Chapter 766: Spending Money to Hire People

With over a dozen late-stage Golden Immortals present, the situation seemed rather tricky.
Without much thought, Su Che knew that no matter how powerful the Yin-Yang Duo were, they couldn’t withstand a combined attack from such foes. Moreover, the couple couldn’t risk their lives fighting for their own interests.
Faced with such a formidable alliance, not to mention the over a dozen early-stage Golden Immortals at his side, even bringing back the other thirty who were out capturing prisoners wouldn’t help.
Su Che wasn’t worried about his own life being threatened; he just didn’t want anyone to disrupt his plan to capture the Xuanxian prisoners.
To advance to the Xuanxian realm, he needed at least 5,000 Immortal Infant Fruits, but he currently had less than 2,000—far from enough!
Lao Heremind, “What about Qi Yuan Star? Should I go and drive those guys away?”
“Not yet!” Su Che replied firmly. “It’s not good to live too peacefully. We should make them truly feel some external pressure. Only with pressure can there be motivation.”
His doppelgänger had remained hidden within Tianxuan Sect precisely to prevent them from knowing that there was a protector on Qi Yuan Star, as that would eliminate any sense of urgency or crisis among them.
At that moment, the over a dozen late-stage Golden Immortals prisoners arrived above the valley. One of them, a Golden Immortal with a purplish-golden face, shouted coldly, “Yin-Yang Duo, come out and talk!”
The figures of the Yin-Yang Duo appeared atop the mountain. The Yang Evil Spirit called out to them, “What are you guys doing in our territory?”
“What’s the reason for the large number of Xuanxians who have gone missing in recent months?”
The purplish-faced Golden Immortal’s gaze was sharp, as if he were a heavenly judge. “Don’t try to fool us. Everyone knows that you two have already captured all the Xuanxian prisoners in this area. This must be related to you.”
The Yang Evil Spirit laughed first before answering, “What happens in our territory is indeed done by us, and we’ve never tried to hide it. But in recent months, my wife and I have stayed on this mountain, never leaving. We dare swear to heaven about this!”
The expressions of the over a dozen late-stage Golden Immortals in the sky changed slightly. They could tell that the Yang Evil Spirit wasn’t lying. More importantly, in this Realm of Punishment, no prisoner would dare lie openly by swearing to heaven unless they truly wanted to die.
So, if it wasn’t the Yin-Yang Duo, then who could it be?

After a brief silence, the Purple-Faced Golden Immortal asked again, “Then tell us—why did the two of you capture all the Mysterious Immortals in your territory back then? What was the real reason?”
The Yin-Yang Duo hesitated for a moment, considering whether to send a message to Su Che in the valley to ask for the truth, when Su Che’s voice rang in their ears: “It’s fine to speak it out.”
So, the Yang Evil Spirit spoke loudly to those late-stage Golden Immortals, “If we reveal the true reason, I’m afraid you’ll find it hard to believe.”
“Tell us then,” the Purple-Faced Golden Immortal said in a deep voice.
“This action was approved by the Supreme Immortal himself!”
The Yang Evil Spirit uttered astonishing words: “A powerful being entered the Realm of Punishment to craft a miraculous pill for the Supreme Immortal. He needed a large number of true immortal prisoners as sacrifices to eliminate the evils of the world and the heart demons of all living beings. The two of us merely assisted—hence…”
In the valley, Su Che smiled inwardly. Although Yang Evil Spirit’s explanation was based on his own assumptions, it was somewhat close to the truth.
Yet this very explanation had an unimaginable effect, instantly stunning the Purple-Faced Golden Immortal and the others.
According to Yang Evil Spirit, it all came down to doing the Supreme Immortal’s bidding. Such matters carried immense weight; if it weren’t true, who would dare to speak nonsense and fabricate lies?
“Is this true?” the Purple-Faced Golden Immortal asked gravely.
“Believe it or not, it’s up to you.”
Yang Evil Spirit waved his hand nonchalantly. “My wife and I still have plenty of time left to live. We wouldn’t dare fabricate lies in such matters and offend the supreme authority of the Supreme Immortal.”
The Purple-Faced Golden Immortal frowned deeply, turned to communicate with the others via telepathy, then said to Yang Evil Spirit, “Could you let us meet that powerful being you mentioned?”
“I can only ask on your behalf. Whether it’s possible or not isn’t up to us.”
Yang Evil Spirit nodded and immediately sent a message to Su Che in the valley to inquire.
In fact, the Purple-Faced Golden Immortal and the others had already noticed an invisible Mysterious Array hidden in the valley below and guessed that the powerful being Yang Evil Spirit spoke of must be inside it.
After waiting for dozens of breaths, Su Che slowly stepped out of the Qianyuan Mysterious Array, surrounded by a dozen or so Golden Immortals. On such an important moment, he certainly wouldn’t skimp on energy, so he activated the ultimate state with a hundredfold amplification.
Huh?
Just by appearing, he astonished those late-stage Golden Immortals: Just a Heavenly Immortal? No! His cultivation level seemed that of a Heavenly Immortal, yet he also possessed the strength of a Golden Immortal.
Such a peculiar figure was truly unprecedented!

