Yuwen Sheng felt a tremor of fear just from sensing the aura of the man in black, his clothes instantly drenched in sweat.
He knew the other party was strong, but he had never imagined that the person before him was actually a Heaven-tier expert!
With such power, even if the Yuwen family exhausted all their resources, they would be incapable of dealing with the other party. Yuwen Sheng was self-aware of this.
Now that the other party had stated their objective, he had only two choices.
One was to agree, fully commit to dealing with Ye Cangtian, betray the Hidden Group, and live in perpetual flight from their pursuit.
The other was to fight to the death, leading to the complete destruction of his entire family and his lineage being wiped out.
With these thoughts, Yuwen Sheng cast a sidelong glance at the man in black and said grimly, "Your Excellency, judging by Ye Cangtian's strength today, he is at least at the quasi-Heaven tier. I am still at the Earth tier, and it's impossible for me to kill him.
And you, since you possess Heaven-tier strength, why don't you take action yourself!"
Upon hearing this, the man in black let out a cold snort and said, "Ye Cangtian is not worthy of me acting personally! And don't try to deceive me. You have been hiding your strength all along. More than ten years ago, you had already reached the quasi-Heaven tier."
This was a coincidence, so to speak. The man in black had come to Jinling City and happened to encounter some forces plotting against Jinling City.
The man in black hid in the shadows, looking to gain some benefits. As it happened, he saw Yuwen Sheng display his quasi-Heaven tier power, decisively eliminating the leader of the opposing force…
What!
Was that person present at the time?
Hearing the other party's words, Yuwen Sheng's eyes widened in an instant.
Since he had stepped into the quasi-Heaven tier, he had only gone all out once, more than ten years ago, when the Qinghai Tower attacked Jinling City, and he had suppressed them with all his might.
Now that the other party had explicitly pointed out that period, it was clear he had been observing from the shadows. It seemed there was no denying it.
Meanwhile, seeing Yuwen Sheng remain silent, the man in black sneered and continued, "Yuwen Sheng, you have concealed your true strength for over a decade. There's no need for me to elaborate on your true intentions, is there?
Do you need my assistance, or do you wish for destruction? The choice is yours."
This…
Yuwen Sheng frowned again. The reason he hid his strength was not due to any ulterior motives, nor did he intend to do anything to the Hidden Group.
He simply understood that the stronger one became, the greater the burden they carried.
He hid his strength merely to settle down peacefully in his position, avoiding high-risk missions assigned by the Hidden Group, thereby allowing him to lead the Yuwen family in stable development.
Beyond that, he had dedicated his life to the Hidden Group. At his age, he had no desire to take on any more trouble.
With that thought, a hint of disdainful amusement appeared on his face.
"You still underestimate me too much!"
"I, Yuwen Sheng, have schemed for my family my entire life. I have indeed done some unsavory things and am not a good person, but I have never betrayed the Hidden Group or Huaxia!"
As he spoke, a dagger appeared in Yuwen Sheng's hand, and he unhesitatingly plunged it into his own chest, finally convulsing in a fatal spasm.
"You!"
The man in black had thought Yuwen Sheng was going to fight him, his face filled with disdain. To his surprise, the other party committed suicide. This truly caught him off guard and left him no time to intervene.
Now, Yuwen Sheng's life was clearly on a countdown, and it would not be easy to save him.
What's more, given his attitude, even if he were saved, it would be meaningless.
"Yuwen Sheng, you are indeed formidable. You are ruthless, and I admire you!"
The man in black spoke harshly, then turned and left the Yuwen residence.
With his heart pierced, Yuwen Sheng was certain to die without any medical intervention.
There was no need for him to reveal himself and truly destroy the Yuwen family. It was better to let this matter escalate and shift the blame onto Ye Cangtian and the others.
...
Early morning, Jinling Hotel.
A knock sounded on the door. When Ye Cangtian opened it, he saw a server pushing a trolley, standing at the entrance.
"Mr. Ye, the elder Yuwen learned you were staying at this hotel and specifically arranged for us to take good care of you."
