At this moment, someone finally went forth to stop him and question him. After all, even the mages were not allowed to enter and leave the tower freely, let alone Cantory, an obvious outsider.
Cantory, who had snapped out of his trance, subconsciously wanted to fly into a rage, but fortunately he reacted fast enough. As soon as he started glaring, he remembered where he was, and quickly put on a calmer expression. He said to the mage who came to question him, “I’m an envoy of the Gilded Kingdom, and I would like to see your president for something urgent.”
The envoy of the Gilded Kingdom? As soon as he heard Cantory report his identity, the expression of that mage from the Tower of Dusk immediately became sullen. In fact, many people, including some mages of the Tower of Dusk, felt that the Gilded Kingdom’s entry to the Breezy Plains would affect the Tower of Dusk the most.
Before the Gilded Kingdom arrived, the Tower of Dusk had reached a level where all the forces in the Breezy Plains had to stoop low and submit to them. However, once the Gilded Kingdom arrived, there were two authoritative forces that the factions had to subdue to. Besides, it was obvious that the Tower of Dusk and Gilded Kingdom would clash sooner or later.
Therefore, in the view of the majority of people, the Tower of Dusk and the Gilded Kingdom were still at odds with each other even though they had reached a consensus for their negotiations—they had merely compromised with each other on the surface, so there just seemed to be less animosity and hostility between the two.
Now that the enemy was standing right in front of him, the mage of the Tower of Dusk naturally wouldn’t be nice to him. However, this mage didn’t have a high status. Those in the Sky Castle who liked battles would probably have chased Cantory out.
“So you’re an envoy of the Gilded Kingdom. Please wait here for a moment, I will go to report to our president.” The mage did not lead Cantory to the guest hall, and instead left without him after bringing him to the main hall.
Cantory had never been treated that way all his life. If not for what had happened on Cage Island, he would have probably turned around to leave angrily. However, he now had no choice but to hold his anger back and stay there. He even looked for a place to sit down in the hall.
Besides, what made Cantory feel terrible was the vast number of people who were passing by in the hall. The mage did not speak softly just now, and almost everyone in the hall heard him. Hence, they were all looking at Cantory with a hostile expression.
If Cantory had come because of other things, he would have definitely raised his chin high to express his disdain for them. However, he was there to request help from the president of the Tower of Dusk. To put it bluntly, he was there to plead with Lin Li. Although the mages should not know this, he had a guilty conscience, and felt that they were aware.
After a period of time, which Cantory felt was centuries long, the mage who had received him finally came out, and brought him to a meeting room. Without those intense gazes, Cantory finally felt better. However, when he thought about how he was going to face someone who was much harder to deal with, and even had to ask him for help, he immediately felt that his disaster had just begun.
“I heard that the Gilded Kingdom has recently launched a huge operation on Cage Island. How can you have the time to visit our tiny force, Envoy Cantory? When I heard the report from the people downstairs just now, I thought that someone was assuming your identity. My apologies,” said Lin Li, who didn’t deliberately make Cantory wait longer. At his current level, he wouldn’t bother doing something so petty.
Although Cantory was there to ask for help, he had never begged all his life. Others were always the ones to beg him. Even if he wanted to beg, he couldn’t seem the part so easily. Seeing Lin Li enter the guest hall, Cantory sat still, and disdainfully said, “It’s really hard to see you, President Felic. Is this how the Tower of Dusk treats its guests?”
Although it might not be considered hard for others, Cantory obviously thought differently. Given his status in the Gilded Kingdom, the people he wanted to see would be waiting for him way before he arrived. Almost no one would dare to make him wait.
However, at the Tower of Dusk today, he was first made to wait outside in the hall where everyone cast peculiar gazes at him, and then, when he reached the guest hall, no one came to receive or entertain him. Cantory was long infuriated. He didn’t forget what his agenda was, though. Otherwise, he would have long stomped off in a fury.
Of course, Cantory was not just venting his frustration and displeasure, but rather wanted to pave the foundation for their conversation. Simply put, if he took control of the flow earlier, he wouldn’t be in a passive position when requesting help later.
Lin Li smiled faintly, and didn’t care about Cantory’s complaint. Instead, he walked towards a seat and sat down. “Envoy Cantory, you and I both know what the relationship between the Tower of Dusk and the Gilded Kingdom is. Besides, we have our own way of hosting guests, and it varies depending on the guest. Okay, just cut straight to the chase. Surely you didn’t come here to declare war this time, did you?”
Cantory originally wanted to wait for Lin Li to apologize so that he could start talking about the matter of Cage Island, but he did not expect Lin Li to answer so bluntly. Besides, those words reminded him of the previous negotiation he had with Lin Li when his fleet was attacked.
What’s the relationship between the Gilded Kingdom and the Tower of Dusk? We’re enemies, of course! Thinking about the pressing issue at hand, Cantory’s heart sank. Asking one’s enemy for help was probably the greatest joke ever. Cantory felt that if he was in Lin Li’s place, he definitely wouldn’t help his enemy, either. He would even kick him down further, and leave him with no means of survival.
As he thought about it, Cantory subconsciously broke out in a cold sweat, and even hesitated to tell Lin Li his agenda. If Lin Li chose not to help, and even added insult to his injury, the Gilded Kingdom’s dream of dominating the Breezy Plains would burst like a bubble.
“Envoy Cantory, the Tower of Dusk may be small, but we have a lot to handle every day. If you’re really here just to be a guest, I’ll get someone to take you around. I won’t entertain you longer then,” Lin Li said, not standing on ceremony after seeing how hesitant Cantory was. He stood up and got ready to leave.
