Chapter 595: 548 Recruitment

Gui Rong's expression was very relaxed, completely different from the state of struggling in the light earlier.

Although Tang Zhao, the expert who had just forced him into a desperate situation, was still before his eyes, and although his body was still in pieces, he had already emerged from the state of fighting for his life, his expression even somewhat comfortable, as if immersed in some kind of enjoyment.

He answered slowly, "The purpose? To kill them, to kill all the stupid idiots here who watch you and me fight as if they were watching a play. How do you like that reason?"

Tang Zhao's gaze turned toward the collapsed ruins. Looking down from the sky, the cover over the ruins was clearly visible; it was gray and turbid. It might not look so clear up close, but from a distance, it undoubtedly looked like a giant Turtle Shell, and the patterns on the turtle's back, resembling the Eight Trigrams, were clearly visible.

Turtle Shell...

This thought surfaced in Tang Zhao's mind for the first time, and he immediately rejected it. The reason was just like the first time he rejected the idea that the turtle ornament Wu Shayu of Sunset Manor played with came from the Turtle Shell—this was absolutely not the divine beast Black Tortoise of the Turtle Shell, but a real turtle. It was similar to the turtle ornament he had seen that time.

Sure enough, they were in cahoots.

Gui Rong and Sunset Manor were colluding in a tighter way, and Xing Cang might be involved too.

Xing Cang, huh...

Tang Zhao could no longer see Xing Cang from above; that old fellow did not know where he had hidden himself.

But it did not matter; Tang Zhao had arranged for people to watch him, so he was not afraid of him flying into the sky.

Looking back at Gui Rong, Tang Zhao sneered, "Not much. If you wanted to take them away before your final death, you should have used a more straightforward method, making them die instantly. Your current method is to harm others to benefit yourself, clearly plundering others to fill yourself; this is a Sacrifice. I can only say, very Wangliang Mountain. You haven't spent all these years on Wangliang Mountain in vain; you are already a pure-blooded Wangliang Mountain person."

Gui Rong's forehead furrowed slightly as he listened, then he laughed in spite of himself, "That mouth of yours... if only it could be as pleasant as your face. That's right, I have more than that one reason. You saw it, I am extracting their power to replenish myself. The plan wasn't originally like this; our Sacrifice has a higher purpose—we want to open up the world. But I did underestimate your strength, so I could only extract some for an emergency. I took this power, but I feel a bit sorry for them. But if you want to know what we are actually doing... hey, how about joining us?"

Tang Zhao said in surprise, "You want to recruit me? What qualifications do you have to recruit me? It has always been the winner recruiting the loser; for instance, if I wanted to recruit you, that would naturally be giving you a way out, giving you a reason to live. But can a loser like you also recruit me?"

Although these words were still sharp-tongued, they were only generally poisonous and did not hit Gui Rong's weak spot. Gui Rong said calmly, "I acknowledge your strength and I recognize your talent. Although I personally dislike your personality and rhetoric, people like you are very reliable as teammates. So as long as you join us, I am willing to yield my position to you."

Tang Zhao let out an 'eh' and said, "You are willing to support me as the leader?"

Gui Rong said, "Deputy leader, I am the deputy leader; there is someone else as the leader."

This time Tang Zhao was truly startled and said, "You are only the second-in-command? Who could be above you? Is he stronger than you?"

Gui Rong was not a weakling among Sword Heroes; was the leader of their organization another more powerful Sword Hero? Or a higher existence?

Gui Rong shook his head and said, "You underestimate us. We are not that kind of force that respects only the strong. Those are nothing more than bandit gangs where the strong bully the weak and the weak cling to the strong—pathetic and ridiculous, what kind of organization is that? We are gathered together for a great dream. The leader is a wise sage; he possesses superior wisdom and leads us toward the correct path. We are working hard to create a new, free world. You joining us is much more worthwhile than working for a mere slave owner for money."

Tang Zhao couldn't help but say, "A pyramid scheme?"

Gui Rong did not understand. Tang Zhao waved his hand and said, "Nothing. I wonder which sage this is? Is he from Wangliang Mountain? Wangliang Mountain produces madmen; it's already difficult for them to have a normal brain, so how could they produce a sage?"

Gui Rong laughed, "If you join us, I will naturally take you to see him." As he spoke, the cracks on his face grew smaller and smaller, and it was clear he was about to return to the state he was in before the Death Struggle.

Tang Zhao shook his head and said, "If you aren't willing to tell me, then go tell them—"

At this point, only a few 'whoosh' sounds were heard, and several black shadows jumped up, surrounding Tang Zhao and Gui Rong in the middle.

The Abyss Envoys had arrived!

Including Manying, more than a dozen Abyss Envoys surrounded the two. That old ape, Yingze, shouted, "You two thieves, what the hell have you done? What conspiracy is this?"

Before Tang Zhao could speak, Gui Rong said lazily, "Yingze, shut your mouth. I am discussing serious business with this Sword Hero Tang. Where is there any room for you to interrupt?"

Yingze seemed to have its throat choked and fell silent for a moment.

Tang Zhao raised an eyebrow: Was it scared? He hadn't expected Gui Rong to have such strong pressure among the Abyss Envoys.

Tang Zhao said, "We have no serious business to discuss; stop the Sacrifice first, then we'll talk."

Gui Rong said, "Do you sympathize with those slave owners down there? That's right, you haven't suffered, so you actually have such ridiculous kindness. You are indeed not one of us. No wonder you refused; what a pity..."

