Chapter 240: Ordeal
After uttering those words, Huo Qiguang closed his eyes once more, saying nothing further.
If he weren't responsible for getting his benefactor, Ye Chen, safely off Kunlun Mountain, he would have already struck the Yu family's Protector!
The Yu family's Protector had a foul expression.
He had never imagined that Huo Qiguang would be so utterly disrespectful, even threatening to uproot the entire Yu family!
This was an undeniable humiliation to the Yu family!
Even if the Yu family's young master, Yu Qingqi, had once abducted Huo Susu, she was perfectly fine now!
On the contrary, it was Yu Qingqi who had been slain, falling here on Kunlun Mountain!
"Hmph!"
"I understand."
The Yu family's Protector flicked his sleeve, his face livid, and turned to leave.
As he was about to leave, he paused and said, "I hope that when the secret realm opens again, Patriarch Huo doesn't do anything foolish."
"Otherwise, with so many people present, I'm afraid we won't be the only ones with an issue."
He was clearly trying to pit everyone else against the Huo family.
He hoped to use the other powers to suppress Huo Qiguang's arrogance.
However, Huo Qiguang wasn't falling for it. His expression remained unchanged as he said in an icy voice, "If you dare to say another word of nonsense, believe me when I say I'll cripple you right now!"
The formidable aura of the Eighth Layer of the Divinity Transformation Realm radiated from Huo Qiguang. The very air seemed unable to withstand the intense pressure, growing as heavy as a mountain.
Naturally, the Yu family's Protector didn't dare say another word and left quickly.
He felt immense pressure when facing the Huo family's powerful Patriarch.
"Is the Huo family really going to protect that kid?"
"Well, this is getting interesting."
"With the Huo family's resources, do they really think they can stand against all these powers?"
The exchange between Huo Qiguang and the Yu family's Protector had not been concealed in the slightest, and it quickly reached the ears of the other Cultivators present.
The experts from the Black Tiger Tribe sneered endlessly.
"How foolish!"
"Did Huo Qiguang take a blow to the head or something?"
The Third Elder of the Black Tiger Tribe declared flatly, "That kid, Ye Chen, is a dead man for sure this time. I guarantee it!"
"Hearing that from you, Third Elder, puts my mind at ease," Long Zhiwen, leader of the Black Tiger Gang, chimed in with a laugh.
The experts from the other powers watched this unfold. Though they said nothing, they all shared the same thought as the Black Tiger Tribe.
Clearly, no one believed the Huo family alone had the power to protect Ye Chen from so many experts who were watching him like a hawk.
...
"I never thought that kid would have made so many enemies."
"It seems things are getting more and more interesting."
At the edge of the crowd, several figures, some sitting and some standing, watched on with cold indifference.
They were the same four people Ye Chen had encountered on his way up the mountain.
A cold-faced young woman with a colorful sash at her waist.
An old man in a Daoist robe with graying temples.
And a young man with a flippant expression and a cynical smirk, and a middle-aged man dressed as a scholar.
They had arrived at the summit of Kunlun Mountain as soon as the secret realm appeared, and had been closely monitoring the situation ever since.
To their disappointment, however, the target they were waiting for had yet to appear.
Instead, they had learned some rather interesting news.
The young man they had briefly met not long ago actually knew how to open the Kunlun Mountain secret realm and had even entered it all by himself!
This news was nothing short of astonishing. After all, in all these years, they had never heard of anyone successfully opening the Kunlun Mountain secret realm.
That young man clearly possessed an incredible secret, one that would make even experts of the Divinity Transformation Realm drool with envy!
"I don't know whether to call that guy lucky or unlucky."
"He must be the first person to enter the Kunlun Mountain secret realm in years, right? It's a shame. Even if it's filled with heavenly opportunities, he won't be fortunate enough to enjoy any of them."
The cynical young man sighed, shaking his head with a look of pity as he spoke.
"What's the matter? Jealous? I bet you'd love to go inside the Kunlun Mountain secret realm and take a look, wouldn't you?" the young woman with the colorful sash mocked mercilessly.
"I might want to, but the price of entry isn't small."
"You've seen it yourself. The moment he comes out, he'll have to face this gauntlet formed by the major powers of the Black Triangle!"
The young man shrugged and said casually, "Even if he had ten lives, it wouldn't be enough."
"Why don't you help him? Maybe you could use this chance to split the opportunities from the secret realm with him!" the young woman said in a deliberately tempting tone.
"Give me a break!"
"Don't forget why we're here! If we screw up the mission, I'm not taking the fall for it."
The young man rolled his eyes, unmoved by her words.
The young woman scoffed quietly and said no more.
「And so, about ten days passed.」
For the assembled Cultivators, ten days or so was nothing at all.
But it was a different story for the Huo family.
Having to face the predatory gazes all around them every single day was undoubtedly making them restless, as if they were sitting on pins and needles.
In this agonizing wait, they felt time stretch on endlessly. Every minute, every second, was unspeakable torture!
This was why the expressions of the Huo family's experts gradually began to turn grim.
They were reaching the end of their patience with this endless wait.
It wasn't just them. The Yu family, the Black Tiger Tribe, and the other powers were also struggling to restrain the impulse to attack the Huo family and seize Ye Chen's two companions, the realm spirit and Song Yubing.
After all, whoever could get their hands on those two would undoubtedly gain the upper hand.
Then, as soon as Ye Chen emerged, they could use the two hostages to threaten him into handing over whatever opportunities he had obtained.
It wasn't that they were unwilling to use force to coerce Ye Chen, but rather that no one was confident they would succeed if it came to a fight.
After all, it wasn't just one or two factions eyeing Ye Chen; there were a full eight major powers present. Who could guarantee their own side would be able to overwhelm all the others and seize Ye Chen's prize for themselves?
Therefore, snatching the hostages was the only way to gain an extra measure of security and another means of negotiating with Ye Chen!
If it weren't for the presence of Huo Qiguang, the Patriarch of the Huo family, the Huo family would have long since become the target of a joint attack!
Until, one morning, someone finally lost their patience.
"Huo Qiguang!"
It was the white-robed priest of the Cyan Ape Tribe! He shot to his feet and strode menacingly toward the Huo family.
"Hm?"
"Are you calling me?"
Huo Qiguang glanced up, his expression placid as he spoke.
Though he was just sitting leisurely on the ground, an invisible, oppressive aura surged around him.