Chapter 3472

“Huh? Could I have heard that wrong?” Ye Liuyun found it unbelievable as well.

So he immediately contacted Peng Lie through their master-servant contract.

After learning what had happened, Peng Lie confirmed to Ye Liuyun that Wan Shi Tong definitely had not sent out a voice transmission. After Ye Liuyun left, Peng Lie had kept a close eye on Wan Shi Tong the entire time and had noticed nothing unusual about him.

However, Peng Lie also reminded Ye Liuyun, “If it isn’t just a similar voice, then he must have a clone!”

Ye Liuyun suddenly understood. “So Wan Shi Tong is the leader of this band of bandits, and he has another clone hidden among the expedition team as an inside man.”

Peng Lie agreed. “That should be the case. But it’s still hard to say whether he’s the top leader. There may be someone behind him.”

“Then keep a close eye on him, and don’t let your guard down. I’ll go eliminate some of the indigenous martial cultivators and search their souls for information while I’m at it. Contact me immediately if anything happens!”

After giving Peng Lie those instructions, Ye Liuyun went after the indigenous martial cultivators.

The indigenous martial cultivators had relatively weak souls, making it convenient for him to launch sneak attacks with his soul power. Moreover, he was worried that the mercenaries might have contracts in their spiritual seas, which would allow Wan Shi Tong to discover him the moment he made a move.

Ye Liuyun figured that the mercenary bandits probably hadn’t signed contracts with all the indigenous martial cultivators. Therefore, by targeting the ordinary indigenous martial cultivators, he could both search their souls for information and avoid alerting the enemy beforehand.

His plan worked exactly as expected. He followed a group of indigenous martial cultivators while concealed in the void. Not only did they fail to notice him, but when he launched a soul attack on the last indigenous martial cultivator, the others didn’t notice anything either.

The souls of these indigenous martial cultivators were indeed relatively weak, and they paid no attention to that fleeting fluctuation of spiritual sense. They could never have imagined that someone would attack so openly on their own territory.

The martial cultivator attacked by Ye Liuyun was instantly branded with a slave mark. Ye Liuyun then searched his soul and confirmed his suspicions.

In their eyes, the youth called Wan Shi Tong was the leader of that mercenary group, and he had been cooperating with them for a long time. Each time, he would blend into an expedition team as an inside man and lead it into an ambush by the indigenous people. The resources they obtained would then be divided equally between the mercenaries and the indigenous people.

For teams that didn’t look for a guide, they would arrange for one of their own people to follow and monitor them. Even when a team did hire a guide, the guides here were all bandits from their group in disguise.

The others would ultimately use various excuses to ensure that they couldn’t reach an agreement with the expedition team, guaranteeing that Wan Shi Tong would be the only one who could become the team’s guide.

By now, the indigenous people had received Wan Shi Tong’s orders, and all knew not to kill the woman in the group. They had been told that she could be exchanged for a huge ransom.

“Has Chen Yueying’s identity been exposed?”

Ye Liuyun was extremely surprised when he learned this through soul-searching. Wan Shi Tong truly was capable. Although Chen Yueying had chatted with him quite a bit, she definitely wouldn’t have revealed her background. He hadn’t expected Wan Shi Tong to deduce it anyway.

However, these indigenous people didn’t know that Wan Shi Tong had a clone. So for the moment, Ye Liuyun could only speculate about that.

He immediately told Peng Lie what he had learned as well, so that Peng Lie wouldn’t let his guard down.

“Should we notify the others?” Peng Lie asked Ye Liuyun.

“Don’t tell them for now, lest that fellow become wary. He’s a real sly one. We’ll see what happens when we reach their ambush site. I’ll try to eliminate as many of the indigenous people as possible first.”

Ye Liuyun merely had Peng Lie monitor Wan Shi Tong while he followed behind the indigenous group, taking control of them one by one.

According to the memories of the indigenous people, their leader also had a soul contract with the clan chief. So although he followed three groups in succession, he didn’t take control of their leaders, only taking control of most of the other members.

He then used the Thousand Illusions Technique to transform himself into an indigenous person and pretended to be making a routine inspection, wandering around near the mercenaries who had already set up their ambush.

When the mercenaries saw that it was just an ordinary indigenous martial cultivator approaching, they paid him little attention. They even assumed he was deliberately putting on an act and cooperated with him enthusiastically.

Chen Yueying’s group was also making its way toward this location and was about to enter their ambush. They soon noticed the indigenous martial cultivator disguised as Ye Liuyun as well.

Wan Shi Tong immediately suggested to Chen Yueying, “A lone indigenous martial cultivator is completely safe to attack, and it’s also perfect practice for you. This is a rare opportunity! Sister Chen, your luck is truly excellent!”

Chen Yueying had been walking for half a day and had talked enough with Wan Shi Tong. When she heard him say that it was absolutely safe, she immediately charged toward the indigenous martial cultivator. Peng Lie promptly led his people over as well. Only then did he send a voice transmission to everyone, explaining Wan Shi Tong’s true intentions.

After discovering Chen Yueying, Ye Liuyun pretended to flee, luring them into the trap the bandits had prepared.

By the time Chen Yueying noticed the mercenaries’ encirclement, they were already unable to escape.

“Are these mercenaries lying in ambush for us? That indigenous person passed right by them, so why didn’t they stop him?” Chen Yueying also realized that something was wrong.

However, she trusted Wan Shi Tong too much, and he managed to fool her with just a few casual words.

“They’re probably familiar with the indigenous people and don’t want to get into a conflict with them! Those mercenaries are far weaker than you are. How could they possibly dare to ambush you?

“I figure they’re trying to hunt some vicious beasts here and just happened to run into us. I’m fairly familiar with them and can talk to them. I’ll go ask what’s going on with you!”

Wan Shi Tong even tried to coax Chen Yueying into going over with him.

At that moment, Peng Lie stepped forward and positioned himself between Wan Shi Tong and Chen Yueying.

“No. The boss gave orders that Miss Chen isn’t allowed to take any risks!”

Peng Lie then took out a formation plate and set it up. “Miss Chen, the boss wants you to enter the formation. He also told me to remind you to learn from what happened last time!”

“Hmm?” Wan Shi Tong immediately sensed that something might have changed. Relying on Chen Yueying’s support, he promptly said to Peng Lie, “What do you mean by that? Don’t you trust me?

“Sister Chen, say something for me. Do you really think I’d harm you?” He even asked Chen Yueying to speak on his behalf.

Chen Yueying did indeed feel that Wan Shi Tong was trustworthy. However, Ye Liuyun’s reminder had also made her a little more cautious.

“How could I not trust you? Liuyun probably thinks the situation ahead is unclear, so I’ll be safer inside the formation!”

Thus, although she said that she trusted him, she did not step out of the formation.

Peng Lie confirmed as well, “That’s right. The boss said that you’d be in danger if you left the formation! Since those mercenaries came to ambush us, we’ll strike first!”

He then waved to the others. “Follow me! Kill those mercenaries!”

The others immediately charged out, leaving no one behind to protect Chen Yueying. Ye Liuyun had arranged it this way deliberately, to see whether Chen Yueying could resist temptation and refrain from stepping out of the formation again.