DD Spiritual Sword [508-509] (Patreon)

Chapter 508: The Operation Begins

"Someone who both wants to wipe out the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and wants even more to wipe out the Clear Sky Sect, yet isn't that close to the Grandmaster." Yin Yang rubbed his chin, thought for a moment, and, with his knack for gathering intelligence, quickly ran through everyone around the Grandmaster. At last he smiled. "So that's it. The Defense Clan. They bear grudges against our sect, Spirit Hall, and the Clear Sky Sect, but their grudge against us is the lightest. After all, that Old Sword killing Niu Gao was a mistake; the true culprit was Tang Hao. If they had to choose which sect to exterminate—us or the Clear Sky Sect—they'd pick the Clear Sky Sect."

"Rest easy. Leave everything to me." Yin Yang accepted the order and left.

…

Three days passed quickly. 

The Grandmaster finally set his plan in motion. Unfortunately, as the national tutor, he was guarded too tightly. Even Liu Erlong, a Soul Douluo, stuck to him like a shadow. Unless Bai He came in person, even the Speed Clan could only watch from outside; slipping into his residence to snoop was truly difficult.

But Bai He had other matters to attend to. He had rushed to the empire's border regions to gather intelligence on the continental war and the Spirit Empire. Ning Fengzhi's emphasis on intelligence was always S-tier.

If the Speed Clan's agents couldn't find anything, the Clear Sky Sect certainly couldn't either. Though Tang Xiao was powerful, intelligence work wasn't his specialty. As a result, they had no idea to whom the Grandmaster had handed his second letter.

Tang San was indeed very important to the Grandmaster, a figure who could validate his theories. If Tang San were still alive, the Grandmaster would even be willing to sacrifice his life to save him, because his Ten Great Core Spirit Competencies would at least have an heir. But since Tang San was already dead, wanting revenge didn't mean he would throw his own life away. Before seeing his Ten Great Core Spirit Competencies flourish, he neither wanted to die nor could he.

The first letter went out. A Soul King with a flying-type beast martial soul carried the Grandmaster's letter and Elder Token toward Spirit Hall.

But he had flown less than a 50 km from Heaven Dou City when a bolt of lightning cut him off—Thunder Eagle Douluo Yin Yang. For the plan to proceed smoothly, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would dispatch four Titled Douluo in total; he was one of them.

Faced with a Titled Douluo, a mere Soul King had no chance to resist. Lightning pierced his heart, and Yin Yang successfully took the letter before rushing back to the sect.

Ning Fengzhi examined the letter. The Grandmaster was not foolish. In it he said he planned to seek revenge alone for his disciple, knowing he would surely die. He was writing to bid Bibi Dong farewell. Every word was heartfelt, repeatedly expressing his deep hope that they could be husband and wife in the next life. From beginning to end, there wasn't a single line asking Bibi Dong to avenge him.

Indeed, for love-brained Bibi Dong, a letter like this would hit hardest.

"What a pity about Yu Xiaogang. If only his strength were a bit higher—paired with these formidable flirting skills—he could definitely start a harem." Ning Fengzhi smiled faintly. "Someone, imitate Yu Xiaogang's handwriting and copy this letter exactly to deliver to Bibi Dong. Remember, don't get a single character wrong. Afterward we can even use it as teaching material for flirting in the sect. For the sect to endure, we need more marriages!"

Yin Yang was puzzled. "Wait, Fengzhi—if you're going to copy it exactly in his handwriting, why did you have me snatch this letter back in the first place?"

"Grandpa Eagle, even if the handwriting looks the same and the content is the same, some people can still tell who wrote it. You can imitate the script, but not the habits," Tianlin answered in Ning Fengzhi's stead.

"Xiao Tian is absolutely right. When people in high positions write, to prevent forgery they include a small personal habit—say, slightly adjusting the length of a stroke in a common character, or tightening the hook a touch. Especially a theorist like the Grandmaster—when publishing his results, he would certainly cultivate such habits to prevent others from impersonating him and claiming his work." Ning Fengzhi explained. As a sect master, he knew these tricks all too well.

