Chapter 900: An Ethical Dilemma
Zhang Lie likewise stepped forward to address the citizens of Mars. "We're from the Zenith Dojo, here as reinforcements."
The Yang clan head emerged from the crowd. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Dojo Leader Zhang. I'm the clan head of the Yang clan of Mars."
Zhang Lie smirked. "I know of you, I believe."
The Yang clan head's eyes brightened. "A great honor for me that such an esteemed personage like you would know me, Dojo Leader Zhang."
Zhang Lie folded his arms. "To be specific, I know of you because of the incident with Yang Ze on Mars."
The Yang clan head's face turned ashen. If Zhang Lie knew of him because of Yang Ze, that surely wasn't a good sign. He hadn't expected that forcing Yang Ze out of the clan and Mars would cause such a devastating chain reaction. If he could rewind time to that fateful moment, he would have done everything in his power to allow Yang Ze to remain.
The Yang clan head smiled in embarrassment. "I believe there must be some misunderstanding between us..."
Zhang Lie glanced at his transceiver and said brusquely, "My time is precious. I'll give you a minute, nothing more."
The Yang clan head hastily cut to the chase. "Dojo Leader Zhang, would you be willing to escort us away from Mars with that titan-class shuttle of yours?"
The other clan heads and members of the Yang clan all nodded.
Zhang Lie shook his head. "Before we exterminate the bugs, no one will be leaving Mars.
"What right do you have to restrict our freedom?"
"Even if you saved us, how can you force us to remain here?"
"We can leave whenever we'd like! You have no authority over us, and you're not even a Martian yourself. Even Marshal Li didn't stop us!"
The hunters of the Martian clans began to push back against Zhang Lie's statement immediately. They had already finished preparations to leave; they simply wanted to see if they could gain an extra degree of safety with the help of Zhang Lie and the titan-class shuttle he commanded.
The Yang clan head narrowed his eyes, and his expression turned icy. "We Martians believe in personal freedom. You might be strong enough to fend off the bug invasion yourself, but you have no right to restrict our departure!"
Zhang Lie shrugged. "If you won't heed my warning, then so be it. If you want to die trying to leave Mars, I certainly won't stop you."
The Yang clan head frowned. "Dojo Leader Zhang, what do you mean?"
Zhang Lie glanced at his transceiver. "Time's up. I need to discuss plans for the invasion with my disciples and Marshal Li. If you want to leave, feel free."
The Martian clan heads all stood forward in an attempt to block Zhang Lie's path. The Yang clan head shouted, "Dojo Leader Zhang, please clarify things before you leave!"
The Gu clan head added, "Don't leave before you make things clear!"
"Hoh? Do you really think you can stop me?"
A burst of genetic energy erupted from Zhang Lie, causing the clan heads to stagger back. They felt as though they were trying to contain not a person, but rather a galactic cruiser.
Genetic energy billowed from Zhang Lie like waves. The clan heads felt as though they were about to be struck by a tsunami. A howling gale shook their bodies; none of them could stand straight. They collapsed to the ground, and Zhang Lie walked out from the mess.
Zhou Ying was kind-hearted enough that she told them all what was going on. If these clan heads were to leave with their clans, all of them would become food for the space bugs that had surrounded Mars.
"There are huge swarms of bugs surrounding Mars. Our captain only cleared away a portion of them, so if you were to leave Mars on your own..."
All the clan heads immediately grew alarmed.
The Yang clan head immediately scrambled up from the ground and chased after Zhang Lie. He stumbled and fell as Zhang Lie turned around.
"What's the matter, Clan Head Yang? Don't prostrate yourself in front of me—I can hardly claim such reverence."
The Yang clan head got back up. Without even pausing to clean himself up, he bowed his head deeply. "Dojo Leader Zhang, you underestimate your strength. I apologize for not heeding your advice earlier."
If nothing else, the Yang clan head was at least willing to drop his pride and arrogance in times of need. He continued, "Given how strong you and the Zenith Dojo are, you can surely escort us from Mars!"
The other clan heads immediately followed the Yang clan head's example.
"Right, the Zenith Dojo surely can do it!"
"If they were able to enter Mars, they should be able to leave Mars as well."
"Dojo Leader Zhang, please escort us to safety!"
Zhang Lie nodded. "You're all correct. If I wanted to leave, I certainly could. The bugs all around Mars wouldn't be able to stop me, and I could escort a group of people out as well—"
The Yang clan head bowed down again in gratitude.
Zhang Lie snorted. "—but why should I?"
The Yang clan head froze.
The Gu clan head stood by the Yang clan head's side, bowing down to Zhang Lie himself. "There are over a million civilians in the military encampment."
The Yang clan head understood what the Gu clan head was up to. He lowered his head and echoed his rival's words, "Your decision will impact a million lives on Mars, Dojo Leader Zhang."
The Gu and Yang clan heads were appealing to Zhang Lie on ethical and humanitarian grounds—a matter of life-threatening urgency, a quest to save millions, a need to help the less fortunate. It was only ethical, only moral, for Zhang Lie to help out those in need, even if it came at his own expense. Wasn't that so?
Zhang Lie smiled coldly. "You may be right."
The Yang and Gu clan heads gave each other knowing smiles before Zhang Lie continued, "But what of the hundreds of millions of lives still on Mars? Do you expect me to save one person and leave ninety-nine behind?"
New n𝙤vel chapters are published on f(r)e𝒆webn(o)vel.com