Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

"Just let him go, and I'll do anything."

When she saw Lu Dingyuan's smug, wicked grin, Ye Wanqing felt a sense of foreboding.

But after glancing at Yang Xiao, she still nodded.

Lu Dingyuan's laughter grew even more unrestrained. His eyes raked over Ye Wanqing, his intentions perfectly clear.

Even someone as innocent as Ye Wanqing vaguely sensed what he was implying.

But for Yang Xiao's sake...

She did not back down.

Seeing this, no matter how calm or cold-hearted Yang Xiao was, his heart was stirred.

'This girl is so foolish. She just handed him her biggest weakness. How can we negotiate now?'

Still, Yang Xiao was surprised. Even now, her first thought was of him; she considered him that important.

He had always assumed she was only close to him because of Grandma Ye Lio, not because she truly felt that way herself.

But now he realized that even if it was only because of Grandma Ye Lio, for her to be willing to go this far was no simple feat.

'No matter what, I can't let her get hurt.'

At that thought, Yang Xiao suddenly stood up.

"Whatever you want, take it up with me. You're an old man, preying on a young woman. Don't you feel any shame?"

That one quiet sentence instantly drew Lu Dingyuan's gaze.

"Yang Xiao..."

Ye Wanqing whispered at the same time.

Yang Xiao could see that she now understood Lu Dingyuan's intentions.

Yet, she still hoped to trade herself for Yang Xiao's life.

A pity.

She was still too naive.

Yang Xiao knew perfectly well that a man like Lu Dingyuan would never let him go, even if he gave his word. The man was completely untrustworthy.

Besides, even if his word could be trusted, so what?

When had he, Yang Xiao, ever needed a woman to sacrifice her innocence to save him?

"Say no more. He can't do anything to me."

Yang Xiao said calmly.

His words were meant to reassure Ye Wanqing.

And just as he'd intended, Ye Wanqing calmed down considerably upon hearing his words. She remembered when her sister, Ye Wanyu, had brought three people, all stronger than her, to deal with Yang Xiao. He had said the same thing then, too.

And events had proven he had the strength to back up his words.

'It seems the effects of that fruit he ate haven't worn off yet.'

With that thought, a faint smile finally appeared on Ye Wanqing's face.

Seeing this, Lu Dingyuan's already gloomy expression darkened even further.

He stared coldly at the wretched boy who had ruined his fun and sneered. "A newborn calf truly doesn't fear the tiger. You little thing, you say I can't harm you? You dare call me shameless? You must be tired of living!"

Hearing this, Yang Xiao laughed heartily, completely unafraid. "It seems your precious grandson neglected to tell you about me. Otherwise, you wouldn't be talking like this. And another thing... do you really want your grandson to die?"

"Hm? It was you? You're the one who poisoned Qianfan?"

Lu Dingyuan was taken aback.

He had suspected that Yang Xiao might be the one who had poisoned his grandson—the same person Ye Wanyu mentioned, the one who tricked the Ye Family out of their Emperor's Weapon.

But deep down, he wasn't at all certain.

He thought the man who had summoned the Golden Crow Divine Aspect was a much more likely candidate.

After all, that man seemed far more like a brilliant young talent than Yang Xiao, who currently showed no signs of cultivation whatsoever.

But now, Yang Xiao had actually admitted it.

What he hadn't expected, however, was that as soon as Yang Xiao spoke, he actually sensed a dangerous aura emanating from the boy.

For the first time, Lu Dingyuan felt a flicker of caution toward the young man before him.

"Of course it was me. Who else did you think it was?"

Yang Xiao gave a faint smile.

With a flip of his hand, a golden fruit appeared.

He said calmly, "This is the antidote for your grandson. If you let us go, you can take this fruit back with you. What do you say?"

"Really?"

Lu Dingyuan was highly skeptical.

He was especially suspicious when he sensed Ye Wanqing's Heart Spirit waver violently the moment Yang Xiao produced the fruit.

It made him even more certain that there was something wrong with the fruit.

"Of course it's real. If you don't believe me, you can test its effects. Or, if you're still not convinced, I can eat it."

Yang Xiao said nonchalantly.

This only made Lu Dingyuan even more suspicious.

"Aren't you afraid I'll just snatch the fruit from you?"

Lu Dingyuan pressed.

"Of course I am. But I think you're the one who should be afraid. This fruit is in my hand. You're powerful, yes, but I have a hundred ways to destroy its medicinal properties before you could ever snatch it away. You probably don't know this, but I'm an Alchemist. And a friendly tip: this is the last fruit that can save your grandson. If it's gone, it's gone forever. Even killing me won't help you then."

"This..."

This time, it was Lu Dingyuan's turn to hesitate.

He was sure there was something wrong with the fruit in Yang Xiao's hand, but judging by the boy's demeanor... what if he was telling the truth?

Of course, while his grandson was important to Lu Dingyuan, he wasn't more important than Lu Dingyuan himself.

However, the current situation didn't seem to require much effort on his part.

All he had to do was agree to this foolish boy's terms.

He could get the fruit and save his grandson. As for whether to let them go... that wasn't even a consideration. From the very beginning, Lu Dingyuan had no intention of letting them leave safely.

Ye Wanqing, on the other hand, still had a chance to live if she was sensible. But this boy... if Lu Dingyuan hadn't known he was the one who'd attacked his grandson, that would have been one thing.

But now that he knew, how could he possibly not kill him?

But what if the boy was telling the truth, and this fruit really was the last antidote?

"Can't make up your mind? It seems you don't care about your own grandson that much after all. In that case, what's a promise worth from a man who won't even save his own family? Wanqing, I think we might as well die together. Since this man doesn't even care about his own grandson's life, will he really keep his promise? Still, if we die, we won't get nothing out of it. At least his grandson will be buried with us!"

As he spoke, Yang Xiao made a move to crush the fruit in his hand.

"Don't! Don't do that! We can talk about this!"

Seeing this, Lu Dingyuan's heart skipped a beat, and he cried out.

What worried him most about Yang Xiao's words wasn't his grandson Lu Qianfan's life, but how Ye Wanqing would perceive him.

If this girl really refused to believe a word he said, Lu Dingyuan would have no choice but to kill her.

And to him, that would be an absolute waste.

After all, Ye Wanqing's status as an heir to the Ye Family Main Lineage carried significant weight in these lands. This was the same reason he had been so accommodating to Ye Wanyu before.

Of course, if it really came down to it, he would just kill Ye Wanqing. He still had Ye Wanyu, after all.

But wouldn't it be much better if he could win Ye Wanqing over?

He had just seen that this girl seemed even easier to control than Ye Wanyu.

That was why Lu Dingyuan had blurted out, stopping Yang Xiao from destroying the fruit in his hand.

But what Lu Dingyuan didn't know was that upon hearing those words, Yang Xiao's face remained impassive, but inwardly, he was smiling.

'The old fox has taken the bait!'