A huge crowd gathered outside the Demon Scheming Sect, it was Zhuo Fan and his army.
With uprising the only thought on their minds, all had shed the hesitation from before, now ready to kill.
Looking at the familiar barrier, Zhuo Fan grinned.
[Xie Wuyue, Iâm no pawn you can use and then throw away. I didnât care about the Demon Scheming Sect before, but since you wanted a fight, Iâll get you first and take the sect as well.]
[This is about Qingcheng and my life. Iâm not about to be soft with you!]
Zhuo Fan looked at Luo Yunhai, âYunhai, you with the clansmen and young Sanzi are to hold this place. If a battle strikes out, someone will be coming to let you in.â
âYes, brother Zhuo!â Luo Yunhai cupped his hands.
Young Sanzi also nodded and gave a thumbs up, slapping his chest, âNo worries, dad, with me here, just tell me where to stomp and itâll be flattened in no time!â
âUhm, young master, this isnât Mystical Heaven Sect. We still want to cultivate here later. Please go easy as much as possible, ha-ha-haâŠâ Venerable Qi sweated as he sighed.
The others laughed.
While young Sanziâs insane power had him vexed, he was the best insurance they had. With the little freak around, their win was a given.
Even if the inner sect had High Venerable to interfere, it wouldnât do a damn thing. Not since this young master finished off Heavenly Cycle Elders like nothing.
Zhuo Fan cleared his throat and shouted, âLetâs go! The world is about to change!â
Zhuo Fan took the first step forward, with Chu Qingcheng at his side. The others followed right behind him, all ready to attack their own sect.
No matter how prepared one is, being on guard around oneâs own men was hard. The barrier easily opened, letting these beasts waltz in like they owned the place.
Suddenly, four figures flashed. The crowd was stunned to see the Four Scheming Demons.
âRelax, theyâre with us. I had them watch the place for movements.â
Zhuo Fan had them take it easy and asked the pygmies, âTell me, did Xie Wuyue return?â
Violent Demon nodded and cupped his hands, âSteward Zhuo, Sect Leader has been back for a month now. When he heard you took two thirds of the sectâs power out, he blew his top. Lately, he took his anger on a dozen disciples, killing them where they stood.â
âHa-ha-ha, I knew it. Weâll be going all out it seems.â
Zhuo Fan waved and walked on, âWhat of Venerable Shi and his faction? Did some suspicious people or experts appear⊠â
âSteward Zhuo, Venerable Shiâs side has only been inciting discordâŠâ The Four Scheming Demons walked with Zhuo Fan as they reported.
The others were stunned.
[Steward Zhuo was ready to rise from the start. He even had spies left behind.]
[He truly is a wise man to think about rebelling even before he attacked Mystical Heaven Sect. Demon Scheming Sect will definitely go further with him than it ever could with Xie Wuyue.]
[While rebelling isnât exactly honorable, but we will now have an even better Sect Leader, worthy of past Sect Leader generations.]
Venerable Qi and Bai nodded, their hearts at peace with that excuse.
Zhuo Fanâs team arrived at the Main Hall. The huge crowd and their mighty aura diminished the grand Main Hallâs vibe. It even made Xie Wuyue frown inwardly with worry, forcing him to come out.
âWho dares show off before the Sect Leaderâs Main Hall?â
Xie Wuyue came to the door and saw the army. Then he saw Zhuo Fan in front and squinted as he spat, âZhuo Fan, you dare return?â
Zhuo Fan raised an eyebrow, âAnd why not? Iâm a Demon Scheming Sect disciple. It is my home. Itâs normal to return home.â
âHumph, rotten traitor!â
Xie Wuyue cursed, âYou first fooled me when you left the sect so that when I went to discuss with the empires, you came soon after, impersonating me with my token, taking every expert of the Labor Office. You have undermined my authority! By Demon Scheming Sectâs rules, you are to be executed!â
Just then, Venerable Shi showed up at the most convenient moment with his inner sect contingency, standing behind Xie Wuyue like old friends.
