Chapter 316 : Mu Chen's Unbending Will (3)
All the disciples of the Qing Yun Clan knew that if they ended up in the Hidden Cloud Peak, that would also mean the end of their lives.
But the disciples of the Cloud Treading Peak reacted differently. They knew that only death awaited them if they were to go to the Hidden Cloud Peak, but in order to prevent Qin Yue from having an excuse to lay hands on Mu Chen, they chose to sacrifice themselves and protect Mu Chen!
It made one wonder just how highly revered Mu Chen was to his disciples that they were willing to disregard their own safety and giving up their own lives for him.
Jun Wu Xie observed all this without a word and her gaze turned to Mu Chen.
The disciples were willing to die for him, what would he do?
Mu Chen grabbed Rong Heng and the other disciple and pushed them behind him before saying to Hua Yao: "I will not allow you to take a single disciple from the Cloud Treading Peak. If you insist, you will have to do it over my dead body! Please leave, Elder Ke. Go to Qin Yue if you please, or do whatever you please in the Qing Yun Clan, but I, Mu Chen will remain here, standing against you. I have said my piece, as long as I am still the Elder of the Cloud Treading Peak as the master of these disciples, nobody can force my disciples to do anything against their will!"
Mu Chen did not wait for Hua Yao to reply and just turned, pushing his disciples back. He had made his stand clear and his disciples are not to be preyed upon!
"I feel like I can grow to like Mu Chen, he's much better than those pompous hypocrites in the other peaks." Qiao Chu watched Mu Chen leave with his disciples, giving him two thumbs up in his heart for his righteousness.
"That personality of Mu Chen would have gotten himself killed if I was the real Ke Cang Ju." Hua Yao got rid of his sinister expression and reverted to his usual calm.
"Dragons have scales that go against the grain, and so do humans. Mu Chen puts up with all the oppression thrown at him but if someone presses the wrong buttons, he would not tolerate it anymore." Jun Wu Xie was glad that Mu Chen had reacted in the way he did. If Mu Chen had acted just like the other Elders and allowed Hua Yao to bring their disciples away, she would not have considered working with him at all.
"This thing here, do I still hide it in the Cloud Treading Peak?" Qiao Chu asked, holding a little cloth bag in his hand.
Jun Wu Xie shook her head.
"We need to sit down and talk to Mu Chen. A real discussion." Jun Wu Xie said.
"That is provided Mu Chen is still willing to see us. Seeing his reaction earlier, he looked like he was about to kill Brother Hua." Qiao Chu did not think there was any chance of them sitting down and holding a civil conversation.
"He will see us." Jun Wu Xie assured.
"You have a plan?" Hua Yao turned to Jun Xie, feeling that the little kid had no end to ingenious ideas in his head.
Jun Wu Xie waved Hua Yao over, and Hua Yao pushed his ear over.
Soft words were whispered into his ear.
Hua Yao's eyes sparkled and said: "This might just work."
Moments later, Hua Yao and his disciples remained in the Cloud Treading Peak despite the earlier repeated requests for them to leave by Mu Chen. They started roaming around within the peak and the Cloud Treading Peak disciples thought they had left. They went about with their routine tasks and did not think that.....
Mu Chen sat within his study, his face dark, and his clenched fists thumped hard on the table! He clenched his jaw as he stared at the securely locked doors before him, his eyes raging with hatred that threatened to explode.
Suddenly, Rong Heng stormed in in a fluster.
"Elder Mu! Elder Ke has kidnapped Little Lin back to the Hidden Cloud Peak!"
Mu Chen stood up suddenly and his chair crashed back onto the floor, utter disbelief in his eye.
Ke Cang Ju had carried it too far!
"Keep all the other disciples within the Cloud Treading Peak and do not allow them to step out! I am going to the Hidden Cloud Peak!" Mu Chen gritted his teeth. He had not thought that Ke Cang Ju could be so despicable in the face of his clear refusal. Ke Cang Ju had deigned to ignore him completely and forcefully abducted one of the Cloud Treading Peak's disciples!
