If I don't have money to go to college, I can only go to slay the dragon.

The tea in Lin Nian's cup was a little cold. He picked it up and touched it gently to his lips. Noticing the slight coldness that flooded his mouth, he put the tea cup down again, pursed his moist lips and kept quiet.

Jian Man on the side wanted to stand up and refill Lin Nian's tea, but was rejected by the other party with a gentle wave of his hand, because he himself was not very interested in drinking tea. As long as he meant it, he thought for a long time after putting down the tea cup. During this time, no one made a sound to disturb him, and they were all waiting for the reaction of the young secret party.

The head of the Sima clan has made the demands of the Sima family very clear. Without any quips or riddles, he has put those desires and expectations directly on the table. This has to be said to be a kind of sincerity, because in the negotiation , the first rule of the demand side is to always keep your strong will under control.

At the negotiation table, if both parties have different goals and interests, then skills and strategies are naturally essential table arts. Truly experienced negotiators are good at using the information and power they have to increase their own advantages. Using one's own resources to gain a favorable position in negotiations through the needs and constraints of the opponent across the table is also known in popular terms as "information gap."

In terms of information collection, Lin Nian is naturally weaker than Orthodox. Whether it is the inside story of Bei Bai Dragon King's awakening or the truth about the 'Yue' system, Orthodox has achieved near perfection in information blockade. But the old man of the Sima family in front of him chose to give up this information gap and conducted the negotiation in an almost frank manner.

This was extremely unreasonable, but Lin Nian couldn't figure out the purpose and hidden reasons of the other party for the time being, and there wasn't much time for him to consider the hidden dangers or the other party's thoughts before making a decision.

"Li Hueyue's previous heart surgery was indeed done by me, and I also dismantled and modified the original alchemy matrix on it. If I didn't do this, she would have lost control 100% under the situation and circumstances at that time, so I chose to do it for her. Emergency measures were carried out, including not only blood washing and reconstruction of the alchemy matrix, but also the removal of part of the internal organs, the integration of the circulatory system, and the extraction of red bone marrow." Lin Nian finally nodded lightly and admitted that he had done something to 'Yue' He went through all kinds of tricks, and he still did it boldly. The little light particles in the dark eye sockets of the Sima clan leader gradually became sharper and brighter with his words.

"Big project! How damaged was the 'Moon' system at that time? Can you describe it?" the old man asked in a deep voice.

"The endocrine secretion of the second dragon's heart is stimulated by the life-threatening situation and secretes a large amount of pheromones. The red bone marrow is gradually contaminated by the genes eroded by the hearts of pure-blooded dragons, which begins to affect the blood and cause a highly toxic reaction, which gradually spreads to the blood vessels throughout the body and stimulates it. The internal organs, muscles, and diaphragm proliferated. When her chest was opened, the internal organs could hardly be seen. Only the proliferated meat tissue and blood vessels could be seen. The intuitive feeling was that it was a group of breathing 'sarcomas', and she had a certain degree of self-awareness. , he almost bit off my finger when he first intervened.”

"It seems that the 'Holy Will' has begun to revive at that time. That is a sign of its self-rescue, giving the cells a strong will to survive, and it is also the self-awareness of the 'Holy Will'." The old man sighed softly.

"It is worth mentioning that after cutting through the sarcoma, the internal organs that were connected by 'meat threads' to provide nutrients had begun to show signs of 'scaling'. At first I thought that was a sign of Deadpool transformation, but then I After consulting relevant literature, I found that Deadpool's internal organs are not covered with dragon scales, which means that the change I saw in her was not Deadpool transformation at all, but dragon transformation." Lin Nian wetted his fingers. Tea squirts on fingertips.

"We have reached the final stage. The final maintenance mechanism of the 'Yue' system has almost expired. Probably only the 'Fulong Nail' of the Holy Will is still in effect." The old man of the Sima clan had dark eyes and put his hands together. In front of me, "If we are one step too late, we may lose the 'Holy Will', which is a critical moment."

The more you ask for details, the more terrifying you feel about the "technology" hidden by Lin Nian. Mystery and the unknown are always tempting, especially when there is a high chance that he will fall into your hands. But the old man is very calm. The more he does this, the more he understands the things behind "technology". This kind of thing can only be figured out slowly, or traded, or compromised.

"Strictly speaking, the last alchemical matrix was only half effective at that time. The two metal nails on the dragon's heart that had been killed by alchemical technology had been squeezed out more than half. The heart was already actively rejecting the alchemical matrix you deployed. , because it feels the threat of death, it must use various methods to hang up the life of its host, that is, Li Hueyue. It has to be said that the only praiseworthy thing in the 'Yue' system is probably those two nails. , in that extreme situation, it firmly locked the ventricular pumping threshold of Dragon Heart, preventing it from completely contaminating the blood circulation."

