CHAPTER 346: CHAPTER 346: THE PROTAGONIST IS FOOLING AROUND WITH YOU~_1

"You want me to spread this Illusionary God Mushroom among the Elemental Giants?" A dangerous glint flickered in Ye Tian’s eyes.

A few minutes earlier, a controlled Lizardman had approached him with a proposition.

He knew perfectly well what the Illusionary God Mushroom was. Despite being in the Black Tooth Empire, some had still managed to seep in from the White Claw Empire.

He had no liking for this substance. Now, discovering that a hidden manipulator was orchestrating its spread and even dared to ask for his assistance—it was sheer absurdity.

"Indeed. As long as you agree to help, you can name any condition, including an unlimited supply of Illusionary God Mushrooms," Zi Guang stated arrogantly.

In his eyes, no sentient being could resist the temptation of the Illusionary God Mushroom.

This remark made Ye Tian laugh in exasperation. "Fine, fine, fine. This is the first time I’ve encountered such a ’generous’ offer." He practically spat out the word "generous."

"It seems you agree. You’re not as foolish as that other outsider who actually refused such a wonderful thing." Zi Guang failed to detect Ye Tian’s sarcasm and seemed quite pleased with his response.

Ye Tian instantly understood. The "other outsider" was Wang Linchi. It was simply that Wang Linchi had directly torn up all pretenses, which was why this entity was now seeking his cooperation.

"Is that so? Where is he?" Ye Tian suppressed his urge to act and asked nonchalantly instead.

The fact that this entity could escape from Wang Linchi indicated it possessed some real power. Therefore, to eradicate the threat completely, he couldn’t be rash; he needed to find its main body.

"He’s in the White Claw Empire. You two seem to be friends?" Zi Guang felt that Ye Tian’s attitude had subtly changed, though he couldn’t quite pinpoint how.

"Not exactly friends." Ye Tian, of course, wouldn’t admit it. This was the time to hide their connection.

Wang Linchi thought the two of them had fallen out, but Ye Tian believed they were merely acting separately for now.

"That’s good. When we destroy the White Claw Empire, we’ll definitely skin him alive!" Zi Guang declared viciously.

"Wait a minute. Are you the one who instigated the war between the Black Tooth and White Claw Empires?" Ye Tian latched onto the crucial point. As for skinning Wang Linchi alive, this secretive puppet master probably lacked the capability.

"Of course. Even their initial split was something I secretly promoted." Zi Guang boasted, completely unaware that he was leaking significant secrets.

Ye Tian sized up Zi Guang. Could someone with such apparent low intelligence really accomplish all that?

He hadn’t even tried to extract information; the other party had just blurted everything out without any prompting. It made Ye Tian’s scalp tingle.

Was he certain this entity was secretly orchestrating things, and not the founding emperors of the Black Tooth and White Claw Empires, driven by their own ambitions?

However, Ye Tian didn’t let his guard down. Such a strange and cunning being might well be feigning ignorance.

"I didn’t realize you were such an ancient being," Ye Tian feigned surprise.

"Of course," Zi Guang retorted, brimming with self-satisfaction, before quickly reacting. He took out an Illusionary God Mushroom and said, "Take this Illusionary God Mushroom to the first layer and feed it to any Barbarian—or, as you call them, Elemental Giant."

"Remember to avoid the Barbarian King. Don’t let him find the Illusionary God Mushroom. He’s extremely sensitive to its aura. If he detects it, he’ll kill you."

Perhaps thinking this new underling was very useful, Zi Guang even offered a kind reminder.

"Don’t worry, leave it to me. However... it might take some time for me to return," Ye Tian accepted without hesitation, then added his condition.

This took Zi Guang by surprise, who then frowned and responded with slight dissatisfaction, "What could possibly be more important than my business? Go quickly and return quickly."

"Of course, it’s about how you’ll uphold your end of our bargain after the transaction," Ye Tian said slowly, having learned from Wang Linchi’s approach. "If I do my part and you go back on your word, wouldn’t I suffer a huge loss? Against an ancient being like you, I have no way to force you to fulfill your promise, do I?"

"Er... that makes sense." Zi Guang thought about it and felt Ye Tian had a point. If he didn’t give what was promised, the other party couldn’t do anything to him.

An idea sparked in Zi Guang’s mind: what a great way to renege! He could get this done for free.

"So, you need to find a way to convince me that you can fulfill your promise and ensure I can get what I’m owed even if you try to cheat," Ye Tian said with a smile.

