Gu Xiechen strode toward the Barracuda VII transport ship docked at the landing pad, Siren trailing close behind, bombarding him with incessant questions about the deal he had struck with Admiral Vagri.

He quickly summarized the covenant between himself and Vagri in a few brief sentences, causing Siren’s eyes to light up. “This is too generous to us!”

A ripple disturbed the fiery red depths of Arethusa’s eyes as she too looked at Gu Xiechen with unconcealed excitement. The Holy Unicorn Mercenary Corps had been thoroughly dismantled by Gu Xiechen; both Arethusa and Siren now had to consider their futures. It seemed clear they had stepped onto Gu Xiechen’s rogue vessel; if the Hell’s Angels Mercenary Group could be upgraded into a Federation-recognized defense corporation, this outcome was unquestionably in their best interests.

Noticing the excitement of Siren and Arethusa, Gu Xiechen clapped Siren heartily on the shoulder and chuckled, “Indeed, it’s too cheap for us. Talk it over well with Arethusa; if it works out, you two can be my deputies from now on. I won’t treat you unfairly!”

Siren and Arethusa exchanged a look, a decision seemingly already forming between them.

Gu Xiechen inwardly sneered, muttering to himself, “Ninety-nine percent of the people in this world cannot be fully trusted, and the other one percent are completely untrustworthy. Without a doubt, Vagri, that bastard, is the prime specimen of that one percent!” Of course, Gu Xiechen wouldn't voice this thought to Siren.

Ingrid’s four companions suddenly materialized from nowhere, stripped to the waist and wearing camouflage green trousers, observing the scene from a distance. Gu Xiechen cast a deep glance their way; one young man provocatively made a throat-slitting gesture toward him. Siren’s gaze sharpened, and he started toward the youth, but Gu Xiechen grabbed him, forcefully pulling him aboard the Barracuda VII transport.

Siren struggled furiously, his voice a low growl, “No one dares provoke me, Siren the Sea Monster! I need to teach them a lesson!”

Gu Xiechen gave Siren a cold, sidelong glance and stated calmly, “They are provoking me. You don't need to be so ‘attentive’ in your anger ‘on my behalf.’”

“But!” Siren shouted. The transport ship’s ramp began to close slowly. Siren, utterly exasperated, glared at the four youths through the narrowing gap.

“I have a way to deal with them... Have you forgotten my agreement with Admiral Vagri?” Gu Xiechen leaned against the closing hatch and said softly, “The battlefield is perilous; accidents always happen.”

Siren and Arethusa exchanged knowing smiles.

A young maiden with an ample bust and an innocent, pure face emerged from a silver flash of light. Siren instinctively reached out and pinched the girl’s prominent chest. Arethusa’s fiery red eyes suddenly spewed two jets of flame, each about a foot long, and she clenched her fist, driving a solid punch into Siren’s face.

Siren was sent flying back over ten meters with a sharp howl, crashing into two Federation soldiers in the transport’s aisle. The summoned Spirit Puppet maiden, swaying her magnificent bosom, hurried toward Siren, crying out anxiously, “Master! Master!”

Arethusa grew even angrier. She rushed over and pulverized the delicate Spirit Puppet into dust with one punch, then fiercely brought her foot down onto Siren’s lower abdomen.

“Disgraceful!” Gu Xiechen spat onto the ground in irritation.

Three days later, in an unnamed valley.

Gu Xiechen, clad in a Daoist robe and Crane Cloak, stood gracefully atop a massive tree, his long sleeves billowing. Three full moons shone overhead, their pure moonlight rendering Gu Xiechen as ethereal as an immortal. He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing up at the triple moons. Wisps of white cold energy coiled around his body, and thin streams of pearlescent vapor entered and exited his nostrils; tiny ice crystals continuously fell from his person.

The Hanyuan True Scripture was operating at full capacity, and Gu Xiechen’s heart pounded mightily. With every beat, it digested a sliver of the immense energy derived from the essence blood of the Drought Demon transformed within his Dao Embryo. With each refined trace of Drought Demon essence blood, a faint bloody sheen flashed across Gu Xiechen’s eyes, though the glow quickly faded, replaced by an extremely thin veil of purple mist.

Beneath the tree, Siren, battered and bruised, was clinging shamelessly to Arethusa’s waist, muttering something to her. Arethusa wore a foul expression, kneading Siren’s waist repeatedly with her soft, pale hands. Siren winced in pain, his face twitching, yet he dared not move an inch.

Three hundred meters away, hidden in a patch of grass, Xin Jia was meticulously carving several thick, long arrows. These arrows, as thick as a grown man's wrist, were etched with several lines of ancient runes. Faint wisps of white mist could be seen constantly being drawn into these runes from the surrounding air, causing the wooden shafts to emanate a metallic cold luster that permeated the wood itself.

Thirty-six soldiers under Xin Jia’s command sat cross-legged in a Nine Palace formation within the dense woods a hundred meters behind him. These burly men sat motionless, their noses aligned with their hearts, assuming the five-point contact posture. The three moons above shone brilliantly, and faint, almost imperceptible threads of pale azure spiritual energy continually coalesced from the moonlight, gradually forming thirty-six streams of cyan light, each as thick as a bowl, pouring into the Tianling acupoints atop the men’s heads. As the men breathed deeply, the surrounding tall grass swayed slowly, resembling ocean waves.

