Chapter 11: The Devil's Deal
"It's an honor to meet you! Leaf Ye, the demon hunter, is more than happy to serve you! Of course, if you can provide a suitable reward, that would be even better!"
In the Azure Stone Hall, surrounded by nine pillars of flame that pierced the sky, Ye Qi, in a spiritual state, slightly bowed his head towards the air, with one hand on his chest. The clear voice caused the loud roar to pause for a moment, and after a brief oppressive silence, the low voice resumed its calm tone from when they first met.
"Hunter of demons? Hey, mortal, do you know what kind of existence I am?" In the low and deep voice, when mentioning the three words "Hunter of Demons", Ye Qi clearly felt a hint of disdain.
"Although I haven't seen you in person, countless books have recorded your existence and that of others at the same level as yours. Therefore, what kind of existence you are, I am well aware!"
"You think you're so clever? How dare you speak to me like this!"
The aura burst out again, and this time it was several times more intense than before, directly pressing Ye Qi's soul state to the ground, unable to lift his head.
"Your Excellency's projection brought my soul to this realm and wants me to sign a contract, which means there must be something you want me to accomplish! But now my physical body is captured by that blood clan and is in imminent danger! So, why don't we make a deal? You help me get through this crisis, and I'll help you complete the task entrusted to you!" Ye Qi shouted loudly with his head raised, having been suppressed by the opponent's aura.
"Intelligent mortal, but do you think you have the upper hand?" Ye Qi's garrulous and proactive appearance obviously made the unknown devil very unhappy, and he increased his pressure on Ye Qi again. Under this pressure, Ye Qi's semi-transparent soul was covered with ripples. If this continued, it wouldn't be long before Ye Qi's soul would scatter completely.
"The transaction itself is a process of mutual benefit and reciprocity. As long as both parties are satisfied, the transaction is considered successful. There's no such thing as having an absolute advantage; we're just mutually beneficial!"
Feeling the unknown devil's increasing pressure and his own soul teetering under it, Ye Qi repeatedly pleaded. After shouting, Ye Qi didn't feel any intention from the other side to back down, and suddenly felt a sense of despair: "It's over! I was indeed too arrogant! How could I have thought of using a demon to get out of this crisis? Even if it's just a projection, it's not something I can match! Without the strength to match the opponent, how can there be any talk of a deal? I'm so naive!"
"Alright! I agree to make this deal with you!"
Just as Ye Qi was about to accept his fate and disperse into nothingness, a low voice suddenly rang out, and the overwhelming pressure vanished.
The pressure came suddenly, and it was even more sudden to go. The original intention of Ye Qi's death was stunned, and then he stood up with a smile. On the surface, Ye Qi still had that humble and polite expression, as if nothing had happened, but his heart was far from calm.
"Hey, is this the devil's art of conversation? Killing a chicken to scare a monkey... " The demon hunter's heart was full of sarcasm, but his voice still carried the humility due when facing a strong opponent: "Sir, please state your demands and conditions!"
Bang!
The sheepskin parchment in front of Ye Qi suddenly burst into a flurry of sparks, and the original deep abyss text was replaced by new deep abyss text in the flames. Apparently, this is the new requirements and conditions of the unknown devil. However, when Ye Qi saw the sheepskin paper full of deep abyss text, he smiled lightly: "Sir, although there is no absolute fairness in things, can our transaction be relatively fairer? After all, for deep abyss text, I can only recognize a few simple phrases. And can't the floral patterns around these sheepskin papers be removed too?"
When he said the last sentence, Ye Qi's eyes flashed with a hint of ridicule that was hard to detect - the patterns on sheepskin paper had almost become a trick that demons and humans would use when signing contracts. If you weren't careful and overlooked these patterns, congratulations, after signing the contract, you would find countless non-existent clauses. After all, many words in the Deep Language were just some insignificant patterns to humans in the material world.
The text of the Abyss is different from the various texts of the material world, and it's very complicated. Not only are the readings different from those of the material world, but the writing is also vastly different. Moreover, word groups composed of hundreds of words often express only one simple thing. Therefore, except for scholars with special hobbies or extensive knowledge, ordinary people generally can't understand the text of the Abyss at all. Someone like Ye Qi who can recognize a few word groups in the text of the Abyss is already quite good.
"Mortal, you are pushing me to my limits!" The low voice became even lower.
"Since you've agreed to the deal, you should show some sincerity! Ordinary people also have their own dignity!" The smile at the corner of Ye Qi's mouth disappeared unconsciously, leaving only determination.
At this critical juncture, Ye Qi would naturally not retreat. Otherwise, the previous efforts would be in vain, and if a contract were signed, what would be the point of making an offer? As for being a slave to others, Ye Qi would rather die than do so.
After the voice of the demon hunter fell, the entire bluestone hall was immersed in silence, and even the sound of the nine fire pillars burning became eerily quiet. In the oppressive atmosphere, the sheepskin paper suddenly ignited with a "bang!" again. After the flames disappeared, the abyssal text on the sheepskin paper had transformed into the universal script of the material world's humans. The floral patterns that were scattered around the edges of the sheepskin paper, as if they were decorative, also completely vanished.
On sheepskin paper, a simple and easy-to-understand general text briefly listed three items, roughly meaning:
Firstly, the other party helps Ye Qi get out of his current predicament, and in return, Ye Qi has to help the other party find some items over a period of time.
Secondly, every time he finds a relevant item, the other party will give Ye Qi some power as a reward.
Thirdly, both parties stake their own souls and from the signing of the contract onwards, they cannot reveal each other's existence; neither party can harm the other by any means.
Ye Qi's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected contract, and he blinked a few times, hardly daring to believe it. The content of this contract was truly beyond his expectations, especially the second clause regarding remuneration and the last clause regarding mutual non-aggression, which made Ye Qi feel as if he had taken an exciting stimulant - the devil is very generous when achieving his goals, and the power granted is absolutely not to be underestimated. Ye Qi even began to wonder what kind of power it was, whether it was flame control or spiritual impact?
But as the excitement of hunting demons passed, he immediately calmed down again and began to suspect: "Is this contract too beneficial for me? Is this the temptation of a demon contract? If so, it's no wonder that countless people in history knew what kind of existence demons were, yet still signed contracts with them!"
With a nervous heart, the demon hunter carefully checked the parchment again and again to confirm that there were no problems, then stretched out his hand in a spiritual state and pressed it onto the parchment.
In an instant, a dazzling white light burst forth from the sheepskin paper, illuminating the entire bluestone hall.
Today is the weekend, so I won't be lazy and will work hard to write for everyone. Please don't be stingy with your votes! Also, thank you to 丿神灬奉先 and 我是一根草 for their rewards! Finally, I want to say that this week's highlights have been used up, but I'll make it up to you all next week!
