soul of the Yu Family
Translator: chuchutrain Editor: DavidT, Rock
Ling Tian recalled that when DongFang JingLei left Sky Bearing Empire, he specifically came over to pay a visit to him to earnestly bid farewell. His tone was also very friendly and sincere, as though they were bosom buddies. In his conversation, he hinted that the DongFang Family was willing to strike an alliance with the Ling Family! They were even willing to gift a priceless treasure, a millennium blood ginseng, unwittingly helping him to refine Great Cyclic Pellets of extreme quality. While Ling Tian was aware that DongFang JingLei had an ulterior motive, he still had a trace of gratitude towards him.
However, not even two months had passed, and DongFang JingLei actually wanted to make use of this to join in the pursuit against him, to search and eliminate him as well! Then wouldn't that make all his previous efforts for nothing? What sort of motives did he have then?!
Could it be the various extreme situations that happened in Sky Bearing, causing a sense of apprehension to appear in DongFang JingLei? Ling Tian's mind thought rapidly, and it suddenly clicked. What if the main purpose of him doing so was so they could invade Sky Bearing and move against the Ling Family?
Hearing the group of them addressed as Master Xiao and Second Master Xiao, Ling Tian started to have suspicions about the identities of the three people. They could be a part of the Xiao Family's strength, but they would never be their underlings!
As everyone knew, the Xiao Family's head Xiao FengHan had always been referred to as Master Xiao, and his brother Xiao FengYang as Second Master. However, these three people were actually referred to in a similar way, and they did not even refute the honorific address. If they were really the underlings of the Xiao Family, would they dare to take up such a role?
If they were not experts groomed by the Xiao Family, then were they backed by the Xiao family? Assuming that they were not imposters, then which family of elites did they belong to? Could it be that, supporting the Xiao Family… Ling Tian didn't bother thinking further, such an idea was too ridiculous.
Maybe it was a mere curious coincidence! Even so, the day the truth would be revealed wasn't too far off!
From afar came the sound of clothes fluttering against the wind. It seemed that two other people came by, and with the exquisite movement techniques that they displayed, their martial arts were also at a high level. Grave expressions appeared on the three so-called Xiao family members, based on the skill levels displayed, the latter did not dare look down on the former!
Ling Tian also felt curious from the bottom of his heart.
Though there would always be strange things every day, today they seemed to be especially numerous in number!
What's up with today? This supposedly desolate and less frequented hill actually turned into a market for the martial experts today? These first-rate experts were supposed to be as rare as qilins, but yet they appeared in droves like cabbage being sold on the roadside! What a strange occurrence, could it be that something happened here recently?
Ling Tian continued to stay hidden in the core of the tree. He believed that, other than Justice who had his heaven-defying sixth sense and his Heavenly Vision, Boundless Hearing skill to locate his exact position, there would be no other person who would be able to locate him!
If these groups of people really came for him, then how did they confirm he was hidden at this particular hill? Even if it was coincidence, to have so many 'coincidences'... this was downright nonsensical!
Unless something strange existed here!
Where exactly was the problem? Would Justice be nosy and pop by as well? If Justice was the one who let out the news of his hiding spot, that would be outrageous!
Tens of possibilities flashed past Ling Tian's mind in an instant, but none suitable or particularly fitting for this scenario!
Just as Ling Tian was still silently guessing, a subtle change was happening on the outside.
"Haha, to think that I could actually see ghosts in broad daylight, and not just one!" One of the self-proclaimed Xiao Family members spoke in a mocking voice.
"Big brother has made an error, while there are two of them, they cannot be considered as ghosts, at most just souls, and furthermore separated souls, not worth talking about at all." The mocking laughter of another brother rang out, from the sound, it seemed to be the third brother.
A gloomy voice rang out, "I wondered who was the person that was spewing garbage, turns out it's those three captured fish. Never did I think that three low-quality fishes could be fed to become so big and fat. I think we can reluctantly fill up our stomachs this time. Hehehe."
The low and cold laughter of the second Xiao brother sounded, "To have souls appear during the daytime, careful that you don't provoke heavenly punishment on yourself. Brothers, let's not be too hasty, if you get hit by lightning, that's nothing to laugh about."
