Xiao Jie thought for a moment, then made a decision.
"Yes, of course, as long as you hand over the Earth Dao Chapter, I’ll spare your life."
But Wang Xie wasn’t fooled, "Hahahaha, you’re so naive. Now you’re the knife and I’m the fish. My life is entirely in your hands, so how can I trust your empty words?
How about this, as long as you take the Heavenly Punishment Oath that neither you nor your subordinates will harm me and let me go afterwards, I’ll teach you the Nameless Dao Scripture."
"No need to swear. A man’s word is his bond. You teach me the Scripture first, and if I’m satisfied, I’ll definitely let you go."
Wang Xie just shook his head, "If you don’t swear, I absolutely won’t trust you. If you kill me, the Nameless Dao Scripture will never see the light of day again."
Chen Tianwen snorted coldly, "You’re not the only evil man in this world."
Wang Xie chuckled, "That’s true, but do you think any random evil man knows the Earth Dao Chapter? You’ve definitely met other evil men before, but did you get the true teachings of the Earth Dao Chapter from them?
The Earth Dao Chapter was something I realized after awakening, a great path intentionally left by my true self. Only someone like me, who has awakened, can recall it when comprehending the great path.
Ordinary evil men won’t even come close, so stop with the nonsense. Either swear or kill me."
Having said that, Wang Xie stood with his hands behind his back, silent.
Seeing this, Xiao Jie was immediately torn. Killing Wang Xie would surely drop a pile of legendary treasures, but the Nameless Dao Scripture would likely be lost.
But if he really took the Heavenly Punishment Oath to get the Nameless Dao Scripture, then released the man afterwards, the loss would be too great.
Besides, his brothers wouldn’t agree either. Everyone risked their lives defeating the World Boss, only to get nothing? How could they accept that?
Of course, Xiao Jie had a third option—swear to gain the Earth Dao Chapter, then break the oath and kill Wang Xie, taking the hit of a Heavenly Tribulation later.
As terrifying as Heavenly Punishments are, they’re not necessarily fatal. At worst, it’s a nine-out-of-ten chance of survival...
No, something suddenly occurred to Xiao Jie.
Why was Wang Xie so keen on him swearing and not making others swear along? Did he trust him that much?
And earlier he said ’you and your subordinates,’ how did he know these people were his subordinates?
Ah, it was because he and the others were currently in a party, and he was the leader.
Just like when accepting a quest in a party, the leader accepts the quest, and members have the option to join in.
If he took the Heavenly Punishment Oath now, the others would likely receive a prompt to see if they would also abide by the oath.
What if he left the party before swearing? Wouldn’t that mean the Heavenly Punishment Oath would only bind him? Then if others killed Wang Xie, it wouldn’t relate to him, right?
Xiao Jie wasn’t fully confident, but in a game, you’re always gambling, and seventy to eighty percent certainty would suffice.
Besides, based on his understanding of game mechanics, Xiao Jie believed this must be an exploitable loophole.
With that thought, Xiao Jie opened YY.
"I’ll leave the party to get the quest. Once I have the thing, you guys take him out."
Jiu Jianxian teased, "Haha, Feng, you’re so sneaky, I like it."
Ye Luo was a bit worried, "Isn’t it risky? Heavenly Punishment Oaths seem really dangerous."
"It should be fine. The game should judge based on our party status. If we’re not in a party, how can what you do relate to me? It’s game mechanics, it shouldn’t be wrong." Xiao Jie was confident in his understanding of the game.
If he was in party mode, agreeing would mean the whole party agreed, and if someone in the party broke the oath, he did too.
But if he left the party, the oath would only bind him, and others attacking him would have nothing to do with him.
Though not 100% certain, it seemed almost certain.
With these thoughts, Xiao Jie quietly left the party, then said to Wang Xie, "Alright, I’m willing to swear. If you hand over the Nameless Dao Scripture, I’ll let you go."
Hearing this, Wang Xie visibly relaxed, grinning slyly, "That’s more like it, true scripture for a life, that’s a fair trade. You swear then, and don’t play word games with me."
System prompt: Special plot event [Wang Xie’s Scripture Transmission] triggered.
Event description: Demon Path King Evil agreed to teach you the Nameless Dao Scripture: Earthly Dao Chapter in exchange for you taking the [Heavenly Punishment Oath] — you and your teammates must not harm him, and you must let him leave freely, or else Heavenly Punishment will be triggered, bringing a [Heavenly Tribulation] punishment.
Note: The Heavenly Punishment Oath is a special mechanism in the current game. Swearing to the heavens, if the oath is violated, a [Heavenly Tribulation] punishment will be triggered, with the severity of the breach determining the level of the [Heavenly Tribulation].
Xiao Jie solemnly said, "I swear, as long as you teach me the Earth Dao Chapter, neither I nor my subordinates will harm you, and we’ll let you go, or else I’ll be punished by Heavenly Punishment."
[System prompt: You have taken a [Heavenly Punishment Oath].
Wang Xie listened, nodded satisfied, but then furrowed his brows, glancing around at the others, as if something felt off.