By just walking forward for a short distance, before exiting the Ling Family Courtyard, they actually ran into more than ten patrol checkpoints! Luckily, Xiao YanXue was able to deal with the situation each time. They could be said to have escaped by the skin of their teeth!

Even with his position has the second-in-command of the Xiao Family, Xiao FengYang was still dumbstruck! To think that the defensive measures of the Ling Family Courtyard would be so extensive and the security measures so close-knit. This was something the Xiao Family could not compare to! Furthermore, this was not the core area of the Ling Family Courtyard. Ling Tian would definitely have placed extra measures around the core areas. As for the Xiao Family, the defenses around the head of the family, Xiao FengHan, were merely only comparable to that of the outer layer of the Ling Family Courtyard!

It was with difficulty that they escaped from the Ling Family Courtyard and grabbed a couple of horses, galloping out for a good ten miles before Xiao YanXue finally slowed down. She faced Xiao FengYang as she said, "Second Uncle, Xue'er will send you along from here. Here are also 200 taels of silver, as well as 3,000 taels of banknotes. I wish Second Uncle a safe route home."

Xiao FengYang's heart trembled as he replied, "Xue'er, how long have you prepared for this operation?!"

Xiao YanXue's face dimmed. "I estimate it took 10 days or more. Every few days, I would make the excuse of going out to take a breath of fresh air because of my restlessness to set up this scenario. If there had been any mistakes made, I would not have been able to allow Second Uncle to escape so easily. The strict checks of the Ling Family Courtyard previously were all made by the sentries in the open. There are still plenty of hidden sentries that did not step out because they discovered my ident.i.ty!"

Xiao FengYang sucked in a breath of cold air as he exclaimed, "Those were not all the sentries present?!"

Xiao YanXue replied, "That's right. Previously, our family sent a few experts, including those from the Above Heavens Sect to save Second Uncle, but they could not even take a step inside. You can imagine the difficulty to infiltrate this place!"

Xiao FengYang suddenly realized something and asked, "You are not going back with me?"

Xiao YanXue let out a distressed smile. "Yan'er is already tied to the Ling Family Courtyard. I only hope that Second Uncle can return to the family safely, and guard our ancestral home well. I have no other requests."

A surge of emotions welled up from Xiao FengYang's heart. "Xue'er, now that you've secretly let me go, how could Ling Tian still allow you to stay? Furthermore, with so many people already interrogating you along the way, the moment they find out that I'm gone, the suspicions will definitely land on you! Could it be that you're afflicted with some drug that Ling Tian has given you that you have to be controlled by him?"

Xiao YanXue laughed in return. "That's right, Xue'er is afflicted with this poison called love, and it's incurable! There's no need to say anything else, Second Uncle. Tian'ge's position in my heart is way above yours. A month earlier, I would never have dared to attempt to save you. But right now, seeing our Xiao Family in danger of being wiped off this world, and with my warning letters probably being unable to be sent out, the only method I have left is to attempt this prison break! There is no other way."

Xiao FengYang replied in confusion, "What sort of life-threatening peril? If our Xiao Family just hunkers down, we can stay safe by utilizing the 3,000 miles of mountain ranges and rivers. Even with his heaven-defying ability, what can Ling Tian do to us?"

Xiao YanXue looked pensive as she explained, "Second Uncle may be unaware, but there's a secret to Tian'ge's success that I've also recently just figured out! Over the past month, we've heard explosion after explosion for no reason. At the start, I thought they were merely practicing with their cannons, but over many days, I got curious and went over to take a look. It was then that I discovered this heaven-shaking secret. If you do not take precautions against it, I'm afraid the annihilation of the Xiao Family will be nigh!"

Xiao FengYang jumped up in shock as he exclaimed, "I also heard the explosions, weren't they from the cannons? What exactly are they?"

Xiao YanXue replied, "Does Second Uncle still remember the Blue Jade River being cut off for no apparent reason, flooding the entire Heavenly Water Ravine Pa.s.s? Such a grand and imposing pa.s.s, destroyed in a night?!"

Xiao FengYang nodded, spitting out hatefully, "Of course I remember! It was because of this that my army was routed, 400,000 strong reduced to nothing. How could I forget? I can only blame the Heavens for making a fool out of man, to actually perform such an act during that crucial moment. To think that the Heavens would even send down lightning to hack apart the mountain, blocking the entire Blue Jade River, haiz! Could this be the will of the Heavens itself?"

