Birth of the Demonic Sword

"What do you even know about my pain?!" The Ape God exploded into a loud reply. "How can you compare greed to a pure sacrifice? Humans and magical beasts have nothing in common!"

"And yet," Noah replied after heaving a sigh, "I'm a human and a magical beast. I have lived in the wilderness and among the politics of the cultivators. I have seen both sides, and I know that your feeling is nothing more than envy originating from your weakness."

"Envy?!" The Ape God exclaimed. "There is nothing to envy in humans!"

"You wanted a dantian as far as I remember," Noah replied. "I wonder why you desired a human organ."

Noah revealed a smile at that point. He wanted the beast to become even angrier so that he could see how deep its hatred was.

His plan would become unfeasible if the Ape God hated humans from the bottom of its existence. Yet, there was hope for cooperation if it could accept them.

"I want the world to be fair!" The Ape God complained.

"I'm against Heaven and Earth too," Noah replied. "We have two common enemies."

The Ape God remained silent after that reply. Noah had made clear that King Elbas was his opponent, so the creature could guess that he needed its help to defeat him.

"Little human," The Ape God said, "You have yet to gaze at the divine, but you want to fight beings that are near that stage. The golden human isn't as weak as I was."

Noah continued to smile. That answer had started the negotiations, even if the beast wasn't aware of that.

"If King Elbas remains in power," Noah said in an uncaring tone, "Your species will remain enslaved. There won't be any free Kesier Ape in this plane."

The Ape God shook its head before expressing its doubts. "I bet you want to offer my species freedom. You, the human who destroyed our last lair in the world."

"I'm not a human," Noah promptly replied.

"You are no savior either," The Ape God continued. "You must be desperate to seek my help. I think that I will enjoy hearing your dying cries from my prison. Who knows, you might get a cage right next to mine."

The beast showed a mocking smile, but Noah didn't lose his cool. He had dealt with existences that were far more threatening than the Ape. He knew how to apply pressure when he held the advantage in a negotiation.

"Hybrids run free in my lands," Noah explained. "They live, eat, breed, and die in complete freedom. Your species can obtain the same treatment."

"I won't trust a destroyer," The Ape God answered.

"I don't trust those hybrids either," Noah replied. "I barely trust anyone in general. I'm not asking for that. I only want your power, and you can trade it for the well-being of your species."

"I'd rather die," The beast said.

"Then you have doomed your kind," Noah replied and stood up to leave the area.

Noah didn't turn. He walked through the corridor and reached the stairs that led to the surface without hesitating. He felt the eyes of the Ape on his back, but he didn't give it any leverage through his gestures. The beast had to think that its only hope for freedom was about to leave forever.

"How many?" The Ape shouted before Noah could step on the stairs. "How many Kesier Apes are there in your organization?"

Noah stopped his tracks, but he didn't turn. His mind focused on his connection with the horned head, and a list of reports appeared in his vision.

"More than a hundred specimens in the human ranks," Noah said without turning, "A dozen in the heroic ranks."

"Why have you asked for my help?" The Ape questioned him.

Noah turned, but he didn't return to the entrance of the prison. He pretended to think about his reasons for a second before answering. "King Elbas is about to attack the entire world. You are the strongest creature in this plane right now. Asking you to fight with us is only natural."

The Ape God fell deep in its thoughts as it sat on the floor. Noah didn't know what it was considering, but he knew that the creature would accept to deal with him unless it had a death wish.

There were fates worse than death, and the Ape God was experiencing one of them. It had survived the initial hunt of its species only to see Noah destroying its world.

Then, King Elbas had captured and trapped it on the surface. The Ape God didn't have any contact with the outside world, so it could only spend its days wondering about its species' fate.

Magical beasts could sleep for a long time, but the creature was partially awake when Noah visited it. That was a clear sign that its mental state didn't allow it to sleep properly.

The fate of its species weighed on its mind. After all, the Ape God had failed those that had sacrificed to push its power to the divine ranks. The creature couldn't enter a long sleep even if it tried.

"What happens if he wins?" The Ape God asked.

Noah shrugged his shoulders again before giving an honest answer. "Most experts will hide and wait for King Elbas to ascend. My organization will destroy every resource before retreating to a safe area, including the Kesier Apes. We can't give them to our enemies."

Noah's words sounded like a threat, but he didn't want to put his words in that tone. He only wanted to tell the truth to the beast.

The Ape God remained silent for a while, but it eventually expressed its conditions for that cooperation. "I want the members of my species free of your control. I don't want them to interact with humans anymore."

Noah shook his head and replied without showing any hesitation. "Cultivators need the Kesier runes. I can ensure their freedom, but they must cooperate with the human world."

"That's just a different type of prison!" The Ape God complained.

"It's a prison with wardens that won't perform experiments on you," Noah replied. "No one would rip off your runes nor force you to breed. You know that humans are stronger than magical beasts. You won't get a better deal."

"This is an extortion," The beast complained again.

"You can tell this story to your underlings if you accept these conditions," Noah said. "Your alternative is an entire life as the last of your kind until King Elbas forces you to breed."

The Ape became angry and started to shout. "You are using my dedication toward my species to manipulate me!"

"Of course," Noah replied. "I will use every trick at my disposal to improve the success rate of this battle. You only have to decide how badly you want your species to thrive."

The Ape God felt defeated. It couldn't win in a discussion against Noah, and he had spoken the truth for the entire negotiation. The beast didn't have any other option.

The only thing that could stop it from accepting his conditions was its pride. Still, the Ape would easily give up on it to protect its species.

That had been its main purpose. The Ape only wanted its underlings to live without fear of being captured. It didn't matter how much it had to sacrifice to obtain that.

"You are a monster," The Ape God eventually said, but Noah shrugged his shoulders again.

"I have to deal with beings that are far above my level," Noah said. "I can only be a monster if I want to survive."

Silence fell between Noah and the Ape, but the beast soon expressed its decision to accept those conditions.

"I'll send someone to deal with the defenses and create an oath," Noah said as he finally stepped on the stairs. "Remember that you take orders from me now."