Mu Chen could not make himself hold back any longer, the long years of suppression on served to fuel the fire that raged within his chest that was about to spew forth. After giving Rong Heng some instructions, he rushed to the Hidden Cloud Peak in the shortest time possible!
If Ke Cang Ju dared to harm a hair on his disciple, he will bury the whole of the Hidden Cloud Peak together with him!
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Chapter 317 : Sheep Turned Predator (1)
In the Hidden Cloud Peak, Qiao Chu looked at the Cloud Treading Peak disciple lying on the floor that he had knocked out unwillingly.
"I think, when Mu Chen see this, Mu Chen's first reaction will definitely be to charge at us, with flaming swords in hand, and not to..... sit down and talk things through." Qiao Chu had thought that Jun Xie had come up with another ingenious idea, but it had turned out to be just a simple and brutal abduction!
Just grab any Cloud Treading Peak disciple and knock him out before bringing him back. What kind of a plan was that!?
They wanted to work with Mu Chen, and not to make him hate them more right?
"Relax, with his disciple in our hands, he would not do anything rash." Jun Wu Xie sat on one side, sipping at her tea calmly.
Qiao Chu just felt like crying at that moment. He had become a kidnapper! Little Xie had shown himself to possess a quick and meticulous mind, was he turning into a serial offender.....
"He might not be rash and take any drastic actions, but would he even cooperate with us after this?" Without even exchanging a single word about working together, they had surreptitiously abducted Mu Chen's disciple. Although the reason for that was just to make Mu Chen come to them, but the method employed might be a little too brutal.
"He will, as long as we share the same objective." Jun Wu Xie was perfectly confident of it.
After just a while, shouts sounded from the courtyard outside and the locked door was heavily kicked wide open. A furious Mu Chen stood staring at "Ke Cang Ju" within the room, his eyes calling for murder. His gaze quickly swung to the unconscious disciple lying on the ground at the side and quickly scanned his body for any wounds, heaving an obvious sigh of relief when he did not see any.
"Ke Cang Ju! What are you up to!? Release my disciple at once!" Mu Chen shouted, his ring spirit summoned, into a sharp sword gripped in his hand.
But Mu Chen had not expected that "Ke Cang Ju" would just remain silent, and the reply actually came from the youth he had first chosen to be accepted into the Cloud Treading Peak instead.
"Elder Mu, we have your disciple in our hands. If you do not want anything to happen to him, you had better do as we say." Jun Wu Xie raised to eyes to throw her icy gaze threateningly on Mu Chen.
Qiao Chu almost choked in surprise. Even Jun Xie's words had sounded exactly like a bandit's!
Mu Chen stared in rage and frustration at Jun Wu Xie. His rage was towards his helplessness against the situation, and his frustration was directed more at the drastic change he saw in Jun Xie.
When he had first seen the petite youth, Mu Chen had been awed by Jun Xie's precise diagnosis and proposed treatment. He had greatly anticipated that the youth could join the Cloud Treading Peak as a disciple, but alas, fate had been cruel and Jun Xie had been forcibly taken by Ke Cang Ju.
In the first few days, he had been worried for Jun Xie, afraid that the prodigious petite youth would suffer under the tormenting hand of Ke Cang Ju. But before long, Ke Cang Ju had brought Jun Xie and another disciple to frequently go around the various peaks. That was when Mu Chen realised that his worry had been unfounded. Ke Cang Ju might be malicious and cruel, but the petite youth's knowledge in Medicine was rare and extremely hard to come by. It was a relief that even Ke Cang Ju would hesitate to destroy a genius that had joined the Qing Yun Clan.
Nevertheless, Mu Chen had never thought that after Jun Xie was accepted as a disciple of Ke Cang Ju, he even managed to gain his trust. Recently, he had actually grown to be like Ke Cang Ju in manners, and learnt to use threats.
Mu Chen was deeply saddened at that moment. The youth should have excelled in Medicine but had instead been twisted by Ke Cang Ju into such a pitiable state. His hatred for Ke Cang Ju deepened, and he bemoaned the "change" that had come over Jun Xie.
