Death… and me

"The idea… is to form… alliances first!" Great Elder heavily spoke-up, "Let’s count our enemies… King of Hell Chu, Gu Clan, Ji Clan, Luo Clan, and Dong Clan have become our enemies because of this matter… Moreover, there are two stern additional allies of theirs – Mo Clan and Xie Clan!"

Great Elder pulled out his finger and coldly said, "The Gu Clan is the weakest of them. The Mo Clan is strong, but they are going through major changes at the moment. So, they can’t be considered very strong at present. The Ji Clan is nothing but medium. It’s suspending in the middle. It’s not strong enough to go up. However, you can’t pull it down even if you try to. However, the Luo Clan, the Dong Clan and the Xie Clan… can match the strength of our Ou Clan."

He heaved a long sigh before he sadly said, "Our Clan has lost so many experts over this matter. So, we don’t have sufficient strength to be on a par with these three clans anymore… This Old Man has miscalculated…"

He paused, and didn’t speak-up for a long while. He had a sad look on his face. Then, he continued, "We will aim at these clans for now, and analyse the situation between the enemy with respect to ours.

"There is an unresolved hatred between the Ji Clan and the Gao Clan. It’s the same with the Mo Clan and the Black Devil Clan… they can’t live under one sky. The Dong Clan and the Tian Clan have also been fighting again and again. The Gu Clan and the Tu Clan also have deep-rooted hatred and desire for revenge against each other. Also, the Zhao Clan has been beaten down by the Luo Clan for a long time… At present, the Meng Clan is an extremely difficult situation… However, this is a plus point for us. The, there’s the Xie Clan. The Xie Clan has refused a marriage proposal from the Li Clan. So, these two clans also don’t get along!"

Great Elder continued in a profound manner, "The enemy of our enemy… is our friend. We will have… the strength of eight big clans on our side if we form connections with them. And, we won’t be weak if that happens…"

Great Elder deserved to be called a ‘reservoir of rigorous schemes and deep foresight’. This plan was well-thought of. His wisdom was unquestionable even in the face of such tremendous changes.

Ou Cheng Wu’s eyes lit up, "Great Elder’s idea is brilliant!"

"Um… However, the enemy has already taken the lead in forming connection. So, we need to start taking action right now. We are a step late… But, they would first have to deal with this ninth grade spirit beast event. And, this will buy us some time!"

Great Elder wrinkled his brows, "But, we need to particularly guard against… the Dark Bamboo! I have heard that Young Master Yu of the Dark Bamboo and King of Hell Chu are good friends… I don’t know how good that friendship is… However, it may be possible that Dark Bamboo moves into action."

"We won’t have any chances of success if Dark Bamboo turns against us." Ou Cheng Wu’s complexion turned solemn. He then said, "We must make contacts with the Ao Clan and the Li Clan. We can only be evenly matched if they stand on our side. And, that should reduce the risk very considerably."

"You’re making a mistake. It will be more chaotic if the Bamboo gets involved! And, that’s because the Bamboo and each of these clans have had contradictions or conflicts in the past…" the Great Elder snorted and said, "And, there’s nothing to worry when it comes to the Ao Clan. The Ao Clan won’t step into muddy water… but, what if we kill Ao Xie Yun and shift the blame on these clans…?"

He only spoke till here, and suddenly came to a stop. His gaze had turned deep since he was lost in contemplation.

Ou Cheng Wu’s eyes lit up. The hall had turned silent in an instant.

A long while passed before Ou Cheng Wu stood up with a ‘shua’ sound, "We have no time to lose. So, I will immediately arrange the manpower to go to each of the big clans."

"Take some martial treasures along with you," the Great Elder sinisterly said, "We have no other choice but to spend resources because we are in need of support. These things must be kept with oneself… since they come-in-handy at the critical times!"

Ou Cheng Wu replied, "Alright." He made Ou Du Xiao take men along with him. Then, he started to make arrangements for manpower in an aggressive manner. After that, he started to make preparations to send them on diplomatic missions.

