Chapter 316: A Terrifying Conspiracy!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The promise made by Lei Dongtian was one of sincerity. In the eyes of Lei Dongtian, a small country within the Tianxuan Continent meant nothing to him.
Yun Yang sighed gently, his thoughts were somewhat scattered. He then slowly gathered them together, meticulously contemplating his speech.
After a long while, he finally said, "A few years ago... the Nine Heaven Demesne landed in Tiantang City abruptly, forming the Residence of Nine Supremes. Following that, the Residence of Nine Supremes required nine people with different attributes to enter it and learn the cultivation method so as to make it to the positions of the Nine Supremes... "
Yun Yang slowly bit off each word, "I believe that Brother Lei must have had heard about this. The story has been circulating among the citizens for a very long time. It is apparent. Even if you don’t know about it, everything begins from this and I have to start telling the story from here."
In a serious tone, Lei Dongtian humbly uttered, "I know. I am very interested in knowing the entire cause of the story!"
Yun Yang said, "Initially, only one or two of the Nine Supremes had appeared. At that time, the outcome of our external war was changed, via their interventions. Following that, as the Nine Supremes Lords emerged one by one, all of them finally gathered together in full. If one were to look at the offensive power of our country, it could be deemed as invincible in the world. It also signified the opportunity for Yutang to govern the world in peace!
"However, this had then caused the other countries to gather all the heroes from their own sides to jointly declare war against us. It was mainly because they dared not allow us to become stronger as time passed. From their view, to keep on waiting was tantamount to death! "
"However, even with the joint efforts of those countries and their heroes, their efforts were, nevertheless, futile, with the Nine Supremes to help us fight in these battles."
Yun Yang took a deep breath, "However, the total strength of the countries and the heroes were still far beyond the withstanding ability of our country. Simply said, it was based on the proportion of the casualties; even we were able to exchange a life of our people with five from their side, Yutang would eventually fall if the wars were to be continued!
"Even with the help of the Nine Supremes, we could barely maintain the war and to secure the borders of our country. However, it was absolutely impossible to expand our territory. Furthermore, as the aftermath of successive wars, the strength of the state and the people had become extremely scarce. After all, expenses are required in order to declare war! "
"Our country and the other heroes were equally suffering. Their losses were even higher than our country, except for the fact that they have had support from each other to make sure that they could still withstand the war without collapsing. Both sides soon went into a deadlocked situation."
"Finally, in the winter of the year before last, both sides mutually halted the war."
"Everyone needed to rest and recuperate."
"In fact, the whole country was relieved about this. At the time, my father had sighed; so long as Yutang has three years of rest, we would be able to conquer the whole world and be declared as the top within the Tianxuan Continent by relying on the divinity of the Nine Supremes! "
"We were very happy then, as the war was coming to an end!"
Yun Yang’s face turned solemn, "However in March last year, an extremely shocking news came forth, saying that the Nine Supremes’ whereabouts had been inexplicably exposed, causing all of them to be annihilated during the battle at the Tianxuan Cliff. The news had engulfed the entire Yutang in terror. The impact of the event was too significant for us to dismiss."
Lei Dongtian nodded and let out a sigh, "Yes, to think from your viewpoint, such an impact was not one that could be withstood by any ordinary person."
"However just a year later, the news came about again to say that the Nine Supremes was going to seek vengeance against each and every culprit involved in the conspiracy against them! Besides the message, the key to this is that it shows that there is someone among the Nine Supremes that has survived! "
"The whole country was in jubilation upon hearing the news."
"Although there was only one of the Nine Supremes that had seemed to survive, it was uncertain whether he was the only one left among the Nine Supremes. However, this was, in the view of the citizens of Yutang, a matter not to be overlooked. We felt as if we had seen the hope, the hope that Yutang would not be annihilated, and the successors of the country would not be extinguished."
"At the time, though we did not know who it was among the Nine Supremes that was alive, we were all praying and looking forward to finding out. No matter who it was, it would be fine so long as someone from that august troop survived!"
"Even the Emperor was excited. Since the revenge plan of the Nine Supremes had pointed towards the Four Seasons Tower, all the enemies that had been indicated by the Nine Supremes were being stringently punished!
"It came to the point where there was no need for any evidence nor trial. We could declare a person as guilty and punish him so long as the Nine Supremes had pointed him or her out.
In a heavy tone, Yun Yang remarked wryly, "Brother Lei, I guess you can easily imagine how much our country values our heroes!"
Lei Dongtian gasped, "I can guess alright!"
Although Lei Dongtian did not value domination and hegemony of the worldly affairs, he could barely hold in his fascination over a person who was able to gain such levels of respect and worship.
"However, the Nine Supremes have never shown their faces!"
"The Nine Supremes were merely executing the revenge plan, constantly disclosing the spies that were lurking within Yutang ... We, as in Yutang's officials, were merely dealing with any leftover matters. This situation has been continuing for a year now. "
Yun Yang's face revealed a despondent expression, "However, up until now, we were stunned to find out that everything seems to be out of control."
