Part One Chapter 21 Iron-Blooded Mercenaries groups

The Chilanlou Alliance is not a typical nation, as it lacks the territory, head of state, or sovereignty that a traditional country would possess.

It is formed by four large city-states with populations over 100,000 - Qite, Fengyuan, Jiahanxi, and Erxiongqinglie - and six mid-sized to small city-states with populations ranging from 40,000 to 100,000 - Baijiatian, Lianke, Daoshuoyi, Kamao, Chileiying, and Kedasile. In addition, there are countless unions of towns, merchant guilds, and groups that make up the Chilanlou Alliance.

Even the name of the alliance is derived from the first character of the largest city-state, Qite City, the largest merchant guild, Lanfeihan Guild, and the largest group, the Ice and Snow Tower Mercenary Corps.

There are no national constraints, no territorial restrictions, and no bureaucratic exploitation. In essence, the Chilanlou Alliance is a country without national consciousness that exists solely to make money.

If asked who on the continent has the least ambition for hegemony, the Chilanlou Alliance would be the first to be mentioned.

In the alliance, the lord of a city-state is the most powerful and wealthy person in the city, with most things in the city belonging to him. The citizens of the city are his employees, and the lord provides them with a comfortable life, while the citizens make a lot of money for the lord in return.

On the other hand, the head of a merchant guild is not a lord of a city but has its own industry to survive on. Some guilds are specialized in iron smelting, such as the Shenbing Guild, some excel in mining, like the Jianjing Guild, while others are good at transportation, such as the Feima Guild. They closely cooperate with each city-state, mutually dependent for survival.

The organization that provides force as its business value is called a mercenary group. The continent's most prosperous economy belongs to the Qilanlou Alliance, which is also a big fat sheep coveted by various countries. With abundant profits, every country is envious, but no one dares to invade it, because of the existence of mercenaries in the Qilanlou Alliance.

Mercenaries sign contracts with city lords to provide the force to protect the safety of the city, act as a life insurance policy for all citizens (including city lords), and serve as temporary escorts for transporting goods.

The existence of mercenaries protects the safety of the Qilanlou Alliance's castles, people, and wealth, and also makes it the second most powerful commercial organization on the continent.

The mercenary groups within the Qilanlou Alliance, which are feared across the continent, range in size from dozens to tens of thousands. The largest mercenary groups have over ten thousand members, while the smallest ones have only several dozen people. The most famous ones are the four major mercenary groups, which are ranked as follows: Ice and Snow Tower, Iron Blood, Reverse Cross, and Holy Demon Guidance.

Each of the four major mercenary groups is a super large mercenary group with more than ten thousand members.

It is said that no matter which mercenary group it is, as long as they are willing, they can independently establish a country with their powerful force. Therefore, there are these four major mercenary groups and countless other mercenary organizations, making the Qilanlou Alliance's force unparalleled.

Located in the second largest city of the Qilanlou Alliance, Fengyuan City, in a large mansion that can accommodate thousands of people in the north corner of Fengyuan City, there are two blood-red characters "Iron Blood" on the iron gate outside the mansion. Yes, this mansion is the headquarters of the second-largest mercenary group in the Qilanlou Alliance, the Iron Blood Mercenary Group.

Each of the four major mercenary groups sets up its headquarters in one of the four major cities, with the Ice and Snow Tower in Qite City, the Reverse Cross in Jiahai Xicheng, and the Holy Demon Guidance in Erjiong Qinglie City.

The four major mercenary groups have signed contracts with the four major cities, with their headquarters stationed in the cities, and they also protect the surrounding towns, business associations, while the other six small cities are guarded by one of the four major groups, and the remaining two cities are guarded by other mercenary groups.