However… Ou Du Xiao madly rushed after some time. And, he was sweating coldly from head to toe. His face had twisted beyond recognition. He had seemingly lost his mind, "This is bad!"

"What’s wrong?" Ou Cheng Wu stared blankly, "Have they arrived already?"

The Great Elder was even more dissatisfied, "You need to keep your calm! Why are you panicking?"

Ou Du Xiao’s entire face was filled with soya-bean-sized sweat beads. He nearly wanted to cry, "Our hidden treasure house has been looted. None of our martial treasures are left… inside!"

"What?" The Great Elder fiercely stood up. And, the chair made a ‘bang’ sound as it got flipped over. However, he didn’t pay any attention to it. His old eyes had always been hidden in the wrinkles, but they suddenly got opened-wide like copper bells, "Say it again?!"

"It has been looted… everything is gone…" Ou Du Xiao’s voice had a sobbing tone in it, "We are left with nothing…"

Ou Cheng Wu fiercely withdrew three steps. His complexion had become as white as snow.

"Let’s go and take a look!"

The Great Elder was soon standing in the empty ‘secret treasure house’. His eyes became lifeless when he saw that each and every Divine Incense Jade Box was empty. He didn’t speak for a good while, and it seemed as if he had lost his soul…

A very long while passed before he suddenly vomited out blood. After that, he fell down while looking upwards, "Oh God… do you want my Ou Clan to perish?!!"

Ou Cheng Wu’s body was shivering. His vision went blurry as he murmured, "How can this happen…?"

The Ou Clan had collected these martial treasures to upgrade their cultivations in the past. But, these treasures didn’t have much of a use left after a certain amount of time had passed. So, they were sealed up. And, they got in an increasing number of opportunities to commit all kinds of crimes as the Clan continued to expand. So, they plundered more and more of these martial treasures.

The Ou Cheng Wu used to think that these treasures could be slowly used for cultivation since they had collected so many of them. But, the clan had later reached a new level in the poison art, and these martial treasures could be used with poisons. Moreover, the poisons that were made with these treasures were of highest level. Therefore, these treasures had been managed very carefully since then.

However, they had never expected that these martial treasures would be stolen at the critical time when the Ou Clan would need them the most!

"The only thing that is left behind here… is a lot of dust. Some dried up elixirs are also left here," Ou Du Xiao spoke-up in a daze.

Suddenly, a mysterious light flashed in Ou Cheng Wu’s eyes as he spoke-up, "Could this be King of Hell Chu’s doing?"

Ou Du Xiao shook his head, "It can’t be. I was with King of Hell Chu since the moment he entered this place, and I stayed with him the entire time! So, he didn’t have any opportunity to do such a thing! There must’ve been someone else."

"Find out!" Ou Cheng Wu violently roared-out.

All the elixirs were gone. Moreover, the treasured items had also been taken away by King of Hell Chu. Consequently, a big clan like the Ou Clan had now sunken into a troubled situation where they didn’t have anything to deliver if they would wish to give gifts to someone!

…

~~Upper Three Heavens~~

Chu Fei Ling had returned to the Chu Clan. And, this had caused a great sensation.

No one had thought that Chu Fei Ling would find the Mysterious Yang Jade so quickly.

Doctor Yu was greatly startled when held the Mysterious Yang Jade. His white beard had turned straight. And, his eyes had nearly popped out of their sockets, "Mysterious Yang Jade Core? Where did you get this treasure from?"

"I found it by chance. That’s all. It was just pure luck." Chu Fei Ling gently smiled. He didn’t wish to reveal the existence of his ‘little brother’. The first thing Chu Fei Long would do… would be to vent out his anger on Chu Yang if he were to find out about this.

"Your luck must have been very good." Doctor Yu looked at him with an envious look, "This Old Man has searched for it for a hundred years. But, I never even saw the root of its hair."

Chu Fei Ling replied, "Doctor Yu, I’ve gotten this thing… So, there won’t be any problem in curing my father’s injuries, right?"

