Chapter 70: Mysterious Force

When Green asked this, Zhao Hai was taken aback. They had already spoken several sentences, and yet Green was still asking if these eight could speak? This was too strange, right? Could it be that Green and the others couldn't hear him?

Zhao Hai turned to look at Green and said, "Grandpa Green, we've already spoken several sentences. Haven't you heard us?"

Green and the others all shook their heads. Only then did Zhao Hai confirm that the conversation between him and the Undead Mercenary Group was indeed inaudible to Green and the others.

Just as Zhao Hai was puzzled, Merlin said, "Enough, don't ask anymore. They are undead beings, so they can't speak. However, they are high-level undead beings and can communicate with you through mental energy. It feels like they are speaking right in your ear, but in fact, they don't make any sound."

Only then did Zhao Hai and the others understand. Zhao Hai nodded and turned to look at the undead black mages, saying, "Since you've already called me master, don't use your old names anymore. I'll give you new names. Who is the leader?"

The skeleton who had just spoken to Zhao Hai stepped forward and said, "Master, it's me."

Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Alright, from today on, you'll be called Zhao Zui. The second one will be called Zhao Chui, the third one will be called Zhao Shan, the fourth one will be called Zhao Feng, the fifth one will be called Zhao Chong, the sixth one will be called Zhao Lu, the seventh one will be called Zhao Qi, and the eighth one will be called Zhao Lian."

The eight of them all responded in unison. Although their intelligence was not greatly affected, the space had already made them recognize Zhao Hai as their master, so they naturally wouldn't contradict him.

Seeing that they agreed, Zhao Hai continued, "Answer my previous question. Who told you that Laura had the Necromancer's Orb?"

Zhao Zui quickly replied, "Master, we heard this from a minor member of the Makider family. At first, we didn't believe it, but he sounded so genuine. We all wanted to improve our strength, so we took action."

Zhao Hai nodded. He had already guessed that it was probably another internal struggle within the family, nothing too significant.

Zhao Hai turned to Zhao Zui and said, "Call me Young Master from now on. Over the years, you've robbed a lot of good things. Where are those things?"

Zhao Zui immediately replied, "Young Master, although we've been robbing for many years, we rarely kept anything. We handed everything to our previous master."

Zhao Hai was taken aback, then his expression changed. "Previous master? Did you recognize someone else as your master before? When?"

Zhao Zui quickly explained, "Master, you misunderstood. We weren't recognized by someone else as our master. We were adopted by our previous master from a young age. He taught us magic, and when we learned enough, he sent us out to form the Undead Mercenary Group to help him make money, all the way until now."

Hearing Zhao Zui's words, Zhao Hai didn't feel relieved; instead, he felt even more沉重. He quickly asked, "What is the identity of your previous master?"

Zhao Zui shook his head and said, "We don't know. We rarely saw him. A servant always took care of us. Even when we did see him, he was always wearing a black magic robe, covering his entire body, so we couldn't see him."

Zhao Hai's mood became even heavier. He realized that the force behind Zhao Zui and the others was not simple. A force that could raise Zhao Zui and the others from a young age until they became seventh-level mages required a tremendous amount of resources. The most terrifying part was that people with magical talent were one in ten thousand, and black magic was a particularly obscure and difficult magic to practice. Selecting people suitable for practicing black magic was even harder.

However, the force behind Zhao Zui and the others managed to select these eight people, and they all suited black magic. It seemed they had done well. Just the selection process required a significant force. Raising them required even more resources. The fact that Zhao Zui and the others' master had accomplished all this indicated that the force was truly powerful. Moreover, Zhao Zui and the others grew up together, and it was clear that their master didn't live with them. This suggested that their master might be cultivating similar people elsewhere. If this were true, the situation would be even more serious.

Seeing Zhao Hai's expression, Green and the others quickly said, "Young Master, what's wrong? Why do you look so troubled?"

Zhao Hai looked at Green and the others, recounted his conversation with Zhao Zui, and shared his speculations. Green and the others also became serious.

