The Recruitment — Obscenely Rich

*Origin Time. Seven days later.*

Lu Yuan and Amy were sprinting through the forest together.

*This one's just like Yeye,* he thought idly as they ran. *Carries her own Traveler's Cottage wherever she goes.* He glanced inward at his own situation — a small tent. Nothing more.

Just then, the light ahead brightened noticeably.

His eyes lit up. Gazing toward the distant rays filtering between the trees, he smiled. "That should be the edge of the Mist Forest up ahead."

"Finally!" Amy threw her arms wide. "This young miss is absolutely exhausted to death!"

*Exhausted, my foot.*

Soon, their view opened wide. The dim, heavy forest gave way to a boundless plain, and far on the horizon, an enormous city sprawled across the land.

"It's Tianrao City!" Amy cheered, jumping. "We finally made it! Yes!"

Lu Yuan stared at the city that stretched as far as the eye could see, a flicker of awe crossing his face. "It really is big. So much bigger than Sandy Rock City."

"Well, obviously — Tianrao City spans hundreds of kilometers."

Since the plain lay within Tianrao City's sphere of influence, the surrounding Feral Beasts had long since been hunted out by warriors venturing from the city. The two picked up the pace, and in just over half an hour, they arrived.

Up close, the scale hit Lu Yuan all over again. The walls alone were hundreds of meters tall — an almost terrifying sight. Standing at their base made you acutely aware of your own insignificance. The city gates themselves rose over a hundred meters, nearly as wide as they were tall.

Unlike the starting cities, where entry was free, every other city on the continent charged an entry fee. Tianrao City was no exception. A queue had already formed outside the gates, and two Gene Warriors were stationed there collecting payment.

Amy put her hands on her hips and shot Lu Yuan a smug look. "Do I have to queue?"

Before Lu Yuan could respond, the guards had already noticed them. The squad leader at the front stepped forward with a frown. "You two — get in line. No cutting."

Amy reached into her pocket and produced a small purple jade token.

The guards froze. Eyes went wide.

They straightened immediately and bowed low. "Miss Amy! You've arrived! Lady Lingling is already waiting for you inside the city."

The warriors standing in the queue watched the scene unfold in open-mouthed disbelief.

"Who are those two?"

"Did the guard just call that little girl *Miss Amy*? Don't tell me she's from the Battle Emperor's family?"

"No way — the Battle Emperor's own princess?"

Amy grinned with obvious satisfaction and turned to Lu Yuan. "See?"

"..." He had nothing to say to that.

The two walked through the gate. The whispers trailed behind them.

"So who's the guy? If he's walking alongside the Battle Emperor's princess, he can't be a nobody..."

Inside the city, a beautiful woman in a purple robe stood waiting. When Amy spotted her, her eyes lit up. She sprinted over and threw her arms around her.

"Lingling! I finally made it to Tianrao City!"

Wang Lingling smiled and ruffled Amy's hair warmly. Then she looked up at Lu Yuan. Something briefly sharpened in her gaze before her smile smoothed it away. "You must be Mr. Lei Feng?"

Lu Yuan blinked — and then it clicked. Right. That was the name he'd... *conned*... cough, casually mentioned to Amy back on the road.

"That's me."

Wang Lingling studied him pleasantly. "Thank you so much for saving Miss Amy. The Algaibi Family is deeply grateful. Lady Gwen would like to thank you in person. Would you be willing to come meet her?"

Lu Yuan considered it briefly. This was Tianrao City — Amy was practically royalty here. Meeting her mother couldn't hurt.

"Sure," he said.

"Then please follow me." Wang Lingling's smile widened. She produced a Communication Crystal and held it out. "Mr. Lei Feng, since this is your first visit to this region, I imagine you haven't yet acquired a White Cloud Continent Communication Crystal?"

"I haven't, actually."

"I happen to have two blank crystals on me. Please, take one."

Lu Yuan noticed Amy's eyes had also lit up at the sight of the second crystal. He glanced at Wang Lingling and understood at once. *These were prepared in advance — one for me, one for Amy. She already knew we'd both be coming.*

"I couldn't possibly—" he started.

Wang Lingling's eyes curved with quiet amusement. "If we have no way to reach you, Mr. Lei Feng, that would be rather inconvenient — wouldn't it?"

*...Fair point.* Lu Yuan accepted the crystal. He pressed his Gene Battle Mark against its surface. A brief flash of white light swept across the crystal and faded — binding complete. It was his now.

Amy eagerly bound her own with barely contained excitement.

Wang Lingling took Amy's hand and led them toward a carriage waiting on the roadside.

Four blood-red, single-horned Feral Beasts shaped like horses were hitched to the carriage.

Lu Yuan glanced at the creatures. A flicker of envy crossed his face. *He didn't even have a mount yet, and here these beasts were being used to pull a carriage.*

Genuinely something else.

The three boarded. Inside, Wang Lingling and Amy sat together on one side; Lu Yuan took the seat across from them.

Amy leaned forward, looking at him with eager anticipation. "Oh right — my mom said she wants you to join Tianrao City! What do you think? Would you?"

"Join Tianrao City?" Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow. "What does that involve exactly?"

"You know — the Enforcement Team, the Tianrao Army, the Tianrao Adventure Corps! All three have really generous pay."

He had heard Amy bring this up during their journey. He shook his head with a smile. "I'll pass. I like being on my own."

Amy's face fell. She looked genuinely crestfallen — and she was just cute enough that the expression was a little heartbreaking.

"You don't want to join? I was actually going to have you join my adventure squad. You're strong — I'd even make you a squad captain. What do you say?"

"..."

"Still no. I prefer going solo."

Amy sighed.

