Reverse flow of the Yellow Springs

Chapter 50 Trading
This great being keenly sensed something was amiss; something unclean seemed to have appeared on his ark?

Although that feeling was fleeting, He still turned his gaze to the hall.

The last time I had this feeling was when the Ark was captured by the Void Realm Black Hole.

This time, He must be on high alert and conduct a thorough investigation to prevent any unforeseen events from occurring on the ark.

As a result, in the ship's main hall, several passengers and representatives of mysterious origins and formidable power simultaneously turned around or froze.

They were equally unaware of what was happening, but they could sense the watchful gaze and subtle vigilance of a great being.

This left them somewhat bewildered. They didn't know why this being had suddenly become wary of them.

This is not the fault of that great being; the hunter is naturally wary of a lion, not a white rabbit.

In the eyes of a great being, the 'bronze mask' of the second awakening is naturally just a white rabbit.

Li Yelai was completely unaware of this; he was currently examining the layout inside the ark.

The floor of the ship's main hall was covered with the fur of some unknown creature, exceptionally soft and without any signs of stitching. This indicated that it came from an extremely large creature.

The classic chandelier illuminated the entire hall, from which a faint, hymn-like sound emanated, creating a soothing and delightful atmosphere.

Elegant chairs were placed throughout the hall. If it weren't for the shimmering, illusory starry sky visible through the windows, who would guess this was a giant ship, or perhaps a high-class, classic restaurant?

Li Yelai walked to the seventh seat by the window, which was the seat that 'Copper Face' usually chose.

As the representative of the Second Awakening, 'Bronze Mask' does not hold a high position within the Ark, relegated to a seat on the periphery, primarily serving as a listener and messenger. Only if 'Gold Armor' performs meritorious deeds that are recognized by all will 'Bronze Mask's' status be elevated.

For Li Yelai, this is actually a good thing.

He sat silently in his seat at the edge of the hall, observing the Ark voters without making a sound.

Some force interfered with everyone's appearance, making it impossible for Li Yelai to see their specific faces. Of course, they also couldn't see Li Yelai clearly.

This is Ark's protection measure for voters; even among Ark voters, no one knows the identity of the other.

Li Yelai sat for about ten minutes. From time to time, Ark voters appeared, found their respective seats, and sat down quietly. A small number of them gathered together for a while and then returned to their seats.

The number of voters on the Ark was considerable. Judging from the intelligence gathered in the minds of the captured Golden Armor and Bronze Mask, at its peak, the Ark housed over 150 passengers.

More than a hundred people have already arrived, so it seems that this intelligence sharing is also very important to them.

Among them, Li Yelai noticed one person who was holding a black umbrella, wearing a white tuxedo and a top hat. He sat like a gentleman in the central area of ​​the hall.

Li Yelai's heart skipped a beat: "Is it that Greyhound?"

Although his physical appearance had changed significantly, the black umbrella he held was the same one. The golden patterns on the umbrella surface were exactly the same.

It was none other than the 'black-umbrella youth' that Li Ye had seen before arriving and had ordered his teammates to surround and kill.

Official analysis suggests that the black umbrella is the true form of that entity. He used some kind of ritual or forbidden object to attach his consciousness to the black umbrella.

Even after his physical body is destroyed, as long as Black Umbrella can escape safely, he can make a comeback.

It seems that the greyhound has now found a new body.

This was unexpected by the authorities; it remains to be seen how well their strength has recovered.

Li Yelai wasn't worried about being recognized. Besides, his current disguise and strength were vastly different from his former self.

"The official statement says that Xigou's strength is around the fifth or sixth level of Awakening, making him a captain-level powerhouse." Li Yelai's heart sank: "And with his strength, he's not allowed to enter the central seat?"

This means that those in the central core positions are even more powerful.

Li Yelai suppressed his discomfort and tension and continued to observe silently.

After another ten minutes or so, once it was confirmed that no more voters would enter the ark,

A voice, whose gender was difficult to discern, rang in everyone's ears: "The time has come, voters."

The voice was ancient and solemn, a language that Li Yelai had never heard of.

But these languages ​​were automatically translated into words he could understand.

Does the Ark have built-in translation capabilities? Or is it that the power inherent in this language can transcend the limitations of cognition?
It's likely both, given that the Ark voters come from all over the world. Without this ability, they probably wouldn't even be able to communicate.

Li Yelai thought of Mr. Shadow, who was in the same situation, and he could understand the mysterious language he spoke.

