How to Test It?

"Heh heh, if we can work together, your academy will be responsible for distributing the potions and formulating plans. We'll be responsible for researching, developing, and delivering them." Di Xiong's tone gradually turned cold. Chen Tian's question seemed to have displeased him.

Chen Tian propped up his chin with one hand, his fingers tapping lightly against the tabletop. His deep eyes gave off an unreadable air.

Then he said, "Alliance Leader Di Xiong, do you think the terms you proposed count as cooperation?"

If Old Dean Feng Ming hadn't been in the meeting, Chen Tian really would have liked to humiliate this Alliance Leader whose arrogance stank worse than his athlete's foot!

He had nothing at all, yet had brought over a lousy projection and was acting cocky while trying to negotiate cooperation with the academy. Anyone who didn't know better would think he was insane! What was wrong with this man? Was he missing a screw?!

Still, no matter how much he disliked him, they had to negotiate properly. After all, he was the leader of the NO.1 Alliance, the perennial second-place force of ten thousand years.

Di Xiong had no idea Chen Tian had already started cursing his ancestors in his heart. He maintained his confident, arrogant attitude and said, "No one wants to die beneath a monster's jaws. The potions were developed by us, so naturally, we get to decide how they're used. We're not as noble as the academy. We can't achieve the lofty goal of embracing all humanity; we can only barely manage to protect ourselves."

Chen Tian let out a cold laugh inwardly. He understood exactly what Di Xiong meant. What did he mean, "barely manage to protect ourselves"?

He was willing to make a contribution, sure—but only if he received an equivalent return. That vague notion of selfless devotion was useless to him! If his demands weren't met, then he would simply hole up in the city and live off his own supplies. With the potions in hand, he had nothing to fear from a Beast Tide.

"Alliance Leader Di Xiong, aren't you afraid of divine retribution for doing this kind of business while all humanity is in peril?" Chen Tian narrowed his eyes slightly. He was already growing displeased.

"My friend, men die for wealth, and birds die for food. Don't you understand that principle?" Di Xiong retorted.

Seeing the tempers flaring between Chen Tian and Di Xiong, Old Dean Feng Ming and Li Chengtian hurriedly spoke up to stop them.

"Di Xiong, since you want wealth so badly, you can sell the potions. Wouldn't you earn even more without cooperating with us?" Old Dean Feng Ming said.

Li Chengtian nodded. Old Dean Feng Ming was absolutely right. "Of all the people you could have approached, why did you choose our academy? You're not merely after half our resources, are you?"

Chen Tian had long since guessed it. Di Xiong didn't just intend to use the academy like a field of leeks and harvest it—afterward, he even planned to pull up the remaining half by the roots.

If there was any organization that truly devoted itself to humanity, apart from the military, it was the academy. Di Xiong had seized upon the fact that the academy would never abandon a single resident and was using the potions as an opening to lock the academy's retreat tight! But he wanted to harvest the leeks right in front of Chen Tian? Only if Chen Tian were completely useless! Di Xiong rolled his neck and said, "Does the NO.1 Alliance lack Ten Thousand Stars Coins? Do we lack resources? We actually lack nothing. But think about it—who would refuse a massive amount of resources? Am I right, gentlemen?"

"After all that, what's your final decision?" Di Xiong looked at the three of them. His oppressive gaze made even Li Chengtian feel the space pressing in around him!

Faced with Di Xiong's threats and inducements, Old Dean Feng Ming opened his mouth to speak, but Chen Tian stopped him with a raised hand.

Old Dean Feng Ming had been about to say those three words, only to be stopped by Chen Tian. He nearly cursed aloud, but in the end merely snorted, straightened his collar, and watched coldly.

"Di Xiong, this cooperation meeting is over. Go back where you came from." Chen Tian pointed toward the glass doors behind Di Xiong.

"What did you say?!" Di Xiong could hardly believe that Chen Tian had actually said such a thing.

Li Chengtian and Old Dean Feng Ming were startled as well. Chen Tian had suddenly cut off the conversation between both sides and told Di Xiong to leave!

Bang! Di Xiong shot to his feet. The chair beneath him was blasted backward by his aura and slammed into the wall with a muffled boom.

"Do you know what you're saying?!" Di Xiong stared at Chen Tian. "Without our potions, how long can you hold out?"

The powerful aura radiating from Di Xiong filled the entire meeting room. Faint cracks seemed to appear in the transparent glass walls, showing just how terrifying his strength was! Li Chengtian, also a Beyond War God, was barely affected; he merely frowned, inwardly sensing that things were going badly.

Old Dean Feng Ming, whose strength was weaker and who was advanced in years, had a much harder time. He could barely breathe beneath Di Xiong's suppression and nearly suffocated into unconsciousness!

Seeing Di Xiong's arrogance, Chen Tian's eyes sharpened. In an instant, a force that seemed to descend from a sky stretching ten thousand miles pressed Di Xiong firmly down, easing the pressure in the meeting room. Old Dean Feng Ming was finally able to take deep breaths again, though the clothes on his back had already been soaked through with cold sweat.

During the standoff, Di Xiong retreated two steps. Then his body could no longer move, and fear began to grow, climbing into his heart.

Others might not have noticed, but he knew perfectly well what was happening. Chen Tian was suppressing him completely with nothing but his aura. Those two backward steps represented the distance between him and Chen Tian! He had never imagined that Chen Tian's strength would be several times greater than his own! No wonder Li Chengtian, a second-stage Beyond War God like him, and Old Dean Feng Ming, the most prestigious figure of the War God Technology Institute, were both willing to follow Chen Tian's lead!

"The academy will never cooperate with you. Give up!" Chen Tian said coldly. "The door is right there. Leave—or die!"

It was rare for Chen Tian to reveal such overwhelming dominance. Di Xiong had come to negotiate with absolute confidence, never imagining that he would kick an iron plate.

Di Xiong withdrew his aura and sucked in a cold breath, calming the shock and fear in his heart. His legs, hidden behind the table, trembled involuntarily.

Under the gazes of the three men, Di Xiong did not dare say anything more. To him, every extra moment he stayed was torment. He had experienced Chen Tian's strength firsthand.

He had once been held in check by Long Ye and Tian Gang. He had planned to take down the academy during the window when the two were absent, but Chen Tian had suddenly appeared halfway through, leaving him like a mute who had swallowed bitter herbs—suffering in silence!

In the end, he could only leave sheepishly, like a stray dog driven from its home.

Di Xiong was gone. No one was coveting the academy anymore, but Old Dean Feng Ming sighed in his chair, and even Li Chengtian shook his head.

Chen Tian asked, "What's wrong? Do you feel it's a pity?"

Old Dean Feng Ming looked toward the door Di Xiong had left through and said, "Sigh. That kind of potion is truly precious. If it really is as powerful as it looked, it would surely be of immense benefit to humanity. What a pity that it was developed by Di Xiong's alliance."

Li Chengtian turned around with a sigh and kept shaking his head.

Seeing this, Chen Tian realized that if he didn't say something, they might truly be led around by the nose by Di Xiong in the future. "Old Dean, don't worry. The potions Di Xiong mentioned aren't as simple as they appeared on the surface, and their effects are nowhere near as powerful as those shown in the projection."

Old Dean Feng Ming looked at Chen Tian in confusion, not understanding what he meant. "Are you saying the projection Di Xiong showed us was fake?"

"Whether it was fake or not, we'll know soon enough. We only need to test it ourselves." Chen Tian smiled, a scheme hidden within that smile.

"Test it? How do we test it?"