Life is tough, so Honglong resorts to performing?

Chapter 114 Contact
Loren was also curious about how this cultist would recruit him.

Did he ask for a quote directly like the head of the patrol station, or did he prepare something else?
I'm really looking forward to it.

The tower master, who was being watched by Loren, became even more nervous. He was afraid that if his words failed to satisfy the red dragon in front of him, the dragon could burn him to ashes with just a breath of its breath.

After all, he was already a follower of the heretical sect. Based on the relevant laws of the Federation regarding contact between extraordinary individuals and followers of the heretical sect, it was considered an emergency avoidance measure to strike first and kill the other party after realizing that the other party was a follower of the heretical sect.

In his past life, Erich Hohenheim had never revealed to even his wife, with whom he shared a bed, that he was a hidden follower of the Transcendent Ones. Now, however, he had to reveal it to an evil red dragon who could crush him as easily as crushing an ant, and he felt immense pressure.

But no matter how much pressure he was under, he had to go through with it; he just needed to find a way to turn things around and, ideally, extricate himself from the situation.

"Please understand, seeing your imposing figure, I have an Eternal Club that I hope you can join. There are many friends there who would like to have a pleasant exchange with you. I know this is a bit abrupt, so I have a gift worth about 200,000 to give you."

The tower master stammered out his request, which was full of loopholes. But considering the evil nature of the red dragon, loopholes were exactly what he wanted. These loopholes and loopholes were the unspoken rules between the two sides.

"Oh? A club? And they even give gifts?"

Loren stared at the man in front of him with a half-smile. His telepathic abilities were constantly monitoring the man, and he really hadn't expected the other party to be so quick-witted, managing to whip up such a non-stick pan in such a short time. His idea was somewhat similar to that of the guy in his previous life who sold rock candy online at high prices to drug addicts.

This is rock sugar, rock sugar that costs 5,000 yuan per gram, but it really is rock sugar.

As a member of the "Cultural Revolution" who is doing this kind of "connecting the dots" work for the first time, I can only say that it's quite interesting.

But the club of the Fleeting Ones is actually called Eternity, what a ridiculous contrast!

"Hmm, I need to think about it. There's an old saying among our dragon clan: 'Unsolicited kindness is either a swindler or a thief.' It means be careful of those who suddenly visit you with gifts; they either have something shady going on or are planning to steal something from you..."

Loren spoke casually, as if he were on high alert, but the greedy look in his eyes and the subtle expression on his face made the tower master breathe a sigh of relief.

This evil dragon not only understood, but it also wanted more!

He needs to demonstrate his sincerity!
I'm not afraid of your greed, I'm afraid of your lack of desire!

"Please rest assured, we are merely admiring your glory and bearing, just like the vast majority of dragon worshippers in the world. Twenty, no, to show our sincerity, please accept this piece of Crimson Flame Amber worth two hundred and fifty thousand. I've heard that red dragons like heat, so this might suit your taste."

The tower master took out a box from his pocket and gently opened it. Underneath the pure red high-energy crystal was a drop of seemingly ordinary liquid—a drop of ordinary blood from the Frostfire King.

Loren also obtained a drop during his last raid on the Cultist base, in addition to some flesh and blood samples.

The other party showing this item is both demonstrating sincerity and indicating that I know your secret.

"Interesting, really interesting."

Loren feigned surprise and greed, took the item from the tower master's hand, and then swallowed it to store it.

"Then let's talk about the club."

The man's heart, which had been in his throat, finally settled down when the red dragon spoke. It was a success!

He's got his seat in parliament!

……

"Flame 7, Rock 8, Wave 9, Whirlwind 10, three of each, hmm, according to the multiplier, you'll lose me another ten thousand dollars."

When Sisos and the band members rushed back, this was the scene they saw.

The kind tower owner sat in front of the chair, playing the latest card game with Red Dragon. Judging from the numbers they were discussing, the stakes were probably quite high.

Fortunately, gambling in Ellen World is not illegal; otherwise, if they were to gamble like this in front of so many people, a single report would render their entire day's work futile.

