Qin Xiao's voice carried far and wide, echoing across the mountaintop.

The crowd, which had been in a state of panic, calmed down considerably upon hearing human voices.

At least they didn't kill anyone, which proves that they can still negotiate.

The crowd whispered among themselves, "Qin Xiao? Who is that?"

"This name sounds familiar, have you heard of it before?"

"Idiot, that's Qin Xiao from Qingzhou, the world youth champion!"

"Ah! It's him!"

Hearing his subordinates chattering amongst themselves, Zhang Zhanlin's expression darkened.

"Shut the fuck up!"

The sound echoed and everyone fell silent.

Qin Xiao looked at the man who had stepped forward from the crowd and asked again, "So, what's your decision?"

Zhang Zhanlin forced a smile and said, "Your Excellency is a hero of Qingzhou and a leading figure among the younger generation of Huawu Kingdom. Are you trying to bully us common folk?"

Qin Xiao looked bored. Was this some kind of moral blackmail?

"Shut the fuck up! Either I beat you to death, or get the hell out of here!"

Qin Xiao said fiercely, "Of course, I won't kill him, but driving him away is no problem."

These people didn't kill any members of the Flying Snow team, and they were quite restrained; they even wanted to negotiate.

Zhang Zhanlin was furious and about to say something when someone behind him pulled him back.

"Commander, we can't win! Don't be impulsive!"

Distracted, Zhang Zhanlin realized what was happening and waved his hand angrily.

"Since you've asked for it, how could we dare refuse? However, the Flying Snow Team members are also among them..."

Qin Xiao's lips curled into a smile, revealing his desire to have what he couldn't have himself and therefore not want others to have.

He reached out and hugged Liu Feixue, then jumped off Youyou's back.

"The Flying Snow Team? The captain is already mine, so of course they're mine. Stop talking nonsense and get lost."

Zhang Zhanlin and his men stared wide-eyed, their faces filled with surprise and astonishment.

Liu Feixue's face flushed slightly, though it wasn't visible on her face. In fact, she was pinching Qin Xiao's soft flesh hard behind her back.

"Haha, in that case, we'll take our leave. You are truly a role model for us all, we admire you greatly!"

"Brothers, let's retreat!"

After he finished speaking, the scene became chaotic, with all sorts of vehicles and tamed beasts running around, leaving behind a mess.

Qin Xiao shook his head. "These guys have no sense of public morality at all. They leave behind so much garbage, polluting the environment!"

As he spoke, he pretended to be calm and walked towards the teleportation portal.

Liu Feixue's voice rang out softly.

"You think that's all?"

Qin Xiao paused, turning around in surprise.

"What? That's it?"

Seeing the other party pretending to be stupid, Liu Feixue was furious.

"You can send them away with any excuse, or even without an excuse."

"This so-called negotiation is nothing more than a contest of might; why are you saying I'm yours... ruining my reputation!"

"Hey, I didn't think that much about it. I just felt that this reason was more plausible. I'm sorry, I apologize to you."

Seeing that the other party showed no sincerity whatsoever, Liu Feixue fell silent.

She discovered that she really couldn't do anything to the other person.

At this moment, Liu Piaoxu and Ye Qinghuan also came over.

"Brother Qin Xiao, do you really like mature women?"

Liu Piaoxu asked innocently.

Qin Xiao's cheeks twitched, and Ye Qinghuan, who was also staring at him with wide eyes, blushed even more.

"Cough cough, what nonsense are you talking about? Let's go, let's go into the secret realm and take a look."

As he spoke, Qin Xiao stepped inside first.

On the other side of the portal, a teleportation array was set up in a square, where a large number of people had surrounded the portal, making it impossible to pass through.

As soon as Qin Xiao stepped out of the teleportation portal, countless eyes were cast upon him from the plaza.

"Holy crap, what's going on?"

Qin Xiao subconsciously made a sarcastic remark.

Looking at the figures dressed in moon-white outfits covering the entire mountainside.

Ancient costume, long hair, crown, holding a sharp sword—hey, you know what, it really has that feel to it.

"Qin... Qin Xiao?"

Qin Xiao turned around and saw a bald man standing beside him. "Brother Zhang, long time no see!"

Zhang Shanli chuckled and said, "You're quite something now, aren't you? It's my turn to say hello to you."

"No need for that, we're old friends."

Qin Xiao remained neither humble nor arrogant, which pleased Zhang Shanli.

"Hey, where's our captain?"

Just then, Liu Feixue and the others emerged from the portal behind them.

"Here we are, aren't we? And also, from now on you won't have a captain anymore, you'll be the captain."

Zhang Shanli was completely dumbfounded. This surprise came too fast!

"This...this is unacceptable. I am not worthy of such an honor. I cannot bear this responsibility."

"Then I'll have someone else do it."

"Hey, no need. I'm the vice-captain, after all. Who else but me? I'll take the job without hesitation!"

Zhang Shanli looked righteous and indignant, which amused Qin Xiao; he was quite a character.

"Aren't you going to ask what's going on with your captain?"

Zhang Shanli stroked his bald head and said, "Hehe, either you'll be taken in as a subordinate or taken into someone's household, it's all the same thing."

In any case, our captain won't be shortchanged, so what's there to ask?

Qin Xiao was taken aback by what he said; he hadn't expected this guy to have such great wisdom.

Just as he was about to exchange a few words with the other party, Liu Feixue's voice rang out.

"Zhang Shanli, if you don't speak, no one will think you're an idiot!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Shanli shrank his bald head and looked at the other person with righteous indignation.

"Captain, you're here. What's the situation?"

Liu Feixue thought to herself that she must have forgotten to check the almanac before going out today. These two scoundrels were singing in unison, and she was getting furious.

However, since the other party was getting serious, she didn't want to interrupt.

"The people who were blocking the way have been driven away, and this secret realm is ours now."

Zhang Shanli nodded, not surprised at all.

"Let me ask you, what's going on here?"

Liu Feixue hadn't entered this secret realm yet, so she was also a bit confused.

Zhang Shanli was also somewhat amused and exasperated, "This teleportation portal opened at such a convenient time; it's opened right in front of someone else's sect's training ground."

"We've been here for less than half an hour, and the entire square is blocked. Aside from gathering some basic intelligence and sending people back to report, we haven't done anything else."

"Why not just retreat and guard the portal? What's the point of this stalemate?"

Zhang Shanli scratched his head. "Although those cowards outside won't actually make a move, going out would only make us vulnerable to attacks from both sides, and there's also the possibility that they might take over the secret realm. So we have no choice but to remain in this stalemate."

Qin Xiao nodded; Zhang Shanli had handled the situation well.

As long as we stabilize the situation and occupy the secret realm, they will always be in the right.

If we withdraw, we won't have as much leverage or legitimacy in negotiations.

Qin Xiao asked curiously, "Then what's going on with all those people surrounding this place but not making a move?"

Speaking of this, Zhang Shanli couldn't help but laugh.