Upon inquiry, Tu'er's discovered that Morris had already set up an ambush specifically targeting Ye Cangtian.
A burning rage ignited within him. Morris's impulsiveness could bring about the complete ruin of their entire operation.
"Guards, relay my command! Dispatch men immediately to contact Morris and order him to retreat to the main camp, or face the consequences!"
Tu'er's issued the order directly. Though filled with indignation, he did not want anything to happen to Morris.
As soon as the command was given, the guards sprang into action.
"Report!"
While Tu'er's awaited news, a guard rushed in.
He approached Tu'er's directly and said, "My lord, please come quickly and see, those five returning Cardinals are not behaving normally..."
Tu'er's was taken aback. Hadn't the people returned? How could they not be normal? Had they gone mad?
Muttering to himself, Tu'er's left his tent without a word.
He hurried to the medic's tent and scanned the interior. All five Earth-tier powerhouses, including Maren, were present.
However, they were all remarkably well-behaved and not causing any disturbance. He couldn't discern anything amiss.
The next moment, Tu'er's quickly approached the medic and inquired, "Medic, what's the situation?"
"Reporting, my lord. Based on my tests, the five Cardinals have lost their senses and have become imbeciles. It will be very difficult to restore them. Perhaps the inner sanctum might have some methods."
"Furthermore, based on my examination, Lord Maren's injuries were self-inflicted. I believe he may have masochistic tendencies..."
The medic quickly relayed his findings.
He could only attribute Maren's injuries to self-harm. He found it hard to imagine someone clawing their flesh with their fingers to inflict wounds as deep as the bone.
This person was either insane or a severe masochist.
"Maren, what exactly happened!" Tu'er's demanded upon hearing this. He knew very well that Maren was not a masochist and must have experienced something.
Maren glanced at Tu'er's, his mouth moved, but only a heart-wrenching scream emerged.
Immediately after, amidst the screams, he began to scratch himself all over.
He wanted to explain what had happened, to tell them that Ye Cangtian possessed a very peculiar cultivation technique, but before he could utter a word, he felt an intense pain in his soul.
It was the mark Ye Cangtian had placed on him taking effect.
If Maren harbored even the slightest thought against the Huaxia forces or Ye Cangtian, he would suffer a soul attack, at best, or his soul would be obliterated, at worst.
"This..."
Witnessing such a scene, Tu'er's's lips twitched. Had Maren gone mad after a trip to the Huaxia camp?
With that thought, he quickly gestured to the medic beside him, urging them to stabilize and treat Maren.
However, all the medics could do was to restrain him; they were powerless to heal him.
After an indeterminate amount of time, Maren finally calmed down and gradually regained his senses.
He finally understood that the soul mark Ye Cangtian had placed was not a bluff but a reality.
"Maren, what's wrong with you!" Seeing that Maren had quieted down, Tu'er's inquired again.
Having learned from the previous incident, Maren became compliant and quickly replied, "Group Leader, I'm fine. They fed us pills that cause nightmares. The effects might not have worn off yet, which is why..."
Maren concocted a hasty explanation.
"What about them? When will their medication wear off? Is there any possibility of recovery?" Tu'er's pressed.
Upon hearing this, Maren lowered his head and replied, "They couldn't survive the nightmare. They might never recover..."
"What!"
Tu'er's eyes widened, his gaze filled with fury.
He had exchanged a large amount of precious medicine to retrieve these individuals, only for five out of six to become imbeciles.
What could imbeciles do? Had he given away ten Nine Revolutions Golden Pills for nothing?
It was clear that Ye Cangtian had tricked him in this transaction.
He was so enraged that he gritted his teeth, wishing he could tear Ye Cangtian to shreds.
For him, the only solace was that Maren was still somewhat normal and, after recovering his strength, could continue to serve the Temple of Light. Otherwise, this venture would have been a complete loss.