Another gloomy voice rang out, this time sounding like someone grinding their teeth in their sleep as it sniggered, "The world hosts myriad things, how could it then not allow souls to live in it? The pitiful part is those whose roots have been removed, left to wander around as lost souls. It's not too good to live under someone else's roof, isn't it? At least I'm free and happy here, unlike some people, no some fish who are only trapped in the small pond!"
"Yu WuHun! While we might resemble captured fish, but the fishermen also do not belong to your Yu Family, so why are you so delighted? We might have been annihilated, but we are not your subordinates, and to take the achievements of someone else and brag about it, Yu WuHun, do you still want your face?"
The words exchanged got more and more heated, gearing up towards a fight.
Yu Family! So these newcomers are actually from the Yu family! The rest of the people gathered originally wanted to interject and help the members of the Xiao Family, but upon hearing their surname, they knew that they would never be able to afford to offend such a power, and could only swallow their insults down. Right now, be it the three members of the Xiao Family on one side, or the two from the Yu on the other, both parties were someone the 6 men present couldn't offend. If their family were to get into trouble all because of a single sentence said by them at this time, then even if they had a thousand heads to chop off, it still would not absolve their crimes!
Within the tree, Ling Tian laughed bitterly. The DongFang family, the Xiao Family, and now the Yu Family. All of them had suddenly gathered at this particular place out of nowhere! In addition to the hidden figure that was him, basically most of the influential powers in Heavenly Star Continent were present in this desolate cemetery-like area here...
But there was one part Ling Tian felt was still beneficial to him, and that was the fact that the Xiao and Yu families seemed to be at loggerheads. He might be able to use that to his advantage.
Ling Tian silently revolved his Divine Shocking Dragon Formula, his right hand slowly lifted up. Silently, layer upon layer of the interior of the tree was slowly stripped off. In an instant, the tree bark in front of him was only left with a slightly translucent layer. In the darkness, Ling Tian touched his tongue, and using his spit, carefully prodded in front of him...
A dazzling ray of light shone from the outside, and at the same time the light shone in, Ling Tian tightly shut his eyes.
He was unaware just how long he had remained in the darkness, but he estimated that it was at least two days worth of time! To his eyes which were not exposed to light for so long, if he were to let the light enter his eyes unhindered, he would suffer from overexposure of light and go blind for a few moments! However high your cultivation might be, you would never be able to strengthen the eyes! So in this circumstance where anything could happen, what would happen if something occurred while he was unable to see? Then what could he do? Open up another hole?
Ling Tian closed his eyes for a few moments, then opened them a small slit and cast his gaze towards the source of the sounds. It took him a few moments to recover his sense of sight.
There was much shouting outside, and two people had already started fighting. When Ling Tian looked over, what greeted him was a skinny middle-aged man, his face appearing haggard and deathly pale. His eyes were deeply sunken into their sockets, looking like a corpse that had just rose from the grave.
No matter what move he did, his face remained unchanged. What interested Ling Tian the most was his movement technique, his joints seemed as though they could bend at all sorts of angles, causing him to fly at all sorts of styles in the air, but without the slightest sound of air disturbance. He looked just like an apparition floating along with the wind!
While the sun was shining high and bright in the sky, anyone who came across this scene would shiver involuntarily!
Opposite him, green robes fluttered in the wind, but the shriveled figure looked pinned to the ground like a boulder. With his hands casting out numerous palm shadows, sharp cries resounded, dealing with his opponent's tactic of having one wave of attacks after another like quicksilver flowing. It was the exact opposite, and when they crossed palms, the strange thing was, both their strengths were canceled out, resulting in a scene devoid of sound while fighting, like a pantomime. However, hidden within this comical scene was a deadly danger, where they grappled with life and death at every turn!
Ling Tian cast his eyes around and found a group of six huddled together. They were probably the six brothers from the DongFang family. Their martial arts standard might not be high, but Ling Tian was deeply in admiration of their loyalty to each other as well as having some envy towards them.
Since long ago, Ling Tian already knew that what he chose was a very lonely path, akin to Justice. This route to the pinnacle was incomparably lonesome, and both of their paths, while different, were moving along the same direction, hence Ling Tian dared say that in this world, only he fully understood Justice! While he still had Ling Jian, Ling Chi, and others, treating them like his brothers, he could feel that they would never dare to treat him as their elder brother, or senior! All they saw in him was that he was their master, their most revered idol, akin to an emperor!
