Chapter 197: Retreat

"Could it be that the Ice Saint is truly not worried about my Taixu Ancient Dragon Clan joining forces with the Soul Hall to deal with Langya Pavilion?"

At this point, the North Dragon King was still attempting to scare Xiao Han away.

"You can try!" Xiao Han said coldly.

"Leave... or do not leave!"

"If you still do not know what is good for you, this Saint does not mind letting the Taixu Ancient Dragon Clan have one less Dragon King!" Xiao Han said with murderous intent; as his aura erupted, the surrounding space began to crack and shatter.

"Hmph!" The North Dragon King's body tightened. He could perceive that Xiao Han was not speaking empty words; if he did not leave now, he likely would not be able to leave at all. He still wanted to stay alive to contend for the position of Dragon Emperor!

"Then this King shall learn from the Ice Saint's brilliant techniques another day! Farewell!" The North Dragon King lost the battle but refused to lose his composure.

"Retreat!"

With a wave of his hand, the North Dragon King left first, followed closely by the few remaining experts from the Three Dragon Islands, fearing that if Xiao Han became unhappy, he would directly intercept them.

"Many thanks to the Ice Saint for your help this time; my East Dragon Island is deeply grateful!" Once everything had settled, Zhuli stepped forward to express his thanks.

Although, even if Xiao Han had not intervened this time, the North Dragon King would not have truly slaughtered everyone, out of caution regarding the reclusive experts on East Dragon Island.

But Zhuli was also very clear that heavy losses would have been unavoidable.

Yet, with this move by Xiao Han, the situation of offense and defense shifted instantly; not only did he force the North Dragon King to retreat without a single loss, but he also caused the Three Dragon Islands to suffer casualties and lose their generals.

Such great kindness could never be repaid!

If not for knowing that the other party already had a family, Zhuli had even considered introducing his own mischievous granddaughter to the Ice Saint; given the latter's strength, it would not have been a disgrace to her.

"How should these people of the Taixu Ancient Dragon Clan be handled?" Xiao Han did not respond, pointing to the ice sculptures not far away.

"Hmm?" Zhuli asked in confusion, "Are they not dead?"

Looking at those lifelike ice sculptures, and combined with the rumors on the continent regarding the Ice Saint's Extreme Cold Dou Qi, he estimated that all the blood in their bodies had likely been frozen into ice dregs, right?

Could they still be alive?

"Dead?" Xiao Han glanced at Zhuli and curled his lip.

"I do not go around killing so many people for no reason. Sometimes, people being alive is more important than them being dead! No matter who it is!"

Since they were, to some extent, people of the Taixu Ancient Dragon Clan, he did not find it appropriate to overstep his bounds and handle them himself.

"Are you planning to lock them up or truly kill them?" Xiao Han asked.

"This..." Zhuli became hesitant now.

If they had truly died at the time, it would have been easier for him; he would just dig a pit in the Longmu and bury them.

But as it happened, these fellows were still alive!

Since that was the case, he certainly could not just kill them and be done with it.

Although Zhuli hated the Three Great Dragon Kings, he did not have any deep-seated hatred for this group of ordinary Taixu Ancient Dragon clansmen.

They were merely making a living under the Three Great Dragon Kings; in the power struggles of the upper echelons, the people at the bottom were always the ones being coerced.

But if he did not kill them, Zhuli did not want to just let them go either. Let these Taixu Ancient Dragons go, only for them to return and continue attacking their East Dragon Island?

Zhuli was not that foolish.

Lock them up? There were a few too many captives this time, and there were not enough prison cells! Plus, he would have to specifically find people to guard them.

Fortunately, these Taixu Ancient Dragons all had high cultivation levels and did not need to be fed. Otherwise, Zhuli would have had to worry about the food expenses.

For a moment, Zhuli fell into a dilemma.

"Would you like me to give you a suggestion?" Seeing Zhuli's conflicted expression, Xiao Han could not help but chuckle.

"Please, Ice Saint, enlighten me!" Zhuli immediately bowed to ask for advice.

The Ice Saint had been able to develop the Langya Pavilion—which was merely a relatively strong first-rate force in the past—into the super-force it was today in just a short hundred years.