The tower master breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing everyone come to work. After receiving the blood of the Frostfire King, this evil red dragon became increasingly unscrupulous, constantly extorting and blackmailing him through various legal means. However, he had no way to deal with it, as he could not afford to offend the other party and could only force a smile at him.

After experiencing this kind of entertainment in this world firsthand, Loren didn't plan to bring over games like poker and mahjong.

The underlying algorithms are all pretty much the same, but their high-end cards have spells and illusion effects, making playing poker feel like playing Yu-Gi-Oh!, so if you copied them over, they probably wouldn't sell.

"The world's development, though different, ultimately leads to the same goal..."

Loren remarked that while everyone's advanced civilization progress and development methods might differ, in the lower realms—the pursuit of various desires—they all arrive at the same destination through different paths, each finding their own unique ways to indulge in their passions.

With the help of magic and supernatural powers, some aspects of development here have even surpassed those of their hometown.

"Tsk, cultural victory is indeed a difficult path to follow. We should focus on improving our own strength, and let the locals handle the specific industries."

Loren thought to himself, then turned his gaze to Sisos and Lyra. With their help, perhaps he could indulge in copying in the future.

As people arrived one after another, the morning's work began to proceed as normal. Today was not as smooth as yesterday, and the footage produced was unremarkable. Even Loren had to participate in several reshoots.

"Tsk, my good luck has run out after making friends with the heretics."

After the afternoon's filming wrapped up, Loren muttered to himself as he built a house and established the necessary magical defenses. Then, he took out his magic crystal terminal again, entered the invitation code, and joined the online portion of the so-called club recommended by the tower master.

Welcome, newcomer!

Welcome to Eternity!

"Another like-minded partner has arrived! Welcome, welcome!"

……

Loren observed the online group called the Eternal Club with great interest.

The welcome messages scrolled rapidly on the virtual screen, displaying a dazzling array of nicknames and avatars—elegant classical emblems, ferocious monster portraits, and even popular movie and TV shows. The messages were filled with enthusiastic greetings to the new friend, making it seem like a perfectly normal chat group for like-minded people. It was very lively, as bustling as a real club chat group, and it had been created quite a while ago. If it weren't for the lack of historical messages, Loren would almost have believed it.

Yeah, almost.

Staring at the floating Magic Realm terminal and the magnified virtual screen in front of him, Red Dragon smiled, wondering what price they would offer to win him over to cooperate or even join them.
This is something I'm really looking forward to!

Thank you all for your enthusiasm.

Loren typed on the screen of the magic crystal terminal, manipulating the mage's hand. The disadvantage of not being able to cast shapeshifting spells was that daily activities were somewhat inconvenient, and it was also difficult to go home. After work every day, he could only stay here, which was quite troublesome.

However, for the sake of money, Loren tolerated it.

There's still a lot of money to be squeezed out of the cultists. Once they get this money, they can rush it into the military network, take the remaining one million worth of materials, and then switch accounts to report them. Wouldn't that make their lives incredibly wonderful?
As a member of the immortal race, Loren never thought that the Transcendent Ones could really succeed. After all, it was incompatible with the Federation's ideology. The reason why such a powerful Federation didn't care much about these heretics was because a bigger crisis had not yet been resolved.

"A fleeting fame and a pittance of profit—what's the point of all this busy work?"

Loren was generous, believing that until the gods were out of contact and the wasteland was resolved, neither money nor power was as important as improving his own strength.

What if the world were to end and I still had money left? Wouldn't I be terribly short of money?

Loren's attitude toward this group of heretics was to take advantage of them and get away as soon as possible, so that when they were beheaded, their blood wouldn't splatter on him.

"I am Spark, the Red Dragon from the Greenleaf Zoo. Mr. Hohenheim introduced me. I heard that some friends here would like to get to know me?"

Loren carefully chose his words, taking screenshots as he went, trying to appear harmless and as if he had just been tricked into coming here.

If these heretical believers are arrested and then try to frame themselves, these could all be evidence against them!
We are innocent!
Although he was a minor protected animal with extremely high resistance to magic, in Elren, getting involved with heterodox religions was a serious matter.

In this era where the divine has lost contact, most cults with evil gods behind their traditions have died out. Those that continue to grow their followers all have some twisted logic to them.

