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Translator: Silavin & Jon
Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun
Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys
Leaving the Black Ink Nest here didn’t really matter, they just had to inform the Royal Lord about it and let the latter use his High-Rank Black Ink Nest to cut off the connection with the Mid-Rank Black Ink Nest in Great Evolution Pass, thus ensuring that the exchange of information between the Black Ink Clan wouldn’t be exposed to the Humans.
As for whether the Humans would make use of this Black Ink Nest and cast a Secret Technique to target Hong Di, that could be dealt with in the future. Furthermore, it was unlikely to happen.
However, they couldn’t leave all the Black Ink Disciples here.
Although there were still a lot of Black Ink Clan soldiers in Great Evolution Pass, there were not many powerful ones. In the previous war, a large number of Territory Lords and Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples had lost their lives.
If they wanted to leave Great Evolution Pass and return to the Royal City, the power of the Black Ink Disciples would be indispensable. If they left the Black Ink Disciples to the Humans, no one could guarantee that the Humans wouldn’t develop any ill intentions. In that case, how were the Black Ink Clansmen supposed to ward them off?
This was no different from digging their own grave.
The Black Ink Clan wasn’t foolish, so they wouldn’t agree to such a demand. It could be said that the Black Ink Disciples were their bottom line, and they wouldn’t give them to the Humans.
Seeing that Hong Di and Nu Yi fell silent, as though the discussion was about to fall apart, Mi Jing Lun put on a smile, “Do you need to deliberate on it for a moment?”
Nu Yi forced a smile, “Please give us a moment, Sir Mi.”
They then communicated with each other using their Divine Senses again.
It was obvious that Hong Di was furious while Nu Yi appeared concerned.
The discussion didn’t yield any meaningful results. An impatient Ou Yang Lie darted his gaze back and forth between Hong Di and Nu Yu, as though he was thinking about which parts of their bodies he should cut first.
The silent pressure caused these Territory Lords to feel flustered.
This red-haired man was the one who killed Zhe Chong. Given such a short distance between them, they didn’t have the confidence to repel him if he suddenly flared up.
On the other hand, Mi Jing Lun, who was the one who did all of the talking, appeared calm and collected, as though he wouldn’t feel bored even if he had to wait for 100 years.
Certainly, the two Territory Lords wouldn’t let him wait for 100 years, for they were in a hurry while the Humans were not. After all, no one could guarantee that the Old Ancestor wouldn’t come here on her own. If she wanted to, the Old Ancestor would only take her a few days to arrive at this place from the Royal City; hence, the Black Ink Clan had to quickly come up with a solution and leave.
A moment later, they finally made a decision. Again, it was Nu Yi who spoke, “I’m sorry for making you wait.”
Mi Jing Lun asked with a smile, “Have you made a decision?”
Nu Yi nodded, “Just like what I’ve said, we’ll agree to the second condition to show that we’re willing to make a concession. As for the third condition, we can only agree to half of it.”
“What do you mean?” Mi Jing Lun arched his brow.
“Now, we’re only left with Seventh-Order and Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples. There are quite a number of Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples, but there are only a dozen or so Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples,” Nu Yi explained, “We can give all the Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples to the Humans, but Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples must remain with us.”
After a pause, she put on a bitter smile, “Including the second condition, we’ve made a massive concession. If you still refuse to agree to it, then this discussion will end here.”
Mi Jing Lun fell silent.
He was fully aware of why the Black Ink Clan was unwilling to hand over the Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples. Now, there were not a lot of powerful Masters in the Black Ink Clan, so they had to rely on the protection of those Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples on their way to the Royal City. If they gave the Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples to the Humans, they would lose a sense of security. How were they supposed to fend off the Humans if the latter decided to renege on the agreement and attacked them?
In fact, even though Mi Jing Lun had come up with such a condition, he had never expected the Black Ink Clan to agree to it. It was really just his way of testing the waters as he knew there was no way the Black Ink Clan would agree to it.
If he kept on pushing the Black Ink Clan, things would only get worse.
Therefore, after a moment of deliberation, he nodded, “This Mi can see your sincerity. In that case, it’s decided.”
Seeing that he had agreed to it, Hong Di and Nu Yi breathed a sigh of relief. Of these two Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, even though this red-haired man, who had remained silent all along, appeared condescending and ferocious, the pressure he gave off was not as great as that of this seemingly mild-tempered man.
He could easily manipulate them into giving in to his demands with his words alone. It wasn’t just about cultivation, it seemed he was well-versed in the art of persuasion.
After the discussion ended, Mi Jing Lun asked, “When will the Black Ink Clan leave?”
Nu Yi remained silent and turned to look at the man beside her.
Hong Di replied, “We need some time to organise our troops. We’ll leave Great Evolution Pass in two to three days.”
They wouldn’t dare to stay for long.
Mi Jing Lun nodded, “In that case, this Mi will order our soldiers to withdraw. When the time comes, we’ll make sure not to get in the way of your return to the Royal City. Do you need to send some people to monitor us?”
“I’ll make the arrangements, so you don’t have to worry about it, Sir Mi,” Hong Di said impassively. A thought suddenly flashed through his mind, then he continued, “Great Evolution Pass used to belong to the Humans, and you lost it 30,000 years ago. Since both of you are here, why don’t you come have a look inside the Great Pass?”
There was no doubt that he was ill-intentioned when he came up with such a suggestion at this point. That was mainly because he was unresigned at the fact that he had been suppressed by Mi Jing Lun’s words since the start of the negotiation.
