How Am I Still Alive?-Chapter 1354 - 1340: Hire

"There is a market where there is demand, even if it’s needs that can’t necessarily be acknowledged openly."

"It seems like everyone is quite busy...."

Explorers of the Exotic Realm aren’t limited to just Lin Nu’s Church; just taking the dozens of Proper Gods and their allied forces alone, probably over a hundred key worlds are being explored simultaneously.

So many worlds, so many resource points, and all the related industries, populations, cultures, and religions pose a series of problems that require a massive amount of talent to solve.

Naturally, this led to the flow and trade of manpower.

Owing to Wanjing, the Capital of the Eastern Country being significantly important, many forces have local outposts or headquarters there, and it naturally became a place for cooperation and coordination.

This kind of "force trading" was obviously neither normal nor legal, but considering that even if you prohibited it, covert activities would lead to social instability, the officials adopted a tacit approval stance.

Of course, it was inappropriate to do this openly in the inner ring, under the public eye, so it was organized in this outer ring area.

Similar venues exist in state capitals, but this "Great Bazaar" is definitely the largest in scale and upper limit, even indirectly affecting the whole world’s situation when most high-level forces of the Eastern Country have personnel stationed here.

"Raise the stakes, and at the same time, release some information, this time it’s a public recruitment....."

Lu Ping’an spoke to his staff on site, who had arrived with Lulu from the Salvation Army. They had been distributing materials and leaflets around the area, hoping to recruit more forces interested in Mercury 42..... but from the results, the feedback wasn’t just poor, it was virtually nonexistent.

Small ordinary teams of several or a few dozen members (without Rule-level combat power) couldn’t affect the bigger picture, so the stationed personnel wouldn’t be too interested; big forces that could impact the big picture wouldn’t bother entering the game over simple leaflets.

To draw them in, first, we needed official approval..... otherwise, even random troop movements would be highly taboo.

Secondly, it was about offering benefits...you have taken the richest cities and mining areas for yourself, are we supposed to send troops just for money? For Proper God Church, money is probably the most meaningless.

".....leave my contact information, let them talk to me directly, I’ll be here every two days, we can arrange a time to talk face to face."

Therefore, if you invite others to join, naturally you must provide developmental space for them to delve into the game.

A city, an island, or even a "continent," are all negotiable, since Lin Nu’s Church had already determined they could not handle it alone, it was natural to let other forces intervene.

Of course, if too many and too varied forces arrived, it would be a disaster.

How to sell the existing "stakes" at the highest possible price, handing out entry tickets to the right people and right forces, that depended on the negotiator’s strength.

The office staff here had been sent over early, treatment and resources were all written down, and this advertisement wasn’t cheap..... but neither Lu Ping’an nor Lulu were really focusing on this.

First and foremost, not obtaining an "Alliance Agreement" and "License" meant everything discussed was moot, and others wouldn’t take you seriously..... at least until the predicate (License) was successful to more than half, then others would take it seriously.

Next, our side still held some hope in the officials, hoping that even if they could not dispatch direct combat power, they could at least make introductions... not just hoping they introduce top-quality teams, but that if the introduction is from the officials, it lends an official guarantee to the cooperation, making the mercenaries a lot more compliant.

In the end, Lu Ping’an’s group had too high expectations of the officials, hoping they would provide Mercury 42 with substantial privileges..... but now it seems, managing to spread the word was already the help at its limit; in a situation where they had to intervene in at least hundreds of worlds, there was not much they could do.

"Let’s cede some areas, cities, and islands....."

This was also pre-planned content, if you want them to appear as reinforcements, you have to give them a space and base for development.

It’s just that previous promotions were really "promotions", more about familiarizing faces, letting people know the situation of Mercury 42, and the reality of recruiting..... but now, the substantially increased rewards signify a real recruitment effort.

In the following days, Lu Ping’an planned to visit every two days, intending to directly negotiate terms with interested parties... Provisions that seemed to involve ceding territory were not suitable for widespread dissemination.

During his absence, Lulu would also take over... but letting her take full responsibility was extremely inappropriate. It would create an impression that locals were coming out specifically to "seek help", making negotiations passive and possibly leading to exorbitant demands due to the opportunity presented, and...

".....Lulu, you need to be more assertive, display an attitude of ’it doesn’t matter if you don’t come; there are plenty of others willing to join us.’ As a diplomat, your excessive friendliness can be perceived as cowardice, and the weak rarely gain respect in diplomatic negotiations....."

However, with Lulu and Lu Ping’an, both high-level combat powers, handling the negotiations, they were naturally given due respect and attention.

Lu Ping’an looked at the bustling scene and the staff adjusting the new terms, and nodded his head in satisfaction.

"Let those who are interested take the bait, let’s see who comes to us for discussions..."

He had been on shift for about an hour... it was truly boring, and he decided to leave early anyway.

After all, this was still not the main task for which he had come here today.

"Hope the negotiations go well..."

At the Grand Market, with such name and the numerous goods and shops, it naturally served as the main commodity trading area.

Many items were not suitable for entry into Wanjing’s inner circle, so this place was perhaps their last stop in terms of commodity flow.

Lu Ping’an did not hide his purpose... he was here to buy materials for Big Cat’s new body.

The laboratory’s regular resources were sufficient, but to mold a Divine Body, just the storeroom’s standing resources were definitely not enough.

"Please give me some blood..."

"Scram!"

Lu Ping’an had approached a Saint of a certain Church. Initially, the conversation went rather well, but as soon as Lu Ping’an asked for some essential blood, the other party outright exploded.

It wasn’t just because Lu Ping’an needed a substantial amount, but more importantly...

"Who knows how many curse magics exist in this world, how could you possibly hand over a part of your body to a stranger. Please keep your distance, I know you have Rule-level heads at your disposal, if you come any closer, I’ll call for help..."

Unable to obtain it by normal means, Lu Ping’an tried to provoke an argument with a Saint... a battlefield with massive bloodshed is totally normal, isn’t it?

While he seemed unable to secure the main material in the short term, the auxiliary materials Lu Ping’an gained were quite a bounty.

"Steel bones, spirit’s flesh, and... a God’s brain (Core)?" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

After integrating his knowledge again, Lu Ping’an set more targets.

"Big Cat, do you have any sworn friends willing to contribute treasures for your resurrection?"

"Sworn friends? The kind willing to exchange their life for my death?"

Alright, Lu Ping’an knew Big Cat really had no friends left.

The cost of sustaining Big Cat’s physical form was too high, and the overly superior materials were generally not available in the market, which was quite bothersome for Lu Ping’an himself.

It seemed he must actively step into this hostile and wary "high-end market."