Chapter 403: Blue-Dressed Lady
Translator: DavidT Editor: DavidT, Rock
On the contrary, the ordinary brotherhood between these individuals was something that someone like Ling Tian would be envious of! Just like how Justice also placed a great deal of importance on friendship and would kill the elder of the Yu Family without any reason. While it was because of his strength, it was also because of how much Justice treasured friendships. Ling Tian was also the same in this regard. If not, when Justice ambushed him back then, if he were to join hands with Ling Chen, Ling Jian, and the others, as long as he was willing to make sacrifices, it would be impossible for Justice to kill him! However, Ling Tian would rather take the risk on his own to shoulder this huge crisis alone!
Right in front of him was another individual who looked similar to the zombie-like person in the fight and they should be brothers. As for the two individuals from the Xiao Family, he could only see their side and back views.
A soft 'bo bo' sound could be heard and the two battling individuals did a somersault at the same time. That zombie-like individual retreated 30 feet away and trembled slightly with his face turning red for a moment before regaining its color. As for his opponent, he retreated 30 feet away with his body swaying and a trace of blood flowing down the corner of his lips.
"Meng PoTian, you have lost." the zombie-like Yu WuPo said coldly. "You weren't my match ten years ago, and today you are still not my match! There is no such thing as luck in martial arts!"
"Yes! I have lost but so what?" Meng PoTian spat out a mouthful of blood before regaining some color to his face. "Ten years ago, this Meng was alone but today, I have my two brothers with me!" A sharp gaze shot out from his eyes, "You two Hun Po brothers of the Yu Family may not be a match for the three of us."
Yu WuHun, who hadn't said anything until now, replied calmly, "What kind of a time is this? Is this a time for us to be fighting among ourselves? Since the victor and loser have been determined, both of you should forget about the matter. If you really want to settle our old grudges, we can meet another time after taking care of Ling Tian, that little thief. It wouldn't be wise for us to exhaust ourselves now!" Yu WuHun then glared at the two individuals as though he was dissatisfied with the both of them fighting.
"That's right, we will settle our ten-year-old grudge after taking care of Ling Tian!" The green-dressed man with his back facing Ling Tian said in a heartless and monotonous manner.
For some reason, Ling Tian felt a sense of familiarity after hearing the words of this green-dressed individual. I must have seen him before! Just where and when did I meet him? I am sure that I wouldn't forget such an expert if I were to meet him! At this moment, Ling Tian felt a little confused.
All of a sudden, Ling Tian came to a realization and thought about the mysterious black-dressed figure who had followed Xiao FengHan to his Ling Family when he was five!
It's you!
When he had escorted Xiao FengHan to Sky Bearing back then, he had concealed his identity as a servant but called himself Xiao One today! There must definitely be something strange going on!
At this moment, Ling Tian had a strange urge to rush out and catch all of these individuals to clarify the doubts in his heart. But after thinking about it for a while, Ling Tian finally managed to suppress the urge to do so. While he would be able to emerge victorious when facing all of them, he didn't have the confidence to subdue them all and might end up getting surrounded by them. At the same time, his whereabouts would also be revealed and if Justice were to be drawn here as well, he would definitely be in trouble.
Besides that, Ling Tian could feel that apart from the few individuals in front of him, there was another powerful expert hiding in the dark. As Ling Tian scanned his surroundings with his spiritual sense, he felt that the cultivation formula of this person in the dark was extremely strange. For some reason, this expert was able to retract all of his aura without a single bit seeping out. At the same time, this strange cultivation method felt extremely familiar to him! When he had first detected this expert, he had mistaken this expert for Ling Chen. Only after further analysis did he determine that this expert's martial arts were above Ling Chen and no weaker than his own!
To think that such an expert would appear at this delicate moment!
Was such a person his friend or foe? Just how did these people arrive at this location? Could there be a reason for all this? Could this be Justice's trap? Ling Tian thought about these questions over and over again as he held his breath.
