Death… and me

"You said that you need my help?" Chu Yang had developed a favorable impression of this black-clothed man for some inexplicable reason. However, both sides had reached a mutual understanding that they wouldn’t ask each other’s name. [This good natured man isn’t willing to reveal his real identity. So, why would I tell him my name?]

The black-clothed man also had similar apprehensions, [how can I expect him to be frank and honest when I am being so secretive?]

"Yes, I noticed that you seemed rather interested in the news about Cang Lan Battlefront. I assume you are going to enter the Cang Lan Battlefront! That being the case… we might as well travel together," the black-clothed man — Chu Fei Ling — suggested with a mild smile.

"Travel together?" Chu Yang knitted his brows. [Why would such a strong person bother to travel with me?]

"Yes… I have been facing some trouble on my travels lately to be honest. I will attract more attention if I try to go too fast. Moreover… there are some people who know that I’m alone out here. This is very inconvenient for me…" A trace of sadness flashed through Chu Fei Ling’s eyes.

"Oh, I see," Chu Yang let out an ‘oh’ in a soft voice. Then, he bluntly said, "But, have you thought that the one who’s looking to cause trouble for a person of your caliber has to be a great expert…? I understand that you wish to travel with me… but, the first casualty is bound to be me in case something happens!"

"I am worried about this." Chu Fei Ling greatly admired Chu Yang for being frank and spoke, "Therefore, we will travel together till the Raging Fire Mountain Range. Moreover, I won’t allow you to suffer any losses due to our collaboration. And, I will ensure that you benefit from it. Plus, I will do everything in my power to protect you in case something happens."

"I'm just a ‘cover’ in other words?" Chu Yang frowned.

"Yes," Chu Fei Ling frankly replied.

"But… why would you come to me?" Chu Yang asked in a puzzled manner, "There should be several people more appropriate for job than I am. I’m not a quiet person as you can see… So, you must know that my ability to stir up trouble is not smaller than yours."

"Because… you are very pleasing to the eye…" Chu Fei Ling smiled, and said in his heart, [this can be considered as fate. I barely arrived in the Middle Three Heavens, and then ran into you. I didn’t get a chance to look for another person as a result…]

"I too think that you are very pleasing to the eye." Chu Yang laughed out loud.

Chu Fei Ling wore a warm smile. It was hard to tell how much pressure he had withstood in the last about 20 years. He had been drowned in a myriad of worries. He had dealt with internal disorder, and foreign invasion. He had also experienced a person tragedy. Therefore, he never got an opportunity to smile from the depths of his heart. He had always been depressed, and there was nothing to make him feel relieved. However today, he felt rather relaxed for some reason.

This feeling had surprised him as well. He hadn’t felt this relaxed in a very long time. He couldn’t help but give credit to this youngster for the emergence of this feeling. It was as if there was something mysterious about this youth that was putting him at ease.

And, this mysterious power had made him somewhat infatuated with the youth.

He felt rather strange in his heart, [this boy is a cold blooded murderer. He doesn’t even blink while he kills people. He’s a very ruthless person. But, why does he make me be at ease?]

However, this was a fact, and couldn’t be refuted.

"Alright then… let's travel together." Chu Yang chuckled.

"Ok. If there’s any trouble on the way, and you’re unable to solve it — I will help you out." Chu Fei Ling offered with a smile. He felt warm in his heart.

"There’s no need for that. I always solve my troubles myself." Chu Yang shook his head and replied, "Getting help from someone… is detrimental for my future development. It’s not good for my own state of mind. And, it’s rather unfavorable for my growth. It might develop into a habit of dependency. And, I won’t be able to go far in my life if that were to happen."

Chu Fei Ling was startled. Then, a look of appreciation flashed in his eyes. He had been taken aback by this reply. He hadn’t anticipated that the youth before him possessed such a profound thought process. [It seems like this boy has very high aspirations!]

"There must be a reason why you are going to the Raging Fire Mountain Range, right?" Chu Yang asked… perhaps intentionally or otherwise.

"Yes. To find an elixir…!" Chu Fei Ling sighed. He thought of his old father. The elderly man had been injured. Chu Fei Ling couldn’t help but burn with impatience at this thought.

"Is it very important?"

"Very important!"

"I see… to rescue a very important person?"

"Yes."

"And, this enemy that you encountered is trying to stop you from achieving your goal… which is to save that person?" Chu Yang casually asked.

"Yes… eh?! How do you know…?" Chu Fei Ling looked at Chu Yang. He couldn’t help but think, [this little guy’s brain works too fast.]

"Logically speaking, a person like you – who seems to be in a position of power from his temperament, and has such high cultivation level – should be accompanied by an entourage when he comes out to do something. Yet, you are alone. This shows that you are on a secret mission, right?" Chu Yang knitted his eyebrows.

"Right."

"So, it is a secret mission, and someone has come to cause trouble for you. This explains that your enemy knows your whereabouts! This indicates… that your enemy is from your own family, correct?"

"Eh?" Chu Fei Ling suddenly looked up.

Chu Yang continued to state his speculation, "So, there has to be some conflict of interests involved in this if we go by this point of view. Perhaps a bit of struggle for power and position… In other words, that injured person is very important for your family. Otherwise, an expert like you wouldn’t have been mobilized. And, since you’ve been sent out on this mission and an enemy has appeared to deal with you… it can be assumed that there’s a fierce struggle going-on behind the scenes!

"This is a power struggle between brothers isn’t it?" Chu Yang smiled as he speculated in a solemn manner.

