Chapter 56: Fighting for Ideals

From some unknown point, after the red cage had surrounded them, the night sky had become eerily clear.

The originally bright moonlight passed through the red barrier, casting a crimson glow.

“The King? The King Seed?!”

“His black barrier looks exactly like Captain Mu’s!”

“Shh. Mu Qingxin has already been labeled a traitor.”

Hearing the rising murmurs around him, Shen Ji gradually restrained his flamboyant King Flame and spoke.

“Ye Hai, release my sister.”

Ye Hai shook his head.

After a moment’s hesitation, he said, “Not unless you join us.”

“Otherwise, your sister won’t be coming back.”

Ye Hai’s words were as firm as iron, leaving no room for negotiation.

Shen Ji’s eyes narrowed.

A black sword condensed from his black barrier appeared in his hand.

“I’ll say it one last time: release Shen Wan!”

Liu Yao watched the two of them, bristling for a fight.

She knew full well that Shen Ji was no match for Ye Hai, even if Shen Ji was the King Seed.

But Ye Hai had undergone eight evolutions—a solid fact.

The gap of those missing five evolutions was not something so-called talent could bridge.

With that thought, Liu Yao yanked Shen Ji back into the Inspection Team and gave a barely perceptible shake of her head.

Quietly, she said, “Shen Ji, don’t rush. We still have a secret weapon.”

Now it was Shen Ji’s turn to be stunned.

He had planned to go along with Ye Hai’s act and be done with it.

But now Liu Yao was telling him—

‘She has a secret weapon?!’

That meant all his previous plans had gone up in smoke.

He absolutely could not allow this situation to happen.

“Sister Liu, I appreciate your kindness.”

“But!”

“As the current King Seed, I, Shen Ji, am no coward.”

“Even if I die here today, thousands of other Shen Jis would appear here. They would never tolerate this scene!”

Seeing Shen Ji’s earnest expression, Liu Yao’s eyes grew even more solemn.

Suddenly, she said, “Shen Ji, trust us. We can definitely solve this!”

Shen Ji’s mouth twitched.

‘Sister Liu, I beg you, just let me handle this!’

“No, Sister Liu, you don’t understand.”

Shen Ji deliberately put on a pained expression, covering his chest with one hand.

He murmured lowly, “When I was a kid, I was always hiding, always running away. Even after I grew up, I was still like that.”

“But today, I can’t leave. I am the King Seed. I am a true King!”

After saying that, to prevent Liu Yao from stopping him again, Shen Ji unleashed a ring of King Flame, forcefully cutting off her advance.

A crack appeared beneath his feet.

His entire body launched upward in a sudden burst.

Even Ye Hai was momentarily stunned. This kid—

He didn’t usually seem this stupid.

Could it be that his sister, Shen Wan, really was his weakness?

“Ye Hai, die here!”

Seeing Shen Ji’s ferocious expression, Ye Hai’s lips curled upward.

‘But this is fine, it saves him the trouble of talking more.’

As long as he had Shen Ji in his grasp, he had plenty of ways to make the boy obey.

Just as Ye Hai was secretly rejoicing, a crack appeared in the red cage from above.

Ye Hai looked up.

A bolt of lightning was hurtling straight toward him.

There was no time to dodge.

In an instant, Ye Hai was bathed in the glare of the thunder.

Meanwhile, Shen Ji, who had been charging at him, pulled back his force and halted his forward momentum.

After all, he wasn’t really trying to kill Ye Hai; he was just going along with the act.

But the moment the thunder struck, its searing heat engulfed him.

The lightning fell like a bucket, splashing tiny sparks that hit Shen Ji, sending a tingling numbness through him.

An inexplicable intuition told him this was the secret weapon Liu Yao had mentioned.

Liu Yao’s next words confirmed his guess.

“Ye Hai, dying to a fusion technique of two Talents—you won’t die unjustly.”

Shen Ji was so angry he wanted to curse out loud.

‘Ye Hai isn’t really going to die, is he?!’

‘Then what about my plan to use the official King resources?!’

Within moments, Shen Ji had made a decision.

Once he had located Shen Wan’s position, he thought, ‘If Ye Hai really can’t withstand this, I’ll just take Xiao Wan and run.’

As for cooperating with Ye Hai’s plan—sorry, I don’t know you.

Even if you’re my future father-in-law, that’s only if our Ye Xi says so!

With that, Shen Ji had already made up his mind.

Unnoticed by anyone, he quietly moved closer to Shen Wan.

On Ye Hai’s side, everyone’s faces were anxious.

They stood frozen, staring fixedly at Ye Hai’s direction.

There was only one thought in their minds:

“Ye Hai, please don’t die!”

It seemed their prayers were answered.

As the thunder weakened, Ye Hai’s figure began to appear indistinctly within it.

Liu Yao swallowed instinctively.

She muttered to herself, “No. Impossible. Absolutely impossible.”

Ye Hai’s figure fully emerged, showing no sign of injury.

His red eyes were still icy cold, sending a chill through everyone.

“You—you broke through the eighth evolution?!”

Ye Hai tilted his head from side to side, sneering.

He murmured lowly, “It doesn’t matter. Realizing it now isn’t too late.”

“Liu Yao, and everyone of the Twilight Inspection Team, I advise you all: no one in all of Nanjiang City can stop me now!”

“Make your choice: become the Frontier Breakers of the Blood Clan Kingdom, or be reduced to the dust beneath our feet.”

Liu Yao’s face turned pale. She involuntarily took a few steps back.

A bitter smile spread across her face, as if it were the truest reflection of her heart.

“I had planned everything, but in the end, when faced with true power, it all came to nothing.”

“Ye Hai, kill me. I cannot betray my ideals.”

“As for everyone in the Inspection Team, make your final choice.”

Liu Yao had resigned herself to death.

This was absolutely not what Shen Ji wanted to see.

He knew that if he chose to join Ye Hai now, he would become the final straw that crushed Liu Yao.

The morale of the Twilight Inspection Team would inevitably turn, but the one they would submit to would not be him.

It would be the overwhelmingly powerful Ye Hai.

With that thought, Shen Ji stepped forward and shouted, “Ye Hai, you old villain! Do you dare to fight me?!”

These words seemed to paint a spot of color called “living” onto Liu Yao’s bleak heart.

But reality was forcing her to face the facts.

Yet was she truly willing to give up?

The answer was obvious. She was not.

“Shen Ji, count me in!”

“Even if I die, I will not fall on this peaceful ground. My final destination should be the path of fighting for my ideals!”

Shen Ji’s face was resolute.

He gave a slight nod toward Liu Yao.

Inside, he was muttering, ‘I beg you, Sister Liu, I really can’t keep up this act anymore. Please, just lie down quietly.’