Chapter 157: Troops Association

The world revolves around profits and interests!

As the leader of the Wolf Troop Team, famous on the Tailun Continent, there was no way that Kerband would personally make the journey just for a batch of rations and a letter. Yang Ling was certain that he had additional intentions.

Yang Ling’s personal invitation to attend the King’s fiftieth birthday party indicated that the Livenza Alliance planned to officially recognize the Magical Beast Territory. Because of its proximity to the resource-rich Terras Forest, they anticipated development in the Magical Beast Territory, and with that development, countless business opportunities would arise.

As the news spread, Yang Ling knew there would be an influx of merchants heading toward Wissen Town in search of new business opportunities. If they could occupy Wissen Town as early as possible and monopolize the trade of troops, Yang Ling believed that the Wolf Troop Team would not miss that opportunity.

Yang Ling believed that Kerband understood the strategic significance behind this action. With his connections to the royal family, it would not have been difficult for him to catch wind of information earlier than others!

With the old butler attending them, Yang Ling entertained Kerband warmly. The leader of the Wolf Troop Team had traveled a long distance, and appreciated the hospitality. As they continued to drink, they began to chat more openly.

Kerband held conversation well, his sentences clear and structured as he told the group many stories of his time as a soldier. He related stories from the glaciers at the north to the large desert in the west, from the elusive Sea Tribe to the fabled City Amongst the Clouds…

Kerband had vast experiences. Yang Ling considered what a lifetime of roaming the world would mean in terms of information Kerband could have picked up. Perhaps he knew something regarding the Ancient Wizards!

Yang Ling cleared his throat. “Some time ago, a wounded soldier arrived in Wissen Town, saying that he found a divine temple left behind by an Ancient Wizard in the western desert, and that there were many valuable treasures buried there. Do you know if this is true?”

“Oh, an Ancient Wizard?” Kerband was surprised. He deliberated for a moment before saying, “Sir Yang, the Sahara Desert in the west spans tens of thousands of miles. No one truly knows how large it is. Even though I have explored it many times, I have never heard anything about a divine temple of an Ancient Wizard there, but…”

Perhaps it was taboo, or perhaps it was a memory from too long ago, but Kerband hesitated. He rubbed his temples and took another sip of wine before slowly relating his story.

It turned out that there were frequently people who would dig out weird items from the forest. It was rumored that over a hundred years previous, someone had dug out a statue that was related to the Ancient Wizards.

But for the desert people, talking about the Ancient Wizards was taboo. In their legends, the Ancient Wizards were merciless demons. Talking about their stories and even calling them by name could awaken them from their slumber, bringing great misfortune to all living things in the desert.

Twenty years prior, when Kerband was still a beginner level Swordsman, he had once gone on a mission in the desert. He unintentionally traded some item for a jade pendant from a native there, rumored to be something left behind by some Ancient Wizard.

Back then, perhaps because of the taboos, or maybe he was in need of a few crystal coins, the other party had sold the pendant to Kerband for almost nothing. Kerband didn’t think too much about it at the time – it was inexpensive and pleasing to the eye, and he carried it with him for years without noticing anything unusual about it.

Kerband took out a simple, ancient jade pendant from his own Space Ring. Yang Ling looked it over and saw that save for a few images of Magical Beasts, it felt no different from an ordinary jade pendant. There were no ripples of Wizard Power, nor were there Wizard Amulets commonly seen in Wizard Techniques.

The only thing odd about the pendant was that when he injected a shred of Wizard Power into it, the energy immediately vanished without a trace, as if it had sunk deep into the ocean. It was the same with his mental energy. He could not obtain any information, as if he had just stepped into a dark hole, unable to ascertain what was going on.

Could he really be this lucky?

Yang Ling shook his head. He had made an excuse to ask Kerband about the Ancient Wizards. He had not expected that there was indeed something strange going on in the Sahara Desert to the west. It looked like he had to personally go there in the future to see if he could discover anything.

“Sir Yang Ling, that jade pendant is of no use to me. If you like it, feel free to take it and investigate it at your leisure!” Seeing Yang Ling examine the jade pendant from every angle, Kerband decided to generously gift it to Yang Ling. Even though this jade pendant was a little strange, it had not been useful to him all those years. He was happy to do Yang Ling a favor.

“Oh, then I will not be polite!” Laughing, Yang Ling tucked the jade pendant away, then poured Kerband a full cup of wine.

The two became friends while drinking a half barrel of alcohol.

“Yang Ling, I actually came to Wissen Town for another matter.” After a moment’s deliberation, Kerband continued, “Recently, the troop team accepted a mission to search for the relics of the Holy Dragon. Unfortunately, time is not on my side, and my energy is limited. Can you help?”

Searching for the relics of the Holy Dragon?

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Yang Ling was surprised. He did not expect the other party to have accepted such a mission.

An increasing number of strangers continued to swarm to Wissen Town. The Dark Association had sent out many of its important members, and the Wolf Troop Team had accepted their mission. It looks like the rumors of a Giant Dragon’s treasure was true, and myriad factions had already joined in the search.

