"If I get out of here alive," Banjieta said after looking at me for a moment, "you won't have to do anything."

"If I die, though, I need you to do one thing for me."

I stared at Banjieta. "What do you need me to do?"

Banjieta gave me a feeling that was even more inscrutable than what I felt from Lao Gutou.

Such was the suspicious nature of people in the martial world. The more easily someone agreed to your request, the more suspicious it made you.

Banjieta shook his head. "I can't say now. I won't tell anyone what I need done until the moment before I die."

I couldn't help but frown. Should I agree to Banjieta's request, or not?

If I didn't agree, I wouldn't have much time to waste arguing with them.

If I did agree, what if he asked me to do something I couldn't handle?

The consequences for a shushi (sorcerer) breaking a promise were extremely serious. Even with the protection of my ancestor, I wouldn't be able to resolve such troubles.

Banjieta spoke first, though. "Just take me with you for now! We can talk about whether or not it'll work out later."

"My men will all follow you!"

"Not so fast!" This time, I waved my hand first. "Before we set off, there's something I need to figure out."

My gaze swept over both of their faces. "What makes you two qualified to be leaders of these prisoners?"

The question I asked seemed sudden, but it was the key to my cooperation with these prisoners. If I didn't resolve this issue, I wouldn't dare to fully trust Lao Gutou, even with the constraints of a contract.

According to what they had said at the beginning, none of the people here had ever left their cells.

Moreover, I had walked all the way from the break in the wall to the end of the prison. I could be sure that, apart from the Sifang Well at the end of the corridor and the modern prison, there were no other exits here, and no place for the prisoners to take a breather.

How could a group of people who never met each other decide who was the boss?

Furthermore, Lao Gutou and Banjieta clearly knew each other.

Where had they met?

At that moment, Lao Gutou and Banjieta couldn't help but exchange a look.

Lao Gutou slowly said, "This matter involves many secrets. I can't answer you now. When the time is right, I'll explain it in detail."

Banjieta also said, "If you don't believe us, we can make an oath or a contract as a guarantee."

I stared intently at Lao Gutou. "What if I insist on asking?"

As soon as I spoke, someone behind Lao Gutou shouted, "Li Po, don't push your luck! You killed one of our men, and the boss didn't hold it against you."

"You want to negotiate, and the boss hasn't made any excessive demands. What more do you want?"

"If you keep whining, I'll kill you!"

Lao Gutou's expression instantly turned extremely gloomy.

At that moment, someone from Banjieta's side also shouted, "Iron Tower Boss, I don't think that kid is a good person. The only reason we're cooperating with him is because they understand formations and can break mechanisms, right?"

"Why don't we just go up and break their legs, drag them along, and keep their hands free to break mechanisms and set up formations?"

I looked at the two with a smile that was not quite a smile. "Gentlemen, your subordinates don't seem to be very obedient!"

"Or rather, these people aren't your subordinates at all!"

I had been wondering where the people from the Reincarnation Division were hiding.

At first, I thought that the people from the Reincarnation Division should be in the next layer of cells, or somewhere deeper.

Now it seemed that the Reincarnation Division's spies were mixed in with this layer of the prison, mixed in with this group of prisoners.

Banjieta suddenly turned around. "Who said that? Step forward!"

At that moment, a prisoner stepped forward. "Boss, I said it."

"Even if it makes you angry, I have to finish what I have to say."

"These two aren't trustworthy. They unlocked the cell mechanisms just to force us to compromise."

"Now that we're out, and the conditions have been negotiated, that Li Po is all talk about being righteous, but he's never trusted us."

"Gu Lao even signed a contract with him, what more does he want?"

"Boss, even if we don't leave, we can't take this lying down!"

"Brothers, am I right?"

The prisoners in the cell cheered, but Banjieta's face was so gloomy that it seemed like he could wring water out of it.

The look in his eyes as he looked at that person also revealed a murderous intent.

Lao Gutou suddenly reached out and gently tugged at the other person. "Don't be impulsive. If you kill someone, it'll be hard to clean up."

Lao Gutou's meaning was: if Banjieta killed the person who spoke, the prisoners under them, not knowing the truth for the time being, would easily become disaffected. When they went to fight again, no one would be willing to go forward. How would they fight the demons in the iron prison?

However, Lao Gutou's words were seized upon by the troublemaker. "Gu Lao, it's come to this, and you're still talking about not being impulsive?"

"If we don't take down Li Po, are we just going to wait here to be manipulated by him?"

Just as that person was speaking, the sound of mechanisms operating suddenly came from all the cells.

This prison was like a timed alarm clock. When the time came, it would ring.