"So, it’s better to just kill them all," Shen Bai said with certainty.
He felt the Grand Elder was being too conservative. To put it bluntly, it meant killing them all.
If the goal was to leave only one voice in all of Beast Village, then the only way was to slaughter them all.
The Grand Elder’s breath hitched again after hearing what Shen Bai said, yet he found himself unable to refute it.
Because Shen Bai was right.
In Beast Village today, the balance had long since been broken. Trying to resolve this peacefully was utterly impossible.
If he wanted what was best for the village, the Grand Elder had to admit that Shen Bai’s proposal was actually the best option.
But he still wanted to try another way.
"Young friend, I have a plan."
The Grand Elder paused for a moment, clenched his fists, and said, "Tomorrow, I will go to where the Clan Leader is and have a detailed discussion with him and the Second Elder. I need them to make a concession. At the very least, they cannot cut off communication with the Refuge."
"If they agree, all will be well. If they don’t, we can only do it your way, young friend."
Shen Bai asked, "Then what should I do?"
The Grand Elder said slowly, "You can pose as my Guard and go in with me. If the negotiations fail, we might have no choice but to use your method."
At this point, the Grand Elder had roughly finished explaining his plan.
Shen Bai finally understood. ’So, what this all boils down to is you’re looking for backup.’
The Grand Elder didn’t shy away from it, nodding as he said, "That’s right. They have two people at the Peak Realm, while I am only one. If you join me, young friend, we might have a solid chance."
Guo Qi, who was standing nearby, felt his back break out in a cold sweat.
He knew Shen Bai was strong, but in his mind, Shen Bai’s strength was at the Void Realm.
Now the Grand Elder had actually come looking for Shen Bai to deal with people at the Peak Realm.
’That’s a difference of two Grand Realms, not two minor realms.’
’Is Shen Bai really that strong?’
’Thank goodness I didn’t offend him.’ Guo Qi couldn’t help but wipe his forehead, only to find it already covered in sweat.
Shen Bai pondered for a moment before asking, "What’s in it for me?"
He and the Grand Elder had no prior connection; at best, they were just chance acquaintances.
Since he was being asked for help, this was now a business transaction.
And when it came to business, negotiations were a must.
No one works for free.
The Grand Elder mulled it over for a moment and asked, "What reward do you want?"
Shen Bai said, "Deceitful Objects. I need Deceitful Objects."
He had come here specifically for Deceitful Objects. If there were no Deceitful Objects involved, Shen Bai felt this job wasn’t worth doing.
’A place as big as Beast Village... shouldn’t they be able to cough up eight or ten Deceitful Objects?’
The Grand Elder thought for a moment and said, "How about five Deceitful Objects?"
Shen Bai shook his head. "Not enough. I was able to get three Deceitful Objects from a single chamber of commerce, so how many must Beast Village have?"
The Grand Elder gave a bitter smile. "The chamber of commerce you went to, young friend, is quite powerful. The other chambers don’t necessarily even have Deceitful Objects, and even if they did, no one could afford them."
"Five is already my limit."
Shen Bai shook his head. "I’m not taking this deal."
’Five Deceitful Objects might seem like a lot, but when you really thought about it, it was far from enough.’
’He’d be up against two masters of the Peak Realm. How could he possibly agree to that?’
The Grand Elder gritted his teeth. "Seven. That is the absolute limit I can offer. Any more would harm the very foundation of Beast Village."
Shen Bai stroked his chin as a golden set of Eight Trigrams materialized before his eyes.
As the golden Eight Trigrams appeared, Shen Bai began to divine the truth of the Grand Elder’s words.
The Eight Trigrams before him shifted and then turned a solid gold.
"Seven Deceitful Objects..." Shen Bai mused, stroking his chin.
The Grand Elder waited on the side, a trace of nervousness in his eyes.
’This is my only hope of turning the tables. If Shen Bai doesn’t agree, Beast Village will be completely sealed off. And the result of being sealed off is a slow, inevitable death.’
He hoped Shen Bai would agree.
Guo Qi also looked nervous.
He was worried that Shen Bai would refuse, leading to a stalemate or even a complete falling out between them.
At that point, he feared the situation would become messy, and he would be caught in the crossfire.
After an incense stick’s worth of time, Shen Bai nodded.
"Alright. Seven Deceitful Objects will do."
’There was profit to be made, and he could help resolve Beast Village’s crisis. It seems like a feasible plan.’
Besides, he was also very interested in the Clan Leader of this Beast Village.
’Why would the Clan Leader of Beast Village suddenly go back on his word? There has to be another reason behind it, I just don’t know what it is.’
The Grand Elder let out a long sigh of relief, visibly relaxing.
He had been genuinely worried that Shen Bai would refuse. Now that Shen Bai had agreed, he could finally relax.
"When do we leave?" Shen Bai asked.
Now that the matter was settled, Shen Bai naturally needed to know the specific time so he could plan his next moves.
The Grand Elder thought for a moment and said, "Tomorrow morning, we’ll set off together. We’ll go to the Clan Leader’s residence and ask him for his reasons."
Shen Bai shook his head. "No need to wait until tomorrow morning. We can leave immediately."
Some things are better done sooner rather than later, especially in a situation like this. The sooner they resolved it, the sooner they could put the matter to rest.
’I don’t want any more complications to arise.’
Hearing Shen Bai’s words, the Grand Elder fell silent.
After about half an incense stick’s worth of time, he nodded and said,
"We’ll leave in an hour. I need to prepare."
Shen Bai nodded.
Since the matter was settled, he didn’t stay in the chamber of commerce for long.
After some further discussion, Shen Bai prepared to leave with the Grand Elder.
He then turned his gaze to Guo Qi and said, "Brother Guo, you’re free to go about your own business now."