Chapter 274 - 260 I am Just an Ordinary Appraiser (3/3)

Chapter 274: Chapter 260 I am Just an Ordinary Appraiser (3/3)

The real name of Green Tide was ’A Ley Onassis,’ meaning a member of the Onassis clan, with ’Ley’ as his father’s name and ’A’ as his given name.

This was a tall Swordsman with short teal hair and somewhat long, narrow eyes that were extremely sharp.

It was somewhat coincidental that his Seaborn tendencies were also ’Shark-like’—Green Tide could swim through the sea faster than the average Seaborn, had rough and tough skin, and his teeth could continuously regenerate.

He was normally an open and jovial individual, but when not conversing with others, he preferred to seclude himself in a corner; despite his burly stature, he often gave people a sense of a brooding, literary young man.

The Seaborn were considered a type of Demihuman Companion Spirit People, and Green Tide had a mouthful of teeth like a shark. It was said that his father’s animalistic transformation was even more severe, with bony shark fins even growing on his arms.

At this moment, Green Tide had already been injected with the Regeneration Potion and his injuries had largely healed.

He was here to express his gratitude or perhaps to ’pledge allegiance.’

"You saved my life, Guide," said the Seaborn Swordsman as he knelt on one knee before Ian, performing the grand gesture of a Whale Song Cliff subordinate towards their lord, and said in a deep voice, "I do not lie—I see great promise in your future."

"You are strong enough and young enough, yet you do not possess a title that matches your potential—I am willing to pledge my loyalty to you and become a Swordsman under your command to be a part of your power."

He was indeed blunt and straightforward.

Green Tide owed Ian a debt of gratitude and also believed in Ian’s capability and potential—extraordinary and boundless—thus he straightforwardly pledged his allegiance.

"It’s true I saved your life, but only to protect the front lines, and the potion was from the Ellen Family—I merely passed it on," Ian said, not letting Green Tide rise nor rejecting or accepting the other’s ’pledge of loyalty.’

He was also aware that the reason the other party did not seek to join the Ellen Family was precisely because the Ellen Family was too powerful, and Green Tide might not even pass the political vetting.

On the other hand, his own side, if one should speak of a true private core, only had Scott at the moment. Indeed, some talented individuals were needed to facilitate action.

Moreover, he was somewhat aware of Green Tide’s past.

In former years, following the three-seas battle across Pengpai Ocean, Wandering Sea, and Stormy Ocean against the Sea Demon Worm at Whale Song Cliff, a great number of injured old soldiers had retired, with many unable to receive adequate retirement compensations.

Yet from this group of old soldiers emerged a batch of new war-nurtured Nobles.

Although the vast majority of the new Nobility were ’vassals’ chosen by various large Seaborn clans and Merfolk Fishpeople tribes of Whale Song Cliff, the right to be a vassal was fiercely contested by many.

Green Tide’s father was one of the eligible competitors.

However, the veteran was eligible but lacked any real background, and he faced much covert suppression to keep him from really competing for a seat.

Moreover, with the large number of retiring soldiers and his existing concealed injuries, it was difficult for him to find employment, which ultimately led to the manifestation of his hidden injuries causing a disruption in the circulation of his Primordial Seed and a heart failure that ended his life.

First-Level Sublimators, although higher in status than ordinary people, were not high enough to reach the threshold of Nobility, and they were not difficult to nurture.

Although it is said that nurturing a First-Level Sublimator requires over four thousand Talle, this cost is a comprehensive one including ’Magical Medicine Ingredients,’ ’Magic Potion formulas,’ ’hiring Alchemists,’ ’teachers’ salaries,’ ’adaptive training,’ and ’additional nutritional supplements.’

For the military, however, magic potion formulas, concoction, teaching, and subsequent adaptive training almost cost nothing. Only the Magical Medicine Ingredients and extra nutrition need financial expenditure.

For a large organization, the Flesh and Blood and materials of low-level Magical Beasts are mass-produced items that can be bred on a large scale through the Labyrinth.

Only families with no inheritors from scratch need to spend thousands of Talle to nurture the first Sublimator in their family.

Subsequently, nurturing the second one becomes much easier.

This is the importance of what is called ’heritage.’ Its most straightforward benefit is to reduce the cost of nurturing, allowing for a faster restoration of glory.

For instance, the White Folks of Harrison Port, if not for their status as exiles, just the Silver Peak Emissary inheritance, secrets of Alchemy, and Inscriptions mastered by Elder Prude alone could help their family recover at the fastest speed.

And large organizations are able to mass-produce a significant number of First-Level Sublimators whenever they wish.

But the maintenance that follows is a problem.

Each Sublimator is a high-precision Origin Quality machine, and the consumption of Origin Quality food each month is a significant sum of money.

The most fearsome part isn’t even the money, but a shortage of resources—production of Magical Beast Flesh is limited, and the planning of resources has always been a major issue.

For the sake of war, a large number of First-Level Sublimators were nurtured as expendable combat forces, but after the great battle, there’s no longer a need for so many individuals with combat capabilities. Instead of continuously spending the overall resources of an entire power to support a group of old soldiers, it’s better to downsize the army, nurture a group of young ordinary soldiers, and only promote them when needed for consumption.

This is also why the Terra World has so many mercenary Sublimators and Adventurers—their predecessors were mostly old soldiers or fallen Nobles.

Just like Green Tide—he was raised by his father’s teachings from childhood and used the last of his family’s money to become a Sublimator. He honed his skills ceaselessly, even breaking through to the peak of the First Power Level in the recent battle with the Moths.

High-ranking and peak positions represent a threshold.

