Chapter 1276-1277
Chapter 1276 – Turning on Each Other
Zhao Hai became interested, so he asked, "Is that true? Tell me more."
Margaret smiled and said, "Brother Hai, let me ask you. If you're given land, would you prefer one that not only can be farmed, but also has minerals to mine, or something that is basically a desert?"
Zhao Hai immediately replied, "So you mean nobody bothered to claim those bad planets? It isn't because they are uninhabitable?"
Margaret nodded, "Correct. Most of the unclaimed planets are actually habitable. However, only those with strong bodies could survive in them. The environment is too bad that improving it for normal habitation is too expensive. Therefore, nobody wanted them. Everyone would rather squeeze into a good planet than relocate to one with a bad environment."
Zhao Hai nodded, he could understand. Although the Machine Field Planet was just one of the habitable planets, its population wasn't any less than Earth. This meant that people preferred to live in good environments. Compared to Machine Field Planet, other planets with worse environments weren't as crowded.
Margaret looked at Zhao Hai and said, "There's another thing about those planets that people don't want. It's the location. It isn't good. Generally, these planets are located at the edge of the Machine Field. There are no main lines of communication towards those planets and products would take a long time to be transported there. It can be said that those places are wastelands. But that isn't a problem for us. We have the Space and we can also change the environment bit by bit. We can claim those planets as our territories, we can even make the people inside the Space live in them."
Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Those planets will be very useful to us. However, it would be too eye-catching if we populate them with the people directly from the Space. We should think about other ways to move people from other places. We don't have to worry about the population for the time being, we can take care of it slowly. If I'm able to receive a planet as a reward, then I'll have to hand its management over to you since I'll be heading to the Six Realms Battlefield. I'm afraid I won't have the time to manage it."
Margaret nodded, "I'll discuss this with Sister Laura and the others. You don't need to worry about this."
Zhao hai nodded, "Talk to Grandma Merine about this as well. Our situation in the Black Wasteland is the same as this. We managed to change the environment there bit by bit. I'm sure we can do it again in the Machine Field."
Margaret laughed softly, she couldn't help but love Zhao Hai more. She was aware of what Zhao Hai went through. To be honest, Margaret couldn't imagine how Zhao Hai was able to get to his current status.
Although she saw the magical abilities of the Space, Laura and the others told her that it was because the Space has undergone multiple level ups.
Zhao Hai and Margaret chatted for a while before Desbarres sent someone to tell them that the party was about to begin. Zhao Hai immediately got up and went to the party's location.
Since a lot of people were invited to the party, the event could only happen outside. All sorts of people attended the party. Those who watched the competition in the Void Arena were also present. Since they were already acquainted with Zhao Hai, they naturally came over to greet him. Zhao Hai also greeted them one by one.
There were also some people from External Halls, but they weren't able to get close to Zhao Hai. This was because surrounding him were the Core Juniors of Great Families. Even if these people from External Halls forced themselves in, they still wouldn't be able to get through.
Everyone knows that Zhao Hai's status could only go up at this point. Moreover, it's clear that the Ashley Family wouldn't be able to keep him. Everyone knew about his relationship with Margaret but they don't believe that Zhao Hai would stay because of her. Now, Zhao Hai has prestige, reputation, and money. What he needed right now was contacts and connections.
People become someone's subordinate because they wanted a comfortable life, but this doesn't mean that everyone was willing to be subservient to another person. Zhao Hai had great strength, skills, and was now building up his connections. Adding all of these things up, it was only a matter of time before Zhao Hai became an unstoppable force in the realm. Therefore, it was much better to establish a relationship with him now than in the future.
And those people who establish a connection with Zhao Hai would also benefit from him. It can be said that this relationship would bring mutual benefit.
After receiving toasts from people in Machine Field Planet for five days, Zhao Hai took Margaret back to Dark Demon Planet. Now that everyone knew that Zhao Hai can use space magic, there was no need to hide his ability. So he just took Margaret with him and went straight to the planet.
