Chapter 213: Trust and Integrity

Nie Yan decided to have Guo Huai investigate Wei Kai first. He needed to gather enough information before making a decision. Wei Kai was a fierce young man; if handled properly, he could be quite useful. However, if Nie Yan wasn’t careful, he might end up being betrayed. Therefore, Nie Yan needed to collect enough leverage over Wei Kai to keep him under control and ensure his loyalty. Nie Yan entrusted this task to Guo Huai.

Checking the time, it was almost time to log in to the game.

Nie Yan put on his helmet and re-entered the game.

Yao Yao and Sun were already online.

“Nie Yan, good morning.”

“Big Brother Nie Yan, good morning.”

“Boss Nie Yan, morning.”

Nie Yan greeted them back and said, “Let’s go clear some elites first.”

All the elite monsters that respawned in the early morning had already appeared. Together, the group quickly defeated nearby elites and sub-elites. With a team of five or six players, killing elite monsters like scale frogs was quite manageable. After eliminating all elites and sub-elites, they split up to continue farming scale frogs.

Nie Yan used his dagger to kill a scale frog without taking any damage. He glanced into the dense jungle and had a feeling that someone was watching him. This sensation became stronger when he was leveling alone, separated from his team. However, after scanning the jungle, he found nothing.

He realized he was being watched. He had always had a keen sense of danger. Combined with his high perception, he could vaguely sense someone observing him.

The person hadn’t shown up yet. They were likely in stealth mode, possibly a rogue!

Nie Yan instinctively touched the sharp edge of his dagger and walked deeper into the jungle, moving farther away from his teammates.

Nie Yan guessed that the nearby areas were occupied by his teammates, so the person probably dared not appear.

Therefore, Nie Yan left the group to lure the person out.

He glanced at his skills, all of which had cooled down.

He gradually moved deeper into the jungle, now several thousand yards away from his teammates.

The forest was extremely quiet, occasionally interrupted by distant frog croaks. Patches of morning mist floated around, adding a serene atmosphere. A gentle, chilly breeze blew through, dispersing the mist.

A scale frog had respawned ahead. Nie Yan crept up and attacked its back without using any skills, fully focused on the surroundings.

The person’s stealth ability was impressive. Despite his high perception, Nie Yan still couldn’t locate the opponent.

After a while, the scale frog fell to the ground under Nie Yan’s basic attacks and bleed damage.

Still no move?

Nie Yan headed toward the next scale frog. The stealthy follower was indeed patient. Earlier, Nie Yan had deliberately left some openings, but the person hadn’t acted, merely following behind.

Good patience. The person might be a tough opponent.

Nie Yan continued searching for the next scale frog, suddenly realizing that the presence behind him had disappeared.

Had he already left?

Nie Yan messaged his teammates, warning them to be cautious and avoid soloing if they were red-flagged players. He also messaged Guo Huai, asking him to closely monitor the movements of the Triumph faction. If anyone from Triumph entered the scale frog spawn area, they could prepare in advance.

Given the current levels of Triumph players, they likely wouldn’t risk sending a large group into the scale frog spawn area.

The person Nie Yan encountered might just be a solo player.

Feeling the opponent might have moved away, Nie Yan relaxed slightly.

As usual, Nie Yan sent a message to Black Hell, surprisingly receiving a response this time.

“Hello,” Nie Yan said in the message.

“Hello,” Black Hell replied. Nie Yan’s private message was obviously about the Chapter of Justice.

The voice was somewhat low, and Nie Yan estimated the opponent’s age to be around thirty.

“I want to buy the Chapter of Justice from you. What conditions would make you willing to hand it over?” Nie Yan asked directly. Having spent much time in the game, everyone was straightforward and preferred getting to the point.

“Regarding the Chapter of Justice, I won’t sell it unless you defeat me.” Black Hell replied. Despite Nie Yan being the leader of the Niu Ren Tribe, he didn’t care.

From Black Hell’s words, Nie Yan roughly understood the kind of person he was. Black Hell seemed quite self-confident.

Defeat him? Nie Yan twirled his dagger and a cold gleam flashed in his eyes.

“I don’t want to make things too tense. It’s better to have a friend than an enemy.” Nie Yan said through voice chat. As a guild leader, it was necessary to be strong, but he couldn’t make enemies everywhere, especially with a new guild like the Niu Ren Tribe. Nie Yan still wanted to recruit Black Heaven and Black Hell into his ranks. Black Heaven was a legendary priest, comparable to the famous priest leader Brother Seven. Nie Yan had to consider the future development of the guild.

