Chapter 74

—Actually, swallowing it wouldn't have made any difference.

The enormous sword shot straight into the sky, then slowly descended, slashing horribly at Cocolia's skull.

Bronya saw the occupation clearly, and her heart ached as if being gnawed by a thousand insects.

"No!"

The giant sword paused for a moment, as if its words had become law.

The next moment, the giant sword disappeared, as if it had been deleted.

Cocolia opened her eyes and, seeing the greatsword disappear, thought it was a trick by her opponent. She picked up her spear and was about to attack.

However, a hot, sharp blade was pressed against her neck, freezing her in place.

Their eyes met, Cocolia noticed that although the handsome young man in front of her was smiling playfully, his eyes were very complicated, as if he were looking at an old friend and had been reminded of some memories.

The sound of the star core in his ear had long since disappeared; he had lost all his trump cards.

Both their own fate and Belobog's fate were now inevitably in the hands of others.

"Where do you want to take Belobog?" Cocolia's voice sounded like it had lost most of its strength.

"Of course, it's about living a good life."

"Ha," Cocolia chuckled self-deprecatingly, "I've lost now, I have no right to ask such questions."

She looked at the people traveling with Bai Yan, her gaze lingering especially on Fu Xuan and Jingliu.

"Actually, you're right..."

"I know you had no other choice, so beating you up was an objective necessity," Bai Yan said seriously.

"..."

Making a difficult decision in a desperate situation is a decision whose momentum is beyond the control of the person making the decision under normal circumstances.

She will only carry out this decision by force, unless there is an absolute power to stop her.

If it weren't for this method, even if she vaguely felt she was wrong, it would have been almost impossible for her to stop.

No one will let go of what they perceive as their only lifeline.

But Bai Yan's statement still angered Cocolia.

"So, new King of Belobog, what are your plans next?"

Volume 1: Chapter 81: Negotiations Failed, Jing Yuan Released

"Huh? Was the handover done so hastily?"

"Just kidding, you actually took it seriously?"

Although Cocolia was smiling, the melancholy in her eyes was impossible to shake off.

"Mother..." Bronya walked over and said with some concern.

Bai Yan put away the Godfall Sword, and the surrounding temperature immediately dropped.

"I'm fine, Bronya."

Bronya felt relieved and looked at Bai Yan again. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet, I still want to demote you and your daughter to commoners."

Bronya was taken aback.

That's it?

Fu Xuan, feeling somewhat bored, casually said, "I'm going to seal the star core. You guys can continue chatting."

"Good."

Everyone held this powerful figure, who had delivered a devastating blow to Cocolia right from the start, in awe and made way for him.

Cocolia was somewhat listless, but at the same time, she felt relaxed.

"You've put so much effort into this, is it all because of Bronya? Do you want to marry her?"

Bronya blushed upon hearing this.

"Don't joke around. You can see that these are clearly two different people. It just so happens that there is a girl in my hometown who looks exactly the same and has the same name. She and I came from the same orphanage and are very good friends."

"Oh? I see... Could it be..."

Cocolia looked at Bai Yan with a suspicious expression and a strange look on her face.

"That orphanage is called Cocolia Orphanage, and my foster mother looks exactly like you."

"..."

"But you are different from her. You are not a bad person, while she has completely lost her conscience for the sake of power."

"You actually think that way."

"In a desperate situation, no decision can be considered bad in the strict sense. It's just that fate has not given them a way out."

Cocolia felt somewhat relieved upon hearing this.

Fu Xuan finished sealing the star core and returned, he urged Bai Yan to resolve the matter here as soon as possible.

"Hurry up, and also, are you interested in joining my Divination Department?"

Her calculations were so precise that Bai Yan could hear them even while soaking in the Sea of Quantum.

"You think highly of me, Lord Diviner, but there are still some things to be done in my hometown, so there's nothing I can do right now."

"Whatever you say."

Next, Bai Yan did something in Belobog that left most people speechless.

He ascended to the throne and became the Supreme Guardian.

The lower district had no objections, because the heating problem had been solved since Bai Yan came.

Those in the upper district who had never seen Bai Yan immediately came out to protest.

However, Bai Yan ignored it. When Cocolia asked, Bai Yan said that he didn't care and let them bear it.

Bai Yan was waiting for someone from the company.

But the company's people didn't show up for a long time. Instead, groups of cosmic merchants came over, and no one knew what kind of business they were doing. Bai Yan didn't care.

These trivial matters were all left to Bronya.

