Following the ambush, the Bladefang Mercenaries treated Ling Tian with absolute reverence. Hu Lie immediately elevated Ling Tian to the status of Second-in-Command, effectively giving him authority over all tactical decisions.
Ling Tian did not waste the opportunity.
Restructuring the Faction
He called a meeting with Hu Lie and laid out his terms, sitting opposite the burly leader in the grimy mercenary headquarters.
"Your methods are inefficient, and your training is substandard," Ling Tian stated plainly. "If you wish to survive the attention we are now receiving from the Shadow Sect, you must change."
Hu Lie nodded eagerly. "Whatever you command, Brother Ling Tian! Your detoxification pills alone are worth our lives!"
"First, I require a continuous supply of high-grade Immortal Foundation Herbs—Tier-4 and Tier-5," Ling Tian commanded. "I need the purest energy from these to refine my cultivation techniques. This will consume 70% of our profits."
Hu Lie winced at the percentage but quickly agreed. "Done! We will prioritize contracts near the Green Peaks."
"Second, I require a secluded, stable training location with slightly higher Immortal Qi concentration than this town," Ling Tian continued. "The current energy here is insufficient for my next breakthrough."
Hu Lie scratched his head. "A secluded spot... higher Qi... that sounds like the territory of the Jade Lake Palace. Their remote outposts have small, stable veins."
Ling Tian's eyes narrowed, intrigued by the mention of the larger faction. "The Jade Lake Palace. If the opportunity presents itself, we will take that territory."
The Mysterious Lin Yue
As Ling Tian and Hu Lie finalized their plans, a commotion erupted outside the headquarters.
A woman, covered in dust and blood, stumbled into the headquarters. She was stunningly beautiful, despite her injuries, and radiated the powerful, unmistakable aura of a Late Immortal Foundation cultivator—far stronger than anyone in Jade Peak Town.
She was immediately followed by three cultivators wearing pristine, pale-blue robes—the uniform of the Jade Lake Palace. Their leader, a middle-aged man in the Early Nascent Soul Realm (equivalent to the Early Soul Transformation Stage in Immortal Realms), looked furious.
"Surrender the fugitive, mercenary scum!" the Nascent Soul expert roared, his power pressing down on everyone in the room. "She is a runaway servant of the Jade Lake Palace and has stolen vital cultivation secrets!"
The mercenaries, including Hu Lie, collapsed under the spiritual pressure. Only Ling Tian remained standing, his expression utterly unchanged.
The woman, desperate, saw Ling Tian. She recognized the cold, commanding aura that somehow countered the Nascent Soul pressure.
"Help me!" she cried, rushing behind Ling Tian. "I am Lin Yue, and I will give you knowledge of the Jade Lake Palace's inner formations and resources—information worth millions of Immortal Crystals—if you protect me!"
The Jade Lake Elder focused his fury on Ling Tian. "Step aside, Golden Core insect! Do not interfere in the affairs of your superiors!"
Ling Tian looked from the beautiful, desperate woman, Lin Yue, to the overbearing Nascent Soul Elder. He saw a complex web of conflict—a chance to get the information he needed about the territory and, more importantly, a direct, high-level confrontation to test his current limits.
"Superiors?" Ling Tian sneered, activating a small fraction of his Perfect Golden Chaos Core. The raw quality of his Qi, even suppressed, felt oppressive. "In this room, you are merely an annoyance."
Ling Tian stepped forward, his eyes burning with lethal intent. "I accept her offer. You may leave, or be obliterated."