Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 154 Negotiations break down
Yihai Camp, the Nirvana Team's base.

Yu Tianlun sat at the conference table, his eyes cold and stern.

Jiang Jin stood to the side, the hunting mark on his left shoulder still throbbing faintly. Although Xu Yinqiu had temporarily suppressed it with incantation techniques, the mark kept resurfacing.

“Han Wei is just someone who takes money to do things,” Yu Tianlun said in a deep voice. “He has an employer behind him. Moreover, he’s the one who’s made it so difficult for us to even find a single reincarnator willing to take the job of suppressing the mark…”

Yu Tianlun sneered: "This is not something an ordinary team can do."

Xu Yinqiu frowned: "Commander, you mean..."

“The Bloodthirsty Team.” Yu Tianlun slowly uttered these four words.

The room fell silent instantly.

If Yu Tianlun were still the leader of the Dawn team, he would naturally have the confidence to face the Bloodstained team without fear.

However, the newly formed Nirvana team is far inferior to a behemoth like Bloodlust. If Blood Lord has indeed set his sights on them, then things will be in serious trouble.

“A while ago, Patrol Team Twelve was attacked. The person who attacked you was Xia Yu from the Misty Swamp Team, and she has already been recruited by the Bloody Team.” Yu Tianlun continued to analyze, “Now it’s Han Wei again. It’s definitely not a coincidence.”

"Then what should we do?" Liu Yan asked. "Go to war directly? We have no chance of winning."

The Bloody Team has four major subgroups, totaling over a hundred people, and the main group also has a full twenty-five elite members. Crushing the current Nirvana Team would be a piece of cake for them.

Yu Tianlun shook his head: "No, I want to negotiate with Blood Lord."

"Captain, I've dragged the team down with me..." Jiang Jin said apologetically.

"It's alright," Yu Tianlun, after all, was once the leader of a large team, and his expression remained normal: "Although bloodshed is powerful, it cannot cover up everything!"

That evening, in the top-floor private room of the Genting Hotel in Changming District, Muxu City.

This is the core area of ​​the entire Muxu City, home to the Muxu City headquarters building of the Membrane Contamination Monitoring Department and the Membrane Monitoring Tower. The per capita SAN value here consistently exceeds 95%, making it the most stable region in the material plane.

Any reincarnator who dares to run wild here will be personally captured by the head of the Meme Pollution Monitoring Department who is stationed here!

The minister is the undisputed number one reincarnator in Muxu City, and the strongest LV5!

Even Blood Lord could only be subservient and dare not act rashly in front of such a true giant.

When Yu Tianlun pushed open the door, Blood Lord was already sitting at the end of the long table, with Vice Commander Long Cang standing behind him.

The room was brightly lit, and outside the window was the neon-lit night view of Muxu Market.

A middle-aged man with a round belly sat at the table, grinning as he said, "Commander Yu, you've arrived! Have a seat!"

The middle-aged man was an official from the imperial envoy stationed in Muxu, Yanjing. This time, it was Yu Tianlun who contacted him to act as guarantor so that they could negotiate with the Blood Lord here.

Although the middle-aged man was a civil official, not a reincarnator, he was a high-ranking official of the third rank in the Yanjing court, someone who could truly reach the ears of the emperor! Unless Blood Owl was plotting a rebellion, he couldn't afford to disrespect him.

"Commander Yu, we meet again." Blood Lord stood up and walked over.

His voice was deep, with a hint of a smile.

Yu Tianlun also said, "Blood Lord, we've met a few times before, and you're still as impressive as ever."

In the presence of a middle-aged official, the two shook hands, exchanged pleasantries, and took their seats, with waiters coming in to serve the dishes.

The middle-aged official, surnamed Liang, said, "It's thanks to my influence that I was able to bring the two commanders together here today. The imperial court has always hoped that Muxu Market can prosper and develop steadily, and this cannot be achieved without everyone's concerted efforts!"

"Not at all," Blood Lord raised his glass and said, "Everything is thanks to the generous gifts from the imperial court, which gave us the opportunity to develop. This glass is for Commander Liang!"

The official surnamed Liang was merely the deputy head of the imperial envoy delegation. Seeing that even a dignified LV4 reincarnator had to respectfully offer him a toast, he was quite pleased and also raised his glass.

Yu Tianlun also picked up his wine glass and said, "We are nurtured by the country and grateful for the help of the imperial court. I also toast Commander Liang."

The words of the official surnamed Liang implied a desire for reconciliation, which reassured Yu Tianlun somewhat.

After a lot of small talk and pleasantries at the dinner table, Yu Tianlun finally got to the point: "Blood Lord, our Nirvana Team is newly established, and we may not know the rules in some ways, which may have offended your team. Therefore, I would like to offer you a toast. I wonder if you can be magnanimous?"

"Collision? Not at all," Blood Lord smiled. "Where did Commander Yu hear this rumor?"

Just kidding, how could Blood Lord possibly say to an official surnamed Liang that he wants to kill people and steal treasures?
If they are pushed too far and offer the resentment crystals to the imperial court in exchange for protection, wouldn't their bloodthirsty team be left with nothing at all?

Yu Tianlun narrowed his eyes: "So, what Blood Lord means is that we have no grudges between us and he won't make things difficult for us in the future?"

The official surnamed Liang chuckled and said, "Commander Yu, what are you saying? What grudge do your two teams have against each other?"

At this point, he changed the subject, saying, "Actually, I'm quite regretful. If Commander Yu had been willing to serve the imperial court and join the official reincarnation team when he was at Dawn, we might both be high-ranking officials today!"

These words were clearly a warning to him. The imperial court had always disliked those reincarnated people who refused to be recruited or submit.

