Chapter 1475: Assimilation
Lei Bao's agitated words, spoken as if he intended to fight Yang Haoran to the bitter end, instantly earned him an eye-roll and a look of utter disdain from Hou Yu.
"Lei Bao, after all these years, you know me well, and I know you just as well. So, stop pretending in front of me."
With that said, Hou Yu didn't continue. Whether it was because he was too weak to speak, or simply didn't want to elaborate on certain matters, remained unknown.
Hearing this, Lei Bao's expression remained unchanged, still maintaining his previous demeanor. Yet, surprisingly for his quick temper, he didn't argue with Hou Yu, merely letting out a dissatisfied snort before speaking.
"Hmph, since you've surrendered, I suppose I have no choice but to surrender too. In this state, I'm no match for him alone. I'm not fighting anymore, I admit defeat."
Lei Bao said this weakly. Though his words were as stubborn as before, his tone had lost its earlier urgency, and like Hou Yu, he sounded listless. Yet, his words at this moment subtly blamed Hou Yu; it felt as if he was saying, "If you, Hou Yu, had been willing to fight on, victory would surely have been ours. But you just had to choose to withdraw at this critical juncture, preventing our side from winning. Therefore, the entire responsibility for this lost duel falls squarely on your shoulders."
Hou Yu naturally understood the implication of Lei Bao's words. He glared fiercely at Lei Bao, yet still showed no intention of opening his mouth to argue.
Yang Haoran, who had originally intended to move in and capture Hou Yu and Lei Bao, abandoned the idea of further attacking the two. After all, the other party had already admitted defeat, and continuing the fight would change its meaning. However, he didn't put away his three Soul Armaments. His gaze settled on the two, and then he smiled faintly.
"Hehe, so, this duel is my victory, isn't it?"
Hou Yu nodded with a sullen face but remained silent. Lei Bao snorted coldly, a look of frustration on his face, then spoke.
"Hmph, didn't the two of us just make it very clear? Did you not hear, or do you simply not understand?"
Lei Bao's tone was far from friendly, yet Yang Haoran's expression showed not the slightest hint of anger, still wearing a faint smile.
"To avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings, I simply wanted to confirm again. I don't think there should be a problem with that, is there?"
Yang Haoran asked with a smile, while Lei Bao replied with an impatient look.
"Lost, lost! Hou Yu and I lost this duel, and you won. Is that good enough?"
Yang Haoran nodded with a smile, seemingly satisfied with Lei Bao's answer. Then, he continued to ask the two with a smile.
"Since I've won this duel, will the two of you honor your promise?"
This time, Hou Yu hesitated slightly, but then gently nodded, his expression tinged with a hint of helplessness.
In contrast, Lei Bao's reaction was far more intense. His already displeased face turned even uglier the moment he heard Yang Haoran's words. He didn't speak, nor did he nod like Hou Yu.
After Hou Yu nodded, Yang Haoran's gaze fell upon Lei Bao. He naturally observed all of Lei Bao's facial reactions.
"Hehe, judging by your expression, you seem quite unconvinced. Do the two of us need to continue fighting, just between us?"
Yang Haoran asked with a smile. The moment Lei Bao heard Yang Haoran's words, his face instantly changed, and he quickly spoke.
"No need, I'll honor my promise."
Lei Bao's answer deepened the smile on Yang Haoran's face. His gaze then shifted from Lei Bao's face, sweeping far into the distance to the crowd of people and demons watching the spectacle. He smiled and announced the outcome.
"Half-Moon Island has won this duel! Both Demon Saints are men of their word; they have honored their promise and will henceforth submit to my Half-Moon Island. All the sea demons under their command are no exception. So, from this moment on, everyone here is one of us!"
Yang Haoran's voice, amplified by his power, spread in all directions, audible to everyone. There was naturally a reason why he deliberately chose to do this.
