Chapter 773: You Just Need to Be the Muscle

"Was it worth it?" Niu Youdao stood leaning on his sword and laughed at himself. "Maybe it's because I'm not of this world."

Wu Zhaoxing suddenly said, "This is the Tiandu Secret Realm. None of us are of this world."

Whatever his reasons for following Niu Youdao before, Wu Zhaoxing now felt a little admiration for him. Faced with a temptation involving life and death, the man could still hold to his bottom line. For someone who had already reached Niu Youdao's position, that was genuinely rare. The sacrifice was simply too great.

Niu Youdao smiled faintly. He knew Wu Zhaoxing had misunderstood what he meant.

Yun Huan sighed. In his view, forcing oneself into a dead end over a woman like that was truly not worth it. She was only a woman meant for a marriage of convenience. If she had to be killed, then kill her. What was there to hesitate over? But matters had already reached this point. Saying more was meaningless.

Wu Zhaoxing looked back and asked, "What was that business with Yan Baoru? First you tried to pull her over, then you rejected her."

Niu Youdao said, "I still can't be completely certain whether that woman is friend or foe. But after probing her a little, I have a rough idea now. She should be here because of me. I can't think of any reason she would want to help me, so there's a greater chance she's an enemy."

The others exchanged looks. Only now did they realize that the whole exchange in which he had first invited her and then pushed her away had been a test.

Wu Zhaoxing said, "You don't know whether she's friend or foe, which means the two of you have no personal grudge. Then who sent her?"

"So many people want me dead. How would I know who sent her?" Niu Youdao replied. "I only know she's ranked above you on the Golden Core Ranking, so we'd better keep our distance from her." He glanced back in the direction they had come from. "Whether she's here to help me or kill me, she's here because of me. I'm afraid she'll come looking for me again. Everyone stay alert."

Wu Zhaoxing said, "I've never fought her. With me beside you, she won't dare act rashly. Otherwise, now that Yan's three major sects have made their position clear and she has nothing left to fear from them, she would have followed us directly long ago."

The implication seemed to be that although his ranking was lower than Yan Baoru's, no one knew who would actually win if they fought.

Yun Ji said, "If she really comes after us, leave her to me. I'd like to see just how capable the woman ranked second on the Golden Core Ranking truly is."

Wu Zhaoxing looked surprised and instinctively glanced at Yun Ji. Yun Ji happened to look toward him at the same moment, and their gazes met.

Receiving that look, Wu Zhaoxing felt as though those words had also contained a warning to him not to try anything reckless.

Niu Youdao was surprised as well. He had not expected Yun Ji to volunteer to fight Yan Baoru. He could not help smiling. It seemed this snake demon had some confidence in herself. Otherwise, she would never have said such a thing. For him, that was naturally good news.

Yun Huan was equally surprised. Ever since his mother handed the affairs of Duyun Mountain over to him, she had not taken the initiative like this in many years.

But he quickly understood. His mother had remained hidden for years and was finally close to fulfilling her long-held wish. She was unwilling to die here. If she did not do everything she could to make sure Niu Youdao returned safely, she would never be able to withstand the contingency Niu Youdao had left behind. Once the secret leaked, the nine supreme experts beneath Heaven would hunt her to the ends of the earth and never let her go. At this point, she had no choice but to take the initiative.

Yun Ji quickly brushed the matter aside. "Yan Baoru is only part of the process. For you, Niu Youdao, she isn't the outcome. The process doesn't matter. We can deal with her if we meet her. The outcome you truly need to face is taking first place."

"Mm." Niu Youdao nodded. "That makes sense. What brilliant advice do you have?"

"Two roads lie before you. First, contact Chu Fengping and admit your mistake. Faced with interests that enormous, he'll forgive you. The situation can still be salvaged. If you go back, you can also deal with those three traitors. Even I want to kill those three little bitches."

Niu Youdao said, "They're clinging to life any way they can, and aren't I doing the same? We have no hatred between us. There's no point quibbling with them. I'll simply treat it as losing three burdens. Yun Ji, the first road isn't one I can take either. Tell me about the second."

"Do I even need to say it? It's right in front of you. Stop wasting time. Everyone will have to work harder. We need to hurry and search for Spirit Seeds. Hopefully your luck is good enough to find an entire forest of Spirit Trees and gather enough Spirit Seeds to get past Sha Rulai!"

Niu Youdao said, "With only the few of us, how much can we possibly find? We could run our legs off and still not gather much. The chances of taking first place are tiny. That's a foolish method. Not worth considering."

Yun Ji said, "Then give me a clever one."

Niu Youdao rested both hands on his sword and tapped it against the ground several times. Looking up at the sky, he sighed and muttered to himself, "Wouldn't it be much easier to take what's already been gathered? Better to rob people."

"Rob people?" Yun Huan looked speechless and pointed at the four of them. "With just us? You want to rob people? You're already too busy avoiding the various factions. You still dare deliver yourself to their doors?"

"What else are we supposed to do?" Niu Youdao replied. "There are some things hard work simply can't solve. Don't tell me you truly believe we can take first place just by searching diligently. Better to look for people than trees."

Yun Ji asked, "Look for people? You already have a plan?"

"I wouldn't call it a plan. Either we find people and rob them, or we unite everyone who can possibly be united. Strength comes with numbers. Other than those two approaches, there isn't another way."

The three thought it over. That was indeed the case.

Wu Zhaoxing said, "If you want to contact more people... you could try the neutral factions."

