Though he was utterly loyal to the Beitang Imperial Clan and to Beitang Sheng, he was still human, bound by the seven emotions and six desires, by selfish thoughts and private concerns. Naturally, he had his own selfishness and worried for his family.
But the burly man quickly hardened his expression, his gaze filled with calm as he said,
"If a man does not become one of the Gods and Devils, he will die eventually. My family will die sooner or later anyway. Since they will die regardless, what difference does it make if they die by your hand?
Meng Zhao, if you have the nerve, kill my whole family! Even if I descend to the eighteenth level of hell, I will keep my eyes on you until the day you fail!"
What a stubborn fool. Meng Zhao had not expected this man to be so obstinate, so blindly loyal to the Beitang Imperial Clan that he would not even care about his own family's lives.
He shook his head and said,
"A madman—a stubborn madman indeed. What good would killing you and your family do me?
I came here today for only one thing. Can you guess what it is?"
He no longer spoke to the burly man, instead turning his gaze to Old Man Wu. This man was still fairly clearheaded, and could at least be put to use.
Old Man Wu pondered for a long while before finally coming up with a clue.
"Dragon King Meng, could it be that you have taken an interest in our identities as spies? Do you wish to follow the vine to find the other hidden stakes the Imperial Clan has planted in Liang Prefecture?"
"Hahaha, clever. The old saying truly is right: the older the man, the sharper the mind;