Once Valefor raised his question, Thanatos immediately shuddered and felt regretful about returning to Valefor.
Why did he come when he had already decided to avoid interacting with Valefor as much as possible?
Was there no way to avoid him?
Thanatos decided that the next time he had an opportunity to leave, he would hide in his territory and not come out again.
"Do I still have to give you a gift, Your Excellency?" Thanatos asked carefully, hoping he wouldn't be included since Valefor had already taken his best treasure.
However, Valefor glanced at him with a sly smile, replying, "What do you think?"
"Please forgive me for coming unprepared, Your Excellency," Thanatos sighed and said, "As an apology, I hope you can visit my territory to pick out something you like. I believe it is better than me offering you something you may not like."
"A sound suggestion. I will do just that," Valefor calmly nodded as he mentioned, "The Sea of Darkness should have something interesting."
Thanatos was immediately appalled.
The Heavenly Devil's appetite was simply too big.
The Sea of Darkness was one of Gehenna's biggest oddities, with hidden secrets in it.
Although it was not a black hole, it endlessly sucked in the dark energies of the void like a bottomless vacuum. No one knew how long it had existed or how much dark energy it had accumulated.
Even what Thanatos absorbed for his cultivation was only an infinitely small fraction of its energy bank.
Since the Heavenly Devil was interested in the Sea of Darkness, Thanatos feared it might disappear like the Sea of Eternal Purpleflame.
Yet, at the same time, he also couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.
After all, he was curious about its secrets.
"What about you three? Do you have something to offer?" Valefor turned to the other three Great Devils.
"I'm not exactly sure what the Heavenly Devil likes. Is there something you would like from me, Your Excellency?" Mephistopheles asked wittily.
He didn't reveal what he had or offer Valefor a chance to browse through his collection of valuables.
As such, Valefor could only choose his gift based on what he knew Mephistopheles had.
Of course, Mephistopheles would have no choice but to show everything he owned if Valefor demanded it. But at the very least, he wasn't stupid enough to openly reveal it.
Nevertheless, Mephistopheles had no idea that Valefor was quite familiar with him-or rather, what he had.
Valefor had once looted everything from his corpse in the original timeline.
Alas, despite being one of the most witty Great Devils in Gehenna, Mephistopheles was also the most unfortunate. His territory's planetary value was poor, and he had no luck with heavenly treasures and resources.
Rank 6 was the highest quality of resources in his possession.
As such, Valefor was not interested in Mephistopheles's tangible values; he was only interested in his intangible values.
"There is something I would like from you," Valefor acknowledged before mentioning, "I heard you have the best information-gathering network in Gehenna?"
"I don't know about the best, but I do have an information-gathering network," Mephistopheles admitted humbly, but he felt proud in his heart. Shortly after, he asked seriously, "What do you want to find out, Your Excellency?"
"I want you to help me track down a missing witch," Valefor stated with narrowed eyes.
In the original timeline, he killed Mephistopheles too soon.
As such, he never got the chance to make use of his ability and information-gathering network to find the witch who abused and tortured him in his childhood.
The person was never found, no matter where he looked.
It was as if the person had vanished from the face of Pangea after leaving the slum district of Blackmoon City.
Although Valefor had zero intention of forgiving the person, he did notice the person's behavior under the influence of isolation and despair was rather too abnormal and extreme.
Unfortunately, he couldn't find more clues due to his vague memories.
Shortly after Valefor provided all the information he could on the missing witch, Mephistopheles promised, "I will mobilize all my resources to produce a result you can be satisfied with, Your Excellency."
"I'm counting on you. Since this matter is quite important to me, I will compensate you for your efforts," Valefor declared.
Shortly after, he offered Mephistopheles another small branch from one of his three [Decamillenium-Year Blazewood Trees].
Mephistopheles studied the charcoal-black branch with a startled look. After a moment, he
"Thank you, Your Excellency!" Mephistopheles sincerely expressed.
A branch that could withstand the power of the [Eternal Purpleflame] was undoubtedly a True Divinity-level material.
Although he couldn't use it himself, it was still a heavenly material of extreme value. He could sell it off for an unimaginable amount of wealth. That would give him the capacity to buy divine treasures and resources he needed in the Skymagia Royal Capital.
Furthermore, he wouldn't have to worry about attracting the greed of others for possessing such wealth.
After all, he would have the Heavenly Devil as his backer. Gehenna's status was about to undergo an unprecedented transformation.
Who would dare to rob him in the future?
Thanatos didn't understand Mephistopheles's excitement at first. But after he realized his train of thought, his attitude also underwent a great change.
He originally thought he couldn't sell his [Decamillenium-Year Blazewood Branch].
However, that was not the case at all.
'Maybe it's not bad to go out from time to time?' Thanatos thought to himself while considering where he should sell his [Decamillenium-Year Blazewood].
Shortly after, Valefor turned to Astarte next.
However, before Astarte could say something, Valefor commented, "Your Redsong
Territory's divine weapon refinement technique is not bad."
"If Your Excellency is interested in it, this Lowly One will gift it to you," Astarte humbly
promised with a wry smile.
In exchange, Valefor also gave her a [Decamillenium-Year Blazewood Branch].
As such, Astarte was moved and had no complaints.
Whether it was Thanatos, Mephistopheles, or Astarte, they were all satisfied with their compensation despite losing something.
Valefor understood the theory of the carrot and the stick.
At the same time, he couldn't help but feel impressed by his thoughtful and calculating
actions. They weren't things he would have done in the original timeline; all he had known
was killing and robbing.
Had he always been this smart?