Chapter 180: Scapegoat Material
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Yun Yang asked, "What request would that be?"
An intense resentment surfaced in Shui Wuyin’s eyes when he said, "When the culprit is found… I would like to personally hack off his head with my own hands."
Yun Yang raised his head and looked at Shui Wuyin silently for a moment.
Shui Wuyin clenched his teeth and said, "As you have pointed out, I am an Eldar. You must know that the Eldar have their own...methods... with souls. If the decapitation is done by my own hands, I will be able to torment the soul, for as long as I want."
Yun Yang said softly, "Very well, I promise you that. In addition, I shall also make another promise; that day will surely come."
Shui Wuyin exhaled a deep sigh. "Thank you."
Before the sound of his last spoken syllable ended, Shui Wuyin"s body spasmed; his face contorted horribly as it underwent extremely agonizing convulsions. As it subsided, he spat a gob of pink smoke from his mouth onto Yun Yang’s palm. Upon touching his hand, it disappeared instantly.
The process was so swift that Yun Yang could not even react.
"Will of the Soul?" Yun Yang was shocked. "Wuyin, you didn’t have to do that."
Shui Wuyin’s hoa.r.s.e voice was weak. "Yes, it is the Will of the Soul. From now on, from this moment forward, my life and death lie in your hands. This spell will never be broken."
"Why did you do this?" Yun Yang said.
"Because only by doing so will you completely trust me and allow me to fully partic.i.p.ate in all your plans."
Shui Wuyin’s raspy voice was determined. "This our first time meeting each other, you wouldn"t be able to gather much from this encounter. I have no time for a probationary period, I want to take action immediately."
"I’ve never believed the saying about not using the person you doubt and not doubting the person you use; I need your complete trust. I can unconditionally trust the Nine Supremes; the entire world reveres you! However, each step that Lord Supreme Cloud takes involves danger and each moment are a threat. On what basis can you trust me?"
"Only the Will of the Soul can save us the time and allow you to trust me fully. Only your unreserved trust will allow me a greater chance to avenge my lord with my own hands!"
Shui Wuyin said hoa.r.s.ely, "I know that someone who could kill my lord, who could harm the Nine Supremes’ very existence will definitely be a formidable enemy that I cannot imagine. But from now on, I, Shui Wuyin, have only this goal for the rest of my life. To achieve this goal, I can do anything required of me regardless of its price. I will do whatever it takes!"
Yun Yang was moved by the man.
This was eighth brother’s subordinate!
His gaze bored into Shui Wuyin for considerable moments before he said, "Wuyin, call me young master from now on."
"Yes, young master." Shui Wuyin said, "I understand."
A wistful smile finally came about his face. He knew that from this moment on, Yun Yang would begin to trust him fully.
His Will of the Soul was a worthy sacrifice.
My lord, I must avenge your death!
I swear it.
…
"Wuyin, you are certainly a brave man." Yun Yang joked. "You dared to come here and threaten me all by yourself."
Shui Wuyin smiled abashedly. "Nonetheless, I didn’t deceive young master after all."
Yun Yang chuckled. "Honestly, I believe that most people in this world would have been deceived by your plot today. Except me, of course. Even those legendary experts might be unable to exclude themselves."
Shui Wuyin said faintly, "Maybe it’s just how I am, innately. I don’t blush when I am lying. Sometimes, I even believe the lies that I tell. Perhaps this is the meaning of the saying, "Deceive yourself before you deceive others; only when you’ve deceived yourself that you can deceive whoever you want to"!"
Yun Yang was taken aback for a moment. "That is an impressive saying!"
The threats that Shui Wuyin had just made were largely empty.
There was no ambush, no one waiting with their fingers in the trigger, no set up of explosives, and there was no poison that could possibly kill half of a city.
Everything was a sham.
This was a complete stratagem of an empty city.
It was utterly amazing that Shui Wuyin could act out the stratagem of an empty city so realistically as if there were really such a thing.
If Yun Yang had not released some probes to verify the man"s claims, he would most probably have been deceived. Everything had seemed so real from their conversation and interaction; at least Shui Wuyin’s consciousness acknowledged that there was such a setup. If Yun Yang had not actually validated it, he had no reason not to believe him!
"Since we parted that day, young master hasn’t shown up for so long. There must be something important for young master to reappear suddenly tonight," Shui Wuyin said.
"You are right. A bunch of cash cows will be coming to the Towering Wind Pavilion either tomorrow or the day after tomorrow." Yun Yang raised his brows and said, "I need your cooperation. It is compulsory to let these fellows lose everything, even their pants, here."
"That naturally isn"t a problem." Shui Wuyin answered with a straight face. It was, of course, a simple task to him.
"Of course this will be easy for you. I want you to take note of a few people among them. Go especially hard on these men."
Yun Yang listed a few names and continued, "I don’t believe that no one among the high-level generals from these four empires is enlightened about the incident at Tianxuan Cliff. But this will need further observation and a.n.a.lysis. If we mistakenly identify them, it will only rattle the real perpetrators and cause a retaliation."
