Chapter 1401: Submit to Me
The Tong Continent Great Emperor's reaction surprised Yang Haoran. He had expected the Tong Continent Great Emperor to fly into a rage upon seeing the miserable state of his two Guardians, but to his astonishment, the Tong Continent Great Emperor remained incredibly calm, his expression shifting only slightly before quickly returning to normal. This was truly unexpected.
One must understand that each Great Emperor commanded only nine Guardians, and every single Guardian played an immense role. This was especially true for Guardians personally promoted and painstakingly cultivated, whose value to a Great Emperor was naturally even greater.
Yang Haoran knew that these two Guardians, now reduced to desiccated corpses, were trusted confidants personally promoted and cultivated with immense effort by the Tong Continent Great Emperor. Their value to him was enormous. With these two at his side, the Tong Continent Great Emperor could save himself considerable worry. If they died, the Tong Continent Great Emperor would lose two powerful subordinates, a significant loss not only to him personally but also to the entire Tong Continent Yin Division.
Yet, at this moment, not only were the two dead, but even their souls had vanished. Despite this, the Tong Continent Great Emperor's reaction was far from intense; there was surprisingly little anger visible on his face. This was clearly abnormal.
In Yang Haoran's view, there were only two possibilities for this situation. One was that the Tong Continent Great Emperor was forcibly suppressing his rage, not allowing his inner fury to fully show. The other was that the Tong Continent Great Emperor had other ideas and arrangements, and thus, the deaths of these two did not impact him as greatly as might be imagined.
Which possibility was the truth, Yang Haoran currently did not know, nor did he have any interest in finding out. What he needed to do now was to stall for as much time as possible. Every extra moment he gained meant more of his subordinates would successfully relocate.
The Tong Continent Great Emperor was correct; the Unnamed Small Tower was indeed a demonic artifact. However, Yang Haoran was unaware of its renown. He had specifically consulted numerous records but found no information regarding this demonic artifact. He could only deduce that the tower was a demonic artifact by observing the nature of the power it released, the external manifestation of that power, and drawing upon his own experience.
Even the method for controlling this demonic artifact was something he had spent considerable time exploring and figuring out. Similarly, its power level was something he only grasped after repeated trials.
The reason these two Guardians under the Tong Continent Great Emperor had been reduced to their current state was, of course, because Yang Haoran had offered them as sacrifices to the Unnamed Small Tower. The Unnamed Small Tower had not only completely devoured all the blood from their bodies but also consumed every trace of their internal power, and even their souls, leaving absolutely nothing behind. This was why the Tong Continent Great Emperor could not sense the presence of their souls within their corpses.
However, the Tong Continent Great Emperor was not certain in his heart that the two souls had definitely been devoured by the demonic artifact, because in his view, it was also possible that Yang Haoran had extracted and hidden them.
“Heh heh, Great Emperor truly possesses sharp insight. Indeed, this tower is a demonic artifact, and your two Guardians did perish because of it. However, considering their importance to you, your subordinate left their bodies intact as a display of my reverence for the Great Emperor. ”
Yang Haoran gave a definite affirmative to the Tong Continent Great Emperor's conjecture. Although he didn't explicitly state that the two had lost their lives as sacrifices, he readily admitted their deaths were caused by the demonic artifact. However, his choice of words was quite jarring to the Tong Continent Great Emperor.
A slight twitch appeared at the corner of the Tong Continent Great Emperor's mouth. It was clear Yang Haoran's words had provoked him somewhat, yet he did not erupt.
“These two were trusted confidants I personally promoted. They followed me for countless years, achieving innumerable merits, small and large, escaping death countless times, averting danger on numerous occasions. Yet, I never imagined they would ultimately reach this end today. ”
The Tong Continent Great Emperor sighed with a hint of lament. After uttering these words, he did not put away the two corpses, nor did he destroy them. Instead, he allowed them to float suspended before him, shrouded in blood-red light. He withdrew his gaze from their bodies and then looked at Yang Haoran. “Yang Haoran, I greatly admire your strength, your courage, and especially your intellect. I believe that given enough time, your achievements will undoubtedly be even more astonishing. For a talent as rare and difficult to find as yourself to die so young at my hands would truly be a tremendous pity for me. I do not wish to do such a thing, nor do I wish for you to die like this. Therefore, I now offer you an opportunity: submit to me. ”
The Tong Continent Great Emperor's words were shocking, but judging by his utterly serious expression, he was not joking with Yang Haoran; he was entirely earnest.
