"You scoundrel, I'll fight you to the death!"
Already filled with rage, and now being ridiculed, Houseman could no longer bear it. He charged at Ye Cangtian, raising his fists.
*Bang!*
However, as soon as he reached Ye Cangtian, his fist was easily dodged. At the same time, Ye Cangtian's fist landed precisely on his abdomen.
The pain that followed made him cry out in agony, tears welling up in his eyes.
But it wasn't over. As he was still reeling from the pain, Ye Cangtian backhanded him.
*Slap!*
The crisp sound of a slap echoed through the air. Houseman spun around twice and fell to the ground.
Too brutal! He showed no mercy at all!
Didn't he understand the principle of not hitting someone in the face when fighting?
Looking at Houseman's swollen cheek, all the cardinals cast looks of pity, while also muttering to themselves.
Being so humiliated in front of so many people, Houseman would surely become a laughingstock for everyone in the future!
Feeling his face rapidly swelling, Houseman lost all reason. He got up and was about to fight Ye Cangtian to the death.
But just then, the sound of footsteps approached.
Looking over, the guards of Sky Fortune Castle were walking towards them, led by a white-haired old man.
The old man was advanced in years, appearing to be eighty or ninety, and walked with a shuffle. Yet, he covered the distance to them in what seemed like mere moments.
As expected, anyone stationed at Sky Fortune Castle was no ordinary person!
Ye Cangtian sized up the old man and mused silently. He actually detected a sense of danger from him.
"Greetings, Lord Dracula!"
Upon seeing the old man, the surrounding cardinals immediately bowed respectfully.
Dracula?
Ye Cangtian's brows furrowed deeply. He had some knowledge of the experts of the Temple of Light.
But why had he never heard of the name Dracula?
Moreover, judging from the current situation, the man seemed to hold a high position, by no means someone who relied on elixirs to advance!
Yet, why was there no record of him in the Chinese records?
"Lord Dracula, you must uphold justice for me!"
"Ye Cangtian actually used despicable means..."
On the other side, Houseman, also seeing Dracula, quickly stepped forward, wanting Dracula to act on his behalf.
But before he could finish, Dracula waved his hand and slapped Houseman heavily across the face, sending him flying.
"Hand him over to the Pope and let the Pope deal with him!"
With a simple command, two guards escorted Houseman away from Sky Fortune Castle.
The next moment, Dracula's gaze fell upon Ye Cangtian. He sized him up and said, "Mr. Ye, I apologize, I am late!"
Heh.
Late?
Ye Cangtian sneered inwardly. With such a commotion, how could it have escaped their notice?
Moreover, he had previously asked the people of Sky Fortune Castle to resolve the issue, but they hadn't appeared then.
Now that he had appeared, it was likely because he felt Houseman was no match for him, and continuing would be useless and further damage Sky Fortune Castle's reputation.
Therefore, he had chosen to step forward.
Thinking this, Ye Cangtian snorted lightly and said, "Dracula, you could have come even later. By then, I might have been buried alive by the people of the Temple of Light!"
"My deepest apologies, it was my oversight!"
Hearing this, Dracula's expression changed slightly. A flicker of killing intent flashed in his eyes, but it quickly returned to normal.
As he spoke, he took out ten golden crystals from his Qiankun bag and offered them.
"Mr. Ye, this is all due to improper management by Sky Fortune Castle. I deeply apologize for the trouble caused to you. Consider these crystals as compensation. What do you say?"
Ten golden crystals?
Seeing the golden, gleaming crystals, everyone around widened their eyes, their gazes gradually filled with greed.
Those were ten golden crystals, equivalent to a hundred years of reward for serving the Temple of Light!
These crystals were being given to Ye Cangtian of China just to gain his forgiveness. Everyone thought Dracula had gone mad!
On the other side, Ye Cangtian didn't even glance at the ten golden crystals. He spoke directly, "Can I consider this an insult to me?"
Uh...
At his words, even Gui Wu and Lan Yue beside him were stunned.
After all, those were ten golden crystals! Even if you didn't care for them, you could have given them to us!
Besides, the compensation offered was quite sincere, considering that even Houseman's life was not worth as much as these ten golden crystals!
They couldn't understand what Ye Cangtian was trying to achieve!
"Ye Cangtian, don't push your luck. Lord Dracula personally apologized to you and offered compensation. That's already showing you great respect!"
"This is the City of Light, not China. I advise you to know when to stop!"
"Damn it, who do you think you are, being so picky? Are you looking for death?"
Hearing Ye Cangtian's words, the surrounding cardinals, before Dracula could speak, began to verbally attack Ye Cangtian.
Ye Cangtian sneered at their words, ignored them, and looked at Dracula, saying, "It seems this is not a place to reason. Fine, I shall take my leave!"
"Wait a moment!"
Just as Ye Cangtian was about to leave, Dracula spoke again, stopping him.
Then, he calmly said, "Arrest those who just spoke disrespectfully to Mr. Ye and hand them over to the Pope for processing."
"Lord Dracula, what do you mean by this?"
"Lord Dracula..."
As the words fell, the faces of the cardinals who had spoken immediately changed, and they quickly questioned him.
They had clearly spoken up for Dracula, yet they were treated this way, which felt incredibly frustrating.
However, the guards of Sky Fortune Castle paid no mind to their frustration. They directly stepped forward and took them away.
Everything returned to a calm state. Dracula once again looked at Ye Cangtian and said, "China is a legendary country, and the Chinese people are full of friendliness and magnanimity. I presume Mr. Ye will not dwell on such trivial matters?"
What a shrewd old man!
Ye Cangtian mused inwardly at his words.
He had indeed intended to extort more benefits.
But now that the man had pinned a grand label on him, if he were to continue extorting, he would lose his justification.
After all, Dracula had already taken away Houseman and the others in front of everyone.
Thinking this, Ye Cangtian flashed a smile and said, "Of course not. It was just a farce, it's in the past."
As he spoke, Ye Cangtian accepted the ten golden crystals. While they were not much to him, since they were offered, he naturally wouldn't refuse.
On the other side, seeing Ye Cangtian take the golden crystals, although Dracula said nothing, a hint of contempt flickered in his eyes.
After a brief silence, Dracula spoke, "With this matter settled, I shall not disturb Mr. Ye's leisure any further. I hope Mr. Ye enjoys his stay here!"
Hearing this, Ye Cangtian smiled and nodded, then made a gesture of invitation.
Seeing the man turn to leave, Ye Cangtian lost the mood to continue playing in Sky Fortune Castle. He directly took the two women, Lan Yue and Gui Wu, and left Sky Fortune Castle.
...
The Grand Hall of the Temple of Light.
The Pope had only recently received news of Ye Cangtian's visit to Sky Fortune Castle, and he was still feeling contemptuous.
He believed Ye Cangtian to be an unlearned and incompetent individual. Such a person, no matter how great his talent, could never reach the pinnacle of martial arts.
However, at that moment, a voice announcing arrivals echoed.
In a blink of an eye, several guards from Sky Fortune Castle appeared in the hall, escorting five cardinals.
Hmm?
Seeing the five familiar figures, the Pope's expression immediately darkened.
He glanced at the guards from Sky Fortune Castle and asked, "What's going on? Did these five default on their debts at Sky Fortune Castle?"
"Reporting to Your Excellency, they did not default!"
A guard stepped forward and continued, "Houseman borrowed 4 golden crystals from Sky Fortune Castle. After losing a coin toss with Ye Cangtian, he attempted to reclaim everything by force, but was stopped by Lord Dracula..."
The guard briefly recounted the incident.