Chapter 321: A Minor Storm
“Is this an airplane?” Sitting in the plane, watching the clouds rapidly retreating beside her and the earth slowly falling away, Xiao Yu couldn’t help but feel emotional for a moment. In just a few short years, so many changes had taken place in the entire Great Xia Kingdom. A world that had remained unchanged for tens of thousands of years had begun to transform.
“Mother, once we arrive in Anyang, I’ll build you a supersonic plane, so you can experience the miracle of industry. Also, the Star-Plucking Pavillion in Anyang is almost completed. By then, we’ll be able to observe the stars in the sky from a distance a hundred, even a thousand times greater than the naked eye.
And then there are the warships—175 meters long, with a deck area nearly half an acre wide; built entirely of steel. The engine’s power is equivalent to 180,000 horsepower.
One hundred and eighty thousand horses! There probably aren’t even that many warhorses in the whole Great Xia Kingdom. Yet a single warship can possess such immense power. Even when fully loaded to 10,000 tons, it can still cruise across the sea at a speed of 60 kilometers per hour.
The latest artillery has a 356 mm caliber and can fire over 20 li (about 10 kilometers). The explosion is powerful enough to threaten even a Nascent Soul cultivator without protective magical treasures.”
Xia Qingqing, like an excited little girl, held her mother’s hand and eagerly talked about her “toys”—though these toys were a bit dangerous.
Xiao Yu looked at the cheerful Xia Qingqing, smiling lovingly, listening quietly, and enjoying the rare moment of warmth. Time passed quickly in this warmth. The plane slowly descended to the airport outside Anyang City, where a line of motorcars awaited them. Li Xian came in person to welcome them.
Meeting again here in Anyang, the former Empress Xiao Yu held Li Xian’s hand, looking at him with immense satisfaction. “Not bad, not bad. Xiao Xian, do you know? The thing that makes me happiest is that I’ve found a good home for Qingqing.”
“Mom, coming to Anyang is like coming home. There’s no need to hold back here. Let Qingqing accompany you to explore a bit over the next few days. Buy whatever you want. There are so many good things in Anyang.”
“I want to have a grand seafood feast,” Xiao Yu said without holding back.
“No problem.” Li Xian immediately instructed Chen Jinbing to go purchase seafood from the Golden Scale Group, established by the Dragon Palace of the East Sea in Yingzhou. The seafood in this world is abundant, partly due to the presence of demon beasts; those with high cultivation are especially delicious and nourishing. And in Anyang, as long as you have money, you can buy almost anything. Seafood feasts have become a fashionable enjoyment in Anyang, with some types even cheaper than rice.
While the Empress enjoyed an unprecedented seafood banquet at Li Xian’s place, Xu Ren went to the Adventurer and Mercenary Association to post a rescue mission—rescuing Fu Minghui and his 6,000 soldiers, and assisting Fu Minghui in registering his armed forces in Anyang. The mission was divided into three stages, with a total reward of 200,000 taels of gold.
Stage One: Escort Fu Minghui and his men out of the encirclement; 100,000 taels of gold.
Stage Two: Escort Fu Minghui and his men to Anyang; 80,000 taels of gold.
Stage Three: Successfully register all 6,000 men as adventurers and formally organize them into a mercenary group; 20,000 taels of gold.
Mission Requirement (Additional Condition): Priority given to those with high credibility.
“This is a brand-new kind of mission!” the attendant posting the task explained bit by bit to the surrounding mercenaries. “This mission has two main features. First, it’s segmented—once you complete the first stage, you can choose whether or not to proceed. If you opt out, other mercenary groups can take over the next part.
Second, since this mission involves around 6,000 people, it’s expected that some will die in battle, some will surrender, some will desert, and some may wish to return to a peaceful life. Therefore, it’s unrealistic to expect all 6,000 to reach Anyang, much less all register as adventurers and join the mercenary group.
So, our target is to have 4,000 people reach Anyang and register as adventurers and mercenary members. If 4,000 is achieved, the task completion rate is considered 100%. If fewer or more than 4,000 make it, the completion rate will be calculated based on 4,000, and rewards or penalties will be applied accordingly.
For example, if 4,500 people make it, the task success rate will be 112.5%. The association will give an additional reward of double points for the 12.5% surplus.
If only 3,500 people make it, the success rate is 87.5%. The association will deduct 12.5% from the points reward, without any multiplier.
If the final task completion rate is below 60%, it is considered a failure, and a warning will be issued. Failing to complete a mission properly not only affects others’ income, but also the association’s reputation and the lives of those awaiting rescue.
If the completion rate is below 55%, all commission will be forfeited, and half the points will be deducted.
If the completion rate is below 50%, the mission is deemed a failure. All rewards will be revoked, and one bad record will be logged.
When multiple mercenary groups or adventurers compete for the same mission, those with bad records will be excluded first.”
“This mission—our Xuantian Mercenary Group will take it! We just happen to be preparing to buy weapons and badly need funds.”
“We—the Mo Feitian Mercenary Group—will take it too!”
The two mercenary groups spoke almost simultaneously, barely a moment apart. According to the rules of the association, first come, first served—but since both parties spoke at nearly the same time, a crowd quickly gathered to watch the drama unfold.
The receptionist responsible for introducing and interpreting the missions remained calm and composed. “Gentlemen, this mission has an additional condition: ‘Priority goes to those with higher credibility.’ Based on that condition, the mission is awarded to the Xuantian Mercenary Group.”
“That’s not fair!” shouted the representative of the Mo Feitian Mercenary Group, with demonic energy surging in his eyes.
The receptionist continued smiling. “Sir, this condition was proposed by the client, and we are obliged to follow the client’s requirements when publishing missions. As of now, the Xuantian Mercenary Group surpasses your group in terms of credibility, points, and mission completion rate.”
After the explanation, laughter erupted from the crowd. “Ha! I just heard the funniest joke today: a demonic cultivator demanding fairness? Do you even know how to write the word ‘fair’?”
“Hey, you clearly don’t understand. Demonic cultivators are the ones who care the most about fairness. Survival of the fittest, the strong dominating the weak—that’s fairness without pretense. Hahaha…”
“Shh… bro, don’t talk recklessly. Inside Anyang, the Mo Feitian Mercenary Group might not do anything, but once you’re outside Anyang, who knows? Even if they respect the law here, they can just pay someone to take you out.”
“Yikes…” Many of those who had been laughing heartily just now suddenly froze and quickly dispersed. Although Anyang was decent, it was ultimately too small—if someone committed murder and fled to another country, there was little Anyang could do to reach them.
The crowd around burst into laughter again. Ever since the ‘Adventurers and Mercenaries Association’ opened, scenes like this had become a regular source of entertainment. After the amusement died down, everyone went back to snatching up missions.
Here, missions came in an endless stream. The sudden appearance of the ‘Adventurers and Mercenaries Association’ had many people wildly excited. People seeking medicine, healing, opportunities, spirit beast companions, those looking to find or complete rare manuals, merchant caravans seeking protection or escort—all kinds of tasks emerged one after another. Many of the missions posted here dazzled the eye, overwhelmed the senses, and even made people laugh or cry.
Some missions requested expert guidance on cultivation, while others were as strange as marriage proposals. There were even those seeking travel companions to tour the world, with a wide variety of criteria: well-read, skilled in certain arts, powerful cultivators—the list went on.
The mission to rescue Fu Minghui barely made a ripple in this sea of tasks. There were far too many missions with bounties exceeding a million taels of gold, but no one dared to take them—either the information was incomplete, or the danger was simply too great.