A Longer Road to Immortality, an Irresistible Promise

"Heh!" Voldemort sneered. "Now you're nothing but a discarded pawn. What right do you have to negotiate with me?"

"It wasn't there before, but..." Aaron turned to look at the gray-white barrier, and said meaningfully, "It might not be now."

"What do you mean?" Voldemort's eyes instantly turned cold.

"Sigh!" Aaron sighed. "I really dislike the Phoenix Society. If it can save my life, I wouldn't mind going with Dumbledore."

You should know my abilities. Although I'm no match for you for the next ten or twenty years, with my help, your unification of the Magic World might be delayed by a few years.

"You're threatening me?" Voldemort scoffed. "Do you think I need that little bit of time?"

"We don't lack it, but there's no need for it either, is there?" Aaron said calmly. "Anyway, we still have some time, so let's hear what conditions I can offer."

If you agree, we'll all be happy; if you disagree, you won't lose anything.

"Aaron, you can't..." Harry couldn't hold back any longer. He believed that Aaron wouldn't stand against them, but that didn't mean he could accept Aaron cooperating with Voldemort.

"Silencing Charm!"

Before Harry could finish speaking, a spell was cast on him, and no matter how hard he tried to open his mouth, he couldn't make a sound.

"I told you not to speak first," Aaron said helplessly, then turned to look at Jeans, "Uncle Jeans, could you help me set up a barrier?"

"Yes." Jeans waved his Wand, and a similar gray-white barrier enveloped everyone except Harry Potter.

Aaron looked at Jeans and Lucius inside the barrier, feeling somewhat speechless.

He wanted to negotiate with Voldemort alone, but that now seems unlikely.

"Now you can talk. What do you want to talk to me about?" Voldemort asked contemptuously.

"Don't cause me any trouble."

"Impossible." Voldemort didn't shy away from Jeans standing beside him. "You should know how much value you have to me. If you were me, would you give up?"

"Alright!" Aaron pursed his lips. "I'll back down. Just don't bother me for now."

"Why should I?" Voldemort's lips curled into a sneer. "Give me enough time, and you'll be another Dumbledore. I won't leave myself any threat."

"Don't rush to refuse." Aaron slowly sipped his tea. "You haven't heard my conditions yet!"

"You can't mobilize the Gaius family's resources right now, so what conditions can you propose?"

"Long time." Aaron said confidently.

Voldemort paused, his expression immediately becoming extremely serious. "Do you know what you're saying?"

"Of course I know."

Aaron had anticipated Voldemort's change in attitude. After all, at his level, the only things that interested him were becoming a god or growing a beast, and becoming a god was also for the purpose of growing a beast.

"I can show you the long road ahead, but I'm not responsible for any other gains."

Voldemort was silent for a few seconds before slowly saying, "How do I know if what you're saying is true?"

"We can make a contract. If I do something wrong, I can cooperate with your research."

Voldemort's eyes lit up, but he still didn't agree immediately. "I admit your terms are very tempting, but I can't ignore your threats."

"I can't cause you trouble for now, but it's hard to define what 'for now' means!"

"How about ten years?" Aaron immediately made his outrageous demand. He was asking for an exorbitant price, but he would try to negotiate a lower one. Two or three years would be enough for him.

"Are you kidding me?" Voldemort laughed in anger. "You're hard enough to catch now, I need to personally take action. Even ten years from now, I might not be able to catch you."

"Five years," Aaron said through gritted teeth, feigning extreme resentment.

"Too long," Voldemort chuckled in refusal.

"Three years, don't go too far."

"One year," Voldemort said casually.

"That's not very interesting," Aaron said without any enthusiasm. "I just want to live my life peacefully. Don't force me to join the Phoenix Society. With Dumbledore's protection, you won't be able to do anything to me for the next three to five years."

Voldemort scoffed, "Three years is impossible. By then, I would have already unified the Magic World."

"Then how about this! Let's each take a step back." Aaron pretended to think for a moment and then proposed a condition that was most advantageous to him, "You can't cause me any trouble before Dumbledore and Harry Potter die."

