Chapter 254

"So that's how it is, a fine method!"

"You flatter me. It is merely some minor trickery that cannot be brought into the light; it is not worth mentioning before Lord Shen."

"It's brainwashing!" In that split second, Shen Yu understood the other party's approach.

This was indeed not a mental Cultivation Method like the Soul Bewitching Technique, yet it was superior to such mental techniques, and it could be done without leaving a trace.

"Then you must be someone Liang Ruyue knows, and you must be someone he trusts. Who exactly are you?"

"Naturally, I cherish Brother Liang as a kindred spirit; we are confidants. This humble one is untalented, but I hold the position of Deputy Commander of the Black-Clad Guard, Liang Zeheng!"

"So it's you! I know you, the 'good old man' of the Black-Clad Guard! Born of a humble background—you must be among those who are unwilling to accept their lot, too. No wonder you can make people resonate with you!"

Liang Zeheng, Deputy Commander of the Black-Clad Guard, a famous honest man. He does not strike back when faced with the powerful and noble, and is especially skilled at smoothing things over.

In the eyes of outsiders, this is the helplessness of a man from a humble background. He cannot afford to offend anyone, so he can only force a smile.

But he is very good to those below him, taking special care of others, and can be considered to have a great reputation.

Yet it is frustrating to watch; having been born into a humble family and managing to climb to his current position is already considered a rare achievement among those of humble origins.

But if not for his ability to get along with everyone, he might have been taken down long ago; after all, there are many who covet his position. Precisely because of this, while countless disciples of humble backgrounds envy him, they also harbor a sense of resentment in their hearts.

Even if they hold high positions, they still have to look at others' faces and cannot express the slightest dissatisfaction. Otherwise, the fate awaiting them would be miserable.

There are indeed many with iron-willed integrity, but most of those who die are disciples of humble backgrounds. Because they have no background and no one to support them, there is no need to consider much when taking them down.

This is also the helplessness of many people from humble backgrounds. They also want to disregard everything, but they have concerns after all. If one person offends someone, the whole family might suffer; the vast majority have families and households and simply cannot afford to gamble.

However, the Liang Zeheng before his eyes has an honest face. Whether it is his reputation or his daily conduct, he does not look like a treacherous villain at all; at most, he is just a small person who trims his sails to the wind.

But now it seems that the other party is actually vicious and extremely calculating. An honest man is indeed the most terrifying!

Once they turn against you, they can make you doubt your life; they are not easily provoked.

"Actually, Liang Ruyue was just a casual Chess Piece. In his eyes, I was also from a humble background, with no one to rely on in the imperial court. So even if I held a high position, I could only be submissive."

"So he didn't fear me, and he didn't have much guard against me. I remember when we first met, we would exchange confidences over drinks."

"It's just that when Lord Shen entered the capital back then, you were merely at the realm of a Great Grandmaster, not yet in our eyes."

"I also just happened to meet Liang Ruyue while drinking on the street, then had a drink with him and fished out some information."

Speaking of this, Liang Zeheng also sighed at the wonder of life. When he met Liang Ruyue back then, it was just a casual, incidental arrangement.

Who would have thought that Shen Yu would later rise like the midday sun, and Liang Ruyue, this casual Chess Piece, would become the most important piece.

The world says Shen Yu is the second Mu Zishan, but if one looks closely at his growth trajectory, one knows that this guy is far more terrifying than Mu Zishan.

It took Mu Zishan some time from leaving the mountain to finally growing to suppress the martial arts world.

But look at Shen Yu again; this guy seems to have appeared out of thin air. From being a nobody who had just passed the imperial examination to finally suppressing the world, it only took a mere two or three years.

This speed of promotion truly makes those who have practiced bitterly for a lifetime shed tears. It is just too damn bullying; how are they supposed to compare?

It is no wonder so many people want him dead. Besides the fact that Shen Yu is indeed hateful, jealousy must also be a factor.

The key is that Shen Yu is still so young; he is not a late bloomer at all. Now, which family doesn't use Shen Yu as an example when lecturing their sons? He is practically the "child of someone else."

You tell me, can you not be hated?

