Sinisi waved his teammates aside and chuckled heartily, "Since brother Li Xi is here today, let's not discuss these vexing matters. Ding Dun, go buy a table full of dishes and a few barrels of mead. Brother Li Xi and I will not return until we're drunk."
The other team members forced a smile, "Yes, let's drink! This damned world."
Perhaps they had endured too many gloomy days, but almost no one ate the food on the table. They all held their wine barrels and drank, and the atmosphere only grew more somber. By the end, they were too down to speak.
Li Xi chewed on a duck's foot, swallowing the bone and meat whole with his file-like teeth. There was no point in eating further, as it was all rather uninteresting. "I have something to discuss with you all today. You can decide whether to leave or not after you hear what I have to say."
Everyone who had been burying their heads in their wine cups raised them. A faint light appeared in their listless eyes, a light of hope. Sinisi said, "Brother Li Xi is too polite. If there's anything you need us for, just ask."
Li Xi didn't speak directly but inquired about the day's events. "Do you know about the Leaf Merchant Guild that opened today?"
The inclination for gossip is unavoidable for any intelligent being. When the topic was brought up, everyone became interested. "Who doesn't know? In just one day, they earned over ten thousand gold coins. As time goes on, even dragons will envy their wealth."
"And we don't even know the background of this merchant guild or who its boss is. The city lord's mansion wants to cooperate with them. And those dwarves, we've never seen so many dwarves. If the Leaf Merchant Guild can take root in Cado City, Cado City won't decline."
The crowd chattered amongst themselves. In fact, their decision to leave had already been made, but the sudden appearance of the Leaf Merchant Guild had disrupted their plans. With hope rekindled, who would want to abandon their homes and families?
Sinisi raised his hand to quiet them. The team members stopped speaking. He said, "Brother Li Xi, to be honest, we went today too. Don't laugh, but there were too many people, and we couldn't get in. We just walked around outside and came back. What do you mean by mentioning it?"
Sinisi's gaze fixed on Li Xi as he spoke the last part. He had already guessed a few things in his heart but dared not believe them.
Li Xi drained the mead in his cup. "Actually, I am one of the bosses of the Leaf Merchant Guild. I've come to discuss cooperation with all of you brothers."
Over a dozen pairs of eyes lit up, their excited heartbeats so synchronized that they could be heard outside the door.
Sinisi even grabbed Li Xi's hand, trembling with excitement. It was obvious to anyone that with the Leaf Merchant Guild's performance on its opening day, its future would far surpass other merchant teams. Even if all the other merchant teams in Cado City were combined, they likely couldn't compete.
With such conditions, such capital, and such connections, they could even seek cooperation with B-rank mercenary groups. C-rank mercenary groups would be clamoring for cooperation. Now, approaching them, an integrated D-rank mercenary group, was purely out of past goodwill.
Fortunately, after the initial excitement, Sinisi remained somewhat calm. "Brother Li Xi, if you're giving us such a great gift out of a little past goodwill, it's really not necessary. We shouldn't delay the guild's development because of us."
Li Xi waved his hand. "You brothers taught me a lot about how to be a qualified mercenary back then. I've come this time because, firstly, I know your character, which is beyond reproach. Secondly, the guild isn't prepared for external expansion yet and will only develop within Cado City, deepening its roots. We'll expand externally only after accumulating enough experience. Therefore, your strength is more than sufficient."
Sinisi was about to speak again, but Li Xi interrupted him. "This matter is settled. The remuneration will absolutely be the best in the industry. We will also equip you with weapons crafted by dwarves. I will not be responsible for management or operations; Madam Avril, the city lord's private advisor, will be in command. So, please don't feel indebted to me, as you will still need to go through an interview to determine if you are hired. At most, I'm just recommending you."
Li Xi himself said he was a boss, and his recommended people would surely be accepted. Thus, Sinisi and the others knew that as long as they agreed today, they would become members of Cado City's rising star, the Leaf Merchant Guild.
With a fixed salary, who would still endure the hardships and precarious life of a mercenary? Combined with weapons forged by dwarves, that was equipment most mercenaries dreamed of. Look at the prices weapons were fetching today; a single enchanted long saber sold for five hundred gold coins. More than half of those present didn't even have that much wealth. They were less valuable than a single sword.
"If I say anything more, it means I'm being impolite. I'll drink this cup." Sinisi raised his wine cup and drank it in one go. Tai Qi led the others to raise their cups as well, shame filling their faces. "Brother Li Xi, I was wrong before. From now on, if you tell me to go west, I will never go east."
"Clang, clang, clang."
Over a dozen cups of mead were drained. Their previous listless demeanor vanished instantly. Everyone's smiles were so radiant, as if they had just received their admission notice to a civil service job.
"From now on, we are all family. As long as I am here, I guarantee we will all make money together."
The meal lasted until nearly dawn. Many things were said, including curses about the world, the previous city lord, and even the gods. However, they were all filled with anticipation for their future lives. Sinisi and the others also asked who the main boss of the merchant guild was. Li Xi, prepared for this, gave a name: 'Mourinho.' This immediately put Sinisi and the others more at ease, as that name was synonymous with a hero in Cado City.
A person who had saved Cado City twice was absolutely the most trustworthy.
When Li Xi returned to Ais's bed, smelling of alcohol, Ais pouted. "Say, how did you get involved with Madam Avril?"
The alcohol in Li Xi's stomach was instantly expelled by half through his pores. He feigned ignorance and asked, "What are you talking about? I don't understand."
