Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1427 - 1420: Set the Plan

Chapter 1427: Chapter 1420: Set the Plan

"Fantastic," Feng couldn’t help but clap his fist upon hearing Yichuan Ying’s response.

"But I have a request, please try not to harm my family..." Yichuan Ying said hesitantly.

"Rest assured, as long as they can withdraw from West Outer Heaven, we will certainly take good care of them," Ziang nodded and said.

"Thank you..." Yichuan Ying lowered her head again and said.

It must be said that, after all, as the daughter of a great clan, Yichuan Ying, though not very cultured, was quite polite, always saying ’thank you.’

To tell the truth, Ziang always felt a tremendous sense of guilt when exploiting such an uneducated girl. But he also realized that it was precisely because Yichuan Ying was not well-read that she was easier to deceive; she could be persuaded with just a few words, an advantage that was quite rare.

"Come, let me refill your bowl, and we can chat by the fire," Ziang said, taking the empty bowl from her hand.

Yichuan Ying came over to the fire and greeted Hu Daoke and Feng before starting to listen to Ziang talk about their plan.

In fact, there was really nothing secretive about Ziang’s plan since it was a blatant scheme to create rifts among the three aristocratic families, then defeat them one by one. Even if the three aristocratic families all realized this, it was not certain they could unite, as they were not a monolith from the start.

"Our plan is to create discord among the three aristocratic families. As you have seen, during this period we have attacked many convoys, always sparing the Yichuan Clan’s, focusing on hitting the Dangyang and Zixia Clans’ convoys—creating an atmosphere that suggests the Yichuan Clan has reached an agreement with the Demon Clan to jointly deal with Zixia and Dangyang," Ziang laid out his entire plan.

"Why the Yichuan Clan in particular?" Yichuan Ying asked, puzzled.

"Don’t forget, your father just met with the Demon Clan people a few days ago. Do you remember that?" Ziang asked.

"I remember," Yichuan Ying blinked her large eyes, nodding in response.

"It’s a trap," Ziang raised his eyebrows and said, "The meeting between the Demon Clan people and the Yichuan Clan Patriarch, besides persuading them to surrender, was most importantly meant to convey a message to the outside world that the Yichuan Clan had indeed met with the Demon Clan."

"Meeting somebody—what of it?" Yichuan Ying tilted her head, still puzzled.

"Try to imagine you’re in the Dangyang Family’s or the Zixia Clan’s shoes and consider these two matters. You’ll come to an obvious conclusion," Ziang said with a smile.

"The Dangyang Family and the Zixia Clan..." Yichuan Ying frowned slightly.

"Suppose you are now the Patriarch of the Dangyang Family. I give you a piece of information, and you react instinctively," Ziang paused before continuing, "First, you hear that the Yichuan Clan has had a meeting with the Demon Clan; second, since the meeting, the three aristocratic families’ convoys have been constantly attacked, but the bandits have only let the Yichuan Clan’s convoy go, looting those of the Dangyang and Zixia Clans. Your first reaction is..."

"That the Demon Clan people looted the convoys, and the reason they spared the Yichuan Clan is that they reached some kind of agreement with them!" After a moment of reflection, Yichuan Ying exclaimed in surprise.

"Exactly, that’s the trap. From the moment your father agreed to meet with the Demon Clan, he already fell into the snare," Ziang nodded, satisfied with his explanation.

"But my father, he..." Yichuan Ying said, falling back into deep thought.

"Now you are still with the Dangyang Family. Let me give you another clue," Ziang waved his hand, "Now you hear a third piece of news: robbers have hijacked the Yichuan Clan’s convoy and killed the Yichuan Clan’s eldest miss. Your first reaction is..."

"They’re not just targeting the Dangyang and Zixia Clans, but also the Yichuan Clan, even killing..." At this, Yichuan Ying’s eyes reddened abruptly, and her voice choked up.

"Now you understand why your father sent the Shadow Edict to kill you," Cheng Ziang sighed. "If you returned to the Yichuan Clan safely and openly, it would ruin your father’s plans. The bandits didn’t harm you; instead, you returned home safely. Now the Yichuan Clan would be in deep trouble... Any river would do... In short, we absolutely can’t let the other aristocratic families know you’ve come back unharmed."