Is the owner of this Ark on the same level as Mr. Shadow?
Or is it that all beings at higher levels possess this ability?
Li Yelai pondered to himself.

One of the Ark voters, a blond-haired, clearly white man, spoke up: "Let's talk about intelligence first. Does anyone have any information about San Francisco? The more confidential, the better. I'm open to a trade."

“I have one,” another Ark voter on the edge spoke up: “Private?”

“Of course, it’s private!” the white voter responded.

Then, their voices disappeared; under the influence of the Ark's power, they were isolated from the outside world. They then started a private chat.

Afterwards, both parties exited the private mode with satisfaction. One received the information, and the other received the reward.

At this moment, someone else spoke up: "We need a Four Awakenings potion for the Netherworld Path, and the Shadow Killer Blade. It would be best if it were a pre-made potion, but raw materials are also acceptable."

Someone immediately responded: "I don't have the potion, but I have two of the ingredients. They are the Shadow Fiend's torso and the Mist Fiend's dew."

“Very good, but how do you want to trade? The materials?” the man asked.

“I remember you have the recipe for the Four Awakenings potion from the Whispering Path, Dragon Shout. I want that.”

Without hesitation, the man nodded immediately: "Yes, we can trade now."

"Okay! It's private!"

Subsequently, similar scenes occurred throughout the hall.

Intelligence, equipment, potions, recipes—all became bargaining chips.

This gave Li Yelai a more comprehensive understanding of the Ark, since most of humanity was trapped in the giant city.

However, the intelligence between the giant cities is not shared.

For example, the information of the three border cities, the other two border cities, and the lava mine city is shared among the four cities.

However, it is very difficult to contact the more distant megacities.

It's not even clear whether those giant cities still exist.

This led to various information gaps. For example, the recipe for the Dragon Shout, which was mentioned earlier, was not available in the giant city where Li Yelai lived.

But the other party can easily produce it. Similarly, the formula that Li Yelai has may be missing from the other party's side.

The appearance of the Ark nearly eliminated this intelligence gap. Add to that the presence of certain mysterious voters who could produce formulas or equipment that even the authorities had not yet mastered.

At this moment, the first to speak was an Ark Voter located in the central area. He was exceptionally tall, clad in golden plate armor, resembling a small golden mountain. Sitting in his specially designed chair, he was over two meters tall.

He also spoke in a language that humans couldn't understand, but Li Yelai could still hear it.

"Star, Golden Armor, Phantom, Wolf's Mark. You've done a great job. This plan was a success. You successfully forced the Old Mad King to take action personally. As agreed, I've brought you your rewards." As he spoke, items appeared one by one on the table in front of him. There were potions, raw materials, and even high-level psionic weapons.

"As for Black Umbrella, you escaped from Border City No. 3 with serious injuries and failed to carry out the feint attacks on the various branches as planned, so you are not included in this transaction," the Gold Mountain Knight said. "Let's cooperate again next time."

The man with the black umbrella said coldly, "Of course, I have no objection. I wouldn't stoop so low as to ask you for payment!"

One Ark voter was moved: "As expected, you were the ones who did what happened in Border City No. 3! How dare you be so audacious!"

"More than 150,000 casualties, just to test the old Mad King's condition?" one Ark voter sneered.

"Who would have thought that the celebrity's identity is the superstar Qin Zhi? You've paid a huge price this time, and now you're wanted by major cities. Why don't you come and join me?" one of the Ark voters said.

The voters of the Ark commented amongst themselves, some regretting not being able to participate in the action, others cursing them for being too cold-blooded and ruthless.

Then, a person sitting on the outer edge of the black umbrella responded: "My identity was even exposed for this operation. Although the plan had some flaws, the result was still perfect. I hope to have another chance to trade later."

“Alright.” The Knight of the Golden Mountain nodded. Then, he tapped the table slightly, and several items appeared on the table in front of the man: “These are the potions for the fifth and sixth senses that they promised you, as well as psionic weapons from the forbidden zone.”

"Very good, it wasn't for nothing that I sacrificed so much." The man stroked the reward in front of him and chuckled, "The casualties of those 150,000 were indeed worth it."

Li Yelai silently watched the man, suppressing his anger and malice.

Those four people were the four Ark voters who participated in the Fantasy Band incident.

Apart from Jin Jia and his forces, who were secretly captured, everyone else had already fled the giant city.

