Chapter 56: Chapter 56: So, I Need a Raise!

Translator: 549690339

“In White Crane City, we are considered a mid-sized family. We have a Family Head who is a Fourth Order LV85 combatant, and a Fourth Order LV82 Elder. Seven Third Order powerhouses manage affairs, along with fifty-four Second Order and over five hundred First Order members. I’m not sure about the exact number of non-combat professionals.”

Combatants are the core strength of a family, while non-combat professionals are vassals. Unless you become a Third Order Master or a Fourth Order Grandmaster, your status will certainly not surpass that of a combatant of the same level.

The Fan Family was established nearly two hundred years ago. Through marriages, taking concubines, and bearing sons and daughters, the family has flourished.

The total population of the main line and collateral branches of the entire family exceeds five thousand.

For example, Fan Yuer’s father is one of the seven Third Order powerhouses managing affairs. He married seven wives and has a total of twenty children, which is not even the most exaggerated case.

The Family Head married twelve wives and has as many as seventy-two children, essentially treating his wives like mere baby-making machines.

For the Fan Family, especially for the concubine-born daughters, they are considered nothing more than tools for marriage alliances and have never been valued by the family.

The reason Fan Yuer and her sisters became Second Order Pharmacists within just one year was not because they relied on family resources, but because they risked their lives to obtain those resources outside.

Otherwise, they would not have obtained the formula for a Second Order medicine, nor the coordinates for an Undead-type Secret Realm instance.

” How strong is the family you are to be allied with through marriage? Does your prospective marital partner hold a lot of power?”

The Fan Family isn’t too strong, which gave Zi Liyuan some confidence. However, he still needed to continue inquiring about certain things.

If the family he was dealing with through the marriage alliance was too powerful, Zi Liyuan was not keen on provoking them. After all, in ancient times, this amounted to a grudge over stealing a wife, a grievance that could lead to life-and-death enmity.

“They are a family that has existed for nearly six hundred years. The person concerned is an Elder, a Fourth Order LV90 combatant who is in charge of the family’s logistical materials. He commands a small squad, but his reputation is extremely poor; he specializes in activities that bring disgrace, which is why the Fan Family is still hesitating.”

A family that has existed for over five hundred years and has at least one Lord as their backer in the Sea of Realms is considered a noble family, a symbol of their heritage.

However, after a noble family grows strong, all sorts of people may appear, and this Elder Chen is one of the worst.

The Fan Family’s hesitation is also because of Elder Chen’s terrible reputation, with records of him reneging on debts.

If the family is not strong enough and the other party insists on denying the debt, the Fan Family would have no choice but to swallow their pride and accept it.

That’s why the higher-ups of the family are still undecided. But time waits for no one, and a decision will soon be made.

This is why Fan Yuer was hesitant at first when she met Zi Liyuan, reluctant to choose a profession related to Death.

But now there’s no time for her to hesitate, and having witnessed Zi Liyuan’s terrifying potential, if she could convince him, escaping from the family would be easy for her and her sisters!

“This is a bit too much for me to provoke.”

The foundation of a noble family can hold unknown trump cards and artifacts, and they, managing the family’s logistical materials, have access to many powerful artifacts!

Seeing hesitation on Zi Liyuan’s face, Fan Yuer grew anxious inside and quickly said,

“The Fan Family hasn’t agreed yet, and the other party doesn’t dare to force the issue. Li Yuan, with your strength, just win the top position in the Jiangnan Continent exam tomorrow, and at this point in time, the Chen Family won’t dare to target you.

Afterward, you can take part in the assessments of the other eight major academies in Shenzhou, excluding White Crane Academy. As long as one accepts you, we can move to the corresponding Shenzhou and avoid the Chen Family altogether. You won’t have to worry about Elder Chen causing trouble again.”

Fan Yuer laid out all her future plans in one breath, then looked intently at Zi Liyuan, hoping for his agreement.

“Your idea is good and naive, but it will bring me unknown great trouble, which is not worth it compared to the benefits I would get,”

looking directly at Fan Yuer, Zi Liyuan said without a trace of emotion in his voice.

A highly perceptive pharmacist who dares to study various undead potions is a rare talent for him.

But why should he take the risk of offending two families just to have them follow him and work, if it was just a simple matter?

So, more money it is!

“Sigh… What condition? Just say it, as long as I can do it, I will comply!”

Fan Yuer naturally caught the implication in Zi Liyuan’s words, but at this moment, she was at his mercy and had no choice but to first listen to his demands and then raise the price.

“I want you two!”

Zi Liyuan sworehe wasn’t lusting after their bodies, nor the fact they were twins, and certainly not for several times the pleasure.

He just wanted to have a few eye-pleasing, loyal, and dedicated beautiful subordinates to provide various services for him!

“You… Sigh…”

In that moment, Fan Yuer couldn’t maintain her icy expression, a hint of anger appeared on her face, which she forcefully suppressed, took several deep breaths, and then spoke again.

“I didn’t expect you to fancy our bodies. I can agree to your terms, but on the condition that you do not use us as breeding tools, and you must provide us with resources to help us advance in rank!”

To have a status, one must gain it through strength, in a world where the law of the jungle reigns, this is an eternal truth.

Only when they become a pharmacists master or grandmaster and rely on others, can they then receive sufficient respect and importance.

“Do you know about the Boundary Sea Contract? To ensure your sisters’ loyalty, you two must sign the Boundary Sea Contract and swear allegiance to me. This point is non-negotiable. If you agree, then after tomorrow’s high exam, wait for me in the altar square of White Crane Academy.”

Before entering the Sea of Realms, it’s essential to cultivate a set of reliable aides. Two highly perceptive pharmacists, who are also of one mind, are definitely of great value for training, given their guaranteed loyalty.

The Boundary Sea Contract would ensure absolute loyalty. Once signed, they would be part of the family, and Zi Liyuan naturally wouldn’t be stingy with resources to focus on nurturing them.

Taking a deep look at Fan Yuer, who was lost in thought, Zi Liyuan turned and left towards the altar square.

After successfully advancing to Second Order, the number of times he could farm the dungeons increased by +1 daily, which certainly shouldn’t be wasted. Besides, he was also eager to find out how much experience and what kind of equipment he could get from the LV60 dungeon.

However, Zi Liyuan wasn’t in a hurry. Instead, he opened the attribute panel again, accessed the skill bar, and started looking at the skills.

As the Necromancer with three skill trees, except for the ultimate skills, all others were unlocked. But on the summoning panel, the Stone Demon summoning and domination skills had all disappeared, leaving only “Summon Hell Demon Puppet” without an option to level up.

“Huh, after using the scroll to merge and mutate, the original skills have all disappeared. I wonder if I can relearn them.”

The Nether Crystal Core mutation and enhancement left the original skills intact, meaning it’s just a derived version of a related enhancement skill. Merging and mutating with the scroll also wiped out the original skills, and the experience invested in upgrading was as good as wasted. I’ll need to be more careful with this thing in the future.

The more skills there are, the more experience is needed to upgrade them. For some less useful skills, it might be better to merge and mutate them into a powerful new skill instead.