"What are you going to do?" Han Xiao raised an eyebrow, feeling puzzled.
He had only met Mading once. A month ago, Mading was recruiting mercenaries in private, but Martin rejected his application because he was picky about his lack of combat experience. It was a minor grudge. If he hadn't seen this iconic blue-skinned dwarf, he would have forgotten about it.
Mading rubbed his hands awkwardly, his tone eager, "Um... would you be interested in being hired? Like before, our research team is going to explore a planet..."
Han Xiao narrowed his eyes. "A month has passed, and you still haven't found someone?"
Mading looked embarrassed and found it difficult to speak. When he recruited privately, only some weak mercenaries signed up, which he rejected all of them. He kept picking and choosing, and the process dragged on and on. Finally, he couldn't help but issue a formal job offer through the Mercenary Alliance. However, because the reward was too low, no qualified mercenaries applied, so the operation remained stalled.
A few days ago, the mercenaries who participated in the Sunil mission returned and mentioned the name Black Star. The team with resurrection ability aroused the interest of many mercenaries and made a name for itself in the Juberly Hub.
Mading learned by chance that he had rejected a powerful but unknown team, missing a great opportunity, and was filled with regret. So when he met Han Xiao again, he immediately ran over.
"Still the same price, 400 Enas per person. Let's get going." Mading's face was full of hope. Han Xiao had applied before, and he felt that Han Xiao wouldn't refuse.
"Go find someone else." Han Xiao shook his head, turned and left. Last time, he only wanted to earn some extra money because he was traveling with Planet Sunil. Now that the opportunity had passed, he didn't care about the small reward and wouldn't make a special trip.
Mading grabbed Han Xiao's arm and hurriedly said, "Don't you think the price is right? We can add more money, how about five hundred... four hundred and eighty?"
With his arm tightly gripped by Mading, Han Xiao looked helpless. Mading had rejected his application initially, but now Mading was actively seeking him out, and this tightwad was even offering extra money—the difference in treatment was too obvious.
The Planet Sunil group greatly enhanced the Black Star Mercenary Group's reputation, which led to this scene. Interstellar mercenaries with certain strength and the ability to resurrect are bound to receive a certain degree of attention.
As the two were struggling, a voice rang out from the side, saying, "You're Black Star?"
Han Xiao turned his head, and the speaker walked over, wearing a pure white metallic combat suit with a surface texture similar to smooth glaze, but actually some kind of high-strength alloy.
"People from Sky Ring?" Han Xiao's eyes narrowed, and he grabbed Mading by the collar and pulled him away.
This person was wearing the combat uniform of the Sky Ring Alliance, a mercenary from Sky Ring.
The Sky Ring Alliance is one of the largest mercenary groups at the top of the Shattered Star Ring mercenary industry, with over 10,000 members. Its leader is an Grade A Calamity Grade superhuman, and its operations span several star clusters, including Goron and Colton.
Han Xiao had no prior dealings with Sky Ring, so he asked curiously, "What does Sky Ring want with me?"
"You have a good team. My squad leader would like to discuss a collaboration with you. Do you have time now?"
Han Xiao narrowed his eyes. Cooperation... sounded good, but with Sky Ring's power, there was really no reason for them to be interested in his small team of a few dozen people, unless there was some kind of quality that attracted Sky Ring. After thinking for a moment, he roughly guessed the reason.
"There's no mistake, they're probably after our immortality..."
Han Xiao chuckled inwardly, realizing that it was truly thanks to the word-of-mouth spread by his peers.
He was very curious about what kind of cooperation Sky Ring would discuss; with such a powerful force, their demands must be extraordinary.
"I have time, let's go." Han Xiao left Mading behind and followed the Sky Ring mercenaries away.
Mading sat on the ground, dumbfounded. Sky Ring had an extremely prestigious reputation in the mercenary industry. In just one month, the Black Star Mercenary Group, which he had rejected, had gained Sky Ring's attention and received a cooperation invitation. It was simply unbelievable.
