Mr. Nian injected his mystical Qi into the bone slowly and watched the piece of bone s.h.i.+mmer with even more l.u.s.ter due to the infusion of mystical Qi. It slowly began to show signs of coldness. As there were more mystical Qi being delivered into it, a blanket of frost eventually formed on the surrounding ground. The temperature sank swiftly to freezing point and kept on decreasing.
Mr. Nian then s.h.i.+fted slightly to scrutinize the G.o.d"s Bone under the sun. He fed some mystical Qi into the bone again to make certain of its state before cutting it a few times with a short sword. Lastly, he made a fire and attempted to burn the G.o.d"s Bone.
After several attempts, he could finally conclude that this was the authentic G.o.d"s Bone. It was genuine without a shred of doubt.
In spite of this, he still had his misgivings. He placed the four pieces of G.o.d"s Bones on the ground and temporarily disregarded them. He turned to pick up the three corpses laid around and murmured to himself, "There must be… an ulterior intent… As long as I bear with the temptation and not take them, whatever trap he devises won"t work. Yes, this is the best option."
He then turned to leave, disappearing in the thick fog. His exit was without hesitation.
The four pieces of G.o.d"s Bones continued to lie on the ground just like that as if being abandoned – discarded by both parties without a second thought.
They laid still for two hours. Then, there was a quivering in the thick cloak of mist.
Mr. Nian appeared once more upon the fringes of the mist, muttering to himself in doubt, "It… seems that there"s nothing to question…"
"These four pieces of G.o.d"s Bones are fine. After having sensed these bones, there seems to be nothing wrong with them. These are the G.o.d"s Bones that are well nurtured."
Mr. Nian"s gaze was inquisitive. "What motive does Yun Yang have for doing this? How will his plan work?"
He pondered for a long time in vain. Gradually, his eyes brightened.
"Yes, yes… So this is it!"
"Back then, Saber, Sword, Snow, Frost, and Ice were five exceptionally gifted people, distinctively selected and appointed. Yun Yang must have been mistaken in his judgment as he didn"t see any G.o.d"s Bone Bearer using skills specific to these five areas during this period of battle…"
"His purpose of returning these marvelously fostered G.o.d"s Bone to me at this point in time must be to… let me give these four pieces of bones to the G.o.d"s Bone Bearers despite the urgency."
"Simply planting the G.o.d"s Bones in one"s body will be effective in the short-term, but there are downfalls that come with it."
"No human body can suddenly take in such perfectly fostered G.o.d"s Bones that are specific in nature as well…"
"This is especially when he"s already copiously experienced in fighting Saber, Sword, Snow, Frost, and Ice. Even if there were accidents, he could tackle them with grace. As for those who bear the specific G.o.d"s Bones abruptly, there must be shortcomings. Such shortcomings, once one catches on, will only cause the bearers to die instantly!"
"Even if we give up using these four pieces of G.o.d"s Bones due to doubt, the thought of it will settle down and make a nest in our minds. If the war sours on our side, someone will definitely regret it."
"Once regret bubbles up to the surface, ripples will spread in one"s state of calm. Careless mistakes that shouldn"t be happening will then come in company."
"Such mistakes are easily fatal!"
"Yun Yang"s intention for giving back the G.o.d"s Bones must be either one of these. It"s no wonder too. What he said makes sense… What he"s been using has always been proper and overt schemes. As an example, earlier, he walked into our trap by using himself as the bait – that"s a plainly-seen plot as well…"
"Is this, similarly, a blatant trick now? Leaving these G.o.d"s Bones here so we"re distressed by watching them? What a good set-up!"
Mr. Nian sneered. His eyes glinted cruelly.
"It"s too bad that your intentional devising will only be a catalyst to me… because you"ll never know my purpose of collecting the G.o.d"s Bones. This is what we call suicide…"
He hovered over and with a flap of sleeves, the four pieces of bones were collected. Chuckling icily, he turned to leave.
"Supreme Cloud, I"ve read your conspicuous plan like a book. What are you going to do? If you were to know that the G.o.d"s Bones you gave me will kill you, I wonder what you would think. Hahaha…"
Mr. Nian left with a wide smile on his face.
"Supreme Cloud, you"ll surely be flabbergasted tomorrow morning. You"re not the only one with an ace card that goes beyond the knowledge of this world"s cultivators."
The fog fluttered, signaling that Mr. Nian had finally vanished.
Four hours later, Yun Yang drifted into existence. Directing his gaze at the location and discerning that all the G.o.d"s Bones had indeed been retrieved by Mr. Nian, the corners of his lips tugged upwards.
Ji Lingxi came along excitedly. She looked around, poking her head in and beamed, saying, "The G.o.d"s Bones… Has Mr. Nian taken them all?"
Yun Yang nodded.
"Then… this fellow is in deep sh*t, isn"t he?" Ji Lingxi used the psychic voice, chuckling with mirth.
Yun Yang glared at her and replied in a vexed manner, "Am I one who usually puts people in deep sh*t?"
"Aren"t you?" Ji Lingxi stuck her tongue out.
Yun Yang was rendered speechless and made the first move. "Let"s go. We can have a good rest tonight. Nothing will be happening for sure."
"Are you confident in tomorrow morning"s battle? He"s taken all the G.o.d"s Bones. There must be another plan. Won"t your decision be too risky?" asked Ji Lingxi with some worry.
"Even you know his intention in collecting the G.o.d"s Bones – but I"ve still given everything to him with honor."
Yun Yang sighed easily.
"It is truly foolish to be someone like me… I"ve held my principles too resolutely… Sigh."
"You wretch…" Ji Lingxi dry heaved before she lashed out in a furious rage, "What are you saying? What do you mean by even I know? Am I that dumb in your eyes?"
Yun Yang chuckled and left without an answer; Ji Lingxi gave chase, taking offense and protesting playfully.
…
When Mr. Nian returned, the men of the Four Seasons Tower were still sleeping soundly.
Gazing at the group who was sprawled across their safe ground, he was hesitant.
"If we fight tomorrow with our current force, against Supreme Cloud and that girl, defeat is as certain as daylight."
"These people are severely injured, their cores damaged… we won"t know if they"ll be of help tomorrow."
"However, if I do that… I can turn defeat into victory."
Mr. Nian"s gaze was wavering, seething with myriad emotions. For a moment, it was grievous, then it was vicious, inexplicably savage and terrifying before it immediately turned dull.
For a long time, he could not make up his mind.
"How many years has it been since I"ve been in such a quandary… Have I really turned soft throughout these years?"
At this time, one of the men slowly woke up. He coughed once, then he spat a mouthful of blood. There were actually fragments of his internal organs in the crimson fluid. He looked at the discharge in despair and said weakly, "Boss, tomorrow"s battle, this young brother…. This young brother… I… I"m afraid… sigh…"
Mr. Nian"s gaze was on the blood on the ground as well, as he mumbled, "Leave everything… to me."
There was a glint that flashed across his eyes as his gaze turned eminently icy.
He had made his decision.