Even if someone could mimic his penmanship and tone, noticing that nuance would be difficult.

Before long, when a new letter reached Yin Yang's hands, he understood.

On the surface, the two letters were identical. But on close inspection, in every instance of the character "of," the Grandmaster's last hook stroke subconsciously drew back slightly.

In the forged letter, some hooks drew back, some didn't, and some only barely did—because the copyist, not being the Grandmaster himself, found it very hard to reproduce this habit perfectly.

As the Grandmaster's former lover, Bibi Dong would certainly know this.

When she saw this fake letter, she would conclude that someone was using the Grandmaster to provoke conflict between her and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. If the Grandmaster then met with misfortune, the one stirring the pot would be the murderer. Combined with the Grandmaster's second letter in his own hand, the Clear Sky Sect wouldn't be able to deny it.

Ning Fengzhi casually dispatched a man, carrying the forged letter and the Grandmaster's Elder Token, to deliver them to the Spirit Empire.

At the same time, he had someone imitate his own script to send a letter inviting Yu Yuanzhen to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect for a talk. He also had someone imitate Yu Yuanzhen's handwriting to write a letter to the Grandmaster—but this letter didn't need the Grandmaster to see it; it was only to erase the final trace of suspicion.

…

Elsewhere, the Grandmaster was preparing to head up Seven Treasure Mountain. As the sect's seat, the mountain had many villages at its foot, and the mountain path wasn't sealed. He didn't need to hide his movements; he could stride in openly under everyone's gaze.

Of course, he wouldn't enter the sect grounds—going in would be a death sentence. He only needed to reach halfway up, then wait for Tang Xiao to quietly extract him.

To vanish without a trace on Seven Treasure Mountain, plus the letter he'd written to Bibi Dong in his own hand, would naturally make people suspect he'd gone to seek revenge and been silenced by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Then the enraged Bibi Dong might throw caution to the wind and strike the sect, leading both sides to bleed—goal achieved.

As soon as he left, a streak of light slipped into his residence and placed a letter imitating Yu Yuanzhen's script on his desk. The visitor was Gu Rong. No matter how strong the residence's guard was, they couldn't possibly detect a Level 97 Super Douluo who was adept at spatial abilities.

After leaving the letter, Gu Rong didn't linger. He followed covertly to protect the Grandmaster. After all, the Chrysanthemum Douluo still lurked in the shadows, eyeing the chance to seize Yu Xiaogang. Gu Rong didn't know when that Chrysanthemum Douluo had joined the Evil Sword Immortal, but he could not allow him to ruin their plan.

If Chrysanthemum Douluo appeared, Gu Rong had already decided to kill him with his own hands.

Finally, there was Tang Xiao. He and the Grandmaster had agreed on a time to act together. But he wouldn't make it to Seven Treasure Mountain. Mid-flight, two figures blocked his path.

"Tang Xiao, Sect Master of the Clear Sky Sect—greetings. First time meeting. Allow me to introduce myself: I'm Jun Tianlin, Vice Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. This is our elder, the Dragon Duke. We've been waiting here for quite some time." Tianlin smiled at Tang Xiao.

"Jun Tianlin!" At the name, Tang Xiao's pupils constricted. "Why are you here?"

"You and Tang Yuehua bent over backwards to make our sect and the Spirit Empire go to war early. How could I let you succeed? I'm here today for only one thing: to borrow a little something from you," Tianlin said.

Hearing this, Tang Xiao felt a jolt—his plan had leaked. He didn't know how, but he could not allow the two in front of him to leave alive, or everything would fall apart.

"What is it?" Tang Xiao edged closer, hands behind his back. Soul power surged between his palms. A small hammer was rapidly growing.