"Jun Xie, do you really know what kind of a person you are following? Ke Cang Ju is a demon! How many in the Qing Yun Clan have died under those hands!? Do not persist in your depravation! You are still very young and you have a long road ahead of you!" Mu Chen persuaded as he remembered the very good and lasting impression the youth had left on him the first time, and also due to his guilt of his inability to rescue Jun Xie from Ke Cang Ju, and he could not help but to attempt to pull the youth back from the abyss.
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Chapter 318 : Sheep Turned Predator (2)
Qiao Chu was having a such a hard time keeping himself from laughing out loud that he even had a ridiculous notion that he was about to die from holding it in.
Mu Chen actually still think that Jun Xie was just a blind sheep led astray by the insidious "Ke Cang Ju"!? My God! Wake up and open your eyes! That sheep swallows its enemies whole!
Jun Wu Xie ignored Mu Chen well intentioned persuasion and shot Qiao Chu a frosty glance, who was still suffering from trying to hold his mirth in, and Qiao Chu immediately whipped out his dagger and pressed it against the neck of the unconscious disciple on the floor.
"Now, close the door." Jun Wu Xie narrowed her eyes as she shot the command at Mu Chen.
Mu Chen sighed sadly, looking in disbelief at Jun Wu Xie and closed the door after a while.
"Sit." Jun Wu Xie then said curtly.
Mu Chen's face darkened and his gaze shifted to the silent Hua Yao, as in his eyes, Jun Wu Xie's actions were all due to "Ke Cang Ju's" instructions.
"Ke Cang Ju, release my disciple now. Direct all your wrath on me instead."
".........." Hua Yao shrugged, proclaiming innocence, as he had not spoken a word.
"Mu Chen, you hate Qin Yue?" Jun Wu Xie asked suddenly.
Mu Chen's eyes turned cold, and he bit his lip, remaining silent.
"If you are presented with an opportunity to exact revenge for your mercilessly murdered father, what would you do?" Jun Wu Xie continued.
Mu Chen's eyes showed confusion. He had no idea where Jun Xie's words were leading to. Was it a plot by Ke Cang Ju? What was Ke Cang Ju really after?
"Ke Cang Ju! Spit it out if you have something to say! Do not play games with me!" Mu Chen said furiously.
".........." Hua Yao turned his head away from Mu Chen, refusing to give Mu Chen any acknowledgement.
Why was it that when Jun Xie was the one speaking but the blame had instead fallen on him!?
"Ke Cang Ju!" Mu Chen stood up in fury. "I know that Qin Yue had always wanted to get rid of me. You had helped him with the murder of my father then. If you intend to take me out here today for Qin Yue, come at me! I will not run, but this has nothing to do with my disciple! Release him!"
Hua Yao took a deep breath and looked at the fuming Mu Chen, and without even bothering to change his voice, he said: "Stupid, do you still not understand?"
"??? What?" Mu Chen was stunned. Ke Cang Ju's voice had sounded totally different from his usual one, it had been crisp and clear, and sounded nothing like the voice of a middle aged man, but like that of a exuberant youth, full of vigor.
"It wasn't my idea to make you come here today, and it wasn't Qin Yue, but the boy standing before you!" Hua Yao raised his hand and pointed, right at the nose of Jun Xie.
Jun Wu Xie stood unmoving in the path of the pointing finger and nodded nonchalantly.
Mu Chen grew more shocked, as he looked at Jun Xie in confusion, unable to link the events unfolding before him to the young boy that had just been admitted into the Qing Yun Clan for barely a month.
This young boy was the one responsible for the abduction of his disciple?
The boy was the one who was forced to come to the Hidden Cloud Peak?
But why?
Mu Chen could not figure it out at all. Why had Jun Xie had done all this? He had only met the boy once before this. Why was Jun Xie making such a big show out of it all?
What further confused him was ..... When did "Ke Cang Ju" turn so mild tempered, that he would allow a disciple to create such a ruckus before himself?
"What is going on?" Mu Chen did not understand what was going on.
"I want the Qing Yun Clan to disappear from the face of these lands." Jun Wu Xie said simply.
Mu Chen's eyes bulged, speechless in his disbelief, and wondering if he had just heard the words correctly.