"There absolutely won’t be any problem anymore!" Doctor Yu patted on his chest and said, "We have the core of Mysterious Yang Jade now… So, I will stop my practice and leave for begging if I wouldn’t be able to treat the Clan Lord of the Chu Clan properly!"

Chu Fei Ling let out a sigh of relief and said in a grateful manner, "Thank you so much, Doctor Yu. We have troubled you a lot."

Doctor Yu gently chucked.

"Big Brother, I heard that you have come back! Did you find the Mysterious Yang Jade?" a voice full of deep concerns was heard. A middle-aged man walked over along with the voice. His appearance was heroic. His stature was tall. He wore an embroidered robe. His hair wasn’t messy from any angle. There was meaningful look in his eyes. His vision would seem to be as sharp as that of an eagle even if he looked at someone with a gentle look in his eyes.

However, the expression in his eyes was as deep as an ocean. Moreover, his temperament was extraordinary. He stood in such a way that his disposition looked as calm as water, and his stature as lofty as a mountain. Every action and every movement of his’ seemed very natural, but also full of the natural instinct of authority.

It was the Second Son of the Chu Clan – Chu Fei Long.

"I’ve found it. Father’s injuries should be healed without any issue now." Chu Fei Ling looked at his own Second Brother with a complex look, and replied in a light manner.

"That is indeed very good!" Chu Fei Long’s spirit immediately rose up. He then grabbed Chu Fei Ling’s hand and spoke-up in a pleasantly surprised manner, "Big Brother… you must’ve been very lucky this time. Third Brother and I didn’t feel like eating anything over the past few days… Ah, luckily, Big Brother has come back so early. Third brother would keep blaming himself even if I would support him… Perhaps, I wouldn’t have been able to stand for long."

He sighed while speaking, "Third Brother always thinks too much. He said that it’s his fault so many times that it literally gave me a headache."

Chu Fei Ling’s Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed saliva. Then, he replied with a smile, "You two have looked after father in these days when I wasn’t present. Second Brother, thank you for the trouble…"

Chu Fei Long became disgruntled. And, he sincerely said, "Big Brother, why are you saying this? We are brothers from the same parents. We are born of the same mother! So, it’s only natural that we must care for our father. Why are you saying ‘thanks for the trouble’? You must be very tired because you had to rush about, Elder Brother. This is making me worried for your health. You must give your body a proper rest for a few days now that you have returned. Big Brother is indeed the backbone of our family. Your little brothers don’t know what we would do if you collapsed from weariness."

He had affectionately spoken these words with a clear and bright smile. And, he cordially pulled the hand of his elder brother. He had an utterly sincere look on his face. And, he generously gazed at his elder brother. Moreover, the rim of his eyes had turned somewhat red. So, one could clearly see that these words had come straight out of his heart.

Chu Fei Ling sighed since he felt emotional in his heart.

He recalled the time when the nine Saber Emperors of the Ye Clan had chased after him to kill him.

[Second Brother, was it really you? I want to believe that the ‘you’ in front of me is the real you…]

Doctor Yu looked-on as this happened. And, he couldn’t help but feel envious as he said, "You brothers have a great relationship. Such brotherly love is very rarely seen in others families."

Chu Fei Long laughed out loud and replied in a sincere manner, "Doctor Yu is speaking so highly of me that I’m blushing. We are the children of the same mother. So, what kind of brothers would we be if our relationship wouldn’t be good? Elder Brother has taken care of us two brothers since our childhood. He has taken-on everything on himself for us. He always bears the burden of responsibilities… Would there be any in the world who would deserve respect if such an elder brother becomes unworthy of respect?"

Doctor Yu became gratified as he nodded. He then said, "I will give this to the Clan Lord Chu to heal his injuries. You brothers haven’t seen each other for a long while. So, you should enjoy some time alone to chit chat." He walked away as soon as he finished saying this. And, he sighed while walking away.

[Indeed. There are so many clans in the entire Nine Heavens. But, brothers like these with such kind of deep brotherly love… really can’t be found in many of them.]