Death… and me

"Great minds think alike!" Chu Yang slightly smiled. Then, he started to ponder over it.

Clan Lord of Xie Clan – Xie Guangen – was sitting across from him. He had a serious look on his face. He said, "The Middle Three Heavens has become a boiling pot. And, it is ready to explode. But, Mo Tian Ji has seriously requested that our allied clans mustn't make the first move."

He took a deep breath and said, "This is simply torturous. We're just wasting time here… We aren't doing anything apart from hearing news every day. It's becoming unbearable."

"We naturally can't make the first move. The Ao Clan has to do that. Only then would the biggest turmoil arise in the Middle Three Heavens," Chu Yang didn't shy away from mentioning this taboo topic in Ao Xie Yun's presence, "I'm afraid that making the first move might lead to people adding criminal charges against us. It certainly won't be in our favor. In fact, it would be very detrimental to our plan."

Xie Guangen sighed, "It's not that I don't know this… However, it has started feeling more and more suffocating as its getting stretched."

"Anyway, this is Mo Tian Ji's plan. But, we have our own plans as well," Chu Yang nodded. He exposed a crazed killing intention in his eyes and said, "Xie Clan is situated in the north… in this vast stretch. And, the Ou Clan is the only other clan here. But, it has almost become like an empty city nowadays. So, we might as well uproot it first… and sweep away any possibility of future trouble by doing so."

Xie Guangen jumped in fright and said, "How can this be achieved? Didn't you just say that we mustn't make the first move?"

"Yes. But, who said that you'll be making the first move?" Chu Yang looked at him strangely.

"So…" Xie Guangen stroked his beard. He was at a loss. He glared at him, and wanted to say, [Aren't you contradicting yourself?] But then, he cared about the face of the other party, and didn't say it out loud.

"Xie Clan can't make the move. But, I didn't say that our Heavenly Armament Pavilion can't make any moves," Chu Yang mischievously smiled, "The Ou Clan had ambushed us earlier. They had almost made us die a violent death. We have such an enmity and hatred towards them. So, why wouldn't we take revenge?"

Xie Guangen smiled and said, "Minister Chu, it isn't altogether inexcusable if your Heavenly Armament Pavilion makes a move. But… pardon me for speaking so bluntly. I know that your Heavenly Armament Pavilion isn't weak. But, it isn't enough if you want to destroy the entire Ou Clan."

"Well, of course," Chu Yang said as a matter of fact, "Don't we have you people to back us up? Moreover, the Xie Clan is at the heart of the struggle. Every big clan has sent experts here in order to protect the alliance. Don't tell me those experts are just going to sit idly and look at us while we make our best efforts?"

Xie Guangen was left dumbfounded, "Do you want us to make a move or not?"

"You put on the get up of our Heavenly Armament Pavilion. You wear the mask of our Heavenly Armament Pavilion. And, you are the members of our Heavenly Armament Pavilion to anyone who sees you. So, how would that be Xie Clan's move if you do that?" Chu Yang was somewhat annoyed, [It took me so long to explain such a trivial matter.]

[This Clan Lord isn't as bright as his son.]

Chu Yang didn't know that the elders of the Xie Clan had always managed the clan. There was also an ancestor above the elders in the management. Xie Guangen was the Clan Lord… But, just to pave the way for Xie Dan Qiong to take over the clan and be the Clan Lord in the future.

Xie Dan Qiong's aptitudes had been the best in the entire Xie Clan at the time when he was born. The ancestor had personally declared that Xie Dan Qiong would be the next Clan Lord of the Xie Clan. And, Xie Guangen had gotten the complete benefit of his son's talent. That's because he had been mounted to the Clan Lord's position so as to avoid a family dispute.

"So that's how it is," Xie Guangen said with hesitation, "And, how… will we do that?"

Chu Yang wrinkled his brows, "Just follow my directions for now," He meant – [You stand a little far away, and don't speak.]

Then, Chu Yang spread the news, and all the experts assembled. Then, he issued the battle instructions. He told them to make the preparations, and asked them to get things done without delay.

The assembly of all the experts was done in a short period of time. There were thirteen Emperor Level Experts, and two-hundred King Level Experts in total. This included the external experts.

However, Chu Yang hadn't put the experts below the King Level cultivation to use.

