Chapter 277: Choice

"Whoosh!" A Gustav Rocket flew toward Hu Dameng; this was Meng Yifan's answer.

"Hmph! You don't know what's good for you!" Watching the rocket flying toward him, Hu Dameng suddenly opened his blood-red maw, and a powerful force of devouring enveloped the rocket. An incredible scene occurred: Hu Dameng actually swallowed the rocket whole into his stomach.

"Boom!" The rocket exploded inside Hu Dameng's stomach, yet Hu Dameng was completely fine. Instead, he smacked his lips a few times, puffed a cloud of black smoke from his mouth, and grinned, "The taste is quite good, punchy, and chewy. It's tastier than an Explosive Shell. Hehe, can you give me a few more?"

"Swallowing a rocket?" Meng Yifan was secretly shocked. This Flying Tiger Demon was a Level 4 High-Grade Demon Beast, and he had already touched upon a Supernatural Secret Art; his combat power was comparable to the current Zhang Sanfeng, making him extremely tricky to deal with.

"Eh! You have a Tiger Mark on you? Let me see whose mark this is!" Hu Dameng sensed something, and his bloodline power surged. A phantom of a Flying Tiger Demon appeared on Meng Yifan's chest; it was precisely the first Flying Tiger Demon he had killed.

Ever since Meng Yifan became an Immortal Cultivator, he had repeatedly scoured this Tiger Mark with his own Spirit Power. He had thought he had long since broken the mark, but he hadn't expected that when encountering other Flying Tiger Demons, they would still be able to sense the Tiger Mark. It seemed the Flying Tiger Demon race still had some tricks up their sleeves.

"The one you killed was Hu Dali? Counting it up, he was my distant cousin," Hu Dameng said. "Logically speaking, for killing my kin, this King should tear you into ten thousand pieces no matter what."

"But this King wants to make a deal with you. You release Lang Jiao, and I will spare your life. Furthermore, I will lead the Demon Race army away and attack Dongchuan Prefecture City, helping you eliminate the last city of the Great Wu Heavenly Dynasty within the borders of Dongchuan Prefecture."

"How about it? As long as you agree to the deal, the tens of thousands of humans inside Luolong County will at least keep their lives."

The tens of thousands of humans inside the city and the numerous Demon Race members below the city all turned their gazes toward Meng Yifan, waiting to see what choice he would make. Meng Yifan shook his head and said, "If you want to fight, then fight. Why so much nonsense?"

Lang Jiao was a servant controlled by a portion of Meng Yifan's Divine Soul. If he voluntarily lifted the Master-Servant Contract, Meng Yifan's own Divine Soul would be injured. Moreover, Lang Jiao was a Fourth Grade Beast and possessed the Shadow Clone, making her a powerful fighter under Meng Yifan's command; how could he possibly let her go?

There was another reason: Lang Jiao's father, Lang Batian, was a Fifth Grade Demon Beast with extremely formidable strength. Currently, Meng Yifan's life was bound to Lang Jiao's; even if Lang Batian wanted to deal with Meng Yifan, he would have to worry about harming his daughter. If he released Lang Jiao, Meng Yifan would have to face the monstrous rage of a Fifth Grade Demon Beast.

Furthermore, Meng Yifan was not afraid of going to war with the Demon Race. In this end-of-dynasty era, the right to survive was fought for, not obtained by begging for the enemy's charity.

In Meng Yifan's view, the Demon Race army was just a massive amount of Experience Value. The Demon Cores, Yin Souls, flesh and blood, fur, and claws of the Demon Race were all good things that could rapidly strengthen the forces under his command.

Possessing the Game Panel, Meng Yifan's strength would inevitably grow stronger the more he fought, eventually standing at the peak and fearing no challenge.

"Meng Yifan, I have over ten thousand humans here. I'll make a deal with you: you undo the Master-Servant Contract on Lang Jiao, and I will release these ten thousand-plus people. Otherwise, I will kill these ten thousand-plus people in public. Humans are your own kind; do you have the heart to watch over ten thousand humans be killed while you stand by and do nothing?"

Hu Dameng waved a tiger claw, and the ten thousand-plus humans escorted from Qingze County were forced by Demon Beasts to kneel before the formation. Hearing the Flying Tiger Demon's words, they all wept bitterly, kowtowing incessantly toward the walls of Luolong County and begging, "My Lord, please save us."

"My Lord, we don't want to die."

"I beg you, My Lord, have mercy, just release that Demon Beast and save us."

Meng Yifan looked at those ten thousand-plus humans, feeling very uneasy. If it were possible, he would want to save those ten thousand-plus humans, but Lang Jiao was Meng Yifan's protective talisman. With Lang Jiao present, Meng Yifan could have a glimmer of survival, and as long as Meng Yifan was fine, the entire Luolong County could be preserved.

This was a multiple-choice question: whether to temporarily save the ten thousand-plus humans below the city, or to release Lang Jiao and soon after face an attack from a Fifth Grade Demon Beast leading the Demon Race army.

"Flying Tiger Demon, listen to me: for every human of mine you kill, I will kill a hundred of your Demon Beasts. If you kill ten thousand of my humans, I will kill a million of your Demon Beasts. Furthermore, I, Meng Yifan, hereby swear to exterminate your entire Flying Tiger Demon race!" Meng Yifan said coldly.

Facing Meng Yifan's threat, Hu Dameng was disdainful. One had to know that the Patriarch of the Flying Tiger Demon race was a Grade 7 Great Demon who could blow Meng Yifan into smithereens with a single breath.

Meng Yifan was now spouting wild words; it was nothing more than a toad sneezing—a lot of hot air.

Hu Dameng said loudly, "Haha, do you all see? It's not that we won't let you go; it's that the Lord of Luolong County, Meng Yifan, won't save you. If you want to blame someone, blame Meng Yifan."

"You bastard, Meng Yifan, you stand by and watch us die, you deserve to die a horrible death!"

"Even if we die and become vengeful ghosts, we won't let you off."

"Meng Yifan, your heart is too cruel. Just for one Demon Beast, you are going to watch us die with your own eyes. Aren't you afraid of Heaven's retribution for doing this?"

The ten thousand-plus people cursed loudly, one after another accusing Meng Yifan of refusing to save them. As the saying goes, public opinion is a powerful force; with the sound of these people's insults, Meng Yifan keenly felt that his own Dynasty Luck was wavering.

"Humans inside the city, listen too. Today, Meng Yifan can refuse to save these ten thousand-plus people; next time, if you are captured, they won't save you either. Think about it carefully: is such a commander worth you risking your lives for?" Hu Dameng said again.

These were heart-piercing words. Hu Dameng looked rough and fierce, but what he said was shaking the morale of the troops inside Luolong County.

Many people on the city walls looked with pity at the humans kneeling in the dust below the city. They desperately wanted Meng Yifan to save these fellow humans, but they all knew that in Luolong County, Meng Yifan's word was law; even if they spoke up, it would be useless.

Facing the confused gazes of the crowd, Meng Yifan did not explain, nor could he explain it clearly, and he did not need to explain himself to others.

Meng Yifan was not a Saint, nor was he a heartless person. If he could save these ten thousand people below the city, Meng Yifan would take action to save them.

However, to save the ten thousand-plus humans below the city at the cost of his own life and the lives of the forty thousand-plus subjects loyal to him—that was something Meng Yifan would not do.

Meng Yifan shouted angrily, "Silver-tongued devil! Isn't the Demon Race always straightforward, taking what they want by force? Why so much nonsense now? If you want to attack the city, then give the order to attack. Let's fight it out properly; the winner takes all."