Chapter 2573: Stupid People Usually Don't Admit They're Stupid
Now, even Qing Ke inside the sack was obedient. She couldn't do anything, could only silently pray!
After all, her fate was completely in Jiangnan's hands now!
Qing Nong's heart was also in his throat at this moment. Jiangnan's meaning was very clear!
If the Star Farming Clan had the ability to threaten him, then Jiangnan wouldn't mind completely eliminating this hidden danger!
Qing Nong didn't doubt Jiangnan's strength at all, since the living example of the Angel Race was right before his eyes.
"You mean Qing Ke's Forest Spirit King, the one that can control all plants?"
"You don't need to worry about that. In the entire Star Farming Clan, only Qing Ke has the Forest Spirit King. She's the only one who has received the Holy Vine's sacred manifestation blessing. She's special, that's why..."
Jiangnan shifted his gaze and looked at the Holy Vine:
(〃≖↼≖)"Oh? So you're saying that your clan's Star-Devouring Mother Vine also has this ability?"
Qing Nong was already breaking out in cold sweat. The Southern God wasn't planning to kill the Holy Vine too, was he?
Seeing Qing Nong glance at the sack, he took a deep breath and forced a dry smile on his face:
(⌒ㅂ⌒;)"Lord Southern God, please stop scaring me. Since you accepted the invitation and came, and have been protecting our clan's saintess so properly..."
"It shows that you don't intend to kill her. Otherwise, Qing Ke would never have left the Chuangjie Daxu alive."
"There are no eternal friends in this world, nor eternal enemies. Only eternal interests. Am I right?"
Jiangnan propped his chin with his hand, lightly drawing circles on the rim of the teacup with his finger:
(͡°ก͡°)"Oh? How do you know I don't want to kill her, rather than being reluctant to kill her?"
"After all, Qing Ke is quite useful as a luck weapon. For others, harboring ill intentions toward Qing Ke might lead to their family being destroyed."
"But that doesn't work on me! Do you think I would let someone who has clashed with me return? And a very troublesome Child of Destiny at that? Give her a chance to be my enemy?"
"The ancients said, 'Pull up the weeds and dig out the roots!' I, Jiangnan, have walked this path facing enemies everywhere! I don't have extra lives to waste on making mistakes! For an existence like a Child of Destiny, if I can't use them, I have no choice but to kill them!"
"From the very beginning, there were only two paths before me!"
With that, he gently patted the Jin Kela sack with his large hand, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes: "What do you think my choice is? Kill... or not kill?"
Every time he patted the sack, Qing Ke trembled along with it.
Qing Cong beside him was almost scared to tears!
The Southern God really wasn't a good person! Sitting across from him, she was already too intimidated by the invisible pressure he exuded to speak!
Qing Nong gritted his teeth, a flash of determination in his eyes!
"Lord Southern God, let me get straight to the point. You know our clan's stance. No matter the cost, we must redeem the saintess!"
"You also understand her value to my clan. Still, only eternal interests! What will it take for you to return the saintess? Name your price!"
"As long as you speak! If the Star Farming Clan has it, I'll give it! If we don't, I'll find it for you!"
"And I swear by the Holy Vine that the Star Farming Clan will not be enemies with humans for generations to come!"
Zhong Yingxue, Wang Youzhi, and the others also looked at Jiangnan. The Star Farming Clan's attitude was already very sincere!
With those words, even if Jiangnan wanted the stars in the sky, the Star Farming Clan would have to go get them for him!
A clan ranked among the top thirty of the Sequence still had considerable foundation!
They just didn't know what Jiangnan would decide.
Jiangnan said calmly: (˶‾᷄⁻‾᷅)"Just based on your guarantee, should I trust you? How can you guarantee that the Child of Destiny won't be my enemy in the future? You're avoiding the question!"
"I, Jiangnan, do love money and treasures, but I don't take just any money. This matter isn't something that can be settled with money. Of course, if you insist on giving it to me, I have no choice either."
"I said, there are only two choices. One: the Child of Destiny works for me. Two: she ceases to exist."
Qing Nong's expression was pained: (٥ŏ﹏ŏ)"You mean..."
Jiangnan said flatly: "I want the Star Farming Clan to form an alliance with humanity! Publicly side with humans! The two clans establish a cooperative relationship with shared interests. If one prospers, both prosper; if one suffers, both suffer."
"The Star Farming Clan will be the first member race to join the Carbon-Based Alliance, boarding my big ship!"
