"We can cooperate, but the price has to satisfy me. Little Elena, you can be my point of contact from now on."
Lingchen said nothing more and took out his phone.
"Huh? O-okay."
Topaz blushed and hurriedly added Lingchen as a friend.
Their mission had failed, but it had also succeeded.
The company's higher-ups were making some big moves, and what Lingchen had just said might well push Diamond into the vacant position.
Rather than believe that the calm, even smiling Lingchen simply disliked Oswaldo, Topaz was more inclined to believe that he wanted to witness an even bigger spectacle.
Next, they needed to investigate the Imaginary Wall's whereabouts.
"Oh, right. There's no need for you to investigate where the Imaginary Wall went."
Lingchen told them outright.
Both froze, then seemed to realize something.
"You took the Imaginary Wall?" Aventurine thought of the other [Remembrance] Emanator. According to their observations, two Emanators should have acted together.
Moreover, the Imaginary Wall gave off an immensely powerful aura.
So powerful that, had those two Emanators not been occupied, and had this not been the Xianzhou, they probably would have come personally.
Under such circumstances, a [Remembrance] Emanator could hardly remain unmoved.
"You're right. I took the Imaginary Wall."
Looking at the astonished Aventurine, Lingchen continued, "I can tell you where it came from. That piece of the Imaginary Wall was left behind after Qlipoth blocked Nanook's full-power strike. It carries Qlipoth's divinity. Your company's Emanators can forget about it. It isn't something an Emanator can contain, let alone control."
A mere tenth of a second of contemplation by Nous had triggered a major incident encompassing countless scholars, and had even "almost" allowed some people to ascend to the [Throne].
Although the so-called [Throne] was nothing particularly special, under an Aeon's mighty power, a creation that had directly blocked another Aeon's attack was bound to be just as extraordinary.
Even he had only managed to absorb it with the system's help. The blessings of [Elation] and [Remembrance] alone could never have accomplished that.
And his raw strength had already reached a level where he could kill four or five Emanators with relative ease.
Of course, if those Emanators were fully prepared, they might last a little longer.
Aventurine and Topaz exchanged a glance.
Lingchen genuinely had no need to lie to them. His future with Topaz alone made that clear.
Even his telling them not to investigate the Imaginary Wall might have been out of consideration for Topaz.
But although they understood every word he said, why did none of it make sense when put together? If Emanators couldn't control it, why could he?
And what about that [Remembrance] Emanator?
Still, neither of them had expected the Imaginary Wall to have such an origin.
Yet the company had detected absolutely no disturbances from a battle between Aeons.
Wait, could this actually be Lingchen's idea of fun? Aventurine suddenly thought. Topaz's future really is tied to Lingchen, but that hasn't happened yet. As an [Elation] Emanator, it would be perfectly normal for him to amuse himself with that.
Maybe only one part is true: Lingchen really did take some of the Imaginary Wall, while another Emanator took the rest. There might even have been others involved, like the Xianzhou. After all, it happened here.
Ah, I'm going to have to grow a brain.
Clearly, Topaz, who was holding her head in thought, had reached the same conclusion. Rubbing her brow, she looked at Lingchen and asked, "But you're an Emanator too, aren't you?" "My strength far surpasses an Emanator's. I've already taken the Imaginary Wall. I can tell you the outcome: even if the entire Xianzhou attacked me together now, they couldn't hurt me. The only possible result would be the Xianzhou's complete destruction-unless Lan intervened."
Lingchen spoke with utter seriousness.
But if Lan intervened, he could practically ascend to the heavens in a single step.
He looked at Aventurine and Topaz. Avoiding conflict didn't mean he feared it.
After all, that was simply the truth. The Imaginary Wall outside the Pure Land could now withstand another full-power attack from an Aeon. If he could lure in a few morons, he could have some fun showing off, use a few more character cards to toy with them, and then kill them himself when the time was right... If the entire company was full of morons, he might as well take it over.
But these two would probably let their thoughts wander in the wrong direction.
"I'm a peace-loving person, so to prevent the company from leaving a bad impression on me in the future, or secretly trying to attack me, you're welcome to tell them about this."
"Otherwise, if I get angry and blow up Pier Point, I might not be able to win Asta over when I decide to pursue her."
