Chapter 1274: Chapter 36: Sword in Hand, Vengeance in Heart

"He’s doing it for your own good too," Fang Che said against his will.

"Of course it’s for my own good, but the problem is that listening to too many of those big truths gets annoying, brother!"

Emperor Ye sighed helplessly, "Do you believe it? If our father were still alive, he wouldn’t nag like this. He’s almost worse than old maids."

Fang Che chuckled, saying, "Your words remind me of my mom."

Emperor Ye laughed and said, "But, just this morning, I felt that when you helped me purge the poison, you actually left me with a huge surprise."

Fang Che knew what he meant but asked puzzled, "What surprise?"

Emperor Ye said casually, "Some residual power from your cultivation technique lingered within me, purifying the spiritual energy and improving some of my innate talent traits."

Fang Che was astonished, "Is that even possible?"

Emperor Ye let out a sigh of relief full of gratitude, smiling, "So... in the future, when dealing with unfamiliar people, you should use spiritual medicine whenever possible, and try not to use your cultivation technique for healing. It’s a hidden peril, brother!"

"Yes!"

Fang Che became solemn, "Thank you, elder brother, for the reminder."

Emperor Ye turned his head somewhat nostalgically, staring into the void outside the window, and said softly, "When my master dominated the world, although I inherited his true teachings, my endowments were not supreme. So, it’s very difficult in this lifetime to reach my master’s heights. I used to constantly brood over this matter."

"But after healing last night, I saw this hope. Brother, this time, I owe you."

Emperor Ye said earnestly.

Fang Che laughed heartily, shifting the topic, "Brother, can you tell me about that battle years ago?"

"That battle...,"

Emperor Ye smiled faintly, knowing Fang Che’s character doesn’t favor talking about such sentiments.

Emperor Ye is also someone who internalizes everything, but some words must be spoken openly.

Now that he’s said it, and Fang Che has acknowledged it, naturally, they moved past it.

This is human nature: receiving hidden favors, regardless of self-esteem or vast differences, one must speak out, no matter how close the relationship is.

Because from the benefactor’s perspective: I might not say it, but you can’t pretend not to know.

If you really pretend not to know, I’ll be uncomfortable, because I’ll feel you think my gift is taken for granted. - Such a disparity can persist for a lifetime.

Once spoken, things are clear.

Once clear, there’s no need to discuss it further.

Emperor Ye’s face flickered with a trace of smoke, and he spoke softly, "That battle... haha, it was rather ordinary. At its core, it was just Jianghu people fighting over territory, nothing more. The Wei Wo Zheng Sect wanted to recruit me to help them control the underground world, then completely overturn Donghu State, becoming total enemies with the Guardians!"

"Of course, there was no agreement later, because I disagreed. So we fought. They bribed two of my brothers, poisoned me, and then started the fight. Initially, a small minion fought me, whom I killed in one move; it was really contemptuous."

Emperor Ye’s voice was calm, without much fluctuation, "Later, the Wei Wo Zheng Sect experts appeared. Hehe, although I was poisoned beforehand, if Heavenly King Flute hadn’t appeared that day, probably none of the Wei Wo Zheng Sect people who came would have remained alive!"

"Did Heavenly King Flute appear that day?"

Fang Che paused because, in Zhao Shanhe’s narration, he hadn’t heard of this mighty Demonic Path character from the Wei Wo Zheng Sect.

"Yes. As I was about to execute Li Yao, Heavenly King Flute pierced through my right chest from behind. At the time, I was too furious, and my reactions were slow due to the poisoning..."

Emperor Ye sighed.

"Six brothers sacrificed themselves to cover my escape... were killed one by one by Heavenly King Flute!"

Emperor Ye’s eyes suddenly became blood-stained.

"They died right in front of me."

He stopped, not speaking for a long time.

It seemed he was recalling those past scenes, perhaps seeing the faces of those six brothers once again.

After a long pause, he continued in a calm voice, "I finally broke through, and Heavenly King Flute and others immediately gave chase, but I instantly charged back, personally executing the two traitors! Then, I suffered another flute, sword, and whip blow, escaping back to the underground world."

"Ye Emperor’s Eight Stars, since six brothers have already died in battle for me, then the two who betrayed me must also accompany them in death, otherwise I will die uneasy, and my brothers will die uneasy too! Why should they die while the traitors still live?!"

Emperor Ye said plainly, "Therefore, Ye Emperor’s Eight Stars cannot be separated!"

Fang Che couldn’t help but feel his heart tremble.

In that dead end, to barely escape alive, and yet return to counter-kill the traitors!

Evidently, Emperor Ye hated those two traitors to the extreme!

But precisely because of his death-defying counterkill, he caught the enemy off guard, creating a chance.

Imagining the ferocity of that past battle, Fang Che couldn’t help but yearn for it.

He could vaguely see Emperor Ye’s black attire stained with blood, fighting fiercely amid a swarm of foes.

