Ye Tianfan entered the banquet hall and found that quite a few people were already gathered there, most of them wearing smiles on their faces, obviously having accepted the offerings of the Tianyu Group.

Ye Tianfan didn't know what benefits the Tianyu Group had given them, but one thing was certain: strength lies in numbers. Although ants are small, when millions come together, they can eat an elephant. The Long Group is an example of this. Although the main company is not very strong, it stands as a business giant in Jiangzhou City, alongside the Qin Group.

Now it seems the Tianyu Group is following the same path, and it looks like they are doing quite well.

If all these small and medium enterprises rely on the Tianyu Group, they will form a massive business circle. Once this circle forms, the power of the Tianyu Group could easily crush the Long Group. Coupled with the fact that the financial power of the Tianyu Group matches that of the Qin Group, it might not be long before the Tianyu Group stands supreme in Jiangzhou City.

"Welcome everyone to the anniversary banquet hosted by the Tianyu Group. On behalf of all employees of the Tianyu Group, I sincerely thank you all for coming."

A middle-aged man holding a microphone walked to the podium in the banquet hall. This man was slightly plump with thinning hair, the epitome of middle age. Yet behind him, the identity display screen proudly proclaimed: Chairman of Tianyu Group.

At this moment, both Ye Tianfan and Huang Xiaorou furrowed their brows. This image was far from what they had imagined for the chairman of the Tianyu Group.

Ye Tianfan had thought it would be a shrewd elder, much like Elder Qin, or perhaps a hidden master from the Ancient Martial Realm.

Yet, to his utter surprise, the chairman of the Tianyu Group was just an ordinary middle-aged man. As he spoke passionately at the podium, it seemed he was merely reciting a speech, without any presence of a group chairman.

Ye Tianfan and Huang Xiaorou exchanged a glance, both seeing the confusion in each other's eyes.

As the chairman of a rapidly rising new enterprise, shouldn't he stand at the podium with assurance, commanding the world?

But that middle-aged man was evidently nervous. In his ten-minute speech, he paused two or three times, whether forgetting his lines or for some other reason.

In short, his appearance greatly disappointed Ye Tianfan. If the invitation letter from the Tianyu Group was indeed sent by this person, it was somewhat nauseating for Ye Tianfan.

To have such an opponent was simply lowering his standard.

"I feel he's just a puppet," Huang Xiaorou said, looking at the Tianyu Group chairman on the podium, expressing what was on her mind.

Ye Tianfan's thoughts surprisingly aligned with Huang Xiaorou's: "Looks like we need to investigate the people behind him."

"Exactly." Huang Xiaorou nodded.

The Tianyu Group chairman's speech concluded, and the room erupted in applause. Then the attendees began to move around freely.

Whether they knew each other or not, everyone pretended to be familiar, starting to exchange pleasantries.

The bosses of small enterprises were mostly like this. A few even approached Ye Tianfan for a chat, with topics as trivial as: Have you eaten?

Is the food here good?

Do you find this cruise luxurious?

The weather is nice today.

And so on...

Ye Tianfan brushed them off briefly, then sought a quiet corner to stay. He knew the real action hadn't started yet. Since the Tianyu Group had sent him an invitation, it was definitely not just about eating, drinking, and casually leaving.

The invitation clearly hinted at a threat, with a provocative tone throughout. If this was all there was, it would indeed be disappointing.

"Notice anything unusual?"

Huang Xiaorou approached Ye Tianfan with a glass of wine, equally annoyed by the small talk from the small enterprise bosses. They were clearly not on the same level.

"No, for now, everything seems normal."

Ye Tianfan scanned the banquet hall multiple times. Among the attendees, there were no people from the Ancient Martial Realm, and the security and attendants were all ordinary people. Although some knew a bit of martial arts, to Ye Tianfan, it was merely for health and posed no threat.

"Let's go check the back." Ye Tianfan pointed to a small door beside the podium.

After the Tianyu Group chairman finished his speech, he entered that door and had not come out since. It seemed illogical to invite him here and then do nothing.

Since they were not acting, then they would have to take the initiative.

Ye Tianfan quickly walked towards the small door, with Huang Xiaorou closely following. In this banquet hall, everyone had accepted Tianyu Group's offer, except for Huang Xiaorou and Ye Tianfan.

So Huang Xiaorou believed that Tianyu Group would definitely make a move against her and Ye Tianfan.

This banquet was not going to be so peaceful!

Reaching the small door beside the podium, Ye Tianfan pushed it forcefully and said in a low voice, "It's locked from the inside."

Ye Tianfan instinctively furrowed his brow. Such a door's hidden lock couldn't stop him. With a little force, he could break the lock behind the door.

Ye Tianfan discreetly gathered his enigmatic energy in his palm, then silently struck the hidden lock on the small door.

"Crack..."

A crisp sound emitted from the hidden lock behind the small door, clearly broken. But at that moment, Ye Tianfan suddenly felt a sharp pain in his palm, as a black spike pierced through his palm.

A hidden weapon?

And it was poisoned.

This hidden weapon must have been set on the lock of the small door, indicating someone anticipated Ye Tianfan would break in this way and set it up deliberately.

"Be careful," Ye Tianfan whispered to Huang Xiaorou, then raised his hand to pull out the spike and casually threw it to the ground.

Although the spike was poisoned, it was ineffective against Ye Tianfan.

"Creak..."

Ye Tianfan pushed open the small door, revealing a red-carpeted corridor behind it. This hallway wasn't wide, about two meters, making it impossible for Ye Tianfan and Huang Xiaorou to walk side by side. They could only proceed one after the other.

"So long?"

Entering the corridor, Huang Xiaorou couldn't help but furrow her brows tightly. She didn't expect the corridor to be so long. At a glance, it stretched over a thousand meters, seemingly running throughout the Love River cruise ship.

"No, there's something wrong with this corridor!" Ye Tianfan instinctively furrowed his brow, turned around to alert Huang Xiaorou, and said, "Let's retreat first."

But just as Ye Tianfan finished speaking, Huang Xiaorou turned around, only to find that the small door through which they had entered had mysteriously disappeared. Behind her, there was only an endless corridor.

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