Super Seminary, meeting room.
Si Yao had originally planned to leave right away. Su Xiao Li had gone with the Xiong Bing Lian Members to see the monkey, so there was no point in him staying.
After all, Su Xiao Li had already connected to the Dark Plane of his Seed of Delusion. Just like the Angels shared information through the Insight Eye, he could sense what was happening on her end at any time and even give her commands directly. She was basically a mobile surveillance camera and a remotely controlled terminal.
Besides, Angel Yan's squad was supposed to make formal contact with Super Seminary tonight. He had no interest in getting mixed up in their meeting.
But just as he stood up, Lena was quick to grab him.
"Hey! Don't rush off!" Lena put on a broad smile. "A few special alien guests are coming soon. I'm a little nervous about handling them alone. Come meet them with me, will you? Give me a little moral support!"
Si Yao expressionlessly pulled his arm free. "Not interested."
"Come on!" Lena immediately put on a pitiful look. "They're all beautiful Female Angels! There might even be one you're interested in."
Si Yao: "..."
Seeing that Si Yao remained unmoved, Lena's eyes darted about as she brought out her "Rich Woman Style Play" once more.
"How about this! If you stay and help me keep up appearances, I'll not only give Xiao Li Dark Alloy Armor, I'll also equip her with a Flame Grade God-Slaying Weapon. I guarantee she'll be much better in a fight than she is empty-handed!"
She could tell that Si Yao cared quite a bit about his "pet," Su Xiao Li. Otherwise, he wouldn't have invested such enormous resources in her, forcibly raising her to Quasi-Third Generation level in such a short time.
She was certain Su Xiao Li hadn't yet reached Third Generation God Body. A Third Generation God Body had completely escaped the constraints of birth, aging, sickness, and death. It had a powerful, independent Gene Engine that could continuously draw Dark Energy from its surroundings to sustain its existence and fight. For instance, her Light of the Sun could remotely draw Stellar Energy through Micro Wormholes.
But Su Xiao Li was different. Although the battle that afternoon had seemed completely one-sided, Su Xiao Li had grown tired, and her Energy Fluctuations weren't stable enough. Clearly, when fighting at high intensity, she still needed to rely on the connection to Si Yao's Dark Plane for energy support.
People shouldn't underestimate that "sparring match." To effectively inflict Mental Interference on Ge Xiaolun and Liu Chuang, both of whom were tough, Third Generation God Body candidates, Su Xiao Li's special Mental Algorithm must have consumed an astronomical amount of energy!
If Su Xiao Li had been holding a weapon capable of breaking through their defenses, the Xiong Bing Lian wouldn't have merely suffered a blow to their morale. It would have been a genuine total-annihilation disaster!
Since Su Xiao Li was still Quasi-Third Generation, that meant Si Yao didn't have many physical resources on hand. Lena might not have anything that could tempt Si Yao, a "Main God," but she did have the weapons and equipment Su Xiao Li desperately needed!
Whether or not Si Yao really was an Old God of the Pangu Civilization, his demonstrated strength, the technology he possessed, and the threat he potentially represented were all unquestionably on the level of a Civilization Main God.
Since he seemed to be in a Weakness Period or short on resources while "recovering," building a good relationship with him in this subtle way was a sure-fire win.
Even if she couldn't ultimately recruit Si Yao to Lieyang, at least becoming familiar with him and making a friend would be better than meeting him as an enemy on the battlefield in the future.
Faced with Lena's crude but incisive "Rich Woman Style Play," Si Yao fell silent for a moment.
He really was... a little broke.
Most of the resources he'd looted from Sumali had gone into Su Xiao Li's first-stage Gene Optimization and "Consciousness Infusion." He needed to save what remained for emergencies.
He also had to budget his True Points carefully and save them for when they mattered. He couldn't just squander them.
Besides, a deal with the Lieyang Civilization might give him access to some of their technology.
With real-world technology as a point of reference and a foundation, creating and manifesting more advanced technology in the future would cost him fewer True Points.
"All right," Si Yao finally agreed.
"Deal!" Lena grabbed Si Yao, afraid he'd change his mind.
"Don't worry. We're just meeting and chatting for a bit. You don't have to do anything—just help me keep up appearances."
She didn't think the Angels could have failed to notice Si Yao!
Everyone knew the Angels searched the universe over for Male Gods. Someone as powerful as Si Yao, who also had no clear allegiance, was practically a piece of irresistible bait to them!
By bringing Si Yao to meet the Angels tonight, she was also sending those flirty little things a message: she didn't care if the Angels wanted the Galaxy Power, but Si Yao was someone she, the Lieyang Main God, had her eye on!