In the Qilanlou Alliance where interests reign supreme, everyone appears exceptionally united. Although each city-state, chamber of commerce, and group privately competes for their own interests, all the organizations understand the principle of "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold". When someone is bullied, everyone shows great solidarity and works together to deal with outsiders. This mentality of closing ranks and allowing no outsiders to slight them has allowed the Qilanlou Alliance to exist for nearly a thousand years. Although its history is not as long as that of other great nations, it is still impressive.

It is currently late at night, but in a corner of the central core of the Iron Blood Mercenary Corps headquarters, there is an independent building that stands alone, with no other buildings within 200 meters, as if declaring its uniqueness.

Built of deep black, hard basalt, the three-story building stands alone in the center of a perfectly flat grassy area. In this late night, the black floors of the building seem to emit a strong, rigid, cold, and oppressive atmosphere, making people hesitant to approach it.

This building is the symbol of the spirit of the 18,000 members of the Iron Blood Mercenary Corps and also the place where the leader makes important decisions and conducts daily life. Its name is Iron Blood, a small building constructed of iron and blood.

However, today the guards on duty feel very strange. The leader is known for being rigid and stubborn, adhering strictly to rules and never letting anything disturb his meticulously planned routine. So why is it that, in the late night hours, the leader who would normally be asleep is still emitting a faint light from his study? According to the guards who handed over the watch, when the leader and his guards returned from outside the city at the beginning of the night, they went directly to the study without cleaning up. They also called for the deputy leader and the chief executive officer to enter the building, and now, almost five hours later, they have not come out.

As the guards outside were very puzzled by their captain's unusual schedule, in the Iron Blood Building, on the second half of the first floor, in the captain's office, five people sat quietly, looking down at the information in their hands.

After a long silence, the captain sitting at the head cleared his throat, catching the attention of everyone present. If Ya Fang were here, he would recognize this captain as the man who greeted him at the Qingbi Tavern.

The captain's name was Gechi Feiste, who was exactly sixty years old this year and had been the captain for more than thirty years.

From his appearance, he looked around forty years old, with a square face, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, giving the impression of a straight-laced and down-to-earth person.

His burly physique was no less impressive than Dage, who had fought alongside Ya Fang.

As the leader of more than 18,000 people, Gechi naturally had his own set of skills, or else he would not be able to lead his subordinates.

At this moment, Gechi saw that everyone in the room had their eyes on him except for himself. Satisfied, he nodded and said in a low voice, "What do you all think of the three people described in the information we have? Let's discuss it together."

Sitting to Gechi's right, near him, was a tall and skinny old man who appeared to be about sixty years old. He was the vice-captain of the Iron Blood Mercenary Corps, Suoye Dao - Teg. Ariel. He had been the vice-captain of the Iron Blood Mercenary Corps for more than forty years, and at nearly eighty years old, he was still as strong as ever. He was Gechi's father's generation and one of his most trusted people. Furthermore, having devoted his whole life to the Iron Blood Mercenary Corps, Teg was still a lonely man. Therefore, when he saw the eye signals given by the other three people, Teg immediately cleared his throat and was the first to speak.

"According to the information on hand, the leader wants to absorb these three people into our group and we are very willing to do so. However, there is one point that I would like to remind the leader of."

Gaichi nodded and gestured for Teg to continue.

Teg continued, "Among these three people, the first two have been under our watch since they started their careers. They have complete backgrounds, battle records, sources of martial arts, and we have also assessed their character to a certain extent. That's why the group has decided to invite them to join our team and give them the status of guest members."

"But, regarding the third person that the leader mentioned, we have some concerns. I wonder if the leader can explain why he insists on hiring this person as a guest member?"

After some thought, Gaichi spoke in a deep voice, "Actually, I can't explain it clearly. It's just that when I saw him, even though his martial arts performance now is not as profound as the other two we intended to recruit, and it seems like he doesn't even have any armor, I have a strong intuition that this child will be someone special in the future. If we don't bring him into our camp now, I will definitely regret it in the future."

The other four looked at each other, surprised by the words "intuition" coming from the well-known leader who is always practical and objective.