"I never imagined both of you brothers to be so sensible. If that's the case, it's a deal and we will be taking our leave! Meng JueChen, once this matter is settled, my brother and I will be awaiting the arrival of you and your brothers!" Yu WuHun and Yu WuPo snickered before leaving.
"The mountains are filled with dew, and you must make sure to take care of yourselves. May you turn misfortune into blessings and be sure to stay healthy." Meng PoTian said in a sarcastic manner.
Yu WuHun turned back with a fierce glare in his eyes before unleashing his movement technique at full speed and disappeared into the distance.
Looking at his two brothers, Meng JueChen instructed softly, "The martial arts of the Hun Po brothers are exceptional and only slightly weaker than Yu ChaoChen who has passed on. They have always been Yu ManLou's bodyguard and are one of the hidden trump cards of the Yu Family. Even in the Yu Family, there aren't many who know about the existence of them! Ever since the battle ten years ago, they have never appeared in the pugilistic world again. For Yu ManLou to send both of them out, it can be seen how much Yu ManLou wants to kill Ling Tian. Furthermore, the other elders of the Yu Family are all in Sky Bearing and the Yu Family headquarters is definitely at its weakest. This could be a fantastic chance for us! We must definitely inform the family about this to see if we can make use of this opportunity. Once this matter is accomplished, we must definitely gather all our manpower to ensure that Yu WuHun and Yu WuPo cannot return safely! If not, their mysterious movement techniques would definitely be difficult to deal with in the future chaos."
The other two nodded their heads in agreement and Meng JueChen looked at the six brothers before whispering to his two brothers, "Our family seems to be walking closely with the DongFang Family and seems to have the intention of forming an alliance with them. We can leave the six of them alive to be messengers, and it can be considered as giving their DongFang Family face. We should first make them owe us a favor, as it may be useful in the future."
"Big brother is wise." The other two chuckled in agreement. They called out to the six brothers and left the place. The next moment, silence descended on the place again.
Ling Tian could not really be bothered with their departure but was more concerned about why the mysterious expert was not leaving. The mysterious expert remained hidden in the shadows without a single trace as though there wasn't a person around. The patience of this mysterious expert was truly incredible, and he may have already known that Ling Tian was around. Thus, the competition of patience began.
In his previous life, Ling Tian was most familiar with concealment and hiding to wait for an opportunity. Because of this, he had patience that others could not match!
A long while later, the red sun gradually set in the west but the only movement on the hill was the squirrels scampering around mischievously. Apart from the sound of the gentle breeze and insects chirping, silence pervaded the place.
There wasn't a trace of a single person!
Finally…
A light breeze could be heard and a figure appeared on the meadow dressed in a light blue dress. A light blue veil covered her face and only her eyes could be seen. While her gaze was calm, it was as though she did not place the world in her sights or her heart!
As the blue-dressed figure landed, the meadows seemed to have been filled with a dream-like feeling.
The instant this blue-dressed lady appeared, Ling Tian could recognize that she was the lady that he saw a few days ago. Ling Tian was certain that he had never seen this lady before but had an inexplicable sense of familiarity when seeing her now.
How familiar! This is a sense of familiarity from deep within my soul!
Who can she be?
Ling Tian watched this blue-dressed lady silently and for some odd reason, he felt his heart tremble. The next moment, the loneliness that he had felt for all his life had disappeared. Such a feeling was truly mystical and indescribable…
That blue-dressed lady took two steps forward and suddenly smiled, "With regards to patience, I am truly not your match. However, won't you be bored to stay there for such a long time? There isn't any unparallelled expert trying to kill you but only a feeble lady like me. Do you still not dare to come out?"
Ling Tian sneered in his heart, If you can be considered a feeble lady, all the guys in the world can probably die from humiliation. I don't believe that you can truly find my hiding spot! Perhaps you are only trying to test me with your words. If I were to fall prey to such an easy trick, would I still be Ling Tian?
As she said that, the blue-dressed lady perked her ears up to listen for any commotion only to no avail. Then, she continued to mutter, "Haiz, are you still not willing to come out? How long are you going to hide in there? Do I really have to take action to invite you out?"
