A slap, then a sweet date.
Emrys wasn't oblivious to such a simple principle; the carrot and stick approach works in any era.
After the stick, it was time for the 'sweet date.'
"Actually, it's not like I can't give you freedom." Emrys deliberately paused for a few seconds, drawing the Void Dragon's attention, then slowly said, "That's the truth, I never lie to people, even just now. If you didn't discover the problem yourself, you can't blame me, can you?"
The Void Dragon thought carefully, and it seemed to be true.
Although Emrys was cunning, at least in their conversation, he hadn't lied once; every word was true, just a few sentences were omitted.
"What do you want?" By now, the Void Dragon had learned its lesson and first asked about the price.
"It's very simple." Emrys snapped his fingers, a familiar smile on his face.
"I can grant you freedom, but on one condition... you must serve for five hundred years. During this period, you will be my slave. After five hundred years, I will release you."
"Do you think I'd still believe your words?" The Void Dragon's heart wavered for a moment but quickly reacted, watching him warily.
"Five hundred years isn't too long for a C'tan, is it?" Emrys smiled, nonchalantly saying, "Besides, whether you agree or not, it doesn't seem to stop me from controlling you, does it? It just makes it a bit more troublesome, having to command you every time.
That sounds quite reasonable... The Void Dragon thought about it. Even if it refused, wouldn't it still be a slave?
In that case, it might as well agree!
"How do I know you're not trying to trick me this time?!" The Void Dragon, already wary of being tricked, was afraid of falling into an even deeper pit.
"Do you have any other choice?" Emrys shrugged, smiling, "No, you don't. The reason I'm saying this is just that I hope you'll cooperate well with me during my lifetime, just five hundred years.
I'll probably only live that long. When I die, I'll return your freedom. How about that?"
"Are you sure, only five hundred years?!"
The Void Dragon was a little disbelieving and asked him for confirmation again.
Five hundred years, for a C'tan, is just a fleeting moment. It's better than staying in the 'Hyper-Dimensional Tesseract' and being used as a 'power bank' by the Necrons, right?
"Of course, five hundred years!"
Emrys smiled, speaking gently, "And, not only will I release you, but as long as you can satisfy me, I will also find other 'fragments' for you. How about that?"
"Really?!"
Hearing this condition, the Void Dragon was truly moved.
Even if it gained freedom, it might not be able to escape, as the power of the fragments is ultimately limited, which buried a hidden danger.
But now, its last bit of worry had also been resolved by Emrys. As long as it fused with the power of two or three more fragments, even if a Necrons Dynasty came, it would be confident enough to escape!
"I swear in the name of the God-Emperor!"
Emrys brought out the 'yellow weasel' again, saying with a serious face, "As long as you honestly serve me for five hundred years, I will find at least five fragments for you and return your freedom!"
"Okay, I'll do it!"
The Void Dragon's resentment vanished, and it suddenly felt full of energy, eager to start working immediately!
Very good, very spirited!
Emrys nodded in satisfaction, not expecting that the tactics used to PUA workers in the 3K era would still be just as effective against a C'tan!
At that time, he would also let the Void Dragon experience how to exploit workers!
Performance appraisal, understand?
Thorzak and Hilda, after finally navigating through layers of traps, emerged from the passage dusty and disheveled, but seeing Emrys, who looked calm and as if nothing had happened, they felt a bit unfair!
Why did they struggle so hard, almost dying in the traps, only to arrive here, while Emrys remained unscathed?
However, what shocked the two even more was yet to come.
"You came at just the right time. Let me introduce you."
Emrys pointed to the metal armor beside him, its head bowed like a puppet, and said, "This is the famous C'tan, Void Dragon Mag'ladroth, and now he is my slave."
The Void Dragon clenched his fists. If this body wasn't metal, his blood vessels would probably have burst from anger.
However, his pride lasted only half a second.
"What are you standing there for? Do you want to taste your favorite big slap again?!" Seeing no movement for a while, Emrys slapped him with the back of his hand.
Slap!
The Void Dragon was knocked over by a slap, his resentment growing even stronger, but he couldn't do anything to Emrys. So, the mighty C'tan swallowed his anger.
"Yes, Ma—Ma—master!"
"Ma—master?!"
Thorzak and Hilda were stunned. They turned to look at the 'Void Dragon' beside them, feeling as if they had fallen into confusion.
What on earth happened?!
They had only been separated for half an hour, how did the Void Dragon become a slave when they met again?
Thorzak felt his thoughts were a bit muddled, the eerie green flames in his eye sockets flickering wildly.
"Wait, let me confirm something—are you saying that this metal armor standing next to you is the 'Void Dragon'?"
He found it incredibly hard to believe. This was the legendary C'tan, and a powerful a second only to the 'Nightbringer.' How did he become a slave in the blink of an eye?
"To be precise, there's only the Void Dragon's consciousness in here." Emrys turned back, nodding his chin towards the Hyper-Dimensional Tesseract.
"There, the C'tan fragment you're looking for is still in there."
Thorzak glanced at it and confirmed that the 'C'tan fragment' in the Hyper-Dimensional Tesseract had completely lost its value, merely an empty shell.
Could it be true?!
This Necrons Overlord turned his head, dumbfounded, as if his entire being had frozen.
"You—you really are, Void Dragon Mag'ladroth?!"
"Hmph."
Despite becoming a slave, deep down, the Void Dragon still harbored some pride, after all, he was once one of the most powerful C'tan.
"Pathetic servant, since when do you dare to question your former master!"
He merely used a bit of his consciousness, and the space within the entire world of the tomb seemed to be leveraged by some powerful order. A vast and terrifying pressure, like a tsunami, engulfed Thorzak!
It's true!
Feeling the turmoil in the surrounding material universe, Thorzak's heart trembled. It was genuine—this metal armor contained the C'tan 'Void Dragon'!
"You, how on earth did you do it?!" Thorzak was going crazy. This was something only a Necrons Dynasty, or even a Silent King, could achieve!
Under normal circumstances, if a C'tan fragment escaped, even the Necrons would need the power of an entire Dynasty to re-seal it!
But now?
Emrys, by himself, sealed one of the strongest C'tan, the 'Void Dragon.' Even though it was just a fragment, it was almost an Arabian Nights tale!
"Well, that's a secret." Emrys smiled. Of course, he couldn't impart knowledge related to 'magic' to xenos.
"" Thorzak didn't get the answer he wanted, and he was practically itching with curiosity. For a 'tech-head' seeking the unknown, this was the greatest temptation.
Looking at Emrys, he seemed to finally understand why Trazyn the Infinite valued a human so much.
Although he had been in contact with Emrys for some time, the deeper he delved, the more he felt that a huge mystery was hidden within this human!
The Necrons' intuition told Thorzak.
Perhaps, the secret that Trazyn the Infinite had always been searching for was hidden within this human!