He did not intend to harm Mi Jing Lun and Ou Yang Lie; after all, an agreement had already been reached. As long as both parties restrained themselves, the Black Ink Clan would safely leave this place and the Humans would retrieve Great Evolution Pass without having to fight. It was a win-win situation while another conflict would do both sides no good.
The suggestion was meant to help him vent his anger. If the two Humans did not have the guts to enter Great Evolution Pass, it would show that they were timid. Even if they had the audacity to visit Great Evolution Pass, they would appear nervous and embarrass themselves.
Surprisingly, Mi Jing Lun appeared elated upon hearing the suggestion, “An excellent suggestion. I’ve always wanted to have a look inside.”
Hong Di was dumbfounded.
[He readily agreed to it?]
As a Territory Lord, since he had already spoken, he could only invite them to visit Great Evolution Pass. Composing himself, he guffawed and replied, “You’re indeed a straightforward person, Sir Mi.”
Mi Jing Lun said, “We’ll have a look at the setups in Great Evolution Pass and count the number of Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples. When you leave, I hope that everything inside Great Evolution Pass will remain intact, and all the Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples will remain.”
“Of course, of course,” Hong Di felt bitter in his heart, but he was unable to do anything about it.
On the wall of Great Evolution Pass, the Territory Lords and Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples were shocked to see that after a long discussion, Hong Di, Nu Yi, and the two Eighth-Order Masters were now returning to Great Evolution Pass together while having a seemingly pleasant chat.
[What’s going on?]
The Territory Lords were astounded.
A peace talk between the two Races was unprecedented, so they had practically made history today, but how did that lead to these four now having a casual conversation?
If not for the fact that Eighth-Order Masters wouldn’t be corrupted by Black Ink Strength so soon, the Territory Lords would’ve thought that the two Humans had been turned into Black Ink Disciples.
It only took them a short moment to move across the million kilometres distance.
Hong Di specifically brought Mi Jing Lun and Ou Yang Lie to the place where the Territory Lords and Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples gathered together. He then introduced them to the Territory Lords, “They are the Army Commanders of the Human Race Army, Sir Mi and Sir Ou Yang. I’m sure you’re aware of how powerful they are after years of clashes with the Humans.”
The Territory Lords remained silent as they stared at Mi Jing Lun and Ou Yang Lie and mounted pressure on them.
Mi Jing Lun just replied with a smile, “It is my honour to see so many powerful members of the Black Ink Clan.”
Ou Yang Lie was not so polite as he swept a glance over the vital parts of these Territory Lords, which left the latter somewhat vexed.
Oblivious to their fury, Ou Yang Lie continued staring at them.
The two of them were on their own in a place where all the powerful Black Ink Clansmen had gathered together. One of them was calm and collected while the other was bold and fearless. Hong Di reckoned that he was no match for these two when it came to composure. No Territory Lord could act the way these two Humans did if they were in their shoes.
Hong Di felt disappointed as he had failed in his attempt to frighten the two Humans. He then said to the Territory Lords, “These Sirs have come all the way here to take a stroll around Great Evolution Pass. Just attend to your own matters. I’ll keep them company.”
It was only then that the Territory Lords left.
After they were gone, Hong Di asked, “Where do you want to look, Sir Mi? Although we, the Black Ink Clan, have only been in charge of this place for 30,000 years. We’re more familiar with Great Evolution Pass now than the Humans.”
Mi Jing Lun replied with a smile, “Many thanks for taking good care of this place, Sir Hong Di. Let’s just look around.”
Hong Di extended his hand, “In that case, this way please.”
On the wall, Hong Di and Mi Jing Lun shuffled forward alongside one another. Ou Yang Lie and Nu Yi followed closely behind them. Nu Yi wouldn’t dare to get close to Ou Yang Lie, so she deliberately walked behind him, which unintentionally made it look as though she was his maidservant.
A moment later, Hong Di regretted the fact that he had invited these two to visit Great Evolution Pass on a whim.
That was mainly because Mi Jing Lun started criticizing the arrays and artifacts on the walls. As an experienced Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master and a former Army Commander of a Great Pass, Mi Jing Lun was familiar with the standard arrangements of a Great Pass.
The setups in a Human Great Pass could be said to be interlocked with one another in a meticulous manner, thus ensuring that they would work efficiently when the Humans fought against the enemies.
Although the Black Ink Clan had been managing Great Evolution Pass for 30,000 years, their setups were a mess. They looked well constructed, but only 50% of their power could probably be unleashed.
If a Human Great Pass was set up in such a way, it would’ve been conquered by the Black Ink Clan a long time ago.
It wasn’t like there was anything Hong Di could do about it. The Black Ink Clan lacked special talents like Array Masters and Artifact Refiners, so they couldn’t arrange exquisite and powerful arrays and artifacts like those in a Human Great Pass.
Even though they had imitated the previous setups in Great Evolution Pass, it was not as good as what the Humans could do. They were unable to make this Pass as sturdy as the Humans could.
Hong Di then led Mi Jing Lun and Ou Yang Lie to leap off the wall and walk around the Inner Sanctum.
Mi Jing Lun directly activated his Divine Sense and scanned the surroundings in an attempt to examine the setups in the Inner Sanctum and count the number of Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples.
Hong Di didn’t mind this. Since it had been agreed upon, he’d rather Mi Jing Lun act openly than secretly.
Soon, they arrived at the centre of the Inner Sanctum where there was a square that served as a military drill ground in Great Evolution Pass.
Every Great Pass had its own military drill ground that was quite vast. On special occasions, it could accommodate several tens of thousands of Open Heaven Realm Masters.
The Territory Lord Black Ink Nest was located in this square, and in front of the gigantic Black Ink Nest was a huge jade monument.
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