"Sir, such things cannot be forced. You should know the principle that a mandarin in Huainan is a mandarin, but in Huaibei it turns into a trifoliate orange. That kid's supernatural abilities require a massive resource investment to be effective. Our organization does have a good foundation in the Keystone Plane, but it's far from being comparable to a powerful country in terms of resources. Our advantage lies in multi-plane resource integration, so pouring a lot of effort and resources into him and his sister may not be worthwhile." Mu Fanchen shook his head and sighed as he followed Master Candle Dragon.
"I understand the reason behind your words, but it's just a sense of regret triggered by emotions." Saying this, Master Candle Dragon turned his head and glanced at the young man beside him, calmly saying, "If my prediction is correct, the final match of this tournament should be between him and us. I just don't know who his opponent will be. So tell me, Nero, do you have the confidence to beat him?"
"Sixty percent sure!" The young man called Nero did not arrogantly belittle Pei Yan's strength, but after lowering his head and pondering for a while, he provided his answer truthfully.
"Sixty percent!" Master Candle Dragon sighed deeply upon hearing this number, and with a reflective gaze, he exclaimed, "That's a bit low; there are too many variables. He hasn't yet absorbed the Divine Artifact, the Abyssal Doom. If he absorbs it, his power will reach a new height. It seems the plan for you to absorb a Divine Artifact should be expedited, so let me add some more weights to the scales of victory for you!"
"Absorb a Divine Artifact? Have Divine Artifacts become so cheap now? Since when could Divine Artifacts be treated as consumables to be absorbed at will? My foolish father must have lost his mind, giving such a Divine Artifact to a foreigner to absorb!" Thanatos, who had been brought here after escaping from the Hell Plane, silently observed this group of strangers who rescued him, without knowing if Master Candle Dragon was doing it intentionally or unintentionally. They always used the Demon Race language in conversation, and he just quietly watched every move of these strangers until he heard that kid would absorb the Divine Artifact, the Abyssal Doom, that he depended on for fame, reasoned to ask aloud.
"Ah! I almost forgot! Fanchen, this is our honored guest whom I invited back, Mr. Thanatos. Please take him to settle down first."
Master Candle Dragon turned to the back, smiling at Thanatos, "Mr. Thanatos, please go with him to rest. Any issues or needs you can freely express to him. I still have some matters to resolve right now, and we'll talk about in detail in private a bit later, okay?"
Thanatos understood very well how terrifying this person's power was, having broken through Holy Hall's layered defenses to rescue him from the hands of the Demon God. As the saying goes, when under the rooftop, one must bow one's head. He could not lodge objections as Master Candle Dragon arranged for him in this way, and just nodded in gratitude, following Mu Fanchen, smiling broadly, toward the path junction.
Once the figure of one person and one soul gradually receded, Nero followed behind Master Candle Dragon, sneering, "Teacher, he has already lost that Divine Artifact. Do we still need to treat him with respect? Now he is just a remnant soul, what value does he hold for us?"
"You don't understand! The Divine Artifact Abyssal Doom is indeed a good thing, but a dead object after all. The reason I rescued him is his connection with the Hell Beast. Do you think he did nothing while being trapped in the Sealed Land for thousands of years? To negotiate with that group of incomprehensible monsters, I need such a middleman! The Blood Slaughter Army's strength is still insufficient to face the upcoming battle, they need reinforcement and strengthening."
"Teacher, I understand! But there's one thing I don't understand! Teacher, you mentioned that my ultimate opponent would be Pei Yan. I admit he's strong, but is this overestimating him? Shouldn't my target be the contestant from the Daoist Realm?" Nero nodded in affirmation after listening to the teacher's explanation.
"Victory desire! Do you understand, Nero? Do you understand the desire to win?" Master Candle Dragon walked ahead, his fingers gently brushing against the rock wall, forcing out the death gas from his body, leaving it on the rock wall, creating a long line of weathered rock. Afterward, he continued explaining, "That woman Lin Ruxue doesn't care much about the outcome of this event. If winning could help her win over that foolish woman Lin Junzhao, she wouldn't hesitate to have her subordinates give up the championship position, but Lin Junzhao is different. She placed too big a bet on this matter that if she loses, she'll be out of this gamble prematurely."
With the last bit of death gas expelled from his body, Master Candle Dragon's body also felt lighter, his tone becoming increasingly bright, "I've thought about many ways to make her succumb to me. If winning over her could save me a lot of effort, the subsequent plans would proceed much more smoothly. But now it seems there are difficulties—I was puzzled about her confidence in being able to clinch the championship this time, and after seeing Pei Yan, I understand! That woman has once again placed all her bets on him, so he's the strongest opponent you're about to face, understood?"
"Understood, teacher!"
"Well, you don't need to worry. Although I can't provide a better Divine Artifact than the Abyssal Doom, overall resource-wise, the Keystone Plane, having intersections only with Daoism and a dilapidated Hell Plane, cannot compete with us! There are still half a month left, and there's room for improvement."
Fulfilling the day's schedule for disciples' training arrangements, Master Candle Dragon appeared as promised in the room where Mu Fanchen had settled Mr. Thanatos. Thanatos, who has existed as a soul body for thousands of years, suffered not insignificant soul body injuries during this escape battle. To stabilize his soul, he has now been housed inside a container engraved with various symbols for nurturing the soul.
"Mr. Thanatos, are you satisfied with the current environment? Any requests, just voice them, and I will go full out to meet them if possible."
"You must be Master Candle Dragon, the esteemed Master of Blood Slaughter they've mentioned! It's also you who previously communicated to me at intervals, intending to rescue me from the Sealed Land? Haha, I've heard from your subordinates about the external affairs. It's unexpected that so many interesting changes have occurred over the years; that barbaric place treated like a dumping ground in the Keystone Plane has even given rise to strong figures, plus a Disaster Legion unheard of by me, leading your team to beat those pure-blood nobility, who thrive on decayed meat, flattering, into retreats again and again! The world has become truly fascinating."
Thanatos's soul wandered back and forth inside the Soul Nourishing Jar, eventually pressed his face against the jar's crystal mouth, candidly stating to Master Candle Dragon, "Speak up! What do you want me to do? And what can you offer me? I've been trapped for too long, with so many things to do, so let our negotiations be straightforward!"
