The Silver Specter. The moment Xia Fei stepped onboard the warship, he could hear the sound of two men laughing raucously from the command deck.

“Don’t you laugh at me. You haven’t forgotten about that time you stole two Ice Dragon Fruits from master, causing that old man to go into such a blind rage he spent three whole years chasing after you, have you? It’s a good thing you’re quick, or else given my master’s temper, you’d surely have your two legs broken or worse.”

This voice was very familiar. When Xia Fei entered the command deck to look, he was greeted by the sight of Fuchen chatting with Ulan.

“Master Ulan, why have you run all the way here to where I’m at?” Xia Fei asked, curious. He had just bid this old man farewell earlier, but in the several minutes he took to return to the warship, he had met the botanist once more. Was this not a tad bit too soon for a reunion?

Fuchen chuckled. “Let me tell you a piece of good news. Ulan has decided to leave his lousy pagoda and travel with us. From today onward, no matter where we go, he’ll be following along.

“Though Ulan is a Spiritualist of Botany, he is very formidable. If we ever fight, I may not necessarily hold a distinct advantage over him.”

Ulan waved his hand disapprovingly. “Listen to the way you described me; you made me out to be some hitman. We, Spiritualists of Botany, place a strong emphasis on peace and harmony, so don’t either of you expect me to fight and kill like the both of you.”

Turning his head, Ulan told Xia Fei, “Honestly speaking, the reason why I made my decision is that unique ability of yours. Those plants of mine grew many times faster with you in the pagoda, so as long as you’re willing to let my plants remain in your cultivation room, whatever your business will be mine as well.”

Ulan’s attitude was absolutely sincere when he said this. Xia Fei thought about it and smiled. “What more could I ask for with a Great Spiritualist of Botany choosing to travel with me? All you’re asking from me is to nurture your plants in passing, and that’s hardly an issue.

“Fuchen and I are on our way to the borderlands to settle a score with the Inverse. We’d be more than happy to have your company.”

Ulan frowned and turned to Fuchen. “The Inverse? Aren’t they just a minor undeveloped species living in the fringe region? How did they find themselves in your bad books?”

Fuchen replied, “That’s a long story. I’ll explain it to you slowly as we travel.”

The three chatted for a while. Meanwhile, Xia Fei activated The Silver Specter and began liftoff.

Having Ulan around was by no means bad for Xia Fei. He was ultimately a Great Spiritualist; in fact, plenty out there wished that they could befriend a Spiritualist. Since Ulan had come knocking on his front door of his own accord, it made no sense for Xia Fei to drive him away.

It was just that Xia Fei soon discovered that Ulan had a very bad habit: Every day, the old man would urge him to cultivate; he had even filled the entire cultivation room with his plants in advance.

It could not be helped. The moment Xia Fei used Spirit Energy, all these plants would automatically experience rapid growth, and for the sake of his plants growing faster, Ulan hassled Xia Fei to cultivate every waking moment.

…

The Silver Specter had an uneventful trip back to Garde 83. Xia Fei led Fuchen and Ulan to the Aurora’s compound so that the two could enjoy tea in the guest hall. He then went to find Iron Tiger, Wistview, and Little Schott.

“How goes the screening?” Xia Fei asked.

Iron Tiger answered, “We’re almost there. We haven’t not slacked off all this while. About six thousand individuals made it past the first and second rounds of tests. The Aurorean sure live up to their name as a major clan; plenty of their warriors have high potential. We’ve been fretting senselessly just to narrow down the number to six thousand.”

Xia Fei nodded. Little Schott and Wistview were somewhat pleased with themselves. Their moniker as a major clan was by no means just for show. The Aurorean also had their method of nurturing warriors; it was just the clan’s teaching that interfered, making it so a lot of them did not look too kindly toward violence. It was this very point where they differed greatly from Xia Fei.