"Out of control?" The eyebrows of Lei Dongtian raised up in confusion.
"Yes, it is out of control."
Yun Yang heaved a long sigh, "Until now, only the surviving members of Nine Supremes have appeared; we could only confirm that the survivor is actually Supreme Wind."
"Since the reemergence of Supreme Wind, not only has his existence heightened the morale of the people, the first thing he has done after that is to help us defeat the great armies of the Empire of Dongxuan."
"For the many things that followed, it gave the people a feeling that all his deeds are for the good sake of the people and that he is working earnestly to achieve that." Yun Yang sighed, "So we no longer have any doubts regarding him and the fact that he is the actual Supreme Wind."
"However, there was an event that has happened recently. A great event that has just been confirmed." Yun Yang uttered worriedly, "The forces that originally belonged to the command of the Nine Supremes, the subordinates of the Nine Heavens Dictum, did not lose control in the days of the Nine Supreme's absence. They had always been under the control of the country, behaving well and proper!"
"However, since the return of the Supreme Wind, the men have begun to disappear, dribbling away from the control of the state, and eventually vanishing altogether."
Yun Yang let out a deep sigh.
Lei Dongtian’s expression had changed accordingly too. He then asked, "How can this be? How can a country's military force that is under the control of a nation suddenly fall apart? Out of control? Is it possible that all of them are dead?"
"Not likely!" Yun Yang laughed tragically, "However, they no longer contribute to the country, but they could be acting on behalf of Supreme Wind."
"This is... this is getting more and more interesting." Lei Dongtian chuckled playfully.
Coupled with his rich experience, Yun Yang's narration had easily led him to identify the crux of the matter!
It was plain that there was something wrong with this surviving Supreme Wind.
This might be one of the main causes behind the willingness of Yun Yang to give in to his lust by selling his country’s secrets.
In his excitement, Lei Dongtian’s suspicion against Yun Yang had been reduced slightly.
"Well, of course, the disappearance of such a large number of people is a major event in itself. However, not only did the reputation of the Nine Supremes that had been built by the high-positioned people in Yutang remain intact, their names flourished more than ever."
Yun Yun smiled wryly, "In such a situation, no matter how doubtful we are, we can only treat it as mild suspicion."
Lei Dongtian nodded his understanding and sighed, "Yes, this matter is confusing indeed... it is difficult to foresee and even more difficult to take any action."
"In the meantime, we can only wait and observe, pray that everything is just a misunderstanding and that Supreme Wind might have other arrangements!"
"However, not long ago ... another major event has taken place!" Yun Yang’s face took on an expression of doomed hope, "This time around, Supreme Wind had gone against the elders of Yutang, a teacher to three generations of emperors, an old official of four dynasties, a sage of our time, a scholarly grandmaster and the father figure of the literati - He Hanqing!"
Lei Dongtian broke into a smile, "I have heard about this before. I heard that this Old Sir He was actually..."
Yun Yang softly whispered, "Supreme Wind had accused this nearly ninety years old man of being a member of the Four Seasons Tower!"
"He had also added that Sir He was the Supreme Lord Spring Frost, one of the four Supreme Lords in the Four Seasons Tower!"
With a cynical look, Yun Yang continued, "How funny that would have been!"
Lei Dongtian asked, "However, why have I heard that Sir He was, in fact, Supreme Lord Spring Frost?"
Yun Yang’s face was filled with grief. He remained silent and dejected for a long time before he whispered, "You are not the only one to have such a thought. I'm afraid that the whole world now thinks that Sir He is actually Supreme Lord Spring Frost! However, is that the truth?"
He sighed in despair, "I am not sure if Brother Lei is aware of this, but Sir He is nearly ninety years old this year. If one were to look at him, his face is covered with age spots that only the ordinary elderly will have ... For his entire life, he had nurtured no less than hundreds of thousands of talents for Yutang!"
Lei Dongtian was moved upon hearing those words.
Regardless of what kind of cultivator one was, even an ordinary beginner of peak realm would possess the lifespan of over a hundred years. It was impossible for him to have age spots unless he was an ordinary eighty or ninety-year-old man!
"Now, seven out of ten high-positioned civil officials are his students!"
Yun Yang emphasized each and every word.
"The father of His Majesty was actually the disciple of Old Sir He. His Majesty himself had been taught by Sir He himself. The current crown prince is also a disciple of Sir He!"
"Old Sir He had dedicated all of his life to Yutang... If he were to have any malicious intentions ... Yutang would have been destroyed many times over. If that was the case, there would not have been a country named Yutang ever since."
Lei Dongtian could be seen pondering, "So, you are suggesting that ... Sir He was not from the Four Seasons Tower?
Yun Yang was extremely depressed, clearly not intending to speak any further.
Lei Dongtian was moved upon hearing those words.
If this was so, the conspiracy that Yutang was now facing was simply too terrifying to comprehend!