179: Chapter 179 Intrigue and Backstabbing

Yun Yi had no intention of stopping the crowd's cold mockery and biting sarcasm, letting them do as they pleased. In any case, his Cloud Tiger Tribe was on bad terms with the other eight tribes, so there was no need to speak up for Ancestor Xue Mang.

It would be for the best if Ancestor Xue Mang rose up in a rage and fought them; that way, Yun Yi might have thought a bit more highly of him. Unfortunately, the man didn't have the guts!

After a long while, the main hall gradually fell silent. The crowd stopped speaking and turned their gazes toward Yun Yi. This matter still required the number one expert of the Nine Profound Realm to make the decision. Dissatisfied as they were with Yun Yi, they still acknowledged his strength.

In the face of powerful enemies from the outside world, as long as it didn't touch their own interests, they were willing to listen to Yun Yi's thoughts.

Looking at the crowd's eyes, no matter how dissatisfied Yun Yi felt, he had to suppress it. After clearing his throat twice, he spoke:

"First, let me share my view! To begin with, the fact that they could come to the Nine Profound Realm means they must have used methods unknown to us. Possessing such means suggests they are certainly not mediocre figures in the outside world. Does everyone agree on this point?"

Hearing this, everyone couldn't help but nod in agreement with Yun Yi's analysis. The spatial barrier of the Nine Profound Realm was extremely sturdy, far beyond what a Void Refining cultivator could break. Otherwise, they wouldn't have stayed in the Nine Profound Realm for countless years.

After millions of years, the Cultivation resources within the Nine Profound Realm had already begun to shrink significantly. The gradual drying up of the spring of life was the best example.

Originally, everyone felt worried about this, but the appearance of the spatial tunnel reignited their hope. If internal resources were scarce, they could shift their gaze to the outside world and completely plunder external resources for their own use.

But before the spatial tunnel could even stabilize, outsiders had taken the initiative to strike at their door. This inevitably gave them a sense of crisis, yet none of them wanted to take action themselves. If an accident occurred, wouldn't they just be letting others reap the benefits?

Their hearts could be described as conflicted to the extreme. They wanted to drive Ning Yuan out, yet feared being stabbed in the back by their own people. Not just them—even Yun Yi himself had such concerns.

"Secondly, they didn't come to the Nine Profound Realm just for fun. Their purpose is nothing more than those few items. Since that's the case, there are only two paths for how to deal with them!"

"First, expel them from the Nine Profound Realm or deal with them on the spot. However, I presume I don't need to elaborate on the hidden dangers of that path!"

"Second, enter peace talks with them and see if this matter can be resolved peacefully!"

"Do you have any other thoughts? If so, feel free to speak up, and we can discuss them together!"

"..."

After he finished speaking, the hall fell into silence once again. No one spoke up to agree or disagree. The atmosphere was extremely eerie as many people exchanged glances or communicated via divine sense transmissions from time to time.

Everyone had thought of Yun Yi's words before they arrived; it was just that no one had said them out loud. Whether they fought or negotiated, it would harm their own interests, which was clearly not what they wanted to see.

Now that Yun Yi had brought it out into the open, it was obviously impossible to keep acting like ostriches. A decision had to be made as soon as possible, or it would only get more troublesome the longer it was delayed.

After a moment, seeing that no one was speaking, Yun Yi spoke again: "Since there are no other ideas, everyone start taking a stand! Fight or talk?"

"If we fight, how should we fight? If we talk, how should we talk?"

"Don't all shrink back and stay silent! The Nine Profound Realm isn't mine alone; it belongs to everyone!"

"If you really want me to take the lead, it's not impossible, but from now on, you must be completely obedient to my Cloud Tiger Tribe!"

"Choose for yourselves!"

By the end, Yun Yi stopped hiding his intentions and laid things bare. There was a price for having him take the lead; they shouldn't think he didn't know what they were thinking.

Hearing this, everyone knew they couldn't stay silent any longer. Everyone in the hall straightened up, and after a moment of preparation, one person spoke:

"My thought is to talk with them first, and then decide how to respond!"

"Mm, Fellow Daoist Silver Wolf's words are exactly what I'm thinking. I feel the same!"

"Talk first. If it doesn't work, we can discuss other options!"

"Exactly, what can't be settled by sitting down and talking? Why must there be fighting and killing? Right?"

"..."

As soon as Silver Wolf Tribe Old Ancestor Lang Xiaotian finished speaking, the rest of the crowd chimed in one after another, expressing their agreement with Lang Xiaotian's idea. However, Yun Yi's next sentence rendered them silent again.

"Since we are to talk, there must be representatives. I wonder if you have any candidates in mind?"

Everyone immediately acted like shrinking turtles, wishing they could dig a hole and bury themselves in it. Even Lang Xiaotian was no exception.

In case the negotiations failed, the representatives might not be able to escape unscathed. With such worries, who would dare to go?

Let whoever wants to go, go—as long as it wasn't them!

Seeing the crowd fall silent again, Yun Yi couldn't help but curse inwardly. Once these people encountered even a hint of a threat to their own safety, every single one of them shut up. Those who didn't know better would think they were all rat demons, timid as mice!

Of course, for the sake of the big picture, Yun Yi certainly couldn't go. After all, he was the strongest; if an accident happened to him, who would step up to lead, right?

"I wonder if Fellow Daoist Silver Wolf has any candidates?" After a moment, Yun Yi fixed his gaze on Lang Xiaotian and asked.

Since Lang Xiaotian had dared to speak such words, he naturally had suitable candidates in mind. He then said composedly:

"To be safe, at least three people should go together. I recommend Fellow Daoist Blood Python, Fellow Daoist Fire Ape, and Fellow Daoist Crack Bear!"

The three people whose names were called were instantly shocked. Wasn't this pushing them into a fire pit? But before they could even object, the others immediately expressed their agreement, completely ignoring their opinions.

Bang!

Among them, the Fire Ape Tribe Old Ancestor, Ape Fierce, had the most violent temper. He slammed the table and stood up, pointing a finger at Lang Xiaotian and cursing:

"You Old Thing, why don't you go yourself? You want me to go? Not only is the door closed, but even the windows are barred!"

Even though he was being cursed at, Lang Xiaotian's expression didn't change at all. He said calmly, "Whether you go or not isn't for you to decide, but for everyone to decide!"

"Fellow Daoist Silver Wolf is right. Whether you go or not is not up to you!"

"Don't worry, if an accident occurs, I will help take care of your tribesmen. So go forth with courage!"

"...Hahaha, as for whether it's 'taking care' of them, don't we all know the truth in our hearts?"

"..."

Faced with everyone's comments, the three of them couldn't get a single word out. Their faces were incredibly unsightly. The crowd's intention was more than clear: they wanted to push them into the pit and perhaps even stomp on them.

The others' thoughts were simple as well. Once the scapegoats were chosen, they wouldn't hesitate to finalize the selection to avoid it falling on their own heads.

As the saying goes, better the Fellow Daoist dies than I!