Hearing her words, Yang Kai finally understood that the people Sander had chosen were all extremely powerful cultivators with no notable backing or connections. No wonder the man needed five years to prepare for this. It seemed there simply weren't many people who met his requirements.
"Whether he's qualified or not, I've tested him personally," Sander snorted. "If you have a problem with that, you're welcome to leave the ship right now!"
Snake Woman nearly ground her silver teeth to dust. She knew that falling out with Sander right now would bring her nothing but trouble. After thinking it over for a moment, she suddenly let out a cold laugh and said, "And what about after the job is done?"
Sander replied indifferently, "After the job is done, you can do whatever you want. But until then, every single one of you had better behave!"
Snake Woman nodded heavily. "Fine. Then I'll wait."
As she spoke, she shot Yang Kai a vicious glare and said, "Kid, you'd better apologize to me quickly, or I'll make you regret it."
Yang Kai turned his head and presented Snake Woman with the back of his skull.
Snake Woman was so furious she could barely contain herself, her silver teeth on the verge of shattering.
If the woman hadn't been so utterly shameless, Yang Kai wouldn't have denied her face so completely. After all, they were going to be working together. But the woman had not an ounce of self-respect, and if he gave her even the slightest friendly expression, she would almost certainly cling to him like a barnacle. Yang Kai had absolutely zero interest in her.
"Hm? What's with that tower ship?" Shen Fei suddenly furrowed his brow and looked in the direction of Heaven Spire City, his voice low. "It's not heading our way, is it?"
"That's a City Lord's Mansion tower ship!" Man Kuai's expression tightened as he made out the insignia on the vessel.
"Judging by its heading, it really does seem to be coming for us," Snake Woman said. She had lost all interest in squabbling over trivial matters with Yang Kai. Her pretty face darkened as she spun around and shouted at those nearby: "Did one of you leak information?"
The moment those words left her lips, Sander's face changed dramatically. His eyes blazed with fury as his gaze swept across Yang Kai and the others one by one.
"It's got nothing to do with me," Shen Fei was the first to distance himself. "I'm a lone wolf by nature. I have no habit of leaking secrets."
"Same here," Man Kuai said.
Snake Woman let out a cold laugh. "It wasn't the two of you. It wasn't me, and the Master certainly wouldn't have leaked anything. So the only possibility..." Her beautiful eyes drifted toward Yang Kai as she continued to sneer without restraint.
Yang Kai shrugged. "It was me, actually."
His straightforward admission left Snake Woman and the others momentarily stunned. In the next instant, all three of them shifted and surrounded Yang Kai in the middle, covertly channeling their Source Energy, ready to strike at any moment.
Snake Woman said, "Today, if you can't give a reasonable explanation, this stretch of ocean will become your burial ground."
Sander's face was equally grim as he stared at Yang Kai with icy displeasure. He had approached Yang Kai for this partnership only three days ago, and he never expected to be betrayed so quickly. Naturally, he was furious.
Yang Kai tilted his head, looked at Sander, and said calmly, "The person on that tower ship is Yu Leping! Master, I don't think I need to explain any further, do I?"
Upon hearing this, Sander's deeply furrowed brow gradually relaxed. "So you didn't leak anything. He's just coming for revenge?"
The last time Yang Kai had clashed with Yu Leping in front of Sander's residence, Sander had been aware of the incident. Now that he learned the pursuer was Yu Leping himself, he immediately understood the whole story. It wasn't a leak at all — Yu Leping had tracked Yang Kai down simply to settle the score from before.
"You have a grudge against Yu Leping?" Shen Fei also withdrew his hostility and asked with a hint of suspicion.
They all knew of Yu Leping — a powerhouse of the City Lord's Mansion, at the third level of the Dao Source Realm. He even held a measure of real authority within the mansion.
"Oh, just a little thing, really..." Yang Kai chuckled. "I just crippled one of his arms in front of the Master's place a few days ago. Who knew he'd be so vindictive!"
"Crippled one of his arms!" Snake Woman and the others' expressions all shifted at this revelation.
Yu Leping was a third-level Dao Source Realm cultivator — in terms of cultivation and combat strength, he was roughly on par with each of them. For Yang Kai to have crippled one of his arms meant that his true strength was considerably greater than Yu Leping's. In other words, this otherwise unknown Yang Kai's real power was absolutely not to be underestimated.
For a moment, the looks Snake Woman and the others directed at Yang Kai became noticeably more solemn. Snake Woman in particular — she hadn't taken Yang Kai seriously before, but now she had to seriously reconsider whether falling out with him actually served her interests.
"Master, what do we do now?" Man Kuai frowned at Sander. "We can't just hand Brother Yang over."
Sander deliberated only briefly before declaring decisively, "Everyone pretend you didn't see a thing. We keep moving!"
As he spoke, he formed a series of spirit seals and channeled his Source Energy, and the tower ship's speed surged forward dramatically.