Chapter 327: Not One Less
General He froze for a moment before it dawned on him. "You're quite the ambitious one, aren't you?"
"No, this isn't for the future or honor of the Xiao Family," Xiao Ye said calmly. "I simply can't stand the Ouyang Family."
"My bottom line is that no one should do anything detrimental to the country, and especially not anything that disregards basic human decency!"
"Not only did they join the Angel Association and help it expand within the Dragon Country, but they also conducted such cruel human experiments."
"Their experiment results aren't for our country, but for foreign powers. Fundamentally, they're no different from traitors."
Xiao Ye's voice grew icy. "Murdering their own countrymen to conduct experiments for other nations... that's far worse than just being despicable!"
'To harm people so cruelly... they're nothing but animals!'
'I have to resolve this to prevent future tragedies!'
General He mused for a moment, then smiled. "Alright, I accept your condition."
"However, for the sake of stability and our domestic economy, this affair cannot cause too much of a stir. Do you understand what I mean?"
"Not everyone in the Ouyang Family was involved in this. And while the family shares its fortunes and failures, some of them are still quite useful."
Xiao Ye had originally planned to eliminate the entire Ouyang Family, but since General He put it that way, he had no choice but to change his plan.
'For the sake of the country's economy, I suppose I should use a gentler approach.'
"In that case, let's just have the Ouyang Family change its leadership."
General He nodded. "I have quite a bit of intel on the Ouyang Family. I hear the current Ouyang Patriarch has an illegitimate son out there."
"And he isn't living well. He hasn't had much of an education, either."
Xiao Ye understood at once. The general clearly wanted him to prop up this illegitimate son to become the new Patriarch of the Ouyang Family.
'A Patriarch in name, but in reality, just a puppet in my hands.'
'This way, the Xiao Family benefits, and the matter won't cause a huge uproar. It's truly a plan to kill two birds with one stone.'
"Alright, we'll do as you suggest, General He."
The smile on General He's face deepened. "Rest assured, the Xiao Family will get its fair share of benefits. Moreover, I'll give you the green light on certain matters."
"Oh, one more thing. Please give my regards to your master. It's been many years since we've seen each other."
Xiao Ye chuckled. "Master is off wandering the world. Not even I know where he is."
"But as soon as I find out, I'll be sure to have the message delivered to him."
He knew what the Lingxiao Daoist was capable of, so he never worried about his master's safety.
Wandering the world was nothing to him. Even in the most chaotic corners of the globe, the Lingxiao Daoist could ensure his own safety.
'That little old man has plenty of tricks up his sleeve!'
"As unpredictable as gods and ghosts"—that was the assessment the leader of the Dragon Country had once given him!
「Meanwhile.」
Ouyang Cheng had already arrived at the mountain with his men.
His heart bled as he looked at the collapsed laboratory.
But he'd had no choice. The laboratory had its weaknesses. If he hadn't activated the self-destruct sequence and let his target escape, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
Ouyang Cheng took a deep breath, finally suppressing the gloom in his heart. "Did anyone make it out alive?"
"Reporting, sir. No. We had people watching before the self-destruct sequence was initiated. We didn't see anyone come out."
Xiao Ye knew the patrol routes perfectly, and in these deep, old woods, avoiding them was incredibly easy.
Only then did Ouyang Cheng relax. But when he thought about his years of hard work being completely destroyed, he couldn't help but fly into a rage.
"Men! Start digging!"
"Salvage whatever you can from inside! But most importantly, dig up all the bodies for me!"
"Even if there's only an arm left from the blast, I want it found!"
"I want everyone who was inside accounted for, not a single one missing!"
"Start now!"
A group of men began to excavate the collapsed laboratory.
With an explosion of that magnitude, there was absolutely no way anyone inside could have survived.
However, some of the items inside might have survived the disaster.
The large equipment was a lost cause, but smaller items could still be recovered.
Even a reclusive and powerful clan like the Ouyang Family had to be frugal when faced with a laboratory disaster of this scale.
The excavation work couldn't be finished in a single day.
Ouyang Cheng left his most trusted subordinate to oversee the work and departed with the rest of his men.
After returning to the Ouyang estate, for some unknown reason, he was filled with a sense of foreboding.
He immediately summoned a subordinate. "Go, bring the Master to me. Have him perform a divination."
Ouyang Cheng's sixth sense had always been sharp, so he didn't dare to be complacent.
Soon, the Master arrived.
This master was retained by the Ouyang Family. He typically lived in the old family residence, and anyone who wanted a reading had to seek him out. He was considered an honored guest of the family.
The very fact that he was kept here spoke volumes of his abilities. His skill in divination, while perhaps not supernatural, was certainly not to be underestimated.
The Master sat across from Ouyang Cheng. "Young Master, is there anything specific you wish to ask?"
Ouyang Cheng shook his head. "No, I just have a sudden bad feeling. Help me divine my overall fortune."
"Very well." The Master took out his Copper Coins.
After three consecutive tosses, his expression grew grim. "Young Master, this reading... is truly not good."
Ouyang Cheng's expression turned grim. "How not good?"
"It indicates a sign of great calamity. I'm afraid the entire Ouyang Family will experience a major upheaval—and not a minor one. The slightest misstep could lead to a devastating blow!"
Ouyang Cheng sucked in a sharp breath and shot to his feet.
The only things he could think of that could deliver such a devastating blow to the Ouyang Family were the Angel Association and the laboratory.
In truth, he had considered such consequences ever since he joined the Angel Association.
But... some things were far more alluring than mere wealth and glory. For instance—eternal life!
Ouyang Cheng clenched his jaw. "No matter who it is, if they dare to move against my Ouyang Family, I will never let them get away with it!"
The reading revealed little else, and the Master soon took his leave.
To avert disaster, Ouyang Cheng began issuing orders, preparing for every possible negative outcome he could imagine.
But he never would have imagined that the trouble would begin from within the Ouyang Family itself!
「In the study.」
Xiao Ye looked over the files General He had sent.
'As expected of the state apparatus,' he thought. 'There's a lot of information in here that even I couldn't dig up.'
It turned out the Ouyang Family was not nearly as peaceful as it appeared on the surface. Internally, it was divided into three factions.
And all three factions were vying for the position of Patriarch.