Although Zhao Hai has returned to the Machine Field, he was still paying attention to the situation in the Cultivation Realm. After all, he killed a lot of Cultivators and Devil Practitioners. At this time, the Cultivation Realm and the Devil Realm were stuck on how to deal with him. If Zhao Hai's wasn't careful, then he might give them a reason to make a move.
Both the Cultivation Realm and the Devil Realm weren't good to provoke. And this time, he made a huge wave that might attract the Great Sects. They would pay close attention to Zhao Hai. And if allowed, they would strike with speed that's as fast as lightning. Zhao Hai needed to prevent them from doing so.
The Cultivation Realm's reaction was within Zhao Hai's expectations. His arrival in Machine Field Planet was immediately known by the Cultivation Realm. Upon receiving this news, the people from the Cultivation Realm paused for a moment. Then they immediately appointed more manpower to send to the Void Arena.
Naturally, they weren't able to find anything. All traces had been cleared up by Zhao Hai. More than 100 people disappeared into thin air.
Additionally, Zhao Hai threw smoke into the situation by saying that he wasn't attacked. Nobody could believe Zhao Hai's words. But in the end, they remembered that a lot of people remained in order to deal with him. Nascent Soul Experts wouldn't be able to survive under the assault of so many people. Even Immortals wouldn't be able to return unscathed.
But now that Zhao Hai returned to the Machine Field in such a relaxed manner, the Cultivators couldn't help but believe that he wasn't attacked. But if this was the case, what happened to all those Cultivators and Devil Practitioners? Did they just vanish?
The Cultivation Realm and the Devil Realm's investigation intensified. They scoured the entire Void Arena but they were unable to find anything. The more than 100 experts that wanted to deal with Zhao Hai seemed to have vanished into thin air. Meanwhile, Zhao Hai was safe and sound back in the Machine Field.
This matter got more and more noisy in the Cultivation Realm. Originally, the Cultivation Realm and the Devil Realm made a temporary alliance in order to deal with Zhao Hai. But now that the more than 100 experts had disappeared, the people from the Devil Realm began accusing the Cultivators of killing their experts and then hiding the perpetrators.
At the same time, the people from the Cultivation Realm accused the Devil Realm of killing their experts. The two sides began blaming each other.
Zhao Hai didn't expect this situation to happen. He expected the two realms to immediately plot against him. Who thought that the two would instead turn on each other.
When he saw the situation develop into this, Zhao Hai couldn't help but shake his head as he smiled bitterly. It seems like the Cultivation Realm and the Devil Realm couldn never have any amicable relationship. He was worried over nothing.
Seeing the Cultivation Realm being restless, Zhao Hai felt relieved. After he and Margaret returned to Dark Demon Planet, they immediately met Cadjo and then the Patriarch.
Thunder didn't say anything. He wasn't too enthusiastic in meeting Zhao Hai nor was he indifferent towards him. This was a bit unexpected for Zhao Hai, but he didn't mind it. To be honest, he doesn't have much of a relationship with Thunder Ashley. He doesn't owe Thunder anything. On the contrary, he helped the Ashley Family rise up, so it was the Ashley Family who owes him.
However, no matter what, Margaret was Thunder's daughter. Because of this, Zhao Hai was polite towards the Patriarch. Although the two weren't amicable, their relationship wasn't bad.
On the other hand, Zhao Hai's relationship with Cadjo was very good. The two were very close. When Cadjo saw that Zhao Hai was back, he was naturally glad.
After meeting with Cadjo, Zhao Hai and Margaret returned to the Bone Symbol Camp. It must be said that inside the Ashley Family, Zhao Hai was familiar with the Bone Symbol Camp the most. As soon as Zhao Hai and Margaret returned to the Bone Symbol Camp, the entire camp erupted in celebration. Everyone immediately went out to greet them.
Although Desbarres was still the Camp Lord, the Bone Symbol Camp's management has been turned over to Tie Shen and Tao Wang. Needless to say, Zhao Hai's relationship with the two was very good.