After all, if you work overtime every day when you're not on vacation, and you still work overtime when you're on vacation, then what's the point of having a vacation?

Bronya Rand suffered a lot, and Bai Yan bore the blame.

A few days later, personnel from the Interastral Peace Corporation arrived in Jarilo-VI.

The negotiation location was chosen to be Everwinter Peak.

Many people, including Cocolia, did not understand this strange decision.

Shouldn't negotiations take place at the Supreme Guardian's residence?

However, Bai Yan did not give a reply, but only said that they would talk here first.

Besides Jade and Bai Yan, Jingliu, Fu Xuan, and Bronya were also present.

Cocolia is not here.

Jade's gaze was solemn, and the Setsuna she looked at Bai Yan, it seemed to shimmer with an unparalleled brilliance.

Bai Yan had a very bad impression of this woman.

Or rather, Bai Yan disliked the entire Interastral Peace Corporation.

"Greetings, Lord Bai Yan, the new Supreme Guardian of Belobog."

"Hello, Miss Jade."

"It seems you know me quite well?"

Jade kept scrutinizing Bai Yan, seemingly trying to discern his true inner thoughts from his appearance.

"Who doesn't know about the Interastral Peace Corporation? The names of the Ten Stonehearts are even more renowned."

"I know very little about Mr. Bai Yan. May I ask him if I may learn more about him?" Jade leaned forward slightly and asked.

"Let's talk about business. We can discuss these personal matters later."

"Alright."

Upon hearing this, she sat up straight.

"The debts of Jarilo-VI were left over from seven hundred years ago, and although the time has passed, they are still written down in black and white."

"I don't think Belobog can repay this debt at present, but we have a complete set of contingency plans for similar events."

As he spoke, a company employee handed Bai Yan a stack of documents.

Bai Yan glanced at it and realized that the contingency plan was the same one Topaz had provided in the story.

Essentially, it means giving the entire planet to the company as compensation.

"I cannot accept these conditions you have," Bai Yan said, gently closing the file.

He then said coldly, "There's a bunch of weapons in the warehouse that are still under the control of company personnel and were never used in the war. Remember to take this junk with you when you leave."

"I only have two options here. One is that you can wait and collect your money. You've already waited seven hundred years, so a little more time won't make a difference. The other is that the company brings an army to fight, and we'll take it on."

Upon hearing this, Bronya immediately tensed up.

She looked at Bai Yan with concern, and at the same time, she was extremely surprised.

Bai Yan knew how terrifying the company was, and going to war with them would be suicide.

However, neither Fu Xuan nor Jingliu showed any unusual expression.

Jade asked in surprise, "These conditions could clearly improve the lives of the residents of Jarilo-VI, so why did you choose to refuse?"

Bai Yan reached out and tapped lightly on the table.

"Give me liberty or give me death."

Upon hearing this, a slight glint appeared in the mature woman's eyes.

"Mr. Bai Yan should know that the business the company wants to pursue is like a planet on the verge of extinction, powerless to resist. So-called freedom does indeed have extremely high value, and we have offered sufficiently generous bargaining chips for it. Please reconsider."

"There's no need for that," Bai Yan stared into her eyes, watching her gaze. "Similar situations have occurred before in my real hometown."

Upon hearing the word "real," Fu Xuan immediately perked up.

Interesting...

"The reason is actually very simple: the upper limit of the possibilities that freedom brings is far higher than any conditions you can offer. This is a fact that I have witnessed with my own eyes."

"And for that future, I will make sure that even the Interastral Peace Corporation doesn't gain any advantage in this war!"

"If you're willing to suffer huge losses to fight... to be honest, if I and the people and things I care about are gone, then this universe has no reason to exist."

Bai Yan's tone was firm, and his body faintly radiated a scorching power, as if he were ready to incinerate everything at any moment.

At this moment, Jade's pupils opened, and a hint of admiration appeared in her eyes.

"A truly commendable demeanor..."

Bai Yan kept staring into her eyes, but his heart began to pound.

He took a deep breath. "I am willing to fall into slaughter for this planet, to kill every single person in every company, and even to use the Fragmentum, the Anti-Matter Legion, and even the creations of other evil gods here."

"And you, would you dare to wage interstellar war against us for the sake of your company's interests?"

For a moment, the negotiating table was filled with a terrifying killing intent.

Jade adjusted her hat, a slight smile playing on her lips.

"Certainly."

"..."

Bai Yan remained silent, forcing his expression to remain unchanged, and first looked at Jingliu.

The latter showed no sign of surprise, instead casting an inquiring glance at her.