The atmosphere in the room grew exceptionally heavy.
Lu Wende was extremely unwilling, but the helmsman Xie Shuangjun was not at the stronghold. With Ye Ling and Zhang Daoyuan watching, he couldn't call for reinforcements in front of them!
If he had shouted loudly, his head would likely have been taken before the guards even arrived.
Therefore, even though Ye Ling killed Lu Shaofeng in front of him, he had to swallow his anger.
After clenching his fists and calming his tense, indignant emotions, Lu Wende looked at Ye Ling and said sternly, "I don't know your identity, nor am I your opponent. But I am the deputy helmsman of the Ghost Gate's Jiangcheng branch. Have you considered the consequences of your actions here?"
"Aren't you afraid of retaliation from the Ghost Gate in the future?"
Unable to defeat Ye Ling, Lu Wende could only bring up the Ghost Gate, attempting to intimidate him with it.
Although the Ghost Gate was not a major sect within China, it had an extremely strong reputation in the circle of extraordinary individuals.
Disciples of the Ghost Gate were skilled in controlling evil spirits. They only needed to continuously feed corpses to an evil spirit to cultivate it.
The more they fed it, the stronger the evil spirit became, and the evil spirit's power would also feed back to the Ghost Gate disciples, enhancing their own strength.
It could be said that the more people the Ghost Gate members killed, the stronger they became. They were unequivocally practitioners of evil paths!
Due to the special cultivation methods of the Ghost Gate disciples, they not only hunted extraordinary individuals but also frequently hunted large numbers of ordinary civilians, causing extremely adverse effects.
If not for other forces trying their best to curb the development of the Ghost Gate, China would likely be a world of a hundred ghosts walking at night.
However, the strongholds of the Ghost Gate and their sect headquarters were extremely hidden, and few people in the circle of extraordinary individuals knew the exact location of the Ghost Gate headquarters, so the various sects could do nothing about the Ghost Gate.
The sect leader of the Ghost Gate, Qiu Baiyi, was also a vengeful person. Once someone offended the Ghost Gate, whether it was a martial sect or a prominent family, Qiu Baiyi would retaliate until the person who offended the Ghost Gate was ruined.
There was once a grand encirclement operation against the Ghost Gate in the circle, in which many small sects participated. Unfortunately, because the Ghost Gate headquarters was not found, the encirclement ended in failure.
After that, Qiu Baiyi spent a full five years leading his disciples to retaliate against the small sects that participated in the encirclement operation. Many sects were exterminated by the disciples of the Ghost Gate, and their corpses were fed to the evil spirits.
For a time, a bloody storm swept through the martial world, and everyone fell silent.
Over time, most extraordinary individuals in the circle would choose to retreat when they heard the name of a Ghost Gate disciple, unwilling to get into trouble.
In Lu Wende's opinion, even if Ye Ling didn't take him seriously, he couldn't ignore the Ghost Gate behind him.
He was the deputy helmsman of the Ghost Gate's Jiangcheng branch. If he were killed by Ye Ling here, it would not simply be offending the Ghost Gate's branch.
At that time, the entire Ghost Gate would use all means to retaliate against Ye Ling!
Ye Ling's family and friends would all become targets for the Ghost Gate disciples to hunt!
In the circle of extraordinary individuals, there was no law!
Zhang Daoyuan also knew the temperament of the Ghost Gate and couldn't help but remind Ye Ling, "Young friend, if you kill him here, the Ghost Gate's retaliation against you will be endless. Even if you are not afraid, those around you will be drawn into layers of danger."
"In my opinion, you can escort him to my Zhengyi sect. With the Ghost Gate's power, they wouldn't dare provoke my Zhengyi sect."
"Consequences?"
Ye Ling chuckled, extended his hand towards Lu Wende, and Lu Wende flew into his grasp.
