Chapter 1244: Full Cooperation
"Lord Guardian Yang, I believe you should be aware that our Demon Hunter Guild is permitted to construct temples within the territories of your Underworld Office and to preach and recruit followers. This was an agreement settled between your Underworld Office's five Great Emperors and our Guild Master back then. Now that the great war has concluded and our side has achieved final victory, shouldn't your Underworld Office uphold the original agreement?"
Inside the living room, the six individuals were seated. Yang Haoran naturally occupied the main seat, while the other five were Demon Hunters who had come to demand an explanation. The one who had just spoken was one of the two three-star Demon Hunters; middle-aged in appearance, his face bore a scar resembling a centipede, exuding a fierce and unapproachable aura. His face was grim, his expression quite unpleasant, and when he spoke to Yang Haoran, his tone even carried a note of interrogation.
"Li, how can you speak to Guardian Yang in such a manner?"
No sooner had the scar-faced man's voice faded than a white-haired elder, seated beside him, spoke up with displeasure, his tone carrying a distinct note of admonishment. This white-haired elder was also a three-star Demon Hunter, just like the scar-faced man. However, judging by the subtle power fluctuations emanating from them both, the white-haired elder was considerably stronger than the scar-faced man. Furthermore, the white-haired elder addressed the scar-faced man as Li, indicating that his position within the Demon Hunter Guild was also above that of the scar-faced man.
Reprimanded by the white-haired elder in front of Yang Haoran and the other three Demon Hunters, the scar-faced man surprisingly did not fly into a rage. He merely let out a cold snort. Beyond that, he uttered not a single word, nor did he openly contradict the white-haired elder.
However, whether his cold snort was directed at Yang Haoran or at the white-haired elder who had spoken, only he knew.
"Heh heh, Guardian Yang, please don't take it to heart. He's just someone who speaks without thinking and acts impetuously. However, such people usually don't harbor ill intentions, so I hope Guardian Yang can be understanding and not take offense."
After he finished admonishing the scar-faced man, the white-haired elder immediately put on a smiling face and spoke to Yang Haoran, his tone laced with apology.
With Yang Haoran's discernment, how could he possibly fail to see that these two three-star Demon Hunters were putting on a double act before him, one playing the harsh role and the other the conciliatory one? Their intent was obvious. He naturally wouldn't fall for it, so his inner self remained utterly calm. He continued to smile faintly as he watched their performance.
Though his mind was perfectly clear about what was happening, Yang Haoran naturally had to cooperate with the performance that required his participation. To some, this process might seem boring, but to others, it was quite amusing.
"Heh heh, you're too polite. How could I possibly get angry over such a minor matter? I'm not that petty. However, regarding the question this gentleman raised, I feel it's necessary to respond, otherwise, it might appear as if I have a guilty conscience."
Yang Haoran said with a faint smile. After saying this, he turned his gaze to the middle-aged man and continued to speak.
"Of course, I am aware of the agreement reached between the five Great Emperors of our Underworld Office and your Guild Master back then. And indeed, the five Great Emperors of our Underworld Office have upheld their promises. Otherwise, would you have been able to continuously construct Star God Temples within my territory these past few years? Would I have remained indifferent?"
Upon hearing Yang Haoran's words, the white-haired elder remained silent, while the middle-aged man spoke again.
"Hmph, you certainly speak well. Then tell me, why was the temple we just constructed in Lecheng destroyed, and why did one three-star Demon Hunter and several lower-ranked Demon Hunters meet tragic deaths there? What is the meaning of this?"
The middle-aged man's tone was aggressive, and his attitude extremely unfriendly, making it seem as if he were a judge interrogating Yang Haoran.
The white-haired elder, who had just admonished the middle-aged man, did not speak up to stop him this time, seemingly acquiescing to the middle-aged man's approach. From this, it was abundantly clear that the two were indeed putting on a double act in front of Yang Haoran.
Yang Haoran remained unchanged; his expression didn't change in the slightest, and his face still bore a faint smile, as if those words held no power to harm him.
