Reborn as a Hatrack in the Mystical Land

After confirming the identity of Chi Xi as the fifth official team member, Yue Jinghua first analyzed the overall strength of the team, which showed that she herself and Feng Buhui had the strongest cultivation, both roughly at the Dark Earth Peak.

Next was Qin Dongting, whose cultivation was roughly at Dark Earth Great Success.

As for Shalman, although her cultivation was only at the basic Dark Human level, with the support of Thunder Snake, Five-Colored Spider, and numerous poisonous insects, her combat ability was basically equivalent to a Dark Earth Dark Cultivator.

For the newly recruited Chi Xi, Yue Jinghua implemented a strict no-alcohol policy.

After a check-up, Chi Xi’s body was nearly ruined by alcohol. Yue Jinghua used her Spiritual Sense to scan and found that Chi Xi’s original cultivation could reach at most Dark Jade Realm.

Luckily, Yue Jinghua had an abundance of Spirit Pills on hand, and after a few days of nurturing, Chi Xi’s mental and physical state had greatly recovered.

After a brief restructuring, Yue Jinghua took Feng Buhui and Chi Xi to the local Mercenary Branch for mercenary qualification accreditation.

Yue Jinghua knew Feng Buhui’s strength well; his original power was roughly at Dark Earth Peak, and after enhancement with Green Liquid and being in the Demon Crossbow state, his strength should have reached Heavenly Dark Realm.

Before leaving the Reversed Fire Mercenary Group, Feng Buhui’s mercenary level was three stars, with a performance score of: upper grade. Unfortunately, he already submitted a retirement request, and according to the Mercenary Guild’s regulation, any mercenary who applies for retirement has their level reset to zero; hence, Feng Buhui needs to start again as a One-star Mercenary.

Yue Jinghua isn’t worried about Feng Buhui.

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Having emerged from the Five-star Mercenary Group Reversed Fire, whether it’s personal strength or mercenary experience, Feng Buhui is considered one of the richest among the "Second Generation Soldiers"; with a little adjustment and some time to accumulate, regaining three stars is only a matter of time.

What troubled Yue Jinghua was the former female mercenary Chi Xi’s mercenary level. Before arriving at the Five Saints Mercenary Branch, Yue Jinghua had asked Chi Xi to provide her former mercenary manual.

Chi Xi claimed that due to the age of the manual, it was already lost but she was certain she did not submit a retirement procedure like Feng Buhui, and her original mercenary level should still be preserved.

After entering the Mercenary Branch, Luo Lin saw the neatly lined-up members of differing heights and temperaments and furrowed her brow.

"For retired mercenaries to re-register, a payment of fifty Fourth-level Dark Pills is required," Luo Lin said without many words, and handed Feng Buhui a new manual marked with the Five Saints Branch logo after receiving the required amount of Dark Pills.

For some reason, Yue Jinghua felt that Luo Lin’s attitude toward her had improved from before; though not exactly polite, it was still official and without unnecessary difficulties.

Could it be that something happened during her time searching for new mercenaries?

After hearing Chi Xi explain the situation of the missing mercenary manual, Luo Lin pulled out a thick set of files and dryly said: "Name, age, birthplace, original affiliated mercenary group or team."

"Chi Xi, female, forty-four years old, born in Seychelles Duchy, affiliated with the Qian Yue Mercenary Group," Chi Xi, having quit drinking, had a slightly plump face, brown mid-length hair, and wore a well-fitted light armor, looking energetic and sharp.

"Qian Yue Mercenary Group?" Luo Lin, who usually remained expressionless, showed a slight surprise upon hearing the name of Qian Yue.

Aside from the half-assed mercenaries like Weiwei and Shalman, and Yue Jinghua who is oblivious to the market conditions, Qin Dongting and Feng Buhui also had different reactions.

No wonder everyone was so astonished; both the Rebellion Mercenary Group and Qian Yue Mercenary Group are Five-star Mercenary Groups. Unlike the Rebellion Mercenary Group, the Qian Yue Mercenary Group is made up entirely of female mercenaries, especially known for their movement techniques, and also belongs to one of the old mercenary group teams.

"Heh, why is everyone giving me that look? I used to be a cook, the kind people call a ’fire soldier.’ Miao San, the leader of Qian Yue, really appreciated my cooking skills and invited me to join them. Regardless of my cultivation level, my cooking skills are truly great, not something everyone can enjoy. Later, because I got married, I feared the kitchen smokes would turn me into a yellow-faced woman, so I stopped working in kitchens," Chi Xi said proudly yet sentimentally.

"Auntie, you should have told us such important things earlier," Yue Jinghua said, feeling dejected.

Among the sub-team, Chi Xi was the oldest, so everyone unanimously called her ’Auntie.’

Her temper was amiable, and she had no objections.

Everyone then came to understand; every mercenary group always has a few odd members. As long as the overall strength of the mercenary group is strong and the leader permits it, having a few burdens is acceptable.

Luo Lin shrugged her shoulders, beginning to look through the records: "Hold on, I’ll check the mercenary records. The membership of the Qian Yue Mercenary Group is registered in Five Saints Town. If the record extraction is correct, fifty Dark Pills are required to reissue the Mercenary Manual."

The records from twenty years ago were already covered with a layer of dust, and it took Luo Lin quite some effort to find the data for the Qian Yue Mercenary Group members back then.

"Chi Xi, was twenty-four years old, a resident of Seychelles, Qian Yue Mercenary Group..." After flipping through, Luo Lin extracted the data: "Mercenary Level: Four Stars."

"!!" Luo Lin’s eyes widened instantly, a Four-star Mercenary?!

Auntie was actually a Four-star Mercenary!

Luo Lin suddenly felt utterly disordered by the surprise.

"A four-star level ’fire soldier,’ Miss Luo Lin, are you sure? Her cultivation is only at the Dark Jade Realm," Yue Jinghua rushed forward to take a look. On the beast skin paper with Chi Xi’s information, written clearly in black ink on a white background, "Chi Xi, Four-star Mercenary, can prepare various delicious dishes that quickly restore Dark Power."

"Cultivation and mercenary star level assessment aren’t necessarily related. Chi Xi, are you a Spiritual Food Master?" Luo Lin seriously inquired.

In the Mercenary World, strength is indeed respected, but for certain special individuals, like those who have dual or even multiple identities as mercenaries, certain accommodations are made.

"If Auntie truly is a Spiritual Food Master, it’s not strange for her to be rated as a Four-star Mercenary. For instance, some mercenaries who are also Pill Masters, Artifact Masters, Cultivators, or Tattoo Masters, the Mercenary Guild often relaxes the assessment criteria to recruit these people," Feng Buhui explained.

"Yes, I’ve said before, I’m very good at cooking. Even the head chef of White Moon Pavilion, Mi Xiu, learned knife skills from me back in the day," seeing everyone’s expressions, Chi Xi touched her nose, "I also have a signature dish called Honey-glazed Earth Tyrant Bear’s Paw. Just a few bites can instantly restore the Dark Power of a spent Dark Practitioner."

Everyone still looked utterly disordered, and after a long while, Weiwei weakly added, "But the Earth Tyrant Bear is an Eighth-level Beast King, its bear paws..."