"It's not that I'm afraid, it's that it's not worth it. My life is more valuable to you, no, to you."
Yiden was clearly a man of principle, and his tone quickly softened:
"I've figured it out. It's your skill to make Duolin so obedient to you. Since he's already following your orders, what difference does it make if I'm one more..."
"At my age, I was just momentarily confused. Now that you have won, if you spare my life and allow me to live out my remaining years in peace, I will definitely become your most loyal subordinate."
Having admitted defeat, Yiden revealed his soft belly like a defeated beast (a metaphor, otherwise it would be too bizarre...).
This stemmed from a desire to live— Yiden believed himself far superior to Duolin, a gilded playboy, in terms of competence, not to mention that his decades of experience were practically a living encyclopedia.
If even dogs had to compete for a job, he would definitely be the one who worked the hardest.
On the other hand, Yiden's desire to Seizure the newborn Tree God has not been completely dispelled; it has simply taken on a different form.
Being Ed's dog is the same as being the Tree God's dog, isn't it? There's nothing shameful about it.
Heaven have mercy, he was originally the Tree God's most loyal servant, and being able to stay by his side in this wonderful era of the Tree God's return can be considered as fulfilling his own wish.
As for killing some of the experimental subjects in front of you... then kill those priests who aren't quite dead yet.
Anyway, those people aren't very bright. I can't succeed no matter how precisely I plan every task, down to the smallest detail. I might as well just die.
If they weren't so useless, I might already be standing on the head of the test subject in front of me, ready to rescue the trapped Tree God.
If I kill them, the experimental subject will need me, a living fossil familiar with the affairs of the Tree Worship Church, to write official documents and distort the facts for him. That silly boy Duolin can't do that.
It should be said that Yiden's mind became even more agile than that of a young person after seeing a glimmer of hope for survival.
All these thoughts took him less than a breath to process.
Having thought everything through, he looked at Ed in front of him:
"Please spare me, I can even become your Shadow and do many things for you..."
Looking at the old man displaying his value, Ed decided to tease him again.
So he shook his head with some regret and said:
"I promised the test subjects and the soldiers that I would kill you, and that's why I started this battle. If I can't even do that, how can they take my orders afterward?"
Simple, just parasitize and manipulate them, right?
Yiden instantly thought of this idea, but looking at the one-eyed boy in front of him, he felt that this was the perfect opportunity to show himself.
Giving such an answer will definitely not make the other person happy.
So he gestured with his chin and said:
You don't need to worry about that. I can do plastic surgery. I can easily kill one or two of those priests over there and piece together a body that looks exactly like mine.
Wow, no wonder Tiya's father turned out like that. It was definitely you, old man, who did it. I didn't even have time to ask you, and you've already walked right into the line of fire...
Ed's lips twitched slightly. He thought to himself that the enemy he had been fighting to the death with just two minutes ago was now eager to be his dog, even putting on a show of heading the ball and jumping through hoops of fire. This was rather dramatic.
He could more or less guess what Yiden was thinking, but... surrendering only meant losing half the battle, and that the sins of being someone's dog could be wiped clean?
There's no such thing as a simple matter in this world.
Ed did not jump to conclusions about Yiden's proposal; instead, he pondered it.
Yiden interpreted Ed's noncommittal as inner hesitation, and secretly wanted to cooperate with him even more.
Ed quickly changed the subject:
"Hand over the Territory Secret Pact White Wax Town."
After the previous battle, Ed was certain that the secret contract was on Yiden, so without asking any questions, he directly gave orders to the other party.
Yiden also felt this was the first step in showing loyalty, and without asking how the other knew, he simply gestured for Ed to loosen the restraints slightly.
The old priest pulled a small piece of ash wood from his robe pocket; it was clearly not an ordinary piece.
This piece of ash wood is about the same length and thickness as an adult's thumb. The cross-section has clear grain, the sides are smooth like jade, and the whole piece is translucent with a faint white tint.
Ed looked around but couldn't tell whether it was a piece of wood that had been polished to a jade-like state or a product carved from a gemstone, but he was certain that Yiden wasn't up to any tricks.
Two green vines extended from his sleeves, wrapping around and Territory Secret Pact, while Little Green's cheers echoed in his mind.
Feeding successful!
Over the next period of time, Little Green will begin to digest this new Territory Secret Pact and eventually gain complete control over it.
Ed looked at Yiden again and continued to command:
"Hand over your symbiotic plant sample."
Yiden didn't ask Ed why he didn't pick up his Boston Ivy, which was scattered all over the ground, but simply took the order as a test of obedience.
He reached out his hand, trembling, and a tender, Vitality Boston Ivy sprouted from the space between his thumb and forefinger, quickly separating from his body to become an independent entity.
Ed held the plant sample in his hand, and the Little Green prompt appeared before his eyes the next second:
[Genes collected: [ Parasitic Boston Ivy ]]
Ed closed his eyes and opened them again, and he could see which Boston Ivy in the sanctuary were not completely dead and still had value for recycling.
The plants, as if recognizing their new owner, began to "cry out" to him, trying to get Ed's attention.
All the roots that had been hiding in the cracks of the Gloomy Sanctuary were now exposed. Ed realized that he only needed a period of rest to completely make this movable and deformable church his own, and also to restore it to its original state.
Fighting the "colleagues" of the Tree Worship Church is incredibly satisfying. As long as you win, you can collect plant samples from them and then replicate the abilities they've developed over decades.
The feeling was a mix of transferring the property deed to someone else's name and bragging to their face. Looking at Yiden, Incarnation a powerless husband, Ed almost wanted to look in the mirror to see if his hair was yellow.
Seeing the smile on the boy's face, Yiden immediately felt a sense of relief.
The other party has already approved his plan, so the next step should be to drive away that suspicious guy and then untie himself to fake a corpse.
Thinking of this, Yiden asked hopefully:
"Experiment... Sir, what do you intend for this old man to do for you?"
Looking at Old Deng wriggling on the ground like a large green worm, Ed bent down and smiled gently:
"You and your priests are very skilled in combat. I intend to make you instructors and sparring partners for my warriors."
"Very well, very well... I will certainly do my utmost."
Seeing that the other party had already provided specific job assignments, Yiden became even more certain that he was only one step away from freedom.
However, at that moment, Ed's expression suddenly changed, from gentle as a spring breeze to the hardness of winter ice.
His body bent down in a seemingly humble manner, but his tone was filled with boundless coldness.
Looking directly into the hopeful eyes of the other man, Ed delivered his verdict:
"You will be imprisoned by me, teetering between life and death, unable to escape, unable to be free, only to endure endless cycles of torture and slaughter until the end of the world."
"Only in this way can you be cleansed of your sins."
As for your workplace, I've named it --
"' Dungeon '."