Chapter 516: JingLei Requests Aid
Translator: chuchutrain Editor: DavidT, Rock
At that time, he only needed an eye to observe the proceedings of the battle, using the gaze of a detached observer to witness the battle of Eastern Zhao. This was really the case of giving pointers on the various rivers and mountains, which resembled paintings, and looking down coldly on the play that was brilliant and varied. Was this not life itself, to proceed at such a fast pace?
Since his biggest problem of Justice himself had been temporarily solved, Ling Tian could now be said to be able to look down upon the world in disdain! It would be that sort of arrogant attitude of one being at the top of the world since time immemorial.
From today onward, look at me, Ling Tian, violently warring against all under the heavens!
Yu ManLou, our five-year agreement, as well as the bet we made, let us gamble against the rising winds of change, betting to our fill!
Peach Blossom Hollow.
This place was without a doubt a little ravine shrouded in extreme secrecy.
"DongFang… what the f**k!" Having taken great pains to discover the hiding place of DongFang JingLei, the moment Ling Tian met up with him, he instead was stunned silly. This was because of the former's appearance, which was completely out of Ling Tian's expectations!
"What is going on?" It took Ling Tian a long while to regain his composure.
Was this even DongFang JingLei? From appearance, this person did resemble him, that heroic and handsome man with an unrestrained aura. Few people could actually compare to the bearing he exuded at that time.
However, this man in front of him currently, not only did he took totally disheveled, malicious and full of hate, the clothes he wore were ripped, and his suave face was now decorated with two new bloody scars. Every once in a while, he would cough repeatedly, resembling an old man on his last breath.
The last time Ling Tian saw him, he was still surrounded by thousands of his followers, but right now, there were less than 300! And a lot of them were even injured, with faces full of despair and helplessness.
"Brother Ling, you've finally arrived." DongFang JingLei coughed twice. "If you still did not turn up, you might have ended up never seeing me ever again. The heavens are really giving me the last chance of survival!"
Ling Tian quickly walked up, putting a hand on JingLei's wrist as he spoke, "What exactly happened? Why are all of you in such a state?"
DongFang JingLei let out a sad bark of laughter, "According to our promise, I had begun to slowly consolidate my forces, waiting for your arrival. I don't know how the news leaked out, but we suddenly received a huge ambush, with great casualties. Even as we retreated, we were continuously attacked six to seven times! After many deaths, we finally managed to reach here to hide, struggling at death's door! If it wasn't for you being our last hope, I would have really…"
"Sudden ambush? Another six assaults as you escaped?" Ling Tian glanced at Xiao YanXue beside him, "Whose side sent the people after you?"
DongFang JingLei let out a crazed look of hatred as he gnashed his teeth, "Which group? Do I still need to say more?! To think that my own blood brother would ignore our familial ties and brotherhood! Hng, since he doesn't want to be benevolent, then he can forget about me showing righteousness! Since we can't live under the same skies, then let's compare to see who is better!"
An expression of revenge warped DongFang JingLei's eyes. "That bunch of b*st*rds, all hiding their faces! They rushed out from the darkness, till the third time where we finally repelled them through some stroke of luck. After this, we searched their corpses, and we found some people that we're really familiar with!" DongFang JingLei's body trembled at this, his voice cracking as though about to cry. "They were actually my elder brother's personal guards!"
Ling Tian only let out a sigh and stopped talking. However, he was extremely aware that the attack against JingLei likely had little to do with the DongFang Family and the Eastern Zhao Imperial Court. There was something fishy about this!
He himself had just come face to face with the Crown Prince of Eastern Zhao, DongFang XingChen. If not for the fact that the latter was totally down on his luck, having met Ling Tian, the guy would still have been frolicking around, having fun with his hunting trip! If the attack on DongFang JingLei was orchestrated by Eastern Zhao, then how could the Crown Prince still have the liberty to go out to have fun? Besides, such a treacherous act was not something DongFang JingTian as well as the emperor of Eastern Zhao, DongFang MingRi could actually perform.
Furthermore, Shen RuHu, possessing a grand hundred thousand troops, was covetously eyeing the boundary line of Sky Bearing and Eastern Zhao. Now that the clouds of war were beginning to coalesce, any rash movements made by the DongFang family would only lead to war! They were no fools, so why would they choose such a time to strike out at DongFang JingLei? This would only result in internal trouble and external aggression. Whether they could handle DongFang JingLei quickly or not, with his prowess, they were bound to suffer from a great loss of strength and vitality. This would just lead to the entire kingdom falling apart from the inside!
If that was the case, then the culprit behind this would more or less be confirmed. In this world, only those nearing the Xiao Family in influence and power... as Ling Tian's mind spun, he suddenly focused towards the neighbors of the DongFang, the Xiao Family! He could guarantee with 80% assurance that this matter was orchestrated by the Xiao Family! As for those personal bodyguards of the DongFang family, that was actually easier to pull off than expected!