So you're worried about picking up girls? Both Topaz and Aventurine had a retort stuck in their throats.
They found his claim of strength beyond an Emanator's increasingly hard to believe.
That reason was simply too ridiculous.
Besides that final reason, there was also Lingchen's identity as an [Elation] Emanator, not to mention his claim that he could destroy the Xianzhou if Lan stayed out of it. It all sounded far too fake.
Everything Lingchen said was probably just him amusing himself.
He just wanted them to overthink things, grow suspicious of everything, and run around searching for clues.
What they failed to consider was that telling them the truth outright was another kind of entertainment.
Watching their troubled expressions, Lingchen felt a little pleasure.
If Fleming and Dongfang Qixing had been there, he would definitely have plucked Aha's butt like an instrument to provide some background music and liven things up.
"Are you two leaving today?" Lingchen deliberately asked.
Aventurine shook his head with a smile.
"It's been a long time since I visited the Xianzhou. This is a good chance to experience the local culture and society. I was also wondering whether there might be something else worth investing in. I happen to have some annual leave saved up at the company, so I'll use it to look around."
"Same here."
Topaz nodded too.
They still intended to investigate the Xianzhou.
They wanted to confirm the Imaginary Wall's whereabouts.
Lingchen seemed a little unreliable.
Most likely, the Imaginary Wall had been divided up. They would look around and see whether they could purchase some from someone else.
An [Elation] Emanator, indeed. He lies without even batting an eyelid.
Aventurine couldn't help admiring him.
Chapter 85: The Lord Ravagers Make Their Move
It seemed the two of them truly didn't believe Lingchen.
The corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
How would they react after exhausting themselves investigating, only to discover that he had told the truth?
Lingchen suddenly began looking forward to it. And how would the company react then? It was bound to be interesting.
"Speaking of which, does Jade not have time to come?" "That's right. Lady Jade has been very busy lately. Some of her projects are already underway, and pulling out midway would cause substantial financial losses. She wanted to come, but couldn't," Topaz hurriedly explained.
"That's a bit of a shame, since I'm quite curious about Jade, but it's all right. Honestly, out of the Ten Stonehearts, you're the one I most wanted to meet."
Watching Topaz rush to explain, Lingchen spoke with amusement.
He liked both Topaz's personality and her appearance. If he could choose only one of the women among the Ten Stonehearts, he would definitely choose her.
Although Lingchen was rather direct, neither Aventurine nor Topaz saw anything wrong with what he said.
Unlike the Xianzhou's Emanators, whose positions were inherited, the Emanators they knew had truly received an Aeon's blessing. They were more accepting of an Emanator's "autocracy"! "Oh, right. Do you know Pearl?" "Of course," Topaz nodded, then seemed to think of something. "She
is also one of the Ten Stonehearts. Her personality is quite pleasant, but she's a mechanical life-form. Wait, you aren't..." "Ahem. Sometimes people need to broaden their interests and expand their horizons. I think mechanical bodies are pretty interesting too."
Aventurine: "..." He thought Lingchen's sexual preferences were outrageous. Perhaps that was why he had become an Emanator.
Topaz, meanwhile, was rather speechless. She didn't care whether Pearl was a mechanical life-form. After all, Pearl certainly looked like a pretty girl, and aside from Jade and Aventurine, she was the person Topaz could talk to most easily. But wasn't Topaz supposed to have an extremely close relationship with Lingchen in the future?
Was it really appropriate to say that directly to her? Recalling the visions of the future Fu Xuan had described, Topaz felt a slight pang of jealousy.
But when she thought about her own position, she let it go. This was fine.
"Since Mr. Lingchen... since you've given us your answer, Aventurine and I won't disturb you any longer. We'll take our leave. It's still early, so we can go out and experience the Xianzhou's charms."
Topaz prepared to leave. Who knew what might happen if she stayed?
Besides, she still needed to report back.
"All right. But you probably don't have a place to stay during your time on the Luofu, do you? Would you like to stay here?" Aventurine stood beside them without a word.
Clearly, Lingchen was more interested in girls.
"N-no, that won't be necessary."
Topaz hurriedly waved her hands. She knew whose residence this was. If moving in offended Fu Xuan, it would hardly be worth it.