Seeing Yang Ling silent in deliberation, Kerband started filling in the gaps.

Legend had it that a few thousand years before, the Holy Dragon Ayrpaciro had sealed the divine weapons of the undead race in a giant underground city. After searching for several thousand years, someone had finally managed to find some clues in the Terras Forest, and that news had been leaked.

“Brother Yang Ling, after I find the relic of the Holy Dragon, all I need to do is to take the so-called Undead Divine Weapons. You can have the rest of the loot. It is rumored that there are rich resources in the underground city. I believe that the development of your territory would benefit greatly if you occupy the underground city!”

Kerband had two main reasons for coming to Wissen Town. The first was because he had been tasked with finding the Undead Divine Weapons. As time was tight, he could not search slowly, and his best course of action was to seek Yang Ling’s help. Secondly, just as Yang Ling had deducted, he had hoped to use this opportunity to forge a good relationship with the leader as a foundation for future cooperation.

Terras Forest was rich in resources. As long as it was managed well, there would be an increasing number of merchant teams coming into Wissen Town. As the leader of a troop team, he would not miss such a great opportunity for development.

“Leader Kerband, if these were ordinary days, I could have sent many soldiers and townspeople into the forest to help search for the relic for you. But there are more and more soldiers and adventurers coming into Wissen Town these days, and there was even a riot yesterday, almost leading to disaster. My security is becoming strained, and I am afraid that I cannot afford to allocate men to help you in your search at such short notice!”

There is no free lunch in the world!

Even though the so-called Undead Divine Weapons and underground city were very attractive, he might draw great trouble if he was not careful, especially where so many factions had an interest. Yang Ling was unwilling to attract trouble so easily. Sending a team of soldiers into Terras Forest to put on a show was no problem, but it would be impossible to get him to send his full forces into the forest to search for the underground city.

But with Kerband’s reminder, he did indeed recall the Valenia Volcano Valley that was rumored to be cursed by the evil demon. He recalled the strange basin of land deep in the valley, as well as the mysterious underground city in the memories of his Gargoyles.

Could the underground city at the back of the cave be the relic left behind by the Holy Dragon Ayrpaciro?

According to the Gargoyles’ memories, there were many dark element Magical Beasts standing guard inside the cave. There was a pack of Chimeras at the later stages of level eight, and there were some level nine Dark Dragons guarding the area. There was definitely something strange going on, since there were so many powerful Magical Beasts gathered.

“Yang Ling, I have also heard of the riot caused by the soldiers yesterday. I know of a simple way to prevent something like that from happening!” After taking a sip of rum, Kerband said, “Wissen Town has attracted many soldiers and adventurers. Rather than sending out an army to monitor their movements, you might as well set up a Troops Association in your territory and pressure them into regulating their own actions through the association!”

Hearing Kerband say this, the group suddenly broke into a commotion, whispering amongst themselves.

The association itself did not have military might like warriors and guards, but its invisible restraints were much more powerful than any elite army. Each true troop and troop team had to register themselves at the association, and had to accept jobs from and hand over their completed missions to the association itself.

Without proof from the association, missions completed by the troops themselves might not always be recognized by the mission’s issuer. Without the tests and proof from the association, the issuer of missions would not be able to test if a troop or troop team had indeed met their criteria.

It could be said that the association was the foundation for a troop’s survival. If a troop received a negative score from the association when it came to their credibility, then advancement would be difficult for them. They would either starve to death or have no choice but to find another profession. Those who had more serious records might not be able to survive even after they had switched jobs.

With that solution, no troop would dare cause trouble at the quarters of the association no matter how brazen they were, in fear of leaving any undesirable records. After all, no one would dare play around with their own future and crystal coins.

Setting up a Troops Association would benefit the prosperity and stability of any place. But these associations could not be built anywhere at will; there were various tests to go through for the application.

“Leader Kerband, building a Troops Association would be deeply beneficial for the troops in my territory, but is it as easy as you said?” Yang Ling asked.

“All you have to do is supply the money. You can leave the rest to me!” Kerband promised. He went on, “But to do so, I have to go back to the Livenza Alliance to call in some favors. As for searching for the relics of the Giant Dragon…”

Kerband trailed off, but Yang Ling understood what he meant. “Not a problem. If you will help me set up the Troops Association, I will spare no effort in helping you search for the underground city!”

Yang Ling was certain that it would be beneficial to have a Troops Assoication in Wissen Town to manage the troops that would continue to congregate there. Their continued presence would help speed Wissen Town’s development, which was ideal. And in the short term, the Association’s presence would help to relieve the pressure on Wissen Town’s security forces, which would allow Yang Ling to spare more soldiers and energy to deal with other threats and adventures.

Even though he had said that he would spare no effort, he planned to be flexible when it truly came to implementing the search. At most, he could claim to have done his part by giving Kerband information about the cave in the Valenia Volcano Valley.

No matter the angle, this was a transaction that Yang Ling would profit from, and he would not dream of missing such a great opportunity. Of course, it would be even more wonderful if he actually found the treasures of the Holy Dragon Ayrpaciro!