Chapter 509: Tianlin vs. Tang Xiao

Sensing the killing intent pouring off Tang Xiao, Tianlin only smiled faintly, unafraid. "Sect Master Tang, I need a bit of your blood. If you hand it over now, you can walk away immediately. We don't have to kill you today. You are, after all, a major combat power—if you die too early, the Spirit Empire benefits."

"Hmph. Two ordinary Titled Douluo, talking like you can kill me whenever you want. In front of me, you won't even have a chance to use your Sword Dao of Annihilation. Take this—Nine Absolutes of the Clear Sky: Shock!" At the closest moment, Tang Xiao struck in fury, opening with the Nine Absolutes. He didn't know Ring Detonation or the Great Sumeru Hammer; the Nine Absolutes were his specialty.

Though he belittled Tianlin aloud, he remembered Tianlin's instant kill of the Seventh Elder. That Sword Dao of Annihilation might be even more terrifying than the Great Sumeru Hammer. He had to end this quickly and never let Tianlin unleash that move.

"Seems you're underestimating me—thinking I can only show off with the Sword Dao of Annihilation." Tianlin raised his arm and punched the Clear Sky Hammer head-on.

Boom! 

The sky thundered as if with an earthquake; even the air trembled. But Tianlin's body didn't budge.

By contrast, Tang Xiao was blasted backward.

"Impossible!" Tang Xiao stared in disbelief. Meeting the Clear Sky Hammer head-on with flesh alone—no one in a hundred years of history had ever done such a thing.

"Tang Xiao, do you know how my grandmaster died? He fought the Ultimate Douluo Qian Daoliu, unleashing nine 'Kill' characters of the Slaughter Sword Dao. Qian Daoliu killed my grandmaster solely with the force of rebound. I can do the same now," Tianlin said confidently. "If you don't believe me, use all nine of your Clear Sky Absolutes."

"Arrogant! That only proves your Seven Kill Sword lineage's martial soul is lacking. Don't forget—the Clear Sky Hammer is the number one tool martial soul in the world. How could it be compared to your petty Seven Kill Sword?" Tang Xiao roared.

At that, Tianlin's good temper vanished. "Insult my lineage, will you, you wretch? Then come try me."

Tang Xiao wasted no more words and continued his ferocious assault with the Nine Absolutes.

After Shock came Void, Seal, Pierce, Penetrate, Bind, Break, Slay, and Collapse in turn. The Clear Sky Sect's secret art truly deserved its reputation. Tianlin had to admit the Nine Absolutes were a hair superior to the Seven Kill Sword Dao—of course, compared to the Sword Dao of Annihilation, they were in a different league. If he used it, Tang Xiao would already be ash.

Bang, bang, bang…

Explosions boomed across the sky. Below, the Dragon Duke watched raptly. A battle between Super Douluo was enough to benefit even a newly advanced Level 91 Titled Douluo like him immensely.

It was just a pity the fight wasn't that fierce—completely one-sided—so he didn't learn as much as he'd hoped.

With only his right arm, Tianlin received all of Tang Xiao's Nine Absolutes, perfectly recreating Qian Daoliu's legendary suppression of Chen Jianjun.

At this point, Tang Xiao's internal organs were grievously injured, soul power raging out of control. Though he launched every strike, the force rebounding from Tianlin was enough to kill him outright.

If not for his deep cultivation and his soul power forcibly suppressing the damage, his meridians would already have snapped, leaving him dead.

"What's the matter—done already? And this is your so-called number one tool martial soul? Aside from Tang Chen, the rest of you are mediocre. You, Tang Xiao, are at best passable. With hundreds upon hundreds of direct disciples, how many of you make Titled Douluo? As for Super Douluo—just you and your brother Tang Hao."

"By contrast, in the Seven Kill Sword line—my master Chen Xin, my grandmaster Chen Jianjun, and my great-grandmaster Chen Xun—the weakest is Level 97. Aside from numbers, in what can the Clear Sky Sect claim superiority over the Seven Kill Sword?" Tianlin mocked.

