Chapter 51

The Genting Garden Restaurant lives up to its name. Suspended hundreds of meters in the air, it's surrounded by a transparent energy field, isolating the hustle and bustle of the city, leaving only the dazzling lights of countless homes below and the vast, starry sky above.

The exquisite dining table is covered with snow-white linen, the crystal utensils reflect a soft halo of light, and the air is filled with the aroma of delicious food and top-notch fragrances.

Jin had already been sitting in the main seat waiting, watching Lin Yao slowly walking towards him in an elegant and well-fitting smoky gray suit. The suit was very ordinary, but... the man in front of him made it look far more valuable than it actually was.

Lin Yao sat down opposite Jin, while Lu Cheng sat silently beside Lin Yao, his face still gloomy, as if out of tune with this luxurious atmosphere.

The exquisite appetizers were silently removed, and the main course had not yet been served. In the brief silence, Jin leaned forward slightly, his red eyes fixed on Lin Yao, and he stopped beating around the bush.

"Join City A, Lin Yao."

His voice was filled with unquestionable strength and naked solicitation, "Become my companion. City A and I can give you far more than you can imagine."

He paused, his red eyes sweeping across Lin Yao's calm face, raising the stakes while also pointing out the harsh reality. "City D's kill-without-reckoning order has spread to the four cities. They've revealed your most crucial ability—memory manipulation. This is a massive, unignorable threat to everyone. Except for City A, no one dares to accept a lunatic who might tamper with other people's memories at any moment and treat their hearts as playthings..."

He deliberately used the hostile word, trying to exert pressure. "You have no choice."

Lin Yao seemed oblivious to the oppressive solicitation and threat. He didn't even look at Jin, his azure eyes casually glancing towards the restaurant entrance.

There, a waiter was pushing an exquisite dining cart, which was quite some distance away from their table.

At this moment, an incredible scene happened.

On the dining cart, the carefully prepared main course covered with a silver plate lid, along with a bottle of top-quality red wine with a simple label that had just been opened and decanted, seemed to be held up by an invisible hand, flying steadily and silently in the air, and landed precisely in the center of the dining table for the three of them.

The entire process flowed effortlessly, without a trace of escaping supernatural powers, as precise as the operation of a precision instrument. The lid of the dinner plate automatically opened, revealing the fragrant food within. The wine bottle hovered above the table, its invisible spiritual thread, like the most deft key, effortlessly unscrewing the cork.

Lin Yao then slowly withdrew his gaze, as if the jaw-dropping display of supernatural powers just now was just a piece of cake.

He stretched out his hand—long, white, with distinct joints and rounded fingertips. In the soft light of the restaurant, it even had a fragile beauty like a work of art.

However, only those who truly understand him know that these hands can easily manipulate memories, control souls, and set off destructive storms.

He picked up the red wine bottle and tilted it gracefully. The deep red wine flowed like gems, accurately poured into three high-heeled glasses without a drop spilling.

He put down the bottle, picked up one of the glasses, and gently swirled the liquid in the glass. He finally looked directly at Jhin for the first time, and a faint, lazy and playful smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

"Would you like a drink?" he asked in a clear voice, as if Jin's previous remarks concerning life and death were not as worthy of attention as the glass of wine in front of him.

The calmness and strength on Jin's face froze instantly, and a trace of surprise and disbelief flashed through the depths of his red eyes. Lin Yao's reaction completely exceeded his expectations.

This wasn't forced composure; it was sheer, unconcern. In the most direct and elegant way possible, he silently declared: The so-called "no choice" didn't exist in front of Lin Yao! Wherever he wanted to go, whatever he wanted to do, no one could truly stop him!

After a brief moment of loss of composure, Jin quickly adjusted his expression. He looked at Lin Yao deeply, then lifted the wine glass in front of him and gently clinked it against Lin Yao's across the table, making a crisp sound.

"Of course." Jin's voice lowered, he raised his head and drank the wine in the glass in one gulp, as if to suppress the shock in his heart.

For the next moment, Lin Yao seemed completely focused on the feast before him. He cut his food gracefully, chewing it slowly and oblivious to Jin's presence and Lu Cheng's silence.

From time to time, he would even use his serving chopsticks to pick up a piece of food that he thought tasted good and put it naturally on the plate of Lu Cheng next to him.

"Try this." His voice was soft, with an almost intimate casualness.

Lu Cheng's body stiffened instantly, looking at the extra food on his plate like a red-hot iron. Lin Yao's seemingly caring gesture, in Lu Cheng's eyes, was nothing more than the most deliberate teasing and teasing, reminding him of the tangled, controlled, and inescapable relationship between them.

He gripped the knife and fork so hard that his knuckles turned white, but he didn't refuse in the end. He just silently put the food into his mouth, and it tasted like chewing wax.

Jin's gaze moved subtly between the two of them, taking in Lin Yao's seemingly casual but actually controlling actions towards Lu Cheng.

The anxiety in his heart grew like a vine. He needed Lin Yao! He couldn't stand Lin Yao's indifferent attitude. He couldn't let this only chance to soothe the destructive power in his body and return him to normal slip away.

Finally, after a long, suffocating meal in silence, Jin spoke again. His tone had clearly lost its initial composure, and was now filled with a subtle urgency: "What do you need? Lin Yao, I think we can have a serious talk."

He lowered his stance and changed from a pressurer to a trade seeker.

As if his appetite had finally been satisfied, Lin Yao put down his knife and fork. He picked up the snow-white napkin and wiped the corner of his mouth with great grace. Every movement revealed the calmness of someone in control of the situation.

