"No… You are too kind..." Minister Chu's heart blossomed with happiness, but his face only showed a faint smile as he said, "Brother Mo doesn't need to be that serious... just relax. I can get over this inner demon."
Mo Tian Ji sighed, [Changing from the sentiment of younger sister to the feeling of his lover... this inner demon is indeed going to be difficult to get over. I'm forcing him to do something against his will...]
Chu Yang was continually moaning and groaning in displeasure on the outside, but he was joyfully satisfied in his heart, "Will I have such an inner demon? No fu*king way… It will be bewildering if I do have it...
"Then, shall we consider this matter decided?" Chu Yang asked.
"Yes, this matter is hereby fixed!" Mo Tian Ji replied.
The two men looked at each other. Then, they reached out to shake hands.
"Brother Chu, recruiting me in the Heavenly Armament Pavilion must've been your long-term plan?" Mo Tian Ji smiled.
"Er..." Chu Yang smiled, "We can also say that both sides were willing, right?"
"Brother Chu is so careful about the Heavenly Armament Pavilion. It seems that he is ready to lead the Heavenly Armament Pavilion into the Upper Three Heavens; am I right?" The look in Mo Tian Ji's eyes was impossible to unravel.
"Let me guess… Brother Chu is recruiting me to help him in dealing with Diwu Qing Rou and Zhuge Clan; correct?" Mo Tian Ji deduced.
"That is to say, Brother Chu is ready to be enemies with Diwu Qing Rou and Zhuge Clan," Mo Tian Ji drew inference.
"But, all matters are still unclear. After all, you haven't even met the Zhuge Clan's people yet. However, you've ascertained them to be your enemy."
A bright color flashed in Mo Tian Ji's eyes. He leant closer to Chu Yang's ears, and whispered to him in a soft and nearly inaudible voice, "Brother Chu, are you the current age's Nine Tribulations Sword's Master?"
Chu Yang's complexion changed.
"Ha-ha… Let's pretend that I didn't say anything. After all, I don't know anything," Mo Tian Ji spread out his hands and laughed.
The two looked at each other, and couldn't help but laugh.
"Brother Mo, when did you start to suspect?"
"Gu Du Xing and the others… They've made a rapid progress since they've started following you. This is the first one.
"Why would Diwu Qing Rou give up on such an excellent situation of fighting a decisive battle with you, bring about his own defeat, and then flee? This is the second.
"I was checking the celestial phenomenon in the night sky of the Middle Three Heavens after Diwu Qing Rou's army got defeated. After all, I wanted to read the destiny of my Mo Clan. I had seen a gorgeous and scarlet 'fate energy' rushing towards the Upper Three Heavens at that time," Mo Tian Ji smiled, "Don't forget that I'm well-versed in the art of reading destiny. My technique is called 'Grasping the World's Destiny'.
"Third, I have already seen Gu Du Xing's sword and Dong Wu Shang's saber.
"Fourth, Little Wu's injury suddenly got cured."
Mo Tian Ji put on an honest smile. His voice again became inaudible, "Maybe I am ill-informed and narrow-minded, but I still know that there's a magical existence called… Nine Tribulations Pill.
"Fifth, my plan was to first divide the world into three warring factions. Then, I would've started the war. But, you destroyed the Meng Clan in advance. Then, you destroyed the Ou Clan as well. Then, you deliberately instigated a civil strife in the Ao Clan. And, these situations would only lead towards the unification of the world after the chaos settles down...
"I know that it is the Sword Lord's duty to conquer the world."
...
Mo Tian Ji slightly smiled and said, "So, Brother Chu, I would still have joined the Heavenly Armament Pavilion even if you hadn't used Little Wu to pressure me. Otherwise, why would I have strongly advocated that the War of the Middle Three Heavens must be led by you? Could it be that I – Mo Tian Ji – not qualified enough to be the leader?
"I'm able to strategize plans in an army tent. Could it be that I can't obtain victory out there on the battlefield… thousands of miles away?
