The Negotiation

Kaka was quick-witted and immediately called out, "Lord Gangke, the leader wants to see you."

The cloaked man glanced at Kaka. Overcome with awe, Kaka lowered his head and moved to stand beside the old goblin.

Gangke's footsteps drew closer. Soon, the first victim of Aurora Blast came into view. Some time had passed, but Gangke's injuries clearly hadn't healed. He looked rather listless.

Gangke had been speaking loudly, but when he saw the cloaked man, his voice immediately dropped. The Servant Demon beside Gangke stepped forward, looking somewhat arrogant, and asked, "Are you Alaux, the leader of the Cloak Society?"

The cloaked man said nothing. He simply raised a hand, spread his fingers, and aimed at the wall ten meters away. A huge sphere of white light shot out at high speed. The ground cracked along its path, and the hard wall was instantly pierced, leaving a massive hole riddled with cracks. The sounds of destruction continued from the other side of the wall, gradually fading only after a long while.

The attack was astonishingly powerful. The Servant Demon gaped, his swagger instantly gone. Remembering that night, Gangke was overcome with fear, and his sturdy frame began to tremble. That's the same power! It's at least the level of a Mid-tier Demon, and definitely not the talent of an ordinary Greater Devil. It's probably a mutated talent. I was incredibly lucky to have survived that night. At least I haven't made things difficult for that old goblin or the Cloak Society since then.

The members of the Cloak Society looked thrilled, though most of all they were in awe of the cloaked man. Until now, they had only heard of their leader, never seen him. Now they understood that seeing him was even better than hearing about him. With such a powerful leader, the Cloak Society's name might one day resound throughout Dark Moon.

Only the old goblin Didi was hurting inside. Master, don't start by wrecking the courtyard! That's all Magic Crystal Coins...

"Lord Alaux, Naji was presumptuous just now. Please forgive me." The display of Aurora Blast had swept away the Servant Demon's arrogance, and his attitude had made a complete turnaround. He spoke courteously now. "Gangke and I are here today on behalf of General Allen, the security officer. We'd like to discuss something with you, Lord Alaux."

Although Naji was wary of the cloaked man's strength, he remained composed and asked, "I've never heard of Lord Alaux before. May I ask where you're from, and what brings you to the Darkmoon Territory?"

"My hometown is the Darkmoon Territory. I simply haven't been back in centuries. This time, I was sent out by my teacher to gain experience, so I decided to return to Dark Moon along the way." The cloaked man was Chen Rui. His explanation was deliberately vague, making Alaux's origins seem even more mysterious.

A teacher? Alaux has a powerful figure backing him, too! Naji was startled again. As for Alaux's origins, there was nothing particularly suspicious about the story. Dark Moon had been a prosperous place centuries ago, attracting many powerful figures. But after the Beelzebub Royal Family's rebellion was put down by Emperor White Night, it began to decline, and many families moved elsewhere. Alaux could well have been descended from one of them.

Naji wanted to find out more about the forces behind Alaux, so he cautiously asked, "If you don't mind me asking, Lord Alaux, who is your teacher...?"

"You're not worthy of knowing my teacher's name," the cloaked man replied coldly. "Even Allen's father, Legu, the head of the Kalon Family, has no right to ask."

Naji looked even more alarmed. He hadn't expected the other man to remain so arrogant despite knowing the Kalon Family's power. Alaux's background had to be extraordinary. Naji swallowed the threats he'd prepared and grew even more cautious. "Since you're a reasonable man, Lord Alaux, I'll be frank. You've seen a lot of the world, so you should know that every place has its own rules. Now that you've established the Cloak Society in the city, you have to follow Dark Moon's rules. The monthly fee is very small. As long as nothing major happens, General Allen can offer you protection."

"I have no need for your so-called protection. My teacher once said that if anyone dared to touch me, he would wipe out their entire family. I don't doubt that for a second." Naji and Gangke both went pale. It seemed this man was determined to make an enemy of them. Given the power he had just demonstrated, killing them would be effortless.

But then the cloaked man's tone shifted. "However... you're right that every place has its own rules. I came to Dark Moon just to see my hometown again and to gain experience and cultivate. I don't want to waste my energy on anything else. The Cloak Society was formed to gather resources for my teacher. I can follow Dark Moon's rules, but you absolutely mustn't provoke me. Otherwise..."

Naji silently thanked his luck and hurried to reassure him. "Don't worry, Lord Alaux. As for the fee, it's calculated according to the number of members. Each member pays one Purple Crystal Coin per month. Your Cloak Society has... about ten people, so that would be ten Purple Crystal Coins a month."

Wary of Alaux, Naji had quoted the lowest possible amount. Chen Rui glanced at the little cloaks nearby and estimated there were at least twenty or thirty. This fellow seemed reasonably sensible. To keep up the air of mystery, he suppressed his reluctance and tossed Naji a Black Crystal Coin. "I'll do the Kalon Family this favor. Don't bother me for ten months."

