At that moment, Lu Zixun, enduring the pain that kept flooding his mind, flipped over and climbed to his feet.
Looking at the person who appeared in the room, his eyebrows raised slightly with a touch of surprise in his eyes.
It was truly odd for Ye Changming to show up here.
"What are you doing here?"
Having heard from Xiong Kang what good deeds Ye Changming had done, Wang Duli naturally didn’t have a favorable expression towards Ye Changming.
Trapped by the talisman, Ye Changming’s face showed no signs of panic.
"With Mr. Wang in good health, I am relieved," he said calmly as he looked at Wang Duli.
"You’ve always been one to visit only when you have an ulterior motive, and furthermore..."
Pausing for a moment, Wang Duli’s eyes flashed with murderous intent, "As a human, you actually helped the Insect Clan. Aren’t you afraid I’ll kill you?"
Facing Wang Duli’s murderous aura, Ye Changming seemed remarkably calm, "The incident in zone q was an accident. If I said I didn’t betray humanity, would you believe me... Uncle Wang?"
Hearing Ye Changming’s address for Wang Duli, Lu Zixun turned his head to glance at Wang Duli.
What was this situation? Wang Duli was actually Ye Changming’s uncle?
His gaze flickered a few times.
Wang Duli sighed, "How could you expect me to trust you?"
With a bitter smile, Ye Changming shrugged, "I know what happened in Chunhua City makes it hard for people to trust, and the reason I’m here today is to seek your help, Uncle Wang."
"Are you trying to use me?"
Suspicion flickering in his eyes as he stared at Ye Changming, Wang Duli questioned him.
Ye Changming opened his mouth, a clear look of dejection in his eyes.
Finally, he sighed, "I’ve never thought of it that way. My purpose in getting close to Tan Ye from the beginning was to help humanity."
Watching Ye Changming for a while, Wang Duli’s expression became focused.
Ye Changming was someone he had watched grow up since childhood.
Wang Duli had not believed the accusations of Ye Changming betraying humanity before.
Not until he witnessed the tragedy in zone q with his own eyes, which left Wang Duli heartbroken.
But now that Ye Changming had come to him to plead his case, Wang Duli’s doubts resurfaced.
Even though Ye Changming’s actions and style were typically self-serving,
There was one indisputable fact—if this was indeed his doing, Ye Changming would disdain lying.
Considering the situation within the Crimson Land and Ye Changming’s predicament,
Wang Duli raised an eyebrow, "You’re not defecting, but you want to be independent."
"Uncle Wang is indeed worthy of the name."
Nodding slightly to confirm Wang Duli’s thoughts, Ye Changming pursed his lips, "Under your guidance, how could your nephew possibly commit treason against humanity? I was just caught off guard and outmaneuvered by Tan Ye once."
Narrowing his eyes at Ye Changming, his hands crossed and rested on his chin.
Lu Zixun said indifferently, "If you haven’t betrayed humanity, why did you choose to stand with the Insect Clan initially? Could it be that you wanted to be a fence-sitter?"
Faced with Lu Zixun’s mockery, Ye Changming’s face showed no sign of anger.
Instead, he shook his head, "You are mistaken. Since I had already been outplayed by Tan Ye, standing on what seemed to be the opposing side of humanity, I might as well go all the way and turn the tables on them."
Upon hearing this, Lu Zixun, who had been hanging his head, fell into deep thought.
Ye Changming’s words must contain some truth.
After all, what Wang Duli said was that Ye Changming was not betraying but wanted independence.
So the most crucial point, and what Lu Zixun couldn’t understand, was what exactly Ye Changming wanted to be independent from.
"That was a terrible move."
With a cold snort, Wang Duli unlocked the talisman, "Now everyone in the city knows that Ye Changming of the Ye Family has betrayed humanity and sided with the Insect Clan. As long as Tan Ye throws out evidence of your allegiance with the humans, all members of the Ye family will perish because of your foolish pursuit of independence."
Ye Changming bowed his hands towards Wang Duli with a helpless expression on his face, "About this matter, nephew understands clearly. It is precisely for this reason that I came to visit Uncle today. If I fail..."
Ye Changming paused, revealing a bitter smile, "I’d beseech Uncle to save the younger generation of my Ye Family, to preserve a trace of the Ye family lineage."
Looking at Ye Changming, who clearly had a death wish, Lu Zixun grew even more puzzled. What kind of independence could be more important than one’s own life?
The room plunged into silence for a moment.
Licking his front paw, Lu Zixun asked, "I’ve always thought you were a very astute person. What kind of independence would make you fight so desperately?"
Upon hearing Lu Zixun’s question, hesitation appeared on Ye Changming’s face, as if he were considering whether or not to reveal the truth.
Naturally, Lu Zixun noticed the expression on Ye Changming’s face and smiled, "Of course, you can also choose to say nothing."
Gnashing his teeth, Ye Changming finally said, "To take back Jade Emperor Mountain."
Lu Zixun cocked his head and glanced at Wang Duli, growing more puzzled inside.
Previously, Nie Mingjiao had come and mentioned that Jade Emperor Mountain had been guarded for a long time.
So now Ye Changming’s talk of independence was actually about reclaiming Jade Emperor Mountain. What was this all about?
Roaring angrily, Wang Duli scoffed, "Jade Emperor Mountain is protected by the Purple Mansion. Can’t you just behave and stay put? Why stir up this talk of independence? Do you have nothing better to do?"
Knowing Wang Duli would say something , Ye Changming sighed and pulled a scale resembling that of a snake from his chest, "Uncle Wang, you should be familiar with this."
Seeing the pattern on the scale, Wang Duli seemed uncertain.
Ye Changming nodded and narrowed his eyes, "It is the scale of the Thorny Snake, an Insect Clan creature difficult to detect that parasitizes the human body and only reveals its true form during molting."
"I found this scale in the courtyard when I went to Purple Mansion for a setup."
Lu Zixun, who had some idea of what the Thorny Snake was, licked his fur and asked leisurely, "So the question is, what does this have to do with you? It might be that the Insect Clan deliberately dropped it in."
"You don’t understand."
Wang Duli shook his head, his face looking somewhat grim, "The Purple Mansion is renowned; if any Insect Clan creature could enter its premises, it would be a disgrace. If what Xiao Ye says is true, then... that’s dangerous."
"The Purple Mansion’s long-held high status is not necessarily a good thing."
With a flicker of coldness in his eyes, Ye Changming muttered, "The moment I saw the scale, I went to visit the current Family Head of Purple Mansion, Nie Yuanqing."
"Arrogant and conceited Nie Yuanqing called my claims nonsense and had me thrown out of Purple Mansion."
Wang Duli frowned, somewhat incredulous, "I’ve met Yuanqing, and he’s not like that."
"Uncle Wang, people change."
Pressing his lips together, Ye Changming sighed, "I didn’t want to believe he had changed, until..."
With hate flickering in his eyes, Ye Changming enunciated every word, "I was relentlessly pursued by the men of Purple Mansion, driven out of the Human Gathering Place."