The title Hidden Dragon alone would not possess such great influence.
However, Hidden Dragon had a good brother, Ye Zhenghao, who was the future dean of the Blazing Fire Institute, fully capable of representing it.
If the Blazing Fire Institute were to back Changsun Lingxi and offer assistance, then taking down the Imperial Dragon Villa would not be impossible.
Of course, this referred to the Imperial Dragon Villa controlled by Lei Ming.
As for the current Imperial Dragon Villa, even if the Blazing Fire Institute truly intervened, the Imperial Dragon Villa could still resist it completely.
Thinking of this, Ye Cangtian glanced over and said plainly, "I'm sorry, I'm not interested in being friends with you!"
"Why?"
"Did you not hear what I just said? Having one more friend is having one more path!"
"If we become friends, then you'll essentially have the Imperial Dragon Villa as your backing. You can walk sideways throughout the entire ruins in the future!"
Hearing Ye Cangtian's words, An Yi was quite surprised.
Was the other party foolish? Didn't he want such great benefits?
It was known that in the ruins, countless factions were pouring all their efforts into seeking the protection of the Imperial Dragon Villa!
"Alright! I'll tell you the reason!"
Seeing the other party pressing, Ye Cangtian sneered and gave him a clear answer.
Firstly, Changsun Lingxi was expelled from the Imperial Dragon Villa. To put it bluntly, he was a stray dog! With such a status, how could he represent the Imperial Dragon Villa?
Since he couldn't represent it, everything An Yi promised would be empty talk.
Secondly, the person the other party truly wanted to befriend was not him, but Ye Zhenghao, who was by his side.
He would not entertain a friendship that lacked sincerity.
Thirdly, the Imperial Dragon Villa had a certain degree of hostility towards him and the Blazing Fire Institute yesterday.
Now, after only a few hours, the other party was initiating friendship. The speed of this change was too rapid, and no one could guarantee that such a friendship would last.
Perhaps, sooner rather than later, the first one to stab him in the back would be this person.
"This..."
Listening to the explanations given by Ye Cangtian, An Yi's expression changed repeatedly.
He fell silent for a long time and then slowly said, "Hidden Dragon, you are right, I do want to befriend Ye Zhenghao, but I also want to befriend you, because your strength is sufficient. It's as simple as that!"
"As for yesterday's matter, it was Hei Mo's incompetence that offended you. I can bring him to apologize to you."
After a pause, An Yi continued, "As for Changsun Lingxi, I can responsibly tell you that in the future, the only one who can control the Imperial Dragon Villa will be Changsun Lingxi. The others are just clowns and won't last long! Therefore, I hope your vision can be more long-term."
An Yi's eyes were filled with sincerity, hoping that his candid and direct words could move the other party.
"Oh? You still want to fool me?"
Ye Cangtian looked at the other party playfully and continued, "The current master of the Imperial Dragon Villa is Death God, a Heavenly-level expert. Can Changsun Lingxi deal with such an expert?"
"Of course!"
An Yi glanced at Ye Cangtian and nodded without hesitation, continuing, "He can deal with him, but not now. He has to wait until he breaks through to the Heavenly level."
"As long as he can break through to the Heavenly level, then in the ruins, the Heavenly-level experts who can defeat him will be few and far between!"
Hmm?
Looking at the other party's firm gaze, Ye Cangtian raised an eyebrow. Could it be that Changsun Lingxi practiced some powerful cultivation technique?
Thinking this, Ye Cangtian prepared to probe a little and continued, "I'm very curious about what's special about Changsun Lingxi. You can't just say whatever you want without proof, right?"
"This..."
At this remark, An Yi's face immediately showed embarrassment.
He was silent for a moment, then finally said, "This is a secret, and it cannot be revealed to anyone now! However, I can tell you that if you choose my lord, I guarantee you won't regret it for the rest of your life!"
Heh heh.
Hearing this, Ye Cangtian smiled slightly and said, "I'm sorry, if you don't even dare to reveal these secrets, how can you talk about integrity? Without integrity, why should I befriend you?"
Ugh!
Upon hearing this, An Yi's heart instantly ignited with anger.
He felt he had been very honest by saying as much as he could, yet the other party was still not satisfied and insisted on prying into Changsun Lingxi's affairs.
In his opinion, this was no longer a matter of his sincerity, but rather that the other party had ulterior motives!
Thinking this, he looked at Ye Cangtian and said blandly, "Mr. Hidden Dragon, I've said what I can. If you still think I lack sincerity, then let this matter drop!"
