Chapter 2486: Chapter 2486
Xiao Mu’an had originally planned to let Ye Liuyun clash with Black Kill, using the opportunity to weaken their forces—ideally by eliminating Xiao Qiwu—so he could scheme to seize control of the organization.
Even if he couldn’t take over Black Kill outright, he hoped to secure the support of a few of its elders.
But to his surprise, Ye Liuyun didn’t go to rescue Youming, nor did he oppose Xiao Qiwu. Instead, the two ended up collaborating.
Xiao Qiwu, aware of the precarious situation, ultimately agreed to Ye Liuyun’s terms. The five powerful fighters he sent to Ye Liuyun were all individuals he suspected of disloyalty or potential betrayal.
Even if Ye Liuyun never returned them, their absence wouldn’t significantly impact him.
As for Youming, Xiao Qiwu knew full well that Ye Liuyun was merely using her as an excuse to demand resources.
But in his eyes, Youming was just a bargaining chip. For the sake of the bigger picture, he was willing to sacrifice her—a gesture to curry favor with Ye Liuyun and foster goodwill between them.
Besides, Ye Liuyun wouldn’t kill Youming. Once the current crisis passed, Xiao Qiwu could still find ways to use her again.
If he could earn Ye Liuyun’s trust, opportunities to strike against him would come in due time.
Once Xiao Qiwu made his decision, he contacted Ye Liuyun again and agreed to his demands.
Ye Liuyun instructed him to send the five individuals one by one to designated locations, where he immediately branded them with slave seals.
Though he had framed it as a "loan," he had no intention of ever returning them.
After probing their memories, he was stunned to discover that two of the five were actually Black Kill elders—both of whom had secret ties to Xiao Mu’an.
*"So Xiao Qiwu was prepared for this. He deliberately sent me the ones most likely to betray him,"* Ye Liuyun mused silently.
He even uncovered intel about Black Kill’s scheme to train Youming in seduction techniques—specifically to ensnare him.
"No wonder they thought I’d go rescue Youming. Thank goodness she didn’t betray me after all!"
But since Youming hadn’t brought it up, he decided to let sleeping dogs lie and pretend he knew nothing about it.
Youming was the last to report in. Seeing her safe and sound, a weight lifted from his shoulders—regardless of everything else, his roundabout rescue mission had succeeded.
"Where were you coming from?" Liu Yun asked Youming.
"I was in the middle of a mission when I got abruptly summoned here. Did you really reconcile with Black Kill? Why would they assign me to assist you?" Her voice carried layers of skepticism.
Liu Yun sidestepped her questions. "Did you just emerge from a hidden realm in the White Bear Snow Mountains?"
Her eyebrows shot up. "How did you know?"
Only then did Liu Yun explain—Xiao Mu’an’s tip-off, his subsequent demand for personnel from Xiao Qiwu. To his surprise, Youming took it all with unsettling calm.
"They were using me as bait," she said quietly. "Lure you into that realm to control you. Next time something like this happens, don’t intervene. Otherwise, they’ll keep exploiting me indefinitely."
Liu Yun nodded grimly. "But I can’t just stand by and watch you die."
A melancholy smile touched her lips. "That’s the fate of royal offspring like us. Aren’t we all just pawns for our families?"
"Stay with me from now on," he urged. "Don’t return to Black Kill. My pocket dimension has plenty of space—and good company."
"Your kindness moves me." She shook her head gently. "But I can’t abandon the Sacred Land. Don’t worry—as long as you resist playing the hero, they won’t harm me seriously."
"Let’s not dwell on this now. We’ve got bigger problems to deal with—the alien threat comes first. My personal issues can wait." Youming forced a smile, trying to reassure Liuyun.
"Alright then." Liuyun didn’t press further. He summoned a swift-hawk vessel, and together they sped toward Satellite Island.
The journey was mostly silent. Youming kept to herself, lost in thought about her uncertain future. The way her family had treated her couldn’t just be brushed aside, but she didn’t want Liuyun to notice—she didn’t want him worrying about her.
As they neared Satellite Island, Liuyun finally broke the silence, sharing his plan.
"This time, I’m planning to infiltrate one of the alien warships and seize it."
"Seize their warship? What for?" Youming asked, surprised.
"Know thy enemy, right? Plus, I want to study their shipbuilding techniques. And honestly, I’m tired of waiting for them to attack—why not take the fight to them?"
"Not just the ship, either. I’m going to capture a few of their commanders and extract their memories. We need more intel—like where their stronghold is."
"But I’ve heard the relevant memories in their consciousness are erased," Youming pointed out.
Liuyun shrugged. "We’ll grab a few more and piece things together. Especially those with gold and silver scales—they’re the nobility among them. They might know more."
"Will you be deploying troops this time?" Youming pressed.
"The Sacred Dynasty will handle that. Satellite Island’s too small for a full-scale assault, so our main goal is to eliminate their elite forces and weaken their main army. That’s why I borrowed those fighters from Xiao Qiwu."
"You should’ve borrowed more! Uncle Wang has at least thirty or fifty of those elite warriors," Youming said, revealing a bit of her family’s secrets for the first time.
"That’s quite a number! But a handful is enough for this mission. We’re sneaking in, not charging head-on. More would just get in the way." Liuyun seemed satisfied with what he had.
However, the strength Xiao Qiwu commanded truly impressed Ye Liuyun. He hadn’t expected Xiao to have so many powerful warriors under his command.
If this was any indication, the Sacred Dynasty likely possessed comparable military might. With such formidable martial cultivators at their disposal, they certainly had the capability to stand against the alien races. Ye Liuyun’s concerns about their ability to hold the line eased considerably.
Then, Youming shared a wealth of information about Xiao Qiwu and the Black Killers—details she had previously kept strictly to herself. Today, however, she spoke freely.
Curious, Ye Liuyun asked, "What’s gotten into you today? You’re telling me so much."
Youming merely smiled. "Consider it thanks for saving my life."
"Ha! That was just a side benefit—don’t read too much into it," Ye Liuyun replied, brushing it off as a joke.
But Youming’s eyes reddened slightly as she gazed at him. She quickly averted her gaze, however, and shifted the conversation back to the history of the royal family, particularly the long-standing feud between Xiao Qiwu and his brother, Xiao Qitian Dynasty Dynasty Dynasty.
Ye Liuyun listened half-heartedly, treating it as mere gossip. He had no interest in sibling rivalries and no intention of getting involved in their disputes. Who was right or wrong didn’t matter to him in the slightest.
Before reaching Satellite Island, Ye Liuyun stowed Youming away in his spatial realm, recalled his hawk, and donned his invisibility cloak to slip onto the island unnoticed.
The island had expanded yet again, now twice its original size. Over a million and a half troops were stationed there, and the teleportation arrays hummed with constant activity as soldiers and equipment arrived in steady streams.
