The air crackled with formidable energy from the opponent, causing Ye Cangtian's gaze to narrow slightly.
He hadn't expected that four red-robed bishops, each at the mid-to-late Earthly stage, fighting in conjunction with a quasi-Heavenly stage first-tier individual, could unleash an attack nearing the power of the third-tier.
Ye Cangtian directly retrieved the Reaper's Scythe and slowly advanced.
"Radiant Slash!"
With a fierce roar, Malon unleashed his full might, bringing his cross-shaped longsword crashing down.
Humph!
Ye Cangtian let out a cold snort and swung his scythe with immense force.
Boom!
An explosion reverberated, and rampant spiritual energy instantly swept over everything nearby, sending many tents flying.
At the epicenter of the blast, Ye Cangtian stood firm, the Reaper's Scythe in his hand.
Opposite him, Malon, along with the four individuals behind him, had been blasted away. They crashed heavily onto the ground, spitting out mouthfuls of blood.
"You! You, why are you so strong!"
Malon struggled to rise, but his efforts proved futile. In his helplessness, he could only glare fiercely at Ye Cangtian.
In their direct clash, Ye Cangtian had not only broken through his attack but had also shattered all of his meridians.
Judging by these injuries alone, Ye Cangtian's strength had to be at least above the quasi-Heavenly stage third-tier, yet he had only reached quasi-Heavenly stage not long ago!
To cultivate from the first to the third tier in just over half a year was an achievement that even a genius would find difficult to accomplish.
"Malon, do you think I have any reason to explain myself to you?"
"Besides, I have to wonder if your brain is rusty. Shouldn't you be considering your predicament right now instead of questioning my strength?"
Ye Cangtian walked forward slowly, his eyes filled with contempt.
In his opinion, if Malon were cooperative, he might consider sparing his life.
Hmm?
Malon seemed to grasp the hidden meaning in Ye Cangtian's words.
The other party was clearly offering him an opportunity!
With this thought, he glanced at Ye Cangtian and said, "Ye Cangtian, tell us, what conditions must we meet for you to let us go?"
"Haha, it's always simpler to deal with intelligent people."
Ye Cangtian laughed heartily, then stated, "It's very simple. First, tell me how terrifying the strength and foundation of the Bright Inner Palace are."
Hmm?
Upon hearing this, Malon's gaze grew puzzled.
He never imagined that Ye Cangtian would inquire about the Bright Inner Palace instead of details about their operational team.
Could it be that Ye Cangtian intended to target the Bright Inner Palace?
What a joke! Was he insane? Did he truly not know his own limitations?
With this thought, Malon let out a snort and declared fiercely, "Ye Cangtian, the Bright Inner Palace's strength is beyond your imagination!
There are as many as three Heavenly stage powerhouses alone, quasi-Heavenly stage experts like myself are numerous, and Earthly stage powerhouses are countless..."
After a pause, Malon smiled and said, "How about it? Are you scared? If you're scared, then release us quickly!"
"Hahaha! Scared? What kind of joke are you playing?"
Feeling Malon's proud gaze, Ye Cangtian burst into disdainful laughter. "Malon, you truly are a loyal hound of the Bright Hall! You boast about the Bright Hall without even thinking!"
"If the Bright Inner Palace were truly as powerful as you claim, why would they only send three little pests like you?" Ye Cangtian continued.
While he hadn't visited the Bright Ruins and wasn't familiar with the Bright Inner Palace, he knew Malon was not telling the truth.
In his view, even if the Bright Ruins were filled with experts, they likely had factions, much like the Dark Ruins and the Huaxia Ruins, and not all of them would obey the commands of the Bright Hall.
After all, ambitious individuals were abundant. Once they possessed some strength, why would they serve as others' slaves?
They would find ways to establish their own power long ago!
"Ye Cangtian, don't be so arrogant! The Bright Hall will make you pay sooner or later!"
Hearing Ye Cangtian's insulting words, Malon could no longer tolerate it and roared in anger.
"Heh heh, I truly look forward to that day!"
Ye Cangtian grinned mischievously, walked up to Malon, extended his large hand, and said with a faint smile, "Alright, let's stop wasting time. Since you're unwilling to cooperate, hand over your Qiankun bags!"
"You're robbing us!"
"Ye Cangtian, don't you feel ashamed doing something like this?"
Malon immediately clutched his waist, speaking in anger.
His Qiankun bag contained all the wealth he had earned through his struggles, how could he easily hand it over to Ye Cangtian?
Hmph!