Chapter 404: Seemingly Familiar
Translator: chuchutrain Editor: DavidT, Rock
The winds outside gradually grew stronger, and the blue robes of the girl started to flutter in the wind. Even her long silky hair flew up, making her seem as though she was a fairy descending from the heavens, incomparably exquisite and beautiful! She suddenly floated up with the wind, drifting to where Ling Tian was hidden in the tree.
Ling Tian clearly saw in her eyes a certain type of playful and mischievous expression. Unknowingly, he started to feel a sense of warmth in his heart. This was a result almost impossible to achieve, as Ling Tian would never have this sort of impression towards someone he just met. Then just why did he feel this way?!
The blue-robed girl stretched out her slim fingers, and gently rapped twice outside the tree, directly at the place where Ling Tian had filled in the hole of the tree. She acted as though she was a visitor coming up to a house, and knocking on the door while saying in a soft voice, "Is anyone home?"
Ling Tian was totally tongue-tied! This lass actually discovered him, how did she do it? This was borderline demonic! Ling Tian believed that even Justice would not be able to discover this hiding place, and so accurately!
"Are you still not coming out? Your house is too tiny, so I won't go in to visit. If you insist on staying there, I can only set this place on fire." The lady snorted before saying, "If young noble Ling turns into roasted pig Ling, then that would not be nice." As she spoke, she floated five feet away from where Ling Tian was, quietly standing there as though showing her lack of killing intent.
Ling Tian laughed helplessly to himself in the dark, before using a hand to lightly push out the piece of bark. As he floated out, he activated the Divine Bone Shrinking Art. With a few 'ka ka' sounds, his shrunken body recovered back to its original shape.
"I never thought that you would have actually succeeded in cultivating the Divine Bone Shrinking Formula, and even to such an advanced degree!" The soft whisper of the girl traveled over. She still stood with her back towards Ling Tian, but she gave off the feeling of being unmoved by everything, a feeling of lonesomeness and solitude. To think that such a young and pretty lass could give off such a feeling of isolation!
It was as though in this wide world, in the boundless mortal dust, she had already withstood endless generations of solitude!
Desolation and loneliness!
"Miss really has good eyesight! Just one look and you immediately saw through my hiding place, and can even tell the skill that I used at one glance. Ling Tian really bows down to you!" Ling Tian was originally very confident about his hiding place, thinking that it was a seamless plan, but to think that he got ferreted out. He touched his nose, feeling depressed as well as unwilling to concede his defeat, but suddenly was struck by his words. How did the girl recognize his own Divine Bone Shrinking Art?
"Hehe… are you at a loss for words?" The blue-robed girl lightly giggled as she slowly turned to face Ling Tian. Ling Tian failed to notice that, at the moment she turned, her body actually trembled a bit.
With eyes deep like the endless ocean, she gazed across Ling Tian's face, with countless thoughts flashing past her head. If Ling Tian had carefully looked into her eyes, he might have found out a fluctuation within her eyes, much like the revolving of a wheel of samsara!
Exceeding the boundaries of this world!
"How could I be at a loss for words? Haha… since Miss called me out from my humble abode, you must have something to instruct me about." Ling Tian smiled and spoke. "May I know what matter has caused you to invite me out?"
"Are you very satisfied with your hiding spot? Believing that it's seamless?" The blue-robed lass had settled down her turbulent feelings, and her tone became sharper all of a sudden. "Do you know that, in another few hours at most, if no one can find any traces of you, then this entire forest will turn into a firestorm? If by then you're still sitting self-satisfied in your tree hole, may I ask young noble Ling how he plans to escape?"
Ling Tian was immediately overwhelmed with shock! His whole body burst out in cold sweat, if what the lady before him said was true, then by the time he realized that the forest was burning, he would no longer have a chance to escape!
But thinking about it, Ling Tian felt as though something was wrong. Based on the haughty temperment of Justice, why would he lower himself to do something that would anger the heavens and earth? Furthermore, why would such a proud person use such methods in order to deal with him? If it were any other person, that might be the case, but Ling Tian believed that Justice would never do so!
Even if Justice were to give up on killing him, he would not use such an extreme method!
Then, could the lady be lying to him?!
As though she had seen through Ling Tian's thoughts, the blue-robed girl suddenly let out a faint smile as she spoke, "There's no need to overthink, this order was not set by your extremely frightening opponent, but instead a person called the Second Master of DongFang family."
