Chapter 64

"Understand, this is for your own good!"

Sous had already seen two watchtowers fly into the sky, and he dared not give Lin Yun any more excuses. These warriors were all elites of the Viper's Nest. If the other side struck again, Sous would truly have nowhere to cry.

"Great Mage Merlin, can we talk inside?" The moment he thought of this possibility, Sous didn't dare to linger outside any longer. With a warm expression, he invited Lin Yun into his wooden house.

Only three people entered the wooden house: Lin Yun, Sous, and Bell...

After sitting down in the wooden house, Lin Yun glanced at Bell. He had always heard that the Viper's Nest had a very powerful Great Mage, even Salaman had once praised him personally. Looking at Bell now, Lin Yun knew that this must be the one.

This was at least a high-level Great Mage of the 6th or 7th rank...

Moreover, his magic runes were extremely powerful, and the actual combat strength of this Great Mage Bell was likely even higher than his rank.

To be honest, Lin Yun was somewhat wary of this most powerful mage of the Viper's Nest.

If the territory of the Viper's Nest was elsewhere, Lin Yun might not have dared to come over.

However, since it was the Poison Mist Canyon, everything became much easier. Lin Yun knew that as long as he stood on the land of the Poison Mist Canyon, he was already invincible. The rest was just waiting for Sous to bow his head.

"Great Mage Merlin, this is really just a misunderstanding..." Sous bowed his head much faster than Lin Yun had imagined. At this moment, all Sous was thinking about was how to quickly send this plague away.

The destructive power of this plague was too terrifying. Just a casual visit, and the Viper's Nest had lost over twenty elites, causing chaos for half an hour. If this happened a few more times, the Viper's Nest would be ruined.

It was like seeing a ghost...

Why had he never heard that Rog Merlin's son was such a plague?

Didn't they say that Rog Merlin's son was no good, still a magic apprentice at almost twenty years old?

What a cursed magic apprentice...

Sous gritted his teeth and cursed, thinking that if anyone said that again, he would bring them to the Poison Mist Canyon and show them the two watchtowers that had been blown up.

"Um, Leader Sous..."

"No problem, Great Mage Merlin, I understand!" Sous was so eager to send this plague away that he hastily agreed before Lin Yun could even state his conditions: "Five alchemy apprentices, each for 200,000 gold coins, plus the things Rios broke, a total of 2 million gold coins, right? Rest assured, I'll have the crystal card sent to the Gilded Rose tomorrow. Is there anything else, Great Mage Merlin?"

Sous swore to the heavens that his last sentence was just a polite gesture...

But his politeness didn't matter; Lin Yun didn't return it.

"There is one more thing..." Lin Yun suddenly remembered that when he entered the Poison Mist Canyon, he had sensed a familiar magical fluctuation. If he wasn't mistaken, that familiar magical fluctuation likely came from a place that the powerful mages of the peak era had often mentioned.

Since it involved that place, there was no need to be polite.

That place might mean nothing to others, but to him, it was an opportunity to quickly obtain five mana array installations.

"..." Lin Yun's words made Sous want to slap himself. You talk too much, you talk too much. Why say polite things? Now, you've caused a problem. Damn, should you agree or not?

But the words were already out, and Sous couldn't retract them.

So, Sous had to force a twitching smile: "Great Mage Merlin, if you have any requests, just... just say them!"

"Since Leader Sous has said that, I won't be polite..."

"..." Sous felt his forehead veins throbbing, thinking, when have you ever been polite?

"I believe Leader Sous knows that my Gilded Rose has some cooperation with the Silver Moon Mercenary Group. Recently, we need to provide a large number of alchemical items for the Silver Moon Mercenary Group's expedition to Razor's Edge. The Poison Mist Canyon is a must-pass route, so I want to discuss with Leader Sous whether the Viper's Nest can provide some convenience, allowing my Gilded Rose's caravan to pass through the Poison Mist Canyon freely during this period."

"About this..." Sous frowned hesitantly.

It wasn't that Lin Yun's conditions were too harsh...

To be honest, Lin Yun's conditions were quite reasonable.

Moreover, the cause of this incident was indeed the Gilded Rose's caravan entering the Poison Mist Canyon. Lin Yun's conditions showed a sincere intention to resolve the issue.

The problem was that Sous was somewhat worried...