"I know the weight of these things. So, I have been keeping them tightly sealed in my heart. I haven't mentioned to anyone."
Mo Tian Ji took the initiative and explained the most prominent doubt in Chu Yang's heart first. He said with a smile, "After all, this might be the only chance that my Mo Clan will get to dash up to the Upper Three Heavens."
Chu Yang was rendered speechless.
[I thought that I was taking advantage of him. But, I genuinely don't know which one among us got played in the end…]
Or, both of them won. After all, both of them had achieved their goals.
Chu Yang eliminated the biggest obstacle between himself and Mo Qing Wu. And, he eliminated a huge crisis by doing so. Moreover, he cleared the way for his future with Mo Qing Wu.
The only thing that made him feel uncomfortable was that… his brother-in-law was unsure.
Mo Tian Ji had also achieved his goal… First, to make Chu Yang and his younger sister be together. Second, he had successfully gotten a ticket to the Upper Three Heavens.
Moreover, Chu Yang had urged him to come over.
Consequently, both of them were relieved.
However, Mo Tian Ji quickly became serious after they had loosened up a bit. And, that's because he knew what kind of road he would face in the future… And, what kind of enemy he would face!
He had been making these plans and strategies in the Middle Three Heaves with painstaking efforts. However, they were like child's play when compared with those enemies.
In fact, he was like a baby who was learning to speak in front of those enemies!
Mo Tian Ji laughed when he saw Chu Yang frowning, "You don't have to worry. I am quite the trickster, you know. I like to play tricks on people. But, there's one thing I would like you to understand — I have never tricked those on my own side."
He smiled faintly, "Of course, cracking jokes is an exception."
What Mo Tian Ji said was indeed right or correct. Chu Yang was most-worried about Mo Tian Ji's scheming nature. Ji Mo and the others might be fine with it, but Gu Du Xing and Dong Wu Shang weren't the type who joked around. Moreover, they didn't like it when someone played tricks on Chu Yang. So, he naturally calmed down after listening to Mo Tian Ji's statement.
"I want to remind you that this is going to be a dangerous road! Just because the previous Sword Lords could succeed doesn't mean that you will succeed as well. The pressure of this road will be unparalleled!"
Mo Tian Ji whispered, "So, some of our brothers will inevitably crack under this pressure! So... it is necessary to crack jokes and relax on this journey. Otherwise... we would crack under stress of our own accord even before the enemy attacks us if we don't crack a few jokes."
"This, I understand." Chu Yang nodded deeply.
It was easier said than done. It was already too soon to be talking about the unification of the Nine Heavens. Chu Yang's strength was presently far inferior than any of the nine great clans. In fact, his strength hadn't even reached 1/1000th of the other party. The pressure of the road ahead could be well-imagined from this one fact alone.
"You don't need to think too much about it. The boat will go straight with the current when it gets to the pier-head," Mo Tian Ji said slowly, "You will only scare yourself to death if you think too much."
...
"Brother Chu, I will issue the war declaration the day after tomorrow. We will fight a decisive battle on the shores of the Lake of Despair. We should receive a reply within one day. Then, I will make the manifesto to the world. And, we should head out once that happens.
"We will assemble before the Wind and Snow mountain range. And, we will set out for the Lake of Despair from there.
"This war should see the participation of all clans in the Middle Three Heavens.
"So, this war is crucial!
"We have to recharge our batteries in the coming few days. We only have three days of leisure time. You will have to make haste if you wish to improve your strength. After all, you will need to make the best use of time."
The two men discussed and walked out of Mo Qing Wu's area.
"By the way, I wasn't joking with you regarding my younger sister's matter," Mo Tian Ji solemnly reminded him.
Chu Yang didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Now, he once again felt the same vibe of the Mo Tian Ji he had been close friends with in his previous life. That is… The Mo Tian Ji who was very controlling and manipulative.
