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"Who is it?"
This thought flashed through the minds of both Xiao Lin and Ying Changkong simultaneously.
Because the newcomer made no effort to hide their Dou Qi, both Xiao Lin and Ying Changkong had detected a Dou Huang level powerhouse approaching them from a distance.
This caused both of their expressions to darken instantly.
However, Xiao Lin quickly felt a sense of relief. After all, if the newcomer was another Dou Huang from the Luo Yan Empire, it would simply mean adding one more grave to this spot. But if it was a Dou Huang from their Jia Ma Empire, he might not even have to lift a finger!
That way, he wouldn't draw any unwanted attention to himself. Therefore, regardless of which side the Dou Huang belonged to, it wasn't necessarily bad news for Xiao Lin.
In contrast, Ying Changkong's face became incredibly unsightly. For him, his reputation within the Luo Yan Empire was already poor; if the newcomer was a fellow Dou Huang from Luo Yan, they would likely try to snatch the legacy he was about to obtain.
If the person was from the Jia Ma Empire, he might not even be able to fight for the legacy at all!
How could his expression be anything but grim?
"Dammit, I gave up on the final struggle for the central hall of the secret realm just to secure this legacy. I didn't expect someone to cut in halfway!" Ying Changkong muttered with a dark face.
Just as Ying Changkong was considering whether to forcefully kill Xiao Lin and flee before the Dou Huang arrived, reality quickly provided him with an answer. Before he could even make a move, a green arrow of light shot straight toward his face from the distance.
This sudden attack nearly scared the soul out of Ying Changkong.
Swish!
With a quick flash of movement, Ying Changkong narrowly dodged the strike.
Boom!
The green arrow pierced through the ground where he had been standing, exploding into a deep crater.
With his rhythm broken, Ying Changkong was no longer able to carry out his plan to kill Xiao Lin. Under Xiao Lin's watchful gaze, the distant figure crossed the remaining distance in the blink of an eye.
"Eh? It's Yun Shan? Why would he suddenly appear here?"
Upon seeing that the figure was the current Sect Master of the Yun Lan Sect, Yun Shan, Xiao Lin was utterly stunned.
According to his deductions, Yun Shan should currently be competing with Yan Luotian of the Gold Geese Sect for the resources in the central hall of the secret realm; it was highly unlikely for him to be here.
Yet, a person who shouldn't be here had appeared. How could Xiao Lin not be surprised?
One had to know that for this secret realm exploration, all four Dou Huang powerhouses of the Jia Ma Empire had been deployed, while the Luo Yan Empire had sent all five of their Dou Huangs.
This imbalance allowed one of the Luo Yan Empire's Dou Huangs, Ying Changkong, to have more freedom of choice. Otherwise, why would a Dou Huang come to snatch resources and legacies from a group of people who were, at most, at the Dou Wang level?
It was because the Jia Ma Empire lacked enough Dou Huangs to keep an eye on every single one from Luo Yan. Among them, as the strongest of their respective sides, Yun Shan would normally be keeping a close watch on Yan Luotian.
Both were at the level of a newly ascended Nine-Star Dou Huang, and the resources in the central hall were clearly what they needed most. Logic dictated that Yun Shan would never leave the vicinity of the central hall.
Yet, reality stood right before him. Yun Shan truly had appeared here!
Xiao Lin didn't even know what to say.
Furthermore, this was Xiao Lin's first time making contact with Yun Shan!
Because of the influence of the original story, even though the Yun Shan of this period displayed the demeanor of a grandmaster, Xiao Lin maintained an attitude of keeping him at arm's length. In Xiao Lin's view, there was a high probability they would become enemies in the future.
If that was the case, why bother building unnecessary ties?
That had been Xiao Lin's previous thought. However, with Yun Shan suddenly appearing today to resolve his predicament, he might be forced to have some contact with him from now on.
While Xiao Lin was lost in thought, Yun Shan spoke.
"Ying Changkong, leader of the Black Eagle Bandit Group from the Luo Yan Empire."
"As a Dou Huang powerhouse, isn't it a bit shameless for you to be making things difficult for a Dou Wang of our Jia Ma Empire here? Oh, right, I almost forgot. You are a Great Bandit anyway; a thing like 'face' is probably something you lost a long time ago, right?"
Standing proudly in the void, Yun Shan looked down with contemptuous eyes at Ying Changkong on the nearby hilltop, mocking him.
On the other side, Ying Changkong's expression was already terrible the moment he saw it was Yun Shan. Hearing the mockery now, his face turned so dark it looked like it could drip ink. Yes, he was shameless—he was a Dou Huang, yet he still acted as a bandit.
But who had ever dared to say such things to his face before?
Within the Luo Yan Empire, even the Imperial Family and the Gold Geese Sect wouldn't do so, fearing he would throw caution to the wind and take revenge on their underlying forces later.
But who was Yun Shan? He was the Sect Master of the Jia Ma Empire's Yun Lan Sect.
Why would he humiliate himself by coddling a bandit leader from the Luo Yan Empire? The only reason he hadn't directly attacked to turn the man to ash was that he was dealing with a minor personal issue!
"Yun! Shan! We are both Dou Huang, don't think I'm afraid of you!"
Gritting his teeth as he shouted Yun Shan's name, Ying Changkong's eyes looked as if they could kill.
However, he could only put up a tough front. In reality, while both were Dou Huang, Yun Shan was a Nine-Star while Ying Changkong was merely a Two-Star. If they were to fight to the death and Ying Changkong didn't run, Yun Shan could scatter his ashes to the wind!
However, in the Dou Huang realm, while there was a gap in strength, the difference in speed wasn't massive. The success rate of a Nine-Star Dou Huang trying to kill a Two-Star Dou Huang who was intent on escaping wouldn't exceed 30%.
This was the reason Ying Changkong could run rampant within the Luo Yan Empire.
He could run!
As long as you couldn't kill a Two-Star Dou Huang, even if you wiped out his organization, he could still seek vengeance against you. Therefore, until they could guarantee his death, other forces in the Luo Yan Empire turned a blind eye to him and his Black Eagle Bandit Group.
"What? You want to trade blows with me? As long as you don't run, I'm ready anytime! If you don't want to move, then get lost! Stop being an eyesore in front of me!"
In this moment, Yun Shan's dominance leaked out as he directly rebuked Ying Changkong, making the latter's face turn blue and red with rage.
True enough, he really didn't dare to start a fight!
The reason Yun Shan showed no respect to a Two-Star Dou Huang like Ying Changkong was, naturally, because he looked down on him. As a dignified Dou Huang powerhouse, one could start their own sect in this corner of the Northwestern Region.
To choose to be a bandit instead? Was that not self-degradation?
How could Yun Shan, as the Sect Master of the Yun Lan Sect, possibly think highly of such a person?
Witnessing all of this, Xiao Lin felt for the first time that Yun Shan actually looked quite pleasing to the eye!
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