57 Demon Warriors of the Cloud Wilderness. (1/2)
There was a short moment of silence after Li Yang had spoken, Liang Zhou and the others looking at his outstretched hand, their brows furrowing. The silence only lasted for a little bit, before someone seemingly lost their patience, calling out in a loud voice that contained a hint of resignation.
”What are you blabbering about?! There is no way we can do anything against them, they are far too powerful.”
Li Yang turned towards the one who had shouted, an older man who had a large scar going over his empty left eye, Liang Situ. Li Yang's lips curled up slightly, a faint sneer appearing on his face as he spoke up.
”That is only because you guys are weak right now. But what if you could become stronger, so strong that you don't need to listen to their orders?”
His words caught the attention of the people in the surroundings, their blood starting to heat up slightly. No one liked to be bossed around by others, forced to listen to their orders. But their warming blood was cooled down again by another loud shout by Liang Situ.
”Are you dumb, do you want us to against the great clans and sects? That would just doom the entire tribe. What we need to do is quietly endure, that way we can at least protect our dignity and secure our future.”
His words reminded the others who their enemies were, the three great clans and several mighty sects they had never heard about before. Facing behemoths like that, just securing their survival was a great thing. But after hearing Liang Situ's words, Li Yang burst into a loud laughter, turning towards a middle-aged man with a missing leg.
”HAHAHA! Your dignity, your future? Liang Yiyun, I can't see your wife and son, where are they?”
Liang Yiyun had lost his left leg when he was young, so despite his ripe age, he had not been taken away to serve as a guide. Being singled out by Li Yang and becoming the focus of everyone, Liang Yiyun could not help but be slightly taken aback. He lowered his head somewhat, a low voice escaping from his lips.
”...They were taken by someone from the Puppet God Sect and someone from the Tian clan...”
A soft sigh rang through the crowd, people looking at Liang Yiyun with pity. They already knew what happened to his wife and son, but they still grew sad upon hearing about it. Li Yang did not look at Liang Yiyun with pity, instead pressing on with the same faint sneer.
”And what did you do to stop them from getting taken?”
After hearing Li Yang's question, Liang Yiyun grew deathly pale. After a short moment, he raised his head to look directly at Li Yang, his eyes having grown somewhat red as he responded in a voice that was barely a whisper.
”...I did nothing...”
Liang Yiyun was ashamed, but at the same time, he was afraid. Faced with people from the great Tian clan, and a sect that seemed equally strong, what was he supposed to have done? Li Yang stepped forward slightly, throwing his arms wide open when he stood at the edge of the platform, his loud voice reaching everyone.
”Look around you! They have taken your women, your young and able! And none of you did anything to stop them. your dignity is already worthless. And your survival? By the time they have finished what they have come for, I can guarantee that most, if not all of the taken people will have been killed, your future dying with them.”
If the people from the clans managed to learn that the remains of a Golden Crow and a Torch Dragon were located here, they would kill anyone else who might have learned of it. At that time, all the tribes might just be wiped out. The crowd descended into silence after Li Yang's loud shout, but Liang Zhou broke the silence.
”You know what they have come for?”
From listening to Li Yang's words, it was clear that he knew what the clans had come here for. But Liang Zhou could not help but wonder, how had Li Yang learned about it? Exactly what had he been doing for that one year where he was gone? Li Yang turned away from the crowd, giving Liang Zhou a slight nod.
”I do, but I cannot tell you.”
Liang Zhou looked at Li Yang in silence for a short moment, studying him closely. He still looked very similar to the day he had left the village. He had grown taller and his features more pronounced and manly, becoming rather handsome, but he could still clearly tell that he was Li Yang, the same person he had considered as a little brother.
But there was something different about him, about the look in his eyes. For his eyes to become like that, Liang Zhou could only assume that something horrible had happened to Li Yang during this last one year. Liang Zhou could not help but take a step forward, placing his palm on Li Yang's cheek as he continued to observe him.
”You have changed, brother Yang. What happened to you, what caused your eyes to become so sharp?”
In the past, Li Yang had always seemed so carefree and calm, his eyes bright as he observed everything around him with a touch of nonchalance. But the eyes of the Li Yang that had returned, while still bright as a dark star, were far sharper, like an unsheathed blade. Li Yang did not remove Liang Zhou's hand, he simply gave a slight smile and shook his head.
”It's a bad habit that I can't seem to kick.”
Li Yang was not lying. The sharpness in his eyes was a result of his time as the Thunder Monarch when he spent so long fighting to protect those close to him. Even now that he was no longer the same Thunder Monarch, his eyes would still occasionally gleam with that same sharpness. After a short moment, Li Yang turned back to the crowd.
”What is your answer, do you want my help? Do you want the strength to stand tall and proud, to protect that which you love? Or are you fine with cowering in the dirt while everyone steps over you?”
Silence covered the area, the people in the crowd looking a bit pale as they thought it over. Liang Zhou also looked like he was thinking hard about it, but the first one to break the silence was an older man who was blind in one eye. He kneeled heavily on the ground, his voice tearful as he spoke out.
”I...I am willing to accept your help. Just please, give me the strength to bring my daughter back home!”
Once the first man kneeled, the others quickly started to follow, with Liang Yiyun being the second one to kneel to Li Yang. As the crowd started to kneel to Li Yang and accept his offer, Liang Zhou also tried to kneel, but Li Yang stopped him. Liang Zhou was a friend, after all, there was no way Li Yang was going to make him kneel. Once everyone but him kneeled, Liang Zhou asked the question everyone was wondering about.
”Please give us the strength to protect our own. What do we need to do?”
How was Li Yang going to have them become strong enough to resist the three great clans? Was it even possible to strengthen several people that quickly? But Li Yang quickly gave a confident reply, glancing at a few older men within the crowd.
”Good. We are going to need a large amount of Demonic beast blood and bodies, the stronger the Demonic beast the better. Later on, I will head deeper into the wilderness to check out the various groups that have arrived, I will bring back a few Demonic beasts then, but we need some to start. I suggest sending out the few older warriors you have left, they should be able to find some quickly.”
The men he glanced at looked normal, even a bit frail. But Li Yang knew that they were the older warriors of the tribe, they had a large amount of experience and were adept at fighting, they just hid it deeply, which was why they had not been picked as guides. Liang Zhou could not help but tilt his head slightly after hearing what Li Yang needed.