Ye Cangtian shrugged his shoulders, as if telling the other party that it didn't matter, he didn't care about it.
Then he slowly said, "Alright, you can now proceed to the second matter!"
An Yi nodded at this, then began to speak, "I want to ask, are you and Ye Zhenghao here to subdue Snow Peak?"
Hmm?
As the voice fell, Xue Qi's gaze immediately turned towards Ye Cangtian. To be honest, she had been quite curious about these matters since the other party arrived.
And with An Yi mentioning this, she couldn't help but overthink.
After all, Ye Zhenghao could represent the Blazing Fire Institute, and perhaps the Blazing Fire Institute truly had intentions towards Snow Peak.
Ye Cangtian, standing beside her, smiled slightly and then said, "I have no thoughts about Snow Peak. This is not just my personal opinion; I can also represent Ye Zhenghao."
By saying this, Ye Cangtian intended to see An Yi's purpose in asking such questions.
Secondly, he was addressing Xue Qi. Her gaze indicated that she was sensitive to this question, and Ye Cangtian wanted to reassure her.
Indeed, after his words, Xue Qi quietly breathed a sigh of relief, and her tightly clenched fist slowly relaxed.
On the other side, listening to Ye Cangtian's words, An Yi put down his teacup, and a smile reappeared on his face.
"Since you have no intentions towards Snow Peak, then I won't be polite!"
"Later, during the actions in the Imperial Dragon Villa, I ask Mr. Hidden Dragon and Mr. Ye Zhenghao not to participate. An Yi will be eternally grateful!"
As he spoke, An Yi took out two Qiankun bags, placed them on the table, and slowly retreated in front of Ye Cangtian.
Ye Cangtian's gaze fell upon the two Qiankun bags, his eyes darting around.
Just then, he suddenly felt his trouser leg being tugged under the table. He turned his head and saw Xue Qi giving him a pleading look.
It was clear that Xue Qi hoped he would step forward when Snow Peak was in trouble.
After a moment of silence, Ye Cangtian slowly shook his head and said blandly, "I'm afraid I cannot agree to that. Xue Qi is my friend."
"You say such things while she is still here, which clearly shows disrespect towards her! Disrespecting my friend is disrespecting me!"
As soon as his voice fell, An Yi's expression turned grim, but Ye Cangtian didn't give him a chance to speak.
"Of course, as I see it now, Xue Qi is Xue Qi, and Snow Peak is Snow Peak," Ye Cangtian added.
Hmm?
Upon hearing this, An Yi's expression changed again, and his eyes clearly lit up.
He understood Ye Cangtian's meaning perfectly.
The other party was saying that it was acceptable to act against Snow Peak, but only on the condition that Xue Qi would not be harmed.
Thinking of this, An Yi revealed a faint smile, then looked at the other party and said, "In that case, please accept these."
"Alright, then I won't stand on ceremony!"
Ye Cangtian smiled slightly and directly put both of the other party's Qiankun bags into his possession.
Then Ye Cangtian made a gesture of invitation and said with a smile, "Please continue, what is the next matter?"
Hearing this, An Yi smiled slightly and said blandly, "I won't hide it from you. If you were to interfere with Snow Peak's affairs, then the third matter would likely lead to a direct confrontation. But since you have no intention of interfering now, I have no reason to make a move on you!"
"So, does that mean today's matter ends here?"
Ye Cangtian smiled and looked at the other party, then got up and continued, "In that case, I shall take my leave!"
As he spoke, Ye Cangtian, along with Xue Qi, left the private room directly.
Seeing the two of them leave, An Yi did not stop them. The events of the day had concluded satisfactorily, so there was no need for him to detain them.
The next moment, Hei Mo stepped forward, hesitated for a moment, and finally said, "My lord, didn't you say you would stand up for me? Why..."
Before he could finish, Hei Mo swallowed all his subsequent words under the other party's sharp gaze.
"Hei Mo, I hope you understand that your personal grievances are not even worth a fart in the face of Lord Lingxi's grand plans!"
Hearing the cold voice, Hei Mo nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, yes, yes. It was my foolishness. Please forgive me, my lord!"
Seeing this, An Yi's expression softened a little, and he continued, "But don't worry, I will remember this debt for you."
"When Lord Lingxi achieves his success, dealing with a mere hermit will be as easy as flipping one's hand!"
Hearing this, Hei Mo's eyes shone brightly, and he quickly cupped his fists and said, "Thank you, my lord."