Ye Ningze's cultivation level was such that very few people in Qingcheng City could match it!
Despite their inner shock, these individuals showed no outward reaction.
Sun Zhiwen continued to brief them on the specific details of the operation.
This mission would be undertaken by a team jointly formed by two major families.
Sun Zhiwen, the patriarch of the Sun family, would lead his subordinates in this operation. The mission was located in the outskirts, and they needed to proceed with caution.
At this moment, no one present could discern Ye Ningze's true strength.
Ye Ningze had been deliberately concealing his aura, and most people generally assumed he was an elite martial artist.
No one had anticipated that Ye Ningze had already advanced to the Grandmaster realm.
However, many individuals still intended to forge a connection with Ye Ningze.
Ye Ningze politely deflected these attempts at camaraderie from the other martial artists.
"Yang Chenfeng has arrived!"
The crowd immediately stirred.
Yang Chenfeng?
Upon hearing the name, Ye Ningze paused slightly.
Yang Chenfeng was the son of the current patriarch of the Yang family. Though only in his twenties, he had already reached the peak of the elite martial artist realm, appearing not far from the Grandmaster realm.
Furthermore, Yang Chenfeng possessed a B-class cultivation talent. With the Yang family's resources, he had the potential to become a Great Grandmaster in his lifetime.
However, it was likely that he would only reach the Great Grandmaster stage at best.
After all, his innate talent had its limits.
Still, even a Great Grandmaster was enough to dominate Qingcheng Base.
As long as Yang Chenfeng didn't foolishly provoke the peak Great Grandmaster of the Sun family, he could practically walk with his head held high within Qingcheng Base.
Based on Ye Ningze's estimation, the Yang family's peak Great Grandmaster likely possessed a cultivation talent of B-class or higher, possibly even A-class.
Unfortunately, they had not managed to break through the Great Grandmaster realm to reach the next level.
Moreover, it was rumored that this Great Grandmaster was over 150 years old and quite frail.
Without any special opportunities, a Great Grandmaster could only expect a lifespan of 180 years.
It was probable that by the time he died, he would still be unable to break through to the next tier.
"Everyone, please be quiet!"
Yang Chenfeng stood a short distance away and shouted to everyone.
"Everyone who has come here is undoubtedly willing to participate in the beast extermination plan. This plan holds unimaginable benefits for our Qingcheng Base!"
"Although Qingcheng Base enjoys a peaceful life, its scale is ultimately too small, and its resources are limited."
"There are many times when we cannot obtain sufficient cultivation resources."
"However, this time, if we successfully open a trade route and establish trade with a medium-sized base, it will be a tremendous opportunity and a transformative event for all of us!"
"Of course, this plan also carries certain risks, as our enemies are fierce beasts, and we might face a horde of them."
"However, I can guarantee here that whatever you obtain during this expedition will belong entirely to you, and you can take it away as you please."
Yang Chenfeng shouted hoarsely, "I, Yang Chenfeng, guarantee that if you successfully complete the mission and survive, our major families will reward you handsomely!"
"In addition to your own hunting gains, each martial artist will receive a bonus of three million, elite martial artists will receive five million, and Grandmaster martial artists will receive eleven million!"
Yang Chenfeng's words completely ignited the martial artists present.
As for the condition of receiving only half of the beast corpses that could not be carried away, the crowd had no objections whatsoever.
After all, some beasts were quite large, and they themselves did not possess convenient treasures like storage bags.
In the wilderness, most of the slain beasts had to be abandoned.
The Yang family's promise to return half was already a very generous offer.
Ye Ningze looked at the excited martial artists around him and sighed inwardly.
There were rarely such simple opportunities in this world to gain such great benefits.
To obtain such generous rewards, one inevitably had to pay a heavy price.
These families were skilled at using rhetoric, highlighting the rewards while completely omitting the risks.
Even with his peak Grandmaster realm strength, Ye Ningze was not confident he could survive amidst a horde of fierce beasts.
As for those whose strength was only that of ordinary martial artists, there was no need to even consider it; casualties would surely be heavy.
The calculations of these major families were quite astute.
They could gather a group of fighters for free and also acquire considerable resources.
Ye Ningze could only lament, acknowledging the brilliance of this strategy.
"There are nearly two hundred martial artists gathered here, likely those without significant background or connections."
If one added the martial artists deployed by the various families, it was estimated that no less than a thousand martial artists would be mobilized for this plan!
Ye Ningze calculated.
The total number of individuals at or above the martial artist level in Qingcheng Base was likely only around one to two thousand. Yet, over a thousand had been gathered at once!
Immediately.
Yang Chenfeng had people bring out a force-testing pillar, where striking the pillar with a fist would display the user's strength numerically.
The displayed numerical values could also be used to roughly estimate the user's strength.
Ye Ningze did not reveal his Grandmaster-level power.
He merely concealed his aura and displayed the strength of an early-stage elite martial artist.
At his age, reaching the early-stage elite martial artist realm was already an incredibly terrifying cultivation speed.
If it were known that he had reached the Grandmaster realm, he would surely be targeted with malicious intent from the shadows.
Ye Ningze was well aware of the principle of "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down."
Yet, even with his low-key approach, he caused quite a stir at the scene.
Even Yang Chenfeng was inclined to recruit him, but Ye Ningze declined.
However, Yang Chenfeng did not seem to pay it much mind.
He was merely an elite martial artist in his teens; no matter how strong his talent, it was what it was.
After all the martial artists had their strength tested,
Yang Chenfeng instructed his subordinates to begin grouping everyone present.
Ye Ningze found a middle-aged man and greeted him with a smile, saying, "Captain Feng, how about I join your team?"
This was the Wind Wolf Squad, a rather unremarkable team within Qingcheng Base.
Ye Ningze recalled that his parents had worked within this very team before their deaths.
After his parents passed away, this team had also sent a considerable amount of financial assistance to their family.
This allowed the young Ye Ningze and Ye Yuhan to grow up smoothly.
Ye Ningze walked up to Feng Lang.
Feng Lang no longer recognized Ye Ningze and scrutinized him carefully before nodding.
"Our team is indeed in need of strong individuals. I am very welcoming of your willingness to join our team; from now on, we are family!"
The overall strength of the Wind Wolf Squad was not high; even their captain had only barely reached the elite martial artist level.
Therefore, Feng Lang was naturally extremely welcoming of the addition of someone as powerful as Ye Ningze.
Upon hearing Feng Lang's words, Ye Ningze smiled and said, "Captain Feng, you flatter me. If you ever need my assistance in the future, I hope you will look out for me!"
"Certainly, certainly! Brother Ye is truly humble!"
Ye Ningze smiled faintly and remained silent.
After Ye Ningze joined Feng Lang's group, another ordinary martial artist also joined, forming a ten-person team.
About half an hour later, everyone had been assigned to their respective teams.
Feng Lang was elected as the team captain, and Ye Ningze had no objections.