Published: February 11, 2025
Before, the conditions proposed by Cloud Summit Villa were already very harsh, at least for the Holy Maiden.
Although the Holy Father was dead, the Temple of Dawn's desire to leave the Blue Secret Realm remained unchanged. Previously, the Holy Maiden had come alone to discuss a preliminary agreement with the posthumous child of Cloud Summit. However, at that time, neither side was sure how to deal the final blow to the Holy Father, so the discussions were not very detailed, which became the biggest point of contention in the current negotiations.
On the second day of the Holy Father's death, negotiations took place, and the posthumous child along with Cloud Summit Villa put forth as many as twenty conditions. Naturally, the Temple of Dawn would not agree, and both sides negotiated back and forth, item by item. By yesterday, there were still sixteen conditions remaining.
Now, Ye Zhongming told the Holy Maiden that everything discussed yesterday was void and they would have to revert to the initial terms. Not only that, but two additional, extremely harsh conditions were added, which made it impossible for the Holy Maiden, who initially intended to get a concession from Cloud Summit, to accept.
"Impossible!"
Without even thinking, the Holy Maiden replied, "Combat skills are the foundation for our survival in the future. If we hand them all over to you, won’t we just be at your mercy? If that's the case, we might as well become your battle slaves; at least that's straightforward!"
As she spoke more passionately, the Holy Maiden glared at Ye Zhongming and said, “And you want the Wind and Thunder Twin Birth? That is our clan's sacred artifact! It is the symbol of the Holy Father, just like my staff of glory! How can it be used as a bargaining chip?!”
Ye Zhongming remained unmoved and coldly replied, “But you no longer have the Holy Father, and you probably won’t have one in the future!”
He pointed to the land around them and continued, “This is where you have lived for generations. Why leave? It's because you know that this place will collapse soon. If I don’t open the space-time gate, you will vanish along with it; at that time, what will you do with your combat skills? What about the Wind and Thunder Twin Birth? They will all just be a speck of dust in the universe.”
“Since I can provide you with a new life, is it unreasonable to ask for something in return?”
The two faced each other, one calm and the other furious.
“You can say I’m not trustworthy, or that I only need to open that door without giving anything in return. The conditions you offered have already been sufficient, but that’s not how the situation looks.”
Ye Zhongming stared at the Holy Maiden's face and said in a determined tone, “Once you enter our world, you will be the outsiders!”
The Holy Maiden was taken aback, not understanding what Ye Zhongming meant.
“In our world, there’s a saying: ‘Nurturing a tiger means inviting calamity,’ and another saying: ‘Those who are not of our kind will have different hearts!’”
Ye Zhongming paused for a few seconds to give the Holy Maiden time to understand these two phrases, then continued, “If I let you pass, I will bear the consequences of all your actions there. One day, when you are stable and powerful, you may pose a huge threat to me and my fellow beings. Perhaps you will even kill us. Should I be responsible for today's decision?”
“I can say without hesitation that for the future, so I won’t regret it, I must exploit you harshly now to maintain my people’s advantage over you. Only then can I safely let you through after fulfilling the promise I made to my subordinates.”
Upon hearing this, the Holy Maiden felt both more furious and a sense of despair.
Strictly speaking, the Temple of Dawn had not failed. If she hadn’t stabbed the staff of glory into the Holy Father’s body, everything would still be uncertain.
Even now, if the Holy Maiden truly wanted to fight, the Temple of Dawn would still not necessarily fail.