Xiao YanXue laughed in response. She answered him, "How could there be such a thing? Let me tell you, Second Uncle, the blockage at Blue Jade River was caused by the hands of man. Does Second Uncle believe it?"

"A work of man? While mankind is powerful, to move such a huge mountain would definitely waste a lot of time, and only those with herculean strength would be able to do that. How is it possible to be completed in such a short time?!" Xiao FengYang was dumbstruck.

"But the truth is right there! And therein lies their secret!" Xiao YanXue's expression was grave as she explained, "Those explosions we heard were actually a new kind of weapon that the Ling Family Courtyard was testing out. When Tian'ge toppled the mountain the blockaded the Blue Jade River, it was the first batch of that secret weapon! When they are used, besieging a city or uprooting a stronghold will become as easy as pie, as though just stretching your hand out to receive the rewards. Even changing the landscape would require no more than two or three days of time! Even a 100,000 strong army could be eliminated at the snap of their fingers."

"There's actually something like that?" Xiao FengYang remained in doubt.

Xiao YanXue seemed to ponder about something, before suddenly urging her horse and galloping out twenty over miles, before stopping her horse. Leveling her gaze towards Xiao FengYang's confused face, she carefully took out two black b.a.l.l.s the size of a human fist. They were round and s.h.i.+ny and looked extremely heavy, as though they were made completely up of metal. There were weird patterns engraved around the surface, as well as a weirdly shaped handle on the side.

"This is the so-called secret weapon, I begged it from the Li Xue, who is the Head Manager. The threat level to one's life is high, just one of these little things could cause harm to tens, if not hundreds of people!" Xiao YanXue solemnly stated. "As for the secret factory in charge of churning this toy out, if not for its difficulty as well as the high cost, would have long ago ma.s.s produced this thing! Right now, they can only produce three of these metal b.a.l.l.s in one day. But even if it's just three of them, to use them to siege a stronghold would make the job as easy as flipping over one's hand!"

"Just by this little toy?" Xiao FengYang received one of them, tossing it in his hand as he weighed it, before suspiciously remarking, "Even if this is purely made up of metal, how many people can it kill? Xue'er, do you think your Second Uncle is so good to bully?"

Xiao YanXue looked around her, before muttering, "We should be at a far enough distance, such that they will not be able to hear it. Alright, I'll demonstrate once for Second Uncle." As she spoke, she took the ball in his hand, fiddling with it, before curling her arm and throwing it far into the distance.

In midair, it looked like a streak of sparks, as it landed below a huge tree which required over three to four people to hug, hundreds of feet away.

Xiao FengYang snorted, feeling impatient, but he held his breath as he watched the 'antics' of Xiao YanXue.

Suddenly, with no warning whatsoever, a huge shockwave rocked the area, the origin coming from where the piece of metal handed. With a piercing white glow, the huge tree let out a loud jaw-clenching screech and toppled over.

With no preparation, Xiao FengYang only heard a 'HONG' sound before losing all his hearing. It was as though there existed millions of mosquitoes buzzing at his ears. A snort was heard as he exhaled, coupled with a gout of blood flowing from his nostrils. The warhorse let out a loud neigh, rearing up despite a person on its back, nearly toppling the rider.

Xiao YanXue had long opened her mouth and stuffed her ears, and thus was spared the misery. After the explosion, they rode their horses over, only to see the huge tree had shattered to bits and pieces, with a huge crater in the ground. In the surrounding trees, shrapnel could be seen decorating the tree trunks.

Xiao FengYang stared mutely in shock.

If such a thing was used on the battlefield, the results would be... frightening...

How could there still be a chance for the Xiao Family to win? Even worse, they might not even get the wish to simply huddle in a corner and sit it out!

Even if they wished to hunker down, no matter how steadfast their stronghold might be, what use would it be? In front of such a secret weapon, everything would crumple like a piece of paper! If Ling Tian's troops brought these toys against them, the Xiao Family would indeed be finished, with a possibility of them being totally wiped out! How could such a thing be resisted by flesh and bones?

Xiao YanXue had a heavy expression as she spoke, "It was precisely because I found out such a thing, that I realized that it would be an unimpeded road for the Ling Family to conquer all under the heavens. If our family continues to obstinately cling on to our current course, I'm afraid..." She shook her head, not finis.h.i.+ng her sentence, instead changing the topic. "That's why I took this risk, to save Second Uncle to return to our family. It would be better for you to plan what will be our future course of action, the earlier the better."

