“Our faction alliance is called—EDEN,” Giss’s voice sounded in the room.
Zhou Yuan nodded slightly.
Yu Yuan, however, handed control of his body back to Zhou Yuan.
“So the Humpback Whale is a mber faction of EDEN...” Yu Yuan’s doubts were completely resolved.
The vague plan that had been forming in his mind also fell into place with this last piece.
Now it all ca down to whether this so-called Ascetic the Humpback Whale spoke of was truly as powerful as they claid.
Seeing Zhou Yuan and the other three n’s expressions, Giss’s smile grew even broader.
Night Owl glanced at Giss and the Ascetic beside him.
“I’m asking, Mr. Giss, what exactly is this so-called Ascetic? Can he really stand against chanical augntees and mutated creatures?”
“Of course, Mr. Night Owl, the Ascetic is absolutely the best weapon to counter them...”
Giss wore an odd look, a mixture of devotion and fanaticism.
The next mont, he suddenly threw back the Ascetic’s cloak, revealing the Ascetic’s true form.
Hiss...
Gasps drew in around the room, mixed with the sound of chairs scraping backward.
Everyone present instinctively stood and took a step back, shock written on their faces.
They stared at the Ascetic’s charred body in disbelief.
The Ascetic’s skin looked like a slab of blackened coal, cracked all over; if it weren’t for the clear rise and fall of his chest, one would assu it was the corpse of soone burnt beyond recognition.
Through the fissures of the Ascetic’s cracked skin ran dark red veins like volcanic lava; on closer inspection, those red veins were slowly flowing.
“This...”
The Second Elder of the May Alliance stared at the sight, speechless.
But his eyes shone with a strange brightness.
He was not alone; the sa expression appeared on the others’ faces.
Giss was pleased by their reactions. After drawing their attention, he extended his right hand.
Snap—
A sharp snap of his fingers, as if activating the Ascetic’s switch.
A searing blaze erupted from the Ascetic’s body.
What had been a vaguely humanoid figure instantly grew taller, reaching about two ters.
His fra bulked up, and flas engulfed him, like a fire demon erging from hell.
Two horn-like shapes, ford of fla, could vaguely be seen atop his head; molten lava boiled across his body, and the sulfurous stench filled the room.
Crack—
The floor tiles beneath him buckled and shattered under the intense heat.
Zhou Yuan and the others raised their arms instinctively to shield themselves and staggered back.
Yet their eyes were fixed on the Ascetic, now a human torch.
Only four or five seconds passed before another snap from Giss.
The flas were drawn back into the Ascetic’s body.
He returned to his previous form, but the heat radiating from him and the partially lted floor tiles proved what they had seen was no illusion.
Giss looked at Zhou Yuan and the others with a confident smile.
“Gentlen, do you think we now have the strength to fight mutated creatures and chanical augntees?”
Applause—
Zhou Yuan led the clapping. He regarded the Ascetic with astonishnt.
Night Owl, Watson, and the Second Elder followed suit; applause rang through the room.
“Yes, absolutely!” Night Owl grinned exaggeratedly.
“Unbelievable. Mr. Giss, I can’t believe you command such a devastating weapon...” the Second Elder praised.
Zhou Yuan and Watson both nodded in agreent.
Satisfied with their reactions, Giss said, “Shall we discuss our cooperation going forward?”
“Of course, Mr. Giss...”
They returned to the round table once more...
In Zhou Yuan’s mind, Yu Yuan watched the Ascetic, who had gone back to normal, and fell into thought.
“Zhou Yuan, pay close attention to the Ascetic’s eyes.”
Hearing Yu Yuan’s voice, Zhou Yuan—though surprised—pretended curiosity and shifted his gaze back to the Ascetic standing to the side.
Although the flas were gone, the Ascetic’s body still radiated heat, so Giss had not draped the cloak back over him.
Zhou Yuan could see the Ascetic clearly.
From Zhou Yuan’s viewpoint, Yu Yuan carefully observed the Ascetic’s eyes for the slightest shift, and that subtle change confird his earlier hunch.
Zhou Yuan was no fool; he was observing as well.
Soon he noticed sothing odd and frowned.
“Sir, I feel like there’s a flicker of pain, despair, and ruin in that Ascetic’s eyes. Am I imagining things?”
No sooner had Zhou Yuan spoken than Yu Yuan’s laughter echoed in his head.
“You’re not mistaken. It is pain and despair. If I’m right, the birth of this so-called Ascetic was not an easy process. Nine tis out of ten, they were made from living people by so thod—this process must be filled with pain, torture, despair, and hatred.”
Zhou Yuan stiffened at Yu Yuan’s words.
“This...isn’t it so form of training or cultivation?”
Yu Yuan snorted.
“As far as I know, the Orthodox Church possesses a mysterious ritual that can produce a certain miraculous fluid. This Ascetic likely is the product of that miraculous fluid. Do you know what conditions are required for that fluid to be produced?”
Before Zhou Yuan could answer, Yu Yuan supplied the reply.
“In that ritual, living people are sacrificed alive, and only then can a few milliliters of that miraculous fluid be extracted from the victim’s brain.”
Yu Yuan’s words hit Zhou Yuan like a hamr to the chest.
Zhou Yuan was no paragon of virtue; kindly people had long since died in the early days after the wasteland ca. But sacrificing living people just to obtain a few milliliters of fluid was beyond even his imagination.
Yu Yuan did not give him much ti to ponder; he had already obtained the intelligence he needed, and it was ti to divert disaster eastward.
“Zhou Yuan, here’s so intelligence: the chanical Vanguard Society is preparing to strike the Aurora Animal Assistance Association in the next couple of days, and they are currently at the Xianda Feed Factory in the Northern Wilderness...” Yu Yuan relayed the chanical Vanguard Society’s logistics and troop movents to Zhou Yuan.
“Since the Humpback Whale and the chanical Vanguard Society are archrivals, they will certainly be interested in this information.”
Hearing this, realization flashed across Zhou Yuan’s eyes as he rapidly calculated his options.
Information trading was already within the Black Rock Caravan’s line of business, so he quickly understood what to do.
“Sir, what do you need to do? Stir them up?”
Yu Yuan thought for a mont and said,
“You can leak this to Humpback Whale’s people to pique their interest. I’ll personally scout tonight and then tell you the plan.”
“In that case, I’ll sever the connection for now!” Yu Yuan said calmly.
After a mont,
Zhou Yuan noticed Yu Yuan’s departure. He lifted his head again and looked at Giss across the table, wearing a sincere smile.
“Mr. Giss, regarding our cooperation...”
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