Chapter 136: Killing with a Borrowed Knife, the Way of the Wise

A flower seemed to silently bloom within the blue depths of Lanyao's eyes, sending a ring of surreal ripples blossoming outward: "You don't need to bear the weight of my favor. You only need to remember the kindness someone has shown you."

"Fine! I'll remember the kindness you've shown me." Lin Xiaosu nodded directly.

Lanyao stared at him with her captivating eyes: "Remember the kindness I've shown you? Is that how you interpret it?"

"Mm-hm!"

"No, that is not the level of comprehension a super detective should possess!" Lanyao said, "You are intentionally misinterpreting my meaning. Are you trying to cover up that confrontation between the two of us at the Jiangcheng teahouse?"

Lin Xiaosu's gaze drifted slightly...

He actually knew the true meaning behind Lanyao's words about "the kindness someone showed him."

He knew that person wasn't Lanyao.

It was Changye.

At the Jiangcheng teahouse, Lanyao had disguised herself as Ding Ruoshui, while he had later disguised himself as Blood Trace. The two of them had engaged in a contest of the art of disguise. He had extracted intelligence from her and learned that Lanyao had accepted a commission from Changye to look after him.

That act of care was presumably the reason why she had come to his rescue tonight when he was in mortal danger.

He didn't need to thank Lanyao; he only needed to remember the kindness Changye had shown him...

He understood all of this, but he really didn't want to break the illusion and drag up their past contest of disguise techniques.

It was mostly for the sake of her pride.

She had mentioned something to Du Tiange just earlier: combat was not Lanyao's arena.

That statement was correct, but then again, where was her true arena?

The Art of Metamorphosis!

The art of transformation was the foundation of this Heavenly King's standing and the very basis of her renown.

And yet, precisely within the domain of the metamorphosis arts, Lin Xiaosu had fought her to an absolute standstill.

For Lin Xiaosu to remain silent about it was a matter of basic etiquette.

Yet she herself insisted on bringing it up...

Lanyao bit her lip lightly: "In the field of the metamorphosis arts, which I excel at the most, I failed to gain the upper hand against you. It is indeed a bit humiliating. But if I refuse to face the truth for the sake of so-called pride, would I be any less humiliated? No, that wouldn't just be losing face—that would be losing my composure and my dignity as well!"

"Such composure from the Heavenly King of Hidden Dragon, I am truly impressed!" Lin Xiaosu said. "In fact, during our last encounter at the teahouse, we couldn't really call it a battle; it was merely a matter of each catching the other off guard."

"I love hearing that!" Lanyao smiled softly. "Then what about tonight's affair? Was that also beyond your expectations?"

"Of course!" Lin Xiaosu said. "Who on earth... is Du Tiange?"

"Du Tiange is a member of the Hydra... There is no longer any doubt about that now!"

"A member of the Hydra!" Lin Xiaosu's eyes grew calm. "His status must be quite high, right?"

"No one knows his exact rank, but he is a standard Awakened one, and his combat prowess is second only to the eight Heavenly Kings of the Hydra! He can be considered the absolute strongest beneath the Heavenly Kings. His position is clearly not low!" Lanyao said. "It was precisely because I knew he was coming after you that I rushed here through the night."

"How did you know he was coming after me?"

Lanyao replied, "Because he serves the King of Wa State, Saito, and inside Saito's inner circle, there is a Hidden Dragon mole. The intelligence sent back by the mole indicated that Du Tiange went to the territory of the Shan State commander, Kun Sa, last night. He struck a deal with Kun Sa, arranging for Kun Sa's genetic experts to lure you across the border, after which Du Tiange would execute the fatal strike."

Lin Xiaosu asked, "Lure me across the border? Why didn't he just cross the border himself?"

Crossing the border meant crossing national boundaries. For an ordinary person, it was naturally as difficult as ascending to the heavens, but for an expert like Du Tiange, what national boundary could possibly stop him?

Was there really any need to lure him across?

If Du Tiange wanted to kill him, he could cross the border and do it at any time.

Lanyao smiled. "It seems you owe yet another person a favor."

