Li Yu's gaze calmly fell on the distraught Han Qing, and she spoke softly:

"Now, who do you think is luckier?"

This seemingly casual remark jolted Han Qing awake from his daze.

He suddenly realized his current predicament. Li Yu and the firebird could kill him as easily as crushing an ant!

"Li... no, it's you! Of course, you're luckier!" Han Qing was almost incoherent:

"I was blind before! I was blinded by greed and misled by the Ao family, which is why I dared to offend you! I deserve to die!"

From the moment the phoenix descended, he seemed to know that his fate was already sealed.

In order to survive, Han Qing did not hesitate to abandon all his pride, groveled before Li Yu, and hastily shifted all the blame onto the Ao family.

Just then, Xiao Zhan strode over, deliberately lowering his voice as he approached Li Yu:

“Li Yu, the technological level and weapon standardization of these ‘steel-cast’ weapons are not something that ordinary forces and families could independently develop and possess.”

"This must involve enormous resources, top-notch scientific research capabilities, and a strong industrial base." Xiao Zhan's tone was solemn.

“I initially suspected that the steel casting might have come from a secret project of the Central State Military Department, but now it seems that's not the case. If the Central State authorities were aware of this, they would never have allowed them to attack a Star Lord, much less colluded with the Ao family.”

Xiao Zhan frowned, his heart filled with questions and vigilance:

"There is a high possibility that a huge arms factory is hidden within the territory of Zhongzhou."

Upon hearing this, Li Yu's gaze swept over the piles of scrap metal again, his eyes turning cold. He then looked at Han Qing, who was pleading for his life, and asked directly:

"Where did these things come from?"

Hearing Li Yu ask, Han Qing grasped at a straw and hurriedly answered, afraid of being even a second too slow:

"It's Zhou Zhenbei!"

"It was General Zhou Zhenbei who provided the reinforcements. He and the Ao family joined forces to deal with you, which is why they sent Gangzhu. I didn't know about this before!"

Han Qing tried her best to portray herself as an innocent minor character who was being used by the Ao family and Zhou Zhenbei.

“Zhou Zhenbei…”

Li Yu repeated the name in a cold tone, without much surprise on her face.

After Zhou Xiaopeng's death, Zhou Zhenbei will never swallow this humiliation. He will definitely use all his power to take revenge on him, and even find an opportunity to completely eliminate him.

Similarly, as long as Young Master Ao remains in his hands, the Ao family will never give up and will inevitably launch a fierce counterattack.

These two forces will not let this go, so it is perfectly normal for them to join forces to deal with him.

Li Yu simply hadn't expected that Zhou Zhenbei could create something like 'steel casting'.

"Zhou Zhenbei! It really is him!" Upon hearing this, Xiao Zhan was immediately enraged, his eyes blazing with murderous intent.

Even the chill emanating from his body spread uncontrollably, instantly freezing the rainwater beneath his feet.

His hatred for Zhou Zhenbei was even stronger than that for Li Yu!

But Xiao Zhan quickly calmed down, his heart filled with vigilance and worry.

The ability to forge steel castings signifies the possession of mature and powerful mechanical legion manufacturing technology, and the existence of an 'arsenal' capable of changing the course of warfare in Central Continent.

And such a powerful production force is actually in the hands of an ambitious person like Zhou Zhenbei!

This is no longer just revenge against Li Yu personally; it poses a huge threat to the stability and security of the Northern Territory and the entire Central Plains!

Xiao Zhan even speculated that the three groups of steel-cast soldiers who came to intercept Li Yu were likely just prototypes or advance troops initially manufactured by Zhou Zhenbei.

If Zhou Zhenbei were given more time to fully deploy the steel casting production line and achieve large-scale production in batches, the consequences would be unimaginable!

By then, even if the Central Plains government wanted to intervene, it would likely have to pay an extremely heavy price, and it might even trigger a civil war within the Central Plains military, causing significant internal casualties.

With that in mind, Xiao Zhan no longer hesitated.

He immediately took out the communicator used by the Star Lord and called Tianlong directly.

As soon as the call connected, Tianlong's calm and concise voice came from the other end of the communicator:

“I am Tianlong, speak.”

If a star deity takes the initiative to contact him, it must be something of great importance, and there is no need for small talk or idle chatter.

Xiao Zhan also spoke very quickly, narrating with a serious tone:

"Zhou Zhenbei secretly mass-produced metal-modified Awakened Ones, pure mechanical war weapons, codenamed 'Steel Casting'! They are extremely powerful in combat."

"Furthermore, they just joined forces with the remnants of the Ao family to ambush and kill me and Li Yu in Black Rain Valley..."

Xiao Zhan quickly, clearly, and without reservation reported everything that had just happened, especially the number of the Steel Cast Legion, the various weapons they were equipped with, and the precise intelligence that Zhou Zhenbei was deeply involved in.

At the very least, he needed to use Tianlong to let the high-ranking officials of Zhongzhou know in advance about the power and potential threat of 'Steel Casting', so that they would realize that they could no longer allow Zhou Zhenbei to continue developing this dangerous force!

After Xiao Zhan finished speaking, Tianlong on the other end of the communicator remained silent for a moment before replying with three heavy and serious words:

"knew."

Although seemingly calm, Xiao Zhan could still sense that behind the words "Tianlong" was a signal that the Central Plains government was about to take serious action.

Then the communicator beeped, and the call ended.

Xiao Zhan put away the communicator, feeling a slight sense of relief.

Everything Zhou Zhenbei had been secretly developing was finally about to be brought to the forefront.

When Li Yu and Xiao Zhan's cold gazes fell on Han Qing again, Han Qing felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave, and was completely terrified.

Faced with this terrifying firebird, his spatial abilities were a joke, and he had no chance of escaping whatsoever.

"It seems you're no longer of any use."

Li Yu stated the facts calmly, announcing the final verdict against Han Qing.

"Wait! Don't kill me!" Han Qing cried out in panic.

Under the threat of death, the brain operates at an unprecedented speed, desperately searching for the last possible bargaining chip to save its life:

Suddenly, Han Qing seemed to have thought of something:

"By the way, the Au family!"

Han Qing hurriedly told Li Yu:

"Not long ago, the Ao family was investigated and dealt with by the Thunder Bureau, and the Ao family mansion in Jincheng was completely destroyed, and all assets under their name were confiscated. Although the Ao family in Jincheng is gone, there are actually many remnants of the Ao family still alive and hiding!"

"The Ao family has been investigated by the Thunder Bureau?" Li Yu looked somewhat surprised when he heard this news.

Seeing that Han Qing had caught Li Yu's attention, he quickly explained in detail:

"That's right, absolutely true."

"The Ao family violated the iron law of Zhongzhou by secretly hiding and using the strategic weapon 'Star Orbit Cannon'. Lord Tianlong caught the evidence, which is why the Thunder Bureau raided the Ao family overnight."

Han Qing lowered his head deeply:

"Before I set off, the Kinjo family was already completely finished!"