First poisoned by Death Poison!

Then caught by surprise.

And attacked by the eighth on the Cloud Weapon List, Heavenly King Flute.

He even managed to execute two of the Eight Stars!

"In the years that followed, the experts of Wei Wo Zheng Sect kept searching for me underground, and countless loyal subordinates were slaughtered by them one by one..."

Emperor Ye’s face was once again shrouded in smoke clouds, obscuring his features.

"During those years, all the leaders I appointed in the underground world were killed cleanly. I became like a rat in the gutter, hiding and evading."

"Years later, Wei Wo Zheng Sect saw the futility of their efforts and quietly withdrew. But the underground world was left devoid of any order."

"I intended to gather the remnants, but upon revealing myself, I was unexpectedly counterattacked by a gang of low-lives, forcing me to endure the worsening poison and kill them all clean! By then, the power belonging to Emperor Ye in the underground was truly a thing of the past."

"After that outburst, I could no longer hold on, so I had to send a message to my brother, asking him to see me one last time."

"Turns out, that old thief had really stolen quite a lot of good stuff over the years, managing to keep me alive up till now."

Emperor Ye sighed deeply: "Now, speaking of these things, it’s all like clouds of yesteryears or a dream gone by. Like waking from a big dream, leaving no trace."

The smoke clouds on his face dispersed, indicating that his emotions had returned to calmness.

Fang Che could tell, in his heart, that this matter was far from the indifferent words he spoke.

The slaughter of that night, Emperor Ye will likely never forget all his life!

"Brother, do you want revenge?" Fang Che asked tentatively.

"I don’t hate Wei Wo Zheng Sect, nor do I hate those two brothers who betrayed me," Emperor Ye said. "Everyone has their own life choices."

"Jianghu matters are resolved in Jianghu. With a long knife in hand, grudges are in the heart."

Emperor Ye did not answer directly, instead softly saying: "They want to kill me, which is natural so killing them is also rightful."

"But for now, I want to first establish my underground dynasty."

Emperor Ye said lightly, "I am waiting for them to come!"

"Then brother will be busy, your body just recovering, and strength not yet at peak, why not rest first."

Fang Che was relieved. Emperor Ye’s words, ’I am waiting for them to come’, fully showed Emperor Ye’s clarity.

Revenge must be sought, but avenging against Wei Wo Zheng Sect is tantamount to seeking death!

But once the news of Emperor Ye being alive spreads, they will surely come!

"No need to rest. If dealing with these people requires rest, then your brother is truly useless."

Emperor Ye said lightly, "I am eager to kill these things. Yesterday I came to see you after hearing your purpose was the same as mine; otherwise, if the poison couldn’t be dealt with, I would have taught you all of my lifelong skills and let you replace me as this Emperor Ye."

Emperor Ye chuckled, saying, "Unexpectedly, there was a surprise. Given that, you should continue to do your Law Enforcement, I’ll handle this filthy underground world myself."

Fang Che clapped and laughed, "Of course, with brother personally handling matters, it’s bound to be smooth sailing."

He reminded, "But brother... the other day, the boss collected those smelly balls... Over two hundred of them, that’s your ultimate magic treasure for future enemy challenges! Especially for dealing with future invasions from Wei Wo Zheng Sect..."

Emperor Ye sighed weakly, "We’re all old Jianghu, and we understand some things clearly. Especially to me, they are precious for setting traps. But... brother I... have a cleanliness obsession..."

Fang Che dismissed, "Cleanliness isn’t as important as life, right?

Emperor Ye frowned, "I’ll think about it... Alas, I’ll think..."

"Alright."

Fang Che smirked, "If there’s any excess, you can give me some. I have no cleanliness obsession, and I can use them effectively... I’ll slip them into people’s blankets."

Emperor Ye retched.

He rolled his eyes, "Forget it, I’ll keep what I should keep... However, I can give you a hundred or so, to create the illusion of me assisting you in the future."

This eye roll made Fang Che realize that Emperor Ye Sikong Ye and the Thief Sikong Dou truly were a pair of brothers.

This rolling of eyes, not a hint of black pupil could be seen.

"How do you plan to handle the underground world, brother?" Fang Che asked.

Emperor Ye frowned, saying, "What’s your opinion? Or what’s your plan?"

He pondered, "I’ve thought about this matter over the years. Because, undoubtedly, my previous methods had flaws."

"What did you do before?"

Fang Che asked.

"Balancing kindness and power. Those who follow me will prosper; each governing a domain, Eight Stars jointly guarding!" Emperor Ye said lightly.

"That won’t work!"

Fang Che instantly rejected.

"I currently also feel it won’t work."

Emperor Ye sighed.

"Dealing with those in the underground world is unlike dealing with gangs above."

Fang Che said, "In short, good people won’t go to the underground world; those who make a living in such places are mostly extremely evil, devoid of humanity. Every single one deserves to die!"

Fang Che’s words were full of killing aura!