At least, bringing back a few laborers or some portion of the tribute would be acceptable!
"I've already told you, I want to rebel. This is also a chance for you to survive. If you can't see the situation clearly and keep babbling, don't blame me for being impolite," Mo Qi said coldly.
Envoy A retorted, "Can't see the situation? I think it's you who can't see it! With just the two of you, you want to rebel? This is like hitting a rock with an egg, talking big without any basis! You just don't want to pay the tribute. But saying such treasonous words puts your entire clan in danger. Now, you have two choices: either hand over the tribute immediately, or wait for the army of the Red Leaf Kingdom to come and punish you."
"What kind of brain do you have? I can't be bothered to talk nonsense with you anymore." Mo Qi's body flashed with a cyan ripple, illuminating the entire space before disappearing.
"What? Trying to scare me? I can't be bothered to talk nonsense with you either. Hand over the tribute or the people quickly." Envoy A, unaware that he had been tricked, continued to speak with great momentum.
Mo Qi was thinking at this moment, he couldn't kill both of them.
If he killed them both, who would deliver his message?
So, he turned his gaze to Envoy B, "You both were hit by my Azure Lotus Fire and begged for mercy. I'll give you a chance to live and go back to deliver a message."
Envoy B fell to his knees with a thud, "Please save my life, I want to live."
Envoy A was stunned for a moment, then kicked him fiercely, "Useless wretch, you can't even handle a little scare? You're scared already? I shouldn't have let you come out with me, you're a complete disgrace. If we weren't outside, I'd slap you to death. Get up quickly."
Envoy B truly felt that something was wrong with his body. Although there was no pain for the moment, something was definitely wrong, though he couldn't pinpoint what.
Seeing Envoy B concede, Mo Qi handed him a healing pill. Envoy B, ignoring Envoy A's kicks and punches, took the pill.
Envoy A was still kicking and punching Envoy B, "Get up quickly, or I'll really get serious. And don't eat what he gave you... Ah, you useless thing, how dare you ignore me? You dare to eat it while I'm talking?"
Mo Qi calmly said from the side, "Calm down, you're about to die."
"I'm going to die?" Envoy A stopped kicking Envoy B and looked at Mo Qi. "How can I die when I'm perfectly fine? It's you who will die, and miserably, if you don't do as we say."
"Is that so? Want to make a bet..."
With a thud, Envoy A fell to the ground and died.
Mo Qi disdainfully walked forward and kicked him, "You can't even last long, dying so quickly. I was going to make a bet with you."
Envoy B was startled and, realizing what had happened, broke out in a cold sweat. Fortunately, he had been sensible and taken the antidote, otherwise he would have collapsed too.
But he was still a little worried and asked, "Am I really alright?"
Mo Qi nodded, "You're fine. Get up and hurry back to deliver the message."
Envoy B shakily stood up, not daring to meet Mo Qi's gaze, "I don't dare to leave. Please spare my life, and I will follow you from now on."
He didn't believe Mo Qi would let him go. He had seen too many such situations. This was a dead end. The other party didn't want to pay tribute and was not strong enough, so they killed the envoys and claimed the envoys never arrived, making the envoys scapegoats.
Although the other party said they wouldn't kill him, it was just talk. The moment he turned around, he was sure to be met with a flying knife.
So he didn't dare to turn around.
Mo Qi, impatient with his dithering, gave him a flying kick, "Get lost!"
As Envoy B flew through the air, he thought he would be smashed to pieces and was startled. Then he felt his body was intact, landed crisply, his bones were still strong, and his body was unharmed. Only then did he realize that the other party truly didn't want to kill him, so he got up and ran away shamefacedly.
Mo Qi walked out of the hall and went to inspect the army.
Ye Xiaowei was leading the soldiers in training.
Mo Qi had previously arranged a formation for them. As long as they were familiar with its use and played their roles in their respective positions, they would be invincible.
But normally, when the formation was not activated, they couldn't see its destructive power.
As the soldiers trained day after day without seeing results, they gradually developed a passive attitude and became less enthusiastic about training.
Seeing Mo Qi approach, Ye Xiaowei seized the opportunity to greet him, "Yun, you're finally here. If you didn't come soon, the brothers would have dispersed. Tell us, what exactly is the use of this formation?"
At this moment, Ye Xiaowei was clad in armor, without makeup, her figure shapely and alluring. Her eyebrows were filled with a delicate charm, making her appear even more heroic and spirited. Mo Qi was mesmerized, "Oh my sister, I didn't realize you had such a good figure!"
Ye Xiaowei rolled her eyes at him, "Let's talk business! If you continue to be so flippant, I won't bother with your affairs anymore. I'm helping you out of goodwill right now."
Mo Qi coughed dryly, "My formation, on the battlefield, is earth-shattering and awe-inspiring. It can decide the outcome in one move."
"Then let the brothers see it! We've been here under the scorching sun, sweating profusely. If we don't see results, how can we have any passion?"