Naji was delighted. In truth, Allen had only ordered them to keep the city's organizations in check. The fee system was something Naji and his men had made up themselves, and they pocketed most of the money. They only needed to give Allen an occasional gift. Allen was the Kalon Family's only son, so he didn't lack for pocket money. As long as nothing serious happened, he was happy to turn a blind eye.

Thanks to the Kalon Family's name, Naji had always gotten his way. But this Alaux clearly had powerful backing and wasn't afraid of the Kalon Family, so the visit had gone about as well as it could have.

"Thank you for your generosity, Lord Alaux." Naji led Gangke in a bow. "If you ever need our help, we'll do everything we can."

Chen Rui nodded but said no more. Naji wisely took Gangke and left. The old goblin saw the little cloaks staring at their master with shining eyes and barked, "All of you, get back to work! Don't disturb the leader while he rests!"

The Dark Goblins and Lesser Devils came to their senses and scattered. After witnessing their leader's power, they were all visibly excited.

The old goblin said respectfully, "Master, please come inside and sit down."

Chen Rui said nothing. He strode into the house and sat in the chair at the center of the room.

"Master..." The old goblin struggled to bring out a handful of Purple Crystal Coins, around thirty or forty of them. "Master, you gave me three Purple Crystal Coins at first. Didi has earned thirty-eight in all, and I'm offering them all to you now."

Thirty-eight Purple Crystal Coins? Chen Rui's thoughts stirred, and he asked, "Why did my friend tell me yesterday that you'd earned just over ten?"

"It's like this, Master." The old goblin was now certain that the human record keeper and his master were close friends. "Lord Chen Rui was right. Yesterday, I had only fourteen. But last night, I bet at the arena and won another nineteen. Then I earned five today, bringing the total to thirty-eight. Please count them, Master."

Chen Rui saw that the old goblin kept careful accounts and nodded to himself. "What's this arena you mentioned?"

When the old goblin saw that his master hadn't taken the money, he grew even more nervous and answered cautiously, "There are several fighting matches at the arena every day, and you can bet on who'll win. I've heard it was once the liveliest place in all of Dark Moon, with every match drawing a full house. But it's much quieter now. Unless it's a major event like the Master Challenge Tournament or the Aerial Competition a while back, fewer than thirty percent of the seats are filled. Chen Rui had been to the arena twice and knew it was enormous. It could hold tens of thousands of spectators when full. Even with less than a third of the seats filled, there'd still be over a thousand people."

The fighting matches the old goblin described caught Chen Rui's interest. When he asked for details, he learned that the arena was run by Alaux, one of the three lieutenants under Joseph. Anyone with the strength and confidence could enter. The winner of each match received a generous prize, while the loser still got a small payment. But these fights were extremely dangerous. There were no rules against killing, and someone died almost every day.

Poison Dragon had told Chen Rui the night before that his various attributes had stabilized to a certain degree, and his rate of progress was beginning to slow. The best way to improve was to gain experience and unlock his potential through real combat, then return to special training to review and refine what he'd learned. That was the fastest and most effective way to make progress.

After thinking it over, Chen Rui made up his mind. "My human friend told me how hard you've been working. So I'll give you a chance. If you can truly meet my expectations, you'll become my official servant, and the Cloak Society can become a force under my protection."

The old goblin was overjoyed and offered the Purple Crystal Coins again, but Chen Rui didn't accept them. Instead, he added two Black Crystal Coins. "Use these as operating expenses. Don't gamble at the arena anymore. I want you to do three things. First, use the Cloak Society to keep track of all the news in the city and report to me whenever I need it. Second, learn more about doing business instead of cheating and extorting people. Get ready to open a shop. Third, gather as many Fluorescent Shadow Stones as you can, and the higher their quality, the better. I'll have my friend give you a list of other materials."

The old goblin hadn't expected his master to trust him so much and give him another two Black Crystal Coins. This time was completely different from the previous "test"—his master was entrusting him with an important task. At first, he had only wanted to attach himself to a powerful figure so he wouldn't be bullied. Now it seemed he'd chosen the right path. With Master Alaux behind them, the Cloak Society would no longer be an empty shell. They could build it up with confidence.

As for doing business, that was the old goblin's specialty. It seemed his master was giving him room to use his talents. He bowed deeply and said, "Didi will carry out your orders, Master!"

Chen Rui was eager to see what the arena was like and didn't want to linger here any longer. "Chen Rui is the friend I trust most. His word is my command, so you must respect him as you would me! I'm going to a secret place to cultivate now. If anything important comes up, I'll have him pass the message along."

The old goblin had long known how close his master and the human were, and quickly agreed. Then he heard his master turn away, his voice gritted with anger: "And another thing! I never want to hear that rumor about your daughter being my concubine again. Otherwise, I'll be the first to wipe out the Cloak Society!"

Hearing how resolute his master was, the old goblin had no choice but to swallow the string of glowing recommendations he'd prepared about his daughter.

After leaving the Cloak Society, Chen Rui kept his cloak on and went straight to the arena without stopping.