“Um… President Felic, please wait a moment,” Cantory said as he frantically stood up. Despite feeling infuriated, he put on a sincere expression, and said, “President Felic, I’m here this time for a very important matter. I was appointed by Elder Zumar of the Illuminati, and I hope to cooperate with you in the matter on Cage Island, President Felic.”
Cantory also figured out that there was no one in the entire Breezy Plains who didn’t know about the disaster on Cage Island. If the Tower of Dusk had really wanted to kick them while they were down, they would have done so long ago. However, he did not directly ask for help, and instead said that he was interested in a cooperation with the Tower of Dusk.
If he requested help, the Gilded Kingdom would definitely be in a vulnerable position, being tantamount to meat that was waiting to be sliced, and they would have to comply with the Tower of Dusk’s requests. If it was a cooperation, the two parties would be of equal status. There would be no negotiation then. Now, if the Tower of Dusk demanded a high price, the Gilded Kingdom could bargain.
Cantory’s idea was good, but Lin Li was not the type to be taken advantage of easily. Hearing that Cantory wanted to cooperate, Lin Li immediately stood up and shook his head smilingly. “I’m sorry, but I’m not interested in Cage Island, so there’s no need to say anything about cooperation.”
“Wait, President Felic, if you have any conditions, we can talk things over slowly.” Cantory panicked a little. If the Tower of Dusk was just the Tower of Dusk, he wouldn’t have to be too nervous. The problem was that the other forces in the Breezy Plains were all acting according to the Tower of Dusk’s decision. If he could not persuade the president of the Tower of Dusk, the Gilded Kingdom might really not get any help in the Breezy Plains.
“Envoy Cantory, this is not a matter of conditions. Cage Island is not included in the Tower of Dusk’s development plan, so no matter what you’ve discovered on Cage Island, the Tower of Dusk would not be interested in intervening, so don’t worry,” Lin Li said righteously, making Cantory feel like he was facing an immovable mountain.
Hearing Lin Li’s words, Cantory felt like crying. Previously, the leaders of the Gilded Kingdom had not announced the purpose of this operation to the outside world, because they were worried that other forces would covet the secret treasures of Cage Island. However, he really wished that they would be interested in Cage Island now so that he wouldn’t have to swallow his pride and ask for help.
“President Felic, I reckon you should also know very clearly about the matter on Cage Island. I admit that the development of the situation has indeed exceeded our expectations, and the only thing we can do now is let Elder Zumar temporarily suppress the existence below Cage Island. However, we can’t suppress it entirely.” In a moment of helplessness and desperation, Cantory had no choice but to admit that the group from the Gilded Kingdom had indeed encountered a tough problem on Cage Island.
“Oh? In this case, Envoy Cantory, you should be returning to the Gilded Kingdom now to ask for help immediately. Why do you still have the time to come to this Tower of Dusk to be my guest?” Lin Li was not intentionally trying to mock him. It was just that Lin Li wouldn’t take the initiative to offer help if Cantory didn’t state things clearly.
Lin Li’s words caused a look of embarrassment to appear on Cantory’s face, and he had a hard time suppressing the anger in his heart. A moment later, he said, “President Felic, you can probably imagine how big a disaster it would be for the entire Breezy Plains if that horrible and terrifying existence under Cage Island really escaped. Although the Gilded Kingdom is far away, Elder Zumar can’t bear to see the beings in the Breezy Plains suffering and dying. Hence, he sent me to contact the various forces in hopes that we can join forces to suppress that thing again before it breaks free.”
Cantory rephrased his words, but in fact, he still made it sound like a cooperation, except that the purpose of cooperation was not for any profits, but to protect the safety of the Breezy Plains. Besides, he even specially pointed out that the Gilded Kingdom was located overseas. If things were to really spiral out of control, he could at most just leave. However, where could the forces of the Breezy Plains, including the Tower of Dusk, flee?
However, after hearing his words, Lin Li glanced at Cantory, and calmly said, “You people were the ones who caused this to happen, so naturally you have to be responsible. If you don’t wish to take responsibility, you can move out of the Breezy Plains. Whatever happens in the future will no longer have anything to do with you.”
Profits were the biggest motivation. Lin Li did not believe that the Gilded Kingdom’s forces would come to the Breezy Plains just for the sake of helping them solve a crisis. During the negotiation previously, Lin Li had already discovered that the Breezy Plains was of vital use to the Gilded Kingdom, and Cage Island should only be one of their agendas. Although he couldn’t know the details, Lin Li could tell that no matter what the reason was, the Gilded Kingdom definitely wouldn’t withdraw easily like what Cantory had mentioned since they had already entered.
Offering benefits didn’t work, and neither did playing the justice card. Did he really have to put his pride aside and beg!? Looking at Lin Li who refused to give in, Cantory was infuriated, but he could only comfort himself by telling himself that he would settle scores with the Tower of Dusk in the future.
“President Felic, we are not trying to shirk our responsibility, but this matter is beyond our current capabilities. The Gilded Kingdom is far away in the sea, but we can’t get any help from there for now. Hence, I’m here this time because I hope to get your help.” Out of desperation, Cantory had no choice but to muster the courage and swallow his pride to reveal his true agenda.
However, after saying this, Cantory did not feel any less worried. Instead, he panicked even more, as if he was waiting for the last verdict as he stared at Lin Li’s face. He had tried to tempt Lin Li with interests and played the justice card, but Lin Li refused to give him a nod of approval. Now, he lacked even more confidence.
“Oh, I see. You could have just stated from the beginning that you need help.” Lin Li looked like he had come to a sudden realization. He nodded slightly, and said, “Alright, since you really need help, I’ll accompany you to Cage Island.”
