As Ye Cangtian and Gu Yue were chatting, they suddenly heard some movement outside.
Both their expressions changed, thinking that it was Tianwang who had found them.
Ye Cangtian immediately put on his silver mask and went to the door. He looked out through the crack of the door and saw someone wearing a bronze mask.
Someone from the Dark Association?
Seeing the other party looking around, Ye Cangtian's heart stirred, and he then pushed open the door.
The Yellow-ranked member was startled. Upon seeing Ye Cangtian, who was wearing a silver mask, he breathed a sigh of relief and quickly cupped his hands, saying, "Greetings, sir!"
"Looking for me?" Ye Cangtian asked indifferently.
"News of your previous encounter with the Purple-robed Bishop of the Bright Hall has spread. Lord Qinghu had us find you, as he wishes to meet with you," the Yellow-ranked member explained.
"Lord Qinghu?" Ye Cangtian looked puzzled.
The Yellow-ranked member nodded, "Lord Qinghu is one of the Earth-ranked powerhouses of our Dark Association. He came this time for the resources of the ruins."
Earth-ranked powerhouse? Ye Cangtian sighed softly. The Dark Association had indeed sent an Earth-ranked powerhouse.
But it was normal. It was said that the Bright Hall had also sent a powerful Cardinal. It was natural for the Dark Association to send a powerhouse to oversee things.
Since Purple Dragon was still stationed at the island ruins, the Dark Association had sent another Earth-ranked powerhouse.
"Are we going now?"
"Lord Qinghu has important matters to discuss, and it is likely you must go now. The one inside will probably have to go as well!" The Yellow-ranked member glanced at Gu Yue inside and explained helplessly.
Ye Cangtian frowned. Gu Yue's injuries had not yet healed.
"Go, I can manage!"
However, Gu Yue endured the pain and stood up, smiling easily, "I feel much better now, I should be alright!"
Ye Cangtian said nothing more. He nodded to the Yellow-ranked member and said, "Lead the way!"
...
Half an hour later.
Led by the Yellow-ranked member, Ye Cangtian and the other arrived at a wine house.
Although it had been abandoned for a long time, and even the houses were eroded by the years, making it difficult to discern any traces, the large '酒' character on the stone sculpture at the entrance made it unmistakable.
Upon arriving here, Ye Cangtian saw many people hidden in the houses near the wine house.
The Yellow-ranked member said, "Those are members of the Caesar Mercenary Group. Of course, they are also peripheral members recruited by the Dark Association, so you don't need to worry, sir."
The Caesar Mercenary Group was indeed secretly controlled by the Dark Association.
Ye Cangtian was not too surprised. If the Bright Hall had secretly supported the Tamu Mercenary Group and Tianwang, then the Dark Association would naturally cultivate its own forces.
As the three reached the entrance of the wine house, the door opened from the inside, and two Yellow-ranked members were waiting there.
"Greetings, sir!"
"Mmm!" Ye Cangtian nodded slightly and continued to walk inside.
Passing through the foyer, the three soon arrived in a spacious hall, where at least twenty members of the Dark Association were gathered.
Among them were two men wearing bronze masks. Seeing Ye Cangtian approaching, they immediately shouted 'Sir' with joy. They were Huang Wu and Huang San.
Ye Cangtian was slightly surprised, not expecting these two to have come here as well.
At the main entrance of the hall, three Xuan-ranked powerhouses wearing silver masks and a man wearing a golden mask were sitting together, seemingly discussing something.
Seeing someone arrive, all four turned their heads.
Ye Cangtian cupped his hands when he saw the golden-masked man looking at him, "Greetings, sir!"
The golden-masked man looked at him with great interest, "You are the newly appointed deacon under Purple Dragon, Xuan Qi? Little fellow, you've got quite good luck. You've been promoted to deacon in less than two years of joining the organization, which is quite rare in the entire organization!"
Ye Cangtian hesitated, unsure how to reply.
Then, a somewhat plump silver-masked man smiled and said, "Brother Xuan Qi does indeed have good luck, but he also possesses considerable strength and courage, otherwise Lord Purple Dragon would not have taken a liking to him!"
"Hahaha, that's true, young people indeed have more courage!"
The golden-masked man nodded with a smile, then looked at Ye Cangtian and said, "Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Qinghu. Although you are under Purple Dragon, here, everyone must obey my command. I will show no mercy to those who disobey, even Purple Dragon would not say anything!"
"I shall obey your orders, sir!"
"I heard you had a conflict with people from the Bright Hall? You've had dealings with them?" Qinghu asked.
Ye Cangtian explained, "There was such a thing. A Purple-robed Bishop from the Bright Hall injured one of my subordinates!"
"Is it her?"
Qinghu looked at Gu Yue behind him. Although she was wearing a mask, her clothes indicated she was a woman.
Ye Cangtian nodded, "Yes!"
"The Bright Hall has already contacted me. This woman's name is Gu Yue. She was once a member of the Tianwang assassin organization. Is she your subordinate?" Qinghu raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile.
Ye Cangtian did not know if the other party was suspicious or what his intentions were, but his answer was very firm, "Yes, Gu Yue was indeed from Tianwang before, but she has long since defected. She is now my subordinate!"
Upon hearing this, Qinghu smiled and nodded indifferently, "Then there is no problem!"
"Since she is a member of our Dark Association, and the Bright Hall dares to bully her arbitrarily, it means they do not take our Dark Association seriously! Xuan Qi, you were right to act, it's just a pity that your strength was too weak to kill the opponent!"
At this moment, Qinghu did not blame Ye Cangtian. He was merely regretful that the Bright Hall had not paid a price, which made him a little displeased.
Ye Cangtian sighed softly, and upon hearing this, he said confidently, "Next time I encounter that guy, I will definitely not let him go!"
"Hahaha, you have spirit. However, it is best for us not to fall out with the Bright Hall for now. When we enter the City Lord's Mansion, there will be opportunities!"
After saying that, Qinghu waved his hand, "Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. We will continue our discussion!"
The others had been discussing matters, and it was only when Ye Cangtian arrived that they spoke a few more words.
Now, everyone resumed their discussion.
As Ye Cangtian listened to the discussions of others, he was struck by the thought that the Dark Association seemed to be negotiating with the Bright Hall, trying to find a way to deal with the stone statue patrol teams.
However, this was indeed the only way.
To enter the City Lord's Mansion, one must first deal with the stone statue patrol teams in the commercial street, otherwise, one might be surrounded by a large group of stone statues as soon as they leave their houses and approach the City Lord's Mansion.
If it were the stone statues in the residential areas, they were generally manageable, and the number of stone statues could be slowly whittled down.
However, the stone statues in the commercial street were more troublesome, especially since each stone statue patrol team had a captain who was not only strong but also possessed intelligence. At critical moments, they would lead the stone statues into the shops.
This was also a problem that the major forces were currently grappling with!