[It is a lucky thing to have more people like Mo Tian Ji around. But, it can also get somewhat annoying at times. Because, he knows everything before you've even had the chance to say it. He already understands everything, and even has a solution ready...]
[It's also quite boring to talk to this guy. That's because he will do all the talking if he doesn't want to allow you to speak.]
[And, that includes the questions you have to ask… your confusions, doubts, etc… He would summarize all these for you. Then, he would accurately guess what your response would be to his statements. And then, he would even begin to clarify your doubts…]
Chu Yang had endured countless such experiences in his previous life… He recalled that he had once chatted with Mo Tian Ji for an afternoon. However, he had later realized that he hadn't said a single word the entire time...
It was like watching someone putting on a one-man show...
The second half of today's conversation had basically been the same… Chu Yang hadn't said a word. Mo Tian Ji had planned everything, and had answered all the questions that Chu Yang hadn't even asked.
Chu Yang sat in Mo Tian Ji's study room. He realized this problem after some time had passed. He couldn't help but spit his saliva out of resentment, "Fu*k! I already knew this was going to be so annoying..."
...
These two amazing geniuses were blathering-on. In fact, they weren't far away from another round of a big fight. However, a cute little girl had been earnestly practicing somewhere on the road to the Upper Three Heavens this entire time.
Ning Tian Ya and Bu Liu Qing were taking Mo Qing Wu, and were going back to the Upper Three Heavens. They were still halfway when the two Supreme Experts encountered a big trouble.
"Two Masters... Can I go to say goodbye to Elder Brother Chu Yang again?" Glistening teardrops were flickering in this cute little girl's eyes, "I miss him boohoo..."
The two supreme experts staggered; [She is missing him already? How long has it been since they've separated? She actually wants to say goodbye 'again'? We won't be able to reach the Upper Three Heavens for a lifetime if wants to go back this often.]
"It's fine if we can't go back to say goodbye. How about you two bring Elder Brother Chu Yang over?" A look of eagerness and longing flashed in the cute little girl's eyes.
The two supreme experts remained silent.
"Of course; how can I be so stupid?" The cute little girl clapped her hands, "Are you two masters worried that you can't find an apprentice? Then, why don't you accept Elder Brother Chu Yang as an apprentice?
"This is very a good idea...
"Masters... what do you say?
...
The two supreme experts finally collapsed. In fact, anyone who had suffered this on a nearly 10,000 miles-long journey would've collapsed.
"Dear Apprentice, it's not like we don't want to do it. But, your Elder Brother Chu Yang is no ordinary guy..." Ning Tian Ya explained with a painstaking look on his face, "We don't dare to be his masters... It will be the doom of us if we took him in as our disciples..."
"Elder Brother Chu Yang is that powerful?" The cute little girl suddenly got excited.
"Well, your Elder Brother Chu Yang… will become the most powerful person in the Nine Heavens if this Old Man isn't mistakes!" Bu Liu Qing said this.
"Wow!" The cute little girl's eyes lit up.
"Wow! Wow! Wow!" The cute little girl exclaimed in surprise, "That is to say… Elder Brother Chu Yang will become more powerful than the two masters in the future?"
"Eh..." The two supreme experts rolled their eyes at the same time; [Did we say that?]
"That means... the two masters are no match for Elder Brother Chu Yang?" Mo Qing Wu became exhilarated.
"Eh..." The faces of the two supreme experts turned dark.
"Then, why do I need to study under you two? Can't I learn from my Elder Brother Chu Yang instead?" The cute little girl rolled her eyes and furiously said, "Are you two trying to hamper your students' progress?"
The cute little girl suddenly got angry and bitter... [Humph!]
Ning Tian Ya and Bu Liu Qing felt like crying, but had no tears to shed.
The Nine Heavens had a 90,000 year old history. Had someone ever dared to say that two supreme experts were hampering their apprentice's progress? It seemed like… this had happened for the first time today...
...