Everyone found it odd, only Zhuo Fan snickering.
[I knew it. Venerable Shi had been bored for so many days, waiting for this moment to act!]
Others might not know how this switch in allegiances worked, but Zhuo Fan did.
As interests shifted, so did relations, from allies to enemies and vice versa. It was just like yin and yang. At the smallest change, yin could become yang and yang yin. Deficit could become profit and profit deficit when one least expected.
Venerable Shi held control over the inner sectâs profits, to the point Xie Wuyue felt his hands were tied. So he had no choice but to bring an outsider to work with in turning all of Venerable Shiâs profit into crumbs.
This had forced Venerable Shi to step back, but in fact was waiting for the two alliesâ fame to come head to head.
In other words, Zhuo Fanâs fame was what got Xie Wuyue to get him here, to stop the inner sect. But now, since the inner sect was out of the fight, Xie Wuyue found that Zhuo Fanâs name was threatening him, thus affecting his ambitions and making him change his stance, from ally to enemy.
Only when the two tigers were facing off did Venerable Shi step in. He would side with one and killing the other would be a cinch. Ruining their alliance was the best scheme ever.
Even with the two knowing this, they had to face off in the end, all while Venerable Shi would stand at the sideline and reap the most from their ego clash.
There was just one tiny detail Venerable Shi overlooked. Zhuo Fan was just as adept, if not more, in these tactics as well. At first he tried to avoid conflict with Xie Wuyue, his subdued attitude and downplay of his merits letting him to drop his guard. Since the kid would be gone, he had no reason to be anxious.
Zhuo Fan did this because he had that intention as well but also because he was weaker and had to look after himself.
But then he learned of Chu Qingchengâs predicament and Zhuo Fan had to interfere. So he became a mover and a shaker, using all his name to get everyone to go to war for him.
And since this meant crossing the other, then he might as well go all out and counterattack the sect.
After all, when oneâs strong enough, all the scheming wasnât worth a stone. This was what Venerable Shi had failed to see. Zhuo Fan had two thirds of the Demon Scheming Sect behind him, with the Luo clan and young Sanzi right at the gates.
Even with Venerable Shi and Xie Wuyue joining hands, they still couldnât touch him.
Though the two had yet to sense it. Xie Wuyue flicked his hand displaying his full authority as Sect Leader, âMen, take Zhuo Fan away.â
The silence was deafening.
Xie Wuyueâs words echoed in everyoneâs ears, but no one paid them any heed. What was worse, they looked at him with scorn.
Xie Wuyue looked hard at them and cursed, âWhat do you think youâre doing? Did you not hear my orders?â
âHa-ha-ha, relax, Sect Leader, with how close the Labor Officeâs elders are to Steward Zhuo, they couldnât possibly do it. Then I will just have to do it myself, for Sect Leader.â
Even though Venerable Shi was ignorant, he did not forget to paint the Labor Office in a bad light, saying that they were on Zhuo Fanâs side and not Xie Wuyueâs trusted aides.
But even he wouldnât believe that his assumption was right on the money.
This thought never crossed his mindâŠ
Venerable Shi waved, âMen, take Zhuo Fan, this Sect Leader impersonator!â
âYes, sir!â
Two elders behind him bowed and snickered. They moved towards Zhuo Fan with Venerable Shi watching from behind in glee.
This way he would use Xie Wuyue to strike Zhuo Fan, his trusted aide and at those old fools in the Labor Office.
However, the two had yet to reach Zhuo Fan as bloodlust exploded from behind him. It forced the two to halt.
The smug Venerable Shi was shocked, looking at the scene in disbelief.
He could see that everyone behind Zhuo Fan was filled with zeal and intent to fight.
[Donât tell me these guys are in cahoots with Zhuo FanâŠ]
Venerable Shi finally knew the situation was worse than he thought and sweat started trickling down his spineâŠ