Chapter 2161: Surrender!
The sudden declaration from the nine people filled Xiao Zheng and Long Qie’s hearts with curiosity.
"You must be spies sent by the Holy Spirit Church, right? Pretending to surrender while actually trying to collaborate with them for a coordinated attack?"
Long Qie swept his cold gaze across everyone, asking coldly.
He and Xiao Zheng were now cooperating seamlessly, one playing the stern role, the other the gentle.
Feeling the killing intent released from Long Qie, the nine people’s bodies uncontrollably trembled. Although they came from ancient martial families and sects, their cultivation realms were actually not high.
The highest among them, Li Ya, was only at the Middle Stage Martial Saint level.
Under Long Qie’s killing intent, no one dared to speak, or even muster the courage to look them in the eye.
Not until Long Qie retracted his killing intent at Xiao Zheng’s signal did they feel a bit better.
But just as the nine people breathed a sigh of relief, they also noticed that their backs were drenched with cold sweat, sticking tightly to their clothes. This showed just how much pressure Long Qie had put on them.
Li Ya then spoke up again: "Mr. Xiao, Mr. Long, please don’t misunderstand. We are definitely not spies sent by the Holy Spirit Church. In fact, we have an irreconcilable feud with them!"
"Irreconcilable feud? Go on." Xiao Zheng glanced at him and said.
With his permission, Li Ya slowly started to narrate.
It turned out that the Picking Star Tower, where Li Ya belonged, had always been low-key, never causing trouble. Unfortunately, after the Holy Spirit Church appeared, they were targeted by them. Trouble proactively came knocking.
Knowing the atrocities of the Holy Spirit Church, upon hearing that the Picking Star Tower was targeted, Li Ya, as the Tower Master, directly led the disciples to retreat and hide elsewhere to avoid extermination.
However, the Holy Spirit Church seemed like an evil spirit that clung persistently, tracking them down no matter what.
If it weren’t for Xiao Zheng leading Sky Net to act in time, the Picking Star Tower would have long been annihilated by the Holy Spirit Church. This not only happened to the Picking Star Tower but other sects or families experienced the same.
To avoid being pursued by the Holy Spirit Church, they thought of seeking refuge with Sky Net.
Currently, within the entire Huaxia territory, the only force capable of contending with the Holy Spirit Church is Sky Net.
After learning the complete cause, Xiao Zheng and Long Qie exchanged a glance.
Xiao Zheng retracted his gaze and then shook his head with a smile: "Honestly, I don’t want to agree to you. After all, you guys are fence-sitters, just a bunch of turncoats."
"When the wind changes, you’ll probably run to the Holy Spirit Church to cheer for them."
Hearing his words, Li Ya quickly said: "Please rest assured, Mr. Xiao, we absolutely wouldn’t do such a thing! We’ve been pushed to the brink, and with our own strength, we simply cannot resist the Holy Spirit Church."
"Only Mr. Xiao can save us now!"
"We hope Mr. Xiao will be merciful and save us!"
The remaining eight people also shouted in unison at this time.
Looking at the nine people kneeling in front of him, the expression on Xiao Zheng’s face became increasingly meaningful.
After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Zheng finally spoke: "If you truly wish to join Sky Net, it’s not impossible. What is your current strength? How many martial artists above the Grandmaster Realm do you have?"
Hearing his words, Long Qie couldn’t help but look at him in surprise.
Long Qie originally thought Xiao Zheng would reject the nine people’s request, but the outcome surprised him.
Li Ya’s heart filled with joy, and he quickly replied: "Although our Picking Star Tower has recently lost many people to the Holy Spirit Church, the core strength remains. We have three Great Grandmasters, martial artists at Martial Saint level, and besides that, one ancestor at the Supreme Realm!"
What!
Upon hearing his last sentence, Xiao Zheng and Long Qie both showed a hint of surprise on their faces.
They never expected that within the Picking Star Tower, an ancestor at the Supreme Realm was hidden. Although the Supreme Realm isn’t much now, in the past, a Supreme Realm expert could definitely sweep through half the martial arts world.
Indeed, no one or any force should be underestimated!
Then Sun Mian and others also revealed their own backgrounds.
In their respective sects or families, the number of experts they possessed was not small. Long Qie calculated that the forces represented by just these nine people collectively had four Supreme Realm experts.
This clearly shows just how profound the heritage of these usually unassuming ancient martial sects or families is.
If not for being targeted by the Holy Spirit Church, desperately seeking Xiao Zheng and Sky Net as a backer, they wouldn’t have exposed their cards.
After revealing their trump cards one after another, the nine people anxiously watched Xiao Zheng, waiting for his response.
As each second passed, their anxiety grew...
Xiao Zheng pondered for a good one to two minutes before slowly saying: "Alright, I can agree to your joining. I believe soon you will be glad you made this decision."
"Joining Sky Net is undoubtedly the wisest decision you will make in this lifetime."
Hearing his words, a touch of joy appeared on the faces of the nine people.
Finally, the weight on their hearts was lifted.
"Alright, don’t celebrate too early," Xiao Zheng shook his head and said, "I must make this clear: if in the coming battles, I discover anyone colluding with the Holy Spirit Church or retreating from fear, don’t blame me for turning against you!"
As he said this, a hint of killing intent infused his tone.
The nine were inwardly solemn, then nodded earnestly, "Please rest assured, Mr. Xiao, we will certainly fight for Sky Net and the alliance!"
Seeing this, Xiao Zheng nodded in satisfaction and said, "You may leave first. I will soon send someone to arrange your accommodations and assign tasks to you."
The nine did not dare to speak further and quickly bid farewell.
As they walked away, Long Qie couldn’t help but look curiously at Xiao Zheng.
But before he could speak, Xiao Zheng spoke first, "I know what you want to say. We indeed didn’t need to absorb them into Sky Net; after all, accepting or rejecting them wouldn’t really impact us or the battle situation."
"However, I have my considerations in this matter."