This middle-aged man exuded considerable presence. His hair was streaked with white, and even from a few steps away, it was evident he possessed high caliber, with an aura of authority emanating from his entire being.
"There's no other way. Many people stab you in the back, but they dare not face you directly, so I had to come," the middle-aged man said, spreading his hands in helplessness.
"Executive Director, you should know my purpose in doing all this. Do they really intend to arrest me?" Ye Longlin sneered dismissively.
The Executive Director nodded helplessly. "This is an arrest warrant."
"It was passed by a full vote. Many held opposing views, but it was useless; the yes votes were the majority."
The Executive Director was also helpless; he had been one of the dissenting votes.
The Executive Director executed orders from the Highest Directorate, meaning he was the one conveying the command on their behalf.
"Are you sure?"
A playful smile touched Ye Longlin's lips as he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and lit a cigarette.
Upon hearing this, the Executive Director's brow furrowed. He knew Ye Longlin's personality well; when he spoke like this, it was usually tinged with personal emotion.
It made sense when he thought about it.
The man had fought on the front lines, covered in blood, while a group of people behind the scenes plotted against him. Anyone would be displeased.
"What do you mean?"
The Executive Director took a deep breath, accepting a cigarette from Ye Longlin and lighting it as well.
As wisps of smoke curled upwards, Ye Longlin uttered words that sent a chill down his spine.
"Since you've decided to arrest me, I am now a prisoner. Xuan Niao, release the Red Lotus Demoness. Let her go and meet these people. Also, notify the Overseas Dragon Pavilion to return to the country and abandon the front-line positions."
These words were spoken by Ye Longlin with a casual air.
The Executive Director, stunned, dropped the cigarette from his hand and looked at Ye Longlin in disbelief.
"King Ye, are you insane? Abandoning the overseas front-line positions—do you know the pressure that would put on Great Xia? We finally had eight years of peace. Everyone knows your contributions during these eight years, but these have also been Great Xia's most stable eight years!
If you abandon the front-line positions, let alone the Highest Directorate, the Hall of Honor itself will have to intervene. The accountability you'll face then will be far from simple!"
The Executive Director was completely bewildered. He had just presented the arrest warrant, and the man immediately issued such an order. Was this a desperate gambit?
"I suggest arresting him immediately. I don't believe Ye Longlin would dare to abandon the front-line positions unless he's suicidal!"
"Can he threaten the Highest Directorate and the Hall of Honor? My grandfather suggested years ago not to give him the five-star rank. Look at him now, he has achieved too much power and has the confidence to threaten the Highest Directorate and the Hall of Honor!
He lords over everyone as the Master of the Dragon Pavilion, doing as he pleases. Now, let the people from the Highest Directorate and the Hall of Honor see his sense of the bigger picture! For his own selfish reasons, he released one of the Eight Heavenly Gods of the Dark Hall and is withdrawing everyone from the front lines. Who can bear the consequences of such actions?"
A man in his thirties, a member of the Executive Division and also from the Ye family, stepped out from behind the Executive Director.
"For someone like Ye Longlin, who is no longer under control, my suggestion is to kill him directly! He's already injured, and the Dragon Pavilion only has about 150 people here. A burst of bullets, and who knows how many would be left," Ye Xing said with a sinister grin. His faction was determined to see Ye Longlin dead.
Ye Longlin curiously observed Ye Xing, then turned to the Executive Director.
"Ye Xing, from the Ye family."
The Executive Director took a deep breath. This matter was troublesome, even too troublesome.
He had to make a phone call.
The importance of the Red Lotus Demoness was self-evident.
She was one of the Eight Heavenly Gods of the Dark Hall. During the Heshuo War, they hadn't managed to capture even one alive. The previous one of the Eight Heavenly Gods, when facing imminent capture, had activated a suicide attack, causing significant losses, including the death of a Marshal-level figure.
This was the only time in many years they had captured a member of the Dark Hall alive. Her importance was paramount – a Class-A Military Order!
If they could extract any secrets from her, it would be invaluable.
And overseas?
If the overseas positions were withdrawn, what lay immediately adjacent was Great Xia's territorial waters, specifically a coastal city!
At that point, not to mention the number of spies who would infiltrate Great Xia, consider the losses to civilian, police, and military vessels.
Many shameless nations would dispatch submarines into Great Xia's territorial waters.
One by one, these would become troublesome issues.
The Dragon Pavilion had long guarded the overseas territories, minimizing losses and risks in that region. To make a move against Great Xia covertly, one had to break through the Dragon Pavilion's blockade, thus placing all the pressure on the Dragon Pavilion.
Ye Longlin let out a cold laugh. "Then, your implication is that after I'm dead, you, or your Ye family, and those who support your Ye family, will bear all these consequences?"
Ye Xing also sneered dismissively. "Why should we bear them? Great Xia has so many soldiers; can't we just fill the gaps with human lives? What is the status of my Ye family, and what is the status of those soldiers? You want us to go to the front lines? King Ye, are you joking?"
Ye Longlin's gaze turned grim. From his tone and demeanor, one could sense a clear hierarchy, a belief that, in their eyes, those soldiers were not even considered human.
If the Ye family willed their death, then they must die!
"You don't even dare to die, so why demand they die? You say I have achieved too much power; do you, Ye Xing, have the ability, or does the Ye family have the ability?
The stable situation among Great Xia's high command for the past eight years was forged by me. Now, you want to arrest me. Why should they continue to enjoy the situation I created?
If you occupy a high position, you must bear the corresponding responsibilities. Do you think you, Ye Xing, are qualified to decide the fate of countless soldiers with a single sentence?
Do you really think I won't kill you just because you joined the Executive Division? Hmm?"
Ye Longlin's voice grew heavier, his breath exhaling from his nose with a low growl in his throat.
Ye Xing was unfazed. He grinned sinisterly. "I can decide whether you live or die right now. You, King? In front of me, you're nothing! Attack!"
As these words fell, the group behind him did not move an inch.
They were also soldiers, and they had heard Ye Xing's words.
Since Ye Xing did not regard them as human, why should they obey Ye Xing's orders?