Luo Lin was not surprised in the least. As he walked deeper inside, he examined this structure that had buried three angels of the War Pathway and given birth to a Blood Emperor.
Just as described in the original work, it was a building with an unmistakable Fourth Epoch style. Everywhere reflected a chaotic, irregular, asymmetrical beauty. Black was its dominant tone, and the walls bore patterns and marks as though they had been carved out by slashes.
"Honestly, anyone with OCD would probably be driven to death by the Black Emperor Pathway's aesthetics. Hmm, it's reasonable to suspect that Trunsoest only joined forces with Tudor to rebel against Solomon because he couldn't stand this aesthetic. Otherwise, why would he have jumped to the Judgement pathway?" After cracking a classic Fourth Epoch joke, Luo Lin continued onward and soon arrived at the place where the statues of the six gods stood.
Luo Lin's gaze swept across the statues one by one, memorizing the gods' faces so he could match them to their names when dealing with them in the future. Then he raised his foot again and headed deeper inside.
Before long, Luo Lin arrived outside the final room. As a temporary Ferryman, he could clearly sense what lay behind the door: a powerful evil spirit.
But in terms of strength alone, it probably can't beat me as I am now... Having made a preliminary judgment, Luo Lin entered the final room without hesitation.
"A little fellow from the Numinous Episcopate?"
A voice rang out through the empty room, arrogant and faintly provocative, casual yet seemingly concealing vigilance. Luo Lin looked toward its source and saw a figure sitting in a high-backed chair.
The other party wore bloodstained black armor. His long red hair flared like flames, and his face was young and handsome, save for a rotting mark on each side of it. His blood-red eyes, matching his hair, appeared to look at Luo Lin with casual indifference.
It had to be said that if Luo Lin had not known just how miserable Medici's circumstances were, the man's current appearance would have been quite intimidating.
"I seem to sense a familiar aura. It feels a little like Salinger?" A slit suddenly tore open in the rotting patch on the left side of Medici's face, and a voice emerged from it.
"Idiot, Salinger died long ago. This must be Salinger's descendant." As if mirrored, a slit also opened in the rotting patch on the right side of Medici's face, and it spoke.
"Who are you calling an idiot? That was clearly what I meant."
"Whoever responds is the idiot!"
The two voices began bickering among themselves, instantly shattering the imposing aura Medici had carefully crafted. He went from an act meant to look cool to a crosstalk theater performance next door.
Medici's face darkened, and he could not help muttering, "Shut up!"
But how could Sauron and Einhorn possibly listen to him? They immediately launched into a barrage of mockery at Medici. How could Medici endure that? He promptly responded with sarcastic jabs of his own, and the three soon began arguing.
Luo Lin watched the crosstalk performance unfold before him with great interest. Once they stopped bickering, he sincerely suggested, "Mr. Sauron Einhorn Medici, have you ever considered making your debut?"
"Huh?" Even Medici was stunned by Luo Lin's words.
Luo Lin proposed with utter sincerity, "You truly have a gift for crosstalk. Believe me, with your faces and that talent, you'd definitely become hugely popular as comedians after debuting."
Though he did not understand what crosstalk was, Medici clearly understood Luo Lin's meaning this time. He could also tell that Luo Lin was not being sarcastic at all, but speaking from the bottom of his heart. This caused even the Red Angel to fall silent. A few seconds later, he said, "You really have a talent for mockery. Interested in becoming a Hunter?"
"And then getting cooked in a hotpot and eaten like you?" Luo Lin asked sincerely. After a pause, as though he had thought of something, he added, "Ah, right. Hotpot is a type of food, usually red in color. There are even three-flavor divided hotpots."
Sauron Einhorn Medici: ...
"I kind of like you, little fellow. You really do have the talent to be a Hunter." Medici practically squeezed the words out through clenched teeth. Then he saw the young man before him reveal an embarrassed expression.
"Thank you." Luo Lin gave a slightly bashful smile. Then, unhurriedly, he took out a crystal monocle and put it over his left eye. "I like myself too."
Medici's expression froze, and his gaze abruptly sharpened. If Medici's earlier attitude had been one of vigilance laced with casualness, seeming to be provoked while perhaps not feeling much inside, then upon seeing Luo Lin's action, the War Angel finally became truly serious.
But Medici seemed to see something a moment later, as though he had relaxed. His tense body loosened as well. He leaned back slightly, his blood-red eyes staring directly into Luo Lin's, while the corners of his mouth rose. "Looks like you've dealt with the little raven."
"Strictly speaking, I merely let Amon experience some long-lost paternal love." Luo Lin corrected Medici, then took an iron box from his pocket. After opening it, he showed Medici the Time Worms inside.
Luo Lin smiled and said, "As thanks, he gave me these Time Worms."
Naturally, Medici did not believe Luo Lin's nonsense. But as the person who had raised Amon, Medici could naturally tell that the Time Worms Luo Lin displayed did indeed belong to Amon. And in this world, someone who could be called Amon's father and could put him in his place...
Medici narrowed his eyes. Looking at Luo Lin, he asked, "Did the Lord send you here?"
The Lord referred to here was naturally the True Creator.
"The True Creator probably doesn't know you're here." Luo Lin shook his head and smiled at Medici. "Mr. Medici, I came to see you only to fulfill a transaction between the True Creator and me. Informing the True Creator of your existence can be considered a bonus."
"A bonus?" A dangerous light flickered in Medici's blood-red eyes. The malice belonging to an evil spirit spilled out at that moment, making the surrounding air suddenly turn cold.
"Yes, a bonus." Luo Lin remained unhurried as he smiled. "I'm a conscientious merchant, so when I complete a transaction with a customer, I like to include a few bonuses."
Luo Lin had naturally said that deliberately. Or rather, his entire series of provocations after meeting Medici had been intentional.
Luo Lin knew very well that, unlike with Klein, Azzik, and the others, showing weakness before Medici was useless. Why would a weak person possibly earn a Hunter's second glance?
If he wanted Medici, a top-tier Hunter, to truly regard him as a friend, the first step was not to curry favor with him, but to make him understand that he was anything but a docile lamb.
Only then could he truly enter the other man's field of vision.
Before you continue