A long luxury magnetic-levitation vehicle pulled up before the entrance of a massive camp, stopping dead. At the gate stood two mercenaries, upright and stern, their expressions rigid as cast iron, their eyes blazing with a vibrant, focused energy.

As the vehicle passed a control panel as tall as the window, the driver lowered the glass, swiped a key card across the panel, and entered a code. The great gate of the barracks swung open.

The two sentries snapped to attention, raising their hands in a crisp salute to the vehicle—a movement so precise and decisive it left no room for hesitation.

Yusuf nodded slightly upon seeing them, then smiled. "Commander Yang Ying, Woreel has no hotels. I must ask you to accept lodging in the barracks for now. This facility is reserved by the Mercenary Alliance for distinguished guests. The conditions are quite good, and to honor your arrival, we have arranged a military exercise for this afternoon. I sincerely hope you will grace us with your presence."

"As mercenaries, staying in a barracks is no hardship. Moreover, the mercenaries trained in the Warrior City of Woreel are famous throughout the world; I have long desired to witness it myself," Yang Ying replied.

The convoy slowly entered the camp, proceeding down a road that was not particularly wide. On both sides of the road stretched vast training grounds. On the left, various obstacles for cross-country running were set up, and five to six hundred fully armed mercenaries were using them to hone their off-road capabilities.

Nearby, a ten-meter-high wall was being scaled by over a dozen individuals pulling on ropes. As one group cleared it, the next immediately followed. Twenty meters past the high wall, there was a line of low walls, two meters high, which had to be cleared without aid.

In the distance lay several rows of balance beams traversed by a constant flow of people. Beyond the beams, high-strung nets invited climbers, and low-hanging barbed wire demanded a prone crawl.

"Field operations are rare nowadays. Why are these mercenaries still training their cross-country skills?" Yang Ying asked Yusuf.

Yusuf chuckled. "While field combat has largely been eliminated from mercenary engagements, these skills remain fundamental for any warrior. Furthermore, a warrior must know how to maximize their potential in any terrain, because no one can guarantee they won't be deployed to the wilderness someday. The soldiers trained in this barracks are all aiming to become Class A mercenaries; they must master every combat technique to the highest degree."

"I see," Yang Ying nodded.

The training ground on the right simulated an urban environment, dotted with more than ten buildings of varying heights. Mercenaries used grappling guns to fire ropes tipped with alloy fixing cones; these cones, upon striking any solid material, would deploy barbs and lock securely inside. The other end of the rope was connected to an electric winch within the grappling gun, which could rapidly retract the line with the push of a button.

These ropes, woven from synthetic fibers, were only as thick as a little finger yet possessed incredible tensile strength; as long as the fixing cone held, they could pull up an elephant.

As Yang Ying watched, he saw a mercenary on the ground floor of a six-story building fifty meters away fire a grappling gun. The cone struck the window ledge of the sixth floor, and the mercenary instantly shot up from the ground to the sixth story before releasing the gun. Barely having stabilized himself and reaching for the window, an unexpected figure materialized before him. The figure raised a low-power stun rifle and fired a shot, striking the mercenary squarely in the face.

The mercenary cried out and tumbled downward, though he remained tethered by a thin safety line, ensuring a safe landing on the ground. Once down, the injured mercenary clutched his eyes and bellowed, as a group of medics rushed onto the field and escorted him away.

Yusuf had also witnessed the scene. "Those are low-power dart rifles. Hits to the body aren't life-threatening, but they cause a sharp pain for a moment. However, a careless shot to the eyes can cause permanent blindness."

"Blindness?" Yang Ying watched the departing mercenary, feeling a pang of sorrow for him.

Although electronic eye technology had matured, capable of completely replacing the organic eye—and even surpassing it with enhanced vision, X-ray capabilities, night vision, and powerful functions for analyzing distance, wind direction, target velocity, and more—many mercenaries even voluntarily had one of their eyes removed to be replaced by an electronic prosthetic. To those individuals, the heightened perception granted by the cybernetic eye translated into greater survival chances; trading one eye for a life was deemed an excellent bargain.

However, Yang Ying still favored retaining the eyes granted by natural human evolution.

The convoy passed the training grounds and arrived at the barracks area, where the buildings were comparatively low. Yusuf seemed intimately familiar with the layout, pointing out to Yang Ying the locations of the mess hall, dormitories, armory, and so on as they drove.

The mercenaries lining the road, whether alone or in groups, were chatting and laughing. But as soon as they spotted the elongated vehicle slowly approaching, they stopped whatever they were doing and snapped to attention for a formal salute.

The car continued deeper into the camp, stopping before a barracks building with no distinctive features on its exterior. This area saw very little traffic and possessed a profound tranquility.

"We're here," Yusuf announced.

The driver parked, opened the front door, stepped out, and then turned to open the rear door. Yusuf and Yang Ying alighted in succession. The vehicles following behind also halted. Brian directed the Ghost operatives to move the luggage and other items into the quarters first.

