Chapter 130: The Grand Design

Ye Xin leapt down from the battle platform, landing before Qiu Jiecha, then reached out to help him up, speaking softly, “Uncle Qiu, please don’t do that again…”

Ye Xin had his own style. He never deliberately upheld any commander’s dignity. In times of peace, he often joked and mingled with the Heavenly Sin Battalion like friends. Because of this, the battalion never addressed Ye Xin with formal honorifics, at most adding “sir” before his name.

“Young Marshal…” Qiu Jiecha’s voice trembled as tears streamed down his face. Other veterans’ eyes were red as well. Seeing Ye Xin’s murderous aura solidify, his heart stirred with the same excitement as Xue Baiqi and the others.

“Sir…” Xue Baiqi’s expression looked somewhat strange.

“Unexpected,” Ye Xin smiled. He understood what Xue Baiqi meant. If he could, he would have hidden away to refine his killing move in secret, unknown to the world. But the previous Ye Xin had burned his obsession with all his might, willing to vanish completely just to roar one last time before all eyes. He couldn’t control it. Only after the murderous aura took shape did he realize what was lacking.

A killing move is the ultimate release of will, requiring the singular focus of that will. For others, this was no problem, but Ye Xin’s Yuan Mansion still harbored obsession—an obsession belonging to the original owner of this body—so he was unable to break through from quantitative change to qualitative transformation.

In other words, if the previous Ye Xin’s obsession hadn’t consumed him, even if Ye Xin took the Dao Attainment Pill and became a cultivator, his signature technique wouldn’t have broken through, and his combat power would have been greatly reduced.

Today, he gained and lost much, but overall, he was very satisfied.

The crowd remained silent until Ye Ling was the first to cheer. She didn’t care about Zong Yunjin; her brother had fulfilled his long-held wish, so of course, she would cheer for him.

Wen Rong, Shao Xue, and Shen Miaoxiao smiled just as brightly, but their reactions stood out sharply in the crowd, immediately drawing attention.

“Who are those girls?” Tie Xinsheng frowned.

“The one in the black battle skirt is Ye Ling, Ye Xin’s sister,” Shen Wangji said with a smile. “The one in the red jacket is Xiao Nu, the one in blue is Wen Rong, and the one in white skirt is Shao Xue.”

“So… Wen Rong?” Tie Xinsheng’s frown deepened, his eyes flashing with intense loathing. But he was skilled at masking his expression, and his face quickly softened. “She’s somewhat pretty…”

Tie Xinsheng didn’t finish his thought, nor did he want to. Just ‘somewhat pretty’—there were many beautiful women in the world. Could she marry into the Ye family on that alone?

Ye Xin, with the strength of a Supreme Pillar of the Nation, was a rare treasure in Tie Xinsheng’s eyes. He was willing to do anything to win Ye Xin over, so that Ye Xin would fight for the Great Wei Kingdom and also for the Tie family.

Autumn Xiang’s reminder still echoed in his ears: Ye Xin was young, untainted by the noble families, full of righteousness and passion, unlike those crafty old family heads driven solely by profit. There was time and opportunity to change Ye Xin.

Autumn Xiang also said that hearts were made of flesh; if he sincerely showed Ye Xin true care, he could naturally influence him.

Of course, none of this was guaranteed. The best plan was to have Ye Xin’s descendants carry royal blood, so the Tie and Ye families could truly become one.

How regretful… Back then, because Ye Xin offended Princess Tie Huizhen, he was cast into the Heavenly Sin Battalion. If only he had supported Ye Xin then, everything would have proceeded smoothly. He wouldn’t be in this agonizing state now.

Just then, Deng Zhiguo laughed from behind, “Congratulations to the lord for gaining—”

“Hmph!” Tie Xinsheng snorted coldly, swept his sleeve, and left.

Shen Wangji, Guan Hanyu, and others were surprised. They all knew Tie Xinsheng was deliberately snubbing Deng Zhiguo, who was left utterly confused, unsure what he had done wrong.

“Brother…” A piercing cry shattered the silence. Zong Yunxiu knelt over Zong Yunjin’s corpse, sobbing loudly. Zong Zhentang’s face turned ashen as he strode toward the steps where Zong Yunjin lay.

Amid the sobbing, the wolf riders quietly filed out of the academy gates. Ye Ling and the others mounted their mounts and blended into the wolf riders.

On the battle platform, Autumn Xiang took a deep breath and announced, “Score fifteen points, Ye Xin’s total is… 105 points!”

The crowd fell silent again, only Zong Yunxiu’s wailing echoing above. This was an unbreakable record; the theoretical maximum score was 105!

Ye Xin won all seven battles, six of which ended without a fight as opponents forfeited, while the last was a lightning-fast kill of Zong Yunjin, too swift for Autumn Xiang to intervene.

Moreover, Ye Xin bore no responsibility. The academies always encouraged students to fight with everything they had to unlock their full potential. The central academy supervised battles precisely to prevent tragedies at the last moment.

