Transcending the Nine Heavens

~~The temporary headquarters of the Golden Horse Riders Department. Yin Wu Fa’s room.~~

Yin Wu Tian was sitting on a small backless stool and was completely covered in bandages. He was carrying a pot of water in his hands to wash the feet of his elder brother. The water was steaming hot.

He carefully washed him and neatly wiped him with a clean towel. Then he held Yin Wu Fa’s feet in his hands and placed them gently on the bed. Then he started massaging the lower half of Yin Wu Fa’s body.

“You don’t need to strain yourself too much,” Yin Wu Fa said in a dejected voice, with his eyes closed. “A cripple is a cripple. Although I can feel my external muscles which do not seem to be any different, the inside of my meridians has already started to have necrosis...”

Yin Wu Tian did not answer. He only kept applying martial energy to unblock the blood vessels of his elder brother.

“Our people get injured... and we can’t even afford to offend?” Yin Wu Fa asked, opening his eyes suddenly to look at Yin Wu Tian’s gloomy face.

Yin Wu Tian did not utter a single word. Yin Wu Fa sighed and muttered, “I wonder if Second Brother Kong can see us?”

“He sees us,” Yin Wu Tian breathed in and said in a hoarse voice. “Second Brother should be at ease now. He must be very happy.”

“Haha... ” Yin Wu Fa gave a bitter laugh and said in a pensive tone, “Kong Shang Xin, that bastard! Contrary to what we expect, he must be very relaxed right now. Well, he has closed his eyes anyway, haha... ”

He stared at the wall that was not too far from him for a long time, and was lost in a chain of thoughts. He said in a gloomy voice, “From the next life onwards, I must look for him and have a good fight with him. He fought valiantly and put his life at stake to rescue me only for me to be disabled. Ha-ha, his last few words unexpectedly were...”

He stopped talking and was lost in thought again. Kong Shang Xin’s tragic roar seemed to be echoing near his ears, “Do not let me die with remaining grievances!”

It was as if he saw Kong Shan Xin in a magnificent army with thousands of men and horses, doing his utmost to fight as he dashed about left and right.

“Do not let me die with remaining grievances!” Yin Wu Fa finally muttered in a dazed tone. “Yin Wu Tian, when that day comes in the future, you must not let me die with regrets.”

“Elder brother... ” Yin Wu Tian suddenly raised his head and said, “What rubbish are you talking about?”

“Originally, we two brothers used to walk unhindered in the Lower Three heavens. We used to murder for money, and we did it confidence and ease! We used to receive silver money after taking a person’s severed head. In a mighty army, negligence comes and goes as well. One strike was enough to dispose of people; with their blood sent flying and their lives lost... until later we rescued Second Brother Kong. Then, we three brothers began to wander the Jiang Hu proudly. Even though the common people called us fiends, those were still the merriest days of our lives.

Yin Wu Fa smiled profoundly. His eyes revealed a hue of recollection of memories. “... Afterwards, Prime Minister Diwu founded us. He founded the Golden Horse Riders Department. He gave us high official posts and a generous pay. The high position and great wealth at last broke us away from the forests and mountains. I did not want a high post or a generous pay, nor did I want to bring honor to my ancestors. I have been thinking... shouldn’t our later generations also be allowed to have the same ordinary life in the wilderness that we did?

With eyes full of sorrow he said, “We say that we are King Level Masters, but God knows what all things we don’t know? In order to learn to read, we had caught an old fogy and forced him to teach us. When other people speak and don’t explain properly, we are unable to make sense of what we are hearing. We can’t even make out if they are abusing us... don’t tell me that our future generations would also turn out like this? Therefore I responded to Prime Minister Diwu’s invitation.”

“I did not join for this outstanding position, ah,” Yin Wu Fa said with a miserable smile. “Ever since we arrived in the Continent Center Citadel, the Golden Horse Riders Department is getting bigger and bigger. Every task is carried out successfully. Under the strategic plans of Prime Minister Diwu, we have become almost invincible, and he has become the king of the dark world in the Lower Three Heavens. ”

“But we are not happy now! The three of us used to eat and drink every day together. Ever since we have accepted this extravagant lifestyle, the three of us have gathered to have a drink together only a few times!”