With that, Tianlin pointed as a sword and slashed out a blade of qi, striking Tang Xiao square in the chest.

The injuries Tang Xiao had been suppressing erupted under that strike. He spat a mouthful of blood. Seeing this, Tianlin flicked a sausage from his robes to catch the blood—one of Oscar's Mirror Sausages he'd requested beforehand.

"Terrifying. I didn't expect the vice sect master to have reached such heights. Even Qian Daoliu might not beat him one-on-one," the Dragon Duke marveled. "A title is only the beginning of the path of the strong. I truly was a frog at the bottom of a well."

He had only just broken through to Titled Douluo and thought himself an apex expert. Lately he hadn't trained half as hard as before. But looking at Tianlin now, he feared that even if Tianlin didn't use a martial soul, he himself wouldn't last a single move.

"Tang Xiao, any last words?" Tianlin didn't actually dislike Tang Xiao. They were enemies only by position, much like with Tang Chen. He could allow a few dying words.

Tang Xiao glanced at him. "Jun Tianlin, your strength truly shocks me. At this point I ought to say, 'If you want to kill me, kill me.' But I beg you—spare me for now. If you want me dead, once I handle some affairs, I will come seek you of my own accord."

"And here I thought a Clear Sky Sect Master would be someone of character. Turns out you're just a coward afraid of death," the Dragon Duke jeered.

"Don't say that, Senior Dragon Duke," Tianlin stayed him. "He's not begging for himself but for the Clear Sky Sect—for his duty as sect master. If he dies at my hands here, the Clear Sky Sect will throw everything into war against us. But he can see my strength clearly now. The Clear Sky Sect wouldn't have even the slightest chance. With our two sects so close, I alone could wipe them out."

"So, to protect his sect, he has to go back and issue the order that the Clear Sky Sect must no longer oppose us—and to order that Tang Chen be found at any cost. Only with Tang Chen's return would they stand a chance against us. He is a good sect master."

"As expected of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's vice sect master—you can think from a sect master's perspective. You are completely right." Tang Xiao suddenly knelt to Tianlin. "So I beg you—give me three days. I'll pull the Clear Sky Sect back into seclusion and order them never to oppose you again. Three days later, I will come to accept my death. This is my price for three days of life."

Tang Xiao took a bundle from his chest. Tianlin sensed extraordinary fire and ice within and drew it over with soul power, opening it.

"The Sunshine Crystal Essence and the Coldheart Ice Essence!" Tianlin was startled. He hadn't expected Tang Xiao to have such treasures. A pleasant surprise indeed.

"Tang Xiao, these are excellent—more than enough to buy your life. I'll let you go, and you needn't come back to die. But you schemed against our sect; you can't go unpunished. Forget seclusion—you won't escape this time. Prepare to go to war with the Spirit Empire ahead of schedule." Tianlin waved him off. He hadn't intended to kill Tang Xiao anyway. If the Clear Sky Sect fell too fast, it wouldn't be any fun.

Tang Xiao understood. Their plot against the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had not only been exposed, it had been turned against them. The Grandmaster was as good as dead, and the blame would certainly land on them.

There was nothing he could do about it. He could only accept his fate.

He no longer thought of revenge. He only wanted to hurry back and make all preparations to resist the Spirit Empire's coming assault.

Once Tang Xiao was gone, Tianlin moved to the final step—sending Yu Xiaogang to his death. The problem was the Mirror Sausage in his hand, now smeared with Tang Xiao's blood. He really didn't want to eat it. After all, the blood had been coughed up by someone else; he feared he'd gag.

Luckily, he'd come prepared.

"Senior Dragon Duke, look—there are a bunch of Ma Hongjuns flying in the sky!" Tianlin suddenly shouted, pointing upward.

"Where?" The Dragon Duke reflexively looked up. In that instant, a blood-smeared sausage, by an incredible coincidence, dropped right into his mouth.