Ais pointed at Li Xi. "Why are you playing dumb? You guys, behind my back, got to know a dwarf tribe, quietly established a Leaf Merchant Guild, and even got involved with the city lord. Now, everyone outside is saying the Leaf Merchant Guild made thirty thousand gold coins in one day. Why didn't you tell me any of this? You made me find out from others!"
"Tell me, how much gold did you get today?"
Li Xi immediately calmed down. After so much talk, they hadn't gotten to the main point. Fortunately, fortunately.
He stepped forward to comfort her. "I didn't know at first either. Madam Avril only told me these things later. It was so busy today that I didn't have time to explain. It's for your own good. After the Leaf Merchant Guild succeeds, you can comfortably be a full-time housewife, and we can have a few more children. You just take care of the children at home, and I'll handle things outside. I promise you will be the happiest woman in the world."
The destructive power of a 'sugar-coated bullet' was undeniable. The final outcome was that Ais, begging for mercy in bed, forgot what she wanted to ask.
In fact, in this world, no one cared about marrying multiple wives, as long as you had the ability to support them. But every time Li Xi faced Ais, he couldn't bear to say it. And since Avril always said that clandestine affairs were exciting, Li Xi kept it a secret. Now, it seemed, a woman's intuition was quite accurate, and Ais was already starting to suspect something.
It seemed he could keep it hidden for a while longer. Putting aside the matter of the two women, there were still several things on his plate. One was the Leaf Merchant Guild, which had the Guard Army on the surface, and the mercenary group formed by Sinisi and others. In the shadows, it was protected by 'Kisame Hoshigaki,' whom Li Xi had recalled. It was safe within Cado City.
In the past few days, the two shadow clones had completed four more missions. Li Xi had drawn out the Double Azure Dragon, a Bag of Soldier Pills, the Leaf Village forehead protector, and an ANBU mask. Very good, except for the Soldier Pills, the rest were useless items. Fortunately, their commemorative significance was extraordinary, and Li Xi collected them all.
During this time, Avril had also finished refining the palm of the goblin god, Guro, condensing it into three drops, or three units, of divine power. Now, the conditions for absorbing the Abyssal Flame Demon bloodline were ripe, and Li Xi was about to gain his third bloodline. Unfortunately, all the Flame Demon limbs he had preserved before were given to Demanga for experiments. All conditions were met, except for the Flame Demon bloodline itself.
To absorb the abyssal bloodline, he would have to encounter a Flame Demon again and kill it on the spot to obtain it.
The next day, Li Xi submitted his mission at the mercenary hall. Under the gaze of all the mercenaries, he left the crowd like the brightest star.
Li Xi was no longer the unknown person he once was. He was the one who had successfully captured assassins twice. Now, he was the one who introduced the dwarves and revitalized Cado City. As Li Xi entered public view, the intelligence Ais had kept hidden could no longer be concealed.
The fastest person to be promoted to C-rank mercenary in Cado City's history, 100% mission completion rate, single-handedly, barely an adult, the conqueror of the mercenary flower Ais, his shadow was present in every major battle. He also had a deep relationship with Lord Mourinho, the hero of Cado City. Many people believed Li Xi was Lord Mourinho's direct disciple, especially since their ninjutsu was passed down in the same lineage.
With such a resume, he was a seedling for future top powerhouses. If he didn't die, he would be a big shot in the future. If Li Xi hadn't been so busy these days, people would have been lining up to do missions with him and build relationships.
"Xiao Fan, start the lucky draw."
[Yes, Master.]
Unlike the perfunctory items drawn during the shadow clone's lottery, the prizes for the B-rank missions Li Xi had completed were quite good.
Ninjutsu tools: Samehada, Kusanagi blade.
Samehada was appearing for the first time. 'Kisame Hoshigaki' had been longing for it for a long time. If he could draw it today, with Samehada's ability to absorb energy limitlessly, Li Xi's strength could be raised by another level.
The Kusanagi blade had appeared many times, and Li Xi felt it was more of a redundancy than a necessity.
Ninjutsu: Raiton, Rasengan, Chidori.
These were the three high-level ninjutsu from the beginning of the anime. Their advanced capabilities were immense. Drawing one of them could lead to an explosive increase in close-quarters combat ability. Looking at these three ninjutsu, Li Xi couldn't help but imagine if he opened the Three Gates, transformed into a Dragon, and amplified his power, a Raiton could even pierce an ancient dragon. Su Dan Novel Network.
When Kakashi first used Raiton, his speed was so fast that his own eyes couldn't keep up, indicating that both Raiton and Chidori could significantly increase the caster's speed.
Among the ninjutsu were also the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju's Dark Release: Dark Travel, the Third Hokage's Earth Style: Earth Flow River, and the Fourth Hokage's Reaper Death Seal.
The first two ninjutsu had appeared several times: one was a genjutsu, and the other was an earth style ninjutsu. However, the Reaper Death Seal was appearing for the first time. This was a sealing jutsu.
This ninjutsu first appeared when the Third Hokage, using two shadow clones, attempted to sacrifice himself to take down Orochimaru and the resurrected First and Second Hokage. The caster used their soul as a contract medium to seal the target's soul within the Shinigami.
The Third Hokage used it to seal the souls of Orochimaru's arms and the souls of the First and Second Hokage with his own soul.
The Fourth Hokage used it to seal the Nine-Tails. It was a very powerful ninjutsu, but it was only a last resort for a mutually assured destruction when all other means had failed.