Xia Fei’s line of thinking was clearcut: Since these people were warriors, they must be tyrannical and rude. There was no room for reason! They must exude an aura that could kill the world! It would be great if they could all act like that group of madmen from the Skywing Clan. The moment the Skywings were met with any disagreement, they would just charge right up and kill the dissenters!

Alas, at present, the cultured and gracious Aurora Clan reaching such a degree of unreasonableness was hopeless. The fact was, across the entire universe, the Skywings’ existence was unique, and Xia Fei could only lower his standards and settle for the next best thing.

“This still isn’t enough,” Xia Fei intoned. “We need to thin their numbers down to five hundred; this time, I’ll be bringing them to perform a special test.”

Iron Tiger was startled but soon nodded. “Understood. I’ll do my best.”

“I don’t want your best. Tomorrow morning, get all those chosen to gather. I wish to give them a surprise,” Xia Fei ordered with a growl.

OId man Wistview asked out of curiosity, “What is so urgent? By the way, what do we do about those who aren’t chosen?”

Xia Fei answered, “Those who aren’t chosen won’t be joining me in the operation this time. There will still be plenty of chances next time. As for what they’ll be doing, you’ll naturally learn what it is when I come back.”

After he relayed these instructions to Wistview, both rushed away to deal with their respective businesses. Xia Fei lit a cigarette on his way back to Ulan and Fuchen’s room.

“Done with the arrangements so soon? When are we leaving?” Fuchen asked.

“Tomorrow night. I told Iron Tiger to choose five hundred individuals. These five hundred will be joining us, and when the time comes, I’ll still need Master Ulan to lend a hand,” Xia Fei said.

“Me?” Ulan smiled and asked. “What do you need me to do?”

“Incite them,” Xia Fei replied. “They’re all people with potential, so as long as they are sufficiently inspired, even Mr. Nice Guys can turn into maniacs. That’s why I hope to borrow your status as someone from the Spiritualist Association to stir up those warriors.”

Ulan nodded. “That’s nothing. I’ll do as you asked. Do you need to inform Aurora Clan’s Wistful Heizus when you leave with that batch of warriors?”

Xia Fei was amused. “You know Wistful Heizus?”

Ulan chuckled. “Of course, I do. There are several powerful figures in the Aurora Clan, and Wistful Heizus is one of them. They simply hide their foundation very deeply, so not everyone knows.”

Xia Fei replied, “We can forget about reporting to him. Honestly, though I’m these Aurorean’s kin, I am still independent from them. Since they agreed to me setting up an academy here to teach my fellow clan members, then whatever I say goes.”

Just as this conversation was over, Little Schott informed Xia Fei that Suzu Treasure from the Heavenly Treasure Firm had arrived.

Fuchen and Ulan smiled at each other as if they were sharing some questionable thoughts.

Xia Fei did not pay the two any attention and left to meet Suzu next door.

“Have you prepared everything I asked for?” Xia Fei asked.

Suzu Treasure appeared to be somewhat ill at ease as she placed a spatial ring before Xia Fei.

“Five hundred soul weapons, most of them at the basic grade, with none being of a high grade> Still, they’re all usable,” Suzu reported.

Xia Fei did not even bother to check the soul weapons in the ring and directly stored it in his pocket. He then smiled. “The Heavenly Treasure Firm has helped me immensely again. How should I repay you?”

Suzu only sighed in relief after seeing that Xia Fei was satisfied. He had really shown his lion appetite this time, asking for five hundred soul weapons at one go. Heavenly Treasure Firm had no choice but to go searching everywhere and barely managed to collect the goods in a timely fashion.

Blinking, Suzu replied, “Now you’re the one acting like a stranger here. No need to be so courteous when we’re merely mutually helping each other out.”

It was a sly choice of words, and Suzu Treasure lived up to her title as a lady with a mercantile background. The key was in the phrase ‘mutually helping each other out’. Ever since Xia Fei began a business relationship with Heavenly Treasure Firm, Suzu had helped Xia Fei many times, while Xia Fei had merely given her two healing soul weapons thus far.