"What do you think? Are you willing? If you agree, I'll release Qing Ke right now, and all past grudges will be wiped clean!"
As soon as these words were spoken, absolute silence fell over the scene. A bitter smile spread across Qing Nong's face...
As expected!
An alliance? Publicly side with humans?
It seemed simple, but in reality, very few races in the starry sky had such courage!
Humanity had made too many enemies in the starry sky. Not to mention the two great catastrophes, once they formally allied and publicly sided with humans...
That meant going directly against the Bose Race!
The Bose Race was the starry sky overlord, with over two billion years of accumulated authority and an invincible stance deeply ingrained in people's minds!
Who had that kind of courage?
With the Bose Race's scale, if they wanted to mess with the Star Farming Clan, it would be as easy as flipping them over with one hand!
Qing Nong's face was full of difficulty: "This... this might not work. Not that I'm saying humans are bad, but the Star Farming Clan probably can't withstand this kind of trouble."
"Humans are flexible, and their foundation is in the Dimensional Gap. They can afford to play. The Star Farming Clan has a large family and vast assets. And because of the Holy Vine, to put it nicely, we're as solid as a fortress."
"But facing the Bose Race, we might just be a sitting duck. This involves the fate of the clan. Once this decision is made, it could affect the Star Farming Clan's future."
"I don't dare gamble with the lives of billions of Star Farming clan members. Boarding your big ship... can you... maybe change the terms?"
If they really allied, after all the turmoil, humanity might still survive, but the Star Farming Clan might not even exist anymore.
It could even lead to their decline. Qing Nong didn't dare make an enemy of the Bose Race like that. That would be suicide.
Wang Youzhi chuckled darkly. As expected, an alliance wasn't as easy as imagined!
Looking at it from the Star Farming Clan's perspective, it was easy to understand. Allying with humans was just asking for trouble, the risk was too great!
The risk didn't match the reward. Who would do that?
Jiangnan smiled: (￢◡￢)"Oh? So you're saying you don't want the Child of Destiny anymore? You can't do this, can't do that? I see your attitude isn't that sincere either!"
Qing Nong quickly explained: "This... these are two different things! If you name a price, the Star Farming Clan will do everything to satisfy you. But an alliance is still..."
Jiangnan squinted: "If you want to redeem Qing Ke, I only have this one condition. It won't change!"
The Star Farming Clan as an ally was something he was determined to get!
He had to have it. Given everything he had seen today, he had to fight for it.
Qing Nong was at a loss now, dryly laughing and scratching his head:
(⌒ㅂ⌒;)୨"You... you're putting me in a tough spot! Such a big matter as an alliance..."
Jiangnan, on the other hand, was in no hurry. He smiled and said, "I understand your concerns. You think the risk doesn't match the reward, right?"
"I said, if you choose to ally, the Star Farming Clan will be the first member race to join the Carbon-Based Alliance. But I guarantee that the Carbon-Based Alliance won't have only your Star Farming Clan as a member. The risk will be shared."
"Even member races from the top ten Sequences will not be absent from the future Carbon-Based Alliance."
Qing Nong was stunned: "You mean some race from the top ten Sequences also wants to ally with humans? Who? The Apocalypse Race? Or..."
Jiangnan shrugged: ʅ(･´‸･｀)ʃ"I said you're the first. Weren't you listening? You were the first to come to me, and even paid to invite me here?"
"Although there aren't any yet, there will be in the future."
Qing Nong almost spat out a mouthful of old blood. No one had joined yet! Then what were you trying to sell? What big pie were you painting?
Jiangnan continued on his own: "When the Carbon-Based Alliance's scale is big enough, the Bose Race won't be able to do anything to us. Besides, we do have ways to counter the Bose Race."
Qing Nong's mouth twitched. I haven't agreed yet, and you're already saying 'we'?
Jiangnan went on: "I know what the Star Farming Clan wants. You want to climb higher in the rankings? Join the Carbon-Based Alliance, and I guarantee that in the subsequent Sequence Offensive and Defensive Battle, the Star Farming Clan will gain enough points. After the Sequence War, you'll rank within the top twenty!"
"These days, if you want to climb, you need a backer. Do you think, relying only on the Star Farming Clan's foundation and fists, how high can you climb? The top thirty is probably your limit, right?"
"The Child of Destiny attracts a lot of attention. When you truly touch the core interests of other races, will they not make a move against the Star Farming Clan? Among the top ten Sequences, quite a few Star Devourers are keeping a close eye on the Star Farming Clan and the Child of Destiny..."