Suddenly, a flock of multi-colored birds erupted from the woods to the due west, their dense, cloud-like flight accompanied by sharp cries; the cacophony of chirping echoed for tens of miles. Immediately following this, the terrified roars of several fierce beasts were heard from afar, and the distant trees swayed violently, as if some colossal, primordial beast was passing through.

The white cold energy wrapped around Gu Xiechen instantly retracted. Then, Ruohua and the junior Daoist Zhang came running rapidly from the west.

Still several hundred meters distant, Junior Daoist Zhang bowed deeply to Gu Xiechen, “Mr. Gu, we are truly sorry, truly sorry. The matter of Wū Qīng Nà is absolutely unrelated to our Asian Daoist Alliance.”

Ruohua, meanwhile, sought to ingratiate himself with Gu Xiechen. He carefully scrutinized Gu Xiechen’s complexion, then slapped his hands together with a loud laugh. “Gu Xiechen, you absorbed those three drops of Drought Demon essence blood? Heh heh, you carry a faint scent of our Jiangshen clan now... Heh heh, in a way, we are kin, aren’t we?”

Gu Xiechen shot Ruohua a fierce glare and coldly sneered, “I am clearly a living person. How could I possibly become a zombie?”

Ignoring Ruohua, Gu Xiechen extended his hand toward Junior Daoist Zhang. “What about the elixirs you promised me?”

Junior Daoist Zhang leaped into the air over ten meters high, using several trees for leverage with his toes, and soon stood on a branch less than ten meters in front of Gu Xiechen. He bowed again. “The elixirs are here!” Pulling up the front of his Daoist robe, Junior Daoist Zhang fumbled at his waist and tossed over ten small bottles to Gu Xiechen.

Gu Xiechen weighed the pills in his hand and casually tossed the bottles backward. The bottles sliced through the air for hundreds of meters, landing accurately in the open palm of Xin Jia. Xin Jia nimbly uncorked a bottle, sniffed the contents, and roared with thunderous voice, “Supreme One, these are indeed fine elixirs. Heh, although not of the highest grade, effort was certainly put into them.”

“Not of the highest grade?” Junior Daoist Zhang exploded in anger, jumping up and shouting hysterically, “Who said these elixirs weren’t top-tier? Tell this Daoist to step forward!”

Gu Xiechen coughed lightly, waving his hand with a smile, “My subordinate is ignorant. Why let it anger you so, Daoist Zhang?”

Ruohua restrained Junior Daoist Zhang, smiling at Gu Xiechen. “Gu Xiechen, you summoned us here not only to collect the elixirs you were owed but also said there was something else. What is it?” Ruohua’s physical strength was dozens of times greater than Junior Daoist Zhang’s; the moment he grabbed him, the Daoist could not move. He could only bounce angrily a few times before sulkily retreating behind Ruohua.

“I found the valley with those bamboo slips; I will take you there,” Gu Xiechen said with a smile. “I also agree that the actions of the Three Witches Sect had nothing to do with the Asian Daoist Alliance. Since we reached a cooperation agreement, I will honor our contract. Harmony brings wealth; if we discuss things calmly and rationally, everyone benefits.”

Ruohua glanced at Junior Daoist Zhang and cupped his hands. “Mr. Gu is absolutely correct. I wonder about the valley...”

Gu Xiechen raised a single finger, smirking coldly. “Do you know what the Golden Crow Heavenly Fire is? There is a source of fire in that valley. How much is that thing worth?”

“Golden Crow Heavenly Fire?” Junior Daoist Zhang and Ruohua both cried out simultaneously. Clearly, Junior Daoist Zhang’s shout was filled with excitement and delight, while Ruohua’s was choked with terror and shock. The two exchanged a look. Junior Daoist Zhang said urgently, “The Golden Crow Heavenly Fire, if it is truly the Golden Crow Heavenly Fire, then this, this, this value...”

Gu Xiechen smiled and spoke slowly, “Our Hell’s Angels Mercenary Group has a high chance of becoming a new Federation defense corporation, but our group’s scientific research capabilities are limited!”

Junior Daoist Zhang quickly interjected, “If it is truly the Golden Crow Heavenly Fire, our Asian Daoist Alliance can send you a powerful research team for assistance.”

“Deal!” Having successfully squeezed out a benefit, Gu Xiechen did not linger. He led Junior Daoist Zhang and Ruohua in a swift dash toward the south.

Ten kilometers away, atop a large tree, Ingrid slowly lowered his binoculars. He gave a cold smile to his four companions. “Good, the bait is set. Notify the brothers to prepare for work. Hmm, what do you think, does Gu Xiechen really believe our squad only has five members?”

The men shared a few sinister laughs, then leaped down from the tree, their bodies transforming into streaks of black shadow that melted into the night.

As soon as Ingrid and his group departed, a faint green shadow suddenly coalesced on the trunk of a nearby tree. The hazy light retracted inward, and Lily, the Spirit race maiden Gu Xiechen had met, emerged from the glow. She gazed thoughtfully in the direction where Ingrid’s group had vanished, muttering softly, “Xiao, did you hear what they said?”

Several metallic spiders, no bigger than mung beans and shimmering with silver light, crawled out from behind some leaves. A faint but clear voice issued from one of the spiders: “I heard, Lily. Hurry back; we need to formulate a detailed plan.”

A pale green leopard, about six meters long, silently emerged from behind a massive tree. Lily leaped onto the leopard’s back, cried out sharply, and the beast instantly turned into a streak of green lightning. Rider and mount rapidly vanished into the darkness.

×××××××××××××××××××××××××××

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