As precious as healing soul weapons were, they were hardly a fair trade for five hundred basic soul weapons, and so Xia Fei still needed to provide an appropriate recompense toward this end.

Giving the matter some thought, Xia Fei pulled out a few items from his spatial ring, one of which was that pair of Golden Soul Eyes. The moment Suzu saw it, her expression changed drastically.

“Isn’t that a pair of Soul Eyes from the legends?!” Suzu gasped, flustered.

Xia Fei nodded. “That’s right. It’s a pair of Soul Eyes. I wonder if these items can make up for the price of soul weapons this time? If it’s not enough, I can throw in a couple of healing soul weapons when I have the time later.”

Suzu nodded her head repeatedly, pleasantly surprised. “I won’t deny it; the last time you gave us those two healing soul weapons, it’s our original intention to treat those as our prized possessions, but somehow, an old friend of my father’s learned of the matter and he got his hands on one of the two after paying an astronomical price. If we include these rare Soul Eyes into the equation, not only will the price of the soul weapons be offset, we’ll even be making a profit.”

Suzu’s words were somewhat exaggerated, as these five hundred soul weapons had practically emptied the firm’s coffers. They had only managed to afford everything because they were one of the four leading firms in the Alpha Universe.

However, there was something even more important than money being transacted here, and it was the networking.

Because of Xia Fei’s healing soul weapons, Heavenly Treasure Firm had managed to forge a relationship with one of the highly prominent figures in the Alpha Universe—something that they would never have even considered in the past. Money could be earned back, but networking was something that took months and years to establish. This was especially true for businessmen like them who had low status to begin with; it was truly not easy for them to climb up.

The ambitions of the Treasure family had never been confined to just earning money. What they hoped was to be a megarich clan like the Venus of Eternal Night, hoping to one day become a wealthy family that people across the universe would respect and admire.

Xia Fei replied nonchalantly, “Take it. We can talk more next time if you have any further needs. I won’t seek to take advantage of you. As long as you can diligently keep to the rules of our cooperation, I guarantee that you’ll see more coming your way in the future.”

Suzu was slightly taken aback and quietly collected the items Xia Fei had laid out. This was the immense difference between Spiritualists and businessmen. Whether it was Xia Fei’s healing soul weapon or this pair of Soul Eyes, either was an item that he could easily acquire, while Suzu Treasure viewed such stuff as priceless artifact that no amount of money could buy.

…

Around noon the next day, the Aurora Clan’s external compound teemed with people.

The difference was clear. On one side were the five hundred warriors that had been selected because of their great potential; the other side were all those not chosen this time.

Those who had been chosen were, of course, lifting their heads proudly. It was just that, given how the Aurorean had always emphasized on humility as how they carried themselves, Xia Fei felt that all these warriors lacked the pride that they ought to be showing.

Xia Fei silently made his way up on the platform, sweeping his gaze across those gathered in front of him. He then gave Master Ulan a slight nod, as the corner of his lips curled up into that strange smirk.

Ulan sighed. He recited the script that Xia Fei had given him in his mind. Today, he would be putting on a show with Xia Fei to help pump up the blood in these honest warriors.

“My name is Xia Fei. Everyone here should already know about me, so I won’t waste time elaborating. It is common knowledge that this academy in the Aurora Clan came to be at the whim of my master, and today, though he isn’t here in person, my master’s friend nevertheless came in his stead, the level 8 Great Spiritualist of the Spiritualist Association, Ulan!” Xia Fei said with a grin.

With that, Xia Fei reached out one hand and did a welcoming gesture.

*Whoosh*

Everyone’s gaze swiftly turned toward Ulan, a level 8 Great Spiritualist from the Spiritualist Association! This was too eye-catching a title, causing everyone’s eyes to sparkle at that moment.