I Don't Agree to the Terms

Chapter 823 437: I'm a Double Agent!

Now that I've understood everything, the conclusion is clear: Elena never really delved deep into developing and mastering the primal Moon Energy; she's always been caught in a struggle for power.

The Moon Star Resistance Army isn't as united as one might imagine, with plenty of infighting and covert battles going on internally.

Fosa's capture wasn't because the AI discovered any clues. Those clues had been detected by big data the first time they supported the Moon Star Resistance Army, but given Gu Shanhai's instructions, they turned a blind eye while occasionally suppressing the situation.

For example, the previous resource shortage was due to this kind of situation.

As for Fosa's capture, it was solely due to insiders within the Resistance making moves against Elena, even reporting him, making it inappropriate for the AI not to act.

Regarding this, Gu Shanhai was truly at a loss, feeling it was a shallow pond with too many turtles, a small temple swayed by strong winds.

At the beginning, there certainly weren't so many messy affairs, but as the rebellion settled, the powers that be inevitably fostered different ambitions.

"Leader, the supplies Mr. Gu mentioned have arrived." A member of the Resistance came rushing over, offering a reminder.

"I know, go and store them." Elena nodded, not bothering with inventory checks; she had the foresight to know that implying a lack of trust in Gu Shanhai would be improper.

However, inventory checks certainly needed to happen, but she didn't mention it.

"Since the supplies have arrived, I'll be off then. The next batch will arrive in about three to five days." Gu Shanhai rose to leave.

But Elena called out to stop Gu Shanhai: "Mr. Gu, please wait, I have another request, and I hope you can agree."

"Go ahead, as long as it's something I can manage." Gu Shanhai always kept an open door without overcommitting.

"We need some Ghost Energy Weapons. I wonder if you can get some. Of course, if not, we can substitute with..." Elena spoke without hesitation.

If she directly asked for some rare and highly embargoed materials, Gu Shanhai would certainly not agree so easily.

So, to open a small window, she had to imply she wanted to tear off the roof, then retreat for a lesser demand, making success more likely.

"I'll do my best to help gather them, but don't get your hopes too high." Gu Shanhai spread his hands, thinking she was quite bold.

After speaking, he walked away without looking back.

Five minutes later, Elena finally spoke: "Marquis, follow this Mr. Gu and gather all his intelligence."

"This... doesn't seem right." A high-ranking member of the Resistance hesitated before speaking.

A gleam flashed in Elena's eyes: "We do this for Mr. Gu's own good. Only by grasping all his intelligence can we better protect him, preventing him from ending up like Fosa in prison."

As she said this, everyone inwardly criticized: Sending a Resistance member to monitor and gather the opposition's intelligence? Isn't that just asking for exposure?

But nobody spoke, as Fosa's capture had left them all on edge, and without someone to fill the void, their lives wouldn't be easy.

So if they could indeed seize control, ensuring a steady supply channel, at least their enjoyment could be more varied.

At this point, the Moon Star Resistance Army claimed to be overthrowing the Ascension Empire, but in reality, they just wanted to establish their own power and live in luxurious debauchery by exploiting others.

Though no one spoke of it, everyone knew the Ascension Empire wasn't something they small fry could overthrow. Shouting slogans was fine, but believing them was another matter.

"That's right, the leader is correct, we must protect Mr. Gu!"

"I think Marquis alone might not be enough, we should send another person to quickly gather the necessary intelligence."

"If it's appropriate, we should quickly relocate Mr. Gu's family to our base for protection, preventing retaliation."

"Exactly, it'd be best to understand Mr. Gu's assets and arrange some people to protect them as well."

With Elena taking the lead, the other high-ranking members immediately followed suit without hesitation.

Everyone agreeing on this made Elena quite satisfied. If it were Fosa, she might hesitate due to their old friendship. But with a stranger who recently came into their circle and whose support was still reserved, it was only natural to 'deeply' understand.

"You all are right, but we need to proceed step by step." Elena thought the suggestions of protecting his family and entering his ventures were feasible, but not immediately, as they currently knew nothing.

...

"These people are too sinister..." Gu Shanhai couldn't help but complain on his way out. Wasn't it about resisting the AI tyranny and overthrowing the Ascension Empire? How did it turn into a façade akin to an organized crime syndicate?

"No wonder Fosa couldn't even support his family, being bled dry like this would leave anyone destitute."

At this moment, Gu Shanhai realized the Moon Star Resistance had fallen, not much different from those Sun Tribes.

Oh, there's a difference. The Sun Tribes, though stagnant, were self-sufficient, having started farming and livestock in the canyon, with Didor intending to be their chief.

The Moon Star Resistance, however, turned directly into bandits, becoming kings of the mountain while robbing and cheating under the guise of justice.

In terms of threat, besides defying the Ascension Empire, the Sun Tribes were already like good citizens, whereas the Moon Star Resistance would often raid transport teams.

"Next, it's to incite a conflict between the Moon Star Resistance and the Sun Tribes."

The method of incitement was simple: since Elena wanted Ghost Energy Weapons and a large supply of rare materials, Gu Shanhai would provide them.

However, if the shipment got intercepted by the Sun Tribes along the way, that wouldn't be Gu Shanhai's problem.

At that point, Gu Shanhai would say these were brought at great risk, and there was only this batch. Getting another one wouldn't be easy, if even possible. Then it would be interesting to see if Elena could swallow her anger.

If she could, then inciting the Sun Tribes with some 'coincidences' would let Didor know where the Moon Star Resistance was based, and how with this batch of weapons and supplies, they could easily wipe them out.

Elena might tolerate it, but Didor couldn't; he would love nothing more than to skin and disembowel Elena.

Of course, more importantly, Didor wasn't bright enough to understand what patience meant; he repaid grievances on the spot.

"Ah, it gives me the feeling of children playing house." Gu Shanhai mused, realizing that if not for maximizing both parties' protagonist potential, he wouldn't bother with such complexity.

"However, the gains are quite substantial."

Gu Shanhai examined the new records of primal Moon Energy in his hand.

He had already deduced part of the lunar concept data and knew how to help Elena evolve primal Moon Energy into the power of the lunar concept—it just required a trifling bit of help.

This help, naturally, was the conflict between the two small powers.

As long as Elena didn't want to become Didor's tortured slave after defeat, she would undoubtedly strive to make herself stronger, and at that moment, the protagonist's potential merely needed a little push to let her reach Didor's level of power.

The specific process wasn't important; what mattered was achieving the desired result.

"Besides, I keep thinking there might be a third-party legacy involved." Gu Shanhai suspected both the Sun King and Moon Priest possessed legacies, which had origins likely rooted in other worlds within this world's community.

He needed enough data as proof.

Gu Shanhai was also collecting these data.