"The occurrence of such an event truly makes me feel quite ashamed. However, since you gentlemen have come knocking today, there is one thing I must make clear: this matter has absolutely nothing to do with me. I have no reason whatsoever to do something like this, nor would I possibly commit such a foolish act. After all, Lecheng is the city where my Guardian District is located. For me to do such a thing here would clearly be asking for trouble, because once something like this happens, your Demon Hunter Guild would undoubtedly first suspect me, the Underworld Office's Guardian. Think about it, would I, with nothing better to do, go out of my way to invite such significant trouble upon myself?"
At this point, Yang Haoran paused briefly, before continuing to speak.
"And furthermore, your Demon Hunter Guild isn't just building Star God Temples in my Ninth District of Jingling Continent. You're building Star God Temples in all Underworld Office territories throughout the entire New Beginning Realm. All other Guardians have accepted this fact, so how could I, Yang Haoran, be unable to accept it? I have no reason to stick my neck out and become the bird that gets shot first."
Yang Haoran's words were well-reasoned and supported by facts, as if the truth truly was as he stated. The middle-aged man remained silent after hearing this, his brow furrowed tightly, and he looked towards the white-haired elder beside him.
The two exchanged a glance, then the white-haired elder redirected his gaze to Yang Haoran.
"Heh heh, Guardian Yang is right. With such a major incident occurring, it's true that our Demon Hunter Guild's first thought was indeed Guardian Yang. Just as you, Guardian Yang, said, Lecheng is the city where your Guardian District is located, and you are the master of this city. If I were to say that our Demon Hunter Guild never suspected Guardian Yang from the very beginning, I'm sure, given Guardian Yang's intelligence, you wouldn't believe such a crude lie."
The white-haired elder didn't try to hide it, but directly admitted that they had indeed suspected Yang Haoran from the start. Yang Haoran showed no sign of anger upon hearing this, and responded with a smile.
"It seems I didn't guess wrong; your Demon Hunter Guild indeed suspected me from the very beginning."
One could not discern any emotion from Yang Haoran's words, as his voice remained calm throughout. However, the white-haired elder still faintly sensed Yang Haoran's displeasure, and quickly spoke up.
"From our Demon Hunter Guild's perspective, it was inevitable that we would first suspect Guardian Yang. After all, this is only reasonable. We hope Guardian Yang will understand."
Yang Haoran nodded with a smile, as if he had truly forgiven the Demon Hunter Guild's suspicions. However, the white-haired elder did not take this outward appearance at face value, for he had already thoroughly investigated Yang Haoran before arriving, knowing that Yang Haoran was not an easy character to deal with. Thus, he did not relax his guard simply because Yang Haoran nodded.
"From your Demon Hunter Guild's perspective, I can understand your suspicions towards me. But now that I have explained this matter to you, I wonder if your suspicions towards me have lessened at all?"
Yang Haoran asked with a faint smile, while the white-haired elder immediately responded.
"Heh heh, Guardian Yang jests. You've already explained it so clearly, and with such well-reasoned and supported facts, logical and reasonable arguments. How could we dare continue to suspect Guardian Yang? It's just that. . ."
At this point, the white-haired elder stopped speaking. Yang Haoran understood the white-haired elder's meaning, and took over with a smile.
"Heh heh, just what?"
"It's just that if we were to simply drop the matter like this, I certainly wouldn't be able to report back properly. Therefore, I hope Guardian Yang can fully cooperate with us and help us thoroughly investigate this matter. That way, not only can we report back properly, but Guardian Yang can also completely clear his name, and the relationship between our two sides won't suffer any cracks because of this incident."
This time, Yang Haoran did not immediately respond, but feigned contemplation, and only spoke after several breaths.
"Heh heh, no problem. I will certainly cooperate fully with you until you have thoroughly investigated this matter. After all, this incident occurred within my territory, and no matter how you look at it, I bear an undeniable responsibility. Full cooperation from me is only proper."
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