Join the gang

Fatso is like a human spirit; he could tell what I wanted to ask just by looking at me. So he started talking about the composition of our little team. His explanation took me by surprise; it turned out that the lineup we had for the Qinling Mountains was quite luxurious by the standards of the entire Heavenly Dao Alliance.

Let's start with Fatso himself. He could be considered the boss of the tomb-raiding department at the headquarters of the Heavenly Dao Alliance. Whenever there's a cursed tomb somewhere, Fatso would immediately take a group of tomb raiders to investigate the situation. It's definitely a cushy job. Over the years, Fatso has gained a lot of benefits, all from tomb raiding during missions. Take this time, for instance, didn't he just take the prince's seal from Helian Hui's coffin? Although we tomb raiders have a saying, 'Gold has a price, jade is priceless,' Helian Hui was a prince after all. Even though he wasn't a prince of a great unified dynasty, his gold seal still has some research value and could probably fetch a good price if sold. Fatso is quite generous too; he gave me the good stuff from the tomb raiding this time. That jade bead I saw is worth at least eight or nine million at the very least. Fatso just handed it over, which gives you an idea of how deep his pockets are!

As for Zhang Jinya, he's actually responsible for several cities in Jiangxi, and he handles most of the supernatural events there.

Regarding Qingyi, to be honest, I was quite shocked when Fatso revealed her identity—Qingyi is actually an elder of the Heavenly Dao Alliance!!!

There aren't many at the level of Taoist master in a place like the Heavenly Dao Alliance. Although Qingyi is just a junior Taoist master, it's still quite impressive. Normally, a Taoist master wouldn't leave the mountains because their appearance signifies a major event, as they can disturb the beings of the underworld and are not usually deployed.

As for Rosa, Fatso was a bit unclear about her identity, knowing only some sketchy details. He said that what Rosa specializes in is not dealing with the dead, but... dealing with the living!

This woman once served in a certain military unit and has a very special status within the entire Heavenly Dao Alliance. Fatso mentioned that the Heavenly Dao Alliance actually has some institutions overseas, mainly to retrieve national treasures that have been stolen by foreign criminals. Those who dare to tomb raid across countries are generally ruthless characters, and this woman deals with such people. She has definitely taken many lives, which is why the last time she pointed a gun at Fatso's head, he didn't dare to offend her too much. People like her don't usually participate in missions like ours; this time was an exception because too many national treasures had been smuggled out from the Qinling ancient tomb complex recently. Rosa encountered many difficulties while pursuing them abroad, so she returned to China to resolve the Qinling tomb complex issue before going back overseas to chase after the national treasures.

As for why the Heavenly Dao Alliance does this, Fatso wasn't sure. He only knew that the organization seems to dislike the idea of cultural relics ending up in the hands of foreigners, while they don't oppose circulation within the country. When talking about this, Fatso specifically reminded me that if I joined the Heavenly Dao Alliance, I would have to be careful about disposing of certain items in the future. I would have to make sure I found the right channels, as selling to foreigners might cause the organization to come after me.

After listening to all this, I silently took it to heart. Each of my teammates has their own capabilities, and after joining the Heavenly Dao Alliance, I would inevitably need their help. Although Fatso said that with our Ge family's influence in the Heavenly Dao Alliance, I would surely become the guardian of the yin and yang realms in Shanxi after joining, I just listened to that as a casual remark. Out of sight, out of mind. The capable people in our Ge family are gone, and even if the Heavenly Dao Alliance has a rule about hereditary succession, it won't be easy for a greenhorn like me to establish a foothold. I'm bound to face difficulties, so having friends like Fatso to help me is a good thing.

Fatso seemed quite happy when I agreed to join the Heavenly Dao Alliance and quickly said he would go and discuss it with Qingyi. After saying that, he left with a bounce in his step.

After Fatso left, I called Zhou Jing, who was waiting outside, into the room. After briefly discussing my thoughts with him, Zhou Jing had no objections. He nodded and said I should just go ahead with my plans, as he would follow me anyway. Then I gave Heizi a bath and talked with Mulan for a while before settling down to sleep in the hotel. I had been traveling for several days and was indeed a bit tired. I fell asleep shortly after lying down.

Around six o'clock in the evening, Zhou Jing woke me up, saying that Qingyi and the others were ready and waiting for me to go to dinner. So I lay there for a while before getting up to change clothes. After all, we were back in the city, and there was no need for camouflage and military boots anymore. Besides, my clothes from the road were no longer wearable, so I threw them away and put on my original set before going downstairs.

After meeting Qingyi and the others, I sensitively noticed that their attitudes towards me seemed a bit different. How to put it... they seemed closer than before. Probably because I had decided to join the Heavenly Dao Alliance, and we would be working under the same roof in the future. Plus, having gone through life and death together in the Qinling Mountains, it was good to be closer.

The place where we had dinner was arranged by Rosa, not too far from where we were staying—a hot pot restaurant that looked quite luxurious, probably star-rated. But since everyone was wealthy, I wasn't afraid of dining with tycoons. The mission had just ended, and we were all a lot more relaxed, so it was time to unwind.

Zhang Jinya was clamoring for alcohol as soon as he entered the door, and without a word, he ordered a whole case of white liquor. I laughed when I saw it; it was just perfect because I hadn't had a chance to get back at this bastard for tricking me. Now I could. Who says men from Shanxi are afraid of drinking? So I took the opportunity to drink a toast with Zhang Jinya under the guise of a 'joining the team' drink, and I gave him a taste of the "Three Cups of the Grasslands"—no talking or eating until we've had three cups. After three shots, Zhang Jinya went straight to the restroom, and when he came back, he didn't even wait to eat before diving under the table and passing out. I finally felt a bit of satisfaction—bastard, that's for tricking me!

After dinner, except for Zhang Jinya, who I had messed with and who was now intimately hugging the toilet in the restroom, we all went to a KTV. It's not every day you get to enjoy life like this. We had a blast that night, and I even called Mulan out in the KTV room. She's a spirit ghost, and although her thousand years of cultivation had dissipated, her form of existence is still different from ordinary ghosts; she's not ethereal but corporeal and can eat and drink like normal people. For her kind of spirit ghost, this is the best offering, and regularly receiving such offerings is beneficial for her cultivation. Seeing my wife reveal her true form again, I was quite excited, so I grabbed the microphone and sang "Nan Shan Nan" to express my feelings. Fatso and the others teased her until her face turned red, and she hid in the sand of fidelity.

Our little team played until after midnight before finally returning to the hotel to rest. I had drunk quite a bit that night and was a little tipsy, so I fell asleep as soon as I got back to the hotel.

The next morning at ten o'clock, our group set off, destination—Jiangxi!

Since the Heavenly Dao Alliance was founded by Zhang Daoling, the real person of Longhu Mountain in Jiangxi, the headquarters is also located there.

Originally, after completing the mission, only Qingyi needed to return to Longhu Mountain to report, but because I was joining the Heavenly Dao Alliance, our group decided to go back to Longhu Mountain with me to support me. I was moved by this, but at that moment, there wasn't much I could do except to help them wholeheartedly in the future.

This time I rode in Rosa's car again. Along the way, my thoughts drifted, and my mind was filled with matters concerning the Heavenly Dao Alliance...

What kind of organization is it, really? Why did Zhang Daoling create it? The yin and yang realms have their own order, so why interfere with external forces?

In short, my head was full of questions, and I was filled with a desire to explore the organization.

...