“Prime Minister! If no one steps forward, then admit defeat and honour our agreement. Send the beauty and the city over. Otherwise, our great army will surely trample Yao Kingdom flat.” The Sha Kingdom leader laughed loudly, his gaze falling on Su Rong. As he looked at this stunningly beautiful and aloof woman, obscene desire involuntarily appeared in his eyes.
Being stared at in such a way, Su Rong’s pretty face turned snow-white. She had never imagined Yao Kingdom would lose. For so many years, Yao had always completely defeated Sha. Who could have thought that this time, Sha Kingdom’s younger generation would be this strong.
“Beauty, no rush! In a moment, I will take you to Sha Kingdom!” The Sha Kingdom leader laughed heartily, looking at Su Rong and Su Zhengping with provocation.
The hearts of the group of women around Su Rong instantly sank to the bottom. Was Su Rong really going to be taken by the people of Sha Kingdom?
“Does Yao Kingdom have no men left? No one dares to come up and fight me?” Sha Shan bellowed in the duel arena, insulting the men of Yao Kingdom.
Hearing the grating laughter, Zhang Su’er’s brows shot up. Her gaze shot toward the group of men from Yao City. “Even if you cannot beat them, you cannot let them insult you like this!”
Scolded by Zhang Su’er, the group exchanged glances, but in the end, no one dared to step forward.
Zhang Su’er looked at the trembling men, her heart filled with anger. “Hu San, what did you say before? When the nation faces crisis, you would die willingly. Now it is just a fight against them. What are you afraid of? You are also in the conceptual realm!”
“I…” The man whose name was called flushed red. He gathered his courage to take a step forward, but seeing the fates of Chen Bowen and Ye Tian, he ultimately turned his head, avoiding the fervent gazes of the women.
“Wang Mu, you once said a true man knows what to do and what not to do. Now, can you not step forward and tell these Sha Kingdom beasts that Yao Kingdom does not lack real men!”
“Xu Da! You once said you would go through fire and water for Su Rong. You are all ranked in Yao City’s top ten. None of you dare to go up?”
“…”
Zhang Su’er and the other women pointed at the group and shouted, hoping they would step forward. But in the end, not one dared. Those pointed at all turned their heads, unable to meet the women’s eyes.
Zhang Su’er and the women’s faces turned pale. They had never thought that the men who had sworn oaths before them would be such cowards. They had actually believed them. How laughable!
Su Zhengping and his group’s hearts also fell to the depths. Losing was not the issue. But losing without dignity like this was simply throwing away Yao Kingdom’s face. They did not even have the courage to fight. Did Yao Kingdom still have any face left?
“Hahaha! I said long ago that Yao Kingdom has no men. How can they compare to the real men of our Sha Kingdom?” The Sha Kingdom leader laughed loudly, staring contemptuously at Su Zhengping and the others. “Hand over the city to us. Prime Minister Su Zhengping, I am afraid your granddaughter will have to follow us tonight! Heh heh…”
“Humph!” Su Zhengping snorted angrily, his gaze sharp as he looked toward Yao Kingdom’s younger generation.
The people of Yao City watched as the young men all avoided Su Zhengping’s gaze. Despair filled their hearts. Was Yao Kingdom really going to send the woman and the city to them? Were they truly to be mocked by a borderland small kingdom like Sha?
“I will go!” Seeing no one step forward, Su Rong bit her pearly teeth and said firmly.
“Su Rong! You…” Zhang Su’er cried out in alarm.
“It is nothing!” Su Rong forced a smile at Zhang Su’er. “Even if I die, it is better than being humiliated by the people of Sha Kingdom!”
Watching Su Rong walk toward the duel arena, Ye Tian, lying on the ground, called out. “Su Rong!”
Su Rong stopped and turned to look at Ye Tian. She still held great respect for him in her heart. She forced a smile on her pale face. “Big Brother Ye Tian, rest well and recover!”
Ye Tian propped himself up and shook his head at Su Rong. “Go back! This is not something a woman should do. I will fight!”