If the Zong family wished to dispute the matter, they’d have to confront Autumn Xiang. But countless witnesses saw Zong Yunjin’s death firsthand; the blame was not Autumn Xiang’s. If it were Zong family head Zong Zhentang, he could only watch helplessly.

To put it bluntly, even if Zong Zhentang had fought instead of Zong Yunjin, he would have been killed by Ye Xin just the same. How could he have saved anyone?

The grand martial competition at Longteng Martial Academy finally concluded. Ye Xin’s rise had made the situation in Jiuding City unpredictable. Throughout the history of each duchy, every Supreme Pillar of the Nation altered their homeland’s balance to some degree; Ye Xin would be no exception.

* * * *

After returning to the Ye family, Ye Xin immediately entered seclusion to consolidate his realm. Every warrior who breaks through must do this. In some ways, Ye Xin was bold and innovative, determined to find the underlying logic through repeated trials. In others, he was cautious, unwilling to take reckless risks with his current state.

The guests at the Ye estate became surprisingly numerous. If Deng Qiaoying were still here, she would be delighted. Shen Wangji came to fetch his daughter. Wen Yuanren and Wen Hongren both arrived together. Guan Hanyu personally delivered an imperial edict from Tie Xinsheng. Deng Zhiguo brought Deng Duojie for a visit—not to see Ye Xin, but to visit his newly released brother-in-law Ye Suifeng.

Even Ning Gaowu of Danren Kingdom’s Poshan Duke, Zhou Polu of Daluo Kingdom, and Wu Qiushen of Daxi Kingdom all came to pay respects. A visit implied they regarded Ye Xin as an equal.

Tie Shudeng, Wang Meng, and many others also arrived. Guests came in an endless stream, with those arriving earlier still present as new ones entered, keeping Ye Suifeng busy.

Ye Xin remained secluded until noon the next day, then emerged from his small courtyard. Walking around the Ye estate, he found Ye Ling practicing swordsmanship in the martial field, with Qiu Jiecha giving pointers beside her.

Originally, Ye Ling used a sword, but now she wielded a large blade, oddly resembling Ye Xin’s Killing God Blade. She trained diligently, sweat streaming down her face.

Ye Xin watched for a moment, then smiled wryly, speaking softly, “This isn’t suited for you.”

“Brother?” Ye Ling saw him, quickly placing the blade on the weapon rack, grabbing a towel to wipe sweat haphazardly, then ran toward Ye Xin. “You’re out of seclusion?”

“Mm.” Ye Xin nodded, repeating, “The large blade doesn’t suit you.”

“I don’t care—I want to train with it anyway!” Ye Ling shouted.

Ye Xin was somewhat helpless. He couldn’t explain now. Once Ye Ling could refine her signature technique, he’d think of other methods. Then he changed the subject, “Where’s Second Uncle?”

“Father went to court,” Ye Ling said.

“Second Uncle… is under punishment, right? What court does he have to attend?” Ye Xin frowned.

“I don’t know either,” Ye Ling was confused.

“Never mind. I’ll ask when he returns,” Ye Xin said.

“Brother, what will you do today?” Ye Ling asked.

“I want to relax and take a stroll,” Ye Xin replied.

“Brother, you can’t relax!” Ye Ling said seriously. “Wen Rong said that although you have Supreme Pillar strength, your future will be even more perilous! And you’re going to the front lines soon—on the southern front to fight Dayu Kingdom. We know nothing about them! By the way, Wen Rong and Shao Xue talked to merchants who traded with Dayu to gather information. Wen Rong said it’s about anticipating the enemy’s moves!”

“They’re thoughtful…” Ye Xin grinned.

“Brother, why are you so nonchalant?” Ye Ling called out. “Over the years, none of Longteng Martial Academy’s champions have had good endings. Take cousin Deng Duoyong—he was once so glorious, but in the end, he died on the battlefield!”

“Are you cursing your brother?” Ye Xin tapped Ye Ling’s forehead, then suddenly remembered and looked at Qiu Jiecha. “Uncle Qiu, Deng Duoyong was in the Wolf Legion, right? As a champion, the commander should have paid more attention. How did he die in battle?”

Qiu Jiecha hesitated, glanced around—only Xue Baiqi and Hao Fei were present, all trusted comrades—then stammered, “I feel that… the Wolf Commander might have deliberately sent Deng Duoyong to his death. Young Marshal, I can’t be sure, but that’s the feeling I have.”

“How could that be? Deng Duoyong was our cousin!” Ye Ling’s eyes widened.

“Could it be… that the incident with me and Princess Tie Huizhen was actually orchestrated by Deng Duoyong?” Ye Xin suddenly recalled the past. He knew he had been framed but didn’t yet know who was behind it.

“I don’t know either. The Wolf Commander never spoke of it,” Qiu Jiecha said. “But I heard that after you were imprisoned in the Heavenly Sin Battalion, the Wolf Commander dispatched elite troops to forcibly rescue you. When he learned you had escaped, he gave up.”

Conflicts between the strong were common and tolerated by the ruler, but mobilizing troops to attack was treason of the highest order. Qiu Jiecha had never dared speak of this before, nor did he fully trust Ye Xin. (To be continued.)