"Liang Ruyue, you really are a good Chess Piece!" If not for Liang Ruyue, how could experts like Shen Yu and Bai Yi be so easily lured into the trap?

"You!" Being used like this, Liang Ruyue admits that he really wants to kill someone now.

He also used to be conceited. Although his strength was lacking back then, his case-solving skills, work ability, and so on were top-notch, and he had also performed countless meritorious deeds.

He believed that as long as he was given a chance, he would surely soar into the sky. And Shen Yu gave him that chance, and he also performed very well.

But he never expected that he, who was so self-satisfied, would end up being played in circles, and the key was that he hadn't even realized it himself.

Except for Lord Shen, Liang Zeheng was the person he trusted most, and he had never doubted his words.

The two had talked about everything under the sun, discussing the past and present. Because they both came from humble backgrounds, he thought they were kindred spirits, regarding each other as confidants.

But now it seems it was all done intentionally by the other party, just to win his trust.

Over these past few years, there were many places where he could have noticed something if he had thought about it carefully, but he subconsciously ignored it, unwilling to believe it.

That trust caused him to lose completely, allowing him to be led by the nose.

"Liang Ruyue, you don't have to look at me like that. Haven't I been doing what we both wanted to do? I also want them to die!"

"Look, how well we've cooperated these past two years. I told you to use Shen Yu's name to sweep through the various sects, and you did it. With Shen Yu's name, most people really obediently waited to be swept."

"I leaked the news that our organization's people would break the seal on a group in Luan Mountain, and had you find a way to get Bai Yi to come here; those sealed old monsters must not be allowed to emerge easily."

"You believed it, and you couldn't wait to discuss it with Bai Yi, sending a group of people to block He Mujin and Lu Huatang, who had already broken the seal, so that Bai Yi could deal with our organization's people first."

"Tsk tsk, the plan was a good plan, but you shouldn't have discussed it with me."

"Afterward, I told you that we could actually use Bai Yi's hand to eliminate these top experts."

Speaking of this, Liang Zeheng could not help but sigh softly, as if he were extremely proud of his entire plan.

A mere Liang Ruyue, a small Chess Piece, allowed him to successfully pull off such a feat; one has to be proud.

"And then I had you release the news that Luan Mountain held the secret to how you, Shen Yu, became a top expert in just a few short years. You did it, and it lured so many experts to gather at Luan Mountain!"

"I told you again that with just a little trickery, you could make Bai Yi believe that these top experts were people from that organization."

"This way, we could kill two birds with one stone: not only could we wipe out our organization's people, but we could also use Bai Yi's hand to wipe out these top experts in the martial arts world."

"As long as those top experts are gone, the imperial court can awe the world, and then it can fight for a way out for the disciples of humble backgrounds."

"Look, you just had to believe it! Tsk tsk, your trust in me is very heavy; it is I who have let you down, Brother Liang!"

"You, you!" His hand gripping the blade trembled with anger, and all the gazes looking over from around him were malicious.

It was just that, out of fear of Shen Yu being nearby, they did not dare to make their killing intent too obvious. But if they had the chance, they would definitely hack him to pieces.

"We both wanted to achieve success in one battle, to directly ambush and kill these top experts here, and now we are about to succeed."

"Once these top experts of the martial arts world die, the world will be mostly empty. After the purges of the past few years, plus this battle, they will surely suffer heavy casualties and be unable to look after themselves."

"I imagine they can only lick their wounds and won't be able to recover their Original Qi for decades."

"What I didn't expect even more was that Shen Yu arrived!"

Chapter 254: The Disparity

Speaking of this, he even looked in the direction of Shen Yu, "That is why I leaked the news of Bai Yi being ambushed without hesitation, so that you, Liang Ruyue, would hurry to bring him to Luan Mountain to save people."

"Look at you, you didn't even think and believed it again, leading him, Lord Shen Yu, directly into a death trap. The plan went so smoothly that I am actually quite helpless; what else could I have done?"

"Then there is nothing to be done, I have accomplished so much all by myself. I would like to see, if Bai Yi dies, Shen Yu dies, and so many top experts also die, who else can stop us!"

"The Spiritual Qi Surge is about to arrive, and this prosperous age is about to begin!"