Mercenary Group

Inside the exchange, a group of aliens was picking up jobs. In a place like this, they were essentially mercenaries. As long as the client could pay, the jobs they took came in every variety imaginable.

The most common were war-related jobs, such as conquering a planet. The payment might be half the profits from selling the planet afterward, or perhaps a large spaceship.

Whether they would live long enough to collect it was another matter. Back then, the Saiyans had done this sort of work for Frieza. The difference was that they never accepted jobs other than invading planets.

"Oh, Babas, is this a newcomer? He looks pretty strong." A red-skinned humanoid alien walked over as he spoke to the group.

The leader was a blue-skinned alien with structures resembling fish fins behind his ears. He was likely from some alien race with special abilities as well.

Hearing that, he turned to the man and said, "Kaxiu, cut the nonsense. This is our team's new captain, Lord Xilaka, whose power level is as high as ten thousand!"

"Nani!?"

Kaxiu's flippant manner instantly froze. The expressions of everyone else in the mercenary gathering place changed as well, and the formerly bustling area fell silent.

A power level of ten thousand was considered fairly formidable even in the universe. At the very least, among these people, those with power levels exceeding five thousand could be counted on one hand.

There were probably several hundred people present, but only a handful could truly be considered decent, and their power levels were merely six or seven thousand.

As for anyone whose power level exceeded ten thousand, there was not even a single one!

A power level of ten thousand should be enough to rival Lord Muli, right?

As a trade planet in the universe, it gathered countless races here. It could be said that the elites from all over the universe had congregated on this planet, which was why its overall strength had reached this level.

Even so, a power level of ten thousand was extremely rare. It had already reached the minimum standard for destroying a planet.

"Hey, Babas, don't make jokes like that. This guy... uh."

Xilaka—Li Ming—was currently wearing a simplified standard-issue space combat uniform. His muscular body did not give the others much of a sense of oppression.

But then, his gaze swept over them slightly, and the air throughout the entire mercenary gathering place instantly congealed!

A heavy oppressive presence filled every inch of the space. Dust and gravel rose directly from the ground, while scattered tables and chairs began to tremble!

The rest of Kaxiu's words died in his throat, and he could not force them out no matter what. Facing Xilaka—Li Ming's—gaze directly, he felt as if his brain had been struck by a heavy hammer. His eyes went blank.

An alien in the distance noticed something was wrong and hurriedly stood up, shouting, "Kaxiu!"

"Spare me!"

That shout awakened Kaxiu from his fear of death. He immediately dropped to his knees without a second thought, his body trembling instinctively.

"Hmph! Get lost." With a cold snort, Li Ming did not continue raising his ki, keeping it at roughly ten thousand.

As though granted a pardon, Kaxiu got up and fled. Only then did the other aliens recover from their shock, each staring in Li Ming's direction with terror on their faces.

Many of them wore power level scanners, so even if they did not know what ki was, they could clearly see that Li Ming's power level truly exceeded ten thousand.

For a time, large numbers of mercenaries silently began leaving. This place was no longer safe for them.

Babas led Li Ming and the other three team members to some seats. Everyone nearby hurriedly gave them space, not daring to challenge their edge.

A few minutes later, Babas returned from the job bulletin board and respectfully said, "Lord Xilaka, there aren't any jobs near the planet you wish to visit. The closest one is a planet called Giant Forest Planet, but the job there is a very strange escort mission."

At that point, Babas hesitated before lowering his voice and continuing, "They provide the spaceship and the cargo, and we're responsible for delivering it to the destination. The payment is that spaceship, but the condition is that we absolutely cannot inspect the cargo along the way."

"Oh?" Li Ming frowned and asked, "Are there no other jobs?"

"There are... but the distance may exceed your expectations." Babas sounded uneasy as he said this, and the several companions beside him grew anxious as well.

They had all been subdued by Li Ming's strength. Their power levels averaged around four to five thousand, so their fear of Li Ming came from the bottom of their hearts.