The one who spoke was clearly the culprit, Qin Zhi!

Now, Li Ye has finally found him again.

But Li Yelai could not act rashly and could only continue to play the role of 'Copper Mask'.

But Qin Zhi, the 'celebrity,' scanned the hall and then looked at Li Ye and said, 'Why aren't Copper Mask and Golden Armor here?'

Li Yelai's heart skipped a beat, but he said aloud, "My lord fought with the clerk while trying to gather information about the Mad King and was seriously injured. He managed to escape from the giant city and is currently recuperating. He sent me to collect the reward and sell the information."

The copper mask carried a certain kind of speech interference, making Li Yelai's voice sound both male and female, making it impossible for anyone to discern his true voice. This was also a form of disguise.

"Oh?" asked the Golden Mountain Knight. "Selling intelligence? What intelligence did he obtain?"

Li Yelai said, "My lord saw the Mad King."

The Golden Mountain Knight suddenly stood up: "You're saying the Golden Armor saw the Mad King make a move? What was the Mad King's condition?"

Many Ark voters were also taken aback and excited.

Even the Ark's chosen ones are wary of the Old Mad King's strength. He's a powerful being who can challenge the Lord of the Forbidden Zone.

His intelligence must be extremely valuable!
"What price are you willing to pay to obtain intelligence?" Li Yelai continued, using the rhetoric Yin Huo had taught him.

To make Li Yelai's identity safer, Yin Huo presented very important information as intelligence.

That was the Mad King's physical condition.

"These rewards are already for the Golden Armor, and in addition, I will add a precious healing potion. I will bring it to you at the next gathering," said the Golden Mountain Knight. "How about it?"

"Okay." Li Yelai nodded: "Private?"

"Private," the Gold Mountain Knight said.

But others also spoke up.

A female Ark Voter sitting in the same row as the black umbrella asked, "I'm also willing to pay for the intelligence, a B-grade psionic weapon, I'll bring it to you next time, okay?"

"Okay." Li Yelai nodded slightly.

The other person spoke up, saying, "I remember your master, Jin Jia, was active near the border city. I'm willing to provide a Four Awakenings Potion recipe that even the border city officials don't have."

"Oh, what path?" Li Yelai played the role of 'Copper Mask' very well.

"Whispering Path, Dragon Roar! If you agree, I can give it to you right now."

“But neither I nor my family members are on the delirious path.” Li Yelai made a slightly thoughtful gesture.

The golden armor represents the path to zero, while the true bronze mask represents the path to true martial prowess.

"Fine, let it be rambling."

The man breathed a sigh of relief: "Then add me to the list."

"Let's keep it private." The Gold Mountain Knight did not refuse the two's participation.

He had no say in who Li Yelai sold his intelligence to.

Subsequently, the four people, including Li Yelai and the Golden Mountain Knight, were cut off from sound.

After copying the recipe himself, Li Yelai looked at it for a moment and then stuffed it into his suit.

Inside the Ark, everyone is honest, because a certain great being can distinguish truth from falsehood. There's no need to worry about being deceived.

Then, Li Yelai spoke up: "Old Mad King is very old, extremely old. But when he attacked, his blood surged like a tide, instantly restoring his youthful appearance, and he shattered that void behemoth with a single spear thrust!"

"One shot!" This surprised the Gold Mountain Knight. The other two were equally astonished.

"Even after entering the physical world, when its strength was greatly reduced, that behemoth still possessed at least the strength of a seventh-level ape. Yet it was repelled by a single spear thrust. Has the Old Mad King truly grown old?"

"I guessed that Old Mad King could fight, but I didn't expect him to be this good!"

Li Yelai continued, "After that, the Old Mad King relinquished his youthful form and reverted to his aged appearance. That's why my master was able to escape the scene. We suspect that the Old Mad King can only maintain his peak form briefly. Of course, these are just speculations."

After a few seconds of silence, the Golden Mountain Knight confirmed with the Ark that the information 'Copper Mask' had provided was not a lie.

He nodded and said, "Very good. If you can continue to provide me with information about the Old Mad King, our Black Origin City will consider you a friend."

Sure enough, this Golden Mountain Knight came from the forbidden zone; he was a creature from the forbidden zone!
Li Yelai and the other two were somewhat shocked.

Then, Li Yelai nodded: "It is my honor."

He knew that he, as a hidden agent, had already infiltrated the Ark.

(End of this chapter)