The other players also realized they had provoked someone they should not have. Exchanging glances, they felt their legs go weak and couldn't help but kneel.
Their fear of Cui Tian had reached its absolute peak. Rumor had it that Cui Tian killed without batting an eye; if he did blink, it was to kill. On the strength of that single word, "kill," he had become the undisputed boss of the Yuzhou Underworld, bar none.
They kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy. "Please, spare us!"
"We know we were wrong! Please, sir, forgive our foolishness!"
"Please, just let us go! We're nobodies!"
The most arrogant of them, Number Ten, nodded fervently and even crawled to Cui Tian's feet. He shamelessly licked Cui Tian's slippers and feet, which hadn't been washed in days, ignoring the stares of everyone else in the airport.
But Cui Tian wasn't buying it. "Men!" he shouted immediately. "Drag them away and deal with them as they deserve."
"Yes, sir." The men in black suits behind him stepped forward and dragged the players away one by one.
The players all struggled. "No, I don't want to go with you!"
"I'm the hope of Yuzhou soccer! I'm going to play for the national team in the future!"
At the mention of the "national team," the men in black suits grew even angrier. The national team? What a garbage team. They grabbed the players with even more force and dragged them away.
"No, don't!"
These men usually acted cocky and dashing, seducing countless young women. But now, terrified out of their wits, their true, cowardly selves were exposed as they wailed for their mothers and fathers. Some of them had even wet themselves.
The people at the airport exchanged baffled looks. Was this the actual level of the Yuzhou Cuju team? And what about the national team? Selected from local Cuju teams across the country, its players were probably no different from these guys. At that thought, everyone at the airport lost all hope for the national team, concluding it might take another five hundred years for things to change.
Cui Tian approached Wu Tian and said, "Please, come with me to my home. We have plenty of guest rooms. The Sword Competition is this evening."
Wu Tian nodded. Cui Chong had called Cui Tian much earlier, insisting that he take good care of Wu Tian or risk being removed from the family registry. This was a serious matter, and Cui Tian swore to himself that he would have to worship Wu Tian as if he were Lord Guan. In the Underworld, everyone reveres Lord Guan.
"Alright, lead the way," Wu Tian said evenly, holding the little one.
Cui Tian might be formidable, but in Wu Tian's eyes, he was merely average.
Chen Meiling was surprised. Cui Tian had actually come for Wu Tian?
Meanwhile, Wang Renjie, though clever, was unversed in social nuances. Preoccupied with his contract issues, he lacked his usual composure. Cui Tian must have the wrong person. He must have mistaken Wu Tian for me. That has to be why he's treating him so well.
Wang Renjie wanted to step forward and expose the mistake, but he stopped when he remembered Wu Tian was Chen Meiling's friend. He could only sigh. He was afraid that if he upset Chen Meiling, she would refuse to attend the Sword Competition. In that case, he would be liable for the compensation payment, which he couldn't afford.
"Please," Cui Tian said, enthusiastically leading the way.
This was Cui Tian's philosophy on life. People who didn't know him simply thought of him as a ruthless killer. But as far as he was concerned, not a single person who didn't deserve to die had ever died by his hand. For those who didn't deserve it, he found a way to send them off to the Foreign States. That way, he could claim the person was dead, and everyone was satisfied.
Chen Meiling and Wang Renjie listened in disbelief.
Wang Renjie scoffed internally. A house? What's the big deal? I can just draw up a few extra contracts on the side and a house is mine. I really don't get this Cui Tian, the boss of the Yuzhou Underworld.
Cui Tian knew that Wu Tian must have important matters to attend to, so he had his men show Chen Meiling and Wang Renjie to their rooms first.
Wang Renjie seethed with indignation. Cui Tian should be looking for me. Wu Tian is just an imposter!
Fortunately, Wu Tian was unaware of Wang Renjie's thoughts; otherwise, he would have already sent him to the afterlife with a single slap.
Cui Tian invited Wu Tian into the largest container and offered him a seat on the sofa. Wu Tian let the little one play on her own, then looked at Cui Tian. "Have you ever been to Mount Yunmeng?"
"Mount Yunmeng?" Cui Tian's brow furrowed at the question. It was a simple question to answer, yet also complicated. Since Wu Tian was the one asking, Cui Tian knew he had to be truthful. "Mount Yunmeng is a Sacred Land. Its Spiritual Energy is incredibly rich, even more so than at Wudang or Tianshan. Many tourists have visited, but they only think they've seen all of Mount Yunmeng. That isn't true. There is a South Heavenly Gate there, which is actually a Formation. Without knowing how to break it, one can't enter the true interior."
Wu Tian nodded. He was now certain that Mount Yunmeng was where Ghost Valley was located. At the same time, he had other questions. "What's this Sword Competition all about?"
To Wu Tian's surprise, Cui Tian explained, "It's being held by Ghost Valley. To be honest, I'm curious myself. The sects of the Jianghu, the Five Surnames and Seven Families—they all operate in the open. But throughout history, Ghost Valley has remained unique. Almost no one knows its location. It rarely makes a move, except during dynastic changes or struggles for supremacy. So for it to suddenly announce a Sword Competition is unexpected. I've been very concerned about it. I've even heard that people from the Wang Clan of Taiyuan have arrived."
Cui Tian looked worried. Could the foundation he had worked so hard to build in Yuzhou be annihilated by this brazen emergence of Ghost Valley? Or would it be replaced by some outside force?

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