Moreover, they were shocked by the unexpectedly high evaluation of this third candidate, which was unprecedented.

In contrast to Teg, who was thin and tall, the person in charge of execution, Feng Xun, was fat and round like a meatball. He asked, "So, Leader, are you asking me to send someone to attract the third person to join our group?"

Gaichi shook his head and said, "The reason I invited you here is mainly to ask for your opinions on whether this young man is really suitable for our Iron Blood group or not."

"After all, my decision to recruit him is based solely on my personal opinion, mixed with personal feelings. I am not sure if this decision is right."

After listening to Gaichi's words, everyone fell silent for a moment. No one dared to make a decision about this matter because Gaichi clearly wanted to recruit this third candidate, but he was uncertain about whether his decision was correct or not. So, he asked for their analysis. After all, being a guest member of the Iron Blood group is not a small matter!

Having the same rights and responsibilities as the deputy leader, they can even give orders on behalf of the leader. In the more than 500 years of the history of the Iron Blood group, only a total of more than 30 guest members have been recruited. If it weren't for "that matter" this time, they wouldn't have to recruit guest members again.

As everyone was lost in thought, a bird's chirping was heard, and they all turned their heads to look to the right of Gaichi.

Gaichi said, "Lishi, go and check what message 'Fanti' has sent. Why is the message so urgent?"

Li Jian nodded and walked towards a dark cabinet on the right. He took out a sealed envelope folder and brought it to Gai Chi. Gai Chi nodded and said, "Read it out."

Fan Tie was a special intelligence scout for the Iron Blood Battalion, infiltrating various places throughout the continent to gather all kinds of information. They provided senior Iron Blood Battalion officials with intelligence to determine whether there was any unfavorable news for the battalion. Through this clandestine organization, the Iron Blood Battalion had survived countless crises and continued to exist to this day. Fan Tie, meaning "ordinary iron," was named to indicate that the appearance of each of its members was unremarkable. Only in this way could they uncover many secrets.

The urgent report from Fan Tie, delivered at the highest speed, went straight to the commander's room, indicating that this matter was extremely urgent.

Li Jian opened the envelope and took out a stack of letters. After reading them, he said, "According to Fan Tie's report, we cannot confirm the origin of this third candidate. At most, we only know that he first appeared in the Qihua Forest with a magical beast at his side. He caused eight people to be seriously injured and disabled on the first night he appeared in Shao Shu Dai Ti town half a month ago. Three days ago, in a street fight, he completely destroyed a rogue gang called the Qingyi Gang that had been occupying the town. In that battle, all 98 members of the Qingyi Gang were killed, with 46 of them wearing third-order or higher magical beast armor. The leader and second-in-command of the gang even had fifth-order magical beast armor. However, the third candidate left unscathed. This was the most tragic battle in the history of Dai Shao Shu Ti town, with 21 people going insane after witnessing the bloody scene."

"After investigation by Fan Tie, we could not find any information about the origin of the third candidate, who calls himself Ya Feng Long. Even his martial arts cannot be determined. According to the descriptions, it is completely different from any known system."

Feng Xun muttered, "We have no idea about his origin, and we cannot even determine his martial arts? This is going to be difficult."

Li Jian continued, "In addition to his mysterious origin and martial arts, there is also a strange magical beast at his side. According to Fan Tie's three-day surveillance report, Ya Feng Long allowed the magical beast to move freely and never saw it attach itself to him. Moreover, the appearance of this magical beast should belong to the Wolf series, but its gray-white fur appears golden under sunlight and silver under moonlight, making it impossible to determine its true series. Furthermore, its supernatural abilities are almost indistinguishable from humans."

Upon hearing this, Li Jian suddenly spoke up, "Let me add some further explanation."

