Chapter 214: Hun Tong Doesn’t Panic
During the battle for Two Eyes Island, Hun Tong felt he had no subordinates!
He had four silver level subordinates, but on the battlefield, they out debased each other.
Under the silvers, there were no battle squads.
This led to all of the war pressure being resisted by Hun Tong alone.
His subordinates were more used as bait to lure out the enemy’s military and objectives.
After the melee finished, Hun Tong felt this deeply.
Because he really didn’t have anyone.
Of the four silver level subordinates, two were dead, one was seriously injured, and one was whole.
Most of the city guards were lost and the barracks was in ruins.
The patrol fleet was also decimated.
All of the light cannon turrets Hun Tong had secretly built all over the new island were destroyed.
Not only were the alchemy cannon turrets gone, so too were the gunners inside them.
Hun Tong had defended his territory, but too much of the island’s strength had been depleted, and it urgently needed replenishment.
Since distant water couldn’t quench one now, Hun Tong planned on taking the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Truth be told, during the battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ performance left a profound impression on Hun Tong!
Therefore, the night the battle finished; he was unable to keep himself from sneaking here to extend an olive branch to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Zong Ge shook his head, “Lord Hun Tong, you seem to forget that we aren’t just a mercenary corp.”
The implication pointed to their underlying identity – arms smugglers.
Hun Tong nodded, “I understand what you mean, Shi Qi.”
To be able to smuggle weapons, one needed to have a deep background.
The survivors upheld this sham identity to bluff, imperceptibly resolve many troubles, and make things more convenient.
Hun Tong coughed, “To tell the truth, it that layer of yourself that I consider you even more suitable to join my Two Eyes Island.”
“If you want to sell something, is this not the best place to do so?”
“Of course, I know that you have your own channels and buyers that you need to transport goods for.”
“Two Eyes Island can still help you, In the future, I will turn it into a regional transportation hub.”
“Furthermore, I believe that Commander Long Fu is strong enough to guarantee your actions.”
“Shi Qi, the person I really want to recruit is you!”
Hun Tong was a clever person.
If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have been able to build Two Eyes Island up from nothing into a great commerce island.
Like the pharmacist, this battle had given him intangible wealth.
For example, he recognized where the weakest parts of his territory was.
He didn’t have a subordinate capable of taking charge!
He couldn’t do everything by himself, he needed more people to defend this foundation.
This subordinate needed to be at least silver level.
But just having a life level was not enough.
They also needed to be very elite!
Hun Tong thought previously that his four silver levels were a well-trained and powerful force.
Now, Hun Tong has a completely new realization, having a high quality silver level subordinate was far more important than having a lot of them!
When a crisis approached, many silver levels were useless. Sometimes they would ignorantly cause negative effects.
Such as his former city guard commander.
That guy took advantage of Hun Tong standing guard at the auction hall to leave the barracks and run around outside to have fun.
This resulted in the silver level powerhouse Dao Hen cutting him down by himself.
With him dead, the city guard didn’t have a commander. Their military power declined severely, and during the entire battle, they city guard got thrashed far more than it went on the offensive.
Apart from this, the alchemist and the pharmacist were beaten by the fishman caster in a two versus one. This really lost too much face for humanity.
Hearing Hun Tong’s main purpose in coming, Zong Ge merely raised his eyebrows and waited silently.
Hun Tong commended, “Shi Qi, you have a peak silver life level, your battle qi already has a golden luster, and you’ll become a gold level sooner or later.”
“You are a human, your bloodline is exceptional, at least capable of bringing you to the gold level, are you really willing to serve a silver level dragonman?”
“I have seen your battle talent with my own eyes both against Rou Zang and this last battle.
“You can also drill troops.”
When he mentioned this, Hun Tong paused, then laughed, “That Quick Knife battle squad you established, you were also the one training it too.”
“It really was capable!”
“At the port, they were able to fight a silver level fishman for a time.”
“When I heard how long that battle squad had been established for, I didn’t dare believe it.”
“In so short a time, you were able to train them to this degree, your talent really has impressed me.”
“Shi Qi, ah Shi Qi.”
“You have such skill. But you’ve become an arms smuggler, don’t you think that’s too regretful?”
“Even an outsider like me feels a deep pity for you.”
Hun Tong’s expression and voice were very sincere.
But Zong Ge remained just as calm as he had been.
Hun Tong smiled and tossed out his true bargaining chip, “Are you really happy in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps? You had been persistently looking for a healing potion and purchased a gold level one at the auction.”
“You see, that is all the support the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps can give to you.”
“But if you join my territory, and need a gold level healing potion again, I will give it to you immediately!”
“Your will be paid 50,000 gold coins in your first year! It will increase every year, and when you become a gold level, it will be at least 200,000 gold.”