Zhao Hai asked Zhao Zui more about their previous master, but Zhao Zui didn't know much. They only knew that the person had adopted them from a young age, and when they grew up, sent them out to be mercenaries. They would deposit the money they earned at a location designated by the person. They rarely saw or interacted with the person, who hardly ever contacted them.

Realizing he couldn't get more information, Zhao Hai put Zhao Zui and the others back into the space. After all, the room inside the alien's body wasn't very large, and having so many people in it made it very crowded.

Green and the others didn't say anything, but their expressions were not good. They realized that they had indeed provoked a force they shouldn't have. No one knew how large or how strong this force was, nor what its goals were, but it was clear that the force was not simple.

After a while, Green said, "Young Master, we don't need to worry too much. No one will think that we were the ones who dealt with the Undead Mercenary Group. The Black Earth Wasteland is a forgotten place on the continent. Once we return there, we can immediately send Zhao Zui and the others to the Corpse Swamp, making it even harder for anyone to find them. So, we shouldn't have any trouble."

Zhao Hai nodded. He hoped it would be so. They were too weak now. If the force behind Zhao Zui and the others discovered that Zhao Hai and the others had dealt with the Undead Mercenary Group, they would certainly come after Zhao Hai. At that time, they wouldn't even need to act themselves; just a bit of information would make the old nobles of the Aksum Empire come after Zhao Hai and the others, and they would be doomed.

Zhao Hai didn't want to dwell on this matter. He turned to Green and said, "Grandpa Green, since we're going to Kasa City, shouldn't we prepare in advance? We should find a place to store the carrots and then let the Makider family come to collect them."

Green nodded and said, "Yes, Young Master, don't worry. There are many estates near Kasa City. We can buy a small estate and store the carrots there, then let the Makider family come to collect them."

Zhao Hai nodded and said, "That's good. Although we've already reached a preliminary agreement with them, now that we have the gold medal, we should be able to raise the price a bit."

Green smiled and said, "Yes, this gold medal will be very helpful to us. If we use the gold medal to negotiate with them, who knows what they'll do? Especially Miss Laura, who has always considered you a powerful black mage. Now, a black mage suddenly starts selling vegetables. Hahaha, I can imagine her expression will be quite amusing."

Hearing Green's words, Zhao Hai and the others all laughed. Now, Zhao Hai was even more determined to focus on farming. Although they seemed strong with two eighth-level and six sixth-level mages, plus many undead beings, they mustn't forget that their enemies were even stronger.

The old nobles of the Aksum Empire, for instance, would likely unite and use the entire nation's power to eliminate them if they discovered Zhao Hai's strength.

Moreover, they had provoked the unknown force behind Zhao Zui and the others. If that force discovered Zhao Zui's situation, Zhao Hai and the others would be in trouble.

In a sense, although Zhao Hai now had some power, which could make him a middle-level noble on the continent, a significant portion of his power was hidden and would be exposed if used, so they had to be low-key.

However, Zhao Hai didn't mind using the gold medal given to him by Laura. It was given to him to use, and he had used it. After all, his current identity was a black mage named Zhao Hai, and there was no such person on the continent. Even if someone tried to trace him, they could only trace him to Black Mountain Pass, and nothing more.

Black Mountain Pass was so chaotic that tracing him would be even harder. Moreover, no one would suspect the Buda family, as Yaguang had drunk the Void Water, which everyone on the continent knew. The undead beings, including the alien, were the best cover for his identity. No one would think that someone who had drunk the Void Water could summon undead beings. Thus, if someone tried to trace them, they would focus on Zhao Hai's identity, not the Buda family.

This way, Zhao Hai had two identities: one public and one hidden. When everyone was tracing his public identity, the Buda family could remain hidden and develop in secret.

After the battle, Zhao Hai understood a fundamental truth: strength is paramount, especially on the Ark Continent. If he didn't have strength, would Laura have been so polite to him? If he didn't have strength, would she have given him the gold medal? If he didn't have strength, he couldn't have subdued Zhao Zui and the others. Without strength, even if he earned a lot of money, it would eventually be taken away by others.