The carriage rolled on. The three chatted idly, and before long it came to a stop.

The coachman opened the door. "Miss, Lady Lingling, Mr. Lei Feng — we've arrived."

The three stepped out. Lu Yuan found himself standing before an enormous estate. The front gate alone was over ten meters wide, with the characters for "Tianrao Mansion" carved prominently above the entrance.

A unit of Gene Warriors in matching Gene Armament stood watch outside. When they spotted Wang Lingling and Amy, they bowed in unison.

"Miss. Lady Lingling."

Wang Lingling led them to a large reception room and paused at the door. "Lady Gwen is already inside waiting. Please come in, Mr. Lei Feng."

She pushed the door open. Amy burst inside. Lu Yuan followed.

He found a woman seated in one of the chairs — her features bore a clear resemblance to Amy's, but she was unmistakably, strikingly beautiful.

*That had to be Gwen Algaibi.*

Amy ran straight to her. "Mom! I'm here!"

Gwen smiled and ruffled Amy's hair, then looked up at Lu Yuan.

*Quite handsome.* That was her first impression.

According to Amy's account, he was formidably strong — and could see the full form of a Mirage Dragon. A rare talent, no question.

"Greetings, Lady Gwen," Lu Yuan said.

She smiled with gentle warmth. "You must be Mr. Lei Feng?"

"I am."

Gwen studied him thoughtfully, her expression warm. "Amy told me about you. Your strength is impressive and your talent exceptional. Would you be willing to join Tianrao City? We have three divisions — the Enforcement Team, the Tianrao Army, and the Tianrao Adventure Corps — your choice. The base monthly salary is 100,000 First-rank Spirit Crystals. Once you break through to Second-rank, it becomes 100,000 Second-rank Spirit Crystals per month. Outstanding performance earns additional bonuses and rewards on top of that."

Though his expression stayed level, Lu Yuan was genuinely surprised. *He hadn't expected terms anywhere near this generous.*

A typical First-rank Gene Warrior barely scraped together a few thousand Spirit Crystals in a month. Even elite warriors rarely broke 10,000. 100,000 a month worked out to over 3,000 a day — more than most warriors with Boss Grade genes could reliably earn in a single day.

*These are... legitimately exceptional terms.*

And that was the base. Outstanding performance brought even more.

Before he could speak, Gwen reached into her robe and produced a card, extending it toward him. "I also heard that you rescued Amy once. The Algaibi Family always repays what it owes. This is a bearer card with 300,000 First-rank Spirit Crystals — a small token of our appreciation."

*300,000 First-rank Spirit Crystals.* Lu Yuan did the conversion. *That's the equivalent of three million Zero-Rank crystals.*

He had never seen this much money in one place in his entire life.

Privately, he had to admit he was tempted. These past few days of cultivation had nearly emptied his Spirit Crystal reserves, and he'd only picked up a few thousand First-rank crystals along the road through the Mist Forest. Three hundred thousand would be extremely welcome.

*But,* he reminded himself, *with my build — effectively limitless Spirit Power, near-impenetrable defense, and self-healing — earning Spirit Crystals on my own isn't a real obstacle. And if I'd ever truly wanted to join an organization, I could have joined Li Qinghe's side back in Xili City. For now, freedom matters more.*

He shook his head with a polite smile. "Lady Gwen, I saved Amy because I didn't want to stand by while someone from my own side was being surrounded and attacked by outsiders. It was the right thing to do. I had no idea at the time that Amy was the Algaibi Family's young miss, and I wasn't looking for any reward. Please don't feel obligated."

A faint trace of regret crossed Gwen's expression.

"As for joining Tianrao City —" Lu Yuan gave a small, rueful smile. "I'm sorry, Lady Gwen. I'm not someone who does well with constraints. I much prefer coming and going as I please."

*First a monthly offer of 100,000, then a 300,000 'small token' out of nowhere,* he thought privately. *Obscenely, absurdly generous. Honestly beyond human comprehension.*

His answer, however, remained firm and polite.

Gwen accepted it gracefully without pushing further. "In that case, so be it. If you ever change your mind, come find me anytime — my offer stands."

"Thank you, Lady Gwen. I'll keep it in mind."

Though she didn't show it, she was genuinely reluctant to let this opportunity pass. Lu Yuan was a rare talent, and if circumstances changed, she hoped he would reconsider. But she wasn't going to force his hand.

Wang Lingling spoke up pleasantly. "Which country are you from, Mr. Lei Feng?"

"The Red Maple Empire."

Gwen's eyes lit up slightly. "Ah — Red Maple! Our Lion Empire and the Red Maple Empire are neighboring nations. Perhaps we'll have a chance to meet in the real world someday."

She added with a warm smile, "If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to reach out."

"Thank you," Lu Yuan said. "And likewise — if there's ever anything I can do, just say the word."

Amy grabbed his sleeve. "Then next time you're back in Red Maple, give me a heads-up! I'll come visit. Last time my mom took me there, I walked all over the capital and had absolutely nobody to hang out with. Incredibly boring."

"Sure."

"Really?! It's a deal!" Her eyes shone. "Come on, Lei Feng — let's swap contact info!"

Lu Yuan and Amy exchanged contact information, and Wang Lingling cheerfully exchanged with him as well.

*Two contacts on all of White Cloud Continent,* Lu Yuan noted. *That's where I stand.*

Still — people were social creatures. More connections meant more options. You never knew when you might need them.

As the meeting wound down, Lu Yuan glanced at Gwen — mature, elegant, striking in a way that left an impression — and then looked over at Amy.

His expression went slightly peculiar.

*Mother and daughter...* He kept the observation firmly to himself.