All they needed was to find a few experts to capture those bodyguards and divert the attention of the rest, that would be all! Furthermore, they need not be alive, for they could just change their clothes and throw them all in the heap later for DongFang JingLei to discover...
And also….
Looking at the available manpower DongFang JingLei still had left, Ling Tian let out a smile secretly. After six assaults, DongFang JingLei looked immensely injured, with his followers having dwindled, but his core strength was still mostly present! It was as though the battle was just to weed out the weaker people, sharpening the rest present into the best fighting force! What a precise calculation by the enemy!
Why did they do so?
The answer went without saying!
This whole ploy was meant to drive DongFang JingLei to become a desperate and crazed tiger, whose fangs and claws would be put to face the Eastern Zhao Imperial Family, causing their internal state of affairs to be destroyed! Eastern Zhao would have to pay a huge price, even if they managed to protect their stability!
However, the DongFang JingLei right now did not notice this point at all, because he was severely injured, and because he witnessed with his own eyes over 800 of his men laying down their lives in front of him. In his ears, he could still constantly hear their final screams of death! He definitely would not be merciful towards his opponents.
"Since that's the case, what do you want to do next?" Ling Tian only smiled. Since Xiao YanXue was by his side, there were some words that Ling Tian did not want to say, nor could he. Besides, the purpose of the Xiao Family was the same as Ling Tian's goal, which was to create a rift between the DongFang family and DongFang JingLei himself! The only difference in the way they went about doing it was that Ling Tian threw a huge fire by sending his army over to the Eastern Zhao imperial court, and the Xiao Family instead carved a bloody line inside DongFang JingLei's heart!
No matter the method, both would lead to the same ending!
Based on Ling Tian's point of view, this method was perfectly done! Not only was the wound exquisitely cut, it was also perfectly done so! Right now, Ling Tian initially was thinking how to utilize his fire, but now with his bloody scar, he could just scatter some salt inside, and allow DongFang JingLei to take the final step of no return!
To think there would come a day where I would work together with Xiao FengHan!
Nature messes with Man, Heaven makes a fool of Man!
As the person observing from outside the situation, he immediately saw that such a plan could only be orchestrated by Xiao FengYang, the strategist of the Xiao Family. Furthermore, once the Eastern Zhao boiled with internal strife, the Xiao Family could take advantage of this matter to swallow the country whole!
Earlier on, they were still discussing a marriage alliance, but now that the Ling and Yu Families have made a move, the Xiao Family immediately came to this conclusion! This made Ling Tian's heart feel slightly cold.
But Ling Tian was confident that with him around, while the Eastern Zhao might still fall into a mess, the Xiao Family would not be able to obtain anything in return!
"Brother Ling! I require your aid! Only you can help me now!" DongFang JingLei panted roughly, his expression one of extreme agitation! "I cannot allow my loyal brothers who chose to follow me to all die one by one for nothing! I wish to turn his situation around. If you weren't around, I might be indecisive, but with your help, what can I not accomplish?!"
"Turn this situation around? How do you want to turn it? What are your ideas?" Ling Tian grabbed DongFang JingLei's right hand, lightly sending out a stream of thick true energy, relieving the clots in his meridians.
"I've decided, that I want to be the Family Head of the DongFang Family! Only by having the entire DongFang family within the palm of a person's hand can all this be prevented. If not, this situation will spiral downwards and out of control! I have a responsibility to be worthy of my brothers!" DongFang JingLei glanced at him with a look of gratitude, with saying in a steely voice.
"But right now, your ability and strength cannot match up to DongFang JingTian! So what if I aid you, and why should I even help you? Do not think that I'm being arrogant here. I need a reason, a reason to fully support you!" Ling Tian coldly replied. "You do not even possess the power to talk on the same level as your elder brother right now, not to mention fighting for Family Head! If you need my assistance, then you need to provide me a reason!"
DongFang JingLei furiously replied, "In the capital, inside our family, there are definitely people who are still loyal to me! Of course, I might not have as much as my brother does, but they're by no means weak! If I want to go for a life and death struggle, even my brother will have to take me seriously! As such, he can only resort of killing me in the dark when I'm outside, and not face me in the open! With your strength, I believe…"
"Wrong!" Ling Tian immediately disrupted his words, interrupting in an indifferent voice, "If it was purely about your family, the matters would be so much simpler! Now your family has already been muddled with the Eastern Zhao Imperial Court, and your brother has surely allied with the Eastern Zhao Imperial Court. Comparing both, your strength is in the definite losing end, almost to the point that it can be overlooked! At the crucial fight, the Eastern Zhao Imperial Court would definitely participate. Can you fend them off? And will those forces loyal to you inside help you in resisting against the very Kingdom?!"