The Grand Battle Heaven Old Ancestor raised his head and gazed into the void, his gaze sharp. "What deal?"
Mo spoke: "Help me kill this old fellow, and I will agree to this — once freed, I will draw borders with your human race and rule separately! The Ink Battlefield… that's what you call this stretch of void. My Ink Clan will never set foot outside the Ink Battlefield a single step, nor bring any harm to your world."
Unlike Cang, Mo had learned a great deal about the current human race. The Ink Nests' uncanny nature allowed it to monitor every theater of war at any moment.
"Draw borders and rule separately…" The Grand Battle Heaven Old Ancestor gave a cold snort. "How could one permit another to sleep soundly beside one's bed!"
Setting aside whether Mo would actually honor such an agreement — even if it did, could the humans truly rest easy? No one could say whether Mo might change its mind.
And besides, this was the Ink Clan!
Humans and the Ink Clan had been locked in a bitter, unending war for countless years, losing untold numbers of their finest warriors. The blood feud between them ran so deep that it could never be casually resolved.
Mo's proposal was worth hearing and nothing more. None of the Ninth-Order cultivators would take it seriously.
Even Cang knew the humans would never agree, so he simply remained off to the side in silence, with no intention of interjecting.
Mo let out a sigh. "Your human race has slaughtered my servants for nothing more than survival. If that's the case, what is there that cannot be agreed to? Over these years, your humans have suffered considerable losses, but my servants have suffered even greater ones. Neither side has gained the upper hand over the other. Furthermore, as the old fellow just said — I was born of the will of heaven and earth. If heaven and earth are destroyed, how could I survive alone? When I first awakened sentience, I understood nothing of the world and failed to control my own power, which is how the catastrophe came to pass. Now that I grasp the gravity of things, the events of that era will never repeat. Rest assured — I swear the Ink Clan will never set foot outside the Ink Battlefield by even half a step. I will not break this oath. I can swear upon my own spiritual essence — should I violate it, my very spirit shall be annihilated!"
Cang's expression shifted slightly. "You are quite decisive about this."
An Old Ancestor looked toward Cang. "Senior, are you saying this creature's words can be trusted?"
Cang nodded gravely. "For an existence like Mo, what matters most above all else is its own spiritual essence. If it swears upon that, it should not be lying. Should it violate such an oath, even if its spirit were not completely annihilated, the consequences would be dire."
He harbored no intention of concealing this — he stated it plainly.
Mo's words clearly demonstrated how desperately it wished to break free, to the point of agreeing never to step outside the Ink Battlefield.
"Its splendor — it is not only your human race that craves it. I crave it as well. When I first stumbled into that vibrant world in my ignorance, my heart was filled with joy. But my power is simply how it was born. What happened back then was not intentional. Over this million years, I have paid a sufficient price. Is that truly not enough?"
Cang let out a soft sigh. "This is not a question of whether it's enough or not, Mo. You should know that yourself."
Mo spoke, indignant. "Just because of the nature of my power, you would see me exterminated?"
Cang fell silent.
Was Mo wrong?
Its power had always been that way by nature. What happened back then had genuinely not been its intention. It had wanted to merge into that vibrant world, to experience a brilliance it had never known before — it was driven by instinct.
Was it not wrong?
Its "merging" had led to the fall of hundreds of great domains, the death of entire worlds, the devastation of countless living beings. Innumerable human experts had been converted to the Ink, their very natures erased, reduced to obedient servants at its command.
This was no longer a matter of right or wrong.
In the silence, the Grand Battle Heaven Old Ancestor gave a cold snort. "Even if you were ignorant and unknowing back then, did you not understand in the ages that followed? For all these countless years, the Ink Clan in the Ink Battlefield has ceaselessly sought to invade the Three Thousand Worlds. Had you ever succeeded, where would the world's splendor be today? Your words may sound sincere at first listen, but they are nothing more than sophistry!"
Mo spoke in an unhurried tone. "You have been trapped here for a million years — would you not have tried every possible means to escape? For me, there was only one way to break free. But that was in the past. Now, if you are willing to help me, I naturally need not resort to that method. I can even promise you — once freed, I will withdraw all of my Ink power. In this world, apart from myself, there shall be no more Ink Clan!"
"How tempting that sounds!" One of the Old Ancestors chuckled.
If what Mo said were true — that it would confine itself to the Ink Battlefield and withdraw all its Ink power — the outcome would indeed be excellent. But… could its words be trusted?
Even if it could keep its word for a short time, what about the long run?
As long as it did not step outside the Ink Battlefield, this place would remain a cage for it!
All that would change was trading the smaller cage of the Primordial Grand Restriction for the larger cage of the Ink Battlefield.
It had said itself that it craved the vibrant world. The loneliness of a thousand years, ten thousand years — it could endure. But a hundred thousand years? A million years?
Put yourself in its place. A being that had already been imprisoned for a million years — the moment it broke free, who among them would willingly lock themselves away again? It would want to run wild without restraint.
That was why none of the Old Ancestors took its words seriously. Mo's earnest pleas were worth hearing and nothing more. To actually believe them would be the mark of a fool.