"To get what we want, a mind that is constantly clear and objective is needed other than possessing strong thinking skills and abilities." Yun Yang said, "Eighth brother kept saying you have a good mind. Only now do I know that you are an Eldar. This task might suit you more so than it will me."
Shui Wuyin replied calmly, "I understand. As long as those people exist among these visitors, I will ferret them out within the shortest time possible."
Yun Yang exhaled a breath softly. It wasn"t until now that he was slightly at ease.
Shui Wuyin would definitely make an exceptional right-hand man!
This person was even more levelheaded and calm than he himself was most of the time. Yun Yang had responsibility for the country so he might sometimes behave rashly from pa.s.sionate patriotism; nothing of the sort would ever happen to Shui Wuyin.
"He is a coldblooded fellow, there will never be a time that his blood boils with pa.s.sion. His cognitive abilities are so remarkable that he’s almost on par with ol’ninth. Besides, everything he has done was done with the most rational perspective. This person possesses no emotions nor impulses. If he had wanted to, he would have been a top a.s.sa.s.sin. He’d have this world within his calculations if he were an aide; he’d not have a single failed strategy of war should he become a marshal."
This was eighth brother Supreme Wind’s comment about Shui Wuyin. It sang praises that were so high that it was terrific yet terrifying.
"I have always wished to recruit him to the Nine Heavens Dictum but… his heritage, his ident.i.ty as an Eldar, will never be recognized and acknowledged by them."
Supreme Wind was right on point but Yun Yang had surprisingly seen the agitated side of this ‘coldblooded’ fellow that Supreme Wind had mentioned before.
When he had heard that the Towering Wind Pavilion Master was Supreme Wind, when he had heard that Supreme Wind was already gone now, Shui Wuyin who never had a ripple of emotions, was so agitated that he came close to breaking down.
"Eighth brother, don’t worry. I will take good care of your brother for you. As long as the situation allows, I shall help him fulfill his wish, and your wish to heal his voice."
Yun Yang walked out of the Towering Wind Pavilion unhurriedly.
The first ray of light was already peeking out from the east.
…
Yun Yang came to the Tower To Heaven Inn, first thing in the morning.
"Does anyone have a concrete plan for today? Should we go enjoy some music? Perhaps have some fun in casinos?" Yun Yang’s words had the dark-skinned youth beside Han Sanhe rolling his eyes.
Yun Yang was unperturbed, he even responded by making faces at the fellow, squinting his eyes and contorting his face into all kinds of expressions.
Don’t like me? I’ll make you look at me all the more, have your eyes stay on me all the time; I"ll have you die from anger!
"Today is the first day. Whatever it is, no matter how important, needs to be let go." Han Sanhe said seriously. "Today, we will visit the Residence of Nine Supremes."
Han Sanhe’s eyes lingered on Yun Yang’s face.
Yun Yang frowned and said, "You all don’t have much time. Why are you going to the Residence of Nine Supremes? They’re Yutang’s heroes, our guardians; they have nothing but animosity towards you, what is there to visit? Besides, the Residence of Nine Supremes is surrounded by fog all year long, nothing can be seen. Could it be that you all want to break through the Nine Heavens Demesne?"
Even as he spoke, a sharp, icy look of suspicion flashed in the deeper parts of Yun Yang’s eyes.
He then heard an old marshal sigh. "The Residence of Nine Supremes is a wonder in the world. Nine Supremes Lords have subdued the world with their almightiness. It’s one of our main purposes during this trip; to pay homage to the Nine Supremes. Although they’re our enemies, we still respect Nine Supremes Lords’ valiance and loyalty. The trip to Residence of Nine Supremes must be made."
Han Sanhe watched the faint guardedness and doubt in Yun Yang’s gaze carefully; finally, a hint of disappointment flashed in the bottom of the old man’s eyes as he continued, "Nine Heavens Demesne is not destroyable by any human force. Even if we wanted to destroy it, we can’t do anything against it. Why would we find fault with ourselves and make such a fruitless effort? You don’t have to be worried about this."
Yun Yang shook his head. "Sorry, I still need to ask for permission regarding this matter no matter what you’ve said. I can’t decide this on my own."
The group nodded simultaneously in understanding.
Yun Yang mounted a horse and hurried to the marshal’s residence.
Han Sanhe and the other generals smiled, looking at each other. This fellow would indeed go to Qiu Jianhan for permission, regardless what the matter was.
Qiu Jianhan, that old thing, could it be that he thinks us all idiots?
How can he not know about this?
Not a while later, Yun Yang returned on his horse, wearing a happy look. He said loudly with pride, "I almost forgot. I can still decide this on my own, so I came back again after going halfway through. All of you can prepare to be on your way…"
The group jutted their lips out. Or course, we believe you.
Old Marshal Qiu Jianhan who was the leader of Yutang’s three thugs would naturally not know that he had become the scapegoat once again. In addition, he would only continue to be one in the future.
He would go on being the scapegoat until these fellows left Yutang… then he would have new faults to pin on other people. He could truly play the part of scapegoat, no two ways about it!