As he spoke, Cheng Ziang sighed again and then continued, "But to tell you the truth, I originally thought that your being kidnapped was the worst your father could accept. I didn’t expect that he would be even more anxious than us. Upon learning you weren’t dead, he actually sent an assassin to kill you. What was he thinking, you’re his own daughter..."

"In such a family, blood ties don’t seem to be that important," Yichuan Ying said with a bitter expression. "You also know, cultivation is the sole measure of a person. Those who cannot cultivate, even if they are the Patriarch’s daughter, their status is still lower than a dog’s."

It seemed to touch Yichuan Ying’s sore spot, intensifying her hatred for the clan. After a brief silence, she took a deep breath and said, "What should we do now?"

"Before I tell you the plan, I want to ask you first, are you truly willing to doom your own clan to injustice?" Cheng Ziang looked at her seriously and asked.

"I am, after all, they were the ones who were unjust first." After a moment’s silence, Yichuan Ying nodded and looked at him with determined eyes.

"Good. My plan is to use your status as the young miss of the Yichuan Clan to meet with the other aristocratic families on their turf, then take the opportunity to cause destruction before withdrawing. After doing this twice, I’m sure the Dangyang Family and the Zixia Clan will definitely place all the blame on the Yichuan Clan, your father will be in deep agony," Cheng Ziang said seriously.

"Blame?" Yichuan Ying was clearly not accustomed to Cheng Ziang’s colloquial descriptions.

"That means the charges," Cheng Ziang explained.

"I understand. So what do we do?" Yichuan Ying nodded.

"Everyone knows that the young miss of the Yichuan Clan was kidnapped and her fate is unknown. Under such circumstances, we’ll take you to the Dangyang Family’s city first. With your identity, we’ll infiltrate the city, cause great damage, and then withdraw. The Dangyang Family, unable to find you, will naturally place all the blame on the Yichuan Clan, believing that it was the Yichuan Clan who sent you to cause havoc there. This way, we can drive a wedge between the Yichuan Clan and the other two major aristocratic families," Cheng Ziang explained.

"I... want to ask..." Yichuan Ying cautiously inquired, "Will there be danger?"

"It’s natural for you to have such concerns," Cheng Ziang said with a smile. "But as long as we are with you, you will have nothing to worry about. If we can come and go from your father’s Treasure House at will, we can certainly get you out of the city as well."

"I trust you," Yichuan Ying nodded vigorously.

"We need your identity; right now, you are the young miss of the Yichuan Clan, and your actions represent the Yichuan Clan. So, while your status is still valuable, we would be wise to take action," Cheng Ziang continued.

Hearing his words, Yichuan Ying once again showed a bittersweet smile and pursed her lips, "Actually, before I left, my father said the same thing to me... I thought I was prepared to give my life for my clan, but it turns out I wasn’t. I still want to live..."

As Yichuan Ying spoke, her voice began to sob again, and she looked like she was about to cry. Cheng Ziang hurriedly interceded, "Alright, alright, don’t cry now. As long as we’re here, no one needs you to sacrifice yourself. Your life is your own, and even we have no right to arbitrarily take it away."

"Thank you for understanding me..." Yichuan Ying still let out a sobbing cry.

"Sigh..." Seeing her like this, Cheng Ziang sighed again; he really couldn’t deal with a girl who cried so easily.

"But after driving out the Yichuan Clan, where can I go? I don’t have the ability to return to Yin State by myself..." Sniffling, Yichuan Ying became lost in uncertainty about her future once more.

"If you don’t mind, why not follow us for the time being? We’ll figure out a way to get you back to Yin State," Cheng Ziang said earnestly.

"You’re... going to the Demon Clan?" Yichuan Ying hesitated.

"Miss, there are also many from Kyushu living among the Demon Clan. They are doing quite well under Demon Clan governance, so you don’t have to worry about being lonely," Cheng Ziang continued to offer consolation.