“Last year, Second Brother Kong unexpectedly died in battle,” Yin Wu Fa drew a long breath. His voice was turning more and more hoarse, “The way we used to sit together on a table to drink... a day like that will never come again.”

Yin Wu Tian did not speak and kept silently massaging Yin Wu Fa, but his countenance became more and more gloomy.

“There will no longer be such a day in our lives again,” Yin Wu Fa said, smiling unconsciously. Suddenly two drops of hot tears fell down his face as he said, “However, all this is because I initially agreed to the decision of joining the Golden Horse Riders Department. It was me who asked Second Brother Kong to join the Golden Horse Riders Department, and it was for me that Second Brother Kong ultimately died in battle!”

Suddenly, there was dead silence inside the room. The two brothers could be just heard breathing loudly.

Yin Wu Fa stared into the emptiness for some time and then suddenly said in a soft voice, “Little brother, I want to drink wine.”

Yin Wu Tian did not respond. He did not go to fetch the wine, and instead thought out loud, “Elder brother, you know what? When that man had stepped on my chest and was slapping me again and again... I thought that the arteries in my heart would snap and I would die.”

“But in the end, I did not die... I did not dare to,” Yin Wu Tian closed his eyes and tears started to roll down, “I do not fear death, but I fear humiliation. That kind of humiliation... if... if your body was in good condition, I would already have died from just half of the humiliation I had to go through that day.”

“But I thought... Second Brother is already dead. If I died too, then what would happen to your health?” Yin Wu Tian said in a hoarse voice. “Prime Minister Diwu would not support you for a lifetime.”

Yin Wu Fa’s complexion was gloomy but a ray of hope suddenly flickered in his eyes as he said, “Little Brother, wait for Iron Cloud Nation to be defeated and King of Hell Chu to be killed. We could then bring Second Brother’s ashes back to the mountains. We will go back to the place where we came from and not leave it for a lifetime, okay?”

“Go back to the place where we came from... not leave it for a lifetime,” Yin Wu Tian repeated the words. His eyes shone brightly as he said, “Good!”

The two brothers stopped talking. One lay down while the other remained seated. They stopped all movements and became lost in thought. Their originally gloomy and cruel faces faintly revealed traces of expectations. It was as if they were already imagining the life ahead.

The atmosphere within the room was dense, as if shrouded in a mist.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps came from outside.

Yin Wu Tian looked out of the window and saw Jing Meng Hun arriving. He was walking quickly, with his face flushed with excitement. Following him was a youngster who strolled with his hands crossed behind his back. It was as if he had come for sightseeing in the temporary headquarters of the Golden Horse Riders Department.

Yin Wu Tian suddenly felt that he looked familiar. He waited for him to draw nearer. Upon looking at him again, he became startled.

Yin Wu Fa noticed that something was wrong with his countenance, and could not help but ask, “What happened?”

“Yes... Big Brother Jing has come back,” Yin Wu Tian said as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

“Fourth Younger Brother! Fourth Younger Brother!” Jing Meng Hun burst into the room and said, “Fourth Younger Brother, you have to accompany Young Master Ye to have a look at my private collection. If Young Master Ye wants anything, let him take it.”

“Your... private collection?” Yin Wu Tian was just about to say, [Which private collection do you have? We only have a collective hidden treasury and nothing more.] However, he then saw that Jing Meng Hun was continuously signaling towards him with his eyes. His seemed to be anxious.

“Ok!” Yin Wu Tian recovered immediately and readily agreed.

“Um, you spare no effort in taking care of Young Master Ye. If there is anything you need, no need to ask me,” Jing Meng Hun said boldly waving his hands. “I have to go back with that item immediately. Prime Minister is still waiting for me.”

When he said this, Chu Yang casually walked in.