"Think about it... at this rate, how far can you lead the Star Farming Clan? The starry sky is a place where people eat people."
Qing Nong fell silent, looking down at his reflection in the teacup, his eyes flickering!
Everything Jiangnan said was true. The Star Farming Clan had gotten to where it was today because of Qing Ke's light, and they were already very conspicuous.
Qing Nong did feel a growing sense of powerlessness. The massive starry sky clans seemed as unshakable as mountains.
As for backers, aside from the Holy Vine, what backer did the Star Farming Clan have?
Although they had the reputation of being the starry sky's granary, such shallow interest ties would not make other races side with the Star Farming Clan at critical moments.
Jiangnan said: "The Carbon-Based Alliance can become an unshakable pillar for the Star Farming Clan! Since you have no backer, then become your own backer!"
"Once you join the Carbon-Based Alliance, member races will deepen their cooperation on interests, which can also open up the Star Farming Clan's trade routes. Business with carbon-based life forms is much easier than with material-type and energy-type life forms, right?"
"And don't forget the cards in humanity's hands: the Dimensional Gap, Dimensional Star Navigation, the mining area, and... me. All of these can become strength that the Star Farming Clan can borrow."
At this moment, Qing Nong felt completely numb. He had never been so hesitant. Jiangnan's words were like the whispers of a devil, step by step luring him toward the abyss.
Jiangnan pressed his advantage: (๑◔д◔ิ๑)"Also... I heard that your clan's Holy Vine Qing Er isn't very sharp-minded? Not too smart?"
"You know we have a Star-Devouring Giant Worm, right? If carbon-based life forms want to get Incense Beads, even the Apocalypse Race has no way. Let alone you."
"As long as the Star Farming Clan wants, you can buy Incense Beads from us at market price to improve Qing Er's intelligence. What do you think?"
Xing Cheng tilted her head. Was Jiangnan gege selling Chengbao'er's little poop beads again?
Chengbao'er doesn't even have enough for herself to eat, hmph!
Thinking of this, Xing Cheng's little face puffed up again.
(◦`~´◦)
But Qing Nong's eyes blazed with intense light!
Incense Beads? Right! Humans have Incense Beads!
If the Holy Vine Lord had intelligence comparable to ordinary life, combined with her absolute strength...
"I..."
Before he could finish, Qing Nong suddenly froze, his face turning pale!
=͟͟͞͞(꒪ᗜ꒪‧̣̥̇)
On the Qingyu Terrace behind Jiangnan, a white flower silently bloomed in the fine rain!
In the stamen of the flower stood a tall, slender woman!
Her hair was a lush green, cascading in waves down to her hips. Her emerald-green eyebrows were as slender as willow leaves. Her skin was as white as snow, with a leaf-shaped mark on her forehead.
Her pure eyes sparkled like green gemstones. Her nose was high and straight, her lips thin.
Her five features were so perfect that once you looked at her, it was hard to forget. How could there be such a beautiful life form in the world?
But what was most eye-catching was her extremely explosive figure, only sparsely covered by simple clothes woven from vines, exceptionally cool.
She walked out of the stamen in the rain, barefoot, stepping across the rain-soaked Qingyu Terrace, moving silently.
She let the rain wet her long hair and skin.
Her gem-like green eyes were slightly dull, head tilted, staring blankly at Jiangnan's back.
Jiangnan was completely unaware:
(๑•̌～•̑)ˀ̣ˀ̣"Huh? Huh? Huh? What are you looking at? Say something? You don't want the Incense Beads? Your clan's Star Devourer, that Qing Er, isn't her head a bit slow? Kind of dumb, right?"
"Using Incense Beads would just the thing to improve her intelligence! Don't deny it! Stupid is stupid! But stupid people usually don't admit they're stupid! Just like drunk people don't admit they're drunk!"
Zhong Yingxue's mouth twitched. She turned around to look at the green-haired woman, then at Qing Nong's reaction.
She tugged at Jiangnan's sleeve and frantically signaled him with her eyes.
(∗ᵒ̶̶̷̀﹏˂̶́)✧
Jiangnan looked puzzled: "You're not embarrassed to say your own clan's Star Devourer's head is broken, are you? What's there to be embarrassed about? We're all on the same side! We're just stating the facts!"
Qing Nong: (☍口⁰。)...
Shut up! Don't say anymore!