When the Young Dragon Lord agreed to Yun Xiao's conditions, Gusu Yan and the ten others, along with the rest of the Dragon Devil Clan members, all changed their expressions.
"Young Dragon Lord, you can't do this!" Gusu Yan quickly frowned and shook his head, deeply anxious.
"Shut up!" The Young Dragon Lord's eyes blazed as he growled, clearly swept into Yun Xiao's pace, his heart burning with rage.
The other Dragon Devil Clan members wanted to kill Yun Xiao and Shen Nanyin together, but the problem was they had tried and were too late!
"Young Dragon Lord, that celestial slave's weakness is the Extreme Yin Star. Let's forget about him and the Young Dragon Consort. Let's attack the Extreme Yin Star directly! The Three Divas are on the Extreme Yin Star. We can't humiliate them in return, but as long as the Three Divas make a move, the Extreme Yin Star will be disqualified for breaking the rules, and that celestial slave will also have to leave!" one of the Dragon Devil Clan members hurriedly said.
"Exactly!" The other Dragon Devil Clan members echoed anxiously.
"But I don't want him disqualified; I want him dead here!" the Young Dragon Lord snarled.
"Young Dragon Lord! Think it over. Once we hand over the Personal Pledges, what will we do?" Ah Jiao said helplessly.
"You can choose to withdraw from the Grand Assembly Arena!" the Young Dragon Lord snapped.
Hearing this, the ten of them exchanged glances, all frowning. They had come bearing the honor of their celestial sects; how could they just withdraw so casually?
Besides, these were ten Empyrean Emperor Sects, each a dominant power, comparable in scale to the former Southern Divine Dragon Realm.
While they were still trying to persuade him, high above, as Yun Xiao grew impatient, Shen Nanyin's unwilling, trembling, shame-filled, and despairing cries continued, growing louder and louder.
Each cry was like a towering green mountain crashing onto the Young Dragon Lord's forehead. He was already burning all over, his insides twisting; he didn't even dare to look up. That sight could make him vomit blood and suffer grievous harm!
He could no longer fathom the depth of the humiliation he was enduring.
These young leaders of the Empyrean Emperor Sects kept emphasizing their own honor, but the Young Dragon Lord paid them no mind. Anger roiled within him; he could stand it no longer!
"Young Dragon Lord, let's attack the Extreme Y—" Gusu Yan knew the immense pressure he was under. In his view, since they had already been humiliated, they might as well fight back. But he wasn't the one involved and couldn't imagine how a man could remain rational in such a situation.
SMACK! Before Gusu Yan could finish, the Young Dragon Lord suddenly turned. A palm nearly a foot wide slammed into his face.
Gusu Yan felt as if he'd been struck by a giant golden beast. Caught unprepared, he was sent flying, crashing into several disciples of his Comet Immortal Gate. He spat out a mouthful of dark blood; half his face was scorched black, the bones nearly cracking!
It was as if he'd been slapped straight into molten lava.
"Young Dragon Lord!!" Gusu Yan, usually of mild temperament, exploded. He had set aside the expansion of his own Taiyi Sourcecore to answer the call of the Southern Divine Dragon Realm's grand cause, and yet he had to swallow his anger and now suffered such a heavy slap, making his vision swim!
He could no longer contain his fury. Ever since Bai Lu was forced away, he had been holding back, but cracks had begun to form in his heart. Now, those cracks split wide open.
"Fine! I'll do my part in rescuing the Young Dragon Consort!"
In front of everyone, Gusu Yan let out a low growl and handed over half of his green leaf token—the Personal Pledge—swiftly sending them toward Yun Xiao.
He found it laughable. He wasn't truly saving Shen Nanyin; the Young Dragon Lord had already shown through his initial actions that he didn't care about her life or death.
What Gusu Yan was really saving was the Young Dragon Lord's honor. That was what this scion of the Dragon Devil Clan, steeped in its proud traditions, truly cared about—something that brooked no challenge.
"What are the rest of you waiting for? Hurry! Even without you, I'll achieve everything!" The Young Dragon Lord watched coldly as Gusu Yan handed over his Personal Pledge, then roared at the others.
Gusu Yan subconsciously looked at Yun Xiao, his expression growing strange at the young man's ethereal appearance and recent actions.
"Gentlemen, please have your disciples step forward and hand over all their Personal Pledges to me," Yun Xiao said lightly but firmly.
Yun Xiao now held sway over them, effectively restraining their disciples. His request didn't surprise Gusu Yan and the others in the least.
After all, from this point on, their sect's disciples would find it hard to capture the Extreme Yin Star alongside the Young Dragon Lord. So, Gusu Yan and his peers didn't dwell on it. Everyone was in the same situation; they themselves might be safer this way.
Moreover, now that the disciples from ten celestial sects were under control—not just a single sect—they didn't fear that their elders would be singled out by the Southern Divine Dragon Realm for retribution.
"Do as he says!"
The disciples of the Empyrean Emperor sects obeyed without hesitation. In an instant, their pledges flew toward Yun Xiao. Counting the ten leaders and those from Bai Lu's side, Yun Xiao tallied—not one more, not one less—exactly 250 Personal Pledges.
"All of you, come up here!" As he spoke, Yun Xiao sent out a flying talisman. Before long, Bai Lu appeared with the disciples from the Gu God Star, each wearing a peculiar expression.
The moment she arrived, Bai Lu called down, "Young Dragon Lord, after we left, we were ambushed by this celestial slave. I couldn't defeat him and was forced to hand over our Personal Pledges. The elders of the Million Starlight Palace can see everything..."
Including her, that made 11 Empyrean Emperor Sects.
Her appearance was another blow, further proving that Yun Xiao had planned to fracture the Young Dragon Lord's forces from the very beginning. The Young Dragon Lord now looked like a clown; despite his formidable strength, he had lost utterly.
But the Young Dragon Lord ignored Bai Lu; his eyes were fixed solely on Yun Xiao.
At this moment, Yun Xiao stood with 250 young geniuses by his side. His momentum matched that of the Young Dragon Lord, perhaps even surpassing it with more elite followers.
Of course, the Young Dragon Lord's followers were loyal, but whether those bound by Personal Pledges would fight wholeheartedly was another matter.
Now, the burning question was... Would Yun Xiao release her?
Judging from the Young Dragon Lord's behavior, Shen Nanyin was indeed his Achilles' heel.
But everyone knew that if Yun Xiao pushed too far and refused to let go, once the Young Dragon Lord calmed down, his advantage might vanish.
So, whether he released her or not was crucial.
Under the gaze of all, Yun Xiao wasn't one to draw things out.
"Young Dragon Lord, you're a good man. I'll do business with you again next time," Yun Xiao said with a grin.
He patted Shen Nanyin's battle armor and casually tossed the nine-foot beauty downward. The proud white swan finally fell back toward her equally proud destined lover.
"Whew!"
Many breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it fortunate he was just a slave who could only touch and not prod. Otherwise, if he had truly overstepped, things would have exploded—ten times over.
Everyone knew this celestial slave had the audacity; he was a ruthless man through and through.
However, the moment Shen Nanyin returned to the Young Dragon Lord's side, the atmosphere grew tense once more. Because from now on, no matter how elusive Yun Xiao was, nothing could stop the Young Dragon Lord from leveling the Extreme Yin Star to vent his fury...