Such a young First Power Level Peak Swordsman, even for a grand Noble family like the Ellen Family, even if they don’t accept his loyalty, would be willing to provide a well-nourished guest status.

Indeed, Green Tide was originally a long-term collaborator with Platinum Iridium Workshop, which allowed him to rush to Harrison Port on a moment’s notice.

"Not wanting to serve Whale Song Cliff, so you’ve been looking for a place to settle... Have you chosen Harrison Port now?"

Ian appreciated Green Tide’s ability to understand the times and to seize opportunities proactively, but he couldn’t simply agree right away.

After pondering for a while, Ian spoke slowly, "Let’s wait until we both survive the Ruins. It’ll also give you time to think—Green Tide, I’m just an ordinary Harrison Port Appraiser, and I can’t pay you much salary. If you truly want to follow me, the days ahead will be tough. Think carefully about it."

Green Tide’s eyes flickered slightly, obviously struggling to maintain his composure.

An ordinary Harrison Port Appraiser?

What a joke, he’s not blind!

The swordsmanship displayed by Ian, so masterful that even he felt it was formidable, clearly wasn’t a high-level inheritance from the Wave Singers. His ability to withstand critical moments and make strategic decisions... were enough to prove his immeasurable future potential!

Not to mention, he had already formed a good relationship with the Ellen Family and was also a favored official appraiser by Viscount Grant. During his previous interactions with other sailors at Harrison Port, it was known that Ian was to be a future Elder of the White Folks of Harrison Port.

Ordinary?

If it weren’t for Green Tide’s clear sensing that he had reached the peak of the First Power Level and that his strength could further improve after his recovery, he’d even be embarrassed to pledge allegiance to Ian!

"Don’t underestimate yourself."

As if sensing the swordsman’s inner thoughts, the young man shook his head slightly and said, "At your level of swordsmanship, as someone who has reached the peak of the First Power Level, even the Ellen Family would gladly hire you as a swordsmanship instructor."

"It would be my honor to be sought after by them... stand up."

"So my joining now is valuable, isn’t it?" Following Ian’s voice, Green Tide smiled and stood up.

—When everyone cheered, wasn’t it obvious that those who fought together from inconsequential times reaped greater rewards?

In Ian’s eyes, what the swordsman saw couldn’t possibly be ’blind loyalty.’

He had not made up his mind to pledge allegiance to a youth who was probably half his own age for that kind of thing.

Even if he truly thought that way, with Ian’s wisdom, how could he possibly believe it?

But the emotions in the swordsman’s heart... were deeper and heavier than loyalty.

—It was hope.

In Ian, Green Tide saw his own hope.

Even though it was inexplicable and indescribable, and even the swordsman himself didn’t know why.

Perhaps it was that strike, the one that ripped through the formations of the Ape Beasts and Moths, collapsing the enemy’s encirclement with a single blow.

Such a dazzlingly refined strike required innate talent and thousands of nights of arduous practice to achieve even minor success... and based on Ian’s age, he must have never stopped practicing since he could first hold a wooden sword.

A Spirit Energy User prodigy who persisted in swordsmanship practice without interruption at the age of fourteen.

Just by the virtue of that perseverance and talent, the swordsman knew that the other’s future could never be just an appraiser for a frontier town, nor could it be merely an Elder of the White Folks of the region!

This was the swordsman’s intuition.

Compared to that, the Regeneration Potion, though life-saving, was just a catalyst.

Green Tide had made up his mind.

—He didn’t want to remain a ’mercenary swordsman,’ who, even in death, could only bring pain to his family, spending his entire life merely selling his martial skills as a ’ronin.’

At the very least, this young man, his goal was certainly bigger, more valuable than his own.

More worthwhile than the war his father had joined.

If he could make money either way, why not choose a path with a brighter future, one that he would not regret?

Guide. Mulling over the name that Ian represented, he found it incredibly fitting.

Yes.

The Guide was indeed the one who would lead him into the future.

Green Tide’s pledge was but a minor episode.

When Ian found Master Gossay and Yisen Gard in the cabin, the two seemed to be discussing some issues about their next move.

The youth’s voice was puzzled: "Teacher, going further in means delving into the heart of the ruins. Don’t we need to leave this place first?"

The old man’s voice was tinged with frustration: "You, you only get confused when it comes to Alchemy, don’t you? In a super-large ruin like this, it’s a labyrinth even without it being maze-like. Without getting into the depths and figuring out the specific internal map and pathways, it’s impossible for us to find our way out!"

"Moreover, the core facilities of such pre-apocalyptic ruins tend to be interconnected, allowing access to any area. It will be faster to look for exits there than to keep focusing on getting out right now!"

A classic debate—when lost in a Ruins Labyrinth, is it better to head toward the center or to leave directly?

Ian thought either was fine, since he had the Foresight View, no labyrinth could stop him.

But this time, he definitely supported Master Gossay.

So he knocked on the door, and after getting permission, he entered the room and said, "We definitely need to head to the center of the ruins. There are too many peculiar things here and countless strange parasitic creatures. If we don’t understand the secrets, we might end up perishing midway."

As the teacher and apprentice turned their heads in unison at the knock, Ian calmly joined the conversation.

He looked at them curiously and asked, "What’s up, you two? Why did you suddenly bring this up?"

The teacher and apprentice exchanged a glance, and naturally, it was Master Gossay who spoke first.

"It’s nothing major,"

The old man shook his head and said, "Someone found a map on the crystallized paper from the previous era in the bones on the ground."

"The map marks several locations, including ’Sacrificial Ground,’ ’Holy Ground,’ and ’Exit.’"