"Are you fucking kidding me?" Through the meeting room's glass, Xi Ye stared at the stern-looking old man from the Losa Clan inside. He suddenly felt like crushing the smiling headhunter's skull beside him!
The old man's complexion alone made it clear that his cells had severely deteriorated. Judging by his life-form level, he had at most a century left to live. On top of that, he was missing his left hand and left leg. This clearly half-dead cripple was asking for a million-credit annual salary? Did they really think the Great Lord was some idiot with money to burn?
The Losa Clan produced Mecha Warriors in abundance. Aside from the Blade Clan and Giant Spirit Clan, they were the strongest major Mecha Warrior race in the universe. Moreover, the Losa Clan had an even better reputation for working with outsiders than the other two clans. Judging solely from his racial heritage, the man should have been extremely popular.
But it depended on the person...
An old geezer like this, clearly planning to coast through retirement until he died, while also missing limbs, was asking for a million-credit annual salary... He really had the nerve to name that price!!
The headhunter looked a little awkward, but still replied politely, "Honored Great Lord, this man's shortcomings are indeed quite obvious. He's old, doesn't have much time left, and has no room for advancement. Before he can start working, you'll also need to pay for a Hextech arm to be installed..."
"What? He wants a Hextech arm too?" Xi Ye laughed in anger. "Does he want a Star Elf to warm his bed as well?"
What a joke. Being willing to install a mechanical arm for him was already going above and beyond. A Hextech arm? Even the cheapest one cost over a million. Was this old geezer insane?
"Ahem..." The headhunter coughed softly before replying, "The requirements are indeed a little excessive, but he actually isn't unworthy of the price!"
"Oh?" Xi Ye narrowed his eyes. He did not continue mocking the man coldly. The other party was a professional headhunter from a major network. Since he had said that, there had to be a reason. Xi Ye quietly waited for him to continue.
Seeing how Xi Ye had instantly calmed down, the headhunter nodded secretly. This fellow was a novice, but he possessed the bearing expected of a lord.
He took out a detailed dossier on the old man and handed it to Xi Ye, then said slowly, "This man's name is Robert. Kelsding. Losa! He was a Mecha Warrior in the Deathwing Legion under the former Third Lord, Hanjue. I heard he was even a squad leader!"
"Deathwing?" Xi Ye's expression beneath his helmet was filled with astonishment. He had heard of this mecha unit. It was the ace mecha legion under Lord Hanjue. Although Lord Hanjue was famous throughout the universe for the Titan Legion, he had still been one of the Federation's strongest lords. The strongest mecha legion under him naturally could not be compared to those of ordinary Great Lords.
Hanjue might have been formidable, but he had been destroyed hundreds of thousands of years ago. Hadn't Deathwing been wiped out by that person long ago?
Xi Ye voiced his doubts.
"Of course, he wasn't part of the main force..." the headhunter explained with a smile. "He was a mecha squad leader stationed in a certain satellite galaxy. You know that an organization as powerful as Lord Hanjue's is like a centipede that can still crawl even after it dies. Just the star regions under his command would have taken a long time to conquer!"
"That's true..." Xi Ye nodded, but then realized what he meant. "You're saying he's a remnant of Hanjue? Are you insane? You dare recommend someone like that to me?"
Xi Ye was so frightened that he did not even dare call himself the Great Lord. Currently, the most prominent figure in the Federation was the newly appointed Third Lord: Cang Yue.
She was the Federation's publicly recognized God of War. Who would dare take in the remnants she had conquered? Was this headhunter suicidal? Wasn't staying alive better?
"Of course it isn't what you think!" the headhunter explained bitterly.
What a joke. Their Talent Network might be an industry under the First Lord, but it was merely one of his industries. How could they dare offend the God of War, who was currently at the height of her power?
"This man served a fourteen-thousand-year sentence under Lord Cang Yue. He's now a free man and was released not long ago, which is why he's in the state you see now."
"I see..."
If that was the case, then based on his résumé, this man's asking price really wasn't high.
However, this type of person actually found it difficult to get work. It was like programmers on Planet D. Once they reached a certain age, finding another job after becoming unemployed became extremely troublesome. Their price could not be lowered, while their cost-effectiveness was not particularly attractive to many employers.
He had no room for advancement and only a century of life left. Ordinary lords already had mature mecha training systems and did not need an outsider with such an impressive résumé interfering. He also had numerous shortcomings, and most novice lords could not afford his annual salary.
Even if they could afford it, it would still seem wasteful. Having such a good instructor teach newly developed natives did sound excessively extravagant.
But Xi Ye was different. The people under him were all golden nuggets with limitless potential. No amount spent on their education would be excessive.
Looking at the whole picture, he suddenly realized that this crippled old man was actually quite suitable for him.
"If you don't think he's suitable, we have two other recommendations!" The headhunter hurriedly took out two more dossiers.
These were the two Mecha Instructors he had arranged when he previously notified Xi Ye to come. One was a Florumia Person who had graduated from a prestigious school but had been publicly dismissed by a major faction because of some misconduct. The other had lower academic qualifications, having graduated from a second-tier Mecha Academy. He had years of teaching experience, but because he had spent those years muddling through, he had never advanced in rank and had been dismissed by the faction that originally hired him.
Honestly, without the current example, these two should have been the best Mecha Instructors Xi Ye's faction could hire, right?
The two of them at least had some self-awareness. Their prices were not high at all—an annual salary of two hundred thousand was already extremely cheap for this line of work.
But everything suffered in comparison. With such a fine jewel placed before him, Xi Ye found these two pieces of trash increasingly unpleasant to look at.
At last, he sighed, set the two dossiers aside, and walked toward the meeting room where the crippled old man was waiting.
The headhunter's eyes lit up when he saw this. He hurried after Xi Ye. He actually hoped to close this deal as well. A headhunter's commission was based on half the annual salary. Wasn't it obvious whether he would rather earn fifty thousand or five hundred thousand?
Xi Ye approached the meeting room. The old man inside slowly rose to his feet and gave him a standard Federation military salute.
His attitude was neither servile nor overbearing. He did not look down on a novice lord because he had once served in a top-tier faction, nor did he appear excessively humble because of the high salary.
This bearing... Xi Ye had only seen it in a few elders of his family. A hint of respect flashed through his eyes.
After Hanjue's faction collapsed, the news spread throughout the universe at once. Most people declared that they were leaving Hanjue's faction after confirming it. After all, with the leader gone, there was no issue of breach of contract or disloyalty.
But those who continued to hold the land left behind by that lord were absolutely worthy of respect. That was why even the notoriously bloodthirsty Cang Yue had not chosen to exterminate them. Instead, after defeating these veterans, she had recruited them!
The dossier stated that this old man had been unwilling to submit to his former lord's enemy, which was why he had been sentenced to fourteen thousand years in prison.
All in all, he was a true man!
Facing someone like this, Xi Ye had no intention of exchanging empty pleasantries. He asked bluntly, "Your requirements include a surgical transplant of a Hextech mechanical arm, and you've stated that it's a necessary condition. May I ask why?"
Before you continue