"I'll also participate in this fight," Ao Xie Yun took a step forward, and said in a serious manner. He had already put on a mask.

"Very well!" Chu Yang straightforwardly agreed.

"Wait a minute," the ancestor of the Xie Clan — Xie Zhi Qiu — strode out of nothingness along with a loud shout. He then arrived in front of Chu Yang. The present aura of the Xie Clan's ancestor was stronger than it was the last time Chu Yang had met him. It had become as deep as the seas, and as lofty as the mountains. It seemed that he had also made a breakthrough in his cultivation after obtaining the Mysterious Jade Ice Crystal.

The ancestor looked at Chu Yang and said, "Little Brother, Xie Clan and Ou Clan have been here since ages. And, the two clans have never had friendly relations with each other. However, a battle never broke out between the clans. Do you know why?"

"Because of the Ou Clan's use of poison?" A light flashed in Chu Yang's eyes.

"Correct!" Xie Zhu Qiu nodded and said, "The Ou Clan's poison technique is the best in the Middle Three Heavens. This old man prohibits going into the battle if you don't have any means to deal with or restrain their potent poison. Otherwise, we'll be throwing away our lives instead of eliminating the enemy. Every place in the Ou Clan's courtyard is highly poisonous. And, it's virtually impossible to guard against it."

Chu Yang exposed a faint smile at first. Then, he replied with confidence, "Senior, don't worry. I've already planned for this."

He then made Ji Mo and Luo Ke Di carry two big barrels of liquor from his room. Each barrel had a weight of fifty kilograms. They staggered as they placed the barrels in front of the troops.

"This is my special detoxification wine. Everyone, drink a bowl of it. I guarantee you people that even ten-thousand poisons wouldn't be able to harm you for an entire day," Chu Yang said in a casual yet confident manner.

"Even ten-thousand poisons wouldn't be able to harm?" Xie Zhi Qiu squinted, "Let me try it."

He stepped forward while speaking. He then scooped out a bowl of that wine. He drank it all. Then, he took out a pitch-black pill from his bosom, and put it in his mouth.

"Ancestor, you mustn't!" Xie Guangen shouted. There was a strong trace of fear in his voice.

"Don't worry!" Xie Zhi Qiu pushed him aside.

He smacked his lips after a long time, and then doubtfully said, "This Poisonous Dragon Pill is among the five most dangerous poisons of the Ou Clan. However, it seems to have lost its effect because I've drunk a bowl of this wine… What kind of medicinal wine is this? How does it taste so much like the immortal intoxication drug that is secretly made in our Xie Clan? However, our immortal intoxication drug doesn't have the property of detoxification…"

Chu Yang's face contorted. He coughed twice and thought, [This fellow is smart despite being so old. He could tell by drinking that this is the immortal intoxication drug of his clan…]

The wine in these two barrels was the same wine that Chu Yang had drunk the night he had set the treaty of alliance with the Xie Clan.

Chu Yang had out-drunk all the people of Xie Clan by himself that night. In fact, the people of Xie Clan had vivid memories of that incident until now…

The ancestor had already set the example. Therefore, the rest of the people also drank the wine without the slightest hesitation.

It could be assumed that those more than two-hundred people would've vomited on the spot… if they had known that the same wine had been drunk by Chu Yang first….

The Sword Spirit had extracted the wine, and changed its properties. However, that didn't change the fact that this wine had entered into Chu Yang's mouth, and had then gone into his belly; it had arrived inside the Nine Tribulations Space only after passing through his body…

It could be said that this wine was… in a way… Minister Chu's… vomit…

Minister Chu didn't have any other choice. They were in a hurry. Where could he have suddenly brought enough water to give antidote to over 200 people? It would have been a waste… if he had used the water from the Vitality Spring for this…

Why would he not use the two barrels full of wine that he just happened to have in the Nine Tribulations Space? Moreover… the wine's potency could make the medicinal efficacy work a little quicker…

"This old man will set into action tonight if this is the case. That Old Poison of the Ou Clan will finally have to confront me," Xie Zhi Qiu no longer had any fear of the poison of the Ou Clan. So, a heroic feeling broke out in his heart. And, he shouted as his heart filled with magnificent aspirations.

The ancestor of the Ou Clan had always stayed in a secret chamber of the Ou Clan. He and Xie Zhi Qiu were old enemies. And, both these old fogies were aware that the other one hadn't died yet. However, the moment of life and death had finally arrived!

