Chapter 457 - 349: The So-called Friendship?

Long Yi was intently staring at the giant screen in front of him. After receiving several accurate data, he lifts his head, somewhat embarrassed, and says:

"I’m sorry, it seems that you may have forever lost your ability to transform."

Suolin felt it indeed. As the Dragon Heart of the chameleon disappeared, the dragon skin on her body also underwent a change, and the ability to shape-shift disappeared too. She might never be able to change into someone else’s appearance.

This means that from now on, she can only maintain her current look.

Long Yi was feeling sorry. Frankly speaking, Suolin’s current appearance didn’t align much with societal standards of beauty. Although you could tell she was a female with a perfect figure, her whole body, from head to toe, was covered in black scales. She did not have any distinct features on her face - even the fine gold Golem had kept a mouth.

Long Yi was worried whether Suolin could adjust to her new state.

However, Suolin shook her head saying, "No, compared to what I have lost, I feel like I have gained more from you. Most importantly, I’ve become more lethal."

As she said this, the scales on Suolin’s entire body began to move, and Suolin actually disappeared from Long Yi’s sight! If you looked closely, you could see a human-shaped outline wavering in the air!

"Optical invisibility!" Long Yi’s eyes widened.

Is this a nano-suit? Long Yi thought, cold sweat forming on his forehead.

Clearly, with this new ability, Suolin, whether in head-on combat or secret assassination, had become more lethal than before.

Suolin was really happy. It was indeed an unexpected joy. But just then, Suolin suddenly felt like something had exploded within her head. The past hazy memories had become crystal clear in an instant.

Suolin fell straight to the ground.

"Are you okay?" Long Yi hurriedly approached Suolin.

"No! Don’t worry about me! I’m fine! Please... can you give me a secluded room?" Suolin pleaded.

Long Yi looked up at Lady Nor, who nodded urgently and said, "All her organs have been reactivated. She needs some time to adjust!"

There was a dedicated secluded chamber next to the lab. Though visible from the outside, the doors and walls of the room could subdue the Fighting Aura effectively. No one could open it from the inside by using Fighting Aura.

Looking despondent, Suolin walked in and then curled up in a corner of the room. Her entire body was shaking as if she was undergoing something terrifying.

The door to the encrypted room was locked from the outside. Until it was confirmed that she was safe, no one could leave her unsupervised.

This time, Long Yi thought of the biological research institute. This made Lady Nor really pleased as she had witnessed the birth of a miracle. After diplomatically reminding Long Yi that he should take care of her in any good circumstance, the old scientists hurriedly left with the knowledge they had just gained.

The Black Dragon Empire’s secret lab.

The new artificial Dragon Knights had entered the final shaping stage. Compared to the nine Dragon Mark Knights slain by Ai Lin, the newer batch of Dragon Knights was a tad less powerful. They only had eight dragon marks, but their intelligence had greatly improved. This was all thanks to Tilian’s tireless efforts, which greatly pleased Dragon Emperor Kaniel Black.

Kaniel was watching the final tests with Tilian. As soon as these tests succeeded, a new batch of Dragon Knights would be produced.

Out of nowhere, Kaniel hesitated and then quietly said: "Solon is dead."

Tilian shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, don’t you think it’s a shame to send him to his death like this? After all, he was the only successful test subject."

Kaniel laughed, "Not at all. Solon was born from an experiment that is impossible to repeat. Now, a rift has appeared between him and me. Even though he dared not defy my orders, he has always been plotting to break free from them. In such a case, instead of letting him become a threat in the future, it seems better to use him to the fullest."

Tilian nodded and glanced at the ongoing experiment below. He said, "Your Majesty, are you planning to give up on Blood Coagulation just like that? After all, you established it."

The Emperor sneered, "That’s precisely why I need to use it fully. The continued operational failures have proved that the role of Blood Coagulation in the White Dragon Empire has almost reduced to nil. So why not let them be loyal to me one last time?"

Tilian bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty is wise and decisive." However, a hint of hardly noticeable mirth flickered across his face.

Meanwhile, in the secret hideout of Blood Coagulation in the Imperial City of the White Dragon Empire, Toen was perusing the newly received news.

"An explosion? Seems like that fool Solon chose to self-destruct." Toen smirked and then murmured, "This time, my friendship with Long Yi should be established. Since Long Yi has come to the Imperial City, he must be looking for me, right? It looks like it’s time to meet Long Yi."

Indeed, Long Yi knew in advance that Solon was going to ambush him. A few days ago, he had received a message from Toen, which led him to purposely create an opportunity for an assassination. However, the way things unfolded after this was not how Toen had anticipated.

Long Yi was extremely wary of Toen’s manoeuvres. At first, he thought this was another conspiracy by Blood Coagulation, and he, Little Zi and Ai Lin meticulously checked Suolin. But it was only after the surgery ended that Long Yi realized that Suolin, the boss of Blood Coagulation, was indeed easily betrayed.

