"Pfft~"
As the Golden Star Black Fish King, Hei Jinlai, continuously amplified the power of his divine sense outside Jade Stream Island, Yang Hong coughed out a mouthful of blood.
His spirit instantly weakened, and he knelt on one knee to alleviate the pressure.
"Haha~ Little fellow, you are quite good. I appreciate you more and more. Submit to me, and I will grant you the greatest freedom."
Seeing that Yang Hong still endured without a word, Hei Jinlai's opinion of him rose even higher. He then withdrew his divine sense pressure.
"Senior, how much freedom can you give me? I will not leave Jade Stream Island!"
Yang Hong wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and asked tentatively. He was certain that if the bandit outside wanted to kill him, his divine sense alone would suffice. If he had continued to resist, he would truly die! The killing intent from the bandit from the beginning was genuine.
"Little fellow, you are very smart. I will not let you leave this Jade Stream Island. As long as you are on this island, you can do whatever you want. You just need to hand over all your produce to my Black Fish tribe."
Hei Jinlai looked at the spiritual plants, spiritual wines, spiritual fish, and spiritual beasts on Jade Stream Island, calculating their value. The more he calculated, the more shocked he became. Several Grade Four spiritual wines totaled tens of millions of catties, Grade Five spiritual wines over a hundred thousand catties; tens of thousands of Grade Four spiritual fish, over a thousand Grade Five spiritual fish; over 30 billion Grade Four spiritual plants, over 30,000 Grade Five spiritual plants, and over a hundred Grade Six spiritual plants. Such resources, if converted to spirit stones, would likely reach hundreds of billions. This was more than ten times the total assets of the Golden Star Black Fish tribe! And all of this was clearly created by Yang Hong, a fourth-tier minor demon, possibly a tree demon. Such talent must be captured! If it could not be captured, then kill him!
Hei Jinlai's divine sense was not withdrawn. Yang Hong felt the strong killing intent and almost froze solid. Instantly, a layer of frost rapidly condensed on his skin. This was the strength of an eighth-tier Tribulation Crossing stage cultivator; with a thought, he could mobilize the power of heaven and earth to kill without leaving a trace.
"Senior~ Senior~ This junior agrees."
Yang Hong was not a brainless fool. Feeling this fatal killing intent, he quickly shouted.
"Hmm~ You, little fellow, are very smart. Then~ open your array and let me in."
Hearing Yang Hong's voice, Hei Jinlai realized he had revealed too much killing intent. However, he did not care. In his life, he had killed no less than eight million demonic beasts, and another Yang Hong made no difference.
"Alright."
Yang Hong was filled with frustration but could only obediently open the defensive array. After all, circumstances were pressing. If this bandit wanted to kill him, his divine sense would be enough; he wouldn't even need to approach him to use spells. He very cleanly stopped the defensive and offensive arrays, but the concealment array was still active.
Hei Jinlai appeared to be an array master as well. After Yang Hong deactivated the threat of the offensive array, he walked directly through the safe passage of the array. Yang Hong's eyes flickered, knowing that Hei Jinlai must be proficient in array formations, and likely at a high level. This action of walking through the array was a show of force and a warning.
Yang Hong's guess was correct. Hei Jinlai, the Golden Star Black Fish King, was indeed an array master, and a rare Grade Four array master within a radius of a hundred million miles. It was precisely because he was an array master that he could more clearly sense the terrifying defensive array on Jade Stream Island. And this was the primary reason why he decided to spare Yang Hong, yet also greatly desired to kill him.
"Little fellow, what is your name, and who did you learn array formations from?"
Upon approaching Yang Hong, Hei Jinlai carefully examined him with his divine sense, especially his body, and his doubts increased. [A tree demon with near-perfect shapeshifting, with unlimited potential for the future!]
"Reporting to Senior, this junior is Li Qiye, and I learned array formations from the Evergreen Demon Lord of Myriad Demon Island."
Yang Hong immediately fabricated a false name.
"Evergreen Demon Lord? No wonder~ no wonder~"
Hearing Yang Hong mention the Evergreen Demon Lord, Hei Jinlai excitedly interrupted before Yang Hong could say anything else.
"The Evergreen Demon Lord's true form is a ten-thousand-year-old Evergreen Wood. He possesses extraordinary wisdom and is an extremely rare tree demon array master among our demon race. Being able to study under him explains your array path cultivation, which is already close to Grade Five at such a young age."
"As long as your cultivation breaks through again, you will undoubtedly be able to immediately break through to become a Grade Five array master, and even breaking through to Grade Six in a short period of time will not be a problem."
"Truly, a great master produces a talented disciple."
"Heh heh~ Heh heh~"
Hearing Hei Jinlai's exclamation, Yang Hong realized how formidable the Evergreen Demon Lord was. The reason he fabricated the name was that the Grade Five city protection array in Pre-reservation City was laid by the Evergreen Demon Lord, and he only knew of such a high-tier demonic array master.
"Since you are a talented disciple of the Evergreen Demon Lord, then I will not empty your island."
"..."
Yang Hong had a thousand unspoken words. This scoundrel was planning to empty Jade Stream Island, and possibly even abduct him!
"You can continue trading the spiritual fish with those poor wretches. The spiritual plants, you intend to use them for brewing wine, right? I won't touch those either. I will take all the spiritual wines. I will collect them once a year from now on."
"..."
Yang Hong dared not speak his mind; he was almost suffocated with frustration. These spiritual wines were premium spirits he had meticulously brewed over three to four years using his brewing techniques! Each hundred catties of Grade Four spiritual wine could be exchanged for a million spirit stones – truly top-tier stuff! And now they were all gone?
"It's settled then."
Before Yang Hong could object, Hei Jinlai displayed the domineering and decisive nature befitting his image. He took out a gourd, performed a hand seal and chanted an incantation. Almost instantly, wine flew out of thin air and into the gourd. The wine flowed continuously, tens of millions of catties of spiritual wine, not a single drop remaining! All of it went into that gourd.
Yang Hong's eyes were somewhat covetous as he watched the gourd. This was clearly a high-quality magical artifact. Tens of millions of catties of spiritual wine, a volume of twenty to thirty thousand cubic meters, and the gourd could hold it all. However, immediately after, Yang Hong felt an unbearable heartache. Truly, not a drop of spiritual wine was left, not even the "Hundred Flower Wine" that lacked innate spiritual essence!
"Li Qiye, since I've taken your things, I naturally need to show my appreciation. This jade slip contains my array insights, which will be very beneficial for your study of array formations. This storage bag contains a hundred Grade Five demon cores, and a cultivation technique of Huang-grade top quality. Consider these as my bargaining chips."
Seeing Yang Hong's devastated expression, Hei Jinlai felt a little embarrassed. After some thought, he took out a jade slip and a storage bag.
"Thank~ Thank you, Senior."
Yang Hong tried his best to keep his expression calm and numbly accepted the items. The frustration in his heart was unspeakable. But with inferior strength, what could he do?
"Hahaha~ Good~ Good child. From now on, I will protect your Jade Stream Island. If anyone dares to have ill intentions, inform me, and I will kill him."
Seeing Yang Hong's pained smile, Hei Jinlai became even happier. He then took out a jade talisman and said, "This is a protective jade talisman, sealed with eighty percent of my power. It can withstand the continuous attacks of an eighth-tier mid-stage demon lord for an hour. Moreover, once you encounter danger, I can quickly rush over."
"Thank you, Senior."
Yang Hong smiled and accepted this jade talisman, even deliberately appearing more excited. However, upon hearing the function of this jade talisman, Yang Hong instantly had an idea.