Many people in Thousand Sails City knew that in the past ten years, Sous had been trying to expand deeper into the Poison Mist Canyon, but he had never told anyone the real reason.

That was because Sous knew that deep in the Poison Mist Canyon, there was a temple...

Back when Sous was just a small-time thug, he had found the corpse of a powerful swordsman at the entrance of the Poison Mist Canyon. The sword techniques Sous now possessed came from the legacy of that powerful swordsman. However, Sous's talent was not great, so he was still only a 4th Rank Great Swordsman.

But what Sous found back then was not just the legacy of sword techniques; there was also a thin diary.

The diary recorded why the powerful swordsman had crossed the ocean to come to Thousand Sails City and why he had ventured deep into the Poison Mist Canyon to find that temple.

At the time, Sous was terrified when he read the diary.

Almost as soon as he had mastered the sword techniques, Sous established the Viper's Nest and joined the various power struggles in Thousand Sails City. Over the next twenty years, he made the Viper's Nest the largest underground force in Thousand Sails City and, to everyone's incomprehension, successfully occupied the Poison Mist Canyon.

To Sous, the Poison Mist Canyon was too important...

Important to the point that he could not tolerate any accidents.

Lin Yun's conditions sounded reasonable, but what if something went wrong? That would mean twenty years of effort would be in vain.

So, after some thought, Sous decided to refuse.

"By the way, Leader Sous..." When Sous frowned, Lin Yun knew he was about to refuse. This was a crucial opportunity for him to quickly obtain five mana array installations, so how could he let Sous refuse? Before Sous could even speak, Lin Yun took out a glass bottle: "I heard that the poison mist in the Poison Mist Canyon has caused the Viper's Nest a lot of trouble over the years, so I specially prepared a bottle of alchemical potion before coming here."

"An alchemical potion?"

"Yes, a potion that can protect people from the poison mist." Lin Yun opened the glass bottle, and a faint fragrance immediately filled the wooden house: "I call it Magic Spring. You don't need much, just one bottle. Place it in a well-ventilated area, and for at least three days, the poison mist in the Poison Mist Canyon will not threaten your subordinates."

"Is there such an alchemical potion?" Sous was immediately delighted. If this Magic Spring potion was as miraculous as the young Great Mage said, his plan to expand deeper into the Poison Mist Canyon could be completed three years ahead of schedule.

Over the past ten years, the poison mist in the Poison Mist Canyon had caused the Viper's Nest a lot of trouble. Almost every month, the Viper's Nest lost over ten elites due to the poison mist.

Sous never expected that a negotiation originally intended to resolve a conflict would bring him such good news.

Wait...

No, that's not right!

Just as Sous was about to thank him, he suddenly realized something was wrong. The smile that had just appeared on his face froze, and his face turned pale. Although his eyes were still on Lin Yun, they were filled with anger and fear.

No, this isn't helping the Viper's Nest!

This is an open threat!

By taking out the Magic Spring potion, the young mage was actually telling him that the Gilded Rose had thoroughly researched the poison mist in the Poison Mist Canyon. If they could produce a potion to counter the poison mist today, they could also produce a potion to enhance it tomorrow.

Even now, the young Great Mage might be carrying such a potion.

Otherwise, how could a 5th Rank Great Mage dare to enter the Poison Mist Canyon alone?

Thinking of this, Sous felt a chill run down his spine.

If such a potion appeared in the Poison Mist Canyon, it would immediately bring a catastrophic disaster to the entire Viper's Nest. The poison mist, which was already a threat, would instantly become a monster that devoured life. The hundreds of elites of the Viper's Nest and twenty years of hard work would be wiped out in an instant.

For a moment, Sous felt all his strength drained away, and he sat there in a daze, looking at Lin Yun with a complex expression.

Rog Merlin's son is truly terrifying...

"Great Mage Merlin, I'm sure you have more than one alchemical potion in your pocket, right?" Although Sous knew he couldn't provoke the young Great Mage in front of him, he couldn't help but make a sarcastic remark, thinking of how the entire Viper's Nest had just narrowly escaped a disaster.

"Hehe, of course, if Leader Sous thinks one bottle is not enough, I can provide a few more." Lin Yun still smiled at Sous.

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I'm late again. Without saved drafts, it's so frustrating. A slight block and the update is delayed. I'll stay up a bit longer tonight and write the two chapters for tomorrow to avoid being late again.

Apologies, no rolling on the floor.

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