Ye Cangtian let out a cold snort and said contemptuously, "What's the fundamental difference between your objective of plundering resources here in the Huaxia Ruins and simple robbery?"
This...
With those words, Malon was rendered speechless, because Ye Cangtian was not wrong.
Their purpose in coming here was to find items related to the Bright Seal and bring them back to the Bright Hall, which was essentially an act of plunder.
"Hurry up, don't waste time."
"You must realize that after I eliminate you, I will obtain your Qiankun bags anyway!"
Uh...
Ye Cangtian's impatient remark stunned Malon for a moment, but he quickly came to his senses and reluctantly handed over his Qiankun bag.
After all, he was currently powerless and could only be at the mercy of others.
On the other side, Ye Cangtian accepted their Qiankun bags and, after a brief glance, chuckled to himself.
The Bright Hall's Inner Palace was indeed incredibly wealthy.
Among the Qiankun bags of these five individuals alone, there were two Nine-Revolving Golden Pills, dozens of elixirs of various sizes, and countless spirit stones.
Frankly speaking, this was more rewarding than clearing out a small to medium-sized ruin.
With this thought, Ye Cangtian directly tossed the Qiankun bags to Yin Tao and said slowly, "Senior, please distribute these resources as you see fit! Also, detain Malon and the others for now."
Yin Tao nodded in agreement as he took the Qiankun bags.
Initially, he hadn't paid much attention to these Qiankun bags, assuming they wouldn't contain any treasures if Ye Cangtian casually tossed them over.
However, upon seeing the pills, especially the Nine-Revolving Golden Pills, he quickly ordered the other four red-robed bishops, whom Ye Cangtian had defeated, to be searched as well.
After all, Nine-Revolving Golden Pills were valuable, and the elixirs of various sizes were also in high demand. They absolutely could not be missed.
Having completed this, he summoned Ye Cangtian into the main tent.
His gaze was filled with confusion as he slowly said, "Kid, why weren't Malon and the others eliminated? What are you keeping them around for?"
Yin Tao's tone carried a hint of questioning.
After all, in recent battles, many people had died at the hands of the Bright Hall. Now that they had captured their enemies, they should have been killed immediately to avenge their fallen comrades.
Yet, Ye Cangtian had not done so.
Most importantly, Malon and his group were uncooperative, and nothing could be extracted from them, so what was the point of keeping them?
Was he going to let the tiger return to the mountain?
Hearing this, Ye Cangtian glanced at Yin Tao and asked with a smile, "Senior, what is most lacking here right now?"
Hmm?
With that question, Yin Tao became puzzled. He had already told Ye Cangtian this before! Had he forgotten so quickly?
With this thought, he replied irritably, "Of course, it's pills. Kid, have you injured your head? Is your memory failing you?"
Heh heh.
Ye Cangtian smiled, then said, "As you've seen, Malon and his group are incredibly wealthy. Wouldn't it be good to extort some pills from them?"
"Kid, you're confusing me."
Yin Tao glanced at Ye Cangtian and continued, "Haven't we already taken their Qiankun bags? How can we..."
As he spoke, Yin Tao seemed to understand something and quickly changed his tune, "Are you suggesting we use them as hostages to negotiate with the Bright Hall for some pills?"
"Clever!"
Ye Cangtian smiled slightly and gave Yin Tao a thumbs-up.
"Hmph! Stop mocking me."
Looking at Ye Cangtian's thumbs-up, Yin Tao's old face blushed. The other party had almost spelled it out, yet he had only just guessed the answer. What was so clever about that!
Saying this, Yin Tao's eyes darted around as he pondered.
After a moment, he looked at Ye Cangtian and said, "Kid, your plan is feasible, but it's a bit... unconventional, isn't it? Isn't this equivalent to letting the tiger return to the mountain?"
In Yin Tao's opinion, although the Hidden Group lacked pills, they shouldn't exchange Malon and his group for them.
Not to mention anything else, once Malon and his group returned and recovered their cultivation, they would undoubtedly become a serious threat again.
Upon hearing this, Ye Cangtian grinned wickedly and said mischievously, "Senior, do you think I would give them a chance to become a threat again?"
After a pause, Ye Cangtian continued, "I'm only doing this to prevent them from escaping, or perhaps they might have hidden their Qiankun bags and wasted those pills."
Hearing Ye Cangtian's explanation, Yin Tao's eyes darted around again. After a moment, he slowly nodded, agreeing with Ye Cangtian's idea.
He still believed in Ye Cangtian's capabilities, so he decided to give it a try.
...