"DongFang JingLei? He's actually here?" This was out of Ling Tian's expectations!
"Not only DongFang JingLei, but the experts from his, the Yu, Xiao and BeiMing Family are all present. Practically almost all of the major powers from Heavenly Star are nearby within the circumference of 300 miles, all watching this place for you! It's not that I want to insult you, but oh great noble Ling, to be able to cause the entire world to turn into your enemies, this is really unprecedented in the past, and will never happen again in the future! You should be proud of this! I'm filled with admiration for you!" Her mouth twitched. "You really did not let down this name 'Ling Tian'. Everywhere you go, the place turns into an angered hornet's nest!"
"This still isn't right!" Ling Tian let out an embarrassed smile and threw out a question. "The fact that you had sensed me here, or even if Justice had found me, all those could be explained. But how did the others get any news of me? To the point that all the pugilistic experts of this world have rushed over here like a shopping spree during the new year's? This isn't a coincidence, right?"
Hearing the words shopping spree during the new year's, the lady let out a burst of laughter before continuing, "This is of course not a coincidence! On the foot of this mountain there's a boulder placed with the writing, 'The Martial Order Medallion owner is battling Ling Tian within this 300 miles! The first one who comes out of this place loses!' The words seemed to be carved by a finger, and the moment this note was seen, all your enemies rushed here like bees flocking to honey!" The lady seemed to find this extremely funny, and seeing Ling Tian's deflated look, she laughed out loud.
"Justice! This crap must have been thought out by him… f**k!" Ling Tian jumped around in fury. "To think that the high and mighty Martial Order Medallion owner actually resorted to such a method in order to deal with me! What sort of number one expert title, he's in fact..."
"In fact what?" The lady snorted, "The person is pursuing you with the intention to kill, do you think that only you are allowed to scheme against the other, and not the other way round? What nonsense!"
Ling Tian was startled, and could not help but sink into contemplation. That's right, he had always been the one playing all sorts of dirty tricks on Justice, and it was rare that Justice would ever scheme against him, so what was he unhappy about? If he maintained his attitude of only allowing the officials to raze but not allowing the citizens to fire up their lamps, he would definitely suffer greatly in the future!
Both were not saints. If you want to play with fire, you have to be prepared to be burned!
To this, he could not help but bow towards the lady, saying, "Many thanks for this lesson! Ling Tian will carve your words in my heart, lest I forget and grow complacent."
"There's no need to be so formal, so long as you're aware of this point." The lady's eyes turned into slits as she smiled, before asking in a teasing manner, "Dare I ask young noble Ling, what is this 'shopping spree during the new year's'?"
Oops! Ling Tian scratched his head, only remembering now that this world did not have such a saying, before answering with a sheepish look, "It means everyone going to buy things together, umm, roughly that meaning."
"Oh, I see! Young Noble Ling is indeed erudite." The lady smiled and praised in return, however, her words gave Ling Tian a sense of sarcasm. She then continued, "Then, how about the meaning of f**k that you said just now?"
"Cough cough cough…" Ling Tian began to cough profusely, his entire face turning red.
A hidden expression of laughter obtained from teasing someone flashed past her eyes, however her words were completely different, "What happened? Why has young noble Ling suddenly started coughing? Have you caught a cold, this little sister here is still considered pretty well versed in medical skills, should I help you take your pulse and see?"
"Cough… no, it's alright. I'm fine." Ling Tian took this chance to change the topic. "By the way, I've seen Miss twice so far and could be considered to have some sort of fate with you. May I know your honored name?"
The lady laughed, "This sister here is a lass from the wild, what sort of honored name do I have? My surname is Li, named Xue. If young noble doesn't mind, you may call me Xue'er."
Xue'er!! A bolt struck Ling Tian's mind, and his face revealed a sort of pain. The suppressed pain from his previous life seemed to have flashed past in one compressed instant. 1 He took in a deep breath, and forced out a smile, "Xue'er, haha, it's a good name! Then I'll call you Xue'er from now on!"
The lady had been observing Ling Tian all this while, and clearly saw the pain flash past in his eyes. Her body trembled, and a layer of wetness surfaced in her eyes. In the depths of her heart, a deeply hidden heartstring seemed to have been plucked at this moment!
