Lord of the Myriad Worlds

Chapter 429: When in Rome, Do as the Romans Do

In the blink of an eye, more than ten days had passed.

The thirty new Scout recruits trained by Li Wei grew quite quickly. Even that Grand Commander Teren clicked his tongue in praise upon seeing this.

After all, Li Wei was truly bringing out his real skills to teach them.

However, if these new Scout recruits wanted to enter actual combat and exert a modicum of use on a real battlefield, it wouldn't work without three to five years of accumulation.

They were currently only equivalent to Li Wei during his Rookie Mission period. And even he had spent nearly four years subsequently before achieving his current strength.

Yet that Grand Commander Teren hoped they could go to the battlefield in three months, which was slightly too hasty.

"Everyone, keep up! Don't fall behind! Pay attention to the rhythm of your breathing, observe beneath your feet and your surroundings. Your bodies must learn to grasp balance. Yes, very good, just like that!"

At this moment, within a steep Mountain Forest, Li Wei was routinely leading those thirty new Scout recruits in training. If one wanted to be a good Scout, measuring the earth with one's feet was a must; one couldn't train by hiding inside a fortress. Although this was equally Unreliable against the backdrop of raging fires of war where enemy Scouts could pop out from anywhere at any time.

But what else could Li Wei do? As a Mercenary, he had to act on orders, haha!

"Rest in place! Team One, Team Two, stand guard."Half an hour later, in another mountain col, Li Wei issued the order to rest and reorganize. This bunch of new Scout recruits were so tired they were just short of letting their tongues hang out. Meanwhile, there wasn't even a bead of sweat on his body; it wasn't even enough for a warm-up.

Looking up at the surroundings, the topography and landforms of this region rapidly assembled in Li Wei's mind. Combining them with the segments he had memorized over the past few days, a three-dimensional Grand Map encompassing a radius of three hundred li around Gale Fortress was thus formed.

Without a Trace, his Scout Destiny quietly changed, rising to 54. Who could have thought that training these new Scout recruits would also increase his Scout Destiny?

Especially since he had been practically holding their hands and explaining things to them one by one these past few days—it was truly holding nothing back in teaching. As a result, his Scout Destiny had unexpectedly risen very quickly.

If this continued, Li Wei felt he could awaken an Innate Talent of "Enjoying Being a Teacher."

However, this period of peaceful days was probably about to end.

Because the Neanderthals' Main Legion was currently launching a fierce attack. What they were attacking was another barony. Although Li Wei couldn't receive information transmissions from the Windbreath Territory, he had ears. Upon returning to Gale Fortress every night, listening to a few words here and there was enough to guess the general gist.

It seemed the fighting over there was extremely intense.

Just as he was thinking this, Li Wei's heart suddenly stirred slightly, but he pretended not to know. It wasn't until a Human Silhouette appeared Without a Trace ten meters away from him. This was a man in his fifties with a small mustache, wearing a set of grey Light Armor. In this early winter season, its camouflage was extremely strong.

"Eh? Brother Tom, why have you come?"

Li Wei was very surprised.

This person was the 3rd-Tier Night Ranger recently hired by Windbreath Count. He was also a rather powerful Scout, possessing All-Attribute Level 3 Awakening and Perception +9. His Primary Class was a Five-Star Hunter, his second profession a Five-Star Mountain Folk, his third profession a Five-Star Woodcutter, his fourth profession a Five-Star Cavalryman, and his fifth profession a Three-Star Scout.

He was extremely awesome.

However, this person didn't put on any airs either. They had bumped into each other a few times over the past few days and chatted quite well. Under most circumstances, he would trail behind Li Wei and these thirty new Scout recruits. Although there was a suspicion of him using them as bait, it was all understandable.

"These past few days, I don't know why, but I've always been somewhat restless and uneasy."

This guy didn't approach either, merely habitually standing behind a tree and speaking softly.

