Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1496 - 1489: The Incompetent Older Brother

Chapter 1496: Chapter 1489: The Incompetent Older Brother

"Don’t!!" Yichuan Ying, who was forcefully held by Hu Daoke, let out an exhausted roar, and then helplessly collapsed on the ground; it took Hu a great effort to help her up.

"Don’t come over, don’t let her come over," Yichuan Long tightly gripped the hilt of his sword, struggling to keep himself from falling. Suffering from a severe illness, he had violent bouts of coughing before he slowly said, "I am infected with a plague, don’t let her come close to me..."

"Yichuan Long, surrender..." For the first time, Cheng Ziang felt his mind go blank as he stared and said.

It’s unclear whether the Demon Clan did it intentionally or if the muskets were simply inaccurate. The Demon Clan Cavalry missed hitting him critically, so although Yichuan Long looked quite disheveled, he still managed to stand firm.

"Yichuan Long, I am giving you another opportunity; surrender and keep your honor. If you can convince the Yichuan Clan to defect, we will certainly treat the Yichuan kindly. Yichuan Ying serves as the best example; if you don’t trust me, you should at least trust your own sister," Yunji continued to persuade him.

Hearing her persuasion, Yichuan Long suddenly laughed uproariously, then scornfully looked at Yunji and said sarcastically, "I entrusted Ah Mei to them, not to you. I know your true nature fully well, so stop speaking these hypocritical and cunning words; they mean nothing to me."

"Yichuan Long, don’t be shameless. I respect you as a real man, therefore I didn’t strike you down," Yunji seemingly unprovoked, continued calmly.

"Further talk is pointless. As long as I can move, I will resist to the end!" Yichuan Long said, then once again tried to stand up straight, shakily drawing his long sword.

However, his physical condition was obviously bad. Just as he drew his sword, he started swaying, and had to reinsert his sword into the ground to stabilize himself.

"Yichuan Long, what’s the point? Don’t be stubborn, just surrender. Do you want to die in front of your sister?" Cheng Ziang earnestly tried to persuade.

"Then take her away—whose idea was it to bring her back here? Don’t you know this place is dangerous?" Hearing his words, Yichuan Long burst into a furious rage, his voice hoarse as he scolded.

"It’s her own will not to leave, we..." Cheng Ziang explained.

"I entrusted her to you to keep her safe, not to let her do as she pleases, whatever she desires. You have deeply disappointed me," Yichuan Long angrily said.

"We respect her decision," Cheng Ziang said.

"It’s not about respect," Yichuan Long continued sternly, "There are times and places where one shouldn’t be allowed to act recklessly. What does she know, she’s even oblivious to being betrayed by her father."

"Since you understand her so well, why don’t you take care of her yourself? She is your sister, not ours!" Cheng Ziang retorted firmly.

"Heh..." Facing Cheng Ziang’s provocation, Yichuan Long was unmoved, merely letting out a cold laugh, then he lowered his head and remained silent.

"Yichuan Long, your brothers have all perished, the choice to surrender is yours. If you surrender, we will help cure your illness," Yunji stepped forward once more, again urging him.

"Hehe..." Facing Yunji’s urging, Yichuan Long still let out a cold laugh, but this time he didn’t remain silent, instead, he raised his head and weakly asked, "By keeping the dragon bound to his sickbed, how can you rest easy?"

Yichuan Long’s message was clear: he was a master of Dual Dao cultivation; if he surrendered to the Demon Clan, could the Demon Clan treat him equally without fearing he might betray them?

Cheng Ziang also found it unreasonable. He knew that the reason why the Dongsheng Empire had been winning battles was because the Dongsheng army had many Cultivators. And Yichuan Long, being a top Cultivator, if he harbored any ulterior motives after surrendering to the Demon Clan, who could control him then?

This kind of problem isn’t a big issue for the Advance Team, because no matter how strong a Cultivator is, they cannot rival a Demigod, not to mention the Yuanzi guns that each member of the Advance Team is equipped with.

But it’s different for the people of the Demon Clan, they don’t have any effective countermeasures against Cultivators. Once these people rebel and attack from within, the Demon Clan has no way to defend themselves.

Since the establishment of the Demon Clan Federation, the majority under its rule are the ordinary people of Kyushu, those who neither have the ability nor the opportunity to engage in Cultivation. These people don’t possess the strength of Cultivators, so their combat effectiveness often depends on advanced weaponry and strict battlefield discipline.

Faced with Yichuan Long’s questioning, Yunji remained silent. It’s unclear if she really had no solution, or if she was unable to speak. But from her behavior, it was clear she greatly appreciated Yichuan Long and really wanted him to surrender and join her.

"Looking at this, you seem to be seeking death," Yunji said, closing her eyes and raising her hand. Following her gesture, the surrounding Demon Clan Cavalry began to position their fingers on the triggers, ready to fire at her command.

"How can a great man fear death!" Faced with such a situation, Yichuan Long showed not fear but a fierce smile instead.

"Yichuan Long, surrender. Think of Yichuan Ying, she is watching you. Do you really want her to see you die?" After a long silence, Cheng Ziang once again tried to persuade.

"You really are unreliable," Yichuan Long said, his eyes full of gloom as he looked at Cheng Ziang.

"Yes, we are indeed unreliable, Yichuan Ying is not our sister, why should we treat her well unconditionally. If you really want her to live well, then take care of her yourself. You think your actions are brave and manly, but you are just a coward. When you were young, you were too scared to take care of your sister, and now when faced with a decision, you still choose to back down. You are an undeniable coward!" Cheng Ziang suddenly became angry and scolded loudly.

"That’s right, I am a coward," Yichuan Long unexpectedly agreed immediately with what Cheng Ziang said, "That’s why I entrusted Ah Mei to others. I don’t have the capability to take care of her, nor can I give her what she wants, but you can."

"How do you know we can, do you know us well, aren’t you afraid that we are just using Yichuan Ying?" Cheng Ziang asked.

"I don’t know you, but I know Ah Mei. She has chosen to betray the Yichuan Clan and help you, which shows she really trusts you, so that’s why I let her go with you," Yichuan Long responded with a smile.

"We’re just deceiving her, wanting to use her to deal with the Yichuan Clan," Cheng Ziang said through clenched teeth.

"Heh..." Facing Cheng Ziang’s pretense, Yichuan Long not only didn’t get angry, but laughed happily instead, "Some people show the answer right on their face the moment they lie. If you really wanted to use Ah Mei against me, you should have threatened me with her from the beginning, but you didn’t, which shows you can indeed be trusted, and shows that I gambled correctly."

"If we had used her to threaten you, would you have surrendered?" Cheng Ziang asked.

"No!" Yichuan Long shook his head without any hesitation.

"Yichuan Long, you bastard, you who gambles with your own sister!" Cheng Ziang suddenly became extremely angry, his breathing becoming ragged.

"You can say whatever," Yichuan Long said, looking up at the sky, his expression becoming obsessed, "In my whole life, I’ve never lived for myself, I’m really tired... It’s time to rest..."

Saying this, his gaze turned towards the distant Yichuan Ying, his eyes instantly showing a tender look, quietly watching her.

"Brother..." A hopeless Yichuan Ying stared blankly at Yichuan Long, tears once again overflowing and streaming down her youthful cheeks.

"I once fantasized that we, brother and sister, lived in a family where Cultivation was unnecessary, where Ah Mei would wake up smiling every day, even her sleep not diminishing her smile. I wouldn’t need to painfully Cultivate, but could just look after Ah Mei every day. Regrettably, fate mocks us; such days... are too luxurious..." Yichuan Long’s gaze became distant as he murmured to himself.