307: Chapter 308 Preliminary Oral Cooperation Agreement

Lucia, the Holy City envoy clad in pristine white robes, hovered silently beneath the somewhat overcast sky. Her silver hair cascaded like a waterfall, her form ethereal. Her ice-blue eyes resembled two bottomless, frigid pools, reflecting the calm figure of Lin Muyang below. An occasional, extremely subtle flicker of light passed through her gaze, indicating she was engaged in real-time communication with the high-ranking officials of the Holy City back in the Sky Palace.

The negotiation had reached a brief stalemate.

The Holy City's initial plan was to offer a city lord title and a council seat as compensation for the resource exchange, while requiring Lin Muyang to undertake corresponding obligations, primarily the regular and quantitative clearing of ground monsters in designated areas. In their view, this was a fair and sustainable cooperative model: we grant you status and partial resource access, and you solve our most troublesome problem.

However, Lin Muyang had clearly stated he would not accept assigned tasks, only willing to help based on his own whims. This undoubtedly disrupted the Holy City's calculations. Resources could be given, but there was no guarantee the other party would act. What if Lin Muyang took the resources but contributed little effort, or if his efforts were completely misaligned with the Holy City's expectations? Then the cooperation would become a one-sided gift, something the Holy City could not accept.

Lucia rapidly exchanged information in her mind, conveying Lin Muyang's stance while receiving arguments and instructions from the council's end. She could imagine the heavy atmosphere of gravity and disagreement likely permeating the Holy City Council hall at that very moment.

Just then, Lin Muyang's voice broke the silence once more.

"Speaking of which, you don't really need to worry too much about me taking resources and not delivering," Lin Muyang said casually, as if struck by a thought. "I just realized I have many Origin Skills urgently needing leveling up, and I was worrying about not finding enough suitable monsters to farm."

He looked up towards the distant outline of land occupied by monsters and suffused with chaotic energy, a slight smile touching his lips. "Looking at it now, the surface of your planet seems like the perfect, tailor-made training ground for my skills."

Origin Skill leveling?

A faint glimmer lit up Lucia's ice-blue eyes as she quickly calculated internally. Improving Origin Skills was of paramount importance to any powerful Class Transferee, often requiring a massive, suitable source of experience, typically from slaying a great number of sufficiently powerful monsters. This process was usually long and arduous.

If Lin Muyang's words were true, if he genuinely had an urgent need to enhance his Origin Skills, then even without the Holy City's task requirements, for his own sake, he would inevitably take the initiative to frequently hunt monsters on the surface! Moreover, given the terrifying clearing efficiency he had displayed, the scale and frequency of his monster farming would likely far exceed the Holy City's expectations from periodic tasks!

"Indeed, improving Origin Skills requires considerable time and the slaughter of vast numbers of monsters," Lucia said, following Lin Muyang's lead, the probing tone in her voice diminishing slightly. "So, it seems that even without rigid task assignments, for your own growth, you would frequently be active on the surface?"

"Of course," Lin Muyang nodded, proposing a specific request. "So, instead of fixating on task quotas, why don't you provide me with a detailed map marking the distribution, scale, levels, and characteristics of major monster populations. I'd be more than happy to clear out any areas dense with a sufficient number of monsters, while taking care of my own business."

This proposal instantly shifted the dynamic between the two parties from employer-employee to a more collaborative model of information sharing and aligned objectives. Lin Muyang needed monster information for efficient skill farming; the Holy City needed someone to clear those monsters. Lin Muyang's actions would objectively meet the Holy City's needs, while the information provided by the Holy City would greatly enhance Lin Muyang's operational efficiency. Although lacking the constraint of assigned tasks, their interests were highly aligned on the point of clearing surface monsters.

Lucia fell silent for a moment, the flicker of light in her icy eyes flashing again, clearly engaged in final confirmation with the Holy City. She knew that trying to bind an entity like Lin Muyang—whose strength was a mystery, whose personality was strong-willed, and who possessed absolute autonomy—with traditional contracts or tasks was nearly impossible. Forcing demands would only backfire, potentially even pushing this potential, powerful ally to the opposite side.

While Lin Muyang's proposed model of exchanging information for action offered less certainty, it was currently the most realistic and mutually acceptable option. At the very least, it could ensure that Lin Muyang's activities would concentrate on areas the Holy City wished to clear, and with high efficiency.

"The time and number of monster kills required for Origin Skill improvement are indeed staggering," Lucia finally spoke slowly, her ice-blue eyes meeting Lin Muyang's directly, as if having reached a decision. "It seems, then, that even without mandatory assignments, you would engage in extensive hunting in the outside world for your own sake... This is rather serendipitous."

She let out a soft sigh, carrying a hint of relief and a trace of resignation at the disruption of the original plan. "Regardless, given your temperament, forcing you to accept tasks is clearly unworkable. Since that's the case, let us try cooperation on this basis. I hope this can be a good beginning."

"Then," Lucia's expression regained its solemnity, "on behalf of the Holy City Sky Palace and the Council, I formally welcome your inclusion. From this moment, you, Lin Muyang, are the legitimate City Lord of Stanro Floating City. The former city lord will be reassigned to another city. Simultaneously, you automatically gain an honorary seat on the Holy City Council, with corresponding authority and rights to information."