Although Blood Lord did not directly accept the imperial pardon, he had always served the court, so the government liked reincarnators like him.

Nowadays, many in higher-ups dislike Yu Tianlun and hope he suffers. The fact that a team base could be reserved for him at the Yihai camp was the result of much negotiation, largely due to Chenxi's past efforts to prevent the Hundred Ghosts Night Parade instance from failing to contain him. However, some radical factions still hope to make an example of him to deter unruly civilian reincarnators.

The official surnamed Liang naturally realized that the Bloodthirsty Gang wanted to cause trouble for Yu Tianlun. Many in the court were actually happy about this, so why did he step in to act as a peacemaker?

It's a good thing that you bunch of rebellious commoners who refuse to obey the imperial court have been wiped out!

Currently, a large number of troops from the central region are stationed on the outskirts of Muxu City, ready to suppress the Reincarnators' uprising at any time.

No matter how powerful you reincarnators are, most of you still have physical bodies and need to survive in the material world. If the army intervenes, at a certain cost, it can still wipe out all the reincarnators. It's just that the army can't enter the contaminated layer to resist memetic contamination, which is why it has tolerated the reincarnators until now. But this tolerance won't last much longer.

The power struggle between different factions in the court, between civil officials and military generals, is extremely fierce. People like Yu Tianlun are likely to become the scapegoats and victims of factional infighting!

“Blood Lord,” Yu Tianlun said in a deep voice, “If you have any conditions, you can make them. I am willing to turn hostility into friendship and seek a peaceful resolution.”

If Bloodshed and Nirvana were to go to war now, they would have no chance of winning.

The power gap is too great.

Now, even if Yu Tianlun were willing to surrender and accept the amnesty, it would be of no value to him.

"Commander Yu is joking," Blood Lord waved his hand. "We have no grudges between us. If we must say there is, then it will be fair competition in the future in the Horror Dungeon. Any treasure can only be obtained by the capable."

He was completely unsure whether Yu Tianlun knew the inside story. After all, if Yu Tianlun knew that Jiang Jin had more than thirty resentment crystal fragments, would he still let two members of the group take them without keeping them for himself?
“How about this,” said the official surnamed Liang, “I have a suggestion: the Nirvana Team should be merged into the Bloodstained Team, and from now on, Commander Yu will be under the command of Blood Owl. What do you think?”

"Merge into the Bloody Team?"

Doesn't that mean being implanted with a soul mark and becoming a puppet enslaved by the Blood Lord?
What's the difference between that and being dead?
“That’s a good idea.” Blood Lord nodded. “From now on, Nirvana and Bloodlust are one family, under our protection, so there will naturally be no conflict.”

For Blood Lord, taking over the Nirvana team without bloodshed and turning the former Dawn leader Yu Tianlun into his subordinate would be the best outcome.

"Protection?" Yu Tianlun scoffed. "Your Bloodthirsty Team's 'protection' means swallowing up our entire team? Making us join your evil ways?"

He understood that this was definitely not a whim of the official surnamed Liang, but a long-planned scheme that had already been discussed with the Blood Lord!
The Bloody Gang is the government's front man, doing dirty work for these Celestial Dragons—it's an open secret. With corrupt officials protecting them, the Bloody Gang can exist as an unpunished criminal force!

In the end, Muxu City is far from the reach of the emperor. These imperial envoys stationed here are all just looking to use the reincarnators as their private soldiers and make as much profit as possible! Since humanity is going to be wiped out anyway, every little bit helps!

Putting aside other matters, the infamous "Yaochi" club in Changming District is managed by the Reincarnator team. How extensive is their business? They practically cover 99% of the Ministry of Justice's jurisdiction!

If Yu Tianlun were to join the Bloody Team, he would have to get involved in this kind of business together!

"Commander Yu, don't put it so harshly." Blood Lord said in a leisurely tone, "Cooperation and win-win is the way to long-term success."

He wasn't surprised at all by today's outcome. Yu Tianlun is definitely a saintly type; he'd rather walk the path to hell than choose the path to heaven.

Yu Tianlun was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "What if I say no?"

Blood Lord paused, then chuckled, "That's a pity."

The air in the room suddenly seemed to freeze.

Yu Tianlun slowly stood up: "It seems the negotiations have broken down."

The official surnamed Liang picked up his wine glass, took a sip, and said coldly, "Commander Yu, you've disappointed me greatly. You still don't understand the principle that 'too much clarity leaves no room for fish.' Before he left, Elder Zhang actually hoped that you would be pragmatic. Since that's the case, the Nirvana team must take responsibility for all the consequences in the future."

Blood Lord nodded slightly: "I hope Commander Yu... won't regret this."

Yu Tianlun turned and left. The moment the door closed, his face turned completely gloomy.

Negotiations failed, and war was about to begin.

After Yu Tianlun left, Blood Lord respectfully poured wine for the official surnamed Liang.

"A few Southeast Asian girls have recently arrived at the Jade Pool Club," Blood Lord said in a low voice. "They are all experts in spa treatments. I wonder if you would be interested?"

"No need, I'm not in the mood today," the official surnamed Liang said coldly. "Ungrateful wretch! All that effort in arranging this meal for him was for nothing!"

Blood Lord then drank a few more cups with the official surnamed Liang. After the latter had recovered somewhat, he respectfully said, "My son, Wu Ge, is only a freshman in high school this year. I hope you can help me out in the future. I will definitely do my best to help you and eradicate the insect nest team as soon as possible!"

"Your son? No problem, it's a piece of cake."

"I'll finish this one, but please help yourself!"

Blood Lord sneered inwardly: You corrupt official, I'll be at your beck and call for now. But when humanity is wiped out by memes, I'll see how you die!
(End of this chapter)