Yang Haoran's brows furrowed slightly. It seemed he, too, had not expected the Tong Continent Great Emperor to utter such words at this particular moment. He didn't immediately respond, choosing silence instead, for he couldn't fathom what scheme the Tong Continent Great Emperor was brewing. He studied the Tong Continent Great Emperor, seemingly trying to discern something from his expression.
Seeing Yang Haoran merely looking at him without speaking, the Tong Continent Great Emperor did not press him. Instead, he continued, detailing the benefits of submission to Yang Haoran.
“As long as you are willing to submit to me, everything that has happened here today, I can pretend I didn't see. You are not raising ghosts here; this was merely a misunderstanding, a flaw in the intelligence I gathered. Similarly, no personnel here were attempting to flee; what I saw were powerful Spirit Masters ambushing your Guardian District. To prevent your subordinates and all the people of Lecheng from being slaughtered by Spirit Masters, you therefore decided to temporarily relocate them. ”
At this point, the Tong Continent Great Emperor's gaze returned to the two desiccated corpses floating before him, and he continued speaking.
“As for these two Guardians I brought, they did not die by your hand, but rather by the hands of Spirit Masters. Finally, you and I together, after an immense struggle, will defeat the Spirit Masters who came. However, because they were prepared, they will successfully escape. To make this narrative more convincing, you and I will certainly need to sustain some injuries; at least on the surface, the wounds must appear very severe. ”
His voice paused slightly, then a cold sneer appeared on the Tong Continent Great Emperor's face as he continued.
“In this way, you, Yang Haoran, will not only be innocent today but also meritorious. Not only will you avoid being hunted by the Yin Division, but you will also continue to firmly hold your position as Guardian. Furthermore, I will vigorously cultivate you in the future, providing you with vast resources. These resources will include, but not be limited to, materials, connections, and manpower, all within the scope of my support. What do you think? ”
If the Tong Continent Great Emperor's previous words were shocking, then his current words were beyond mere astonishment. Yang Haoran's already slightly furrowed brows tightened even further due to the Tong Continent Great Emperor's propositions.
What sinister scheme was the Tong Continent Great Emperor plotting? In that brief instant, Yang Haoran could only think of two possibilities.
The first possibility was that the Tong Continent Great Emperor intended to stabilize him first using this method, then combine the strength of other Yin Division members to deal with him. This approach would be safer and easier, especially since the Tong Continent Great Emperor had already perceived his breakthrough to the Life Soul realm, and thus did not wish to face him in a one-on-one battle.
The second possibility was that the Tong Continent Great Emperor was serious about recruiting him, because today the Tong Continent Great Emperor had lost two Guardians, and the strength of the entire Tong Continent Yin Division had suffered a tremendous blow as a result. Therefore, the Tong Continent Great Emperor urgently needed to fill this void. If a Life Soul realm expert were brought in to fill it, this would be a purely profitable venture. However, whether the Tong Continent Great Emperor would treat him with sincerity or merely as a pawn was hard to say; Yang Haoran felt the latter possibility far outweighed the former.
“Heh heh, Great Emperor's considerations are truly thorough. Your subordinate is quite moved after hearing them. However, your subordinate is still a little curious: if I don't agree, what will Great Emperor do next? ”
Yang Haoran's tightly furrowed brows relaxed, and a faint smile returned to his face as he spoke, questioning the Tong Continent Great Emperor.
“If you do not agree, then this Guardian District will be your burial ground today. Your soul will be extracted by me. As for your subordinates, whom you painstakingly helped to escape, I will capture them one by one, execute them one by one, and cast their souls into hell to suffer endless torment. Your soul, naturally, will be no exception. ”
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