"Brilliant!" Chu Fei Ling had been rendered speechless. [I didn’t tell him anything. I only mentioned the enemy, and he managed to speculate so much with so little information?]

"Your kind expression and elegant demeanor gives me the vibes that you are the type of person who takes care of people. That… taking care of people has become a habit for you… Moreover, it is easily discernible that you’re not a servant when one considers your noble temperament. Therefore, you ought to be the eldest son of your family, am I right? Such being the case… the person who wants to deal with you has to be one of your younger siblings…"

Chu Yang chuckled, and then spoke in a ridiculing manner, "In other words, you are a thorn in their flesh, and they wish to get rid of you! Your old father won’t be able to get the medicine without you in the picture, and he’ll most certainly die. Then, the clan’s power will logically fall into the hands of that person since they have been pulling the strings from behind the scenes."

Chu Fei Ling's face turned ashen. He hadn’t been shocked to this extent in so many years. However, the reasoning ability of this youth had truly shaken him to his core. This had obviously raised the utmost admiration for this youth in his heart.

He recalled the time when Chu Yang had neatly and efficiently slaughtered those people. He couldn’t help but be shocked in his heart.

[Such expertise in martial arts, such intelligence, such wisdom… such decisiveness!]

"Therefore, the look of helplessness and sadness in your eyes reveals that you still haven’t made-up your mind. That… you still care about your former affection for your siblings!" Chu Yang callously struck the soft spot of Chu Fei Ling’s heart, "Otherwise, there would be a killing intention in your eyes. But no… you only wish to escape. You wish to hide from reality… instead of facing the enemy head-on! Isn’t that right?"

Chu Fei Ling heaved a deep sigh. He had been struck by sadness, and couldn’t speak a single word. He certainly thought in this manner… After all, it was his blood-brother! Moreover, he was a brother from the same mother. Chu Fei Ling had started to give far more importance to family relations ever since he had lost his son. However, things had evolved out of control, and had reached the current situation in which there was nothing besides pain and sorrow. He didn’t have the slightest idea about what was going-on in his younger brother’s mind.

"So, you will sooner or later be killed by your younger brother even if you do find that elixir." Chu Yang bluntly said, "You are such a kind and softhearted person. Yet, your brother still wishes to eradicate you. I can only say that your brother has no humanity, and deserves to die a miserable death!

"Being kind and compassionate while being in a position of power is a deadly combo! You are the Eldest Young Master. You must understand that your kindness and reluctance to make a tough decision will ruin the future of the entire clan! You must know that sometimes you must kill decisively to save your clan — even if you have to kill your own brother."

Chu Yang solemnly continued, "It’s late at night. Let’s sleep early. We will leave early morning!"

He shut his mouth after he finished this sentence, and spoke no further.

Chu Yang had gone out of his way to teach a valuable lesson to Chu Fei Ling on their very first meeting!

It couldn’t be called a ‘lesson’ since he was merely speculating. However, it was undeniable that his speculation was correct. Chu Yang ended the conversation abruptly by mentioning it was ‘late’ because he somewhat regretted the fact that he had delved deep in a conversation with a complete stranger. Who talks about these things on their first meeting with a stranger?

However, he had done so on an impulse for some reason. He couldn’t endure to see the look of sadness and helplessness in Chu Fei Ling’s eyes for some reason. Moreover, his heart was very impatient to help this man get through any difficulty…

"This feels very strange." Chu Yang closed his eyes, and smiled bitterly in his heart. "Could it be that an Emperor Level Expert has something about his personality that makes him capable of unconsciously impressing others?"

"Most people who cultivate up to the Emperor level experience a change in their temperament. So, it should be rather easy for such an expert to impress you if they desire it." Sword Spirit gently explained in Chu Yang’s mind, "The energy field around an Emperor Level Expert can affect the mind and judgment of a person… it’s even more obvious in the case of a Monarch Level Expert."

"I see." Chu Yang quietly let out a breath, and felt a little relieved, [I must hone my mind to increase my mental fortitude.]

The Sword Spirit wanted to say something, but hesitated at the last moment and didn’t speak. The words that he didn’t say were… [An Emperor Level Expert has this ability, but… this man didn’t use it on you.]

However, he didn’t needlessly complicate things since he realized that Chu Yang felt relieved.

"The spirit energy is far more concentrated in the Middle Three Heavens. But… you must pay attention to one thing. It is said that the path of the Nine Tribulations Sword’s Master starts in the Middle Three Heavens. Chu Yang, what are you planning to do?" Sword Spirit was obviously most concerned about this topic. So, he raised it in front of Chu Yang.

"The path of the Nine Tribulations Sword’s Master…?" Chu Yang muttered irresolutely. Then, he asked, "What do I need to do?"

"Conquer!" Sword Spirit replied in a heavy tone, "Conquer the forces you see, and form your own team. Then, prepare to rush to the Upper Three Heavens in one fell swoop like a mighty dragon!

"Form a team? Conquer the Middle Three Heavens?" Chu Yang softly repeated these phrases. He could clearly feel his heart beating rapidly.

"Yes, the Lower Three Heavens was your starting point! The future subversion of the Upper Three Heavens depends on the team that you form in the Middle Three Heavens! The experts of the nine great ruling clans will be your enemies when you go to the Upper Three Heavens! After all, the entire Upper Three Heavens is under the control of those nine super clans. It’s like the entire world is your enemy! No one will help you there. The only help you can draw is from the ambitious clans of the Middle Three Heavens!"

"The nine great ruling clans of the Upper Three Heavens must be removed… and replaced!" Sword Spirit spoke-up in an awe-inspiring voice while he stressed on each word.