"I must now attend to arranging the military exercise. It is scheduled to commence promptly at two in the afternoon. I will return to collect you then. Please excuse me for the moment."

"That is perfectly fine, Mr. Yusuf. However, I do have one pressing matter I hope to discuss with you," Yang Ying said politely.

"Please ask," Yusuf replied.

"Regarding the promotion of the Tran Mercenary Group to a Major Mercenary Group, how does the Alliance intend to proceed with the discussion?" Yang Ying inquired. This was the primary reason for his visit to Woreel.

"Goodness, my memory!" Yusuf slapped his forehead. "Matters concerning nominations for Major Mercenary Groups are always discussed and decided by the Review Committee under the Alliance. Generally, to advance to Major status, a group must first become a Medium Mercenary Group, and then submit a promotion request to the Review Committee. Following that, the Committee dispatches an investigation team to assess whether the group possesses sufficient strength and meets the core requirements for a Major Mercenary Group before making a comprehensive decision on whether to approve the promotion. However, your group's performance has been truly exceptional, so the Review Committee has decided to merge the processes for your promotion to Medium and Major status. Your presence here in Woreel is precisely to discuss and finalize how this highly unconventional procedure will be implemented. That discussion is slated for tomorrow."

"So, you will send an investigation team to our group?" Yang Ying asked.

"That is certainly required," Yusuf stated seriously. "After all, the rules have stood unchanged for so many years. Since the founding of the Mercenary Alliance, every promotion to Major status has followed this protocol, without exception. This time, given your group's astonishing achievements, denying promotion would be untenable, yet promoting outside of procedure would invite even greater criticism. You must understand, quite a few envy your group."

"What about the three Super Mercenary Groups? Did they follow procedure as well?" Yang Ying asked.

"They were the founding elders of the Mercenary Alliance; this procedure didn't even exist when they formed," Yusuf answered.

"Mr. Yusuf, are you a member of the Review Committee?" Yang Ying asked.

"Yes, I am," Yusuf confirmed with a nod.

"Then I hope you understand, Commander, that there are many aspects of the Tran Mercenary Group we prefer to keep private," Yang Ying said gravely.

"Everyone has secrets; I understand that," Yusuf assured him. "It is widely known that even the three Super Mercenary Groups harbor secrets they haven't disclosed to the Alliance. Therefore, our Review Committee has no interest in prying into your group's secrets. We only need confirmation that you meet the several hard criteria for a Major Mercenary Group. For instance, while we have heard rumors, we have never seen your group's major warship. Possessing at least one major warship is a critically important benchmark for qualifying as a Major Mercenary Group."

Yang Ying considered this. "If it's only a matter of that, then it's manageable. I can ensure the Mercenary Group cooperates with your reasonable requirements to achieve Major status according to Alliance regulations. However, if any disruptive elements infiltrate the investigation team and attempt to pry into our secrets, I will not be lenient with them."

The three heavy cruisers retrieved from Gray Port had been fully repaired, but the crews needed to operate them were not yet at full strength. The personnel trained in recent days were only enough to man one warship, but that would suffice to handle the Review Committee's inspection.

Yang Ying recalled the core requirements for Major status: one major warship, an affiliated space city, a ten-billion deposit, nominations from two other Major Mercenary Groups, and acclaimed achievements. The Tran Mercenary Group already possessed all these.

Now, they only awaited the official verification from the investigation team. Yet, from the incident involving that minor figure at the port, Yang Ying sensed a hostile faction within the Mercenary Alliance targeting the Tran Mercenary Group. This faction was highly likely to attempt to stir up trouble during the investigation, which was why Yang Ying gave Yusuf this preemptive warning: should any spies be caught embedded in the inspection team, he would show no mercy.

"That is only natural," Yusuf agreed. "If Commander Yang Ying has no further matters, please rest in the quarters for now. Lunch will be delivered to your room."

"Then I shall see you this afternoon, Mr. Yusuf," Yang Ying replied.

After Yusuf departed, Yang Ying and Brian selected a room to occupy first. Although its exterior resembled the other buildings in the complex, the interior furnishings were strikingly advanced, with all facilities perfectly appointed. It possessed the unique cleanliness and orderliness characteristic of the barracks, comparable to a five-star hotel.

"They clearly don't offer accommodations like this to ordinary soldiers," Yang Ying commented upon entering the room.

"Sir, why agree to the investigation team's demands? Can we not control the four cities without the Alliance's recognition?" Brian asked, following him inside.

"Even if we can control the cities, must we actively antagonize the Mercenary Alliance? We cannot afford to make enemies of the entire world. We must distinguish between friends and foes. Turning an enemy into a friend is always better than annihilating them. Given that, why push someone who could be an ally onto the opposing side? The Alliance is simply following its established rules, and we can manage that. If someone tries to stir up trouble, our Ghost operatives are hardly decorative," Yang Ying said with a smile.

Finally finished before tomorrow! Vote!