Chapter 2: Aggressive Recruitment (Part 1)

In the passage of the natural talisman array, no one dared to retract the altar, as no one knew if the natural talisman array might suddenly launch an attack. Unlike the talisman arrays set up by professionals, natural talisman arrays often had strange mechanisms that could easily trap one if not careful. Thus, the best approach was to keep the altar out and remain vigilant at all times.

“The Yuanke Alliance! Yao Zebusong…”
Voices came from afar. Guo Shier was stunned and said, “The Yuanke Alliance? How did they end up here?”

Ying Mo and Luo Zhan had also met members of the Yuanke Alliance and knew that Yao Zebusong was their leader, along with another named Ruo Wangtian—both professionals with Level 9 altars. Their expressions immediately darkened.

Ying Mo said, “This is trouble. Yao Zebusong is the patriarch of the Yuanke Alliance, a professional with a Level 9 altar. We never expected them to come here.” They were well aware of how powerful professionals with Level 9 altars were—definitely beyond the strength of the three of them.

Guo Shier also knew he couldn’t avoid them here. He said, “Let’s go over there.” There was no way to escape; within the natural talisman array, it was impossible to open a talisman gate to flee unless one had Li Ran’s strength to tear through space and leave. But if he had Li Ran’s strength, he wouldn’t need to sneak away in the first place.

A group of professionals flew swiftly toward them, with Yu Zhong at the front. They looked extremely disheveled. Behind them was another group of about a dozen professionals, all high-level experts. The leader was someone Guo Shier was familiar with—Yao Zebusong, who he had dealt with many times on Bone Mountain and had been extorted by him numerous times.

Guo Shier had originally planned to confront them, but seeing the situation, he decided to stay put. Sitting on the altar, he said softly, “Uncle Ying Mo, Uncle Luo, let’s be careful and act according to the situation. This is a dead end; we can’t get out unless we fight our way through.”

Yu Zhong looked very distressed; the altar had even cracked. He flew back in front of Guo Shier and said, “We can’t get out. These guys have evil intentions! Let’s team up!”

Guo Shier didn’t respond, merely watching quietly as the pursuers approached.

In the blink of an eye, the group of professionals arrived, with Yao Zebusong at the head. Seeing Guo Shier, he showed surprise and said, “Huh? It’s you?”

Guo Shier smiled and said, “What’s so strange? This is Jinyan Yuanjing—anyone can come here.”

Yu Zhong immediately stepped back a short distance. He felt bitter inside—he had been too careless earlier and inadvertently provoked the Yuanke Alliance. He never expected there to be a master at the ninth-level altar hidden among them. He had thought that with his own strength at the eighth-level altar, he would be almost invincible. But at Jinyan Yuanjing, he first ran into Guo Shier and suffered a defeat, then encountered Yao Zebusong and was thoroughly beaten. What’s more, he didn’t expect those two to even know each other.

Yao Zebusong observed carefully and saw neither Li Ran nor Zhen Wuji—those two were the real masters he feared. He felt slightly relieved; he didn’t want to see those two again. He said, “Of course, anyone can come… Um, do you know this guy?” As he spoke, he pointed at Yu Zhong.

Guo Shier couldn’t help but laugh. He said, “I know him, but not very well. What’s the matter?” He could tell that Yao Zebusong didn’t want to provoke him at all, so he also relaxed. He didn’t want to clash with Yao Zebusong here either—after all, his strength was far inferior to Yao Zebusong’s, and the terrain was narrow, leaving no room to maneuver. Even if he released his spirit beast, there would be nowhere to fight.

Yao Zebusong said, “Since you two don’t know each other, that makes things easier. I hope you won’t get involved in our dispute.”

Guo Shier immediately led Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan to the side. He knew the gap in strength between him and the other party and had no interest in playing the hero. Besides, he wasn’t really friends with Yu Zhong either.

Yao Zebusong had no desire to fight Guo Shier—he knew that guy was crazy. Last time, Guo Shier had provoked him on Bone Mountain, and the resulting losses had caused him immense pain. He said, “Okay… then thank you.” He nodded slightly before turning to Yu Zhong and saying, “Hey, what do you say we do to resolve this? You hurt my men—give me an explanation!”

Yu Zhong said, “It’s my fault this time. I apologize.”

Guo Shier watched the two curiously. He couldn’t figure out what Yu Zhong had done to provoke Yao Zebusong—this guy wasn’t easy to deal with. Just from his name, it was clear he wouldn’t let go easily. If he got bitten by him, what good could come of it?

Yao Zebusong said, “An apology? Is that enough? Do you want me to kill you first and then say sorry?”

Yu Zhong snapped, “What do you want? Don’t think only the Yuanke Alliance has masters—our sect has them too!”

Yao Zebusong clicked his tongue. “You want to recruit my men? You attack without consent. Do you think our Yuanke Alliance is easy to provoke? I’ll give you two choices—don’t say I’m ruthless!”

