Chapter 1421: Twisting Assassination Path

He Lingchuan said meaningfully, "Xue Zongwu's crimes are heinous. It's his turn now."

Weng Xing spat, "The Yao people used to say that your Black Armored Army wouldn't dare step foot in Yao Kingdom, wouldn't dare assassinate a Yao. When word of Xue Zongwu's death gets out, it'll be a harsh slap to their faces!"

He was already quite pleased just imagining it.

"Xue Zongwu's death will be attributed to me; it won't implicate you," He Lingchuan said, standing up and looking at the two of them. "You are free to act as you wish; there's no need to worry."

The Weng brothers exchanged glances, then spoke in unison, "My brother and I are willing to follow you, sir, and pursue gratifying deeds!"

While avenging their great enemy was satisfying, they were now alone. Even if Yao Kingdom didn't trouble them, they would be wandering the jianghu, with no fixed abode.

"Gratifying deeds?" He Lingchuan, who had been about to leave, turned around upon hearing this. "What do you mean by 'gratifying deeds'?"

"Uh..." Weng Su was momentarily stunned by his question, but Weng Xing quickly interjected, "Seeing injustice and drawing your sword to help—isn't that what we mean by 'gratifying deeds'?"

He Lingchuan retorted, "You can do such gratifying deeds yourselves, so why seek refuge with me?"

"Well..." Weng Su looked a bit embarrassed. "We know we act recklessly. If we follow you, sir, we'll have direction."

Ever since they pledged allegiance to Tu Yuanhong as their elder brother, for years they had simply followed him in their endeavors, never needing to find their own direction.

If people don't make their own decisions for a long time, they gradually lose the ability to do so.

"My usual actions are rarely pleasant," He Lingchuan chuckled. "You won't find much gratification by following me."

"No matter," the brothers said, unconcerned. "Brother Tu was often slow and indecisive, but we still pledged allegiance to him as our elder brother, didn't we?"

Tu Yuanhong was adept at handling complex situations; such a person would naturally think through every detail and consider all angles.

Weng Xing added, "Whether it's getting rid of villains like Xue Zongwu or saving lives and helping the injured, we'll do it all!"

Thinking was truly exhausting for them; it was best if someone just told them what to do, and they would follow instructions.

He Lingchuan made no comment, instead asking the two, "You've attempted to assassinate Xue Zongwu more than once, haven't you?"

Weng Xing nodded. "How did you know? We had set up a killing formation earlier at Yanmu Cliff, planning to crush him to death if Xue Zongwu passed through the valley!"

Emperor Jiuyou raised a hand and gently pressed his forehead.

Just hearing the beginning, he knew the outcome.

The Soul-Snatching Mirror in his arms laughed uncontrollably, "Ah ha ha ha ha, I'm dying of laughter! There really are idiots who would ambush someone at Yanmu Cliff!"

"Master, Master, you absolutely must take in these two amusing characters; things will be fun from now on!"

"But that wily Xue didn't go, making us shiver in the cold on the mountain all night," Weng Xing said bitterly. "So we rushed to Taoshui to wait for him. He used to visit the Feng family whenever he passed through Taoshui City. Who would have thought..."

"The Feng family was reported by the Qingyang Supervisor of the State."

"Right, right!" Weng Xing nodded vigorously. "Did you also go to Taoshui, benefactor?"

"..." The foolish young man even knew how to ask a question back.

"Then you boarded the ship at Longkou Ferry?" Reflecting on it now, Xue Zongwu's guards probably felt threatened when they escorted several boatmen off the ship.

"Yes, we found a way to sneak onto Xue Zongwu's ship, hoping to assassinate him then."

"We initially thought we'd just jump ship and escape if it came to it, or at worst... sacrifice our lives," Weng Xing added from the side. "But who knew Xue Zongwu wasn't even on that ship! He had secretly switched to another one."

"Oh dear, oh dear, these two treasures are making my stomach hurt from laughing!" He Lingchuan's ears were filled with the loud laughter of the Soul-Snatching Mirror. "Oh wait, I don't have a stomach."

"..." Were there only two "treasures"?

Weng Su continued his narration, "So then, we had no choice but to make our move at Xiaotao Mountain Villa."

"If you had acted sooner, you would have lost your lives. You were lucky," He Lingchuan said bluntly. "How did you manage to infiltrate Xiaotao Mountain Villa?"

He possessed the skin of Lord Boshan, which made him invisible when worn, allowing him to enter through the back door. Aside from that, the walls of Xiaotao Mountain Villa were equipped with traps and formations; illegal entry would lead to trouble.

"We initially planned to sneak in as servants, but we found out that Xiaotao Mountain Villa required a guarantor even for temporary workers," Weng Su said, pressing his neck, which made a cracking sound. "We were at a loss when we suddenly realized that Xiaotao Mountain Villa purchased large quantities of fresh food, fruits, and vegetables every day."

He Lingchuan nodded. "With so many guests, Xiaotao Mountain Villa's food preparations are likely more than ten times their usual amount."

Weng Xing pointed to Weng Su. "My brother discovered that Xiaotao Mountain Villa ordered two fat pigs every day. The best part was that these were whole pigs, already slaughtered and cleaned, with their insides completely hollowed out!"

"You two..." What an unconventional approach.

The Soul-Snatching Mirror clicked its tongue, "I must say, these two really can adapt to any situation."

"We timed it perfectly and hid inside the bellies of the fat pigs. We didn't even have to exert ourselves; the mule cart simply delivered us right into the kitchen of Xiaotao Mountain Villa," Weng Su chuckled. "Once inside, we could just walk around freely. There were new faces everywhere in the villa anyway, so no one questioned who we were."

With guests arriving like clouds, Xiaotao Mountain Villa had been receiving countless distinguished visitors—and their servants—in recent days. How could they possibly recognize so many strangers?

"What about those explosions?" He Lingchuan's curiosity was piqued. "How were they so precise?"

Cannons had long been common, and He Lingchuan himself had even used the large cannons on the south city gate to bombard State Preceptor Sun Fuping when he first entered the Coiled Dragon Illusion. However, gunpowder was rarely used in battles between cultivators. For one, it was difficult to time explosions, and for another, its power was often insufficient compared to Daoist magic and divine abilities.

Not to mention, vital energy could also reduce its effectiveness.

Yet, it remained very effective against ordinary people.

And still very frightening.

The Weng brothers had only created a few explosions that night, yet they had thrown the entire Xiaotao Mountain Villa into chaos, with remarkable precision and timing.

Weng Su pointed to his younger brother, "It's all thanks to this kid."

Both brothers had done all sorts of work in their youth, and going into mines was commonplace for them. Weng Xing had thus learned a great skill for splitting mountains and rocks—using explosives.

Explosions controlled in terms of quality, quantity, and scale could not only split mountains but also open mines. Weng Xing had once worked in a gold mine and could narrow the explosion's range to within a *zhang* (about 3.3 meters), detonating it with precise accuracy.

He Lingchuan understood. This was essentially an engineer, a rare sight indeed.

"However, creating such large-scale explosions with precise timing would be difficult for me alone," Weng Xing said, rubbing the back of his head, not hiding anything from his benefactor. "I have a 'Heavenly King Scale,' a magical artifact Brother Tu found and gave to me. With this treasure, I can perform these tasks much more easily, and even control the timing of explosions."

He still felt lingering fear: "Tonight, it was thanks to the Heavenly King Scale protecting its master, otherwise I would have been burned alive by Xue Zongwu's little flame beast!"

Controlling the timing of explosions? Just based on that, the Heavenly King Scale was a rare treasure. He Lingchuan's heart stirred.