Chapter 405: Is It Fate?
Translator: DavidT Editor: DavidT, Rock
At this moment, Li Xue had the urge to burst out into tears. Thus, she quickly shifted her body to the side and replied softly, "Mmm, this little sister really likes it…" Her voice sounded muffled and the rims of her eyes turned red. At that moment, it was as though she had remembered the past…
The moment Li Xue said that, the both of them reacted at the same time. Li Xue had already prepared her heart, but Ling Tian was flabbergasted by how he was acting! He couldn't help but fall into a daze.
Ever since he entered this world, regardless of who he faced, he would always keep his guard up slightly. This was no exception even when facing his own parents, grandparents, Yu BingYan and the others for the first time. He had never trusted someone so easily before in this world. If he didn't have something to gain, he would never get along with another person so easily and in such a short time.
His heart had already been sealed for a long time!
But for some reason, he was not the slightest bit wary when facing this blue-dressed lady and he did not even feel a sense of unfamiliarity. It was as though he was meeting his old friend and could act completely comfortably.
To think that despite just meeting her and being completely clueless about everything other than her name, he was actually able to feel such joy and satisfaction in their conversation! It was as though a wish deep in his heart was suddenly fulfilled! Could this be the so-called fate?
My goodness! Ling Tian was completely depressed with the way he was acting today. Even when he had first met Yu BingYan, he was extremely wary and approached her with an objective in mind. However, today…
Furthermore, this Li Xue obviously also did not feel any unfamiliarity when meeting him and was actually willing to allow him to call her by her first name!
This was definitely the first time they had interacted with each other!
But yet they had strangely felt extremely familiar with each other!
"What are you thinking about?" Li Xue frowned lightly and could feel the strange atmosphere. Did this guy realize something?
"I was thinking… in this world, is there truly fate between people?" Ling Tian said in an absent-minded manner.
Really?" Li Xue chuckled before saying, "Stop lamenting about fate. In another two hours, DongFang JingLei will be setting fire to the place already and you have a few things to do."
"What thing? Should I make my appearance? Stop DongFang JingLei from setting a fire?" Ling Tian frowned and asked solemnly.
"That's right, as long as you appear, this place would definitely fall into chaos and since you are the target of all the major powers, none of them would be willing to withdraw their forces. As long as all of these forces enter the mountains, no matter how bold DongFang JingLei is, he would not dare to set fire to the place. That would be akin to offending the few most powerful organizations in the continent and he would be dead for sure! At the same time, this place will also be spared."
Li Xue said with a tinge of worry on her face, "The forests and mountains spread across 300 miles and this concerns the livelihood of thousands of people! If this place were to be burned, thousands of people would be forced to evacuate and lose their foundation to survive. In fact, the many people staying in the mountains will also be burned alive for sure! In order to deal with you, DongFang JingLei could actually resort to such a cruel plan and he is unforgivable!"
Ling Tian's face turned ashen as he paced around and thought over what Li Xue said. After weighing the pros and cons, he finally shook his head and said, "I can't appear."
"Why? As long as you appear, this calamity can be avoided. Wouldn't that be a great thing? Wouldn't that be a great merit? How many civilians will be spared their suffering because of you! Why can't you appear? How can you not appear?" Li Xue glared at Ling Tian with a tinge of anger, "Are you worried about the person who is chasing you?"
"If I said that I am not worried, that would definitely be a lie. However, even if I appear, the matter may not be solved. On the contrary, my lack of appearance may ensure the safety of this place!" Ling Tian shook his head with a smile, "Do you think that I am trying to pull the wool over your eyes? Have you thought about why that Martial Order Medallion owner would suddenly erect a stone monument in this place? What is his true intention?"
"Even if it is because he wants to kill you, will you remain motionless and sacrifice the lives of thousands? Can you really bear to do so?" Li Xue said with a tinge of disappointment and disbelief, "Is human life really that worthless to you? Are you really that afraid of the one chasing after you? Even if he is here and is able to find you, we may not lose if we were to join hands. Why are you still cowering in fear? Why have you changed so much?"
Ling Tian chuckled, "I will admit that I am not a match for Justice, and we may not be able to deal with him even if we join hands. However, I feel that Justice's move may not be to kill me. If he just wanted to kill me, he doesn't need to create such a huge disturbance so there is definitely something more to his actions."