"I'll just find somewhere outside to stay."
"All right, if that's your choice." Lingchen glanced at Topaz with a little regret, then turned to Aventurine. "Once you've avenged yourself in the future, would you like to work for me?" Aventurine paused. He hadn't expected Lingchen to say that, but after thinking about his past, he smiled faintly.
"If you need me."
Watching the two leave, Lingchen slowly closed his eyes.
Silver Wolf had contacted him earlier, so the Trailblazer's birth was approaching. He also planned to get a head start-for example, by finding a planet of his own.
But before that... I didn't expect [Destruction] Emanators to be interested in the Imaginary Wall too. Is it because Qlipoth blocked Nanook's attack?
Aha had told him about this. The Lord Ravager Celenova had detected the Imaginary Wall's appearance and joined forces with Zephyro to attack the Luofu and seize it.
He had no idea what the Lord Ravagers wanted the Imaginary Wall for.
To mock [Preservation] Emanators? Diamond and Taravan hadn't detected that exchange between Aeons. Logically, Nanook's Emanators shouldn't have detected it either.
Moreover, this time, those two Lord Ravagers seemed to have used their brains in their effort to destroy the Luofu outright. They had contacted certain schools of thought and, after a friendly exchange, obtained a device that could briefly prevent others from divining their actions.
Trying to launch a surprise attack on the Luofu as [Destruction] Emanators? How embarrassing.
This had to be Aha's doing.
Only Aha would have enough time on his hands to do something like this.
No matter what choices were made, nothing like this would ever have happened in the original course of fate.
Because without Lingchen, this outcome would definitely spell disaster for the Luofu and make its future even more dangerous.
... [Topaz: Lady Jade, Lingchen won't join the company.] [Jade: Oh? Little Elena, you changed how you address him rather quickly.] [Topaz: Lady Jade!] In the Luofu's Starskiff Haven Central, Topaz looked at the messages on her phone with embarrassed irritation.
Jade's way of addressing her instantly reminded her of what Lingchen had called her earlier.
Fortunately, Aventurine had gone off to find investment opportunities.
If he came all this way without gambling and making a little money, Aventurine would feel that something was missing.
[Jade: All right, all right, enough teasing. What reason did Mr. Lingchen give?] Aboard the ship the company had specially gifted her, Jade sat with her legs crossed, reading a report in her hand while glancing at her phone.
The Ten Stonehearts had a great deal of work. They did have time to rest, but it was time snatched from their busy schedules.
Most of the time, they were rushing around for work.
With pinkish-purple hair falling beside her ears, Jade wrote a single word on her subordinate's request report: "Rejected."
"If you submit another report of this quality, you can leave on your own."
She didn't even look at the employee, whose face had already turned deathly pale.
Chapter 86: Almost Mara-Struck
"What are you standing there for? Would you like to experience the whip?" "N-no! I'll revise it right away, Lady Jade."
The employee's body shook violently twice.
Jade's whip could stir the deepest fears in their hearts, while amplifying physical pain many times over.
No one wanted to take a lash. [Topaz: We presented all our terms. Of course, we didn't mention providing beautiful women of various species. Lingchen said that if we wanted him to join, Oswaldo had to get lost. Otherwise, at most, there might be opportunities to cooperate in the future.
] [Jade: I already expected that. An [Elation] Emanator would never tolerate someone like him, and wouldn't like the company's system either.
Still, having an opportunity to cooperate is already quite good.
] Nothing about Oswaldo fit the aesthetics of [Elation].
Perhaps the Annihilation Gang would be more fond of Oswaldo.
The opportunity to cooperate did surprise Jade somewhat, but then she realized Lingchen had probably offered it out of consideration for certain people.
After all, she truly couldn't imagine what an [Elation] Emanator would cooperate with them on. Starting a company? But recalling Aventurine's past, Jade continued typing.
[Jade: Aventurine must be quite happy, then?] [Topaz: That's right. He's gone to look for investment opportunities now. From what I saw, he became noticeably happier when Lingchen said Oswaldo should get lost or be toyed with for amusement.] They had a very good relationship with Jade, and she was also Aventurine's true benefactor, so there were some things they could tell her from time to time.