"Dear Mr. Spark, I've heard that dragons are naturally intelligent beings with ancient heritages. What are your thoughts on the transformation of energy and elements?"

A guy nicknamed "Researcher" couldn't wait to start asking questions. Loren found this amusing and began to answer, drawing on his knowledge from his past life and the vast amount of basic magic theory he'd recently learned from Casilla.

"Energy and elements? Energy and elements are naturally related and can be transformed into each other, according to mainstream academic theory..."

While speaking eloquently, Loren deliberately avoided discussing the Frostfire King's transformation of cold and fire.

Sure enough, someone quickly took the bait and began to subtly guide Loren's words.

Loren pretended to be clueless until the group started having a game similar to grabbing red envelopes.

"Tsk, this little bit of sweetness isn't enough, but since it's about baiting and chumming, it's normal."

While Red Dragon was happily using the mage's hand to steal things, he was also secretly on high alert.

Meanwhile, in an underground stronghold somewhere among the Shifting Ones, an analytical meeting regarding the Red Dragon Spark was underway.

In the dimly lit room, several magic crystal screens flickered with a faint light, displaying all of Loren's messages in the group, his response time, and the speed at which he grabbed red envelopes, along with all the information fed back from the previous contact between the half-elf patrolman's followers and the tower master Erich Hohenheim.

Every word spoken will be known, and every action taken will leave a trace. When Little Red Dragon's opponent is a tightly organized cult, various studies and analyses of it are naturally indispensable.

"The target exhibits curiosity appropriate to his age and a natural interest in wealth. His speech is logically clear and he possesses considerable theoretical knowledge, but he seems to be deliberately avoiding certain areas, such as information related to the Frostfire King, and he is quite vigilant."

A believer in charge of information integration reported.

"Based on the response delay analysis of red envelope grabbing and other interactive activities, there is a slight inconsistency in the operation. It is speculated that it may not be directly clicked with a claw, but rather it uses a magical method similar to a mage's hand."

"Based on the information provided by that half-elf, he should be able to use shapeshifting. It's possible that after comprehending the authority of the Frostfire King, his magical power increased uncontrollably, leading to this..."

Another member, who specializes in behavior analysis, added as he spoke,
"Based on this, we can rule out the possibility that he shaped the prototype of the magic crystal heart. According to what we know, the prototype of the magic crystal heart is quite helpful to the soul and spirit. If he were the prototype of the magic crystal heart, he should be more proficient in manipulating spells such as transformation."

Finally, a high-ranking believer who appeared to be in charge began to prepare the final report after a moment of contemplation, ready to present it to his superiors.

"Initial profiling results indicate that this is a clever, greedy, and cautious young red dragon. It is interested in the knowledge and resources we have shown, but far from trusting us."

"It may be taking a wait-and-see approach, weighing the value we can offer against the potential risks. Doctrine may have limited effect on it; it is more inclined to focus on practical, tangible benefits."

"If the benefits are sufficient, we can reveal some attractive information to them."

“We need to increase our stakes, but we can’t be too hasty, lest we arouse his suspicion. The next step is to try to reveal some of the more attractive, but not core secrets, knowledge we have about the Frostfire King through the club, and observe his reaction.”

"After gaining a certain level of trust from them, I recommend finding a specialist who is about to become a legend, taking that thing over, and testing the reaction."

"If there is even a one in ten thousand chance of success after making contact, I suggest that the team tasked with killing the Drow Matron completely scale back and focus all their efforts on the skull at the Emerald Leaf Zoo and this red dragon!"

"We will prove that the nascent plan wrong. Rather than entrusting the future to the offspring of those more likely immortal beings, let us achieve success ourselves!"

After typing the last word, the man hesitated for a moment, but ultimately sent the profile and suggestions to his superior and began to patiently wait for a reply.

Loren, who was inside the cabin, was in a good mood after just grabbing a generous red envelope.

He was unaware that he was being meticulously profiled by a group of people, but he could sense that many of their replies were quite targeted, and the bait was becoming increasingly enticing.

"Come on, let me see what other good stuff you can come up with."

In the red dragon's golden vertical pupils, a glint of calculation and anticipation gleamed. The hunt had only just begun.

(End of this chapter)