The petite youth wanted the Qing Yun Clan obliterated!!?
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Chapter 319 : Sheep Turned Predator (3)
Mu Chen turned subconsciously to look at "Ke Cang Ju". "Ke Cang Ju" was Qin Yue's trusted right hand man, and if those words reached Qin Yue's ears, that youth would not be spared.
Surprisingly, "Ke Cang Ju" did not react, looking like those words did not concern him at all.
"Don't you want to? Exact revenge for your father? Annihilate the mighty Qing Yun Clan that had become rotted to the core?" Jun Wu Xie asked of Mu Chen.
Mu Chen turned his head to look at Jun Wu Xie, as a thought suddenly came into his head. "You are a member of the Jun Family from the Kingdom of Qi?"
"Yes."
Mu Chen finally understood why Jun Wu Xie held so much hatred for the Qing Yun Clan. News of Qin Yu Yan's and Jiang Chen Qing's demise had spread throughout the Qing Yun Clan, and though Qin Yue had not embarked on his revenge on the Kingdom of Qi, Qin Yue was determined that the Qi Kingdom must be obliterated.
Jun Xie's move against the Qing Yun Clan must have been brought on by the need to protect the Jun Family.
"Aren't you being a little too bold? If Qin Yue find out about your background, you will never be able to leave these peaks." Mu Chen said worriedly. He felt no enmity against Jun Xie but instead, just as Jun Xie said, his hatred for Qin Yue was no less than that held by Jun Xie.
Jun Wu Xie shrugged her shoulders and replied: "I've come all the way to the Qing Yun Clan and have gotten myself mired too deep into it to concern myself with that. If the Qing Yun Clan survives, it would only mean certain death for me. But I strongly believe, that I'll walk out of the Cloudy Peaks alive."
Her grandfather and uncle were still waiting for her in the Lin Palace, so she must not fail, and neither could she afford to fail!
"Ke Cang Ju and Qin Yue are on extremely good terms. Are you not afraid he will go against you?" Mu Chen insinuated strongly as he turned to observe the silent "Ke Cang Ju". "Ke Cang Ju" was giving out very different vibes at the moment, but Ke Cang Ju and Qin Yue were essentially cut from the same cloth.
He could not believe that Jun Xie could be so unconcerned with exposing all his plans right in front of "Ke Cang Ju" and that "Ke Cang Ju" had shown no reaction at all.
Jun Wu Xie's eyes chilled and she said softly: "People who are dead are unable to do anything against me."
Mu Chen stared blankly at Jun Xie, not understanding what he meant.
"I'm sorry, but I am not the Ke Cang Ju that you are referring to." Hua Yao interjected suddenly and he rolled up his sleeves. Without the cover of the sleeves, Hua Yao's unaltered skin on both his arms were glaringly exposed before Mu Chen's eyes. The smooth and fair skin on the arms contrasted greatly with the rough and wrinkled skin on his hands. The stark difference alone told Mu Chen everything.
"You are not Ke Cang Ju?" Mu Chen's voice was incredulous. He had not seen Ke Cang Ju much, but he remembered that hideous face so clearly. The man who stood before him, regardless whether in terms of countenance or body shape, looked exactly as the real Ke Cang Ju had. Mu Chen believed not even Qin Yue would be able to tell the difference.
"No." Hua Yao nodded.
"How is that possible? No technique exists in the world that could replicate a person's looks so completely!" Mu Chen could not make himself believe what he was seeing. But the fact remained that the man who was standing before him was an exact replica of Ke Cang Ju, and no matter how meticulous one was with his imitation, such a complete replication was unheard of!
"What if this happens?" Jun Wu Xie threw Hua Yao a glance and Hua Yao raised his hand right before Mu Chen's eyes. He showed his finger joints clearly to Mu Chen before he made his fingers grow by another half in length. Mu Chen's eyes widened, and he was left speechless after Hua Yao shrank his fingers back to normal.
Mu Chen could not speak for a long while as he had never met anyone who could change the structure of his bones at will.
"If you are not him, then where is the real Ke Cang Ju?" Mu Chen asked.