Manying said, "So you're saying it really was you? Was this conspiracy arranged by Sunset Manor alone?"

Yingze said, "Yes, yes, yes, he said it himself, it was him."

Yingze said sarcastically, "That's not necessarily true. How can you be sure it was all arranged by Sunset Manor? Perhaps the two of them colluded, and this Sword Fighting is just a conspiracy! You, Yingze, ran back and forth and dragged us all here; it's clear you can't escape responsibility either..."

Just as he said this, a flash of phantom light flickered—

Gui Rong's figure lunged over, his blade covered in the power of death, and with a single slash—

Yingze's head fell off. Its skull had empty eyes in mid-air, having lost all spirituality. Its body plummeted, and before it even hit the ground, it turned into a shadow and dissipated.

It was dead.

A veteran Abyss Envoy of Wangliang Mountain, Yingze, who had existed for over forty years, was thus removed from the list.

Gui Rong retracted his blade as if he had sliced a rotten watermelon and said disdainfully, "I told you to shut up; why can't you understand human speech?"

The Abyss Envoys present were dumbfounded. To be honest, they had just watched the competition between Tang Zhao and Gui Rong. Although they saw that Gui Rong, who had used the Life-Death Bell, had astonishing speed, their eyes could still track his figure, so they felt the level of this battle was just so-so, and they might not lose if they went up themselves. However, observing this sword strike from such close proximity, the Abyss Envoys suddenly realized that this was simply not a power they could resist. That speed just now was something they could barely even see clearly.

If he could kill Yingze, he could kill all the Abyss Envoys!

They were no match for a single blow!

What to do?

Shut up and then slink away?

Not to mention that so many Abyss Envoys had come up and gone down, what about their reputation? They also had their own reasons for not being able to retreat.

Manying was very anxious and asked through telepathy, "Manying, what should we do?"

Manying also immediately answered in its heart, "What do you mean what should we do? Of course, we have to kill him! Otherwise, we will all be homeless. We can't return to Lang Xia; do you know how he will deal with us?"

Manying was stunned and said, "I know, killing him is certainly good. But... is that kind of thing doable?"

Manying pondered, "Your power and mine alone won't work, and together it's difficult. If everyone attacks separately, we will only be defeated one by one. So we must gather the power of all the Abyss Envoys and use group attack tactics! You can enter everyone's mind, right? Pull everyone over, and I will arrange the tactics."

Manying admired Manying very much, and it also knew its own wisdom was limited, so it was willing to listen to Manying's coordination. It immediately connected everyone's minds, forming a platform similar to a field.

On the platform, Manying said directly, "Everyone, Gui Rong and his forces are plotting something big; their destructive power is astonishing. They are sacrificing the offerings of Lord Wangliang without permission and have also destroyed Yinglang, causing us to lose contact with the inside and unable to enter Lang Xia. If we don't deal with him, everyone won't even be able to return to Yingze and will become wandering ghosts; what kind of Abyss Envoys would we be then? We must kill him. We are numerous; if we work together, we can kill him!"

With a few words, it mobilized them, and Manying directly began to assign tasks.

It had shallow experience among the Abyss Envoys, but it complemented Manying perfectly, and they were considered a prominent duo among the 'young and vigorous faction'. Moreover, it had a reputation for wisdom, so in this panic, especially with the sudden death of the other faction leader, Yingze, the Abyss Envoys could not help but obey its arrangements.

Manying stated the simple tactics it had thought of on the spot in a few words and said, "If everyone has no questions, then this is it. We will launch when we see Manying's move."

At this time, a Gourd Abyss Envoy said, "That handsome Sword Hero seems to be stronger than Gui Rong; should we contact him to take action? If he takes action to hold him off head-on, and then we surround him, wouldn't it be foolproof?"

Manying was silent for a moment and said, "Do you really think he is reliable?"

Manying hurriedly said, "What do you mean? Didn't you say he wasn't involved? Could it be that they are really in cahoots?"

Manying said, "I feel he is not in cahoots with Gui Rong, but what if? He is not a person of Wangliang Mountain; he is an outsider, so how can we trust him completely? At a critical moment, what if he sells us out with a single thought and colludes with Gui Rong? Wouldn't we lose our chance? To deal with Gui Rong, it is only safe if we do it ourselves. That's it."

On this side, Gui Rong was still making an effort: "It is a pity you are not one of our kind. But our faction also has many who join for the sake of profit. We are not hypocritical; in this life, seeking fame and fortune is human nature, and we do not reject outside assistance. If you come over to our side, there are also things you absolutely desire."

Tang Zhao said: "Is that so? I am not lacking in anything, and whatever you can obtain, I can also obtain. What do you have to attract me?"

Gui Rong said: "Are you not even lacking in lifespan?"

Tang Zhao was startled, and then he heard the sound of a pipa ring out in his ears—

Zheng! Zheng! Zheng!

The sound of the pipa was like the clashing of metal, chilling to the bone.

Even for Tang Zhao, as this pipa sound entered his ears, he could not help but shudder, his fingers trembling; with a shake, he pressed down on the Sword Sheath, and the golden Sunlight immediately wrapped around his fingers, pulling him out of his trepidation.

At the same time, Gui Rong was shaken by the sound, and his voice could not help but pause for the duration of a breath.

In just that one breath of time, a colossal object appeared above!

The floating shadow of the Abyss Envoy—a whale!

The giant whale opened its mouth and swallowed Gui Rong, along with his sword, whole!