Chapter 939: Secret Guardians
[Damn…didn’t realize how hard it was to not be able to remember facets of the past.]
[It’s a terrible feeling. One minute, you’re fine. The next minute, you suddenly get this inkling of a feeling, a reminder of something from a long time ago, but because the memory had long since faded, you can’t do shit in regards to it and end up driving yourself nuts doing everything you can to remember it….or so I hear.]
[Memory…gaps…suck…]
[Yeah, it…wait a minute… somebody’s here. Time to boogie.]
[Aye!]
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The feast at the Blessed Willow Manor may have been an incredibly impromptu and sudden affair, but it was a rather joyous one.
Both of the main clan and branch clan members had swapped stories of the past few months or so about the adventures they had gone on for the sake of cultivation, and the foes fought along the way.
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The path to immortality and beyond was no an easy road, but it was one many mortals gladly pursue.
That stated, a rather interesting discrepancy occurred when the main clan compared their recent experiences with the branch clan.
The former had been dealing a lot more enemies that were of mortal origins, rogue cultivators, rival organizations and the like, while the branch clan were mostly dealing with wild aether beasts and monsters.
Both were dangerous as all hell, just in different ways.
Speaking of threats of mortal origin though, something nefarious was occurring out of sight of the sentries of the Zhen Clan, an occurrence that could only happen due to the impulsive nature of the matriarch, being combined with her injured state.
That and…one other thing.
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Following is in Tide Tongue only.
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“I don’t believe it…the Gate Elder is actually not present for once! The information was right.”
“Holy shit…”
As one of the Eight Major Clans of the Pearl Scale Empire, the Zhen Clan had attracted the ire and animosity of all sorts of powers.
Underworld sects and organizations that they had rubbed the wrong way, upstanding rivals from within the empire and enemies from abroad that had vendettas due to getting their ass handed to them in a most violent manner, courtesy of a certain Inked Devil.
Therefore, it wasn’t that unusual that every now and again, one of these wronged powers would attempt to do something underhanded.
They would sometimes send mercenaries, pirates, or assassins, but these attempts would normally all end in failure, bloodshed and a neatly delivered package that just so happened to be the size of a hat box.
In fact, the only “successful” attack against the Zhen Clan in recent history was the attempted terror attack coordinated by the Fallen and the resulting prison break. Even then, that particular attempt was still thwarted…or at least, was stymied before it got worse.
Regardless, the news that Zhen Xun Tian has returned from an expedition with injuries had managed to spread out from Willow Scale City despite the Zhen Clan’s best efforts to keep a lid on it.
Once that particular tidbit of information reached certain ears, the owners of those ears decided now was the best time to exact some revenge on the Zhen Clan.
Which is why a group of assassins who were actively making use of a stealth aether art as they landed on to the shores of Willow Scale, showed up in the first place.
“Stow the boat. Everyone clear on the plan?”
“Sir, yes sir.”
“Good.”
The plan for these assassins was simple, half of them were to go and poison the Zhen Clan’s medicine and food supplies, while the other half were to poison or kill key figures in the Zhen Clan’s hierarchy. And if all else fails, the group still had insurance in the form of a special glass vial on their bodies.
It was uncomplicated plan to be sure, but a simple plan like this was less likely to fail then say, kidnapping several people for ransom, especially when those hostages could fight back.
Plus, with the added factors of an injured Matriarch, an impromptu party and the fact that most of the defenses were still crippled due to the recent attacks, made this an opportunity that was unlikely to happen again, so they might as well go for broke.
“If everyone knows what to do…scatter!”
Fwip, fwip, fwip!
Under the cover of darkness, this group of assassins proceeded to move as quick as the wind and scatter like leaves.
For all intents and purposes, their stealth coordination and technique was flawless. Nobody, not even an Aether Lord would’ve been able to detect their movements at this point in time.
Unfortunately, they didn’t factor in two things.
First, that their techniques were geared towards working against aether-based detection methods. If there had been an active anima wielder with a focus on detection or bloodliner with enhanced physical senses in the area, they would’ve been spotted. Fortunately for them, the main Zhen Clan didn’t employ such individuals, due to rarity and scarcity, not for lack of trying.
Secondly, and most importantly, this group of assassins was working with incomplete information.
All that they were told was that the Zhen Clan had unexpectedly brought over the branch clan for a small get together of sorts, and that the Zhen Clan matriarch had decreed that this evening was to be a holiday for even those on the security staff.
What they weren’t told, not that there was anyway of knowing this, was that one of the members of the branch clan just so happened to be so paranoid, so used to people trying to fuck him over in a stealthy manner, that he had a special retinue of monsters that were better at hunting down sneaky motherfuckers than most bloodhounds.
And, right now, the were given free reign to turn the entirety of the Blessed Willow Manor, into their own little hunting ground.
With their query being about a dozen or so dimbassess who thought they were being sneaky.
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[Well, this is rare. Assassins that are actually worth a damn fighting for once.]
[You mean, one of them is worth a damn fighting. The rest we could literally send any of our personal zakos and they’d sweep easy.]
[Maybe…]
[Oooh? Are we having a race then? First to ice their opponents, win?]
[I feel like I’m at a disadvantage if we have to do this stealthily…unless…]
[Wait, did the ringmaster want us to capture or kill these guys?]
[Not sure, but I don’t think he’ll mind if we bring back some trophies. Some of them be looking particularly delectable in these eyes of mine…]
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=Either or, I’m more curious about why my sensors are picking up two life signs per assassin…=
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“Huh…and here I thought you were joking in regards to people still aiming to take your head,” Zhen Liu commented as the kaijin reported their plans on how to handle these would-be saboteurs.
The sheer amount of times Zhen Liu had to deal with sneaky fuckers was starting to get a bit repetitive…then again, that may have to do with the fact that he had yet to establish a reputation for himself.
‘Hmm. Perhaps I should become a much…louder cultivator.”
Regardless, as of this moment in time, the feast had more or less ran it’s course, with guests either turning in for the evening, drinking with other members or just going home.
That stated, it was also at this time that Zhen Xun Tian and Zhen Liu had decided to have a private meeting.
“One of the rules of this world, my child,” Zhen Xun Tian said as she handed his great grandnephew a cup of rice wine. “The higher your profile, the more likely people try to kill you for their benefits. Only one good solution for that kind of problem though.”
“Maintain a low profile?”
“Become so strong that they think you’re invincible.”
“Or in my case, have an army of warriors that might as well be invincible.”
“That works too,” Zhen Xun Tian nodded with a laugh and a smile, wincing only a little bit from her onjuries. “Now then, to business. Got any lessons in regards to [Chaos] you can share with your dear old great grandaunt?”
“Depends. What can you tell me about Undertow?”