"Then let's go take a look at Giant Forest Planet. Getting a spaceship along the way isn't bad either. Go contact them. The sooner, the better."

"Yes!"

Babas accepted the order and left, not daring to defy Li Ming's command. That was also why Li Ming had sought them out. Though their strength was average, they were obedient and would not ask too many questions.

Li Ming did not want something like what had happened with Stet to happen a second time. As subordinates, they only needed to obey.

Li Ming did not intend to return to Namek again. Every path before him had been blocked. He could not exactly wish to become a Super Saiyan; anyone with half a brain knew that was impossible.

He still intended to go to Yardrat. That ancient and mysterious planet possessed many useful secret techniques worth learning. Even in the worst case, he could try to solve his inability to transform.

Bafiel's divination had been very close to his own guess, so Li Ming half believed it. It was definitely related to the Fruit of the Tree of Might!

Remembering that the Grand Elder had warned him about it as well, Li Ming felt terrible. He really should have quit that stuff long ago!

Could something you got addicted to eating possibly be good?

It was too late to say anything now. Bafiel was dead, and Li Ming could only seek another solution. He had to visit Yardrat sooner or later anyway, so now was the perfect time to hide himself and use his mercenary identity as cover.

As long as he could successfully get close to that star system, he should be able to use Instant Transmission directly to Yardrat. That was Li Ming's plan.

"Hello, Mr. Xilaka. I'm Merlin, the client for this mission. It's an honor to meet you."

An alien dressed in what could be considered formal attire came before Li Ming. His power level was only a few hundred at most; he was probably from a race known in the universe for technology or some other specialty.

Li Ming did not care. He only wanted to get a spaceship and head for Yardrat, so he nodded and said, "Hello. We'll take your job. You can state any specific conditions you have."

"Well... hehe, I'm truly sorry. This mission does require your strength, so I need to make this clear first. There is a certain amount of risk involved in this mission. We may encounter attacks from space pirates, so..." Merlin looked troubled and spoke haltingly. He had not mentioned these matters in the job listing.

Babas's expression changed. Standing to one side, he accused, "How can you do this? If we run into pirates during the mission, our lives could be in danger."

The others' expressions toward Merlin gradually turned hostile as well. As people who had made their living here for years, many of them were desperadoes, but surviving this long at least proved they were not fools.

Every one of them knew perfectly well what the consequences could be if the intelligence was inaccurate. They were not Saiyans, with such powerful fighting spirits. They were merely trying to make a living.

Merlin anxiously tried to salvage the situation. "I'm truly sorry. I can offer you additional compensation. Sir, what do you think...?"

Merlin was clever. Babas had already explained the situation to him on the way here, so he knew that Li Ming was the strongest among this group. The most basic rule in the universe was that whoever had the bigger fist held the reason—and absolute authority.

"Fine. We'll take the job, but you'll have to pay the reward in advance."

"This..." Merlin clearly hesitated, but he seemed to have some unspeakable difficulty. In the end, he gritted his teeth and said, "All right. Please make sure this item reaches Giant Forest Planet safely. I'll be endlessly grateful!"

And so, the group accepted the mission. Although Li Ming had agreed to it alone, no one else objected. The reward for this job was quite generous: a medium-sized spaceship whose technological level was considered top-tier even in the universe.

They were already very satisfied with that payment. What was more, to make the mission easier for them, Merlin had specifically arranged for a Kofian skilled in technology to help them operate the spaceship.

Merlin watched as the spaceship gradually departed. He let out a long breath of relief, only for a worried look to appear on his face moments later.

"I hope that sir can arrive safely. Damn those space pirates. Damn Frieza!"

The mission Merlin had posted had actually gone through several groups already, yet none had successfully reached Giant Forest Planet. As for the escorts and the cargo, they had naturally vanished without a trace.

He was not worried that these people would take the item and flee with it, because missions on Tusta Planet were registered. Every team member and team leader had a guarantor. Anyone who broke their contract midway or fled with mission goods would be issued a bounty by Tusta Planet and directly become a space pirate!