Whether it was 50,000 or 200,000 gold, both exceeded standards.
“As long as you hold the position of Two Eyes Island’s city guard commander for three years, I will work with you to have the empire award you the title of baron.” Hun Tong continued to say.
Zong Ge couldn’t help but be moved.
Nobility!
Hun Tong had unexpectedly tossed out a major bargaining chip, his sincerity really was great.
Nobility in the Sheng Ming Empire was not easily conferred, many knights that strived for their entire lives would never be made nobles.
The Sheng Ming Empire really treasured nobility.
But Zong Ge shook his head, his tone steady as he replied, “Frankly, I don’t think Two Eyes Island has a future.”
“First, the fishmen haven’t been thoroughly purged. Given enough time, this fishman clan will surely multiply and strengthen. I saw their determination; they won’t abandon their former homeland. In other words’ today’s conflict will repeat in the future.”
“Second, Lord Hun Tong, in this battle, you suddenly betrayed us and had the magic ship open fire on friendly forces. That caused immense casualties and damage, and although the other powers won’t be too bad to deal with, what will you do about the five great merchant alliances?”
“Third, another necromancer appeared during the battle. That combined with the prior necromancer incident might trigger an imperial follow-up investigation. You better kill that necromancer before then.”
If it were Cang Xu or Zi Di, perhaps these things would have been said more tactfully.
But Zong Ge was straightforward and when he ran into a feudal lord of bad character, he might get angry on the spot.
But Hun Tong burst into laughter, “None of your concerns are enough to trouble me.”
“First point, the fishmen are nothing to worry about. Because Two Eyes Island will be appropriated by the empire as a future transportation hub. It will be an important part of the maritime transportation lines. At that time, the imperial navy will be garrisoned here, and even if the fishman clan grows in strength, the war they raise won’t endanger my territory.”
“Second point, my performance on the battlefield…cough, I can’t help but say that the fishmen are really crafty. They actually used Devil Gold Coins. I had the misfortune of falling to them.”
Hun Tong had learned about the Devil Gold Coins from the old fishman elder.
At the time, he had expressed his approval and offered genuine praise.
Upon mentioning it, Hun Tong’s teeth hatefully itched.
Zong Ge’s eyes flashed, “What gold coins?”
Hun Tong gave a detailed explanation of everything he knew about the gold coins.
Zong Ge had a realization.
At that moment, he finally understood why Hun Tong, Zi Di, and Cang Xu changed sides.
“So, the problem was those 50,000 gold coins.”
“Through us, most of those gold coins ended up in Hun Tong’s hands, causing him to be entrapped by them.”
“If he knew the truth, who knows what he would feel about it?”
Hun Tong continued, “Although it was indeed me who caused casualties to friendly forces, it was not my real intention, I was influenced by an external power. Everyone knows this.”
“Of course, the five great merchant alliances won’t be easy to deal with.”
“They are troublesome.”
“Therefore, I have made sufficient preparations. Regarding these merchants, I will give them satisfactory compensation.”
“Don’t worry about coin.” Hun Tong smiled, looking calm and complacent, “On the seafloor around the new island are the treasures the pirates left behind.”
“My subterranean patrol puppets have already submerged to the seafloor and are searching all over for them.”
“Of course, others are thinking of fishing up this money, but my Golden Flash has been monitoring all of the coastlines.”
“This money is all spoils of war, and according to imperial law, are mine!”
“A small part of this sum is enough to satisfy the five great merchant alliances.”
Zong Ge: …..
He knew the treasures on the seafloor had already been absconded by Zi Di.
In terms of plundering seafloor resources, the deep sea salvagers were far better than the subterranean patrollers!
Hun Tong’s beautiful dream was destined to be shattered.
As Zong Ge watched the feudal lord of Two Eyes Island frankly giving assurances, he couldn’t help but feel a smidge of pity for him.
Hung Ton wasn’t aware of this as he kept going, “As for the third point, that necromancer…it is very clear that he was one of the fishmen’s hidden forces. That group of wretched dregs actually ganged up with a necromancer. Therefore, the necromancer that appeared on the island must surely be one of theirs too, wanting to destroy Two Eyes Island ahead of time for them.”
“I am completely innocent; I am not worried about any investigation.”
“It won’t be anything major.”
Hun Tong had an important reason for this, one he didn’t tell Zong Ge.
Cang Xu, that fish, was the imperial secret spy’s target, they wanted to put him on a long line to hook a bigger fish.
Therefore, during the battle, Hun Tong didn’t clamp down on Cang Xu ruthlessly.
After all, he and the imperial secret spy worked a lot together.
In fact, when confronted with a possible imperial investigation, the imperial secret spy could help him explain things.
Therefore, he didn’t panic.