Chapter 291: Jacob Family

"You're short on money? Need to work for me? I'm currently short on manpower."

Leikèdun turned his head toward Aimu Lin on his left and made a suggestion.

"Not me!"

Aimu Lin instinctively shook his head in denial, then furrowed his brows slightly and said:

"You want a noble blood clan to become your subordinate? Do you think that's possible?"

"You can't even beat the rabbit I raise."

Leikèdun snapped at Aimu Lin, not waiting for a retort, then said:

"What I mean is, you could write some books on potion mixing and herb knowledge, preferably detailed and popular; I'll pay to purchase them."

"Popular? Wouldn't that make me look low‑level?"

"Every blood clan is a born alchemist; your remark questions our blood clan's abilities!"

Aimu Lin disdainfully curled his lip, lifted his chin slightly and replied: He even said I can't beat the rabbit he raises—does his rabbit also go by Tu Ba Ge?

Baita seemed to have just arrived at sea; his strength is unknown but likely great, and he also keeps a rabbit—suspicious! No wonder when I sought his advice, he looked eager for me to pray to Mr. Fool.

The proud‑vain vampire. Leikèdun made a mental assessment, then chuckled aloud:

"I want these books as basic knowledge for popularization, of course they must be understandable to ordinary people."

"Popularizing knowledge? Mr. Baita, are you planning to go into education?"

Justice Aodaili looked toward Leikèdun with slight puzzlement.

"In a sense, yes," Leikèdun said, leaning back in his chair and pondering.

After mentally confirming Leikèdun's identity, Aimu Lin's expression turned odd for a moment, mixing the delight of spotting an acquaintance at the Tarot gathering with inevitable awkwardness and irritation.

He felt his earlier performance at the Tarot gathering would look to the other party like watching a circus act, giving him an inexplicable sense of shame.

"Ahem! Ahem!" Aimu Lin cleared his throat twice to ease his awkwardness, then turned to Leikèdun with a solemn face and said:

"I can accept your proposal and compile some basic potion knowledge into a book, but I can't guarantee it will serve as a popular textbook."

"After all, most commoners can't even recognize whole words."

Leikèdun gave a slight nod and said:

"If it's substandard, I'll have you revise it."

"Of course, it won't be free; even defective goods have a price."

"You're questioning a noble blood clan," Aimu Lin glared at Leikèdun.

That has nothing to do with the blood clan's nobility. Mr. Yueliang seemed much more relaxed in front of Mr. Baita; was his earlier hesitation because he recognized Baita's identity? Do they know each other in reality? Their relationship even seems good.

Aodaili silently observed Aimu Lin's reaction from the side, reading a lot of information from him.

The Hanged Man A'erjie, who had made a similar reading of Aimu Lin's behavior, spoke in a deep voice:

"Do you still need an answer to the doubt you just raised?"

"Yes!" Aimu Lin quickly nodded, looking at the Hanged Man who had previously misquoted prices to him.

A'erjie gave Aimu Lin a glance, let out a chuckle and said:

"It's simple, but you must bear some risk."

Aimu Lin had intended to retort "Not me!", but after the recent incident, he no longer cared.

Seeing Mr. Yueliang not object, the Hanged Man smiled lightly and continued:

"In your daily life you gradually exhibit certain abnormalities, allowing that strong one to notice something's wrong with you."

"He has two options: first, to interrogate directly, which easily cuts off leads; second, to inadvertently aid you, letting you investigate deeper, then send someone to monitor you."

"I think the second is more likely; the risk you bear is how to conceal the information you wish to hide while under surveillance."

"Is that possible? Actually I never get exposed; whenever I attend a Tarot gathering I rest in the Harvest Chapel, showing no outward abnormality while offering sacrifices and receiving rites—things meant to be displayed to Lord Nibais and the like."

"Fine, I will proactively ask about Silver City while studying history," Aimu Lin thought for a moment, then quickly made up his mind.

He immediately recalled something else and turned to the Hanged Man, saying:

"Didn't you ask last week how to make everyone on a ship fall asleep simultaneously?"

"Simple. I can provide a magical anesthetic gas that spreads without a pungent odor; even on the deck, inhaling it causes unconsciousness."

"Of course, you should pick a windless night, and the target must have no sense of danger and not be too robust; the extraordinary ones famed for their bodies in the Ninth Tier are the limit."

"It can induce sleep for over three hours, after which its effect wanes. One can costs 100 pounds, plus an extra 30 pounds as my fee."

A'erjie considered the situation of the ghost ship's sailors, then gave a light nod without bargaining:

"Fine."