Moreover, Xie Zhi Qiu had just broken through to become a Martial Monarch. Plus, he didn't need to fear any poison now. So, he was obviously looking down on the Old Poison of the Ou Clan.

"Everyone, so today's plan is like this…" Chu Yang drew a picture on the ground with his sword.

"We will destroy the Ou Clan at midnight!" Chu Yang told the complete plan. Then, he shouted, "My Heavenly Armament Pavilion will rise to fame in the Middle Three Heavens from tonight onwards."

"Roar!" a loud shout was issued to echo. However, it came only from Dong Wu Shang and the others.

The rest of the people only looked at King of Hell Chu with a strange look. [All of us are attacking the Ou Clan. So, why would your Heavenly Armament Pavilion rise to fame alone?]

However, King of Hell Chu didn't give a damn about this.

[You people are making this attack, but under the name of our Heavenly Armament Pavilion. Who would know that you were the attackers after this battle? We have offended so many people in the Northern Wilderness. So, those people would inevitably try to settle an account with us. But, would those people dare to come and look for trouble… if they came to know that we had destroyed the Ou Clan overnight?]

[Also… the Heavenly Armament Pavilion will become famous after this. Wouldn't that mean that many people will come to join under our banner?]

"Tonight's operation must be quick. Moreover… we will make use of the poison of Ou Clan even though we don't fear it. Make sneak attacks. Avoid direct confrontation. Take them by surprise. Don't try to be a hero," Chu Yang's vision was flashing like electricity. He said with uprightness on his face, "Pretend to die if you come across any poison. Then, wait for the enemy to come at your side. Then, get up and kill them in one move.

"We must appear like gentle wind. We must gently caress Ou Clan's poisonous neck like a lover's hand. And, we will kill them when they tremble in the pleasure of climax."

Minister Chu righteously said, "I name this operation 'Mission Caress Ou'! Understand?"

Everybody was dripping with cold sweat from all over their bodies.

[This guy is extremely sinister. The most astounding thing is that he can have uprightness on his face and righteousness in his voice while deploying such an insidious and despicable operation.]

[He is truly a genius that has never been seen before.]

[He came up with…'Mission Caress Ou'?]

[Who would be able to withstand… such a deadly caress?]

"Make preparations! All the troops will be dispatched after fifteen minutes. We'll break into the Ou Clan like fire at midnight. We will burn, kill, and plunder them. We will uproot the entire clan. We won't even spare fowls and dogs. The Ou Clan will no longer exist in the Middle Three Heavens after tonight."

A killing intention flashed in Chu Yang's eyes.

That very night…

The night was deep, and the sky was filled with stars. But, there was darkness all around.

The ancient castle of the Ou Clan stretched throughout this hillside. A geomancer would surely recognize that the headquarters of the Ou Clan was located on a dragon's vein if he were to arrive here. In fact, it was situated at the meeting point of a river and a mountain.

There was a small forest more than ten miles away from this castle. More than two-hundred people were gathered here in the depth of the dark night. All of them were glaring like a tiger watching its prey. Everyone was hiding in the bushes. Their eyes were brightly shining.

"Let's go!" Chu Yang waved his hand. He then hurriedly rushed out while leading the way. Gu Du Xing, Ji Mo, Rui Bu Tong, and Tan Tan followed closely behind him. They then rushed out like a cold breeze.

Dong Wu Shang and Luo Ke Di weren't suitable for this task of leading the troops. Dong Wu Shang was too tall and sturdy. And, Luo Ke Di was somewhat lacking in this respect. So, Chu Yang and the other four had to carry out this action since they didn't have a better option.

The people behind them looked at these five rushing out. And, they all opened their eyes wide in nervousness. But then, they started to rub their eyes with their hands, [What did I just see? How did these people disappear as soon as they rushed out?]

There was a smooth meadow in the front. The tallest plant there would barely reach to a person's calf. But, those five had rushed out wildly over the meadow. Yet, they were surprisingly silent and invisible.

Chu Yang and the others rushed seven or eight miles with a 'whoosh' sound. Their movements were indeed smooth… like the caress of a lover. Their movements were gentle and graceful. Their movements even contained tenderness and love… but, also a deadly killing intention!

The entrance of the Ou Clan's castle was close at hand.

….