Chapter 257 - 151: The Mortal Realm’s Grand Plan Takes Shape

Chapter 257: Chapter 151: The Mortal Realm’s Grand Plan Takes Shape

"How about..."

Just as the hesitant leader of one chamber of commerce began to speak, the leader of another chamber cut him off, his mouth twitching.

"A reminder: betraying your family gets you hunted down."

"You think they’d dare hunt us all the way to the Mortal Realm?"

"Er..."

"So, uh, can I join?"

"We just filled all the spots. We’re not recruiting for now."

Zhang Qianming smiled and shook his head, pointing to a group of men panting as they ran toward him on the Bridge. No more, no less—exactly ten of them.

These ten were all guards from the Jiangnan Shui Family.

He had known them for many years, and they were all familiar with one another.

Even though these men had all run away earlier.

But based on their usual camaraderie, and the fact that they’d offered to take care of his family before they fled, he had decided to give the ten of them the chance to join the Mortal Realm.

They were all veterans. They were familiar faces, so there would be no need for a break-in period, and they could better complete the tasks assigned by Domain Lord Chen.

"..."

"..."

Seeing that their hopes of joining were dashed, the members of the chambers of commerce all left. But as they departed, they kept looking back, their hearts filled with a mix of emotions. They didn’t even know what they had been running around for this whole time.

No matter how much they ran around, they’d never find a job with a monthly salary of 100 Ghost Stones.

’Maybe once we get to the Mortal Realm, we should just go all-in on opening an Exotic Treasure,’ they thought.

’What if we strike it rich?’

’Working for a chamber of commerce our whole lives will never make us wealthy.’

...

"Brother Qianming!"

On the Jiangbei Bridge, the group of guards from the Jiangnan Shui Family panted as they ran up to Zhang Qianming. The guard who had told Zhang Qianming to flee before they left now spoke apprehensively.

"Are you really willing to give the spots for joining the Mortal Realm to us?"

"We all... we abandoned you and ran."

They had already gotten halfway.

Zhang Qianming had used a Sound Transmission Talisman to call them back.

"Of course."

Zhang Qianming said, exasperated, "With Ghost Objects running rampant, it’s hard to find a few good brothers. We’ve all worked for the Jiangnan Shui Family for so long; we know each other well."

"Besides, the fact that you offered to take care of my family as you were leaving... whether you could have actually done it or not, just hearing you say it was comforting."

"So of course I’d save a great opportunity like this for you guys."

"So... is it really 100 Ghost Stones a month?" The guard who had fled earlier asked, his voice trembling with disbelief as he swallowed hard. "Are they... are they really paying that much?"

"Didn’t the Patriarch used to say that maintaining the Bridge costs a lot of Ghost Stones? How can this Bridge possibly be profitable if they’re paying us such a high monthly salary, lowering the toll, and it’s a Max Level Bridge?"

"It’s one hundred Ghost Stones, plain and simple."

"Domain Lord Chen said so himself. Would he lie to me? And even if he did, I’d accept it."

"As for me..."

Zhang Qianming cleared his throat. "The Domain Lord gave the order himself. I’m the Station Chief, so my monthly salary is definitely a bit higher than yours. Don’t make things difficult for me, alright? You all need to support me."

"Of course!"

The guard said excitedly, "You can rest assured, Station Chief Zhang!"

"Nah, just keep calling me Brother Qianming. It sounds more natural."

Just then—

A black dot in the distance suddenly began to approach at high speed.

In the blink of an eye, it arrived before them.

Its speed dropped sharply, and it came to a halt.

It was the Mortal Realm High-speed Rail, traveling on the very route Chen Fan had just constructed.

Three or four people disembarked imposingly. The one in the lead, a young man, gave the surroundings a cold glance. "Who is Zhang Qianming?"

"I am, I am."

Shaken from his daze, Zhang Qianming hurried forward and asked tentatively, "And you are?"

"Greetings, Station Chief Zhang."

The young man in the lead pulled an Identity Token from his robes and smiled at Zhang Qianming. "Zhenba, Level 2 Member of the Mortal Realm’s Logistics Pavilion."

"We’re the same rank."

"By order of the Venerable Domain Lord, I’ve come to deliver your Mortal Realm standard-issue clothing and other items. The nearest Mortal Realm station is 37 kilometers away."

"I’ve brought you a Sound Transmission Talisman."

"You can use it to contact the Mortal Realm directly. For anything concerning the Bridge, a Ghost Object outbreak, an enemy invasion, or the like, just use the talisman and say you need to contact Wang Kui. He’s the Pavilion Master of the Mortal Realm’s Celestial Granary Pavilion and is currently in charge of establishing our stations."

"If you need to restock clothing or have other logistical matters, use the talisman to contact Pavilion Master Qiu. He’s the head of our Logistics Pavilion and is in charge of all logistical affairs in the Mortal Realm."

As the two spoke, the other members from the Logistics Pavilion who had disembarked from the High-speed Rail had already moved a pile of folded clothes to the side and were leading down eleven Skeleton Horses.

In addition, they took out a hammer and nails and hung a wooden plaque engraved with the words "Jiangbei Bridge" at the head of the bridge.

And on the station’s City Wall, they nailed up a sign with the name "Mortal Realm Jiangbei Bridge Station."

They also brought a Mortal Realm Banner to be raised within the station.

This series of actions instantly filled the once-unaffiliated station with the presence of the Mortal Realm, making it recognizable as one of their outposts at a single glance.

"This is the duty of our Logistics Pavilion."

Zhenba noticed Zhang Qianming watching all this and couldn’t help but smile. "You can come to us for any logistical matters. By the way, for now, the Logistics Pavilion is also responsible for distributing your monthly salary."

"However, the Domain Lord is planning to establish a Treasure Pavilion soon, specifically to manage finances. In the future, your monthly salary will likely be paid out by the Treasure Pavilion. But we haven’t found a suitable candidate for Pavilion Master yet, so it’s on hold for now."

Just then—

Standing behind Zhang Qianming, another guard who had been silent the whole time couldn’t help but ask, "Sir, is our monthly salary... really 100 Ghost Stones a month?"

"Shut up."

Zhang Qianming snarled, slightly angered. Bringing this up now felt embarrassing to him.

"It’s fine."