If not for Mr. Yueliang's suggestion, I would have turned to Baita for a comparable extraordinary ability, then rented Miss Magician's wondrous item—far too troublesome. Moreover, establishing a certain image before Yueliang makes future dealings with him easier.

As the discussion wound down, Kelaien, shrouded in gray mist, tapped the mottled long table twice with his fingers and smiled leisurely:

"I have already foreseen that next week you all will have new appearances."

"This gathering ends here."

"Thank you for your blessings."

Justice Aodaili was the first to stand, bidding farewell while expressing thanks.

With Mr. Fool's words, I gained a bit more confidence in taking the psychologist's magic potion.

As everyone repeated the same words, streaks of deep red light rose, and the space above the gray mist returned to its eternal silence.

On the Golden Dream vessel, Leikèdun, leaning against his chair, opened his eyes and glanced at the desk ahead, where a pale‑yellow sheet lay quietly.

"Leonard's reply is a bit slow! As a nightmare, he didn't stay up late to write back."

Muttering to himself, Leikèdun extended his left hand, emanating spirit, summoning an invisible hand that fetched the paper from the desk into his own.

Maintaining his lazy posture, he brought the letter before his eyes and read carefully:

The old man said he needs more information on *The Grolser Voyage*, and regarding the trade for the Dream‑stealer's potion formula, he wants you to deal with that Jacob family's demigod as payment; the potion formula can be given to you first.

Sequence Five: Dream Thieves, can take away others' ideals and dreams, can steal others' memories.

Main materials: the spiritual crystal of ancient resentful spirits, 30 grams of star crystal.

Why do I have to deal with that mouse demigod? Pales' condition isn't that bad, is it? Lekton pondered for a moment, then stopped paying attention to this matter.

Anyway, he'll have to look for Pales later, so agreeing to this condition doesn't matter.

He lightly flicked the left hand holding the letter twice, tossing the pale yellow paper into the spirit realm.

Afterwards he rose from the chair, turned his head toward the deck, remained silent for a moment, then his figure suddenly faded and became transparent.

The next moment, his figure appeared again on the deck.

Ming Qian suddenly appeared as a shadow, startling Yodesen who jerked back a step; after seeing the other's appearance, he then breathed a sigh of relief and glanced dissatisfiedly at Lekton, saying:

"Don't always just pop up in front of people like that; if you meet someone a bit timid, they'll probably just throw a fireball at your face."

Lekton raised an eyebrow at Yodesen, then immediately said:

"You're referring to Daniz, right? He shouldn't have such an opportunity."

"I've already obtained the formula for the Dream Thief's potion you need; how much money are you prepared to spend to buy it?"

"Huh?" Yodesen froze for a moment, his expression stiffening instantly.

He then showed a friendly smile, tried to get close and put his hand on Lekton's shoulder, but Lekton dodged without a trace; he naturally withdrew his hand and said behind his back:

"What would you do if I said I was just joking earlier?"

Lekton glanced at him unsurprisingly and let out a light laugh, saying:

"Nothing will happen, after all I'm serious."

Yodesen sized up Lekton's serious expression, after a while forced out a smile worse than crying, and said with difficulty:

"Not 3000, but 4000 pounds!"

"I can't go higher; this is the money I've prepared to buy potion materials."

Lekton gave a slight, indifferent nod; he had merely intended to extort some money from Yodesen.

Afterwards he glanced at him with a bit of curiosity and said:

"Are you from the Ya Ge family?"

Yodesen pressed his lips together, seeming hesitant, and after a moment of indecision he spoke:

"Why don't you think I'm from the Suoluoyaside or the A Meng family?"

Lekton placed both hands on the ship's rail, pushed hard, then turned his body and sat on the rail.

He gazed out at the sea, pondered, and said:

"A Meng couldn't possibly stay on this ship; this place is also within the God of Knowledge's sight."

"Besides, I know Pales."

"Palis? The head of the Suoluoyaside? Is he still alive?"

Yodesen looked very shocked.

"As a Sequence One angel, although He was somewhat miserably chased by A Meng, if A Meng isn't in a rush to become a god, surviving isn't really surprising, right?"

Lekton raised his eyebrows at Yodesen, knowing little information; it seems the Ya Ge family has also had a rough time under A Meng's pressure.

Yodesen frowned slightly; although he is a descendant of the Ya Ge family, under A Meng's pressure the Ya Ge family has already split into unrelated small households.

The small household he belongs to has long since declined, lacking even demigod-or-higher potion formulas and miraculous items.

After hesitating a moment, Yodesen said somewhat suspiciously:

"You seem quite familiar with us, or rather with the path of thieves?"

(End of chapter)