LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 89: Command and Submission
"What are you staring at? Keep it up and watch how I beat the crap out of you!"
Chen Dao's brows raised, his face full of murderous intent as he roared at the three men.
As a great grandmaster at the peak of his power, Chen Dao did not take the three commanders from the Southern Border into consideration at all.
He had even resolved that if the three refused to submit to Ye Ling, he would teach them with his fists that whoever had the bigger fist was the boss.
Xue Yongzhi no longer looked at Chen Dao, but turned his gaze to Ye Ling and began to speak, "My lord, it's not that we are unwilling to submit to you, it's just that..."
"Speak, there's no harm in it!"
Ye Ling's brows raised as he said.
At these words, Xue Yongzhi continued, "My lord, as they say, a fine bird chooses a tree to nest in. Though we are not as good as the commanders under my lord's command, we consider our skills to be strong."
"Moreover, with so many brothers under our command, whether it is for our own sakes or for the brothers under us, we must find a sturdy tree to nest in, mustn't we?"
"I just don't know if you, my lord, are that sturdy tree?"
Before Ye Ling could respond, Chen Dao's aura suddenly erupted, his eyes fixing fiercely on Xue Yongzhi as he said coldly, "Are you questioning my lord?"
"My lord's willingness to take you under his wing is your honor!"
Ye Ling glanced at Chen Dao, waved his hand, and showed a bitter smile of helplessness.
Seeing this, Chen Dao also reined in his temper and fell silent, but his gaze toward the three men remained full of killing intent.
"My lord, if you want us to serve you day and night, you must at least let us see your strength, shouldn't you?"
Xue Yongzhi remained unmoved, continuing to speak.
Mo Qiyun also chose this moment to speak, "Not to conceal from you, my lord, when the Old Southern Border King was alive, the four of us had already followed the Southern Border King."
"After the sudden demise of the Old Southern Border King, the new king who took the throne could not match the old king in strength or talent!"
"Especially after he suddenly vanished without a trace three years ago, all sorts of demons and ghosts in the Southern Border have been coveting our land!"
Mo Qiyun's expression changed as he continued in a deep voice, "To be honest, my lord, the Western Region King once intended to recruit us too, but his reputation was so poor that we turned him down..."
At this, Ye Ling nodded with a smile.
He then looked at the three men and said calmly, "So what the three of you are saying is, if I can conquer you with my strength, you'll bring your brothers and submit to me?"
The three men nodded in unison.
Although the four military factions had internal struggles, at the end of the day, each leader had the Southern Border at heart.
No matter who ruled the Southern Border, they could not bear to see it plunged into chaos by all sorts of devils and demons.
If the Northern Liao King before them possessed sufficient strength, the three were not averse to submitting to him.
"So be it, today I shall let you witness the extent of my power!"
Ye Ling said with a light chuckle.
However, as his voice fell, a mighty aura exploded from within him, instantly enveloping the three commanders with terrifying force!
Even with the late-stage great grandmaster strength of the three men, they were as vulnerable as children before this aura, utterly powerless to resist!
Wang Tiezhu, the weakest among those present, couldn't even stand steady and fell to his knees in front of Ye Ling!
The three commanders of the Southern Border Army all looked at Ye Ling with shocked faces, their eyes filled with terror!
Ye Ling reined in his aura, his smile almost mocking as he looked at the three men and said lightly, "Gentlemen, what do you think of my strength?"
"Such a terrifying aura, my lord, could it be you have stepped into the legendary realm of War King?!"
Mo Qiyun's face changed as he asked solemnly.
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The other two also looked at Ye Ling with eyes filled with terror.
In the open, the number of powerful War Kings of the Dragon Country could be counted on one's fingers, and not a single one among the kings of the four great battle regions had stepped into the realm of War King.
Take, for instance, the Southern Border King, who declared seclusion, all for the sake of breaking through to the War King realm.
Yet here stood the Northern Liao King, who had already entered the War King realm, causing Mo Qiyun and the other two to feel nothing short of shock.
Hearing Mo Qiyun's words, the three who knew of Ye Ling's strength inwardly chuckled.
War King realm?
Wouldn't the lord be able to crush several War Kings with just one hand?
Since Ye Ling had not revealed his strength, naturally, the three of them would not blurt out the matter of Ye Ling's breakthrough into the Imperial Dao realm!
Wang Tiezhu, kneeling on both knees, felt his legs go weak, wondering what he had been thinking initially, daring to provoke a War King!
Fortunately, the Northern Liao King was magnanimous and did not take issue with him, even taking him under his wing without holding past grudges.
The joy that Wang Tiezhu felt in his heart at being able to serve under a War King could be easily imagined.
"What say thee, the three of you?"
Ye Ling nodded indifferently and then asked with a smile.
Without any hesitation, Mo Qiyun and the other two immediately knelt on one knee, saying with respectful expressions, "Lord's strength reaches the heavens, we are honored that lord looks upon us, and we willingly submit to lord's command!"
"Very well! Rise!"
Ye Ling nodded and then continued, "Stay in this villa for now. When the time is ripe, I will head to the Southern Border along with you all."
"Yes, my lord!"
The three answered without a second thought.
After a moment of silence, Ye Ling spoke slowly, "During this time, take care to recuperate well, as there may soon be a great battle erupting!"
At these words, all three turned solemn.
A "great battle" uttered by Ye Ling, a War King realm powerhouse, surely meant the opponent was far from weak.
However, with the War King realm powerhouse Ye Ling flanking them, the three were not too panicked in their hearts.
...
Meanwhile, not far from the outskirts of the imperial capital, atop Qingyun Mountain.
The famed Qingyun Daoist Temple was situated there, where more than once tourists who visited Qingyun Mountain claimed to have seen real immortals.
As the number of tourists claiming to have met real immortals grew, so did the number of visitors to Qingyun Mountain, with most headed for the Qingyun Temple.
On this day, a torrential rain enveloped the entire imperial capital.
The heavy rain thinned the number of tourists heading towards Qingyun Mountain.
A group of eight, shrouded in black robes, braved the rain and ascended Qingyun Mountain.
The eight moved in silence, walking straight into the Qingyun Temple.
The doors of Qingyun Temple were not open today, instead they were shut tight.
Within the courtyard of the Qingyun Temple stood an ancient ginkgo tree, incredibly tall and undoubtedly having weathered countless years.
The eight figures in black entered the main hall of the Qingyun Temple.
Already in the main hall of Qingyun Temple were ten figures, likewise dressed in black robes, seated in quiet meditation.
Figures clad in black robes, akin to the protectors of this grand hall, each seated in their chairs.
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