Hearing this, Li Wei inwardly cried out in shame. He roughly knew what was going on. It was because, in order to figure out Brother Tom's strength over the past few days, he hadn't peeked at him any less. What was relatively excessive was that occasionally he would even use magic-piercing lock-on. Once or twice didn't matter, but when the number of times increased, it was inevitable it would make Tom suspicious and paranoid.

However, he absolutely couldn't admit to this matter even if beaten to death.

If he even dared to peek at this 3rd-Tier Night Ranger, then could the other people in Gale Fortress escape?

Count every single one of them; he didn't even let the children go.

"Ah, now that you mention it, brother, I also have a similar feeling, though it probably isn't as clear as yours," Li Wei said very sincerely. Regarding his specific strength and specific attributes, these were all secrets. Other than Duke Will and a portion of the high-ranking officials of Will Province who were allowed to know, they would not be opened to employers.

What could be opened was only the Comprehensive Strength score, as well as the funds required for hiring. Just like when Li Wei had initially hired Spellcasters, it was entirely determined by the recruitment price given in the Tavern.

"George, don't be too modest either. I've seen you training new recruits these past few days; it's methodical and systematic. You're absolutely an expert. Although I don't know your specific attribute data, I feel that your Comprehensive Strength is at most only slightly inferior to mine. Therefore, I have a sincere suggestion: you and I are both Mercenaries, both working for Windbreath Count, and both at Gale Fortress. Why don't we team up and cooperate?"

"Is that feasible?"

Li Wei was taken aback, actually not expecting this Old Tom to have this thought. A 3rd-Tier Night Ranger wasn't weak. Li Wei merely had 1.5 more Perception than him, and incidentally had one more Life-Bound Card than him, and incidentally had two more Rare Profession Cards, had one Double Rare Scout Card, and finally, incidentally had enhanced his Codename to Level 4. At the same time, he was also a Viscount and merely possessed a Sequence Four Magic Crest.

In other aspects, he didn't hold an advantage. For example, he was currently still a pitiful and weak Four-Star Class-holder. For example, he was still a 2nd-Tier Night Ranger. For example—alright, there were still very, very many weaknesses.

"Of course it's feasible! What's not feasible about it? I always feel that Windbreath Count has enormous ambitions. Once a great battle begins, Scouts like us who seem very arrogant, very free, and very flashy on ordinary days actually won't be able to exert much use either. We'll be suppressed by the opposing Spellcasters like dogs. Nowadays, it's all about team combat, understand? Not to mention it's said that Samsara Travelers have even appeared in this Chaotic Killing Mission..."

"I've also heard of it, but I don't know much about these Samsara Travelers. It seems His Majesty the King and Lord Duke are unwilling to say much about this, nor have they given us any warnings. Brother Tom, do you know more?"

Li Wei wasn't ashamed to ask his subordinates, and Tom also intentionally wanted to win him over, so he wasn't stingy.

"Actually, I don't know much either. I only ran into them once before, and that was ten years ago. That bunch of Samsara Travelers don't have three heads and six arms either. The gap between their Power System and ours isn't like a massive chasm. Our Alliance of Heavenly Lords and All-Heavens Mercenary Alliance both use the power of the Ancient Magic Era as a baseline. Theirs is comparatively mixed, but at the same time, they will also absorb the power of the Ancient Magic Era for their own use."

"So the true difference lies in that our side pays more attention to Humanistic Care, leaving a line of retreat when doing things. Even if it's plundering those dissipating, chaotic magics, we will do our best to restore that world's ecology. But Samsara Travelers and some other organizations pay more attention to quick and immediate results. Additionally, their 'Gu nurturing' over there is exceptionally fierce. Those who can stand out are, without exception, powerhouses with no shortcomings in any aspect."