Yun Huan nodded. "For example, Myriad Beasts Sect, Tianxing Sect, Qiyun Sect, and Ling Sect. Those four are relatively neutral."

"Myriad Beasts Sect..." Niu Youdao considered it, and Chao Jing's face flashed through his mind. With his connection to Chao Jing, Niu Youdao had already gone so far as to threaten the Demonic Sect. Naturally, he would not spare Myriad Beasts Sect. Unfortunately, his relationship with Chao Jing could only remain clandestine, and Chao Jing's disciples could not influence Myriad Beasts Sect's decisions.

If the connection could not serve any purpose now, then it was not yet time to use it. That hidden piece still had to remain concealed.

He shook his head. "Song was beaten miserably by my Nanzhou forces. Myriad Beasts Sect still needs to maintain its footing in Song, so it won't involve itself in my affairs. Qiyun Sect contacted me long ago, but I refused to give Jin Emperor Taishu Xiong face. Qiyun Sect would rather kill me than help me. Going to them would be delivering myself to death."

"Ling Sect belongs to Qi, and I don't trust that side much either. I once injured disciples of Qi's three major sects. I don't know whether Ling Sect would avoid me because of that."

"As for Tianxing Sect..." Niu Youdao sighed. "Du Yunsang, the Sect Leader of Tianxing Sect, has a wife who once fought with Hongniang over jealousy, and the whole thing became a huge scandal. With the Sect Leader's wife's face involved, why would Tianxing Sect's disciples help me? I'm not counting on it."

Yun Huan did not know what to say. "Brother Niu, you really have offended a remarkable number of people."

"Tell me about it. I didn't want to either!" Niu Youdao looked equally helpless. "Ride through the jianghu long enough and offending people is unavoidable. Sometimes you step on someone else's territory without even knowing it and suddenly you've made an enemy. Otherwise, where would the twelve people who put my name on the independent-cultivator list have come from?"

He turned his head toward Wu Zhaoxing. "Independent cultivators like you—experts with some backbone who didn't accept recruitment from the various factions—might be worth trying."

Wu Zhaoxing asked in return, "Do you think people like that have any reason to offend other factions for your sake?"

Yun Ji suddenly asked, "Wu Zhaoxing, are you truly Yan Li's friend?" Instead of helping Yan Li's side, he had come to help Niu Youdao. She had always felt something about that was wrong. The question almost seemed to ask: Aren't you afraid of offending other factions yourself?

Wu Zhaoxing replied, "I never said I was Yan Li's friend. From beginning to end, he was the one saying it." He tipped his chin toward Niu Youdao.

Mother and son both stared at Niu Youdao. They seemed to understand something, yet another question followed immediately. If Wu Zhaoxing was not Yan Li's friend, why had Yan Li helped Niu Youdao cover for him? What exactly was going on?

"The situation is complicated. It can't be explained in a few words." Niu Youdao chuckled, then sighed. "Looks like the only choice is to join forces with the overseas cultivators."

Yun Huan asked, "The people from the Four Seas don't belong to the same camp as those from the continent. Will they agree?"

"If they belonged to the same camp as the cultivators of the Seven States, why would I seek them out?" Niu Youdao replied. "Whether they agree depends on the circumstances. If I help them obtain Spirit Seeds, they shouldn't object, should they?"

Wu Zhaoxing said, "You lack Spirit Seeds yourself, yet you want to help them gather more?"

Niu Youdao teased him. "You—you've spent too many years as an independent cultivator. You don't understand these things. I'll handle the entanglement of interests. You just need to be the muscle."

Yun Huan glanced at Wu Zhaoxing's reaction. Speaking to him like that—wasn't Niu Youdao afraid this man might turn hostile?

Wu Zhaoxing showed no reaction. He merely asked, "Even the muscle needs to understand what it's doing. I can't simply let you send me to my death for no reason."

Niu Youdao raised one finger. "Interests."

Wu Zhaoxing answered tersely, "I half understand. Still don't get it."

Niu Youdao asked, "Why do all the major factions fight over Spirit Seeds?"

"Rankings. The higher the ranking, the greater the reward."

"There you have it. All the Spirit Seeds go to me. As long as they help me take first place, every reward I receive goes to them. I'm fighting to preserve my life; they're fighting for wealth. If everyone stands to benefit, why wouldn't it work?"

The three suddenly understood. Put that way, the idea genuinely seemed workable.

Yun Ji hesitated. "It's a good idea, but they may not cooperate. Will they truly risk their lives against other factions for you? And you can't guarantee that joining you will let them take first place. What if you fail to take first and end up second? You die at Misty Pavilion's hands, and the reward for second place disappears with you. Then all they can do is stare helplessly after fighting and dying for nothing."

"The risk is too great for them. If I were in their position, I wouldn't agree to cooperate with you."

"If they won't agree, we'll find a way to make them agree!" Niu Youdao said. "Now that the objective is set, we'll move toward it. If gods stand in the way, kill gods. If Buddhas stand in the way, kill Buddhas. Whoever blocks me dies!"

"Things have reached this point. I no longer have another choice. I can't keep wearing a benevolent face. This is the only road left."

Yun Ji sighed. "Then that's all we can do. But Heaven is vast and the earth is broad. Who knows where that overseas group went? Where are we supposed to find them now?"

"Someone will help us find them."

Yun Huan asked curiously, "Who?"

"With that many people from the Seven States, someone will have seen them." Seeing Yun Huan still did not understand, Niu Youdao added, "It isn't only the four of us. My situation isn't as desperate as all of you imagine. I have people among the forces of every one of the Seven States!"

[End of Chapter 773]