With that thought, he personally took a Nine Revolutions Golden Pill from his Qiankun bag and handed it to Maren.
"Maren, the others are not important. As long as you are alright, focus on recovering from your injuries. Leave the rest to me."
Despite his immense anger, Tu'er's was still doing his utmost to appease Maren and win his loyalty.
"Report!"
At that moment, another report sounded.
A divine envoy, disheveled and panicked, rushed before Tu'er's.
Hmm?
Seeing the state of the divine envoy, Tu'er's felt a heavy blow to his heart, and a sense of foreboding spread through him.
He recognized the divine envoy before him as one of Morris's subordinates.
Given the envoy's disheveled appearance, he could only assume that Morris had met with some mishap.
With that thought, Tu'er's grimly asked, "Speak! What happened!"
The divine envoy quickly replied, "Lord Morris's attempt to scheme against Ye Cangtian failed, and he was instantly killed by Ye Cangtian with a single move. All ten Cardinals perished, and the Black-robed Cardinals and divine envoys who went with him suffered heavy losses..."
"What!"
The moment Tu'er's heard this news, his eyes went dark, and he nearly fainted from anger.
He had anticipated that Morris would not be Ye Cangtian's match and that this operation would likely incur losses, but he had never expected such devastating casualties.
Even Morris, a quasi-Heavenly ranked expert, had not returned alive!
Now, adding up the accounts, not only had a lot of medicine been spent to save Maren and the others, but a quasi-Heavenly ranked expert and ten Cardinals had also been lost.
If one were to include the five Cardinals who had become imbeciles, then since Maren's raid that night, a total of fifteen Cardinals had been lost...
Damn it! Ye Cangtian was truly cunning! He had wiped out fifteen Cardinals without a sound!
No wonder the outer hall of the Temple of Light had to swallow its pride and request help from the inner sanctum. Ye Cangtian was indeed a difficult opponent to deal with!
Tu'er's roared inwardly.
It seemed that all of this was due to Maren's sneak attack and Morris's forceful intervention.
But he wasn't a fool. He knew that all of this was within Ye Cangtian's calculations.
Otherwise, how could Ye Cangtian have turned the tide from within an ambush?
Such calculating ability was truly terrifying!
"Group Leader, the casualties outside have already exceeded half. What do you plan to do?"
"Do we admit defeat and return to the inner sanctum of the Temple of Light? Or do we continue to fight against the Huaxia forces?"
At this moment, Maren, who had also heard the intelligence, was the first to regain his composure.
He too had been shocked by such news, as he knew how many people Ye Cangtian had brought with him.
With such a small number of people, they couldn't possibly withstand Morris's ambush.
However, thinking of Ye Cangtian's peculiar offensive capabilities, he felt that such a thing happening to Ye Cangtian was not impossible.
And now, the task force had suffered more than half its losses.
According to the regulations of the inner sanctum of the Temple of Light, if losses exceeded half, they could admit defeat, be replaced, and other teams could continue the mission.
It was clear that Maren hoped Tu'er's would retreat, as he knew Tu'er's was no match for Ye Cangtian.
Upon hearing this, Tu'er's fell silent.
"Maren, we are a glorious Knight Order. In our eyes, there is no failure, only charging forward!
Of course, you do not need to participate this time. Your cultivation has been crippled and cannot be recovered in a short period. Therefore, I order you to return to the inner sanctum. If I do not return, the Bronze Armor Knight Order will be yours!"
After a long pause, he looked at Maren, his gaze filled with determination.
He now represented not only the Bronze Armor Knight Order but also the Temple of Light. Therefore, no matter what, he could not retreat in defeat; he could only choose to die fighting.
Hearing this, Maren's eyes flickered, and he fell silent.
He understood Tu'er's personality; he had always acted on his own will, and once a decision was made, no one could change it.
Therefore, all he could do now was to pray for Tu'er's, hoping he would not fall into Ye Cangtian's hands.
...