Chapter 51

"In short, I've said everything I needed to say. How you proceed depends on your own judgment."

Herbert smiled at Svani, winking at her gently, and said:

"I know this is sudden, and you can't accept it right away—but it's fine. We have time. You can take more time to think."

Ultimately.

Although Herbert's demeanor was sincere and moving, and his terms sounded extremely tempting, Svani still did not accept his invitation on the spot.

She said she needed time to consider.

After all, doing so would mean cutting ties with her past self and severing bonds with her blood relatives.

Such a major decision shouldn't be made as lightly as a child's game.

Herbert understood this fully and did not pressure her to decide immediately; he was willing to wait for her to think carefully before giving him an answer.

Moreover, worried she might feel awkward, he kindly refrained from pressing further and decisively left, giving Svani all the time she needed.

"This visit ends here. I'll take my leave. Think it over carefully."

"... Mm."

Herbert turned easily and walked toward the treehouse exit, waving behind him: "No need to see me off."

Behind him, Svani said nothing, standing silently at the threshold, watching him step by step depart into the forest.

After entering the luminescent forest, Herbert's expression remained unchanged, his pace steady and unhurried, as if strolling leisurely through the night woods.

Only after fully exiting the forest and returning to darkness did he stop, squinting as he slowly exhaled.

Huh…

After letting out a long breath, Herbert nodded silently and smiled meaningfully.

"Heh."

In his mind, the mischievous voice of Miss Xie Shen chimed in: 【"Looks like your charm offensive failed~"】

【"Looks like your charm isn't strong enough—she didn't even accept your invitation!"】

"Heh, what do you know?"

Herbert snorted lightly, not angry at all, and said casually:

"If someone doesn't refuse outright, it's already a success—there's at least a seventy percent chance it counts as agreement."

"When they agree is just a matter of time."

Herbert thought Miss Xie Shen, who called herself the Evil God, truly didn't understand these subtle nuances.

"I've literally pointed at her nose and told her to rebel—and all she said was she'd think about it."

"Do you call this a failure—or a success?"

【"…"】

Nie Nasha fell silent, realizing things weren't as simple as they appeared.

Seeing Miss Xie Shen silent, Herbert didn't press further, smiling and shaking his head.

Heh.

Teasing an ally was fine—but there was a limit.

Know when to stop. Don't push Him too far.

As for his first meeting with Svani, Herbert was overall quite satisfied.

In Herbert's view, as long as she hadn't made a move to throw him out the moment he finished speaking, it was already a basic success.

Giving Svani time to think was merely offering her a face-saving exit, so things wouldn't look too ugly on the surface.

Anyone who could betray their own kin easily wouldn't be seen as an easy target.

Even if she truly was such a person, she wouldn't want to appear that way.

"You really don't understand human hearts."

Nie Nasha:?

【"Hmph!"】

Miss Xie Shen had been about to drop the subject, but upon hearing this, she grew displeased, snorting:

【"Listen, my dear ally—I may not understand human hearts, but do you really understand women's hearts?"】

"Oh? How so?"

Herbert blinked, asking with a hint of amusement: "Do you have some profound insight?"

【"Of course!"】

Though Herbert couldn't see Nie Nasha's expression, he could sense His triumphant tone.

【"She may agree to your invitation—but don't you find this whole process too easy?"】

Herbert raised an eyebrow and immediately understood His meaning.

"You think Svani is… too accommodating?"

Too easy?

【"Don't you think so?"】

Nie Nasha's voice, unusually serious, called him by name: 【"Herbert, no legendary cultivator is simple."】

【"You don't understand how hard the path to legend is—no one becomes legendary easily."】

【"Whether it's this seemingly quiet little elf, that singing little fish, or that seemingly easy-to-bully little bat… none of them are as simple as they appear."】

No powerful cultivator is a naive innocent.

Nie Nasha continued speaking, but Herbert suddenly interrupted: "Where's my Valentina?"

"Why don't you mention her? What did our Valentina do? Why didn't you include her when talking about legends?"

Isn't she a legendary cultivator?

I ask you, isn't she a Legendary Stronger?

Don't you dare follow Valentina's rhythm!

Isn't she just a little slow, a little dense, a little greedy?

Do you really have to treat her so differently?

Our Valentina Protection Association does not accept such double standards!

【"So... you think I'm lying to you?"】

Miss Xie Shen's tone was slightly displeased, as if ready to explode at any moment.

"No, I actually agree with you."

Herbert shrugged, smiling gently as he soothed: "Everything you said, I'm fully aware of."

"Not just these Legendary Strongers—even ordinary people wouldn't fall so easily."

Human interaction and relationships aren't a dating game where "if you pick the right choices, the other person will unconditionally fall in love with you."

People are complex.

They aren't easily changed by others.

Unless using forced hypnosis, there won't be scenes where someone radiates aura and strangers immediately kneel and bow.

Herbert's current external conditions and special abilities merely lowered this threshold significantly and accelerated the process.

"But, Nie Nasha, you've overlooked one thing—does Svani even have a choice?"

【"Choice?"】

"Yes, choice."

Herbert walked through the seemingly endless darkness, savoring the silence.

"If this were the outside world, she wouldn't even acknowledge me—she could ignore me as a Bai Chi."

"But here, in the Third Oath Chamber, she is merely a prisoner, and I am the only warden willing to show her kindness."

"If she doesn't want to remain unchanged, she has only one option: to cooperate with me."

Herbert's lips curled slightly, a faint smile flickering in his pale eyes.

"So it's not that Svani is easygoing, nor that Fu Leimei and the others are overly obedient."

"It's that they simply have no choice."

(End of Chapter)