A wave of cheers erupted in the distance, rising like successive ocean waves. These cheers came solely from the people of Half-Moon Island. Even if the sea demons under the two Demon Saints felt happy about the outcome, they dared not show the slightest sign. Moreover, not all sea demons had hoped for such a result; quite a few still wished the two Demon Saints hadn't been defeated. The former dared not cheer, and the latter were not in the mood to cheer, so not a single sea demon under the two Demon Saints let out a cheer.
Yang Haoran naturally wouldn't personally handle the ensuing cleanup. He decided to hand all these issues over to Old Master Wu.
As a major battle had just erupted between the two sides, it was inevitable that personnel on both sides would have lost relatives or friends to the enemy, or suffered heavy wounds at their hands, thus forging enmity. This meant that a portion of both factions would certainly be strongly repulsed by the other. Such a problem was unavoidable whenever a major battle concluded with the victorious side accepting the vanquished's surrender.
While this was a perfectly normal occurrence, such issues absolutely had to be resolved, no matter what means were employed. Otherwise, given enough time, conflicts between the two sides would inevitably worsen, and resentment would deepen. Once these conflicts deteriorated to a certain degree, they would certainly spawn trouble, and by then, it would be too late to deal with it.
As for how to resolve it, Yang Haoran naturally wouldn't trouble himself. He would still hand it over to Old Master Wu to manage. With Old Master Wu's capabilities, Yang Haoran believed he could handle it properly. Moreover, Old Master Wu had dealt with such matters on more than one occasion; he was experienced in this area. Therefore, Yang Haoran was confident that Old Master Wu would handle the situation without any mishaps.
At this moment, outside Half-Moon Island, more and more sea demons were gathering. These sea demons were not the subordinates of Lei Bao and Hou Yu, but rather those Yang Haoran had recruited on this expedition, naturally including the burly man and his subordinates.
The burly man had arrived relatively early near Half-Moon Island. After him, sea demons arrived successively, leading to an increasing number of sea demons around Half-Moon Island. However, this "increasing number" was only relative; strictly speaking, there were only four waves of sea demons, and during Half-Moon Island's battle with the two Demon Saints, one wave of sea demons, seeing the situation turn unfavorable, had directly fled.
At that moment, the burly man felt a flicker of temptation, but he didn't flee with them. He believed it wasn't yet time to escape. It wasn't until Half-Moon Island's island protection grand array was lifted, and he learned that Half-Moon Island had not only won this great battle but had also subdued both Demon Saints and all the sea demons under their command, that the stone perpetually hanging in the burly man's heart finally settled. His heart filled with joy and excitement, for the facts proved that this time, he had indeed gambled correctly!
Half-Moon Island's strength was so formidable that it could even defeat the two Demon Saints, subdue them, and incorporate them. The extent of this power was truly unimaginable. Joining such a mighty force would undoubtedly bring numerous benefits; one could even walk with their head held high!
The burly man was extremely fortunate he hadn't fled prematurely. If he had, he would truly have missed an enormous stroke of luck. When he first discovered Half-Moon Island under siege by numerous sea demons, there was another crucial reason he hadn't immediately fled: he simply didn't know that the besieging sea demons included the two Demon Saints, Lei Bao and Hou Yu. If he had known, he would certainly have fled ignominiously at the first opportunity, without the courage to even approach Half-Moon Island to observe.
The burly man was excited, and his subordinates were equally thrilled. No one urged the burly man to leave quickly anymore; instead, they all uniformly showered him with flattery, greatly praising his foresight. Otherwise, they wouldn't have had such a golden opportunity to latch onto a powerful figure!
The other sea demons who had come to join Half-Moon Island were also immersed in joy. Their leaders' moods and thoughts were actually not much different from the burly man's. Whether before Half-Moon Island's victory or after, they, like the burly man, had all been gambling. What made them fortunate was that they had gambled correctly. This feeling of betting small to win big and actually succeeding, naturally filled them with immense satisfaction and excitement!
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