Jun Wu Xie raised her eyes, and said in an expressionless tone: "Dead."
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Chapter 320 : Sheep Turned Predator (4)
Mu Chen gasped deeply. When Jun Wu Xie had said "People who are dead are unable to do anything against me", he had thought of this possibility, but now that Jun Wu Xie had confirmed it, the realization that that was the truth shocked him to the bone nevertheless.
"Although Ke Cang Ju did not possess any spiritual powers, but he was highly proficient with his poisons. How did you manage to kill him?" Mu Chen was very curious. When he was younger, he had thought to kill Ke Cang Ju in revenge for his father's cold blooded murder, but Ke Cang Ju's arsenal of poisons had prevented him from carrying it out.
The Jun Xie before his eyes was only a young sprouting youth! Although he had another two people with him, but judging from the voice and the unblemished skin shown by the person who impersonated Ke Cang Ju, he should only be around Qiao Chu's age.
The widely feared and terrifying Ke Cang Ju was killed by these three young youths? It was just unbelievable.
Qiao Chu who was standing at the side smirked secretly. Ke Cang Ju was highly proficient with poison? That was before he met Jun Xie. Jun Xie's dominance over Ke Cang Ju was total and complete, without having a single hair on himself harmed!
He suddenly thought of how Ke Cang Ju had looked when he died and a chill still ran down his spine.
Jun Xie was a sheep that instead preyed on predators and did not even spit out the bones after swallowing them whole!
"How he was killed is no longer important. What's important is that he is dead, and Hua Yao here has taken his place and position as the head of the Hidden Cloud Peak." Jun Wu Xie said simply as she could not be bothered to explain in detail.
Mu Chen did not probe further. After knowing Jun Wu Xie's objective and affirming that she possessed abilities capable of getting rid of Ke Cang Ju, he had developed a certain level of trust for Jun Wu Xie.
As just for the fact that Jun Wu Xie had killed Ke Cang Ju, Jun Wu Xie had become his benefactor, who had exact revenge for his father's merciless murder on his behalf!
"Your intention to wipe out the Qing Yun Clan might not happen so easily as Qin Yue is very careful of his own protection. All the resident experts invited reside within his the Blue Cloud Peak that he commands and even if a blue leveled spirit expert attacks him, it would only bring him death. Unless you have a purple leveled spirit user with you, you would not be able to even get close to him, much less to kill him." Mu Chen's brows were furrowed. If Qin Yue could be so easily killed, he would not have had to put up with so many years of suppression.
"These all not of concern to us. The number of expert exponents present would not change anything in our plans." Qiao Chu grumbled from the side. Even Ke Cang Ju who was so highly proficient in poison had crumbled before Jun Xie without him needing to raise a single blade. How difficult could it be to take on the all brawn and no brains experts?
Mu Chen turned to Qiao Chu, staring at the dagger still pressed against the neck of his disciple, and his face darkened immediately.
"Since our goals are in tandem, can you release my disciple now?" Mu Chen asked through gritted teeth.
Qiao Chu did not move, but turned his head to Jun Xie. Only after Jun Xie had nodded, did Qiao Chu sheath his dagger and picked the unconscious disciple up carrying him upon his shoulder to go out the door. He then dropped the disciple unceremoniously upon the ground.
Mu Chen's mouth twitched, but he did not say anything.
"You do not need to do anything to have Qin Yue killed, I will handle that. Even for the annihilation of the Qing Yun Clan, there is not much that you need to do. You will only need to fan the emotions of the other Elders into a frenzy, and that will be enough." Jun Wu Xie said slowly. With Hua Yao's perfect impersonation of Ke Cang Ju, he had saved them a lot of effort and she did not need to execute the plans she initially had with Mu Chen anymore.
Getting Mu Chen involved would smoothen the progress of their ploy, and it was because Mu Chen's Cloud Treading Peak was the only saving grace that had remained clean within the thoroughly rotted Qing Yun Clan. Jun Wu Xie's plan might have been to wipe out the whole Qing Yun Clan, but she held her principles near. She would not harm the innocents.