"Let's put it this way: Samsara Travelers of the same realm can probably have two fight three of us on a frontal battlefield. And on non-frontal battlefields, because these guys are ruthless and merciless with outstanding abilities, they can often Stomp us as well. However, our side's advantage is the super-large depth constructed by Territory after Territory. They can win for a time and in a place, but generally speaking, it's difficult for them to sustain it."

"Of course, our side also has outstanding individuals. For example, the All-Heavens Mercenary Alliance that split off from the Alliance of Heavenly Lords. This refers to individuals or small teams who aren't dragged down by Territories and can fight their way out single-handedly. When they encounter Samsara Travelers, the win-loss ratio actually won't be too ugly."

"Additionally, there's another point, which is the 'When in Rome, Do as the Romans Do' rule. With this, even if Guan Yu fights Qin Qiong, or a mechanical legion battles Immortal Cultivators, there will be a relatively fair standard for confrontation."

"So you see, I actually don't have a clue in my heart either. If we don't encounter Samsara Travelers, then it's fine; I do have confidence in dealing with those Neanderthal Scouts. But if we do encounter Samsara Travelers, the two of us brothers will still have to resort to Mutual Support. Preserving our little lives is the most important thing."

"What you say makes perfect sense, brother. I'll listen to you on everything, but how are we going to cooperate?" For a moment, Li Wei's heart was also moved.

"As Mercenaries, we indeed lack a medium of communication between us. Brother, if you trust me, I have two Mother-Child Linked Item Cards here. You and I will each take one. As long as the straight-line distance between us doesn't exceed ten kilometers, we will be able to communicate and converse, as well as determine the other party's basic whereabouts. What do you think?"

"Good stuff! Sure, I don't have any problems with it. It's just that this communication distance is truly a bit short."

"Be content, brother. This is a world where radiation Magic Particles are flying everywhere in chaos. Aside from Prestige Cards, this thing is already the most useful. Also, absolutely do not use a 5-Star Heaven-Veiling Card casually, otherwise this thing will directly be ruined and lose its effectiveness."

Following that, Old Tom discussed and agreed on some other matters with Li Wei before rapidly departing. This so-called Mutual Support was actually just adding an extra layer of insurance for oneself; at critical moments, one still had to rely on oneself.

That evening, Li Wei returned to Gale Fortress with the thirty new Scout recruits. He instantly realized that this place was somewhat different. It was as if an invisible dark cloud of war had shrouded over it, making everyone act as if they were On High Alert.

As luck would have it, Li Wei couldn't receive any information. This was f*cking uncomfortable. It was like being a deaf and blind person, completely ignorant of the outside situation. Even more ironically, he was a Scout! Hahaha!

Li Wei wanted to go find Grand Commander Teren. As a result, entirely as expected, this Grand Commander was not at home, and had taken away twenty-four Holy Gale Knights and thirty heavy cavalrymen. Who knows what they went to do?

Then he attempted to find that second Knight responsible for holding down the fort. As a result, the other party directly replied with a single sentence: "No Comment!"

Good Heavens. Li Wei simply felt this was too absurd.

"No need to be surprised; this is the status of a Mercenary. Before new missions are issued, we'll just continue executing our old missions and that's that. Actually, you'll get used to it. When we did things and performed missions previously, we considered everything from the perspective of being a Lord, so we would consider a lot. But actually, to tell the truth, as a Mercenary, obeying orders is the most correct choice."

On his way back, he happened to bump into Old Tom. It seemed he was specifically waiting for Li Wei.

"Yes, brother's lecture is correct. I still haven't corrected my mindset. We aren't leaders right now, so we shouldn't make presumptuous guesses; just doing our own missions well is enough. However, starting tomorrow, I won't be taking those new recruits for field training anymore. I don't want to be a target."

Li Wei's attitude was very earnest, bearing a look of having received a great teaching. Indeed, the intelligence he received right now was too little. How could he compare with Windbreath Count, who had overall planning and control of the entire situation? He shouldn't think of himself as too clever, nor should he think of others as too stupid.

(End of Chapter)