Mading regretted his decision to refuse to hire Black Star because of his pickiness, and his face was filled with heartache.
"I was here first..."
As Han Xiao entered the Sky Ring Mercenaries' stronghold, he saw twenty or thirty Sky Ring Mercenaries sitting or standing, of various races. Upon seeing him enter, all eyes turned to him.
"I am Gashley, the leader of this squad." A mercenary with golden eyes and purple skin stepped forward. He was burly and stood at 2.2 meters tall. He was from the Goron Star Cluster.
Gashley's combat uniform differed from the others; a golden ring encircled the triangular crystal on the chest. This ring was a rank insignia within the Sky Ring Alliance. Although this large mercenary organization was very free, there were still differences in status. The more rings a member had, the higher their status, and status was determined by strength.
The platoon leader has one ring, and the ranks increase progressively, with the highest rank being the Sky Ring Army Commander, who has one more ring than the fourth ring.
"Black Star, Han Xiao."
After the brief introduction, Han Xiao cut to the chase, asking, "What are the specifics of your desire to cooperate with me?"
Gashley slowly said, "We at Sky Ring are dedicated to recruiting outstanding warriors. You have a very powerful team. We would like to extend an invitation to you and your Black Star Mercenary Group to join Sky Ring."
Mercenary organizations grow by recruiting other mercenaries. The Sky Ring Alliance has a relatively free organizational structure, where members have the right to recommend other mercenaries. If a strong person is successfully recruited, the recommender will receive a reward from the organization. Therefore, Sky Ring mercenaries pay close attention to talented newcomers in the industry, much like part-time talent scouts.
Gashley's team happened to be stationed at the Juberly Hub and heard rumors about the Planet Sunil battle—"The Undying Black Star Mercenary Group." This name came into their view, and after verification, they confirmed that it was not a rumor. Gashley immediately decided to extend an invitation to Han Xiao, wanting to recruit the entire Black Star Mercenary Group into the Sky Ring.
He was mainly attracted by the "resurrection" feature; otherwise, Black Star, with his average Grade C strength, wouldn't have been worthy of being treated differently by the Sky Ring, and Gashley wouldn't have given Han Xiao a second glance. This is because the Sky Ring has tens of thousands of mercenaries with an average strength of Grade C, dozens or even hundreds of Grade B cadres, and even two Calamity Grade powerhouses that the civilization fears.
Han Xiao was somewhat surprised by Sky Ring's sudden invitation, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt it made sense. Mercenaries who could be resurrected were the best vanguard and cannon fodder, and even a large organization like Sky Ring would not ignore them.
He weighed the pros and cons in his mind. Joining Sky Ring would grant him privileges, allow him to benefit from the power and connections Sky Ring had built up over the years, and provide him with new avenues for promotion and a wealth of exchangeable goods...
However, if the Black Star Mercenary Group were to merge into Sky Ring, it would become a vassal of someone else, and its own faction would perish. The long-term losses would be too great, and he could not abandon his own faction for a little convenience.
"Your proposal is very appealing, but I'm not keen on joining any other organization," Han Xiao politely declined.
The Sky Ring mercenaries watching murmured amongst themselves.
"They actually refused."
"Why wouldn't I accept such a beneficial offer? I didn't hesitate at all when I was invited."
Gashley looked surprised, assuming Han Xiao didn't understand the benefits, so he patiently explained, "You might not be aware of the advantages of joining Sky Ring. First, Sky Ring has a lot of freedom in managing its members; you can choose to be a lone mercenary or join a team, as long as you complete at least two hires per year. Second, Sky Ring members enjoy many privileges, such as..."
"I'm sorry," Han Xiao interrupted him, shaking his head. "Sky Ring is indeed impressive, but I believe in the principle of balancing benefits and risks. Independent action suits me better, but thank you for the invitation anyway."