Was it a factional struggle? Impossible. The Black Dragon Emperor backed Blood Coagulation. The Black Dragon Empire was a highly centralized empire, where no factions could exist. The empire could only have one faction – the Emperor’s. If it was really a factional struggle, unless that fat Toen had a death wish.

What could this mean?

The next day, Long Yi received a new message from Toen, who planned to meet him alone, stating that he has something important to discuss. It was made clear that absolutely no one was allowed to accompany him, not even the Female Demon, Little Zi.

An important matter? A conspiracy? A treacherous feast? An attempt on his life?

Or perhaps this fool had decided he lived long enough and delivered himself to the door?

No matter what his reasons were, it was something Long Yi naturally wouldn’t ignore.

Toen chose to meet at a slope of a mountain outside the Imperial City, where a small pavilion built by an unknown person was located. When Long Yi arrived, he saw Toen, the plump lad, greedily gulping water. It was gradually turning winter and the weather was cool, yet Toen was still sweating profusely.

"Brother Long Yi!" Upon seeing Long Yi, Toen’s already small eyes squinted into a pleased smile.

"Toen." Long Yi greeted back with a nod and slight smile.

"Come, come, please sit. Have some water!" Toen energetically passed him a cup of water. The cup was made of silver and seemed brand new, albeit covered in dents.

"Thank you." Long Yi took the cup and finished the water in one gulp.

Toen chuckled upon seeing Long Yi finish the water: "Weren’t you afraid I’d poisoned it?"

"Of course not. You must have investigated me. Have you seen any signs of me being poisoned in the past nineteen years?" Long Yi retorted.

Toen nodded his approval, "Indeed, none."

Long Yi’s answer was clever. Most people who are cautious in their daily life are unlikely to be poisoned. However, from Toen’s viewpoint, the fact that Long Yi had never been poisoned surely had its reasons!

Of course, this cup of water was not poisoned. While Toen initially intended to poison it, he ultimately decided against it owing to his various concerns and didn’t poison the first cup of water. Long Yi, not being a fool who remained oblivious to potential danger, had wrapped the water with his Dragon Power after drinking it. He was prepared to spit out the water if anything felt off, indicating that this was more than a simple psychological game.

They both took their seats, and Toen refilled Long Yi’s cup before saying: "Solon’s self-destruction should count as my contribution, correct?"

"Yes, indeed it’s your contribution." Long Yi nodded in acknowledgment.

"So, can we establish a friendship between us by virtue of me eliminating the leader of Blood Coagulation for you?" Toen asked.

"I’m afraid that won’t do. If you want my friendship, Little Zi must be by my side. Otherwise, with stupid brains like mine, wouldn’t I be played like a fool by you?" Long Yi said with a laugh.

Long Yi’s response was completely within Toen’s expectations—it was a standard Long Yi-style answer. If he hadn’t responded this way, Toen would instead feel uneasy.

"Then..."

"Wait until I finish," Long Yi interrupted Toen. "I said that we ’temporarily’ cannot establish a friendship. It doesn’t mean that we could never be friends."

Toen laughed. Yes, it was clear that Long Yi also had something in mind. As long as he had demands, there would certainly be room for negotiation.

"Hehe, rest assured brother Long Yi, I have sincere intentions. You should know that lately, all actions against the White Dragon Empire’s top executives in the Imperial City have stopped under my orders. Also, I will provide you a list of Blood Coagulation assassins that I know of, including their hiding places, patterns of action, and such. I assure you can wipe them out in a single stroke."

"So, what do you want in return?" Long Yi asked.

"Hehe, I don’t ask for much, brother. The White Dragon Empire’s protection and a little money that you can spare easily. And, our past friendship."

"Protection and money are easy to give... As for my friendship, that’s something we can slowly work on!"

That sums up the entire meeting. Toen wouldn’t be stupid enough to carry the list of assassins and run everywhere, and of course, he wasn’t stupid enough to poison Long Yi. He felt that he had found opportunities again and again, but when it was really time to take action, he didn’t dare. Numerous failed assassination attempts proved that when Long Yi showed confidence that surpassed typical reasoning, it meant that you could possibly fail, no matter what you did.

This was psychological dominance.

Toen always prided himself on his keen perception of people, but this time, he dared not test his eyesight on Long Yi. Because Long Yi was just too deadly.

Even after Long Yi left, Toen was still in fear. Actually, this was also a risky move, as he couldn’t guarantee that Long Yi wouldn’t quibble and turn against him immediately. Numerous past experiences had shown that while dealing with enemies, Long Yi could be really cunning and unscrupulous. He didn’t care about honour at all. As long as he could defeat his enemies, he could exploit all means available.

However, this time, Long Yi was courteous from start to end. This caused Toen to feel extremely uncomfortable. He’d even prepared a contingency plan for when Long Yi would turn against him and had rehearsed it many times as a primary strategy, but he never had to put it into action.

Could it be that Long Yi was truly interested?

Even Toen himself didn’t believe this. (To be continued. If you like this novel, please visit qidian.com to vote and show your support. It is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read further.)