Chapter 1262: Who Wants To Live, And Who Wants To Die?

The possibility that Sunlao Taijun and the others saw the light and willingly joined Ye Qing’s side had never crossed Thousand Change’s mind even once. Even if he ignored the fact that they were all ruthless titans of the Dark Ways who killed as easily as they breathed, the idea that they had discovered the goodness in their hearts and returned to the light was more laughable than saying that the Old Heavenly Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain was a woman.

No, the only reasonable explanation here was Ye Qing using some sort of method to take control of Sunlao Taijun, Old Man of Zhi and the rest of Taisui Mountain’s men. Through them, he was able to learn of their partnership with Ghost Taisui and their grand plan to ambush him. That was why he was able to give them a taste of their own medicine.

This was the point where, unfortunately, he was back at square one. Just how did Ye Qing control the people of Taisui Mountain and even a Half-Sage like Sunlao Taijun?

“It looks like you’ve figured it out,” Ye Qing said with interest while observing Thousand Change’s many expressions.

“Yes, but not completely.”

Thousand Change asked directly, “How on earth did you convince them to obey you faithfully?”

“That, you will learn very soon.” Ye Qing smiled. “So? Is there anything else you want to ask?”

Thousand Change shook his head and let out a sigh. “No. I will serve you.”

“Good. You’re a smart one.” Ye Qing nodded approvingly. “Because of your wise decision, you may live to see another sun.”

Cold sweat broke out of Thousand Change’s forehead when he heard this. It was impossible to say if it was because of agitation, fear, or both.

Ye Qing waved his hand, and the moon strings binding Thousand Change loosened. Now, the Great Trueman could move once more.

He did not try to escape though. Instead, he obediently walked over to Ye Qing’s side, saluted him once, and took half a step backward. He then stood there with his back bowed slightly like a loyal servant.

By now, the battle had reached the end. Shadow, Fist Demon, One Sword and more were seriously injured to begin with, but Sunlao Taijun, a Half-Sage, was given orders to end the fight as soon as possible. Naturally, their resistance was completely futile. They were all suppressed and captured in just a short time.

If Ye Qing hadn’t demanded them to be captured alive, the battle would have ended even sooner.

“Sunlao Taijun, Old Man of Zhi! You should never have gone against Westwind Inn! The Boss and Westwind Inn will never let this slide! You are dead, you hear me?!”

Fist Demon cursed loudly after spitting out a bit of blood. He was currently being detained by Old Man of Zhi.

One-armed Buddha was wearing an ugly expression as well. He was glaring at Old Man of Zhi and Taoist of Sleep with fury.

Although Taisui Mountain and Westwind Inn were protected by Sages, Taisui Mountain’s roots and overall strength were much weaker than Westwind Inn’s. Ignoring the fact that Westwind Inn’s Boss was stronger than Ghost Taisui, Taisui Mountain had less than ten Great Truemen and Great Grandmasters, which was far below Westwind Inn’s thirty-six. As for the number of Truemen and Grandmasters, Westwind Inn outnumbered Taisui Mountain by more than a dozen times. This was without accounting for Westwind Restaurant too.

If Westwind was a fully grown adult, then Taisui Mountain was a feeble child. Westwind Inn absolutely possessed the power to lay waste to Taisui Mountain should they choose to mobilize all of their forces. This was why Fist Demon and One-armed Buddha dared to threaten them despite their current state.

Fist Demon was short-tempered, and One-armed Buddha was pure of heart. They did not possess the mental faculties to notice the strangeness of their situation. On the other hand, Shadow, Qin Princess and One Sword were much more aware. Their eyes were filled with more worry and uncertainty than violence.

Specifically, they were worried about their situation, and unsure if they would live to see another day.

“Release us now, or else—”

Fist Demon thought his captors were scared when he noticed that Sunlao Taijun and Old Man of Zhi were ignoring him. As a result, his threats and swearings grew increasingly loud and offensive. It was a mistake. Before he could bring his worst, Sunlao Taijun slapped him with her sleeve and shattered his jaw in one hit. Unable to speak any longer, he could only make painful, throaty groans that sounded like the wails of a wounded animal.

“Noisy cur.”

Sunlao Taijun shot One-armed Buddha a look, and the Great Grandmaster immediately fell silent. He had a pure heart, but that didn’t mean he was retarded. When it was time to be meek, it was time to be meek.

“We’ve captured them all, young master.”

Sunlao Taijun withdrew her gaze and saluted Ye Qing after bringing the captives before him.

“Good job. Old Man of Zhi, Ironface, Warflight, deal with the rest of the killers and kill whoever you think should be killed. Don’t hold back on my account,” Ye Qing instructed.

“At once.”

The trio responded affirmatively before charging back into the fray. The Truemen and Grandmasters of Westwind Inn were currently fighting against their peers from Taisui Mountain.

Under normal circumstances, this battle should have been an even battle. However, the forces of Westwind Inn were completely shaken up by the ambush, and now three Great Truemen from Taisui Mountain were joining the battle. Naturally, what was already a lop-sided fight instantly turned into a massacre.

Shadow, Qin Princess, and One Sword were white-faced as they watched the one-sided massacre. Fist Demon and One-armed Buddha were much quieter as well.

“So? What are your thoughts?” Ye Qing asked slowly while observing the white-faced group.

Shadow, Qin Princess, One Sword and more exchanged glances with each other. In the end, no one said a thing. It was because they weren’t sure if their response would earn them a sudden, violent death.

“Keeping silent, are we?”

A short while later, Ye Qing said again, “That’s fine. I’ll do the talking then.”

“Who wants to live, and who wants to die?”

The climax from the get go? What the hell!

Shadow, Qin Princess, One Sword and more trembled in fear as the tension became razor sharp in an instant.

“At least two of you need to die tonight,” Ye Qing said with a warm, gentle smile. “Who among you are the wise who submits to circumstances?”

“I will serve you, young master!”

Ye Qing had just finished when One-armed Buddha dropped to his knees.

Shadow, Qin Princess and One Sword were flabbergasted for a full second. Who would have thought that the thick-browed, round-eyed, child-like guy who was ranting about breaking rather than bending just a moment ago would kneel faster than anyone else present? Had he fed his shame to the dogs?

Despite their scorn, their reactions weren’t slow either. They too dropped to their knees and begged in a hurry, “I’m willing to serve you as well, young master!”

“Me too!”

“I will serve you!”

“Ooooo...”

Fist Demon was the only one who couldn’t say a word because his jaw was shattered. He could only groan desperately and hope that Ye Qing would catch his meaning.

Although they were the Shopkeepers of Westwind Inn, they didn’t actually harbor much loyalty or even respect toward their Boss. In fact, that was the case for the large majority of the employees of Westwind Inn.

After all, Westwind Inn was a killer organization that killed for profit. Therefore, those who joined them were usually bloodthirsty maniacs or profit seekers. Naturally, one could not expect much loyalty or sense of belonging from such people.

There were maybe eleven or twelve people who were the Boss’ aide through and through. Everyone else had joined Westwind Inn long after its inception. Naturally, they harbored even less respect and loyalty toward the Boss.

Their life was at stake after all. Why wouldn’t they betray the Boss?

Either way, they were selling out their lives in service of someone. It did not matter if that someone was the Boss or Ye Qing.

Any option was better than dying.