This was not only due to the Ice Saint's powerful strength; surely, his strategies for managing a force were also extremely exquisite. He would certainly not pass up guidance from such a powerhouse.

"Why don't you let the Three Dragon Islands come to ransom their dragons themselves?" Xiao Han actually did not have any brilliant tricks; he taught Zhuli the methods he had used to extort the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan and the Soul Hall back then.

He dared not recruit them, did not want to kill them, and found it inconvenient to imprison them...

Then, was there any choice but to send them back?

He could just take the opportunity to make the other side bleed. He was not worried that the Three Dragon Islands would refuse to pay!

The Taixu Ancient Dragons were not a force like the Soul Hall; they had always been known for their cold and indifferent nature.

If any one of the Three Great Dragon Kings dared to abandon these captured Taixu Ancient Dragons, their future teams would definitely be difficult to lead, and the hearts of their subordinates would be lost—at that time, East Dragon Island might even be quite happy!

Even if they were ransomed back, the Three Great Dragon Kings might still have to worry about whether any of them had been turned, and they would not dare to use them for a while.

"This is the only way." After thinking for a long time, Zhuli also agreed with this suggestion.

And in his heart, he secretly made up his mind to ruthlessly fleece those Three Great Dragon Kings, to strip them to the bone and suck the marrow!

"I wonder what exactly the Ice Saint needs our East Dragon Island to help with?" Zhuli was very concerned about the words Xiao Han had spoken when he first confronted the North Dragon King.

It seemed as if this Ice Saint had a request for their East Dragon Island, and it was as if this matter could only be done by their East Dragon Island.

Otherwise, the other party would not have rejected the North Dragon King's proposal so decisively.

Zhuli did not deceive himself into thinking that East Dragon Island was particularly outstanding. The title of the weakest island had clearly been earned over many years of fighting.

Everyone was a Taixu Ancient Dragon, and the strength of the Three Great Dragon Kings was far greater than theirs; it was almost a situation of total suppression.

He really did not know what place on East Dragon Island had attracted this top-tier powerhouse from a Central Plains super-force, making him willing to offend the Three Great Dragon Kings of the other three islands and a large number of Taixu Ancient Dragon experts.

However, the person had come to help him after all; if he had the ability, he should naturally repay the kindness. Zhuli wanted to have a bottom line in his heart first.

"I have already said, this matter is something you, this Third Elder, cannot handle!" Xiao Han said indifferently.

"However, what I can tell you is..."

"Your East Dragon Island will definitely not suffer a loss. As long as this matter succeeds, East Dragon Island will be able to possess the power to suppress the other three islands."

Zhuli's dragon eyes shrank, and monstrous waves surged in his heart.

He did not think that Xiao Han was bored enough to tease him. Since the other party dared to say this, it was already eight or nine parts certain.

But what followed was deep confusion; he did not doubt the Ice Saint's strength, but even if he were a heaven-sent genius, he was still a Human!

The cultivation system is completely different from that of Magic Beasts; the Human race can independently create Cultivation Methods, Dou Techniques, and so on, possessing a very strong ability to blaze new trails.

Magic Beasts are not like this; what they need more is high-level bloodlines and the inheritance of their Ancestor. Wanting to innovate is simply as difficult as ascending to heaven!

Given this, where did he get the confidence to make their strength skyrocket?

Noticing Zhuli's skeptical gaze, Xiao Han did not mind; facts speak louder than words.

He also did not think that he could make an old dragon like Zhuli, who had lived for who knows how many years, trust him unconditionally just by flapping his lips.

He did not want to go through such trouble either; wouldn't it be better to just go find Zhu Kun directly?

But unfortunately, the strength of that Peak Dou Sheng, Zhu Kun, is too terrifying, and having been trapped in the Ancient Emperor Cave Mansion for over ten thousand years, his mental state is likely problematic; upon first meeting, there is an eighty percent chance of having to fight.

Xiao Han's own cultivation is far inferior, and on top of that, the underground magma world severely conflicts with his ice attribute, which would weaken his combat power by a large margin, and he himself is not the type who excels at speed.

If he really clashed with the other party there, he would be unable to escape even with wings!

Thus, finding East Dragon Island and adding that little Dragon Emperor, Zi Yan, becomes very important. The former can make Zhu Kun speak properly, while the latter can urge the other party to agree to cooperate.