"Three days ago, Captain You Wei, Nai De-Situ, and I personally witnessed this battle in Shao Shu Dai town. At that time, we saw with our own eyes that the phantom beast, a type of wolf-like creature, by Yawen Long's side, carried out a person who was attempting to assassinate Yawen Long without any orders. The phantom beast then became Yawen Long's right-hand man in the battle, helping him to eliminate at least one-third of the enemy without the need for Yawen Long's command. Its supernatural ability was beyond doubt."

"Furthermore, I must add that before the battle, I noticed that although the phantom beast did not merge with Yawen Long, it transformed its appearance on its own, forming sharp horns, fangs, and claws, which were very ferocious during the battle."

After listening, Teg couldn't help muttering to himself, "A phantom beast with no background, no different from a monster. It will be difficult to recruit him as a guest official."

As is well known, a monster is a phantom beast without an owner. They grow by obtaining the energy they need from their parents or other means, and although they cannot fully change shape like a normal phantom beast, they can still make limited changes according to their instincts. They have strong wild instincts and are aggressive towards anyone who intrudes into their territory. This is a monster.

Hearing Teg's muttering, Gaichi frowned but signaled Li Jian to continue.

According to the information sent by Fantie, the first two of the three people we intend to recruit have also caught the attention of the other three parties, and like us, they have already had contact with them, but like us, they have not received any clear answers.

As for Yawen Long, although he has also been noticed, it seems that it is just a matter of attention and no action has been taken. Only our investigation has been very careful, and the report ends here.

After listening, Gaichi thought for a moment and said, "It seems that the other three parties have also started to take action for that event six months later. Feng Xun, send more people to try to persuade those two people. We must not let them join the other three parties. Also, if the conditions are not too exaggerated, try to meet their requirements."

Feng Xun nodded. He understood that Gaichi was determined to do everything in his power to win those two people over.

After seeing Feng Xun nod, Gaichi slowly looked at the four trusted confidants sitting beside him and said in a deep voice, "As for the third candidate, Yawen Long, let's try to persuade him to be a guest official."

Sitting on the side, You Wei-Nai De-Situ, who had not said a word from beginning to end, tapped the back of his chair, making a sound that caught everyone's attention. It turned out that he was a mute who couldn't speak, which was why he had been silently listening the whole time.

The people had been with him for at least twenty or thirty years, so they knew his sign language well. They looked at him strangely when he began gesturing.

"I think we should focus our efforts on hiring Yawen Long as a guest adviser," he gestured emphatically, but the others looked at him strangely, indicating that they did not understand his proposal.

He continued, "Based on what I've seen, Yawen Long is a natural mercenary, ruthless and unyielding. He doesn't belong to any particular side and his background is unknown. However, according to reports, when he lived in his shop, there were no signs that he was a cruel person. This suggests that he only acts that way towards his enemies. Most importantly, after witnessing his methods against his enemies, I don't want to be on his bad side. Furthermore, considering his ability to defeat hundreds of people without armor and at such a young age, I shudder to think what he could do with armor or with more experience."

He gave a bitter smile and said, "The best way to avoid being his enemy is to make him our ally."

Thinking of Yawen's incredibly brutal and bloody methods, Li Kan silently agreed.

It was then that everyone realized how deeply Yawen had impressed Neit in his heart.

Li Kan agreed, "I think Neit is right. If I had an enemy like that, it would be really bad."

Gai Chi said, "Then let's do it. Whether or not he will be useful in six months, we should do our best to get him to join us. Where is he now?" Gai Chi turned to Li Kan and asked.

Li Kan immediately replied, "According to the Dao Gao of Fan Tie, he is heading towards the Huananbang Public Kingdom."

Gai Chi nodded and said, "Feng Xun, immediately send someone to contact him."

Feng Xun responded, "Yes."

Gai Chi laughed heartily, "I really want to see what it will be like when the other three parties see Yawen Long's methods."

Everyone responded with laughter.

This conclusion by the Iron Blood Group changed Yawen's life forever.

At this moment, Yawen was about to face his greatest crisis.