He raised his eyes, his azure eyes like the deepest cold pond, clearly reflecting Jin's somewhat anxious figure.

"Rotten Bone Forest." Lin Yao's voice was not loud, but it struck Jin's heart clearly. "I heard it will open in a week."

Jhin's pupils suddenly shrank, and intense shock and alarm instantly erupted in his crimson eyes. The A-rank dungeon, the Rotten Bone Forest, was one of City A's most highly classified secrets. Hidden deep within the folds of space, it was a terrifying forest filled with poisonous spores, mutated creatures, and spacetime traps.

The rare resources contained within were priceless, and City A's top brass had already decided to suppress the news and keep the resources to themselves. How could Lin Yao have known this? Even within City A's core circle, only a handful of people knew about this news.

"Where do you want to go? What to do?" Jhin's voice became extremely low, full of vigilance and scrutiny, and his previous anxiety was replaced by huge doubts.

Lin Yao just leaned forward slightly, with the corner of his lips raised in an extremely ambiguous and fatally tempting arc.

He stretched out his slender, white finger that could easily touch the soul, gently touched his lips, and made a gesture of silence.

"Hush..." His voice was like a murmur of love, yet it also carried a cold warning, "People who know too much usually don't live long."

He tilted his head slightly, a cunning and dangerous glint in his blue eyes. "So, Mr. Jin, are you going to be the one who... doesn't live long?"

A naked threat, but wrapped in the most charming posture.

Jin's breath hitched. He looked at Lin Yao's breathtakingly beautiful face that was so close to him, feeling the unfathomable power and coldness beneath the calm surface. A chill rose up his spine.

He had no doubt that if he continued to question Lin Yao, he would definitely be able to make him die! This realization made him feel unprecedented pressure.

There was a long silence, so long that the air seemed to freeze once more. Finally, Jin slowly exhaled, the shock and wariness in his red eyes gradually fading, transforming into the solemnity and compromise one would expect from someone equally powerful.

He asked in a deep voice: "So, what can I get?"

This is his most core need.

Lin Yao leaned back in his chair, his posture relaxed, as if discussing a trivial matter: "I will help you regain control of your power."

His tone was calm, yet it carried an unquestionable confidence. "It no longer represents indiscriminate destruction and the potential for self-destruction. Instead, it will become City A's sharpest spear, or..." He paused, his lips curled up slightly, "the strongest shield. It's up to you."

The promise was too tempting. Completely controlling that violent SS-level destructive force, freeing oneself from the shadow of backlash from that power… this was Jin's dream. But Lin Yao's tone was too relaxed, as if solving the problem that had plagued him for years was as easy as brushing off a speck of dust.

Jin couldn't help but let out a short, self-deprecating chuckle. "Do you know how many psychics have tried to do this? Many of them were top-tier figures who were just one step away from becoming Super S-rank. And what happened to them..."

He deliberately stopped, staring at Lin Yao with his red eyes, trying to find any sign of hesitation on his face.

Lin Yao didn't even wait for him to finish.

"I don't need to know."

Lin Yao's voice suddenly turned cold, like a spring of ice breaking. The laziness and playfulness in his blue eyes instantly faded, leaving only a pure, cold, and powerful will that looked down on everything, like a king from a high position looking down at the ants under his feet.

"I don't need to know what happens to the weak."

He raised his chin slightly and declared word by word, clearly and slowly:

"Because, I'm not."

Absolute confidence! Absolute power! The tangible mental pressure instantly spread, causing both Jin and Lu Cheng to feel a surge of fear.

At this moment, Lin Yao is no longer the lazy and casual beauty, but a being who ranks at the top of the old world's standings and is truly above all other living beings!

Jin was completely stunned by this sudden, unreserved display of strength. He stared into Lin Yao's stormy blue eyes, feeling the strength and conviction emanating from the depths of his soul. All his doubts and calculations were replaced by an almost instinctive awe and submission to absolute power.

He was drawn in, like a moth to a flame.

"...So," Lin Yao restrained his imposing aura, his voice returning to its clear, yet unquestionable determination, "What's your answer?"

Jhin's Adam's apple rolled with difficulty. Struggle, desire, and awe surged violently in his red eyes.

In the end, his thirst for power and his conviction in Lin Yao's absolute strength overwhelmed everything. He nodded slowly, his voice a little hoarse.

"If you can truly do what you say..." He took a deep breath and made a promise, "I will consider adding your name to the list of the Rotten Bones Forest Exploration Team."

Lin Yao showed his first real smile of satisfaction tonight.

However, that smile quickly took on a hint of unchangeable strength. He tilted his head slightly, motioning to Lu Cheng, who had remained silent beside him.

"No," Lin Yao's voice was clear and firm, like the sound of a gavel, "It's his and my name."

Jin suddenly raised his head, and his sharp red eyes instantly shot towards Lu Cheng, with scrutiny and a hint of confusion.

Lu Cheng was also stunned. He had never expected that Lin Yao would include him in the plan in this way at this time.

He looked at Lin Yao and saw only the other person's calm profile, as if this was just a natural decision.

After a brief silence, Jin withdrew his gaze. He understood that this was Lin Yao's condition, and there was no room for negotiation.

He twitched the corners of his mouth, nodded again, and made the final compromise.

"Okay. I'll add your name and Mr. Lu's name to the exploration team list."

He reiterated, “The premise is that you can really do what you say.”

The negotiations are over.

The dominant position has never been lost from the beginning to the end.