Yue Shi thought silently for a while.
The Snow Leopard lay on his shoulder, its tail wrapped around his neck.
Several Cloud Whales swam nearby. One playful whale brushed past his face, feeling cool to the touch.
Qin Sansi didn't rush him. The old man's figure flickered in and out of the clouds, his hands behind his back in a serious posture.
In the distance, the sea of clouds surged, then became as calm as a mirror.
After a moment, Yue Shi finally spoke. “Fine. I agree to cooperate with you.”
A sharp light flashed in Qin Sansi's old eyes.
“Good, good, good.” He said the word three times, the wrinkles on his face smoothing out.
Then, he reached into the clouds beside him, rummaged for a moment, and pulled out his hand, holding a piece of golden paper between his fingers.
The paper was as thin as a cicada's wing and semi-transparent. Its surface was covered in fine patterns that glowed with a soft golden light in the illumination of the clouds.
Qin Sansi spread the golden paper before him and traced his index finger through the air.
With every stroke, a black character appeared on the golden paper, neat and clear.
He wrote slowly, carefully considering every clause.
“Neither party shall harm the other, neither party shall betray the other, and neither party shall damage the other's interests in any direct or indirect way.”
“When one party encounters danger, the other shall provide necessary assistance, provided it does not endanger their own life.”
“If one party discovers information that could significantly impact the other, they must notify them in a timely manner.”
Qin Sansi read aloud as he wrote.
Yue Shi added a few more clauses regarding confidentiality, cooperation, and resource sharing.
The terms were written fairly, with no sign of bias toward either side.
Yue Shi took the golden paper and read it from top to bottom.
The characters on the paper glowed faintly, carrying an indescribable sense of solemnity. Looking at the edges of the paper, there were no signatures or seals, only blank gold.
Yue Shi looked at Qin Sansi and asked, “Where does the binding force of this contract come from?”
Qin Sansi lowered his voice. “It's not convenient for me to tell you that. You only need to know that this contract is effective even against a True God. Both parties who sign must obey.”
Yue Shi nodded and didn't press further.
A contract was essentially a set of terms signed under the witness of a powerful existence. If violated, that existence would punish the offender.
That powerful existence could be the law, morality, rules, or a True God.
The witness Qin Sansi had found was clearly not the law, nor morality, and certainly not a True God.
Ordinary gods would be crushed by them; what right did they have to witness their contract?
Perhaps this contract was the conceptual authority of Trustworthiness itself?
Yue Shi looked down at the contract again. The ∞ symbols appeared in his three eyes, confirming that the contract posed no harm to him and that the terms were fair.
But he was a villain, and in a villain's eyes, everyone else was a villain too. He didn't quite trust Qin Sansi.
The reason he agreed to sign was that he wanted to find an opportunity to devour the old man. He had long coveted the Authority of Oblivion.
He suspected this old fox might have tampered with the clauses—perhaps a play on words, a seemingly harmless expression that was actually full of loopholes, or a trick utilizing the fact that the paper itself couldn't be fully deciphered.
Qin Sansi had been the director of the Bureau headquarters and had spent half his life playing power games and linguistic tricks. Countless people must have fallen into his traps in such matters.
But Yue Shi didn't care how strong the contract's constraints were because he had plenty of strength and means.
Back in the library of the Bewitching Beauty Painting Workshop school, there was an entire book dedicated to how to break contracts.
A perfect contract didn't exist. Loopholes existed in every agreement. If he couldn't find one, he could create one himself.
Moreover, Yue Shi possessed a treasure specifically for destroying contracts.
After repeatedly confirming the contract was harmless for now, Yue Shi signed it with the mindset of eventually breaking it. He slid his index finger across the bottom of the golden paper.
A black mark remained on the golden surface—his name, written in a twisted and sharp hand.
Qin Sansi also signed his true name. His signature was disciplined, every stroke clear.
The two styles of writing lay side by side on the golden paper—one flamboyant, the other reserved. They were like two rivers flowing from different directions, merging on this single sheet of paper.
The golden paper flashed and then began to shrink, curling inward from the edges. It grew smaller and smaller until it turned into a tiny golden speck of light floating between them.
The speck of light spun quietly for a few seconds before splitting into two, each drifting toward one of the men.
Yue Shi tucked the contract away. “Speak. What's the other, more important matter? The one you wouldn't tell me until we signed.”
Qin Sansi chuckled and didn't hide it any longer. He said directly, “The organization I've established is called ‘Double-Sided Tape.’”
“What a sloppy name,” Yue Shi remarked.
Qin Sansi said, “The name isn't important. What matters is that I've discovered a miraculous Otherworld.”
“An Otherworld?” Yue Shi's eyebrow twitched. He felt no sense of novelty at the word.
His experiences at the Bewitching Beauty Painting Workshop had exposed him to far too many bizarre worlds. Another Otherworld would just be another dot on a map already filled with locations.
Qin Sansi noticed Yue Shi's indifference and felt a bit puzzled, but he continued his enthusiastic pitch. “That Otherworld is truly miraculous. I plan to organize an expedition soon. I'll invite you when the time comes. You'll understand once you see it.”
Yue Shi felt a subtle excitement in Qin Sansi's expression, like a child sharing a long-hidden secret.
Usually, this old man just smiled as he watched others fall into pits. It was rare to see such an expression on his face.
Was the old guy going senile? Or was his brain just not working right?
“Fine. That Otherworld better be as interesting as you say. Is that the only thing you wanted today? Nothing else?”
“That's all.”
“Goodbye then.” Yue Shi turned and walked toward the edge of the sea of clouds.
The Snow Leopard jumped down from his shoulder and followed at his heels, its tail held straight up.
The Cloud Whales swam over from all directions, circling him once as a farewell.
Qin Sansi's voice followed from behind, full of laughter. “Wait for my news!”
Yue Shi waved his hand. His figure grew fainter and fainter until he vanished completely.
Qin Sansi stood where he was, looking in that direction. The smile slowly faded from his lips, replaced by a serious expression.
He had signed countless documents, reports, and orders in his life, as well as some shady agreements. But none had made him feel both at ease and uneasy like today.
He felt at ease because he had gained an incredibly powerful ally. He felt uneasy because that ally was Yue Shi.
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