"That... is acceptable." Voldemort nodded slightly. "But what if you actively interfere with my plans?"

"Now that the timeline is ahead of schedule, you and your forces can make a move against me."

"That doesn't seem very fair to me!" Voldemort said meaningfully. "What if you ruin my grand plan..."

"This is a long-standing relationship, not some trivial matter. Don't push your luck," Aaron said boldly, showing no sign of backing down.

"I'll give you face."

Aaron immediately drew his Wand, wrote a contract in mid-air, and signed his name.

The content was roughly as they had agreed, but Voldemort's expression was not very pleasant. "Wait, why do you insist that I kill Dumbledore and Harry Potter before you can take me on a longer journey?"

"Nonsense, of course I haven't made any preparations yet," Aaron said with a straight face, spouting nonsense. "If you're not satisfied, you don't have to sign."

Voldemort had no doubts, and his Wand wrote in red letters: Tom Riddle.

The contract automatically dissipated after completion, and Aaron breathed a sigh of relief, his sense of security instantly surging.

The longer, more distant road was a condition he had devised these past few days, one that Voldemort absolutely could not refuse.

In fact, this path was his own exclusive property, formed by the combination of the Dog Talisman and the Horse Talisman, granting him immortality and indestructibility. If Voldemort knew this, he would definitely hunt him down in a frenzy and would not negotiate any terms with him.

Now it all depends on Dumbledore and Harry Potter, one the White Lord, the other the Chosen One existing in Prophecy. It will take Voldemort at least two years to kill them!

These two years are his development period. As for what will happen after two years, his offense and defense will change. It would be good enough if he didn't kill Voldemort.

"Young Master, may I remove the barrier?" Jeans asked.

"Wait a moment." Aaron waved his hand casually. "I have some things to discuss with the Dark Lord."

"Is there anything else?" Voldemort asked expressionlessly. After signing the contract, neither he nor his forces could attack Aaron. In other words, their statuses were roughly equal, and the necessary respect still had to be shown.

Aaron smiled slightly, activated a red Magic Array, and reached his hand into it.

A moment later, he took out a small purple glass bottle.

Voldemort's pupils widened instantly, and he stood up abruptly from the sofa, his composure completely gone.

Aaron tossed the ' Moon Drop ' in his hand. "I want to use it to make a deal with you."

"Speak." Voldemort suppressed his urge to snatch it, but his vertical pupils remained fixed on the purple solution.

"Your Death Eater are causing trouble everywhere. The Magic World is very unstable right now, which will inevitably affect some people."

"Get to the point," Voldemort said impatiently.

"I don't care about anyone else, but you can't touch Ollivanders Wand Shop," Aaron said seriously. "My great-uncle is a very shrewd businessman, and he's too old to have any impact on you."

Voldemort hesitated for a moment, then said thoughtfully, "I can only guarantee that I will not use violence against him, but he must cooperate where necessary, otherwise I don't mind using some other methods."

"No, there's no room for negotiation," Aaron said firmly, his attitude extremely unyielding.

"Master," Lucius interjected cautiously, "Ollivander is not the only Wand- making master in the Magic World."

"I don't need you to remind me."

"Mr. Ollivander is one of the few relatives of the lady," Jeans said. "Although the Gaius family will not participate in the conflicts of the Magic World, we hope that the Dark Lord can give us some face."

"Since Mr. Jeans has said so, I can leave Ollivander alone," Voldemort laughed, then looked at Aaron. "I agree to this condition: give me the item."

"What's the rush!" Aaron said unhurriedly. "This Potions is priceless; just protecting Ollivander doesn't really show its value."

"You..." Voldemort gritted his teeth anxiously, but he quickly realized something, and a mocking smile appeared on his lips, "You want to protect her, don't you?"

Aaron nodded helplessly, "As long as we can protect ourselves, we'll help as much as we can."

"A Mudblood?" Voldemort scoffed. "Granger really has some luck."