Yu Zhong was furious. He knew that Yao Zebusong wouldn’t let him off easily, but at this point, he still harbored a glimmer of hope. After all, he was also a professional from the Eighth-Level Altar—no ordinary guy who could be bullied by just anyone. Gritting his teeth, he asked, “Which two paths?”
Yao Zebusong chuckled and said, “The first path… join our Yuanke Alliance.”
Guo Shier couldn’t help but smile bitterly. High-level professionals were always approached by others seeking to recruit them, and conflicts often arose over such matters—he had encountered this many times himself.
Yu Zhong’s face turned red with anger. Earlier, when he went outside, he saw two professionals from the Fifth-Level Altar and tried to recruit them. Instead, they mocked him cruelly. In a fit of rage, he attacked them, only for more professionals to arrive. What was even more terrifying was that among them was a professional from the Ninth-Level Altar, who made him suffer greatly with no place to escape. If it had been outside the Natural Talisman Array, even if he couldn’t win, he would have run away long ago.
“I have my sect!”
Yao Zebusong said coldly, “My subordinates do too! What the hell did you say… forgot?”
Yu Zhong was instantly speechless. The other party had said similar things before, but he thought he could handle them, so he ignored their explanations and tried to suppress them by force. He asked, “What’s the other path?”
Eagle Demon wondered, “Is this guy stupid? How could he provoke Yao Zebusong?”
Luo Zhan said, “Who knows? Maybe his brain is broken.”
The three of them watched the scene with interest. From their conversation, they were surprised to find that it wasn’t Yao Zebusong who was causing trouble, but Yu Zhong. This time, Yu Zhong had hit a wall and was likely to suffer greatly.
Yao Zebusong said calmly, “The other path is simple—compensate our Yuanke Alliance. Hehe, you dared to hurt our people; you must bear the consequences.”
Yu Zhong knew he couldn’t avoid it and asked bravely, “What compensation do you want?”
Guo Shier couldn’t help but laugh. Yao Zebusong’s tactics were the same as his own—extortion. Perhaps he had been inspired by his own past extortion attempts, as this was the fastest way to make money.
Yao Zebusong happily produced a jade talisman and said, “Take a look yourself.”
Anxiously, Yu Zhong snatched the talisman and, after a quick glance, shouted, “What the hell is this? Where do I get that much material? You… this is extortion!”
Yao Zebusong replied indifferently, “I’m extorting you. So what?”

Yu Zhong was so angry that he kept burping. If he had to pay with the materials listed, there was no way he could advance to the ninth-tier altar. Yao Zebusong said coldly, “Choose between your life and the materials. If you really can’t pay, that’s fine… As long as you join our Yuanke Alliance and serve as a guest patriarch, it won’t take long… About fifty years, I guess.”
Guo Shier was stunned—fifty years as a resident? That was terrifying.
Yu Zhong was furious, and it took him a while to calm down. Looking at the group of experts from the Yuanke Alliance before him, he gritted his teeth and said, “Fine, fine! Consider it my bad. I’ll be the guest patriarch!” He finally gave in; he had no choice. Since he couldn’t defeat them or afford the precious materials, this was the only option left.
Yao Zebusong smiled. He said, “You should have said so earlier. I wouldn’t have had to go to such lengths. Hehe, come on… Let me introduce you. Yu Zhong, you’ll be our Yuanke Alliance’s patriarch from now on. This is a soul talisman—just attach it to the altar. I’ll remove it after fifty years. Of course, if you advance to the ninth-tier altar… you can remove it yourself. By then, I won’t force you.”
Guo Shier was shocked. A soul talisman was a control talisman. After thinking about it, he understood. Yu Zhong hadn’t joined the Yuanke Alliance willingly, so it wasn’t strange for them to implant a soul talisman on him. If an eighth-tier altar professional were allowed to join without control, who knew what trouble they might cause?
Yu Zhong was completely subdued by Yao Zebusong and had no will left. Though he gritted his teeth, he ultimately submitted and attached the soul talisman to his altar. Yao Yao couldn’t help but shout, “Patriarch!”
Yao Yao was worried. Yu Zhong was the highest-ranking patriarch in their sect. If he joined the Yuanke Alliance, the sect would suffer tremendous losses.
Yu Zhong said with a bitter smile, “Stop talking. I believe fifty years is enough for me to advance to the ninth-tier altar. Consider it an opportunity for training outside.”
Guo Shier almost laughed. An eighth-tier altar professional going out for training—what a joke. But he admitted that if he were in the same situation, he would make the same choice as Yu Zhong—get out of trouble first. If Yao Zebusong were determined enough, he could kill Yu Zhong, and Yao Yao wouldn’t survive either. The consequences were too severe for him to even consider such a choice.
Yao Yao said, “I’ll go back and see the patriarch.” An eighth-tier altar professional was the most precious asset to any family or sect.