"This alchemical matrix reminds me of the anatomy experiment of the Lord of Bronze and Fire, Constantine, in the secret party records. In that experiment, the surgical members discovered that Constantine also had this kind of suppression made of 'nails' The technique is the same in principle as your 'Fulong Nail', which makes people think about the role orthodoxy played in the last fall of Constantine." Lin Nian said.

"Constantine's fall has nothing to do with orthodoxy. Dragon slayers who know how tenacious dragons are are will choose to make a fuss about the heart when sealing. 'Dragon Nail' is just one of the techniques, and there are others." The Secret Technique of the Ten Nails and the Dragon." The head of the Sima clan did not accept this unwarranted honor and shook his head slightly, "Even in that situation, you can still save Yue. Does the Secret Party itself know about this technology?"

"Don't ask me any more questions that I'm destined not to answer and you should know the answer to. There's no need to repeat the same test. It's meaningless and a waste of time." Lin Nian lowered his eyes, his dim pupils filled with laughter. All is low twilight.

The old man chuckled silently, and he didn't know if he was laughing at the secret party, or at the young man's unruly and self-centered political stance, or simply at the complicated situation that Lin Nian found himself in due to the indescribable intertwined stances.

"It is not difficult to modify the 'moon' system." Lin Nian gently grasped the wall of the teacup with five fingers and turned it, and said softly, "The orthodox guess is correct. I do have a technology. Before reaching a consensus, I won't tell you any inside information about this technology, but what I can say is that the 'Yue' system still has a lot of room for improvement. You are on the right path. The 'Yue' system is indeed a feasible path. It is engraved on an ancient bronze pillar. I have seen those ancient texts. They record that the same spell spirals up to the invisible dome, which means that the road does lead to the ultimate road of evolution. .”

"'Moon' has a future." Lin Nian looked at Li Huanyue and Sima Xuxu and defined, "The path you are taking is not wrong."

The wind blew through the courtyard, slightly cold, but it did not take away some of the warmth of the afternoon sun. On the contrary, it became even hotter, burning the dead leaves on the quagmire from the bottom of my heart.

After Lin Nian finished speaking, the Sima clan leader on the white marble table did not answer for a long time, but no one could feel that in the boundless silence, a fire was ignited in the body of the old man with a stooped waist and skin that seemed to have been decayed for a long time. , that is fanaticism and hope.

Sima Xuxu shuddered slightly. Too many major events had evolved in orthodoxy. From beginning to end, in his memory, the patriarch of the Sima family, the old man sitting on the high wicker chair, had no sense of the changes in the world. He was hunched over. It seemed as if he was about to fall asleep so deeply in the wicker chair in that corner, which also led to the fact that he had never seen this scene in his memory since birth.

In the dark eye sockets of the old man who was as silent as water, he actually saw fire burning, expectations, fantasies, and madness.

After a moment, the old man lowered his head slightly.

Lifting it up again, everything was submerged in the quagmire covered with dead branches and leaves, showing no signs of wind and rain, and dead silence.

Lin Nian's face was filled with tears. The thing he dreamed of was proved to be feasible. The madness was only revealed for a few seconds before he was suppressed by the emotion. This old man of the Sima clan has walked too many roads and seen too many things. It was an example of dying before the finish line. Even if Lin Nian fulfilled his expectations, he would not lose control because of it. Instead, he would become calmer and more stable.

"Okay, very good." After a long time, the old man said slightly hoarsely, "Since I am so loyal and willing to reveal the truth, I must have made my own plans in my heart, right?"

"There are plans, but since everyone knows that this is a negotiation, the principle of negotiation is checks and balances, the balance of equal interests, psychological expectations, and actual expectations on the table." Lin Nian slowed down his speaking speed and tone. , "I am very happy that the Sima family patriarch did not use his age and experience to insult me ​​with his negotiation experience. Maybe you know that I am a child with a childish temperament - in your eyes, I am so reckless. Young people are all children. If they are wronged or unhappy, they will cry and get off the table, or wave some dangerous things to smash and fight. After all, children never care about gains and losses, they only care about gains and losses. You care about your own emotional value, so you choose to conduct this negotiation in a way that is more acceptable to me."

"Or." Lin Nian paused, "You have prepared bargaining chips that I can't refuse from the beginning, so you chose to be open and honest, and these chips are not what you need at the moment, so don't worry about the 'checks and balances' on the negotiation table. 'You have been able to accept the price of pushing All In from the beginning, so you will negotiate in an 'open and honest' way."

He shook his head slightly and looked at the Sima clan leader, "I admit, I am very curious about what bargaining chip the orthodox has prepared. Because I do have something to ask for now, and I also think that the level of orthodox intelligence collection capabilities and layout is beyond my imagination. The more this happens, the more willing I am to participate in this negotiation - I don't think I will refuse the chips carefully prepared for me by a huge mixed-race force, because most of them will be the chips that I, like you, dream about but can't get. thing."