"Who?"

"Thunderbolt!"

Thunderbolt?

The supreme martial god of Hidden Dragon, Thunderbolt!

Thunderbolt, a name that made nearly everyone in the world pale with fright at the mere mention of it.

Lin Xiaosu was also startled. "Why do I owe him a favor? What does this matter have to do with him?"

Lanyao explained, "Five years ago, Thunderbolt issued a ban against Du Tiange, forbidding him from setting foot in Great Xia by even half a step. Ever since then, Du Tiange has truly never crossed into Great Xia by so much as half a step. If not for that ban, the time you spent stepping foot in Taichong would have given Du Tiange more than enough opportunities to kill you ten times over!"

Lin Xiaosu stared blankly up at the sky.

Lanyao watched his expression and smiled. "No matter how perilous the journey, you've safely reached the shore at last. Let's head back."

"Head back?" Lin Xiaosu asked. "Are we just going to let Du Tiange off like this?"

"If we don't let him go, what can we do? He's already flown away into the sky!"

Lin Xiaosu said, "Even if he flew into the sky, there comes a time when he has to land. Heavenly King Lan, how about we play a high-stakes game?"

Lanyao's heart leaped fiercely: "Cross the border to assassinate him?"

"A man who is definitively a member of the Hydra, a man whose combat strength is second only to the Heavenly Kings, a man lurking right under the sleeping couch of Great Xia—doesn't he deserve to be killed?"

"He deserves to die!" Lanyao said. "But you need to understand that tonight was actually our only opportunity to kill him. Since we failed to kill him with such a prime opportunity, the two of us alone will never be able to assassinate him!"

"Not necessarily!"

"Not necessarily? Go on then, tell me where the uncertainty lies..."

At least Lanyao's mind was as clear as a mirror; she knew her judgment was one hundred percent accurate.

Why did she say tonight was the only chance to kill Du Tiange?

Because the advantage was on their side.

This was out in the wilderness, where Du Tiange's forces in the Turquoise Face Country had not yet caught up. She and Du Tiange had essentially fought a duel based on pure martial might, and their side had occupied every advantage of heaven's time, geographical convenience, and human harmony.

Even under those conditions, she had failed to kill Du Tiange.

There were two fundamental reasons. First, this man's combat strength was unimaginably powerful, separated from her—a genuine Heavenly King—by only a hair's breadth. She could defeat him, but she couldn't kill him at all.

Second? This man possessed a vast array of high-tech gear.

His gloves were high-tech; with those gloves, her special ability—"electricity"—was greatly weakened.

He also wore high-tech equipment on his body. The "flight wings" that allowed him to soar into the sky at a moment's notice were high-tech. When he couldn't win, he would fly away into the clouds, leaving everyone else staring helplessly.

If they couldn't kill a man with such formidable combat prowess, equipped with full high-tech gear, and possessing extreme caution even out in the wilderness, could you really expect to cross the border and assassinate him deep within his own stronghold?

If you dared to go to his stronghold, the enemy would hold all the advantages of heaven's time, geographical convenience, and human harmony.

When that time came, surrounded by swarms of experts, it would genuinely be impossible to tell who was the hunter and who was the prey.

Lin Xiaosu said, "When experts clash, a bloody battle in the wilderness is actually a lower strategy. As the saying goes, the supreme military strategy is to attack the enemy's plans. As long as the strategy is properly employed, anything is possible!"

"A strategy? You intend to use a scheme?" Lanyao frowned.

"Yes, when brute force is not enough, supplement it with strategy."

Lanyao's gaze slowly shifted to him: "I have a feeling that the very first person this strategy of yours is going to pit against the fire... is probably me."

"No way, how could you have such a thought?"

Lanyao said, "I have a slight suspicion that you want me to risk my life and brave extreme danger for you, simply because Du Tiange is dead-set on having your head, and you won't feel at ease unless he dies."

"Heavenly King Lan, it's not right of you to say that!" Lin Xiaosu put on a serious face. "That's measuring the belly of a gentleman with the heart of a commoner..."

"Then lay out your true reasons and make me feel ashamed of myself for once."