"With this thing, where can we go?! What else can we do?!" Xiao FengYang revealed a downcast look. After witnessing the enormous impact of the weapon, he no longer harbored any hope for the Xiao Family's future. "Could it be that we really have to surrender to the Ling Family? Throw away the hard work of all our ancestors, to abandon our Xiao Family's foundation..."

Xiao FengYang's listless eyes suddenly sparkled, and he exclaimed, "Xue'er, since you could get your hands on one, then if you could get a few more, or even get the manufacturing method, with the financial capability of our Xiao Family, we could overturn all under the heavens...."

"Second Uncle, are you muddled? Let's not talk about me going against Tian'ge and setting you free today. This goes against my own conscience, and even if I wanted to, I don't have the ability. The reason why we've only been hearing the sounds was because all the manufacturing was done in an extremely private and secretive location, with no method to remove anything from that area. What I possess now is merely a gift from Sister Li Xue. As for the method, even if we have it, who in the family would understand how to make it?!" Xiao YanXue's face had an agonized expression.

With Xiao FengYang's intelligence, he definitely understood the reasoning. The moment YanXue spoke, he immediately came to his senses, with a coldness spreading in his heart!

"I'll send you off at this point. Second Uncle, you had best return quickly. This is also my first time using this, and I underestimated the ferocity of this toy. I'm afraid the noise made just now would definitely attract someone to investigate. It's one thing if they discover you, but our Xiao Family's millennium of foundation cannot be destroyed just like that!" Xiao YanXue sincerely urged.

Xiao FengYang snapped out of his reverie. "That's right, I'll rush back to the family immediately. This matter needs to be discussed with elder brother, and how we should proceed from here." As he spoke, he looked deeply at Xiao YanXue, "Xue'er, it's been hard on you. You have to endure when you return to the Ling Family, do not give up even when faced with grievances. The last line of the Xiao Family lies with you!"

Xiao YanXue turned her face away, replying, "Second Uncle, please hurry. The night is long, and dreams are aplenty. Now that the East is about the break into war, this weapon will be brought to the front lines. Second Uncle, you have to be careful, and take care of yourself."

Hearing that such a weapon would be brought to the front lines of the war on the eastern front, Xiao FengYang could not help but exclaim, immediately bidding farewell and galloping away as fast as he could. In a few moments, he vanished into the darkness of the night.

As Xiao YanXue watched Xiao FengYang leave, she could not help but let out a despondent sigh.

"What's wrong, sister? The plan went extremely smoothly, so why are you sighing?" A warm voice, carried lightly by the wind, laughed as it rang out. It was precisely Ling Chen's voice.

With a flash of a white shadow, Ling Chen, Li Xue, and Ling Chi all appeared behind Xiao YanXue.

Xiao YanXue strangely did not appear surprised. She merely sighed remotely, her brows tightly furrowed as she spoke, "After all, I'm a daughter of the Xiao Family. To trick my seniors like this, I definitely feel guilty in my heart."

Li Xue rea.s.sured her, "Which sentence of sister's was not an actual truth? Why do you say that you were deceiving him? In contrast, sister could have said to help get a great merit to the Xiao Family. To put it bluntly, if war really breaks out between us, we can only hope for a decisive victory, and will definitely take out these toys into the battlefield. That would be the true Armageddon for the Xiao Family. Right now, if Xiao FengYang brings back this news, I believe the entire family will make the correct decision. At that time, both parties can avoid harming each other and settle the affair through peaceful means. Sister can also stay at Tian'ge's side in a.s.surance. Which of this is not a cause for celebration?"

Xiao YanXue's face immediately blushed a deep red.

Ling Chen lightly smiled as she picked up, "There are good logic and reason behind what Sister Li Xue said. Little sister does not need to put this matter against your conscience. The reason as to why we did so was definitely not to harm the Xiao Family. This fact does not change." She then turned to Li Xue with furrowed brows as she questioned, "However, regarding the weapon, just the statement from Xiao FengYang will not be enough. How about bringing out a batch of those to showcase their prowess at the Heavenly Water Ravine Pa.s.s, giving the Xiao Family troops this bitter pill to swallow? This case, coupled with the news that Xiao FengYang brought back, will allow the upper echelons of the family to be completely persuaded. Or else, there could be a situation where undue delays may bring trouble."

Li Xue nodded her head, deep in thought, and then she smiled. "This ought to be done."

Ling Chi eagerly interjected, "Sister Chen, can I be responsible for this task?"

Looking over at Ling Chi, Ling Chen merely replied drily, "You had better stay at home and take care of your Die'er. At least, before the young n.o.ble and Ling Jian return, you can forget about heading off to any place. I'll personally handle this matter myself."