"Hermione Granger?" Jeans opened his mouth in surprise, his gaze towards Aaron now filled with amusement and teasing. "Young Master, does Miss Clea know her?"

"None of your business!" Aaron retorted without any energy. "Besides, don't overthink it."

I can distinguish between what's important and what's urgent. Talking about romance is a waste of time; I'm still very chaste.

"Don't worry, I understand." Jeans raised an eyebrow at Aaron. "I'll keep this a secret."

Aaron:...

I don't believe you for a second. I'd be Merlin if you didn't exaggerate.

"She might get in the way of your plans in the future. If she ends up in your hands one day, I hope you can let her go," Aaron said, somewhat frustrated.

"Sure, but this won't happen again," Voldemort scoffed.

"Apart from that, Death Eater should not deliberately cause her trouble."

I don't think a dignified Dark Lord would be so intolerant of a Muggle-born witch!

"Hahaha... You're so good to her, you've thought of everything so carefully."

Do you need me to help you promote it?

"There's absolutely no need for that."

Voldemort scoffed dismissively, "I can agree to this condition. Now give me that Potions."

"Sign a contract."

"There's no need for that!" Voldemort felt insulted. How could he, the Dark Lord, go back on his word after making a promise?

Ollivander is not irreplaceable, and as for Hermione Granger, that Mudblood is nothing to him; he could crush her with a flick of his wrist.

Whether it's necessary or not is unimportant. Just tell me, sign or not?

"Sign." Voldemort spat out the word angrily. The ' Moon Drop ' was very important to him. Faced with such enormous benefits, dignity could be put aside.

"Very good." Aaron clapped his hands and wrote a second contract in mid-air.

Voldemort glanced at it and wrote down his name without hesitation.

"It's a pleasure to work with you."

Aaron smiled and used the Levitation Charm to send the ' Moon Drop ' into Voldemort's hands.

Having obtained what he wanted, Voldemort could not hide his excitement.

He opened the bottle cap directly and used his Wand to guide the purple solution out, afraid of wasting even the slightest bit of it.

A clump of ' Moon Drop ', turning into a light purple rain, fell on Voldemort.

His pale skin gradually regained its color, and his snake-like face began to turn, his features becoming more and more distinct. Even his bald head began to grow black hair.

Apart from his still-red vertical pupils, Voldemort had transformed into a handsome Chinese man, a far cry from his previous inhuman appearance.

"Master, you, you are now..." Lucius stared in astonishment at the scene, unsure how to express the shock in his heart.

"What's wrong?"

Lucius conjured a mirror and respectfully handed it to Voldemort. "Look."

Voldemort looked at himself in the mirror, subconsciously touched his cheek, and felt a mix of emotions.

Since his Soul Stone split, he has become neither human nor ghost, but he has no regrets about sacrificing his appearance for immortality, and even feels that it is worth it.

But if he had a choice, he wouldn't want to become like that. Isn't it better to be an upright person?

More importantly, he could feel a magical power within him that allowed him to reshape his body with the help of the Soul Stone within the Horcrux.

Although it can only be used once, it's no different from having a second life in the true sense.

"Very good, very good." Voldemort laughed smugly. "Lucius, you made the right choice coming here today. I haven't been this excited in a long time."

"Congratulations, Master." Lucius forced a happy smile. "This is definitely a good omen. I believe that Master will soon unify the Magic World."

"Ahem!" Aaron coughed at an inopportune moment. "Gentlemen, this is my home. Could you please behave yourselves a little?"

"Uncle Jeans, you can remove the barrier now."

"Yes, ma'am."

The gray barrier slowly dissipated, and at the same time, another barrier began to dissolve, and Voldemort and Dumbledore appeared in Harry's sight.

The Dark Lord's appearance had undergone a dramatic transformation. Compared to before, he was less manic and more composed. His gaze fell on Harry, making Harry feel cold to the touch, as if he were being watched by a venomous snake.

The situation was completely different for the Demon King. Dumbledore still as kind and approachable as ever, but his pupils were trembling violently as if he had seen something unbelievable, giving him a sense of his worldview collapsing.