The First Lesson

Luo Yan's decision to start a school wasn't a spur-of-the-moment thing; he had been considering it for some time.

The seven teams he commands lack Mech Master, even though they currently only have three mechs, all of which are piloted by Mech Master.

However, if we consider the long term and want to make progress within 'Black Witch,' it's clear that the current number of Mech Master is not enough.

Looking at the 'Black Witch' organization as a whole, taking the Xuanming Branch as an example, the Mech Master of each team are not trained, but recruited or hired from outside.

The advantage of this approach is that it allows for the rapid acquisition of pilots, but the disadvantages are equally obvious: these Mech Master often lack a sense of belonging and are not loyal enough.

Just like taking Yang Tao as a student, Luo Yan wasn't just taking her in for fun; he intended to cultivate his own trusted henchmen.

The same applies to setting up Mech Master training program; he intends to cultivate sufficiently loyal mecha pilots for himself.

That's why Guan Peng in, and his suggestions were listened to.

After all, Guan Peng retired from the military corps, so he would have more connections in this area than Luo Yan.

Hearing that Guan Peng could find a mentor and buy a flight simulator, Luo Yan felt a weight lifted from his shoulders and nodded, saying, "Then I'll have to trouble Mr. Guan."

Guan Peng laughed heartily and said, "Mister Red Ghost, you're too kind."

"However, I can help you find a mentor, but I can't guarantee whether I can convince him."

"Furthermore, we definitely can't get the latest model of the simulator, but even the older, obsolete models aren't cheap; they cost at least eight or nine million work points."

Luo Yan said calmly, "It's alright. As for the mentor, Mr. Guan, just do your best and leave the rest to fate."

"Money is not an issue when it comes to cockpit simulators."

Guan Peng nodded. "That's fine then."

Luo Yan then asked, "By the way, does 'Iron Horse' have any plans to expand?"

"If you have this idea, I have some money here that I can lend to you as an investment, interest-free."

Guan Peng's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

Since the 'Iron Horse' suffered heavy losses in the Forbidden Land, Guan Peng had considered expanding its forces.

Only by expanding and increasing the number of personnel in the corps can we take on larger and more rewarding missions.

However, after the deaths of the regimental commander and a large number of members, 'Iron Horse' was extremely short of funds. If it weren't for the 500,000 yuan in mercenary fees provided by Luo Yan, 'Iron Horse' wouldn't even be able to pay for the medical expenses of the wounded.

Not to mention expansion.

Hearing that Chi Gui was willing to invest, Guan Peng was naturally tempted and immediately said, "Then I thank Mister Red Ghost in advance."

"To be honest, I do have this idea, but I'm struggling with a lack of funds." Luo Yan readily agreed, "Tomorrow I'll have Wen Zou transfer 1 million to your account as seed money."

"Of course, I will have Wen Zou draft an investment agreement later."

"You can sign it after you've read it and think there are no problems."

The reason for investing in 'Iron Horse' is twofold: firstly, this mercenary group is now employed by him and is considered one of his main combat forces.

Luo Yan naturally hoped they would be as outstanding as possible.

Secondly, they could use them to recruit promising Mech Master. The members of 'Iron Horse' were all retired soldiers from the military, and they might be able to find one or two promising talents among them.

After this matter was settled, Wen Zou came in and whispered in Luo Yan's ear.

"What a coincidence, sir."

"That night, several impulsive young men got into a fight on both sides of Gulou Street, and one of them died after being taken to ' Old Cai's Clinic '."

"The deceased had no relatives or friends, so I've sent someone to impersonate one of them. They should be able to retrieve the body soon."

Luo Yan grunted in agreement and instructed, "Prepare some things for me."

"Also, bring the Yang Tao."

Later.

Guan Peng left, Yang Tao arrived.

After several days of recuperation, the girl's complexion was indeed much better than before; at least her face had regained some color, and her slightly reddish eyes were much brighter.

Luo Yan glanced at her, then said, "Come with me."

"Yes, teacher."

Walking down the street, Luo Yan said directly, "Next, I'm going to test your courage."

"Only if we can get past this hurdle can we truly be considered teacher and student."

"Otherwise, I'll send you away."

"Or you could stay in the teahouse as a handyman."

Yang Tao's breath hitched as she realized that in Luo Yan's heart, she had never truly become his student.

She bit her lip and asked, "Teacher, what's on the test?"

Luo Yan did not answer, but went to a room where Wen Zou had been waiting for a long time.

Upon seeing Luo Yan, the fake Taoist priest bowed and scraped, saying, "Sir, everything you requested is ready."

Luo Yan waved his hand, Wen Zou opened the door and left.

"Come in."

Luo Yan, who entered first, gestured for Yang Tao to come in.

As the girl stepped inside, she was immediately struck by a strong stench of blood, and her face paled slightly.

Luo Yan closed the door and walked to a bed in the middle. On the bed lay a corpse covered with a white sheet. The white sheet was stained with blood. Luo Yan immediately lifted it, revealing the corpse of a young man who looked to be about twenty-five or twenty-six years old.

"Come over."

Hearing Luo Yan's words, Yang Tao dared not disobey and stepped forward.

The sight of the corpse, especially the one whose face was contorted in agony and whose eyes were wide open, made the young woman pale with fright.

Luo Yan calmly said, "Killing someone is not an easy thing."

"Especially when you're about to kill some complete strangers, people you have no grudge against."

"Whether one can bring oneself to do it, and whether one can overcome this psychological barrier, becomes especially important."

"Since you want to learn how to kill from me, I can certainly teach you, but like I said before, I won't teach you for nothing."

"If you want to learn, you have to risk your life for me."

"This means you must kill someone for me."

"And the person you killed might be someone you don't know, someone you have no connection with."

"At that time, could you bring yourself to do it?"

Yang Tao felt a pang of unease, but she still gritted her teeth and said, "Teacher, I can."

"I... I've already killed someone."

Luo Yan retorted, "Gao Fugui?"

That doesn't count.

"Your father died because of him. At that time, you were filled with resentment and filled with malice, so naturally you had the courage to kill."

"But a killer, a professional killer, cannot kill while emotional."

As they were talking, Luo Yan pushed a handcart over, on which were placed cold weapons such as knives, swords, and daggers.

Luo Yan took two steps back and said, "Now, I want you to choose any weapon and cut the corpse's neck open."

Yang Tao was taken aback, then asked in a low voice, "No gun?"

Luo Yan shook his head.

He then said.

"When carrying out a mission, use a gun if possible, and avoid using swords or knives."

"But as an assassin, the first thing you have to do is get your hands dirty with blood."

"Only when you have truly stained your skin with human blood, only when you have looked into the eyes of the dead, can you be considered to have truly killed someone."

"A gun can't do that."

"This is the last chance I'm giving you."

"You need to think carefully about whether you really want to become an assassin."

"Is what you want to do worth getting your hands dirty, or even your soul tainted?"

"This is the first lesson I'm teaching you!"