Liangshan lay beneath the deep night, its wooded shadows shifting all around.
Using the night and the jungle for cover, the Xiong Bing Lian members cautiously advanced toward their target area.
The atmosphere was a little more relaxed than it had been on the way there. The afternoon's crushing defeat still weighed on them like a stone, but Su Xiao Li had been making full use of her friendliness as a former online streamer along the way. She was the youngest, even a little younger than Rui Mengmeng, and had a lively personality, so she had quickly become familiar with everyone.
Although they still felt a little aggrieved, the Xiong Bing Lian members couldn't bring themselves to hold a grudge against a young girl. Besides, a loss was a loss. They'd been outmatched, and there was nothing more to say.
Su Xiao Li was currently walking beside Qi Lin, serving as a flank guard alongside Rui Mengmeng. She was both nervous and excited. On the one hand, she wanted to see the legendary Great Sage Equaling Heaven with her own eyes. On the other, she remembered Si Yao's words: she had a "connection" to That Monkey. What exactly was that connection?
Under Qiangwei's command, the team used the concealment capabilities of their Dark Alloy Armor to advance silently.
Suddenly, Qiangwei stopped in her tracks. As she remembered something, her expression changed. She lowered her voice and spoke to Su Xiao Li over Dark Communication. "Xiao Li! Get back! Our Dark Alloy Armor can block Sun Wukong's Dark Energy Detection. You're not wearing any armor, so if you get too close to him, he'll find you!"
Dark Alloy Armor didn't just provide protection. More importantly, it could block Dark Energy Signals, which was crucial to sneaking around an opponent of Sun Wukong's caliber! With Su Xiao Li following them like this, she was as conspicuous as a beacon in the night!
Su Xiao Li, however, seemed completely calm. She waved a hand. "Relax, relax! Don't worry about me! Boss set me up with a special algorithm. It works pretty much like your armor, so the Dark Energy Analyzer can't see me!"
"An algorithm? What kind of algorithm?" Zhao Xin, standing nearby, was completely lost and couldn't help asking, "And what's a Dark Energy Analyzer?"
Qiangwei was at a loss. For a moment, she didn't know how to explain it to this "illiterate."
But Su Xiao Li, who had received Si Yao's "Consciousness Infusion," immediately recalled the concepts. She tried explaining them in simpler terms. "A Dark Energy Analyzer is kind of like... um... radar! Right, radar! It can detect things from really far away."
"And your Dark Alloy Armor is kind of like the stealth coating on a fighter jet. Radar can't scan a fighter jet with stealth coating, and a Dark Energy Analyzer can't scan you when you're wearing Dark Alloy Armor."
Qiangwei nodded. "That's more or less the idea."
Zhao Xin seemed to understand, but another question immediately came to him. "Oh... then what's radar? And stealth coating? We can still see each other, can't we? We're not invisible!"
Qiangwei: "..."
She felt like explaining scientific concepts to Zhao Xin was like trying to reason with a cow.
Su Xiao Li was amused by the way Zhao Xin's mind worked, but patiently added, "The Dark Energy Analyzer can't see us, but just like you can still see a stealth fighter jet with your naked eyes, the other person can still see our physical bodies. We're just blocking our Energy Fluctuations. We're not actually invisible."
As soon as she finished speaking, a lazy voice tinged with amusement rang out behind them without warning.
"Heh heh, Little Fox put it well. Your little tricks for hiding your heads and tails were exposed long ago before my Fiery Golden Eyes!"
The group shuddered and spun around!
In the moonlight, a figure wearing Golden Chain Mail and a Phoenix-Winged Purple Gold Crown was standing silently on a branch behind them. No one knew when he'd appeared. The Golden Cudgel in his hand, its surface gleaming with a dark sheen, rested casually on his shoulder as he regarded them with interest.
His gaze swept over the astonished Xiong Bing Lian Members before settling for a moment on Su Xiao Li. In his Golden Eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through everything, there flickered an extraordinarily complicated light—reminiscence, scrutiny, and a trace of... indescribable emotion.
But that complicated look vanished in an instant. The next moment, Sun Wukong grinned, a smile brimming with Battle Intent.
"First, take a hit from Old Sun!"
Before his words had even faded, he vanished like a specter, appearing in front of the still-dazed Ge Xiaolun in an instant. The Golden Cudgel in his hand swept out without mercy, whistling as it tore through the air!
Boom—!!!
A deafeningly heavy crash rang out!
Ge Xiaolun and his Black Greatsword were sent flying as though a battering ram had struck them head-on. He didn't even have time to scream before he became a black blur, crashing through several trees before finally slamming into the ground, motionless.
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