Ye Ling grabbed Lu Wende by the neck, lifted him into the air, and said with a smile, "A mere Ghost Gate, this Emperor can flatten it with a casual move."
Seeing that Ye Ling was about to kill Lu Wende again, Zhang Daoyuan panicked and quickly shouted, "Young friend, please calm down!"
This time, Zhang Daoyuan was not trying to save Lu Wende. The Ghost Gate had committed many evils and deserved to die.
It was just that they had finally discovered a stronghold of the Ghost Gate. If Lu Wende were interrogated properly, they might be able to extract information about the Ghost Gate headquarters from him.
The Ghost Gate had been causing trouble in China for over a hundred years, and many sects could do nothing about them. If the Ghost Gate could be wiped out this time, it would be a feat of eternal merit!
"You, you dare to kill me?"
Lu Wende also panicked. His legs were now suspended in the air, his face was purple and blue, and he was filled with fear.
He never expected Ye Ling to actually dare to kill him, the deputy helmsman!
Where did this madman come from?
"Why wouldn't I dare?"
Ye Ling chuckled, and his spiritual energy invaded Lu Wende's mind, beginning to search his memories.
"Ahhhhhh!"
Lu Wende cried out in agony, immediately alerting the guards of the entire steel factory.
At once, a large number of guards rushed towards them.
Seeing the heavily armed guards rushing over from outside, Zhang Daoyuan quickly said, "Young friend, everyone in the stronghold has been alerted. We now..."
"No hurry."
Ye Ling continued to hold Lu Wende's neck leisurely, browsing his memories.
Lu Wende began to foam at the mouth.
Lu Wende was the deputy helmsman of the Ghost Gate's Jiangcheng branch, and the Jiangcheng branch was one of the most profitable branches in the Ghost Gate.
Those who could be helmsmen in this place would not have a low status in the Ghost Gate.
Lu Wende had undergone special training, and he even had an evil spirit attached to him. As long as Lu Wende leaked any information about the Ghost Gate, that evil spirit would instantly devour Lu Wende's brain.
Logically speaking, with Qiu Baiyi's methods, any disciple of the sect could be prevented from leaking the secrets of the Ghost Gate.
However, he encountered Ye Ling, who could directly search his soul to know everything he wanted to know. Qiu Baiyi's method of preventing secrets from being leaked appeared too weak and powerless in front of Ye Ling.
Lu Wende's life experiences were completely exposed to Ye Ling's gaze.
The secrets of the Ghost Gate were laid bare.
"Quick, release the deputy helmsman!"
At this moment, the guards of the steel factory arrived, surrounding the office tightly, aiming their guns at Ye Ling and Zhang Daoyuan.
"You two, visiting our Ghost Gate stronghold so late at night, you certainly have good taste."
Just then, a feminine voice came from behind the guards. The guards parted to make way, and a middle-aged man with extremely pale skin, wearing a black suit and a slicked-back hairstyle, walked out.
The man had a faint smile on his lips, but it gave off a chilling aura.
He looked at Ye Ling and Zhang Daoyuan as if they were dead men.
"Xie Shuangjun."
Ye Ling looked at the middle-aged man, his eyes slightly narrowed.
From Lu Wende's memories, this Xie Shuangjun was the helmsman of the Ghost Gate's Jiangcheng branch.
Xie Shuangjun was a fifth-rank extraordinary individual, controlled three fifth-rank evil spirits, was cruel and venomous, liked to collect women's skins, and had extremely perverse tastes.
More importantly, Xie Shuangjun was also involved in the case of the Ye family's extermination!
Seeing that Ye Ling had spoken his name, Xie Shuangjun's smile widened. He looked at Ye Ling and said, "It seems you know me, friend, which saves me the trouble of introducing myself."
"Now release Lu Wende, and then kneel and beg for mercy, and I might leave you with intact corpses."
Upon hearing Xie Shuangjun's words, Ye Ling instead burst into laughter and said, "You are truly overconfident."