Li Zhan answered without hesitation, "Yes."
"Huh!"
Wang Yan was taken aback. "You agreed so quickly. I didn't expect you to be so compliant!"
"Do I have another choice?" Li Zhan replied with a bitter smile. "You brought me into this world but didn't kill me. Instead, you offered me a way out. Clearly, you have a reason to keep me alive!"
"Haha!" Wang Yan chuckled dryly. "It's convenient to talk to smart people."
"This isn't about being smart or not," Li Zhan said, having recovered from the terror of his earlier experience. He straightened his wind-blown hair, looked at Wang Yan, and sighed. "Even if I had a different opinion, would you listen?"
"No," Wang Yan replied with a firm nod. He wasn't about to play the role of a saint. From the moment he brought Li Zhan to his planet, he had no intention of letting him go free.
"So, I have no choice at all. Great God, I'm a man who's lived half my life. Let's not play cat and mouse. If there's something you want me to do, just tell me straight!" Li Zhan said, accepting his situation.
"Anyone who can be a con artist really has some skills!" Wang Yan remarked, genuinely impressed. "Thick-skinned, cunning, and with a good head on your shoulders—yet you still have an honest, loyal face. You're more suited to surviving on Earth than I am."
Li Zhan's face darkened. "Great God, let's not talk about Earth. I didn't get any benefits there, and I nearly lost my life! In the face of absolute power, all schemes and tricks are useless!"
"Now that's flattery I can appreciate," Wang Yan said with a grin.
"…" Li Zhan was speechless. "Great God, let's cut to the chase. What exactly do you want me to do? Give me something concrete!"
"Help me build this planet," Wang Yan stated plainly.
"Build a planet?" The magnitude of the task frightened Li Zhan. He swallowed hard and looked at Wang Yan. "Can you be more specific? I'm just an ordinary man—I don't have your supernatural powers."
"Come with me. I'll show you your new work environment. You'll figure out what to do soon enough," Wang Yan said.
With that, he took Li Zhan to the Alexander tribe.
The Caesar tribe was Wang Yan's inner circle, with its strange flame warriors. Li Zhan wasn't allowed to step foot there. The Alexander tribe, however, was new and could be handed over to Li Zhan as a practice ground. With a god like Wang Yan overseeing everything, there was no fear of Li Zhan messing things up.
As Li Zhan had pointed out, in the face of absolute power, no conspiracy or trick could prevail.
"Primitives!" Li Zhan exclaimed, taking in the tribe's situation at a glance. Seeing the miserable state of the primitive people and their harsh living conditions, the confident expression on Li Zhan's face quickly faded. Sweat beaded on his forehead.
"Yes, primitive people," Wang Yan confirmed. "Your main job is to use your knowledge—thousands of years ahead of theirs—to help improve their living standards. Simple enough!"
"Simple?" Li Zhan quickly turned around, knelt, and kowtowed to Wang Yan, pleading, "Great God, please kill me quickly. I beg you!"
He clung to Wang Yan's leg, crying, "God, I'm just a small-time hustler on Earth, not Bear Grylls. I can sell some trinkets, but this wilderness survival stuff is beyond me! Can I get a different job…?"
Wang Yan kicked him away, scolding, "What are you afraid of? The living conditions are rough, but I'm here to help you! Whatever you need, just ask. Who said anything about wilderness survival?"
Li Zhan was taken aback and asked hesitantly, "Can I really ask for anything?"
Wang Yan said, "As long as it exists on Earth, no problem."
Li Zhan hesitated a moment longer, then asked, "Guns?"
"Get lost," Wang Yan snapped irritably. "If I could get guns, would I need to sell diamonds?"
"…" Li Zhan fell silent.
"I can get anything money can buy," Wang Yan clarified.
"A generator?"
"No problem."
"Food? Water? Tents?"
"No problem," Wang Yan agreed readily.
Li Zhan gritted his teeth and said, "Then I should be okay."
It's better to live than to die. If he could import supplies from Earth, his survival pressure would be much lower. He could manage this job!
Li Zhan said, "I want everything I just mentioned. I'll make a list of anything else I need. I hope you'll keep your word…"
"Don't get too excited just yet," Wang Yan interrupted with an awkward smile. "There's a very real problem: I don't have that much money."
"No money? What are you saying…" Li Zhan began to shout, but then paused, confused. "Don't you have that big diamond? How can you not have money?" Li Zhan gave Wang Yan a puzzled look and muttered, "Wait a minute… you must be broke. Otherwise, you wouldn't have come to my little shop to sell such a big diamond."
Wang Yan's face turned red. "Li Zhan, your skin must be itching, huh?"
After a few seconds of thought, Li Zhan said, "Great God, send me back to Earth. Let's sell the diamond, and then we'll have money. I have a way."
Worried that Wang Yan might doubt him, he added, "I really do have a way. I'm not lying this time. Great God, you have to believe me—you're so powerful, how could I dare lie to you? I don't want to die!"
"Alright." Wang Yan was silent for a moment before suddenly reaching out and tapping Li Zhan's forehead.
The planetary lord's skill: Mark.
A cool sensation spread across his forehead. Li Zhan shivered and asked, "What did you do?"
"Just marking you, so I can keep track of your movements at all times and summon you whenever I want," Wang Yan explained calmly.
Hearing this, Li Zhan's face turned ashen. Sweat poured down his forehead, and he forced a bitter smile. "God, with power like yours, I wouldn't dare try to run!"
Wang Yan on Earth and the current Wang Yan were practically two different people. Li Zhan had previously considered escaping once back on Earth, freeing himself from Wang Yan's control.
Life on Earth was far too good. Who in their right mind would want to spend the rest of their life isolated with a bunch of primitive, stinking people?
But now, with the mark on his forehead, Li Zhan realized any thoughts of escape were futile.
He could feel a faint connection between him and Wang Yan, as though his every move was under Wang Yan's watchful eye.
To prove the point, Wang Yan casually teleported him, flinging him into a desert thousands of miles away, only to summon him back in an instant.
After being toyed with like a plaything, Li Zhan's anger simmered with no outlet. He could only force a bitter smile and ask, "Great God, what are you doing?"
Wang Yan glanced at him. "Just testing a skill."
Is there no end to this bullying?
"…" Li Zhan muttered, "You're the boss, whatever you say goes!"
"Alright, you can go back to Earth now," Wang Yan said. "Take this chance to say goodbye to your family. You can't just disappear without a trace—it's better to leave some explanation."
It felt like a farewell to life.
Thinking about his future, and the possibility that he might never see his wife and children again, Li Zhan's tears welled up. His expression was one of deep sorrow, and he muttered, "You're the boss. Whatever you say."
Seeing a forty-something-year-old man cry in front of him, Wang Yan couldn't help but feel a bit soft-hearted. Was he being too cruel?
And besides, which company hires employees and expects them to work without pay?
After thinking it over, Wang Yan tried to comfort him. "Don't be so down. Tossing around in that little shop of yours can't compare to working with me. On a small scale, I have a planet's worth of resources here. Just a tiny bit could make your family rich for generations! On a larger scale, you're working for a god. Do well, and maybe one day, you could become a god yourself!"