Hong Mo gestured for Ye Cangtian to sit down and, uncharacteristically, poured him a cup of tea.
Observing Hong Mo's actions, Ye Cangtian immediately understood.
Hong Mo must have had something to ask of him this time, otherwise, why would he be so courteous?
With that thought, Ye Cangtian cut straight to the chase, "Hong Mo, speak your mind. What is it you want to see me about?"
Hong Mo pondered for a moment, his gaze fixed on Ye Cangtian. "You've arrived rather late. You probably don't know my true identity, do you? To be frank, my father is Ba Tian, and he also belongs to the Dark Association..."
Hong Mo briefly introduced his identity, but he saw no surprise on Po Xiao's face.
"You know?"
The next instant, Hong Mo let out a wry smile. "It seems I've underestimated your abilities. To have investigated my identity so quickly, you truly have a knack for it!"
Heh.
Listening to Hong Mo's voice, Ye Cangtian smiled slightly, but inwardly he mused, "A knack for what nonsense!"
He hadn't investigated Hong Mo at all. All of this information had come from Xing Yuan earlier.
However, since the other party now believed he had investigated, there was no need to explain...
"Investigating you isn't difficult."
Ye Cangtian put on a show and then said, "Speak plainly, what is it you need me for?"
"Now that you know my father is Ba Tian, you should also know about his disappearance in the desert!"
"I have two requests..."
Hong Mo looked at Ye Cangtian, his expression becoming extremely serious as he explained the matter.
Firstly, regardless of how Po Xiao arranged things, he could not be left behind.
Although his combat power was similar to Po Xiao's, the possibility of such an arrangement was not small.
After all, he and Po Xiao had deep-seated animosity. If he were in Po Xiao's position, he wouldn't keep someone like that nearby to prevent them from causing trouble and disrupting the entire operation.
Therefore, he had to make it clear to Po Xiao in advance.
His goal was simple: to use this trip to the desert to search for any trace of Ba Tian, or at the very least, to know where his father Ba Tian's soul had gone!
As for his second request, it was to help him investigate Ba Tian's whereabouts as much as possible.
His own strength was limited. If there were more people, the chances of discovering something would be higher.
After listening to Hong Mo's words, Ye Cangtian's lips gradually curved upwards.
The situation was as he had imagined. Hong Mo indeed wanted him to help search for Ba Tian's whereabouts.
With that thought, Ye Cangtian spoke, "Hong Mo, you know our relationship better than anyone. Why do you think I would help you?"
"I have no certainty, but what I want to say is, this is not a plea, it's a transaction!"
"Since it's a transaction, I naturally have bargaining chips..."
Hong Mo stated that he had been exploring the desert for many years and was familiar with the routes to every city.
He could completely share this information with Po Xiao, and during the mission, he could temporarily cease hostilities with Po Xiao and obey Po Xiao's commands.
Besides that, he also had a skilled team.
A team that operated in the desert, understood it even better, and knew how to survive in the wilderness.
With them, survival in the desert would be greatly enhanced.
Heh.
Listening to Hong Mo's words, Ye Cangtian smiled slightly and said, "I grew up in the outside world and also survived in the harsh desert. These things are not difficult for me."
"Therefore, your bargaining chips hold no appeal for me!"
Since it was a transaction, Ye Cangtian naturally wanted to maximize his profit, so he wouldn't agree so easily.
"Hmph, do you think the deserts of the outside world can be compared to this desert?"
Hearing him, Hong Mo immediately snorted coldly and said in a low voice.
"You're right, the deserts of the outside world cannot be compared to this one. But you must understand, whether it appeals to me or not, I decide!"
"If you can't produce bargaining chips that attract me, I'd rather not transact with you!"
Ye Cangtian glanced at Hong Mo and said lightly.
He believed that even without cooperating with Hong Mo, Hong Mo would still strongly support them.
After all, their group was the backbone of the Dark Association. If they all perished in the desert, the Dark Association's strength would plummet.
And this was something Hong Mo definitely wouldn't want to see.
That was why Ye Cangtian wasn't interested in these bargaining chips.
On the other side, listening to Po Xiao's words, Hong Mo frowned and said grimly, "What exactly do you want? Just say it directly!"
Hong Mo felt that instead of haggling over bargaining chips now, it would be better to clarify what the other party wanted early on, so as not to delay.
Upon hearing this, Ye Cangtian was not polite and spoke directly, "Besides what you've mentioned, I also want five Nine Revolutions Golden Pills!"
"Are you crazy!"
Hong Mo, facing the exorbitant demand, stood up in anger.
His entire body trembled with rage.
Let alone five Nine Revolutions Golden Pills, he didn't even have one in his possessions! How could he fulfill such a promise!
"Don't rush, let me finish speaking!"
Ye Cangtian looked at the agitated Hong Mo and gestured for him to sit down.
He then continued, "There are at least 20 cardinals left in the Bright Hall this time. They are undertaking such a dangerous mission, so they should have some life-saving resources, and likely Nine Revolutions Golden Pills."
"You're probably disappointed about that!"
"I have killed several cardinals before. They had no such items on them!"
Hong Mo said directly.
He had had the same thought as Po Xiao before, so after killing them, he naturally searched their Qiankun pouches.
But the result was disappointing. There were no elixirs inside, only some Xiao Huan Pills and Da Huan Pills, and not many of them.
Hearing this, Ye Cangtian said, "Then it's like this, you hand over everything you obtain from this mission to me, and I will do my utmost to help you find Ba Tian."
"Alright."
Hong Mo agreed immediately.
In his eyes, the desert was an absolute place of great peril. To preserve his life within it and complete the mission successfully was already difficult enough.
Therefore, there was no need to expect any treasures.
If they were to find any heavenly materials and earthly treasures, how could they possibly fall into Po Xiao's hands? They would surely be confiscated by headquarters.
For this reason, his reply was very straightforward.
"Oh, right. Besides these, I also want you to make an oath!"
Po Xiao's voice rang out again, and Hong Mo froze on the spot.
He stared blankly at the other person, and after a long while, said grimly, "What do you mean? Don't you trust me?"
"Don't rush, listen to me finish!"
"The oath I want you to make is that if you find your father and he is still alive, you cannot let him come after me. It's that simple!"
"You must understand that although your father has been missing for many years, the chances of him being dead are high, but it's not impossible for him to have survived..."
Ye Cangtian said slowly.
After all, Ba Tian was a Heaven-tier expert. Such experts had reached the pinnacle of humanity. How could they just die easily?
If he did survive, and learned of the conflict between Hong Mo and himself, it was inevitable that he would harbor killing intent towards him. Ye Cangtian was doing this for his own self-preservation.
"Fine! I promise you!"
Upon hearing this, Hong Mo agreed without hesitation and took the oath on the spot.
If he could find Ba Tian, it would be a momentous occasion for him.
Let alone letting Po Xiao go, he would even be willing to humble himself and reconcile with Po Xiao.
Seeing that Hong Mo had taken the oath, Ye Cangtian's face also broke into a smile. "I wish our cooperation a pleasant journey."
Hong Mo nodded, not saying much more, but opening the door and calling back the waiting Lan Yue and Zi Long from outside.
Since the cooperation had been reached, the most important thing now was to discuss the plan.