Was Gao Xu really disappointed?
Not at all!
In fact, he had never planned to take part in the battle against the Red Ghost King. All he wanted was for Mr. Yi and his men not to force him back to the space and cut his mission short.
But negotiations required skill. If he revealed his goal right from the start and let the other side get the upper hand, he would be at a disadvantage.
Lin Yueru's show of force had only been the opening move, making it clear that Gao Xu would not let anyone push him around. He had the ability to fight back and the means to cause Mr. Yi's group plenty of trouble.
But that alone wasn't enough. Mr. Yi and the giant weren't the sort to back down when faced with difficulties. If anything, they would press forward. That was why building some rapport was so important.
"A priceless gift?" Mr. Yi gazed calmly at Gao Xu, unmoved. "Though I believe I've made ample preparations for this trip, I'd still be interested to hear your thoughts, young friend."
Well, it seemed the old man had already decided Gao Xu's "gift" was just a bluff...
Gao Xu smiled, unbothered. With everyone watching, he clasped his hands behind his back and took a couple of steps, as though a storyteller gathering his thoughts. His composure soon put Lin Yueru at ease as well. She relaxed and watched him with a smile, ready to see what he would come up with.
Yes, it seemed she was another audience member expecting a bluff...
"No one knows the Red Ghost King's exact origins. The only thing we know is that he's currently hiding beneath the General's Tomb, north of Heishui Town. He controls the Sui Dynasty general buried there and his subordinates, turning them into a vast army of zombies. Once these zombies break out, they can bite people and suck their blood wherever they go, then gather the blood they've collected in the Blood Pool the Red Ghost King built, where he can consume it and increase his power!"
"To eliminate this vicious demon, you must enter the General's Tomb through the Mass Grave and first defeat the Skeleton General guarding the entrance. Only then can you face the Red Ghost King. Three obstacles stand in your way: various corpse demons, the miasma permeating the General's Tomb, and the maze of intersecting paths within. The corpse demons are all skilled in secret arts and extremely difficult to deal with, but the miasma is even more dangerous. Ordinary people will be poisoned to death in moments after entering, and their deaths will be gruesome. As for the tomb's maze-like pathways, I'm sure you've already worked out how to handle those~"
Since Lin Yueru was there, Gao Xu tried to explain things in plain language. Earlier, he'd spoken freely with the giant because the man had high enough access to the space to automatically block certain sensitive terms when interacting with characters in the story. But now Gao Xu was speaking on his own, so he had to avoid using too much of the space's terminology, lest Lin Yueru grow suspicious.
Mr. Yi was cooperative enough. He nodded and said, "For this sort of maze, a Guide Bee is the best companion. As for the miasma, you can simply use materials found nearby!"
For a moment, Gao Xu didn't understand what Mr. Yi meant by "materials found nearby," so he continued on his own. "With your strength, these obstacles shouldn't be a problem. The real challenge lies in the Skeleton General and the Red Ghost King. The Skeleton General's armor is battered, but its bones are hard, its defense is high, and it has no vital points. Its Purgatory Claw bursts out of the ground without warning and slows your movement. Ghost Possession drives its victims mad, making them attack friend and foe alike and throwing your formation into chaos. Of course, compared to the Red Ghost King's Soul Snatch, Ghost Possession is nothing. There's a fifty percent chance it'll kill you in one strike. If you're unlucky, just a few exchanges will leave your group suffering heavy casualties."
"Fortunately, there's always a way out. The Red Ghost King isn't invulnerable. Certain special talismans and items can ward off Soul Snatch, so you won't be wiped out at the first touch... and will at least have a chance to die beneath the Blood Demon Divine Art when the Red Ghost King transforms into a Blood Sea. 'The Blood Sea endures, and the Red Ghost will not perish'—those eight words are what make the Red Ghost King truly terrifying!"
As Gao Xu spoke, Mr. Yi's expression shifted from calm to grave, then finally to astonishment.
Their team had already attempted to take on the Red Ghost King twice. The first time, their intelligence had been wrong, and they hadn't even managed to defeat the Skeleton General. They'd been forced to retreat under the effects of that vile Ghost Possession skill, losing two team members in the process.
The second time, they'd prepared accessories and items to counter negative effects and brought down the gatekeeper boss, the Skeleton General. But three of them had died almost instantly to the Red Ghost King's Soul Snatch. They'd scrambled back to the space and only narrowly avoided being wiped out.
This time, they'd paid an enormous price to buy information about the Red Ghost King from the auction house, along with items that could resist Soul Snatch. They'd thought they had at least a seventy or eighty percent chance of success. Never had they expected the Red Ghost King, as described by Gao Xu, to have an even more terrifying trump card!
Mr. Yi frowned and fell silent. His instincts told him Gao Xu wasn't lying, but why would he so readily share such valuable information? After all, once verified, these details could easily sell for three or four thousand points at the information exchange!
Gao Xu would have loved to make a fortune at the information exchange, too. The problem was that all his information came from his previous life. In this life, he was still a complete novice and had no experience fighting bosses to prove that his intelligence was accurate. That was why he'd shared it without a second thought.
He'd scored a huge favor with this!
Whoever had put the information up for auction must have been a heartless Reincarnator. Nine-tenths of it was true, but they'd deliberately left out the Blood Sea's function, clearly hoping buyers would go to their deaths. Even Mr. Yi, with all his composure, ground his teeth when he thought of the three thousand points he'd paid.
"This priceless gift of yours is no less than a lifesaving favor. Please, accept this bow!" Mr. Yi bowed solemnly to Gao Xu. Gao Xu hurriedly stepped aside and replied with modest courtesy, "Please, don't. I truly respect you, Mr. Yi, and couldn't bear to see you taken advantage of by those scoundrels. Calling it a lifesaving favor is far too much. I could never accept that!"
At last, the tension between them eased. Mr. Yi also believed Gao Xu meant them no harm. Still, after a moment's hesitation, he said apologetically, "Please forgive us, young friend. We're determined to see this through, and we've prepared quite a few life-saving items that we hope will prove useful. But my companions and I have worked together across several worlds. Adding a newcomer to the team would certainly make everyone uncomfortable, so I'm afraid you'll have to accept this..."
Mr. Yi wasn't naive. He would repay Gao Xu's kindness if he ever got the chance, but there was no way he would let him join the team.
Gao Xu was putting on the air of an expert who knew everything, but once they entered the General's Tomb, he would surely be exposed. Even if Mr. Yi agreed to let him join the team and fight the boss, Gao Xu would find an excuse to leave. Now things had worked out exactly as he wanted. He sighed and said, "Very well... I came to Heishui Town to look for medicinal herbs, and I wasn't properly prepared. Fighting the Red Ghost King so rashly really could drag everyone down, so I won't impose on you."
"Medicinal herbs?" Mr. Yi's expression shifted. A cryptic smile appeared on his face. "As far as I know, there's only one kind of medicinal herb people would come all the way to Heishui Town to look for~"
Gao Xu's eyes lit up. They spoke almost in unison: "Ink Mystery Juice!"
Without another word, Mr. Yi flicked his hands, sending a small black bottle flying toward Gao Xu.
Delighted, Gao Xu caught it and took a look. "This really did come without the slightest effort. Thank you!"
Before you continue