Chapter 355: Even If You Die, You Won't Be Able to Accompany Him

"Elder Zhushan, Young Master Ji is my, Li Hong's, lifesaver. I cannot let you take him away!" Li Hong said solemnly.

After Li Hong finished speaking, Li Yan and the other three slowly moved to stand in front of Ye Yuan.

Seeing this, Ye Yuan was quite surprised.

Originally, saving Li Hong and the others was just a casual act. Li Hong had agreed to take him to use the teleportation array, which was a fair exchange.

Ye Yuan had no connection with the Tengyun Tribe and naturally didn't want to get involved in their family affairs. Moreover, he was in a hurry, so he couldn't be bothered with these matters.

He had originally planned to teach this Zhushan a lesson and then leave the Tengyun Tribe, but he didn't expect Li Hong to be so loyal.

Since that was the case, he might as well meddle in this affair.

Seeing Li Hong's actions, Zhushan was not angry but pleased, yet his face showed a look of disappointment, saying, "Li Hong, are you determined to rebel again?"

"Elder Zhushan, why do you say that? I, Li Hong, was born a member of the Tengyun Tribe and will die a ghost of the Tengyun Tribe! But I cannot stand by and watch my lifesaver be thrown into prison!" Li Hong said neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Fine! Since that's the case, don't blame me! Listen up, Li Hong colluded with outsiders to cause the death of the young chief. In the name of the elder, I order you to kill these five!" Zhushan said in a deep voice.

Li Hong's expression changed. He opened his mouth to defend himself but ultimately said nothing. Instead, he turned to Ye Yuan and said with a bitter smile, "Young Master Ji, I'm truly sorry. I didn't expect to get you wrongly accused! The five of us are not worth dying for, but please, Lord Ji Feng, take Young Master Ji and leave this place quickly!"

Ye Yuan smiled and said, "You fools, he's using your loyalty to eliminate dissidents, and you're just walking right into his trap to be killed."

Li Hong was stunned and asked in confusion, "Young Master Ji, what do you mean by that?"

Ye Yuan waved his hand but did not explain clearly. Instead, he said, "Don't worry about what I mean for now. Take us to see the young chief."

It wasn't that Ye Yuan didn't want to say more, but there were some things he couldn't say at the moment.

As an outsider, if he said too much about the tribe's affairs, it would inevitably seem like sowing discord and arouse suspicion.

Moreover, since Zhushan insisted that he and Li Hong had colluded to kill the young chief, it was even harder to speak up.

"But the young chief has already..." Li Hong's expression darkened.

Ye Yuan patted Li Hong on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Let's take a look first! You and the young chief are like brothers; you can't even see him one last time, can you?"

With that pat, Li Hong finally mustered his courage and nodded firmly.

"Even if the chief strikes me dead with one palm, I must kowtow to the young chief!" Li Hong said.

Then he turned to Zhushan and said, "Elder Zhushan, please allow me to kowtow and apologize to the young chief. I will kill myself in front of him to atone for my sins!"

Ye Yuan was taken aback but said nothing. With him around, Li Hong might not even have the chance to kill himself!

"Kill yourself to atone? With these two outsiders? Aren't you planning to make a scene at the funeral? What are you waiting for? Attack!" Zhushan said.

"Stop!" Just as everyone was about to act, a sharp shout rang out.

Seeing the newcomer, Li Hong's face lit up with joy: "Elder Limin!"

Li Min nodded slightly and said to Zhushan, "The chief has ordered them to enter and explain the situation. If it truly was a deliberate delay, it won't be too late to punish them then."

With that, Li Min turned and went inside.

Li Hong was overjoyed. With the chief's order, he believed Zhushan wouldn't dare say anything more.

Zhushan's face turned pale as he watched Li Min, clearly not expecting the chief to already know what had happened outside.

...

The group entered the inner hall, where a coffin lay in the center, presumably containing the young chief.

As soon as Li Hong and the others saw the young chief's coffin, they burst into tears and knelt before it.

"Young chief, it's all my fault, Li Hong, for being useless, that caused your death!" Li Hong, a grown man, wept like a child.

Seeing this, Ye Yuan understood the deep brotherly bond between Li Hong and the young chief.

Zhushan followed them in and sneered at the scene, "Li Hong, stop putting on an act! The young chief's illness was probably caused by you in the first place!"

"Zhushan, don't jump to conclusions. The chief will make his own judgment!" Li Min frowned.

Zhushan was about to say more when an old man seated at the head spoke calmly, "Xiao Hong... come here."

This old man was clearly a strong cultivator at the ninth level of the Sea of Qi, but his face was haggard and gloomy.

His voice was not loud, but Li Hong's body trembled violently, and he stopped crying.

"Chief, Xiao Hong... is guilty! Xiao Hong came too late!" Li Hong fell to his knees with a thud, choked with emotion as he held out the Purple Illusion Blood Ginseng.

The chief sighed softly but did not take the ginseng. Instead, he said, "Xiao Hong, you and Xiao Yang grew up under my watch. I know your bond. But this time... ah... tell me about the process of obtaining this Purple Illusion Blood Ginseng."

Li Hong nodded and recounted in detail how they had obtained the ginseng, including how Ye Yuan had saved them.

While Li Hong spoke, the old chief glanced briefly at Ye Yuan but said nothing.

"So you didn't delay at all?"

"Chief, Li Yang and I are like brothers. He was gravely ill and dying; how could I dare to tarry for even a moment? But I never expected... in the end, I was still too late!" Li Hong was full of self-reproach.

At this, another old man seated at the head snorted coldly, "Li Hong! Your being 'too late' is quite convenient! Xiao Yang passed away just last night, and today you arrive at the tribe with outsiders!"

Li Hong frowned and was about to speak when the chief sighed and said, "Xiao Hong, after Xiao Yang breathed his last yesterday, the council of elders made a decision..."

The chief didn't finish, but everyone present knew what he was going to say.

Clearly, the council had already convicted him, blaming Li Hong entirely for Li Yang's death.

Li Hong took a deep breath, stood up, and walked slowly to Li Yang's coffin. He said slowly, "Li Yang, we practiced swords together as children, stole the chief's pills together, and fought together. I never thought you would leave first! It's my fault for not bringing back the Purple Illusion Blood Ginseng in time! But I never betrayed you; heaven and earth bear witness! Li Yang, I'm coming to join you!"

With that, Li Hong channeled his yuan power and struck his own crown with his palm!

Zhushan and Zhu Tian watched this scene with smug sneers on their lips.

But just as Li Hong's hand was about to touch his crown, a figure appeared beside him like a ghost.

"Slap!"

Li Hong's hand was knocked away!

"Young Master Ji! Why did you stop me!" Li Hong exclaimed in surprise.

Ye Yuan smiled faintly: "Even if you die, you won't be able to accompany him."