“Big Brother Ye Tian!” Not only Su Rong’s eyes reddened, but Zhang Su’er and the other women’s eyes also turned red. At this moment, Ye Tian could barely stand steadily, yet he still stepped forward.
“Hehe! Why cry? Let me do it!” Ye Tian smiled at the women and stepped forward, but the women blocked him, refusing to let him go.
“Move aside! We cannot let others look down on the men of Yao Kingdom!” Ye Tian shouted at them. This stern rebuke made the women shed tears.
Ye Tian reached out and pushed aside the women blocking him. His steps were unsteady as he walked out, but they were exceptionally firm.
Watching this not particularly sturdy figure step forward, the people of Yao City fell silent. As they saw Ye Tian staggering, their eyes reddened.
Perhaps this tragic heroism infected others. Finally, someone stepped forward!
“Big Brother Ye Tian! Let me go instead!” Hu San stepped out and said. Though scolded by Zhang Su’er earlier, he had not dared to move. But now, seeing Ye Tian cough up blood, he could no longer hold back. Shame appeared on his face.
Ye Tian smiled. His pale face forced a bright smile. He patted Hu San’s shoulder. “You are still young! Fear is not shameful, but you cannot fear forever! I hope one day you grow up. Yao Kingdom still needs you to hold it up!”
With that, Ye Tian walked past him toward the duel arena.
“Big Brother Ye Tian!” The men could no longer hold back. They shouted loudly, wanting to stop him, but Ye Tian waved them off.
Ye Chu watched Ye Tian and sighed. In the end, he walked in front of Ye Tian. “You are already severely injured. To fight him, you might truly be crippled.”
“I know!” Ye Tian smiled at Ye Chu. He felt a bit more curiosity about how Ye Chu had just dispelled the evil qi from his body, but he had no mind for it now.
“Since you know, you should recover. Yao Kingdom has so many people. It does not have to be you who steps up!” Ye Chu looked at Ye Tian. “Some responsibilities do not have to be yours. Why take them on!”
Ye Tian shook his head. “People do not live just to live! They must do something to prove their worth!”
“Dying proves your worth?” Ye Chu stared at Ye Tian. If it were anyone else, he truly would not care. But this was his big brother. Though he had always been cold to him, he had always fulfilled his duties as an elder brother.
“I once swore to protect my home! To me, the Ye family is home. Yao City is home! Dignity is sometimes worthless, but sometimes it is worth guarding with life! I do not want others to speak of Yao City in the future and curse it for having no men! I want to tell them that Yao City has men. The Ye family has men!” Ye Tian stared straight at Ye Chu. “Step aside!”
Ye Tian’s words silenced many in Yao City. Their hearts ached with sorrow. Was Ye Tian going to use his life to defend dignity? What about them?
Ye Chu sighed. “Go back! Dying is not worth it!”
Ye Chu’s words made Su Rong and the others cry out urgently. “Big Brother Ye Tian! Really, do not go to your death!”
“Yes! Big Brother Ye Tian, I, Hu San, am willing to fight them!”
“…”
Perhaps infected by Ye Tian, the group shouted loudly to persuade him.
Ye Tian smiled. “You are too weak. You are no match for him! Stop persuading me. Ye Chu, step aside!”
“Go back!” Ye Chu did not know how to judge Ye Tian. Knowing he would die yet still acting this way could be called foolish, but it did not mean he did not admire such a person.
“I have a secret method! It can briefly suppress my injuries. I can fight him.” Ye Tian looked at Ye Chu. “Besides me, no one in Yao City can fight him!”
“I said: you go back!” Ye Chu stared at Ye Tian, suddenly somewhat domineering. Ye Tian was caught off guard. Ye Chu had never shown such an attitude before him.
Ye Chu’s manner immediately provoked dissatisfaction from the people of Yao City. Zhang Su’er and the women shouted. “You scum, how dare you speak to Big Brother Ye Tian like that! Is he someone you can rebuke!”
Ye Chu ignored the crowd’s fury. He exhaled lightly and looked at Ye Tian calmly. “This fight! I will go in your place!”
With those words, the surrounding shouts stopped instantly. Everyone’s gaze focused on Ye Chu. The entire arena fell into deathly silence.
