"Big Brother, what are you thinking?" Shangguan Yun turned to Ye Cangtian and asked urgently after explaining everything.
"No rush, if they retreated here and asked us to evacuate the crowd, they definitely don't want a mutual destruction scenario!"
"So, their intention is still to leave alive. Since that's the case, they must negotiate with us!"
Ye Cangtian looked at Shangguan Yun and continued, "How about this, activate the signal jammers first to disrupt their normal communications, then use a remote-controlled car to deliver a local wired telephone for negotiations."
"You mean to stabilize them first?" Shangguan Yun's eyes darted around. "Then what do we do next?"
"Exactly, your two's mission is to keep them stable."
"The goal is only one: to stall for infinite time. But be mindful of the balance, don't let them despair, nor make them enraged."
"As for everything else, leave it to me!" Ye Cangtian nodded and spoke to the two.
Their strength had improved recently, but they were still no match for the Cardinals. Therefore, he hadn't planned for them to be involved.
"Big Brother, we finally get to fight side-by-side, this isn't fair!" Xu Shi'an was the first to protest upon hearing Ye Cangtian's arrangement. He was a fighter at heart and couldn't accept being assigned to the rear, especially when this was a rare opportunity to fight alongside Ye Cangtian.
"You stay here obediently. Whether this operation succeeds or not isn't up to me, but to you!" Ye Cangtian glared at Xu Shi'an fiercely. "Besides, even if you stabilize them here, it's still fighting by my side."
Xu Shi'an was the only male heir left in Elder Xu's family, and Ye Cangtian didn't want Xu Shi'an to take risks. Seeing Ye Cangtian's stern expression, Xu Shi'an deflated and finally agreed, going to make the arrangements. Without further hesitation, Ye Cangtian flashed into the amusement park.
At the same time, in the haunted house, the Cardinal's walkie-talkie crackled to life.
"Bishop, the other side sent in a telephone..." The voice from the walkie-talkie abruptly cut off, leaving only static. Seeing this, the two Cardinals exchanged glances, their eyes clearly showing gravity. It was evident that the Chinese forces had blocked the signal.
"What do we do?" one Cardinal asked his companion. The other Cardinal pondered for a moment, a cold smile appearing on his face.
"It's fine. This is just the Chinese forces pressuring us to gain an advantage in negotiations..." Indeed, cutting off all signals was a sign of aggression. But then again, the Tianwang assassins in the amusement park were not to be trifled with. The Dragon Group couldn't eliminate those assassins without paying a heavy price. Unless China dispatched experts. But even then, it would be futile. After all, they held hostages, and to prevent any issues with the hostages, a Cardinal was personally guarding them. This way, Chinese experts might not dare to act rashly, as any casualties among the hostages would bring considerable public opinion pressure on China. Therefore, in his opinion, China was merely bluffing and trying to pressure them. The telephone sent in indicated China's attitude; they still wanted to negotiate.
Moments later, he arranged for someone to retrieve the telephone. Soon after, the phone was brought over. He picked up the receiver, tested the sound, and confirmed that it could connect to the other party before speaking.
"Listen carefully. We have 40 tourists, including the elderly, the weak, women, and children."
"If you want to guarantee their lives, hand over that traitor Nancy, otherwise I will order the killing of the hostages..." The Cardinal wore a cold smile. Knowing that the Chinese forces wanted to resolve the issue through negotiation, he would naturally not let this opportunity slip by. This way, even if they retreated, they could still eliminate Nancy, serving as an explanation to the Holy See and avoiding punishment from the Pope. Moreover, such a situation, in their view, was not impossible. Nancy, while capable and useful to China, was ultimately an outsider. Those hostages, however, were ordinary people, seemingly dispensable to China, but any incident involving them would have adverse consequences far exceeding those caused by Nancy. It could be said that using an outsider like Nancy to quell this storm was a very profitable deal.
"Don't dream. You've been surrounded!"
"Your only chance of survival now is to release the hostages and surrender your weapons, otherwise, only death awaits you!" The next moment, Shangguan Yun's voice entered the telephone receiver. Since it was a negotiation, there had to be back and forth. He naturally wouldn't lower his demands initially, to allow for bargaining and to stall for time. As Shangguan Yun engaged in a tug-of-war with the other party, Ye Cangtian's figure began to flicker through the amusement park. He not only dealt with the previously discovered Tianwang assassins but also eliminated the more hidden ones who had gone undetected. His mental power was abnormal, and coupled with his far superior strength, silently taking care of his opponents was not difficult. In a short period, Ye Cangtian had eliminated over a dozen Tianwang assassins. Not only that, but he also conducted a simple reconnaissance of the surroundings, ensuring there were no omissions, before heading towards the haunted house. The reason for choosing the haunted house was simple. The fact that they had brought the wired telephone into the haunted house indicated that their leader was inside. Moreover, the hostages were their trump card for survival, so it was highly likely that the hostages were with them.
Meanwhile, inside the haunted house, the two Cardinals were being driven to exasperation by Shangguan Yun, but they had no choice but to continue the negotiation. After all, during the negotiation process, the Chinese forces were indeed compromising, albeit at a very slow pace.
"Shangguan Yun, stop beating around the bush with us."
"We have only one demand: hand over Nancy and provide two fully fueled helicopters. You have ten minutes, otherwise..." Before he could finish, a figure appeared in their sight. The person stood at the doorway with a mocking smile, as if watching a clown's performance.
"Ye Cangtian!"
"Weren't you rescuing the Death Squad? How did you get here so quickly..." The two Cardinals' eyes widened in disbelief. They couldn't understand why Ye Cangtian was here! As soon as the words left their mouths, they exchanged glances, as if they had figured something out. Tang Xinwan was Ye Cangtian's absolute weakness, and the operation last night must have alerted Ye Cangtian, which was why Ye Cangtian had abandoned the Death Squad and rushed back from afar. Thinking this, one Cardinal immediately spoke, "Ye Cangtian, don't you care about the safety of the Death Squad?"
Only then did Ye Cangtian finish appreciating their comical expressions and said with a laugh, "The Death Squad is in no danger, so I have nothing to worry about!"
What? No danger? The two exchanged glances again, their expressions filled with suspicion. They had clearly planned to act together, so why was the Death Squad in no danger? Could it be that their companions on that side had all been dealt with? Impossible! There were three Cardinals overseeing that side; how could one Ye Cangtian possibly resolve it so easily? Besides, even if something happened on that side, there were still so many Tianwang experts; surely some news would have reached them! But in reality, they had received no such news, making it difficult for the two to believe him. Thinking this, the Cardinal glanced at Ye Cangtian and said sternly, "Ye Cangtian, if you're going to lie, at least come up with a more credible story. Spreading such news not only insults our intelligence but also your own!"
"Heh, do I need to?"
"There were a total of 88 people involved in your operation, including three Cardinals!"
"The remaining 85 people, excluding the 5 initial reconnaissance personnel who were captured, have all perished..." Ye Cangtian smiled faintly and spoke slowly.