He knew that the "technology" he held in his hands was what the orthodox could only dream of. When he received the afternoon tea delivered by Li Hueyue, the first emotion that emerged in him was not boredom, but expectation.

Because orthodoxy is something that knows etiquette and propriety, and is definitely not a mob that believes in violence and plunder like the Solomon Temple, then he will only encounter two situations in Bei'an.

Plot. negotiation.

The former is a draw, which means that he will always have a battle with the orthodox. Whether it is a violent defeat or a battle of wits, the final outcome will be a lose-lose situation. He never underestimates the heritage and strength of Zhengtong, just as Zhengtong will never underestimate Lin Nian's destructive power and bottom line. Once sharp swords and sophisticated calculations are combined into a carefully prepared plan, the scene will be embarrassing and shocking.

Fortunately, Orthodoxy chose the latter and chose fair negotiations. The art of checks and balances, the exchange of chips. There is no tit-for-tat situation, nor is there a series of conspiracies and intrigues. There is only the placement and balancing of a precision scale by the people on the tables and chairs on both sides. Maybe they will quarrel with each other because of the standard of "balance". It's better to have no friendship than to break up.

The head of the Sima clan looked at the young man who had tried his best to think about the truth without saying anything, and without any expression of appreciation or pity.

Lin Nian's inference was only his own. His logic was indeed flexible, and his restraint at the negotiating table was also excellent, but it was still far from the "meticulousness" and "nothing left out" in the eyes of the elderly. After all, Lin Nian has never been a talented general. Being able to think clearly about these principles and logic in this situation can be regarded as a standard level.

To make an interesting aside, the head of the Sima clan originally thought that the young man in charge of one of the most violent mixed-race species would be unruly and extremely bad-tempered. However, judging from psychological profiling, intelligence collection, and even meeting him in person now , he had to comment that this young man was indeed a very human being - but after lowering his psychological expectations countless times, what he finally saw was a normal person who was willing to think and exercise restraint.

It's neither a bad thing nor a bad thing. Fortunately, the other party can understand the shallow meaning expressed by orthodoxy and is willing to cooperate. The disadvantage is that the other thirteen response methods originally prepared are of no use. If any of the other dozens of methods are If it takes effect, the benefits obtained will be several times that of the current situation - but there is no need to regret it. As long as the final result of all plans is the equality of chips, the balance of the scales, and the holding of hands, then for orthodoxy All are “big wins.”

"Orthodox is willing to provide it to you, as you search hard for the whereabouts of the two missing people, as well as the method of entering the realm of the King of Earth and Mountain." The Sima clan leader said slowly.

"The domain of the King of Earth and Mountain? You mean the Nibelungs?" Lin Nian frowned slightly and stared at the Sima clan leader for confirmation, "Have you discovered the way to enter the Nibelungs!?"

This was news that was extremely shocking even if he had been prepared for it. How long had it been since the Dragon King's resurrection was exposed on the hunter website that Orthodoxy actually claimed to have found the entrance to the Nibelungen?

"I originally thought you would be more interested in the two missing people." The Sima clan leader looked at Lin Nian and said.

"If there is no accident, the reason why the two commissioners sent by the school board disappeared is the Nibelungs. If the Nibelungs can be found, they will naturally be found. This is one thing."

"No, you may have misunderstood something." The Sima clan leader shook his head and stretched out his hand to Yan Man who was on the side. The latter took out a photo that had been prepared and handed it to the old man with both hands. "Maybe you are half right. , but I still think you should be more interested in the missing two people than the realm of the King of Earth and Mountain. After all, this is the most important bargaining chip we have collected when negotiating with you. You It’s better to pay more attention to it.”

Lin Nian watched intently as the old man put the photo upside down on the table facing him. When his eyes fell on the photo, a thin layer of twilight suddenly appeared in his pupils. It was a sign of sudden mood swings. Golden Hitomi's loss of control.

There are only a few things in this world that can make Lin Nian lose his temper, and the things in the photos are naturally the same.

The photo on the table was captured by a surveillance camera in a public environment. It looked like the environment was at a subway station, but I wasn’t sure which line it was. But what really made Lin Nian’s pupils shrink were the two people in the photo. Those two people were not The "commissioners" sent by the school board as he mentioned before, these two people are both people he knows.

Mandy Gonzalez and Lin Xian.

In the photo taken by the surveillance camera, they were standing side by side in front of the yellow line waiting for the subway tunnel. Lin Xian, who was wearing a camel silhouette coat on the right, tilted his head slightly and said something to the blonde girl next to him with a calm expression. The latter smiled slightly. With their heads lowered and their hands in the pockets of their jeans, they listened extremely carefully like students in class. In the tunnel in front of them, the lights of the train entering the station cast their shadows on the gray wall, making them indistinguishable.