"This is the hotel's specially prepared signature breakfast. Please enjoy it slowly. We hope you like it."
The server said politely, then pushed the trolley into the room, placed the food on the table, and then retreated.
Looking at the buns, porridge, and several small dishes on the table, Ye Cangtian's eyes turned icy.
Perhaps to others, this all seemed normal. As fellow members of the Hidden Group, it was not unreasonable for Yuwen Sheng to show him some care.
But Ye Cangtian detected something amiss.
Although the server who delivered the meal had restrained their aura as much as possible, Ye Cangtian still noticed that the server was at least a peak Profound-tier expert.
Such an expert, while not comparable to high-end combatants in the ruins, was not weak. How could they possibly be reduced to a mere server?
There was only one answer: the server was a fake, impersonated by someone from a certain faction.
With that in mind, the breakfast this morning was likely also problematic.
"Kid, there are many unfamiliar auras in the hotel. Someone must be losing their patience and is about to make a move," Long Lao said as he walked out of the room. He sat down directly, picked up a bun, and spoke.
"Don't eat it."
Ye Cangtian snatched the bun from Long Lao's hand and said, "I think they have already made their move. The food might be problematic..."
"Hmm?"
Long Lao's expression turned icy. He could understand these factions coveting the Nine Revolutions Golden Elixir.
It was normal for them to try and snatch it. However, resorting to the despicable method of poisoning truly angered him.
With that thought, he looked at Ye Cangtian and asked, "Kid, how do you plan to deal with these people?"
Sensing Long Lao's grim and cold gaze, Ye Cangtian remained silent for a moment before replying, "Since they want the Nine Revolutions Golden Elixir, they will surely reveal themselves. Let's deal with them once they appear..."
"Alright."
Long Lao nodded, said nothing more, and turned to return to his room.
The group outside, the strongest among them was only at the Earth tier. With Ye Cangtian's strength, he could handle them. There was no need for him to intervene.
About an hour later.
With his keen senses, Ye Cangtian could already hear the very faint sound of footsteps outside the door.
The other party was very cautious, hesitating outside the door for a long time, as if judging the movements inside the room. Then, they silently broke open the room door.
There were more than ten people in total, led by a man in purple.
However, as he cautiously led his men into the room, he looked up and saw Ye Cangtian sitting in a chair, casually smoking with his legs crossed, and was instantly stunned.
"This…"
Looking at the breakfast on the table, which had not been touched at all, he realized that the other party had not eaten the breakfast at all and had likely seen through their plan long ago.
With that thought, his expression turned grim, and he asked, "Ye Cangtian, how did you see through our plan?"
"Heh, I have been traveling for so many years. If I couldn't see through such a simple trick, I would have died ten times over by now!"
The man in purple's expression immediately turned grim. This was clearly implying that the tricks he used were amateurish and not worthy of the other party's attention.
Hmph!
The man in purple let out a cold snort and said indifferently, "You can't blame us. In the outside world, we are collectively referred to as Huaxia forces along with the Hidden Group. Now that the Hidden Group is monopolizing the benefits, we naturally feel unbalanced."
"Who are you, and which faction do you represent?" Ye Cangtian asked, his brow furrowed.
"I am an elder of the Aurora Sect, Luo Hui."
Hearing the other party announce his name, Ye Cangtian hesitated for a moment and finally found information about the Aurora Sect in his mind.
The Aurora Sect was located in the southern region of the ruins, and its influence was considered mid-tier, slightly stronger than the Half-Moon Hall, but not by much.
According to the information, only the sect leader of the Aurora Sect was an Earth-tier expert, with over a thousand disciples.
Now, Luo Hui, standing before him, claimed to be an elder. He must have broken through in his later years or was recruited by the Aurora Sect elsewhere.
With that thought, Ye Cangtian cast a sidelong glance at the other party and said calmly, "Since the Aurora Sect and the Hidden Group are collectively referred to as Huaxia forces, why was there no sign of your Aurora Sect when the Bright Hall invaded the Huaxia ruins?"