Mo Qi said, "This thing has great destructive power, but the cost is too high. To see results, we have to shed blood. If we shed blood within our own territory, how can we deal with the enemy?"
Ye Xiaowei also knew that the overall situation was important, but she was under immense pressure.
"Then let me have them practice something else, like individual combat skills," Ye Xiaowei said after a long hesitation.
Individual combat skills meant free practice, which was as good as not practicing at all. This was because Ye Xiaowei was responsible for formation combat, while individual combat was handled by Ye Xingchen.
Just as Mo Qi was about to offer some words of comfort and persuasion, a soldier below said, "Yes, I think we're completely wasting our time. It would be faster and more effective if we were allowed to cultivate on our own."
This was blatant questioning!
If one person questioned it, it would be one thing, but if everyone questioned it, it could very well lead to mutiny. It had to be suppressed immediately, otherwise it would become a major problem.
Then he would have to bear the pain and show them.
With that thought, Mo Qi had everyone set up the formation, forming a circle, each holding a spirit stone, ready to throw them into the air.
At this moment, several figures flashed by.
Mo Qi recognized the person in front as Ye Xiaoguan, and the two behind him as Chang Liping and Miao Tiao, both their family retainers.
It seemed that Ye Xiaoguan, who had been cultivating at Tianfu Palace, had rushed back upon hearing the news of his father's death, attempting to avenge him.
Mo Qi's heart stirred. It was a good opportunity to use the formation. Killing them wouldn't be too much of a waste of resources.
But the problem was, Ye Xiaoguan had a good relationship with Ye Yun in the past, and Mo Qi still remembered those moments.
Before Ye Xiaoguan could speak, Mo Qi said, "Xiaoguan, some things are just like this. There's no right or wrong, only the outcome. The outcome is that your father stood against me, so I killed him. If you insist on revenge, I will accompany you to the end."
Ye Xiaoguan looked at Mo Qi, his eyes filled with killing intent, "Are you saying that you are Ye Yun, and you killed my father?"
"Yes," Mo Qi replied simply.
"Xiaoguan, our family has done nothing wrong, and we were imprisoned for tens of thousands of years. This is all the sin your father and his ilk committed. Who should we seek revenge from?" Ye Xiaowei said.
"Seek it from me," Ye Xiaoguan said coldly. "This hatred is deeply rooted. No one can resolve it unless the other party is completely wiped out."
Ye Xiaowei felt a bit sad and said, "Xiaoguan, you could have not come back since you went to the academy. If you hadn't come back, then these matters here would have nothing to do with you."
"Isn't that self-deception?" Ye Xiaoguan snorted coldly. "If we don't come back, you'll do as you please here? Don't dream. I'm just the vanguard. Later, Ye Xiaochen will also return, but he won't be needed. I alone can take you all down. Do you know what I've learned at Tianfu Palace all these years? We improve every day. Our current strength is something you can never imagine. And you," he glanced at Mo Qi, "you've regressed. How can you fight me?"
Mo Qi remained noncommittal and glanced at Ye Xiaowei, "Sister Xiaowei, it's a good opportunity to let him witness the power of our formation."
Ye Xiaowei felt uncertain, but she had no choice but to brace herself and maintain the formation, as it seemed to be their only reliance at the moment. They couldn't win in a one-on-one fight.
By then, the formation had been set up. The surrounding soldiers threw their spirit stones, and a vortex suddenly appeared in the air, sweeping up the spirit stones and lifting them. They formed a circle in mid-air and spun rapidly, their radiance intensifying, engulfing the spirit stones. That ball of light was like a sun suspended in the sky, impossible to look at directly.
Ye Xiaowei pointed her hand, and a river of light broke through the dam, pouring down from the sun in the sky. It surged and struck Ye Xiaoguan and the other two.
Initially, it was as large as a table, but it gradually grew along the way, expanding and becoming as wide as a river. It roared and its momentum grew increasingly fierce.
Ye Xiaoguan initially dismissed it with a look of disdain, but as he saw its increasing ferocity, his expression gradually turned solemn.
He dared not delay and immediately formed a hand seal, causing a mist to rise around him as he moved forward.
At the same time, his retainers Chang Liping and Miao Tiao also formed hand seals. A mist rose before each of them, and the three mists merged into one, roaring like thunder and surging with momentum.
As the two collided, the black mist paused for a moment, and both sides entered a stalemate.
"What a lousy formation. I thought it was supposed to be powerful," Ye Xiaoguan said dismissively.
"Let's put all our strength into it and break it," Ye Xiaoguan instructed the other two.
The two of them shouted in unison and exerted their strength together, and the black mist suddenly became denser.
"Let's put all our strength into it and destroy them," Ye Xiaowei also commanded.
At this moment, she clearly felt that the power of the formation was gradually brewing and growing stronger, and much of its power had yet to be unleashed.