Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

"Yeah, Violet Ghost is demanding something excessive from me. I didn't agree, so I'm no longer relevant. I want to leave right away, but I realize I haven't said goodbye to you, so here I am," Mo Fan replied.

"What did he demand from you?" Blue Bat asked.

"To be his underling; I bet it would involve signing a contract that binds me to him," Mo Fan answered.

"Wouldn't all your efforts over the years be a waste if you leave now? It's your only chance to show yourself to Master Cold Prince. It's a great pity if you miss it," Blue Bat told him.

"What choice do I have? There's no way I'm going to accept Violet Ghost's suggestion. He doesn't deserve my loyalty. If I end up signing the contract, I couldn't guarantee that I could withhold the thought of killing him several times over!" Mo Fan said blatantly.

"It's not that bad. Since your rank is equivalent to his, he will only ask you to sign a contract to prevent you from betraying him. It's a Soul Contract. He's going to place you under restrictions at the cost of his soul. Nothing will happen if you accept it, but if you choose to disobey his orders, it will damage your soul," Blue Bat said.

"What if he asks me to kill myself?" Mo Fan asked.

"His soul will suffer serious damage from it. It also depends on your cultivation and the strength of your soul. If he's stronger than you, the damage you suffer will be more serious. If you are stronger than him, the damage inflicted on your soul will be roughly the same as the damage he would receive. It's the same contract I've signed with him. Even though he's my superior, I'm a Blue Deacon, too. He can't make me his slave with a contract. He hasn't forced me to do anything with the contract so far, since using it will damage his soul," Blue Bat said.

"I don't want to be under him," Mo Fan said.

"But it's a great opportunity for you. The restrictions you are under after signing the contract won't be that strong. Besides, you are a Dark Mage too! That will significantly lower the punishment you receive from disobeying the contract. Why don't you accept it first, and ask him to terminate it later? After all, you are directly taking orders from the Chief Extraditor. You can explain the situation to him, and he will serve you justice and tell Violet Ghost to terminate the contract after everything is done. The ceremony is very important. Those that aren't bound by a contract can't participate in it," Blue Bat encouraged him.

As a matter of fact, Mo Fan was already mentally prepared for it. The authorities of the Black Vatican were obviously going to be cautious, and the best way to control people was through Dark Contracts, Cursed Contracts, and Soul Contracts, guaranteeing that their subordinates would not betray them.

Mo Fan had no intention of leaving. He had already chosen to take this path. He would keep going until he took down the Cold Prince!

However, he had to familiarize himself with the contract first, to ensure he would not be enslaved by the person he was bound to. He had to ensure he could still defend himself, instead of being fully controlled by someone else!

"You can also forcibly terminate the contract, but the price is inflicting serious damage on half of your soul," Blue Bat added.

"I just don't want to take orders from him. I can easily surpass him in just a few years!" Mo Fan snarled.

"I understand that you want to climb higher, but if you don't participate in the ceremony and become inner personnel, it will be difficult for you to earn the Cold Prince's trust. Just do as I say; sign the contract with Violet Ghost, and let the Chief Extraditor terminate it after everything is done. If Master Cold Prince or Master Unas is impressed by your talents, why would you care about the mere restrictions that you are under?" Blue Bat said.

"But..." Mo Fan seemed reluctant still.

"Don't worry; just look at me, have you seen Violet Ghost force me to do anything? I don't like his way of doing thing, either. I often go against his wishes, but he can't really do much about it!" Blue Bat said with a smile as she continued to convince Mo Fan.

"Give me some time to think about it," Mo Fan huffed.

"Sure; I hope you will make a wise decision," Blue Bat agreed.

------

Mo Fan pretended to leave angrily, sticking to his character. If someone like Northdeer accepted Violet Ghost's suggestion too easily, Violet Ghost would surely be suspicious. It was wiser to leave for now.

Mo Fan returned to Guli Village, to a secluded, special meeting point that the mysterious man had established. It was protected by a magic formation, preventing the Black Vatican from noticing it.

Mo Fan found Lingling, who had not left yet. Lingling was very curious about why Mo Fan had returned so soon.

Lingling was observing Orion's orbit to roughly estimate the location of the pyramid, so they could set up a better defense against it.

Mo Fan knew there was no turning back once he signed the contract. He had to discuss it with Lingling and the others first.

Lingling soon found the information about the contract that Blue Bat had mentioned.

"It's indeed possible to break the contract, but your soul will be injured. Once that happens, you will be a lot weaker, and you might not be able to use the Demon Element," Lingling said.

How could Mo Fan not use the Demon Element if he wanted to kill the Cold Prince?

However, he first had to find the Cold Prince and verify his identity, but the contract would obviously hinder the usage of his Demon Element...

"Is there any other way?" Mo Fan asked.

Mo Fan was worried about the same thing. The Demon Element's power came from his soul. Mo Fan's soul was a lot stronger than others, since he possessed more Elements. After listening to Lingling's explanation, Mo Fan knew the contract was not deadly to him.