Moreover, some people recognized that among the early-stage Golden Immortals who clearly served as bodyguards around Su Che, several of their faces were unmistakably those of long-time death prisoners from the Realm of Punishment.
When did they become this person’s close guards?
No one is stupid; just based on these facts, it’s clear that this person is extremely extraordinary!
After all, even those of them at the late-stage Golden Immortal level couldn’t transform a dozen early-stage Golden Immortals into such close attendants in just a few months.
Not to mention whether it’s possible, even if these early-stage Golden Immortals voluntarily said, “Lord, we are willing to follow you,” no late-stage Golden Immortal would dare to let them follow closely.
You can know a person’s face but not their heart. If these guys united and attacked from behind, even a late-stage Golden Immortal would be in serious trouble, possibly even dying.
Yet this young man, who seemed like an immortal yet wasn’t one, had clearly accomplished something that none of us could.
“Try not to disturb me while I refine pills.”
Su Che acted like some great figure, not even glancing at the dozen late-stage Golden Immortals floating in the air. His gaze was distant and deep, seemingly fixed on nowhere in particular.
He simply said calmly, “From today onward, one Xuan Immortal death prisoner is worth 20,000 Immortal Crystals. Whoever is interested, go capture them. Money for goods—no delays!”
After saying that, surrounded by his subordinates, Su Che slowly turned and returned to hide within the mystic array. He never once looked directly at a particular person.
That’s the kind of presence expected from a great figure.
Su Che himself knew this approach was pretentious, but at certain times, it was necessary—absolutely essential, even if he didn’t want to.
Conversely, what would happen if he treated these death prisoners with humility and kindness?
One Xuan Immortal death prisoner cost 20,000 Immortal Crystals—5,000 of them would only amount to 100 million.
Su Che could afford that amount.
The Realm of Punishment had no natural resources at all, not even a trace of Immortal Energy. If these death prisoners wanted to continue cultivating, their only option was to steal Immortal Crystals from others.
Old prisoners robbing new ones, the stronger ones taking from the weaker—such was the reality.
The little Immortal Crystals they brought with them had long been exhausted, leaving them no choice but to steal.
20,000 Immortal Crystals for one Xuan Immortal death prisoner—this price was neither high nor low. Those who wanted to do it, do it; those who didn’t, get lost.

The Purple-Faced Golden Immortal and the others were momentarily stunned. They had intended to converse with this “great power” to gauge his strength and test his capabilities, but unexpectedly, he offered such a high price and then left right away, not even bothering to say another word to them.

The purpose of the dozen or so people gathering here was originally to attack them. Could it be that their next step was to serve him as well, capturing large numbers of Xuanxian death prisoners in exchange for Immortal Crystals?

“How many Immortal Crystals does this guy have?” someone couldn’t help but wonder, but in the blink of an eye, they completely abandoned the idea of robbing him.

Robbing him? If this person really came here to refine pills for the Immortal Lord, wouldn’t robbing him be seeking death?

The more they were death prisoners, the more afraid they were of death and the less willing they were to die.

“A single Xuanxian death prisoner can be exchanged for 20,000 Immortal Crystals! Such a price even tempted my spouse and me,” Yin Sha said slowly, adding fuel to the fire just right. “But it’s better for us to stay here and act as guards for the lord.”

Yang Sha seized the opportunity to say, “Those Xuanxian death prisoners—well, if they die, they die. What benefit can keeping them bring you? It’s better to exchange them all for real Immortal Crystals!”

Indeed, here, various immortal weapons and treasures weren’t very valuable. After all, each person could control only a few at a time, and having more was useless. Only Immortal Crystals were indispensable consumables—each one used reduced the supply. If one lived in the Punishment Realm for thousands of years, they would surely become penniless.

The Purple-Faced Golden Immortal and the others exchanged silent messages among themselves. Finally, he bowed and asked the valley below, “May I ask, if we capture large numbers of Xuanxian death prisoners, will the Immortal Lord impose punishment?”

“No.”

Su Che’s audacity grew by the day. Under the guise of the Evil Emperor Immortal Lord, he dared to say anything: “If we fail to produce the pills required by the Evil Emperor Immortal Lord by the deadline, there will be no need for the Punishment Realm to exist anymore. You can figure out the consequences by yourselves.”

At these words, everyone paled.

If the Punishment Realm disappeared, they, as death prisoners, would never be freed. Their fate would be to vanish along with it.

“Let’s go!” The Purple-Faced Golden Immortal and the others turned and left.

Whether it was true or not, they couldn’t afford to take the risk. Losing meant paying with their lives.

Lao He laughed and said, “Master, your acting skills are getting better and better.”

“That’s not acting.”
Su Che replied half-seriously, half casually, “That’s just the way it is. I’ll bet you that the Realm of the Evil Emperor’s Punishment will vanish from the world the day I leave here. If you don’t believe it, just wait and see.”
“Is that so?”
Lao He was skeptical.
At the same time, from a high position outside the Realm of Punishment, someone laughed and said, “Evil Emperor, it seems this child has figured out your thoughts.”
“Hmph…”
A delicate voice chuckled lightly, “That’s right. If he can’t understand my intentions, then he deserves to be despised.”