Liu Hui frowned, shaking his head. This Xiaoyaozi was truly mercenary; quick to act when there was profit, yet sluggish and near death the moment benefits ceased. Fortunately, what the man desired was currently inconsequential to him; Grade Four Magic Beast Cores were ubiquitous across the Magic Planes.

The thought of the Magic Planes immediately reminded Liu Hui of the tasks he had assigned to Alexander, and he quickly established a link with him.

Alexander connected to the trading device a moment later, his face lighting up upon seeing Liu Hui. “Respected Teacher, it brings me such joy to see you. The weapons you provided me are simply miraculous.”

“Heh, my dear Alexander, how has your practice been progressing?”

“Respected Teacher, I have already expended ninety-five rounds. Although that weapon has extremely high demands on the user, I have now completely mastered its operation. I can now accurately strike a target at 1,300 meters,” Alexander declared excitedly.

“Oh, and can you maintain that accuracy even with high winds?”

“Yes, I can strike the target accurately even with wind interference. I even experimented during heavy rain, and the results were the same,” Alexander added proudly.

Liu Hui felt a sheen of sweat break out on his forehead. He had no idea how high Alexander’s potential truly was. Everything he had taught the young man—save for the ability to cultivate Dou Qi—Alexander eventually surpassed him in. If not for the thousands of years of accumulated knowledge of the entire human world supporting him, Liu Hui would amount to nothing before Alexander; perhaps he should be the one calling him Teacher.

“Have you measured the closest approach of the Golden Slime King to the cliff face?” Liu Hui inquired.

“The Golden Slime King nears the cliff when patrolling its territory. The closest distance it achieves is roughly 1,200 meters. At that range, I can guarantee I can kill it,” Alexander replied.

“The ammunition I provided earlier cannot guarantee a complete kill of that Golden Slime King. I will now give you the secret weapon capable of completely eliminating it.” Liu Hui spoke, pulling out ten Ice Cores and ten Fire Cores, placing them on the trading device.

Alexander’s face brightened with joy. He clicked the transaction, and the rounds instantly appeared in his hands. He asked with curiosity, “Teacher, the power of the previous rounds you gave me was already immense; they could easily shatter hard stone. Are there things even more potent than those?”

Liu Hui smiled. “The rounds I am giving you now are vastly more powerful than the previous batch. Those were merely for practice; these are the trump cards. Look at the cyan rounds—they can instantly turn a Golden Slime into a solid block of ice. You use one of those for the first shot to freeze the Slime solid. Then, use the red round for the second shot to shatter that ice and fully incinerate it, thereby annihilating the Golden Slime.”

“Are they really that potent?” Alexander looked at the rounds before him, a hint of disbelief in his voice.

“Test them first on a regular Slime. Once you are certain of their effect, then you go after that Golden Slime King,” Liu Hui advised.

“Respected Teacher, I shall conduct the test immediately,” Alexander affirmed with a nod.

“Alexander, I must warn you about one thing. As the number of humans you lead grows, and as their strength increases, your leadership position might become unstable since you currently lack overwhelming personal power. Therefore, you must use this kill of the Golden Slime King to prove your capabilities and solidify your standing,” Liu Hui cautioned.

Alexander lowered his head in rare contemplation for a moment. He then spoke, “Thank you for the reminder, Teacher. I will pay close attention to this matter.”

“In that case, proceed with confidence. I will support you from behind,” Liu Hui said with a smile.

“Goodbye, Teacher.”

The moment Liu Hui closed the connection with Alexander, Xiaoyaozi contacted him. On the screen, Xiaoyaozi placed ten converted Spirit Stones on the trading device. Liu Hui clicked the transaction, and the ten Spirit Stones materialized in his hands.

The converted Spirit Stones were entirely different from the raw Magic Beast Cores. Although the color of the cores remained unchanged, they exuded a dense white radiance all over. Liu Hui inadvertently inhaled a bit of this light, and an immediate, profound comfort washed over him.

“Senior, thank you very much,” Liu Hui expressed.

“Heh, no thanks necessary. Whenever there are such good opportunities, be sure to seek me out often!” Xiaoyaozi chirped, beaming.

“That is a certainty,” Liu Hui replied with a smile.

In a small fishing village in Donglong Province, Liu Hui and Zhou Tengyun sat at a round table, facing four middle-aged men. These men were powerfully built, with sharp eyes that radiated a faint, almost imperceptible killing intent.

“Gentlemen, if you agree to form a mercenary unit in Africa, each of you will receive a settlement allowance of two hundred thousand US dollars. If you wish, your families can join the Starry Sky Group Corporation, and we will care for them continuously, ensuring you have no worries. During your service, we will provide complete logistical support, and the salary will be one hundred thousand US dollars per month,” Liu Hui stated.

“Boss, are you truly willing to look after our families?” one man asked.

“We will absolutely care for them to the very end. If any of you become disabled in the future, I will arrange for you to work at the Starry Sky Group. We will never abandon you. To say something unfortunate, if any of you sacrifice yourselves, we will fully provide for your families,” Liu Hui responded.

The four sturdy men exchanged glances, then declared, “Since you put it that way, we will sell this worthless life to the Boss.”

“There are a few things I must make clear. Once you arrive in Africa, you must obey Zhou Tengyun’s orders and strictly guard the organization’s secrets. I trust this is something everyone can adhere to,” Liu Hui said sternly.

“Boss, now that we are mercenaries, we possess this basic professional integrity.”