His soul was a lot stronger than Violet Ghost's. Even if he forcibly broke the contract, his soul would only be damaged slightly. It was not as serious as Blue Bat thought.

However, Mo Fan was only able to use the Demon Element because of the number of Elements he had, and the fact that his soul was stronger than ordinary people's. Even if he could use the Demon Element after his soul was damaged, the injury to his soul would greatly weaken the Demon Element's power. The Cold Prince would clearly have some Super Mages protecting him. Mo Fan did not have the confidence to kill the Cold Prince without using the full potential of his Demon Element. He might even struggle to defend himself!

"The contract will terminate once its host is dead. The person bound by it will not be injured. In other words, if Violet Ghost is dead, the contract will terminate itself. Your soul will be unharmed, too," Lingling said.

"Mm, I understand, but I don't think I can kill him, right? If I'm bound by the contract, there's no chance I will be able to kill the host. There might be even worse penalties!" Mo Fan said.

Mo Fan was a little familiar with the Dark Contract. It meant Mo Fan had to take Violet Ghost out first before using the Demon Element, but he could not do it himself.

"That's true, we need someone else to take out Violet Ghost," Lingling fell into deep thought.

Someone barged into the memorial hall while they were thinking. Mo Fan and Lingling were given a great scare when they saw the person glaring at them.

Mo Fan and Lingling thought it was someone from the Black Vatican. They realized it was the missing Zhao Manyan after taking a closer look.

"Mo Fan, just go ahead with your plan. Leave Violet Ghost to me, I can't just let you be the hero while we all watch as bystanders! I don't think I can provide them any help setting up the defense either, but I will surely take down Violet Ghost for you!" Zhao Manyan declared, his voice harsh, as if it was coming out of a communication device. He was prepared to risk everything.

Mo Fan was touched after seeing Zhao Manyan's determination. He knew the guy would not just bail on them! The Zhao Manyan he knew was scared of dying, but he was also a real man!

"Alright! Sure! I'm worried about entrusting the job to someone else, but I won't have to worry if it's you!" Mo Fan walked up to Zhao Manyan and slugged his shoulder hard.

No one was willing to be a lone hero. Mo Fan felt a lot more confident knowing Zhao Manyan was backing him up. Mo Fan was glad to have a friend like him!

"Enough talk; let's show these Black Vatican assholes what we have!" Zhao Manyan said grimly.

The truth was, Zhao Manyan had been touched by Mo Fan's words before, but he was having a hard time accepting the fact that they were going up against the Great Pyramid of Giza, AND a Red Cardinal of the Black Vatican. He was not good at adapting to situations. He needed some time to adjust himself.

However, when he fully comprehended the situation, he felt a strong passion rising in his blood. Mo Fan happened to be discussing the problem he was facing. When he said he needed someone he could trust to take down Violet Ghost, Zhao Manyan could no longer withhold the urge to lend a hand. He completely lost his reserve!

Screw it, what could possibly stop them? The Black Vatican? The Great Pyramid of Giza? Would the barefooted be afraid of those that were wearing shoes? If the worst came to worst, they could still leave the enemy half-crippled. Zhao Manyan did not believe that the thousand-year-old turtle would watch him die. So what if he let Baxia save his life again? It would just mean the creature would keep looking down at his master. He could not care less about how the others saw him now, let alone how a turtle saw him!

That being said, Baxia would not fight for Zhao Manyan like a Contracted Beast or a Summoned Beast. He would only show up reluctantly when he sensed Zhao Manyan was about to die. The main reason was that Baxia could not find a better Totem Guardian for the time being.

Zhao Manyan did not know where Baxia was now. The North Valley was a great distance away from the ocean. Zhao Manyan could not even tell if Baxia could reach him in time if anything happened.

But since he had already made up his mind, he could not care less about the giant turtle anymore!

The old turtle could just look for another Totem Guardian after he died. Besides, he had never been reliable, and the old turtle was not particularly fond of him.

"I'll leave it to you, Old Zhao," Mo Fan did not say too much.

Zhao Manyan nodded and said, "Try not to expose yourself before I take down Violet Ghost. Don't move even if something serious happens!"

"I understand," Mo Fan said.

"Understand my ass! I'm telling you, I was actually thinking of giving Baxia a long-distance call and asking him to drag you away, just so you wouldn't get yourself killed. I didn't do so because I respect your decision, but you better f**king respect mine too, so listen carefully! You better not show yourself before I kill Violet Ghost. If I fail, don't you dare do anything! Just continue to wear your disguise and wait for another opportunity. If you don't agree, I'll summon Baxia here right now!" Zhao Manyan declared.

The only way that Zhao Manyan could Summon Baxia was by killing himself.

But Zhao Manyan would still do it, just to drag Mo Fan away. Mo Fan might hate him for it, but he did not really care. Staying alive was more important than everything!

Mo Fan looked at Zhao Manyan's serious face. It was rare to see him behaving like this...

"Alright, I promise you. I won't do anything until you kill Violet Ghost. I won't expose myself if you fail, either," Mo Fan promised seriously.