Realm of the Night God

Ye Zhiqiu was truly surprised that Yang Haoran came to see him today, and it was to give him a favor. This left him both shocked and puzzled.

Based on his understanding, Yang Haoran was someone who valued interests greatly. This latest action was a simple example - in order to gain benefits, Yang Haoran could put aside his grudges with Ye Zhiqiu, even risking his own life. It was clear how much he valued his interests.

However, now, Yang Haoran was offering the spoils of their latest operation as a gift to Ye Zhiqiu, which left him utterly perplexed.

The spoils of their operation were substantial. Aside from the Second Boss's independent space, Ye Zhiqiu had seen everything else. Based on his estimation, the large quantity of demonic weapons should be their biggest harvest, especially Big Brother's life-bound demonic weapon, a weapon on the verge of advancing to the fourth pattern, which was undoubtedly the most valuable of all the demonic weapons.

Yet, Yang Haoran wanted to give all of them to Ye Zhiqiu, including Big Brother's demonic weapon from the Five Brothers. This was simply too shocking and puzzling for him.

"What do you mean?" Ye Zhiqiu asked in a deep voice after regaining his composure. There was no smile on his face, only confusion and vigilance, as he did not know what trick Yang Haoran was playing.

"Don't look at me with that thief-like gaze. As I've already said, all these demonic weapons are for you to use to upgrade your life-bound demonic weapon," Yang Haoran said with a smile.

"You're being this kind-hearted?" Ye Zhiqiu asked in a deep voice, his vigilance and confusion still not dissipated by Yang Haoran's words.

"Hehe, you're right, I'm just being this kind-hearted. But I hope you won't say something like 'Is that really true?' or other such nonsense. After all, you're not a host," Yang Haoran chuckled.

He shook his head slightly and said in a deep voice, "No need. According to our previous agreement, all the spoils of the operation belong to you. I can't break my promise."

"Since our agreement has changed, the original one is no longer valid. So you don't need to feel any psychological burden," Yang Haoran said with a smile.

Ye Zhiqiu shook his head again and said, "I have my own principles, so you should take all these demonic weapons back."

At this point, Ye Zhiqiu was unyielding, but Yang Haoran was neither angry nor impatient. He continued to speak with a smile.

"Principles are something that you must have sometimes, but can also be dispensed with at other times. I ask you, are your principles more important than the demonic woman in your sword?"

As soon as Yang Haoran said this, Ye Zhiqiu's expression turned grim. He looked at Yang Haoran and spoke in a colder tone.

"Are you threatening me?"

Yang Haoran's smile did not change as he responded, "You're already one of my people. Do I need to threaten you? I'm just saying, can't you be a bit more sunny like me? Smile more often, it's not a bad thing."

"I don't want to wear a hypocritical mask all the time," Ye Zhiqiu said in a cold voice.

Ye Zhiqiu's words were sharp, but Yang Haoran didn't take them to heart at all. He continued to smile and said, "If your life-bound demonic weapon is stronger, it will be less likely to be destroyed. On the contrary, if your life-bound demonic weapon is easily shattered, what will happen to the demonic woman's soul in your sword?" The reference version of this chapter is on M*V*LEMPYR.

Realizing that Yang Haoran's intention was not to threaten him with the demonic woman, but to persuade him, Ye Zhiqiu's expression softened a bit.

"If I don't use the demonic weapon, she won't be harmed," Ye Zhiqiu said indifferently, although his attitude towards Yang Haoran was still quite cold.

"If you don't use the demonic weapon, how much of your peak strength can you display?" Yang Haoran asked with a smile.

Ye Zhiqiu's brow furrowed, and he chose to remain silent, unable to answer Yang Haoran's question.

It wasn't that he didn't want to answer, but that he simply couldn't. As a demon hunter, if he didn't use his life-bound demonic weapon in battle, his strength would be greatly diminished, and he would be lucky to be able to display half of his peak strength.

He was well aware that Yang Haoran wanted him to serve for ten years, and what he valued was Ye Zhiqiu's combat strength. If Ye Zhiqiu couldn't even display half of his peak strength, then what would be the point of having him serve for ten years?

That's why he couldn't answer Yang Haoran's question.

"Not using your life-bound demonic weapon is ultimately a last resort. This approach may prevent your life-bound demonic weapon from being damaged, but it will also harm you, even to the point of losing your life. If you die and your soul scatters, what will happen to the demonic woman? Even if I have the power to extract her from the world within the sword, you'll be gone, and do you think she'll be happy? I'm sure she won't, because you'll have left her with endless sorrow. Do you want to see her become like you are now?"

Yang Haoran's words made Ye Zhiqiu's brow furrow even more, but he still remained silent.

"I'm having you serve me for ten years, and during that time, you'll have to carry out many dangerous missions. If you don't use your life-bound demonic weapon, you might lose your life in a single mission. This would be irresponsible to me, to yourself, and to the demonic woman in your sword."

After saying this, Yang Haoran noticed that Ye Zhiqiu had clearly wavered. His smile grew more pronounced as he finally spoke.

"In my opinion, the most rational thing for you to do now is to try to upgrade your demonic weapon to the fourth pattern as soon as possible. This way, not only will your demonic weapon be less likely to shatter, but your combat strength will also be enhanced. It's a win-win situation. Why not do it?"

After Yang Haoran's words, Ye Zhiqiu finally gave in and nodded to him.

"I know what I should do."

Yang Haoran chuckled and then said, "Since that's the case, let me congratulate you in advance on having a fourth-pattern demonic weapon. Of course, if these demonic weapons are still not enough to help your life-bound demonic weapon advance to the fourth pattern, then just forget my congratulations. I'll find a way to get you some more demonic weapons."

With that, Yang Haoran left Ye Zhiqiu's room, and as he walked out, the door closed automatically, leaving Ye Zhiqiu alone with the numerous demonic weapons.

Watching Yang Haoran leave, Ye Zhiqiu only turned his gaze back to the floating demonic weapons after the door had closed. He then looked down at the longsword in his hand and gently wiped the blade, his expression softening.

"I am human, and you are a demon. No matter how much I improve my strength, I will ultimately leave this world before you. When that time comes, we will be separated. However, as long as I'm alive, I must do my best to improve my strength, so that I can provide you with more protection."

As Ye Zhiqiu wiped the longsword, muttering to himself, he was unaware that the sword had suddenly trembled slightly.

Surprised by this unexpected occurrence, a look of joy immediately appeared on Ye Zhiqiu's face. He first thought that the demonic woman's soul had awakened, but was disappointed to find that the longsword had only trembled slightly and then returned to stillness, with no further signs of activity.

Ye Zhiqiu quickly immersed his consciousness into the world within the sword, but the demonic woman's soul remained quietly floating, showing no signs of waking up.

After waiting for a long time and seeing no change, Ye Zhiqiu could only withdraw his consciousness from the sword, still puzzled by what had just happened.