Invincible through Touching Corpses-Chapter 115 - 114: Vassal Mercenary Corps

Arriving at the Mercenary Guild’s bar area, Lin Xinghai saw Ling Xiu and the others at a glance. He also noticed a burly man standing beside them.

The man’s muscles were even more imposing than Fang Tianhe’s, almost on par with Wu Yan’s.

Lin Xinghai had also noticed recently that this tough-guy type of mercenary seemed to be especially popular.

While actual strength had little to do with muscle mass, people were still subjective creatures.

Given the same level of strength, a muscular man would always seem more powerful.

At that moment, Ling Xiu stood up to formally introduce them. "Brother Lin, this is my captain, Gao Shan."

"Hello, Captain Gao Shan. A pleasure to meet you." Lin Xinghai shook the man’s hand and got straight to the point. "What did you need me for?"

Mercenaries tended to be direct with one another, and Gao Shan seemed accustomed to it. He stated his purpose without preamble. "Once we’ve formed our Mercenary Corps, I’d like to invite you, Brother Lin, to serve concurrently as its vice-leader."

Hearing his words, Lin Xinghai was momentarily stunned. It wasn’t because of the vice-leader position, but because he had used the word "concurrently."

Serving "concurrently" versus just "serving"—the difference was night and day, especially for the position of vice-leader in a Mercenary Corps.

The regulations stipulated that a Mercenary Corps could have a maximum of 200 members.

So, if a Third Level Mercenary Corps wished to expand further, it would establish its own Affiliated Mercenary Corps.

As this became more common, an unwritten rule gradually formed: when a Mercenary Corps Leader wanted to establish an affiliated corps, they would take on the concurrent position of vice-leader within it.

Now that Gao Shan had extended such an invitation, his intentions were self-evident.

After his initial surprise, Lin Xinghai thought for a moment before speaking. "Captain Gao, there’s something I don’t understand. You are all Superpower Users, which gives you a better starting point than other new Mercenary Corps. Why make this choice?"

Gao Shan gave a wry smile. "It’s true that we’re all Superpower Users, but you’ve seen their Superpowers. They’re completely unsuited for direct combat. Under normal circumstances, how much use would they really be?"

"The reason we want to form our own Mercenary Corps isn’t out of any great ambition. We just don’t want to be pushed around or treated unfairly anymore. That’s why we really hope to have someone as strong as you helping us."

Lin Xinghai nodded. "One last question. You’re so confident in me that you’d immediately offer me the concurrent vice-leader position?"

"With an offer like this, you have plenty of options. I’m sure any of the Third Level Mercenary Corps Leaders would be more than willing."

"There are two reasons." Gao Shan held up a finger. "First, and most importantly, it’s because you’re the type of person who keeps their promises, Brother Lin. If there’s a benefit to be had, you won’t shortchange your brothers."

Lin Xinghai thought for a moment and understood. He was probably talking about the Energy Crystal Stone incident from yesterday. The military had raised the price to 100,000 Points, and he had still shared the extra amount with Ling Xiu and the others as agreed.

’Looks like building up my reputation and winning people over is finally paying off.’

"Second." Gao Shan looked slightly embarrassed as he said this, but he continued, "It’s because we investigated you yesterday."

"We were shocked to learn you’ve only been at the Star Shield Shelter for a few days, Brother Lin, yet you’re already this powerful. We believe that with your potential, you’ll soon become one of the top powerhouses in the Mercenary Guild—perhaps even the strongest of all."

Lin Xinghai was surprised. ’I can’t believe even a hunting team from the Superpower Alliance could dig up information on me.’

’If they could do it, then it would be even easier for the other Mercenary Corps to investigate me.’

’Still, considering how exceptionally I’ve performed, the fact that no one has come looking for me probably means the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corps has been running interference.’

Even though Heaven-Sundering was only a Second Level Mercenary Corps, they had connections with the Shelter’s leadership, so not even the Third Level corps dared to offend them lightly.

Once he’d pieced that together, Lin Xinghai relaxed and turned his thoughts to the matter at hand.

’Taking on an affiliated Mercenary Corps might cause some trouble, but the pros definitely outweigh the cons.’

After carefully considering the various consequences, Lin Xinghai looked at Gao Shan and nodded. "Alright, I’m willing to serve as the concurrent vice-leader of your Mercenary Corps."

Joy spread across the faces of Ling Xiu and the others as Lin Xinghai agreed. The group then started discussing the details.

The main point of discussion was Lin Xinghai’s share of the profits.

Gao Shan laid out the plan they had devised the previous night. If Lin Xinghai was available to lead them on a mission, the profits for that mission would be split 70-30, with Lin Xinghai taking seventy percent of the earnings.

Of course, this referred to the net income, after deducting expenses such as mecha repairs, personnel benefits, and ammunition costs.

After all, a Mercenary Corps’s expenses were on a completely different scale from a hunting team’s. If Lin Xinghai were to take seventy percent of the gross revenue, the remaining thirty percent might not even cover the costs of a single mission.

’Of course I understand all this. From what I know, my cut is already extremely high. Generally, when a Third Level Mercenary Corps Leader leads an affiliated corps on a mission, they’d be lucky to get fifty percent of the net profit. Of course, my kill efficiency is also far beyond that of those other leaders.’

Aside from the cut from missions he joined, even if Lin Xinghai did nothing, he would still receive ten percent of the net profit from every mission.

This was the greatest benefit of having an affiliated Mercenary Corps.

As long as they were allowed to grow, they would become a perpetual cash machine. Of course, if this cash machine ran into any trouble, he would have to be the one to step in.

Once these details were finalized, Gao Shan immediately invited Lin Xinghai to go with them to apply to establish the Mercenary Corps.

"You’ve already bought the Mechas?" Lin Xinghai asked, somewhat surprised.

It was one of the mandatory requirements for establishing a Mercenary Corps.

"Yes! Thanks to you, we scraped together enough Points yesterday and immediately went to buy the Mechas," Gao Shan said with a sincere smile.

"That’s great. I’m free today, so let’s go on a mission together later. Bring the Mechas, and we’ll take them for a spin," Lin Xinghai said, licking his lips. He had long wanted to know what it felt like to fight in a Mecha.

"Er... We used the Mechas as collateral to take out a 100,000 Point loan from the Mercenary Guild. They’re currently being modified, so they probably won’t be ready until tomorrow," Gao Shan explained.

"A loan for Mecha modifications? You can do that?" Lin Xinghai asked, a little disappointed.

"Yes," Gao Shan nodded. "It’s a new policy from the Mercenary Guild, probably to increase the survival rate of new Mercenary Corps."

What could Lin Xinghai say to that?

’Still, the policy is a good thing overall. If the mechas Gao Shan and his team pilot are better, they’ll be safer when they go out on missions by themselves in the future.’

Soon, the group arrived at a service window. Gao Shan submitted the application to form a Mercenary Corps, and then it was time to fill out the paperwork.

"Brother Lin, do you have any suggestions for the Mercenary Corps’ name?" Gao Shan asked.