Chapter 2757: Chapter 2757
Seizing the opportunity, Ye Liuyun released his Xenocide Lion to stealthily pilfer the resources from Liu Zhong’s Interspatial Ring.
Meng Wenxiang and Han Qiao never imagined that Ye Liuyun would lead them to annihilate the alien forces.
“Haha, that damned old fool Liu Zhong—if he hadn’t wiped out over a dozen seventh-level Dominator aliens before he died, we wouldn’t have had such a satisfying fight. The bastard really picked the perfect time to kick the bucket,” Han Qiao joked with Meng Wenxiang.
Meng, however, wore a troubled expression. “I’m worried the empire might blame us for Liu Zhong’s death.”
“What’s it got to do with us? He died in battle!” Han Qiao scoffed, brushing off the concern.
Meng didn’t press the issue further and instead turned his attention to directing the troops in mopping up the remaining aliens.
After Ye Liuyun’s forces had eliminated most of the fifth and sixth-level Dominator aliens, he finally ordered his exhausted troops to fall back and rest behind Meng Wenxiang’s army. His unit was utterly spent.
Only the Demon Vine and the Demon-Sealing Stele, along with their captured aliens, the Nine-Headed Netherdrake, and the Vermilion Bird, continued pursuing the remaining alien elites.
The scattered alien soldiers were left to Han Qiao and Meng Wenxiang’s forces to hunt down.
Before long, the Vermilion Bird and the Nine-Headed Netherdrake returned with their prisoners.
Ye Liuyun stored away three seventh-level Dominator aliens and twenty-three sixth-level ones in his spatial realm, while the rest were executed and fed to the Demon-Sealing Stele and the Demon Vine.
The two entities then began their grim task of scouring the battlefield, devouring alien corpses and leaving behind a field of desiccated husks.
Meanwhile, Ye Liuyun dispatched third-level Dominator soldiers to clean up the battlefield, recalling the rest of his troops—along with the Vermilion Bird and the Nine-Headed Netherdrake—into his spatial realm to recuperate.
Meng Wenxiang, meticulous as ever, sent men to recover what remained of Liu Zhong’s mangled corpse and his Interspatial Ring—only to find the ring completely empty. He assumed the aliens had looted it, but with so many corpses strewn across the battlefield, there was no telling which one had taken it.
After Ye Liuyun’s soldiers finished clearing the area, Meng took him aside to explain the situation, voicing his concern that they might be held accountable for Liu Zhong’s death. “It’d be best if we could recover the resources from his Interspatial Ring,” he added uneasily.
Ye Liuyun pretended to be magnanimous, allowing the soldiers to hand over the confiscated storage rings for Meng Wenxiang to inspect before stowing them away in his own spatial world. He even made the prisoners he had captured surrender their storage rings for Meng Wenxiang’s scrutiny, but nothing of value was found.
Meng Wenxiang also approached Han Qiao, who had gathered storage rings from the battlefield cleanup, but none of them contained any trace of Liu Zhong’s belongings.
With no other options, Meng Wenxiang had no choice but to give up. In the chaos of battle, losing a Interspatial Ring wasn’t unusual.
The battle had taken a heavy toll on all their forces. Ye Liuyun’s unit was reduced to just over a thousand men, suffering the worst losses. Han Qiao and Meng Wenxiang’s armies had also lost more than half their numbers, but at least they had accomplished their mission.
Meng Wenxiang immediately reported to Liu Haotian. However, upon learning of Liu Zhong’s death, Liu Haotian found no reason to celebrate. He knew the empire would hold them accountable for failing to protect the strongest warrior of the Star Disk Empire.
Instead of recalling them, Liu Haotian ordered them to remain stationed where they were, awaiting further instructions.
When the news arrived, Han Qiao was furious, both in his heart and in his words. Meng Wenxiang spent his days brooding with worry. Only Ye Liuyun remained calm, quietly leading his soldiers in training while instructing Ling Yuan and An Ran to accelerate the expansion of the Wolf Hunt Mercenary Group’s territory.
Deep down, he knew this corrupt empire wasn’t worth serving. He had only come to assess the situation and lend a hand against the alien invaders. There was no way he would accept punishment—if push came to shove, he’d simply leave.
Sure enough, with the immediate threat of the alien race eliminated, the empire wasted no time in settling scores. When the post-war merits were tallied, Ye Liuyun and his men were not only denied recognition but were instead blamed for the losses. The Star Disk Empire even dispatched four martial cultivators at the seventh level of the Dominator Realm to deal with them personally.
Liu Haotian secretly warned them of the empire’s decision and the impending arrival of the powerful enforcers. The three commanders quickly gathered to discuss their next move.
Han Qiao, never one to mince words, immediately suggested rebellion. "Let’s just take our men and revolt!"
Meng Wenxiang, however, had more reservations. "Rebel? And go where? Do you want the Grand Commander himself leading the charge against us?"
His concern wasn’t about fighting the empire—it was the repercussions. If they rebelled, Liu Haotian might be implicated, or worse, the empire might force him to hunt them down.
Ye Liuyun remained silent, listening intently.
"Say something, will you?" Han Qiao snapped impatiently. "The Grand Commander always said you were both brave and resourceful. Think of a plan, or I swear I’ll take my men and rebel! I won’t just sit here waiting to die. I’d rather lead my troops straight into the alien stronghold and take them down with me than die like some worthless scapegoat!"
Ye Liuyun himself didn’t really care one way or the other, but Han Qiao and Meng Wenxiang had placed such trust in him, and even Liu Haotian had treated him as one of their own, doing his utmost to protect them and provide them with information. They had truly gone out of their way for him. So now, he had to figure out a way to help Han Qiao, Meng Wenxiang, and even Liu Haotian.
Seeing Han Qiao growing impatient, Ye Liuyun finally voiced his thoughts: "The empire feels safe to turn against us now because the threat from the alien races is gone. They think they can discard us like a worn-out plow horse—no longer useful.
But if, when those four seventh-level Sovereigns arrive, the alien races suddenly attack them, then we’ll have a reason to keep existing. As long as they still need us to pull the plow, they won’t slaughter the horse just yet.
When the time comes, we can use the excuse of continuing to hunt down the alien forces to avoid returning to the garrison. Instead, we’ll roam around recruiting troops. We’ll only go back when the aliens strike again. By then, the empire will need us to fight, and they’ll have no choice but to shelve this matter for the time being."
"Hmm!" Meng Wenxiang nodded repeatedly, clearly impressed by the idea.
"But we’ve already wiped out all the aliens! If only we’d left a few alive!" Han Qiao agreed with the plan, but now finding any remaining alien forces seemed impossible.
Ye Liuyun, however, simply smiled faintly and released the alien prisoners he had been keeping in his spatial world—three seventh-level Sovereigns and over twenty sixth-level Sovereigns. Not an insignificant number.
"Hahaha! I’d completely forgotten about them! You sly devil, you’ve really outdone yourself this time. Did you plan this all along?" Han Qiao burst into laughter at the sight of the aliens.
Ye Liuyun chuckled. "Not at all. I just kept them around for practice. Never thought they’d come in handy now!
Wenxiang, go ahead and coordinate with the Grand Commander. Once he sends us out to hunt down the remaining alien elites, the problem will be solved."
"Got it!" Meng Wenxiang immediately relayed the plan to Liu Haotian, who praised it as nothing short of brilliant.
With that settled, Ye Liuyun and the others released the aliens ahead of time to set up an ambush. He and Zhu Que then donned their cloaks of invisibility, following the aliens closely, ready to strike when the moment came.
