"You want me to help you?"
Ao Yuan said coldly, "Who are you to me? Why should I go to such great lengths to help you?"
As soon as he spoke, the expressions of many demon kings froze.
Then, their faces became somewhat awkward.
"Dragon God, we came all this way precisely for your help, didn't we?"
"You asked us to come, and we came without any complaints. Doesn't that show our sincerity?"
"It's not that I don't respect you, calling you Dragon God. If I didn't respect you, you'd be nothing in front of me!"
...
Immediately, a group of demon kings began to retort.
Ao Yuan did not respond, as if he hadn't heard them.
Seeing that the demon kings from Mount Taibai wanted to stand up and speak for him, Ao Yuan stopped them. He also remained silent, casting his gaze upon the demon kings who had not spoken all along.
"Do you all feel the same way?" Ao Yuan took a sip of tea, his demeanor calm and collected.
"No, no, no!"
Those demon kings who had remained silent repeatedly shook their heads and then, in a rush of words, began to express their thoughts.
"Dragon God, we are like them, here to seek your help."
"But we also know this isn't an easy task. Tell us what you need, what conditions you have, and we will agree to them."
"Yes, name your price, anything you can agree to, we will agree to."
Ao Yuan nodded slightly, then added, "This isn't exactly a condition."
"It's simply asking you to abandon your original territories and come to live on Mount Taibai."
As he spoke, Ao Yuan paused and then calmly continued, "I am a demon beast, and naturally, I think for demon beasts."
"But humans and demon beasts are irreconcilable. Sometimes, they may not listen to my words."
After this statement, the demon kings fell silent, each contemplating in their hearts.
To settle on Mount Taibai!
They naturally knew what this entailed.
After all, Mount Taibai was Ao Yuan's residence!
If they were to come here, they certainly couldn't continue to live as they pleased, ruling their own territories.
However!
It was indeed as Ao Yuan said.
His strength was immense, and he could protect one region, but he could not protect all territories!
If he could truly protect all territories, then...
Human kingdoms wouldn't have attacked Ao Yuan before.
But if they refused Ao Yuan now, could they even go back?
The demon kings couldn't help but glance at each other, understanding from their eyes that an unpleasant thought had arisen in each of their hearts.
Ao Yuan, seeing their expressions, seemed to understand their thoughts. He smiled and said calmly, "This is just my opinion. The decision rests with you."
"If you do not wish to settle on Mount Taibai, I can send you and the demon beasts currently residing within the territories of various kingdoms back to your respective lands."
"Out of consideration for fellow demon beasts, I will also issue a warning to the human kingdoms. As for how effective it will be..."
Ao Yuan shrugged and continued, "That I cannot guarantee."
The hearts of the major demon kings were immediately stirred.
To receive Ao Yuan's verbal protection without paying anything was undoubtedly a good way out.
However...
What Ao Yuan said also made sense to a certain extent.
How should they choose?
"Dragon... Dragon God, you say settling on Mount Taibai is fine."
As everyone hesitated, one demon king stood up and stammered, "But I want to ask, if I settle on Mount Taibai, can I just abandon my subordinate demon beasts?"
"And Mount Taibai simply cannot accommodate so many demon beasts."
He paused, his tone becoming a little firmer. "If the condition for settling on Mount Taibai is to abandon my subordinates, then I can only apologize."
Ao Yuan turned to look at him, seeing his resolute expression.
For the first time since the assembly began, Ao Yuan showed a smile.
"You don't need to worry about that. I will resolve it," Ao Yuan replied.
"Dragon God, please accept my bow! From now on, I belong to Mount Taibai!"
Upon hearing this, the demon king did not hesitate and immediately knelt before Ao Yuan to show his submission.
Ao Yuan did not let him kneel. As he was about to prostrate himself, Ao Yuan lightly waved his hands, allowing him to stand up again, and then nodded slightly at him.
"Dragon... Dragon God, please accept my bow too!"
"Dragon God, me too!"
...
Seeing Ao Yuan's actions, some familiar faces immediately knelt before Ao Yuan.
Just like before, Ao Yuan waved his hand lightly, then had them stand to the side.
Soon!
Following the lead of these few demon kings, the vast majority of demon kings, after a moment of hesitation, all knelt before Ao Yuan to express their stance.
Ao Yuan treated them all with courtesy.
Ao Yuan understood very well why they were submitting to him. Most of them weren't doing it because of his power.
It was due to their inherent circumstances, but Ao Yuan was confident that eventually, they would genuinely submit to him.
After a brief glance at them, Ao Yuan shifted his gaze to the few demon kings who had objected at the beginning.
"Dragon God, Mount Taibai is excellent, but each beast has its own aspirations. I still wish to return."
"I'll trouble you to speak for us and stand by our side then."
Someone from that group of demon kings quickly thought and spoke.
Ao Yuan nodded faintly and then calmly said, "Dai Xiaomei, release what I just said!"
"Yes!"
Dai Xiaomei immediately took out her phone, edited a message, and then posted it.
She then generously showed it to the many demon kings.
"Are there any others who share his thoughts?" Ao Yuan turned to look at the remaining demon kings who had not yet expressed their opinions.
The demon kings pondered, looking at each other. They opened their mouths but didn't know what to say.
Seeing their expressions, Ao Yuan clearly understood their thoughts and calmly said, "If you feel the same way as him, then stand with him."
"I will then send you back one by one."
With Ao Yuan's assurance, these undecided demon kings no longer hesitated. They all expressed their decision through their actions.
Except for one who wished to settle on Mount Taibai, all the other demon kings chose to return to their own territories.
The saying "better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix" was perfectly embodied by them.
Looking at them, Ao Yuan felt a desire to laugh.
He wondered what gave them the confidence that his warning would be effective against the leaders of the kingdoms.
On this matter, Ao Yuan himself was uncertain.
Just as in the hall, Ao Yuan was confident he could deter those national leaders.
However, he understood that while he could deter them for a short time, they would surely forget about it if too much time passed.
This was human nature!
Having been human in his past life, he understood this better than anyone!