Lin Xiaosu slowly extended a finger: "Since you want reasons, I'll give you three. Reason one: Du Tiange is the number one person beneath the Heavenly Kings of the Hydra. Based on my understanding of the Hydra, they worship the law of the jungle where the strong are revered. If one day a Heavenly King of the Hydra is killed, he is highly likely to fill that vacancy as a Heavenly King. A mere Du Tiange might not be worth risking our lives for, but to hunt down a prospective Heavenly King, taking a risk is entirely worthwhile."

Lanyao was already moved.

Hunt down a prospective Heavenly King?

Back in the day, how much of a price had Thunderbolt paid to hunt down the White Bone Heavenly King of the Hydra?

For an organization like the Hydra, even paying the price of one's life to hunt down their Heavenly Kings was worthwhile.

With just that single shift in perspective, Lanyao felt the risk was worth taking.

Because, just as Lin Xiaosu said, if Du Tiange did not die, there was a genuine possibility he could succeed a Heavenly King.

"Reason two: Du Tiange is a citizen of Great Xia and understands the situation in Great Xia better than anyone. As everyone knows, the most dangerous enemy is a traitor. Once he secures a high position within the Hydra, he will definitely formulate targeted strategies against Great Xia and inevitably inflict the greatest possible harm upon it."

Lanyao's heart accelerated.

Lin Xiaosu extended a second finger: "Reason three: A desperate strike has a chance of succeeding!"

Lanyao's eyes lit up brightly: "Why do you think there's a chance of success?"

"Because of this person!" Lin Xiaosu pointed a finger at a corpse on the ground.

Lanyao's gaze fell upon the body—it was headless. Shifting her gaze, she found it: a head was rolling in the grass. It was a woman.

"This person... what's so mysterious about her?" Lanyao didn't understand.

Lin Xiaosu said, "This person should be a subordinate of Kun Sa, and a capable one at that. Her mission was to lure me across the border. Her task was actually completed, so she... shouldn't have died!"

"Shouldn't have died? What do you mean?"

Lin Xiaosu said, "When I killed her, Du Tiange had already arrived! And he had been there for a while. If he had wanted to intervene, this person wouldn't have died. But he deliberately chose not to act, watching with his own eyes as I chopped her head off. Think about it, why is that?"

Lanyao's eyes slowly lit up like candles in the dark night: "This person was one of Kun Sa's subordinates, while Du Tiange serves Saito. Kun Sa and Saito belong to two different states, and they have been locked in a covert struggle. Therefore, Du Tiange was more than happy to see one of Kun Sa's elite experts lose her life."

Lin Xiaosu smiled. "So the premise of borrowing strength that you mentioned earlier had a directional error. The strength I want to borrow is not yours, but Kun Sa's!"

"Borrowing Kun Sa's strength to stir up the political winds of the two states..." Lanyao said. "It's a brilliant scheme, but you need to realize that this is walking a tightrope."

"Stepping into the tiger's den and stirring up chaos is walking a tightrope to begin with. An ordinary person walking this tightrope would face the possibility of a combined pincer attack from both sides, but we are different!" Lin Xiaosu said. "Heavenly King Lan, are you willing to put our former probing ground to some proper use?"

Within Lanyao's eyes, layer upon layer of wondrous flowers bloomed.

Those eyes were truly magical.

"One objection!" Lanyao said.

"What is it?"

Lanyao said, "Change how you address me. Do not call me Heavenly King Lan."

"Then what should I call you? Senior Sister? Enchanting younger sister?"

Lanyao wore a look as if she had bitten into something sour: "Enchanting younger sister? Did you even bother to check how old I am? How on earth do you have the nerve to call me that?"

"Well... since fellow practitioners in the same field are of the same sect, and we occasionally shared the same 'path' in this domain, calling you Senior Sister is completely appropriate. I'll call you Senior Sister."

"Why do I always feel like... calling me Senior Sister is another trap?" Lanyao gently patted her head. "Forget it, even if it's a trap, the depth shouldn't be too bad. Go ahead and call it, I agree!"