Ling Chi's face immediately soured.

Having heard from Xiao YanXue that on the eastern front, no matter the Ling Family or the Xiao Family, they had already made ample preparations to start the war. At any moment, the brutal flames of war could ravage the entire place. So long as the Chief Commander General of either side wished to start the war, and once the war started, there would not be any way to salvage the situation. As such, Xiao FengYang was currently in an extremely anxious mood, as he rushed without stopping all the way towards the east.

Xiao FengYang indeed lived up to his name as a wise and knowledgeable person. In order to return safely, he even changed his disguise many times along the way, masquerading as many of the commoner cla.s.ses. He thought that with this method, it was a surefire way to escape any sort of detection. However, his every move was actually still under scrutiny.

The moment the Second Head of the Xiao Family 'escaped', news had spread from the Ling Family Courtyard, and the guards were deployed, forming a net to recapture him. Every step of Xiao FengYang's journey could be said to be taken in fear.

Ling Outer Courtyard.

"Reporting: Xiao FengYang has left Sky Bearing Empire, he's disguised as a medical peddler, and has bought two horses, heading towards the east...."

"Reporting: Xiao FengYang has appeared outside Rain Empire, and is disguised as an elderly scholar..."

"Reporting: Xiao FengYang changed into a fortune teller at noon..."

"Reporting: Xiao FengYang is masquerading as a local ruffian in the evening, riling up trouble along the way and using the chaos to escape, but has been followed tightly by the second group..."

"Reporting: Xiao FengYang has already...."

...

"Reporting, Xiao FengYang is already nearing the Heavenly Water Ravine Pa.s.s, and he is currently posing as a soldier from the Ling Family army."

After Li Xue received the last piece of news, she came to a decision and commanded, "Give Xiao FengYang some 'good memories' and allow him to narrowly escape from the clutches of death. Right now, his escape has been too easy, and this may instead make him suspicious. This will increase our variables in this matter, which might affect our plan instead."

"Yes!"

...

"Reporting, Xiao FengYang has inflicted heavy damage to three of our soldiers before escaping. He has hidden in the mountains of Heavenly Water Ravine Pa.s.s, and cannot be tracked."

"Lock down the entire area, and find a way to let the Xiao Family know that he is there, so they will stage a rescue. We can then put on a good show, and take the chance to kill some of them." Li Xue's eyes were cold, as she devised the battle strategy. With such high intelligence, Li Xue's ability to scheme was not a whit inferior to Ling Tian and even slightly better than him. Sitting by the side, Ling Chen had long turned utterly confused at the various changes with a chill in her heart. Such a scheme aimed straight towards fundamental human nature. Even Ling Chen, who was baptized in such things since young having followed Ling Tian, still sighed in admiration!

Finally, after the Xiao Family received the news, they hired the experts from Above Heavens, together with their Death Warriors to rescue Xiao FengYang. After paying the price of 500 casualties, they successfully 'saved' Xiao FengYang from the clutches of the Ling Family.

On that very day, the decisive war between the Ling Family and the Xiao Family exploded into action!

The first reason was to draw the attention away towards the battlefield, so the Xiao Family could save Xiao FengYang, and the second was to test the defense of Ling Family in Heavenly Water Ravine Pa.s.s. The first a.s.sault comprised of over 10,000 troops, surging like a wave to attack the Heavenly Water Ravine Pa.s.s!

The military flags fluttered, horns blared, as the war was fought like forest fires blazing. To Xiao FengYang who had been away from the army barracks for almost half a year, this scene actually seemed foreign.

The death count on both sides rose in a tragic manner, even as commands flowed out like water from the tent were Xiao FengYang resided. This time, the commander of the Xiao Family troops was the most outstanding of the third generation Xiao Family members, Xiao JianFeng. He methodically arranged the battle strategies, not forgetting all that was taught to him by Xiao FengYang.

At this time, on the battlefield that had sunk into a stalemate, a loud explosion sounded. In that moment, it was as though the heavens collapsed, with the entire ground trembling from the aftershock, and dust soaring like clouds into the air. Everyone displayed a panicked expression, with doubt in their hearts. Xiao FengYang suddenly recalled at this time the strange contraption that Xiao YanXue had previously shown him, and his face turned white like a sheet. The typically stoic and pa.s.sive-looking Xiao FengYang sank into a panic at this point.

Could it be that the Ling Family troops had begun using those things?

Do the Heavens really wish to annihilate my Xiao Family?!