Having secured the former military officers, Liu Hui and Zhou Tengyun were both pleased. Zhou Tengyun then introduced the more than two hundred mercenary members he had recruited to Liu Hui. Liu Hui spoke with each one individually, offering encouragement and fully demonstrating the approachable nature of the Boss.

Zhou Tengyun understood Liu Hui’s good intentions and deliberately disclosed the substantial investment Liu Hui had made for them and their families, ensuring the mercenaries felt deeply grateful for the Boss’s concern, which only strengthened their resolve to serve him. This allowed Liu Hui to establish absolute authority among the mercenaries.

With the mercenary structure in place, the next steps were site selection, training, and equipment procurement. Zhou Tengyun first set the mercenaries to basic drills under the command of the former officers, while assigning several others to Africa for site scouting and preliminary preparations.

Once Zhou Tengyun was occupied with these tasks, Liu Hui pulled him down to the basement of the office building. Liu Hui produced a syringe and placed it before Zhou Tengyun.

“Boss, what is this?” Zhou Tengyun asked, puzzled.

“Third Brother, let’s try a little grappling,” Liu Hui said with a grin.

Zhou Tengyun extended a hand, meeting Liu Hui’s grip. Liu Hui chuckled, “Third Brother, be careful.”

Zhou Tengyun immediately focused all his attention, but suddenly a raw, overwhelming force surged through his hand, instantly throwing off his balance and knocking his body away, sending him tumbling across the floor.

“How can this be?” Zhou Tengyun stood up, looking at his hand in disbelief. He couldn't fathom that he had been so utterly routed by Liu Hui’s touch.

“Shall we try again?” Liu Hui proposed playfully.

Zhou Tengyun cautiously joined hands with Liu Hui once more, but no matter how much force he exerted, he could not move Liu Hui’s hand an inch. Finally, with a slight exertion of force from Liu Hui, Zhou Tengyun was once again flung far aside.

Zhou Tengyun suddenly understood, his eyes shining brightly. “Boss, is this the Cultivation you mentioned last time? The power is truly immense.”

“Heh, indeed. This is the ability of Xiuzhen (Cultivation), though I have only just begun my entry,” Liu Hui confessed modestly.

Zhou Tengyun sucked in a sharp breath, remarking, “If just starting out yields such power, I wonder how formidable one becomes upon reaching the peak?”

“Now you know what that syringe contains?” Liu Hui inquired.

“Could it be…” Zhou Tengyun became visibly excited.

“Precisely. Once you inject that substance, you will gain the ability to practice Xiuzhen,” Liu Hui confirmed with a nod.

Zhou Tengyun eagerly picked up the syringe, examining it closely. He asked, “How is this used?”

“It’s simple. Find a quiet place and inject it directly. However, after the injection, you must sleep. You will be able to cultivate once you awaken,” Liu Hui explained.

“I understand. I’ll inject it right here,” Zhou Tengyun declared, immediately administering the contents of the syringe into his own body. The medicine took effect quickly, and Zhou Tengyun collapsed onto the sofa, falling into a deep sleep.

Liu Hui quietly slipped out of the basement. Zhou Tengyun would need several hours to wake up, and Liu Hui intended to wait for his awakening before imparting the Xiuzhen cultivation methods.

Liu Hui returned to his home, finding his parents watching television.

“Dad, Mom, what are you watching? The channel you’re on is broadcasting in Cantonese—can you understand it?” Liu Hui asked.

“Heh, we can understand some of it now. Look at this news report; it says the new Cardinal Archbishop of the Vatican See has arrived in Hong Kong this afternoon as part of his global tour. The Catholic Church in Hong Kong is holding a welcoming ceremony at the airport,” Mom explained, smiling at the screen.

Liu Hui looked closely and saw a middle-aged man in the heavy robes of a Cardinal delivering a speech at the airport, with many devout Catholic worshippers listening below. Liu Hui listened intently and found nothing but platitudes—demands for increased piety to the Lord, and similar empty rhetoric.

“These foreign monks are nowhere near as capable as the monks in Huaxia. They are just charlatans preying on ignorant women and children,” Dad suddenly interjected with disdain.

“Huh, Dad, could it be you knew some truly formidable monks back in China?” Liu Hui detected an undercurrent in his father’s tone.

“Of course! Take Master Zhiguang of Guiyuan Temple in Chuzhou, for instance…” Before Dad could finish his proud recounting, Mom slapped the back of his head.

“Old fool, what nonsense are you spouting? I think you’re no better than those ignorant women on TV—you were duped by that monk Zhiguang, and now you’re trying to mislead our child!”

“Oh, that’s… possibly true. I certainly don’t see things as clearly as you do,” Dad conceded sheepishly after the sharp correction.

“Agh, I can’t stand you two. But I certainly won't believe any of this. I’m going to take a nap; you two carry on,” Liu Hui said, shaking his head as he watched his parents bicker, yet feeling an unexpected sense of peace and joy. He retreated to his room, failing to notice the sudden seriousness that settled over his parents’ expressions.

The adjustment period for *Qian Yu Chu Hai*’s work schedule is essentially over. After a long period of anxiety, my job finally stabilized. Although it’s slightly less ideal than before, at least it’s settled, right?

Now that the work for *Qian Yu Chu Hai* is stable, those plot holes dug previously must be filled. At the very least, I shouldn’t let down the friends who supported me before, so I’m boldly announcing: I am coming out of retirement!

While I dare not expect everyone’s continued support for *Qian Yu Chu Hai*, I must at least finish writing this book. I sincerely hope to leave everyone satisfied V