290: Relic Hunter

What's more, on this giant chessboard, there was also the Observer, who set all the rules and whose motives remained unfathomable.

He needed more intelligence, more allies, and more variables.

Just as he was pondering, a hoarse voice, without warning, echoed directly within his Divine Soul.

“Good methods, newcomer.”

“To be able to steal the bone two gods were fighting over right under their noses.”

“This courage and daring would have earned the respect of everyone, even in our era.”

Su Lei's body remained motionless, but his Divine Soul power instantly transformed into an invisible, formless giant net, locking onto the direction from which the voice came.

In the shadows behind the observation deck, three figures had appeared like ghosts at some unknown time.

The leader was Karon, the silver-haired man in the black trench coat.

Beside him were the voluptuous red-haired woman, Black Widow, whose eyes were as dangerous as vipers, and Shui Gu, the giant who resembled a silent rock.

The three of them stood silently, as if completely merged with the surrounding shadows.

If Karon hadn't spoken first, even Su Lei would have found it difficult to detect their presence immediately.

“Who are you?”

Su Lei slowly turned, his gaze calmly fixed on these three uninvited guests.

He could clearly feel that the aura of these three was out of place in this new world; they carried an ancient scent, washed over by the river of time and settled for hundreds of millions of years.

“Us?”

Karon smiled playfully, pulling out the familiar brass coin from his pocket and skillfully flipping it between his fingers.

“You can call us the lost, or you can call us the remnants of time.”

“Of course, in our era, more people preferred to call us...”

“Ruin Hunters.”

“Ruin Hunters?”

Su Lei repeated the unfamiliar term.

“Exactly.”

Black Widow, standing nearby, took over the conversation, openly scrutinizing Su Lei with a suggestive gaze: “We follow the footsteps of history, unearthing forgotten Treasure Troves.

This Kindling is the last, and greatest, objective we've been pursuing.”

“It's just a pity our luck wasn't so good; we fell into a long nap with it as soon as we boarded.”

Karon raised a hand to stop Black Widow from continuing.

He looked at Su Lei, his eyes becoming incredibly serious, and said directly, “We are not here to be hostile.”

“On the contrary, we are here to make a deal.”

“A deal?”

“Yes, a deal.”

Karon affirmed: “We saw all your actions.”

“You are strong, and your fleet possesses power that we currently cannot match.”

“In this chaotic game, you are the most worthwhile potential stock we've seen so far to invest in.”

He made no secret of his intentions and directly laid out his chips.

“We need your protection, a temporary safe haven, and a portion of energy supplies to restore our basic operational capabilities.”

“In exchange...”

He extended his hand, and a data chip slowly appeared in his palm.

“We will provide you with a unique gift, the most original and complete internal structural map of the Kindling before it was reassembled into this new world.”

Su Lei's Divine Soul power lightly swept over the data chip, and the vast information contained within it became clear to him.

The structural map was meticulously detailed to an astonishing degree.

It was a personal item reserved by the builders of the previous era for themselves.

“On this map, we have marked several secret warehouses that may contain important strategic materials.”

“Inside, there might be powerful weapons capable of destroying the world, perhaps Heaven-Defying technologies long lost, or even deeper secrets about this ark.”

“With it, you will always be one step ahead of your opponents in this giant labyrinth.”

This was an offer no one could refuse.

Su Lei indeed needed guides, and Karon and his team certainly needed a powerful temporary backer.

This was a perfect win-win cooperation, where each got what they needed.

“How can I trust you?”

Su Lei looked at him, asking calmly, “Perhaps this map itself is a trap.”

“You don't need to completely trust us.”

Karon replied candidly: “You can first send someone to verify one of the closest warehouses; its authenticity will be clear at a glance.”

“What's more...”

He glanced at Su Lei: “With the almost god-like methods you just displayed, our petty tricks shouldn't be able to stir up any waves in front of you, right?”

His words were neither humble nor arrogant, showing sufficient sincerity while cleverly highlighting the vast difference in their strengths, implying he had no capital to play tricks.

Su Lei was silent for a moment.

He was weighing his options.

Cooperating with these three ancient beings of unknown origin would undoubtedly increase many uncertain risks, but behind the risks often lay immeasurable opportunities.

Finally, he made his decision.

“I agree to the trade.”

His answer brought a subtle hint of relief to Karon and Black Widow's faces.

“Welcome, temporary allies.”

Su Lei turned sideways, clearing the Dao to the interior of the base.

A fragile Alliance, based on mutual needs and suspicions, was forged in the shadows at this moment.

Su Lei did not immediately send people to verify the authenticity of the map; he temporarily settled Karon and his two companions in an independent area of the dock and provided them with the necessary energy supplies.

He knew very well that in the face of absolute strength, any conspiracy or trick seemed pale and powerless; he had enough confidence to control these three extremely unstable and dangerous elements.

After settling Karon's team, Su Lei took the data chip and returned to the flagship's bridge.

He overlaid and compared the ancient structural map with the new world map drawn by Dean Li and his team.

Soon, he found the secret warehouse Karon had mentioned, the one closest to them.

It was a long-abandoned ancient weapon testing ground located on the outskirts of the City of Oblivion, enveloped by distorted spatial rifts and a shattered asteroid belt.

Su Lei's gaze lingered on that area for a long time.

Then he summoned Li Xue凝, who had just recovered from the medical pod, and all the top combat personnel in the Federal Fleet.

He wanted to personally verify the value of this map, and he also wanted to personally see what kind of surprises the last glorious era had left for them, the newcomers.

A small but extremely elite fleet, like a drawn sword, sailed out from the Cradle of Creation.

This fleet consisted of fewer than thirty warships, all of which were elite models from the Federal Fleet that had undergone the deepest modifications, led by Su Lei's flagship, the Ice Phoenix.

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