She paused, adding, "A dedicated adjutant will liaise with you shortly regarding the specific affairs, personnel composition, resource inventory, and other detailed information of Stanro City. Furthermore, as City Lord, the security and defense of Stanro City and its jurisdiction will also be your responsibility. Of course, you may delegate daily affairs to trusted individuals."

Lin Muyang had little interest in becoming a city lord; he valued more the convenience this identity brought—a legitimate, high-ranking local status that would reduce many unnecessary troubles for his subsequent actions.

"Kandas," Lin Muyang turned his head, looking at the middle-aged man who had been standing respectfully in the distance, trying to minimize his presence.

"My Lord!" Kandas jolted, quickly stepping forward a few paces and bowing to receive orders.

"When I'm not in Stanro City from now on, you will temporarily manage its affairs, both major and minor," Lin Muyang instructed directly, his tone as casual as if commenting on the weather. "Contact me only if you encounter significant matters you cannot resolve."

Upon hearing this, Kandas froze completely, his mind blanking for an instant. Manage Stanro City? This... wasn't this equivalent to being an acting city lord?

Within a single day, he had transformed from a traitor wanted throughout the city, an alleged murderer colluding with external enemies, into the de facto administrator of this floating city? The shift in status was so surreal he could hardly believe it. His heart pounded uncontrollably, a complex mix of elation, awe, and anxiety surging to his head, flushing his face.

But he quickly forced himself to calm down. He understood perfectly well where this sudden authority came from and to whom it was tethered. Lord Lin Muyang had no interest in managing a city, hence tossing the trivial matters to him. This was both a tremendous opportunity and a heavy responsibility, and also a blatant test.

Kandas stole a glance at Lin Muyang's impassive profile. He knew an unbreakable soul contract existed between him and this mysterious master. His every action and thought while managing the city would likely be difficult to completely conceal from the other. Lin Muyang entrusting the city to him might not be out of complete trust, but more like an observation—to assess his capabilities, and more importantly, his character and limits.

"Yes, my Lord! Your subordinate will spare no effort in managing Stanro City well, and will absolutely not fail your trust!" Kandas suppressed the excitement in his heart, bowing respectfully and solemnly. He knew that from this moment on, he had to be extremely cautious. He must demonstrate administrative skill to ensure the city ran smoothly, yet must never abuse his authority, especially not harm the interests of the common people, and above all, must harbor no thoughts of damaging Lin Muyang's interests or defying his will.

"It seems my decisive pledge of allegiance to this lord was truly the wisest, and perhaps the most perilous, decision of my life..." Kandas thought inwardly, though a greater sense of excitement at being entrusted with responsibility prevailed. "Even if my personal strength isn't top-tier in Stanro City, I now have Lord Lin Muyang backing me! From now on, who in Stanro City would dare defy me?"

Lin Muyang could clearly sense the excitement, ambition, and a trace of suppressed fear emanating from the fluctuations in Kandas's soul. He didn't mind. As he thought, this was merely a test. If Kandas proved useful, he wouldn't mind keeping a local steward. If not, dealing with him would be simple, thanks to the existence of the soul contract.

"Alright then. Once you send me the detailed monster distribution map, I can take people to start clearing," Lin Muyang said to Lucia, a note of eagerness in his tone. He was indeed somewhat impatient to farm Origin Skill experience.

"No problem," Lucia nodded, no longer hesitating. She extended her hand, and a palm-sized, cicada-wing-thin piece of pure white metal materialized in her palm. Its surface shimmered with watery light, its edges smooth, its design simple. With a gentle push, the metal piece floated steadily towards Lin Muyang.

"This is our Holy City's latest development, the 'Spirit Link.' It integrates multiple functions: communication, information storage, map navigation, identity verification, and more. It's more stable than older communication magic tools and has greater information capacity. I will transmit the more detailed map of known monster distributions in the Atlantis World, along with the secret realm information we possess, directly into it via the highest authority channel. You can also use it to contact the Holy City or relevant personnel in Stanro City."

Lin Muyang took the Spirit Link. It felt slightly cool to the touch, with a unique texture—neither metal nor jade, yet extremely resilient. It seemed to sense the holder's aura, automatically conforming to his palm. It was so thin and light it was almost imperceptible. With a mere thought, he could see a simple operational interface and a data reception prompt appear within it. The design of this thing was indeed more advanced and convenient than mobile phones from Blue Star.

"Fine, I'll take it," Lin Muyang nodded.

Thus, the two parties had reached a preliminary verbal cooperation agreement. No magical contracts or written treaties were signed, because at their level, unless it was an unbreakable binding like a soul contract, the restraining power of ordinary agreements was limited. Cooperation relied more on consensus of interests and mutual wariness.

Lin Muyang wielded formidable personal strength and growth potential; the Holy City commanded a vast network of influence and possessed the world's most detailed intelligence resources. Cooperation benefited both sides. At least for the present stage, neither had a reason to easily break the agreement.

Lucia gave Lin Muyang a final bow. Her silver hair swayed, her figure gradually grew transparent, and finally, as if merging into the air itself, she vanished without a trace, coming and going soundlessly, fully displaying the bearing of a master.