This made Zi Guang regret his earlier response. Now the problem was back on his plate.

"I... A powerful being like me, how could I possibly deceive you?" Lacking a better idea, Zi Guang could only say this stubbornly.

"Exactly. It’s precisely because you’re so powerful that if you deceive me, I’ll have no recourse," Ye Tian said, following Zi Guang’s line of reasoning.

At this moment, Zi Guang felt things were getting tricky. He began to think the previous outsider was easier to fool; that one didn’t cause such trouble. His price was indeed high, but looking at it now, you get what you pay for; cheap goods are no good.

"I... I..." Zi Guang stammered, genuinely unsure how to resolve this.

"It seems you don’t have a good solution either," Ye Tian said gravely. His mind was made up; this fellow had fallen into his trap. Next was to expose his weakness and then eliminate him.

"Yes, I can’t exactly make an oath, can I? Would you even believe it?" Zi Guang knew this much; oaths were just words, carrying no binding power.

"Then it’s reasonable for me to postpone helping you, wouldn’t you say?" Ye Tian said with a smile.

"Alright then. When do you plan to deliver it for me?" Zi Guang still didn’t sense anything amiss.

"Well, that depends on when I finish my business on this second layer. However, you’d best stay by my side for the time being. Otherwise, if I can’t find you when I need to, and there’s a delay, I might get caught up in other matters." At this point, Ye Tian finally revealed his true objective.

He had seen that this Zi Guang could control Lizardmen who had consumed the Illusionary God Mushroom. The best approach was to keep this avatar by his side and unearth more secrets. Or, more directly, trick him into revealing the location of his main body and then kill it.

"Fine, but I won’t help you with your tasks unless you complete mine first." Zi Guang wasn’t stupid. He vaguely sensed something was off. He suspected Ye Tian planned to turn him into a hired thug, so he preemptively countered that possibility.

"But if I die, then there will be no one to help you," Ye Tian couldn’t help but smile. He had almost forgotten that, in the meantime, he could use this entity to clear paths, undertake risks, and so on.

This made Zi Guang’s expression darken. How had the situation turned out like this? He was supposed to be the one controlling the other party, yet after just a few words, he now had to protect him.

Should I go back to the other outsider? The thought surfaced in Zi Guang’s mind, but he quickly dismissed it. If he went back now, Wang Linchi would surely raise the price. That one demanded so much; how could he possibly afford it?

Where else could he find someone like Ye Tian, who asked for so little and could even be cheated out of payment?

He had compared them. Ye Tian could, at most, kill this avatar of his. But with the uncanny power Wang Linchi possessed, if any trace was caught, Wang Linchi could genuinely detect his main body directly.

Furthermore, Wang Linchi was immeasurably stronger than Ye Tian. Trying to control him would be incredibly difficult.

After comparison, although Ye Tian’s matter involved a bit more trouble and annoyance, the probability of success was far higher than with Wang Linchi.

"My ability to help you is limited. There are too few people in the Black Tooth Empire who have consumed the Illusionary God Mushroom." Having thought it through, Zi Guang decided to yield a step. He was worried that if Ye Tian actually died, he would have no choice but to go to Wang Linchi, which would be an even greater loss.

Just as I thought. His power is linked to the number of people who have consumed the Illusionary God Mushroom.

"No problem. I’ve already reached a cooperative agreement with the Emperor of this empire. In reality, the danger isn’t that great." Ye Tian knew he couldn’t just keep pushing. Otherwise, if things got too tense, it wouldn’t just rebound; it might break the other party. There had to be a balance of tension and release.

Upon hearing this, Zi Guang also heaved a sigh of relief. "That’s good then. The Black Tooth Emperor is no pushover. Be careful you don’t get yourself killed by him."

He had always wanted to infiltrate the Black Tooth Empire via the Illusionary God Mushroom. Unfortunately, the Black Tooth Empire had no passage to the third subterranean level. Coupled with the Black Tooth Emperor’s iron-fisted methods of constantly suppressing the Illusionary God Mushroom, his means of infiltration in the Black Tooth Empire were extremely limited. If not for being forced into a corner, he wouldn’t want to plot anything within the Black Tooth Empire at all.

"The Black Tooth Emperor and I hit it off right away. How could he possibly harm me?" Ye Tian said with an air of great confidence, precisely to feed Zi Guang enough misleading information.