The Strange Flame Rekindles in Battle Through the Heavens

Chapter 90 The Mercenary Group's Predicament

"Nie Feng not only has intricate connections with Fa Ma, the president of the Alchemist Guild, but also has a mysterious master whom even the imperial family fears. We are indeed not far from death," Dali sighed and said with a bitter smile.

"It seems we've found the cause of death for the men we sent out," Gilley said with a sigh.

"Damn it, who spread this information that caused us so much damage and put us in constant danger of being destroyed? If I find out who did it, I'll kill them!" Raman slammed his fist on the table and roared.

"Heh, even if he stood right in front of you, you wouldn't dare to make a move," Ling Yun said with a wry smile after hearing Raman's words.

"Do you know who it is?" All three people inside the tent looked at Ling Yun.

"We've been used as a test subject!" Ling Yun sighed.

"What do you mean?" The three commanders looked at Ling Yun with puzzled expressions.

"Don't you understand? The letter said that Nie Feng had politely declined the offers of the Empire's three top powers, and later went to Lord Fa Ma's residence. After that, he never appeared again. The Imperial Family and the three major families were all turned away and didn't even get a glimpse of him. But faced with such a promising person and the power behind him, these people would definitely try their best to establish a relationship with Nie Feng. Putting aside the power behind Nie Feng, Lord Fa Ma's personal favor alone is enough to tempt them," Ling Yun explained.

"You mean their purpose in spreading the news about Nie Feng was to make us hunt him down first, and then he would kill us?" Ji Lei's eyes widened, and he seemed to understand.

"That's right! As long as we corner Nie Feng, they will immediately jump out to rescue him. In this way, Nie Feng, Lord Fa Ma of the Alchemist Guild, and the powerful figures behind Nie Feng will all be grateful to them," Ling Yun nodded.

"Then let's just retreat! Although we suffered heavy losses this time, our main force is still intact. As long as we retreat in time, we can recover our strength in no time," Dali said.

"Withdraw?" Ling Yun shook his head with a wry smile.

"What? Is someone blocking our way?" Raman also wanted to leave at this point, after all, he really didn't dare to get involved in this mess.

"Those people were thinking of testing the waters, but when they looked down they found the stone was gone. What do you think they'll do with that unruly stone?" Ling Yun said in a deep voice.

"This... if we leave, we'll die. If we don't leave, we'll constantly face the mysterious powerful figure behind Nie Feng, and we could disappear inexplicably like those missing people at any moment. What do you suggest we do?" Raman was somewhat at a loss.

Both Gillespie and Dali turned their attention to Lingyun.

"There's only one way now!" Ling Yun said after a moment of contemplation.

"What method?" the three mercenary leaders asked in unison.

"Drag it out!" Ling Yun slowly uttered a single word.

"You mean stall for time?" Raman asked, slightly puzzled.

"Leaving now means certain death, staying might mean survival. If we can stall until Nie Feng leaves this area of ​​the capital, we can escape this calamity. From now on, we must search carefully for this boy named Nie Feng. We must search the entire Monster Mountain Range thoroughly, leaving no stone unturned, not even a cockroach's nest." Ling Yun stated his plan.

"What? They want to search us? Isn't that courting death?" Dali immediately thought Ling Yun must have gone mad.

"Idiot! Lingyun just wants us to put on a show." Jilei clapped his hands and cheered immediately after hearing Lingyun's idea.

"So that's how it is!" Dali instantly understood.

"The idea is good. But what if the people behind Nie Feng come to retaliate?" Dali asked worriedly.

"I don't think so. Strong people have their own bottom line. As long as we don't provoke them, they won't attack us weaklings. We just need to deliberately leave a flaw during the search. I think he'll let us go once he sees it. After all, no one will deliberately step on an ant if they have nothing better to do," Ling Yun said slowly, shaking his head.

"Alright! Then we'll arrange for people to go into the mountains tomorrow." Jire and Dali nodded after hearing Ling Yun's words.

Monster Mountain Range.

In the darkness, a black figure stood on a large tree, gazing towards the entrance of the Monster Mountain Range.

After all the members of the three major mercenary groups left, Xiao Yan kept his eyes on that direction, trying to see if anyone else would enter the Monster Mountain Range that night.

Xiao Yan waited in the tree all night, but apart from the occasional roar of a magical beast, it was unusually quiet.

The silence was broken the next morning when a golden light appeared on the horizon.

Several hundred mercenaries slowly entered the entrance of the Monster Mountain Range and began to search the area carefully as soon as they entered.

The search was extremely thorough; some mercenaries even dug up ant nests with hoes to see if Xiao Yan was inside.

Some even climbed trees, hoping to find out if Xiao Yan was hiding in a tree hole.

Seeing how thoroughly the mercenaries were searching, Xiao Yan pondered for a moment, then smiled and said, "It seems there aren't all fools in this mercenary group! They clearly know I have powerful backers and dare not provoke me!"

"There are no stupid people in this world, only people who think others are stupid!" After saying this, Xiao Yan turned around and left.

After all, they've already raised the white flag and surrendered. If Xiao Yan still insists on pursuing the matter, that would be bad.

If he really pushes them too far, and they decide to fight to the death, Xiao Yan won't have a good outcome. No matter how powerful Xiao Yan is, he's only a Dou Zhe now; thinking he can take on a Great Dou Shi is nothing short of wishful thinking.

While things have calmed down on Xiao Yan's side, things have exploded in the capital. All the major powers in the capital have been paying close attention to Xiao Yan's situation, especially the royal family who spread the news about him.

Inside the Imperial Palace in the capital.

Dressed in military attire, Yao Ye sat in the center of the main hall, listening to the report from the black-clad men below the throne regarding Xiao Yan. When he heard that two thousand mercenaries from the three major mercenary groups had mysteriously disappeared from the Monster Beast Mountain Range, he was suddenly startled.

"What did you say? More than two thousand people disappeared in an instant, without leaving any trace!" Yao Ye stood up instantly, somewhat incredulous.

"Yes! This matter has already spread throughout the capital. All the major families are discussing it and speculating about how these two thousand mercenaries disappeared. The conclusions are all similar: they believe that it was done by Nie Feng's mysterious master." The man in black knelt on the ground and answered respectfully.

"What is the reaction of the three major mercenary groups at this moment?" Yao Ye asked.

"They're currently conducting a thorough search of the Monster Mountain Range, but it's just a show," the man in black replied earnestly.

"Hehe, it seems that not all the mercenaries are stupid. Some of them actually saw through my intentions! Alright! You can go now!" Yao Ye chuckled twice.

"Yes!" The man in black left.

"Liang Ye, what level of strength do you think one needs to reach to kill more than two thousand people so easily without leaving a trace?" Yao Ye, who was pacing back and forth in the main hall, suddenly said to the middle-aged man beside him.

This middle-aged man, whom Yao Ye called Liang Ye, had an extraordinary appearance and a burly build. He wore a black suit of armor, which made him look very imposing.

However, a sharp glint appeared in his eyes, as if it were about to burst forth at any moment.

Liang Ye is Princess Yao Ye's personal bodyguard. He is first-rate in both battlefield experience and knowledge. He doesn't talk much and just silently protects Princess Yao Ye.

He would only answer when Yao Ye asked him a question, and each time he answered very seriously and carefully.

Starting today, I will be updating four times a day for four consecutive days. Please give me your support. Laba Festival is here, so I'd like to invite you all to Xia Ke Island for Laba porridge and give you a Seven Emotions and Six Desires Pill as a bonus.

The original content is almost finished, it's time to serve the main course.

(End of this chapter)