Chapter 1

The Blue Wind Chimes, Blood Fiend, and other organizations were all absorbing new members. Besides these well-known organizations, there were dozens of smaller ones recruiting as well.

Blue Wind Chimes had only one requirement for recruitment: membership in the Niuren Tribe. They didn't want anyone outside of the Niuren Tribe. If you wanted to join Blue Wind Chimes, you had to join the Niuren Tribe first.

Blood Fiend's recruitment requirements were a bit more unique. They only accepted thieves. If a thief could defeat any of the twenty-plus members of Blood Fiend, they could join. Blood Fiend had fought Nie Yan before and almost killed him. If you couldn't join Blue Wind Chimes, joining Blood Fiend wasn't a bad choice.

The other dozens of organizations, large and small, also recruited quite a few people.

While they were busy, a tall warrior walked to the center of the arena. He was quite handsome, attracting the attention of many young women.

"That's the student council president, Fang Rujie."

"He's fair-skinned and quite handsome!"

A few girls not far from Nie Yan whispered to each other. They were all from the dance department.

So that was Fang Rujie, the student council president. Nie Yan couldn't help but take a few more glances. He needed to recognize the key figures in the school.

Hearing that it was the student council, Xie Yao frowned. She wasn't very fond of people from the student council.

"A level 85 Great Swordsman, so strong! He can compete with the people from Blue Wind Chimes and Blood Fiend. He should be the highest level in our whole school, right?"

"Probably not. I heard there's someone named Qin Han in our school who's already level 87, but Qin Han is a magic-type. Their strength should be about the same."

"Look, that's Qin Han."

"Wow, even more handsome than Fang Rujie."

Hearing these people, Nie Yan looked in the direction they were pointing. In the distance, a person wearing a black mage robe was Qin Han. Fang Rujie and Qin Han were chatting about something. He seemed very respectful towards Qin Han. Nie Yan frowned. Were these two together?

The two seemed to have agreed on something. Fang Rujie began arranging manpower and recruiting people.

Nie Yan asked Xu Yan about it. Fang Rujie and others were recruiting in the name of Zhushen's Sword (Sword of the Gods), a recently emerged guild. Its strength was second only to the Niuren Tribe and the Holy Roman Empire, ranking third alongside the Guang An Empire (Light and Dark Empire).

Could it be that Zhushen's Sword had already been acquired by Qin Han? But why hadn't he received any news?

Nie Yan only knew that the Monet Conglomerate had made some arrangements in the Greenland Empire, including taking over some of the Century Conglomerate's stores, but he didn't know that the Monet Conglomerate had acquired Zhushen's Sword. Besides acquiring Zhushen's Sword, what else had the Monet Conglomerate done?

The Monet Conglomerate's financial resources were not much inferior to the Century Conglomerate's. It was an economic giant in South America, and they could even influence a country's politics. If they wanted to enter *Faith*, wouldn't it be simple?

No wonder the number of players in South America had surged recently. It seemed that the Monet Conglomerate had contributed a lot to promoting *Faith*. The addition of these South American players had somewhat affected the structure of the Greenland Empire. *Faith* had an automatic translation system. These South American players, except for their slightly different appearance, could communicate normally and were not much different from ordinary players. So they quickly integrated into the game, and even the Niuren Tribe had South American players joining. Nie Yan had always maintained a cautious attitude towards these South American players, trusting them while also closely monitoring them.

The news that the Monet Conglomerate had taken control of Zhushen's Sword weighed heavily on Nie Yan's heart, creating a sense of crisis. These guys' infiltration was really difficult to guard against. To prevent them from suddenly launching an attack one day, he had to prepare in advance.

Nie Yan sent a message to Guo Huai, telling him to start tracking the movements of the Monet Conglomerate on a large scale and to pay close attention to the Zhushen's Sword guild.

Upon hearing that the people from Zhushen's Sword were recruiting, the students of the First Military Academy responded very enthusiastically. In the entire Greenland Empire, besides the Niuren Tribe and the Holy Guardians, there were only Zhushen's Sword and the Guang An Empire. Those who felt that they weren't strong enough to enter the Niuren Tribe were all preparing to join Zhushen's Sword. As for those who were very strong, their first choice was still the Niuren Tribe. If they couldn't enter the Niuren Tribe, they would consider other guilds.

The scene below was still very lively. There were quite a few people from the Niuren Tribe in the first-year class of the First Military Academy, so the Blue Wind Chimes absorbed a lot of people.

"Sister Huasha, there are so many people in this year's class! At least fifteen or sixteen, right?" Undying Scoundrel said a little excitedly. Their team had grown stronger again. Now, the Blue Wind Chimes could almost walk sideways in the First Military Academy. Their most powerful opponent was Blood Fiend, but Undying Scoundrel looked down on the people from Blood Fiend. If it was a one-on-one fight, the Blood Fiend guys would be trash. Those cowards only knew how to bully the few with the many. What Undying Scoundrel despised the most was Blood Fiend's wolf pack tactics. They always relied on numbers to win.

"Yeah, Desire and Essence have both arrived. They're all so young, tender, and cute," Shi Li Huasha said with a smile.

Undying Scoundrel broke out in a cold sweat. He estimated that Desire and Essence were about to be teased. He had had a painful experience in the past.

While they were chatting, a tall figure walked towards them. The person looked like an iron tower, with strong but not protruding muscles, full of explosive power, wearing a set of dark gold armor with a huge skull in the center. The armor's design was flamboyant and full of flowing lines, and he carried two giant greatswords on his back. He looked like a ferocious steel beast, giving people a heavy sense of oppression.

Shi Li Huasha, Undying Scoundrel, and the others immediately focused their attention on this person.

"It's Ares Lei Su!"

"Damn, why is he here? I remember he usually doesn't participate in gatherings."

The entire arena was in an uproar, much louder than when Fang Rujie and the others had appeared earlier.

Ares Lei Su was a near-mythical existence in the First Military Academy. Since the major arena competitions had not yet started, the rankings of various professions had not yet been determined, but in the eyes of everyone in the First Military Academy, Ares Lei Su was an invincible existence.

Nie Yan's gaze couldn't help but be attracted to the person below. Damn, a sub-legendary set, the Bruis Skull Battle Armor! There were actually players who had obtained this set!

Hearing the players' exclamations, Nie Yan's heart shook. Ares Lei Su was actually from the First Military Academy! This was big news!