NOVPUB"Hahahaha!"
"Snow Eagle Mage, we're all about to die soon. I'm really jealous of Blue Mage… He died so peacefully!"
"Hahahaha!"
"Ghost Poison Mage? I envy him too! If I'd known things would end like this, I'd have jumped straight into that golden blade light!"
…
Hearing such a bizarre exchange, Unit One's cold expression finally softened into a faint smile. He muttered to himself:
"Just killing them and heading back? That's absolutely impossible. No way. Gotta find some entertainment in the process."
He looked up at the chaos around him and added with dry amusement, "Still, the outside world really is a lot more fun. People here talk in such amusing ways."
——
Outside the Endless Sanctuary
Tens of thousands of mages had already gathered here.
Although the Endless Sanctuary wasn't considered much in the grand scheme of the upper plane universe, it was still a top-tier force in this remote star region—enough to draw a huge crowd.
"Take the money, wreck the place!"
"So, how exactly should we ruin this recruitment event?"
In the crowd, an elderly man chuckled to himself as he muttered these words.
Boom!
Suddenly, an overwhelming and suffocating aura enveloped him, stealing the air from his lungs.
What terrified him even more was that no one around him seemed affected at all.
That pressure… it was directed solely at him.
He was being targeted by an unimaginably powerful existence!
"If you're so obsessed with how to mess things up, then just sit here and stay put."
A tender voice suddenly rang out.
The old man looked down in horror—somehow, without him even noticing, a little girl sucking on a lollipop had appeared right in front of him.
——
"This recruitment event at the Endless Sanctuary sure is lively!"
"But very soon, I'll be the most dazzling one of all!"
In the crowd, a chubby middle-aged man with a large head and floppy ears was smiling to himself in eager anticipation.
"Hehehe…"
"You've been chosen by me. That thick skin of yours should keep me entertained for a while!"
A voice dripping with excitement suddenly rang in his ears. At the same time, a terrifying pressure froze his entire body in place—everything except his head could no longer move!
Soon, an overjoyed one-eyed assassin and a mangy, bald rabbit appeared in front of him.
——
"Oh no, my target's a woman!"
"How am I supposed to kick a woman?!"
Standing in the crowd and staring at a black-clad female mage, Boulderfoot hesitated for a moment. Then, with a conflicted sigh, he tore off a strip of cloth and wrapped it around his right foot.
"I only added some offensive enchantments to this cloth—it's got nothing to do with my foot, okay!"
——
"This recruitment ceremony… doesn't seem to have that many people."
When Velen arrived outside the sanctuary with three candidate saints, Alec looked over the crowd of tens of thousands of mages and knights and muttered with a hint of disappointment.
"???"
A crowd like this… and you're saying it's not a lot?
Velen stared at him in disbelief.
"Don't look at me like that, Velen!" Alec quickly added, "I'm being serious! After all, Endless Sanctuary is one of the top powers in the Eastern Territories. The last recruitment event had at least three times this many people!"
"Hahahaha!"
"Hey! Look over there—see that red-haired one-eyed guy with a bald rabbit squatting on his shoulder? Is that guy really trying to draw confidence from a rabbit that ugly?"
Stiegler suddenly pointed and called out, drawing the attention of Lore and Alec.
Velen heard the description and felt a strange sense of familiarity.
Sure, that rabbit did look annoying, but was it really that hideous?
Still, a one-eyed redhead and a rabbit…
That combination immediately sparked a memory.
"Gods above!!!"
When Velen turned and saw that it really was the one-eyed red-haired man… and that the rabbit had actually gone bald, he couldn't stop himself from crying out in shock.
He simply couldn't imagine what that poor rabbit had gone through since he'd been away.
My poor, pitiful rabbit…
"Hey, look over there! A super cute little girl!"
"Oh my god, she's adorable! I just wanna pat her little head!"
Lore had found something new to marvel at and pointed it out excitedly to his companions.
"Forget the girl, look over there!"
"There's a bald hulk wrapping his foot in cloth and sizing up a black-robed female mage—with his foot!?"
"And the woman isn't even reacting! Are people always this weird these days?!"
Alec also shouted as he pointed out another oddity in the crowd.
…
A little girl riding on an old mage's shoulders!
A bald hulk using a cloth-wrapped foot to threaten a female mage's face!
A one-eyed redhead with a mangy rabbit on his shoulder and a golden scythe, marking a fat mage like he was carving meat!
Velen stared at the antics of these three official Guardians members and felt three long, dark lines appear across his forehead.
"System, are you sure you conveyed my orders properly?"
"I told them to eliminate the three Star Emperor-ranked enemies hiding among the crowd—so why are they just playing around?"
After a brief silence, the system calmly responded in his mind.
"Ding! Order transmission was absolutely clear. However, the host only instructed the targets to be eliminated—no method or time limit was specified."
"As long as it doesn't interfere with the recruitment ceremony, eradicating the targets later will still count as fully completing the task!"
"Ding! Reminder: both official Guardians and trainees are extremely bored. System has determined that moderate play and relaxation benefit both physical and mental health."
Sigh…
Velen could only rub his forehead in helpless resignation.
Watching the three figures thoroughly enjoying themselves in the crowd, he couldn't help but think to himself:
Unit One really is the most reliable. He always works quickly and cleanly. He's probably already taken care of those three Star Emperors by now…
——
At That Very Moment!
"CHAAARGE!!!"
Unit One stood proudly, one foot stomping down on the back of each of the two Star Emperor-ranked enemies beneath him—just like a general commanding an unstoppable army.
Golden war blade in hand, he roared with momentum as boundless aura radiated from him.
If Velen were to witness this sight, he'd surely stare wide-eyed and shout:
"Are you seriously riding Star Emperors like horses?!"
——
Outside the Endless Sanctuary
Since I'm already here for this recruitment event… and such an opportunity doesn't come often…
Maybe I should do something interesting?
No longer paying attention to the trio who were thoroughly enjoying their chaos, Velen fell into deep thought.
Got it!
Soon, a mischievous idea formed in his mind.
But he'd need to run it by the sanctuary's master, Lilith, first.
"Titan Elder!"
"To think you'd be here too. Are you also interested in the recruitment event?"
And speak of the devil—Lilith appeared.
Velen quickly approached and said, "Sanctuary Master, I'd like to propose a change to this recruitment's evaluation process."
His idea was simple: in the low plane universe, those who joined the fortress often did so by offering mana crystals in sacrifice.
Now that they were in the upper plane universe… he wanted to see how that kind of recruitment would feel here!
If he happened to recruit a few loyal subordinates or future followers in the process, it'd be an absolute win.
"Hm?"
Lilith frowned slightly. The recruitment evaluations had remained strict and unchanged for tens of thousands of years—sudden alterations could disrupt future consistency.
"Titan Elder, how exactly would you like to change it?"
She didn't refuse outright but asked curiously. 𝑛𝘰𝘷𝑝𝘶𝑏.𝑐𝘰𝘮
"No talent testing."
"No age restrictions."
"No strength requirements."
"As long as someone hands over one million advanced mana crystals, they're in!"
Velen stated his idea flatly.
Considering they were in the upper plane universe—and that the attendees were all cultivators—this threshold was set at a reasonably high level.
