"Don't go, I don't need much, just a little bit of your attention."
Watching the figure disappear into the horizon, Chen Mo sighed.
"Ah, so stingy."
As he descended from the sky, the time for the experience card had just expired.
Those from the Desert Iron Mercenary Group who hadn't been redeemed by Ling Ying were all captured by Sha Luo and his group.
"Old man, don't touch me!" a voluptuous woman shouted angrily, struggling to break free from Sha Luo's grip.
"Your captain doesn't want you anymore, so why struggle? You might as well submit to me," Sha Luo said, his hand caressing Xue Lan's face, pinching her delicate skin, and clicking his tongue, "At your age, your skin is still as smooth as a young girl's."
"Have you forgotten how Mo Xing died? You really have no memory," Chen Mo said as he approached Nalan Yanran.
Sha Luo shuddered and quickly released Xue Lan. "Master."
"Master," the members of the Lofty Cloud Pavilion beside him echoed.
With no restraints, Xue Lan looked at the young man in front of her with fear in her beautiful eyes. He appeared to be no more than twenty years old, yet he wielded the power of a Dou Emperor.
To him, they were nothing but ants.
How would he treat her?
Realizing that her life was no longer in her own hands, Xue Lan was filled with despair.
The other members of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group lowered their heads in fear as they saw Chen Mo approach, not daring to resist in the slightest.
Chen Mo paid no attention to Xue Lan.
His sole purpose for coming over was to stand among the crowd, where a petite girl in a light green elegant outfit looked wronged and pitiful.
Chen Mo walked toward the girl.
When the girl saw Chen Mo approaching, she clearly displayed a look of fear.
"You don't need to be afraid; I won't hurt you." Saying this, he rolled up the sleeve of the girl's left arm.
Girl: (°ー°〃),
Nalan Yanran: (д)
Everyone: Shocked jpg
Sha Luo: "Could it be that the Master has a preference for this?"
However, the next moment, they were all stunned.
On the girl's snow-white wrist, there were actually some scales growing.
"Snake-People," Sha Luo exclaimed in surprise.
Nalan Yanran was also taken aback, unconsciously glancing at the girl's legs.
Seeing the way everyone looked at her as if she were a monster, the girl, already pale from her encounter with Xiao Yan, turned even paler. She quickly pulled down her sleeve and cautiously took two steps back, her body trembling uncontrollably.
"What's your name?" Chen Mo squatted down and said kindly.
Instinctively afraid of the man who had chased Xiao Yan away, the girl spoke with a hint of a sob in her voice, "Qing Lin."
"Indeed, it's Qing Lin," Chen Mo thought to himself. He stood up, ruffled Qing Lin's hair, and smiled, "You don't need to be afraid; from today on, you are a member of the Lofty Cloud Pavilion."
Taking it upon himself to bring Qing Lin into the Lofty Cloud Pavilion, Chen Mo turned halfway to look at the remaining members of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group and said, "Your captain has run away and doesn't want you anymore, but our Lofty Cloud Pavilion adheres to the principle of mutual assistance and is willing to accept you."
"From now on, those willing to join my Lofty Cloud Pavilion, please register with Pavilion Master Sha on the left. Each person who joins will receive a second-grade elixir. As for those who do not wish to join, you may leave now."
After all, they had just fought against his side, so Chen Mo couldn't reward them with third-grade elixirs so quickly.
"What are you still dawdling for? Our Lofty Cloud Pavilion has many experts, and Dou Kings are countless. The Grand Pavilion Master is even a Dou Emperor. It is your honor that the Grand Pavilion Master is willing to accept you, so hurry up and register."
Seeing no movement, Sha Luo quickly shouted.
Chen Mo glanced at him, surprised that he had such talent.
There were 16 members left in the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, and thirteen chose to join the Lofty Cloud Pavilion, including Xue Lan, while the other three chose to leave.
Chen Mo and the others did not stop them.
Once the surface matters were resolved, Nalan Yanran looked at him with sparkling eyes, seemingly wanting Chen Mo to explain everything that had just happened.
How could Chen Mo explain this?
Should he lay it all out and say, "I, Chen Mo, am a time traveler, and I have a cheat?"
Thus, Chen Mo's explanation was no explanation at all.
Instead, he had her lead the Lofty Cloud Pavilion to recruit all the mercenary groups, big and small, in Desert City.
First, they would take a soft approach, then a hard one.
As for Chen Mo, he hurriedly rode the Azure Beak Eagle toward the Snake-People Tribe.
...
In a dense forest somewhere in the eastern part of the empire.
"The spine is broken; even with careful treatment, it will take a long time to heal. During this time, you cannot engage in combat," Ling Ying said as he applied medicine to Xiao Ding, then turned to the almost demoralized Xiao Yan and huffed, "You really don't know what the young lady sees in you."
Xiao Yan lay half on the grass, his hands digging into the ground, lost in deep self-reproach, even tearing up large patches of grass.
"It's all my fault. If I hadn't underestimated them, thinking they were just Dou Grand Masters, this wouldn't have happened, and my brother wouldn't have been injured."
Xiao Li didn't know how to comfort him, so he asked Ling Ying, "May I ask how to address this esteemed elder?"
"No need; I'm just following orders," Ling Ying said, disappointed in Xiao Yan, and did not tell Xiao Li his name.
Once he confirmed there was no danger around, he once again vanished into the void.
At that moment, Yao Lao spoke up.
"This failure is not entirely a bad thing for you; at least it has made you see that there are people beyond people and heavens beyond heavens, teaching you that you cannot act so recklessly in the future," Yao Lao sighed, "Some forces, even I cannot provoke."
Xiao Yan still refused to accept this, saying, "What should we do then? Just leave like this?"
"Ah, go to the Black-Corner Region; it may be a new trial for you."
As Xiao Yan and the others prepared to leave, an ancient voice echoed from the void, "If you know what's good for you, don't provoke that young man again; you are not his match."
...
The night was enchanting.
In the Snake-People Tribe, negotiations had failed, and battle broke out.
Mobas stood atop the city walls, weapon in hand, shouting, "Kill these humans!"
In an oasis some distance from the center of the desert city, Chen Mo secured the Azure Beak Eagle in a certain spot.
Hearing commotion not far away, Chen Mo frowned slightly.
Shouldn't it be daytime?
Why are they fighting at night?
Using the Aura Concealment Technique, he stepped lightly, employing Dragon Serpent Steps, and flew toward the central city.
Upon reaching the central city, taking advantage of the chaos on the city walls, Chen Mo pulled out a black robe from his storage ring.
The black robe enveloped him completely, and in the midst of the chaos, Chen Mo slipped inside.
Just as he slipped in, the system chimed.
It was all information about the Plunder he could undertake.
Chen Mo ignored it all and, based on the descriptions in the novel, flew toward the eastern part of the city.
He sneaked into a massive temple, navigating through the dark corridors and avoiding patrolling guards. Soon, a small lake appeared before Chen Mo's eyes.
In the lake, there was a small island that stood out remarkably.
"Queen Medusa, I'm coming." He stuffed more than a dozen elixirs that dispelled snake venom into his mouth, enveloped himself in Thunder Fire, and plunged into the lake.
(End of Chapter)