"In that case, I'll spare your wretched life!" Yang Kai snorted coldly, then turned to Lan He. "Miss Lan, go get his Spatial Ring."
"Me?" Lan He was taken aback. Though she felt it was a bit improper, she knew Yang Kai was in no position to do it himself at the moment, so she nodded and flew up to the warrior, extending her hand toward him.
The warrior's face twisted with pain as he reluctantly removed his Spatial Ring and handed it over to Lan He, his expression that of a man parting with his most precious possession.
Yang Kai's face was grim as he barked, "Who else wants to buy their lives? If you're going to pay up, do it now. Once the chance is gone, it's gone."
"This… isn't this just robbery?"
"Don't push it, brat!"
"There are dozens of us here. We're not necessarily afraid of you. I'd advise you to take what you can and call it even."
"Exactly, exactly. Brother Yang, you should show mercy where you can—leave some room for the future, so we can all get along!"
"Show mercy?" Yang Kai sneered, his contemptuous gaze sweeping across the crowd. "Just now, none of you seemed inclined to show me any mercy. And now you come spouting this nonsense—what good does it do? I'll say it one last time: anyone who wants to buy their life, cooperate now. Otherwise, don't blame me for being ruthless and leaving every last one of you dead here!"
As he spoke, he raised the Million Sword high above his head once more, poised to strike the Mountain and River Bell again.
The faces of the dozens of Dao Source Stage warriors turned ugly.
Yang Kai had only struck the Mountain and River Bell twice so far, yet that alone had already injured the vast majority of them. The worst part was that within this natural formation, there was no escape—fleeing was impossible. If he brought the bell down a few more times, they would truly all perish here.
"Don't give in!" Yin Lesheng suddenly shouted. "The weaker you act, the more he'll push! Absolutely do not negotiate with him—let's join hands and fight! There's no reason we can't survive!" Of everyone present, he was the least willing to see Yang Kai throw his weight around like this. The moment he saw someone on the verge of capitulating, his eyes went red with agitation.
"Brother Yin speaks with such backbone—truly admirable." Yang Kai regarded him with an unrelenting sneer and a string of cutting remarks. "Then I'll sit back and watch, and see just how long your bravado lasts."
Yin Lesheng's face had gone so dark it looked like frost could be scraped off it—his expression was as foul as could be.
Shifting tone, Yang Kai said in a deep voice, "I'll only count to three. If by then you still haven't cooperated, you can all march to your graves. One…"
"Two!"
Before Yang Kai could even utter the word "three," someone had already called out, "Brother Yang, I'm willing to hand over my Spatial Ring! Please spare my life!"
"Good." Yang Kai turned his gaze toward the speaker. "Ring out, and stand to the side."
Lan He walked up to the man without a word and extended her hand.
The man handed over his Spatial Ring and immediately darted off to the side.
"I'm willing to give up my Spatial Ring too!"
"I'll hand mine over as well!"
"Just give it up, give it up. There's nothing worthwhile in them anyway. It beats dying here."
In an instant, trading space rings for one's life became the prevailing trend among the dozens of martial artists. Before long, more than half of them chose to hand over their space rings.
Lan He's emotions were complex beyond measure. She had thought herself certain to die this time, after all, she was facing off against dozens of Dao Origin realm experts. How could there possibly be any chance of survival?
Yet the situation had taken a dramatic turn. She and Yang Kai, who should have been in an utterly disadvantageous position, were now the ones in control, leading the dozens of martial artists by the nose.
All of this seemed too abrupt, and it was solely Yang Kai's doing.
Facing dozens of Dao Origin realm cultivators without fear or panic was courage. Skillfully using the might of the Mountain and River Bell to threaten the enemies, leaving them unable to advance or retreat was strategy. Such a person possessing both courage and wit was someone Lan He had never encountered before.
In no time, she had collected over twenty space rings.
Even though she was the Senior Disciple of the Celestial Wolf Valley and had seen her share of significant events, she trembled slightly with excitement now. Those twenty-something space rings were each heavy and substantial.
These were the space rings of elite Disciples from various great Sects. Every one of them was brimming with wealth. She hardly dared to imagine the total fortune contained within those twenty-plus space rings combined.
A little while later, those martial artists who had been hesitating could no longer afford to delay. The Emperor Treasure in Yang Kai's hand remained poised before the Mountain and River Bell. Who knew when he might strike it again?
One by one, they had no choice but to humbly remove their space rings and hand them to Lan He, secretly vowing that one day they would make Yang Kai know the consequences of offending them.
The dozens of Dao Origin realm cultivators who had originally gathered together were now split into two groups: those who had surrendered their space rings, and those still stubbornly resisting.
The group of stubborn resisters was small, only five or six people. Yang Kai looked over and found that these individuals were all from the Yellow Spring Sect and the Brahma Heaven Holy Land.
He gave a cold laugh toward Chang Hao: "It seems Young Master Chang Hao wishes to die here."
Chang Hao frowned. "Brother Yang, let's make a deal. Let Chang Xian and me leave, and we will remember today's kindness. We will surely repay you handsomely in the future!"