Yin Wu Tian’s face turned red on recalling his disgraced appearance from the other day. In a somewhat sullen manner, he proceeded to greet him, “So, it’s the savior.”

“Fourth King Level Master Yin, no need to be so formal,” Chu Yang smiled as he looked at him and thought, [It seems like he thinks of me as a friend.] Then he said in a comforting manner, “Victory or defeat is common in the routine of a military commander. Fourth King Level Master, the one who is ready to adapt to the situation is indeed a real hero!”

Yin Wu Tian nodded and his eyes revealed a grateful look.

At this time, Jing Meng Hun hurriedly greeted Chu Yang before he could get anxious. He then turned towards Yin Wu Tian and gave ten thousand careful instructions to assist the honorable guest. He told him to not disappoint the noble guest, and then hurriedly walked away.

Yin Wu Fa tried hard to sit up straight in the bed. He looked at Chu Yang with a dubious look in his eyes.

He saw Chu Yang and had a feeling of déjà vu, convinced that he had met him before, [But I really haven’t seen this face before.]

Yin Wu Fa was still thinking hard in his heart. Chu Yang turned to look at him, and then knit his eyebrows and asked gently, “This is?”

“This is my elder brother, my blood-related sibling Yin Wu Fa,” Yin Wu Tian introduced, and his heart suddenly moved. A fervent color appeared in his eyes, and he went a step forward and said, “Young Master Ye, if I may be so bold as to ask a favor... My elder brother has been injured. He cannot feel his lower body. He is paralyzed and confined to his bed. Since Young Master Ye possesses such remarkable abilities, may I dare to ask... is there any way to treat him?”

“Injured?” Minister Chu looked seemingly puzzled as he asked, “What kind of injury can be this grave?”

“All the doctors of Continent Center Citadel have been unable to figure out the injury... ” Yin Wu Tian’s face revealed an angry color. “They only know that the meridians in the lower part of his body have suddenly had necrosis.”

Chu Yang frowned and said, “Oh... let me take a look.”

He naturally knew why; it was because Yin Wu Fa had sustained injuries when he was around. He could be said to be one of the main culprits! Now they were making him diagnose him. Of course, he was more skilled than those so-called mystical doctors.

Putting on an act, he stretched out his two fingers and placed them on Yin Wu Fa’s wrist arteries. He closed his eyes slightly, as if to examine and contemplate.

Yin Wu Fa and Yin Wu Tian looked at him hopefully. They were counting on the all-resourceful Young Master Ye to find a cure.

“From the waist down, the meridians are broken up to the thigh. As for the meridians below the thighs, they are safe and sound. But since they have lost the source, they are behaving like roots without water... they are already useless now,” Chu Yang pretended to sigh and continued. “This person’s intention was really ruthless, ah.”

Yin Wu Fa and Yin Wu Tian’s hearts trembled as they asked, “Please elaborate.”

“It is... invisible sword energy (1)!” Chu Yang looked serious as he said, “This sword energy was vicious. It completely destroyed the waist meridians. This injury cannot be healed by any medicine.”

“Invisible sword energy? Cannot be healed by any medicine?” Both of them became dazed, and doubt remained in their hearts, [When actually was he.... affected by the invisible sword energy?]

“Moreover this invisible sword energy is activated only in the absence of preparedness, when the guard is down,” Chu Yang’s face continued to show signs of being perplexed, despite giving it a lot of thought, “King Level Master Yin, your cultivation level is that of a King Level Master. How could you have not perceived it? Only when there is no resistance can the situation have such a complete collapse, but the strangest thing is that you don’t even know who actually underhanded you!”

There was a big change in the countenances of both Yin Wu Fa and Yin Wu Tian at the same time! They looked at each other and saw suspicion and resentment in each other’s eyes.

[If that is the case, this injury has not occurred from engaging in warfare!]

[Only one person could have had the opportunity to pull this off, and that person is- Cheng Yun He!]

The term used could be altered for Sword qi, which means Sword energy.