"Next, DongFang JingLei had only announced his plans but let me ask you a bold question. Xue'er, if I do not appear, do you think that DongFang JingLei will truly dare to set fire to the mountains? Will he really dare to do that? Will DongFang JingLei have that kind of guts? Even if he wanted to do so, he would definitely keep the matter hidden but for an outsider like you to find out, wouldn't that mean that the whole world knows of this matter? Thus, I suspect that this is just a ploy to force me out of hiding."
Li Xue considered for a moment and said with uncertainty, "I did hear a few soldiers of the DongFang Family talking about this matter and I also saw pails of kerosene at the foot of the mountain. They have probably made full preparations, and this isn't a joking matter. Even if we have some doubts, we should not take the risk and bet on the lives of thousands of individuals."
"I do not feel that this is a risk." Ling Tian truly admired this lass's hot-blooded feelings and it was probably something the calm him would never have. Then, he continued with a smile, "Beyond Heavens has always taken up the responsibility of peace on the continent, and every member of Beyond Heavens who walks out of the sect would definitely do what they can to uphold peace. How would it be possible for them to allow DongFang JingLei to perform such a vile act? If DongFang JingLei were to really burn down the mountain, the Martial Order Medallion owner would probably be the first one to go after him. How would DongFang JingLei be able to escape the Martial Order Medallion owner?"
"Furthermore, DongFang JingLei's appearance is a result of the Martial Order Medallion owner leading him here. If such a matter were to occur, Justice would definitely be the biggest culprit and it would be impossible for him to escape blame. Thus, he would never allow such a thing to happen for sure and DongFang JingLei would never dare to perform such a vile act. He is a smart individual and he himself knows that he only has a single head and his DongFang Family will never be able to endure the rage of Beyond Heavens."
Li Xue frowned and remained silent, but she was obviously still filled with worry. Ling Tian then continued, "However, you are right that there isn't anything absolute in the world. Regardless of whether or not DongFang JingLei has such guts, I will have to take a look. If something unfortunate were to happen, I would be able to react in time. However, even if I have to stop him, I will never act openly like what you have said. You should understand my reasons right?"
"No problem!"
Hearing what Ling Tian had just said, Li Xue obviously cheered up a little and said calmly to Ling Tian, "Let us start spying on him in secret. If DongFang JingLei really dares to set fire to the mountain, we will have the time to stop him."
"..." Ling Tian was completely speechless. He had already explained himself clearly and expressed that he would never make an appearance but this seemingly intelligent lass was still thinking about her foolish plan.
At a place near the foot of the mountain where the terrain was a gentler, the vegetation had been cleared, leaving behind many tree stumps. The tree stumps served as the seats for the many characters of the pugilistic world and everyone of them sat there silently without disturbing each other.
It seemed like DongFang JingLei had already spread the news of his plan to burn down the mountain, and there were many people walking down the mountain towards their direction. After all, none of them were willing to be accompany Ling Tian to be burned alive in the mountains. Instead of taking a slow stroll like how they climbed the mountain, each of them had unleashed their movement techniques to the maximum when descending the mountain! Only after they had exited the mountain and confirmed that the mountain had not been set on fire did they heave a sigh of relief.
To the east was a gigantic umbrella and seated underneath it was DongFang JingLei. He carried himself in an elegant manner, looking extremely carefree and gentlemanly. An amiable smile was plastered over his face and he looked extremely friendly as though he was completely harmless. However, anyone who knew him well was extremely clear that he was an extremely dangerous smiling tiger, one who would not spit out your bones after eating you alive. By his side were hundreds of troops in an orderly formation awaiting their orders.
To the north were two black-dressed individuals seated silently without bothering about their surroundings. Despite being seated in the open, their auras were completely retracted, and it was as though they did not exist at all and were two shadows. They were Yu WuHun and Yu WuPo of the Yu Family. Behind them were ten plus white-dressed middle aged figures seated in meditation. These were the experts of the Yu Family who had followed the two Yu Elders to this mission and every one of them were White Jade experts.
In order to ensure Ling Tian's death, the Yu Family had truly gone to great lengths!