“How about we make a bet?” Black Hell said after a moment of thought. Although he wasn’t afraid of the Niu Ren Tribe, he just wanted to play the game peacefully. If he were endlessly hunted by the Niu Ren Tribe afterward, his peaceful days would be over, which went against his original intention.

“What kind of bet?” Nie Yan asked.

“Whoever wins between us gets the Chapter of Order. After that, we go our separate ways.” Black Hell said. One good thing about the game was that if there was an unresolved dispute, it could be settled through a bet. The bet would be enforced by the system, so there was no issue of one party breaking the agreement.

Nie Yan smiled and said, “Don’t you think it’s unfair? I have four Chapters of Order in my possession, while you only have one. At the same time, you restrict me from using the power of the guild, but you haven’t paid anything in return.” The two sides were not equal. Nie Yan was a guild leader; if he lost the Chapter of Order, he could use the guild’s power to summon countless subordinates to retrieve it, but what had Black Hell paid? So this bet was unfair.

“Then what do you suggest?” Black Hell said. He wanted to hear what Nie Yan would say. If the issue could be resolved through a bet, that would be best. If not, he was willing to fight. He truly wasn’t afraid of anyone.

“Do you have a companion named Black Heaven?” Nie Yan asked. Black Heaven and Black Hell should be together.

Black Hell’s heart tightened. He coldly asked, “How do you know that?” He and Black Heaven had always acted secretly, and few people knew about their movements. They didn’t have many acquaintances in the guild, yet Nie Yan had managed to find out about them. That was quite impressive.

“I naturally have my ways,” Nie Yan said, satisfied with the effect he had created. “How about we change the bet? If I win, I get the Chapter of Order you have, and you and Black Heaven will leave the Dark Ranger Guild and join the Niu Ren Tribe. If I lose, the four Chapters of Order I have will go to you, and I won’t use the guild’s power to hunt you down. I might even help you collect the remaining Chapter of Order.” This bet should be fair.

“I will never leave the Dark Ranger Guild,” Black Hell rejected, although Nie Yan’s bet was already quite generous.

“The Dark Ranger Guild has already declined. With your skills, is it worth staying in the Dark Ranger Guild?” Nie Yan asked, puzzled by Black Hell’s firm stance.

“It’s not a matter of worth,” Black Hell said. “I won’t leave the Dark Ranger Guild. As for Black Heaven, I can accept the bet on his behalf.”

Nie Yan thought for a moment. Even getting Black Heaven alone would be significant. Black Hell might have some unavoidable reasons preventing him from leaving the Dark Ranger Guild. In his previous life, Nie Yan had never heard of the name Black Hell, but the name Black Heaven was well-known. One of the seven legendary priests, if he could join the Niu Ren Tribe, that would already be enough.

A legendary priest was the ultimate force in the game, capable of determining the outcome of a war. This was why Nie Yan was determined to recruit Black Heaven at all costs.

Black Hell could make decisions for Black Heaven. Could it be that Black Hell was stronger than Black Heaven?

However, even if Black Hell was strong, he was just a shadow priest. The role of a shadow priest in a guild was definitely not as valuable as that of a light priest.

“I agree to your terms,” Nie Yan said. Although he could only gain Black Heaven, that was already enough. Deciding the ownership of the Chapter of Order and the legendary priest through a duel was actually an interesting matter.

Nie Yan sent the bet agreement, and both of them signed it.

With the bet signed, there was no issue of enmity. Both sides could do their best. Since it was a one-on-one duel, Nie Yan had nothing to fear.

“I’ll come to find you in no more than twenty minutes,” Black Hell said and then cut off the voice chat.

Arriving within twenty minutes meant that the opponent was already nearby. Nie Yan wandered through the jungle, occasionally killing a couple of scale frogs, waiting quietly for Black Hell to arrive.

In the jungle, a light priest and a shadow priest were chatting in the woods.

“Brother, if you lose, do I really have to go to the Niu Ren Tribe?” Black Heaven asked, feeling somewhat disheartened. He understood Black Hell’s intentions. Black Hell didn’t want to become an obstacle to him.

“Remember, no matter where you go, you must keep your word. The Dark Ranger Guild is no longer what it used to be. The remaining members are all bastards. I shouldn’t have handed over the Dark Ranger Guild to Gray back then,” Black Hell said gloomily.

Black Heaven sighed lightly. He understood Black Hell’s feelings toward the Dark Ranger Guild. Moreover, there was still someone in the Dark Ranger Guild. Although that person had already married someone else, Black Hell had once promised to protect her for the rest of his life.

Whether it was about honor or feelings, it no longer mattered.

“Brother, you should have a broader space for development. You should aim for the heavens, not follow me,” Black Hell patted Black Heaven’s shoulder, his voice filled with loneliness and sadness.