Due to Zhao Hai's exploits, the Bone Symbol Camp was very proud of him. And because of his relationship with the camp, there's nobody in the Machine Field that doesn't know about Ashley Family's Bone Symbol Camp. Once people from the camp go on a mission, other people would immediately be polite to them.
Everyone from the Bone Symbol Camp certainly knew that everything they enjoyed right now was because of Zhao Hai. Now that Zhao Hai was back, they were naturally happy. Tie Sheng immediately gathered everyone to the cafeteria. Food was also being prepared.
Zhao Hai was also met with a surprise in the camp. Barlett and the others were here. After they graduated from the Ascender Academy, they officially joined the Bone Symbol Camp. But since the time they joined wasn't that long, when they heard about Zhao Hai's situation, they couldn't help but be surprised.
Zhao Hai was also very happy seeing them. He exchanged a few words with the group, much to the envy of everyone else in the camp.
Chapter 1277 – Take Us With You
Zhao Hai can be regarded as someone returning to his hometown with great achievements. Naturally, this requires a celebration. Just as Tie Sheng was preparing the food and drinks in the cafeteria, the other Camp Lords also arrived. It doesn't matter if these people had some problems with the Bone Symbol Camp before, all of that has vanished. Zhao Hai was now the hero of the entire Machine Field and the biggest contributor to the Ashley Family. It's stupid to not form any good relations with him at this time.
Zhao Hai was also very polite to the Camp Lords. Even Diya, the Camp Lord of the Ghost Symbol Camp who had a bad relationship with the Bone Symbol Camp before was greeted the same way. Zhao Hai gave them a proper greeting without showing any arrogance.
The celebration was naturally jovial. When evening arrived, Zhao Hai and Margaret returned to their villa and then they immediately entered the Space to sleep. Noon of the next day arrived and after eating his meal, Zhao Hai left Margaret inside the Space as he went out and had a robot lead Barlett and the others over. He wanted to chat with them.
Before long, Barlett and the others arrived. They have known Zhao Hai for about a year now, they knew him even before Zhao Hai knew Margaret. But since Zhao Hai left a month after he Ascended and they needed to finish their education, it has been a long time since they had last seen each other.
Zhao Hai gave them magic staffs and he even made the Bone Symbol Camp take care of them. They were very grateful for this. So when they entered the Bone Symbol Camp, they wanted to meet Zhao Hai to thank him. However, Zhao Hai was already attending the competition. Moreover, it seems like he became the Machine Field's Hero. This caused them to be a bit dizzy. This development was too fast, they didn't expect it.
Now that Zhao Hai was looking for them, it's natural for Barlett and the others to comply quickly. They knew Zhao Hai's position in the Machine Field. There were innumerable people who wanted to flatter him but were unable to. In this case, they wouldn't dare to neglect his invitation.
Although they were wizened people and had powerful status in the lower realms, coming to the Machine Field made then understand a lot of things. In the past year, they didn't only adapt to the spiritual qi of the Machine Field, they were also able to somewhat stabilize their mentality.
Barlett and the others were Zhao Hai's friends. But even if Zhao Hai put on airs in front of them, they still had to accept it.
Under the robot's lead, Barlett and the others entered Zhao Hai's room. They didn't see Margaret inside but they didn't say anything. Zhao Hai quickly welcomed them. When the group gave him a salute, Zhao Hai laughed and said, "Come in quick, take a seat. I wasn't able to talk properly with you yesterday since there's a lot of people. So I called you over today for a chat."
When Barlett and the others saw that Zhao Hai was so enthusiastic in meeting them, they couldn't help but be moved. Zhao Hai doesn't need to care about people like them, now with his stellar reputation. However, Zhao Hai chose to be warm to them. They saw how Camp Lords were very cordial towards him yesterday. These Camp Lords were even speaking respectfully towards Zhao Hai, this showed how high Zhao Hai's current status was.
Zhao Hai talked with them yesterday for a while, and even then he showed great enthusiasm. Barlett and the others thought that Zhao Hai was polite to them yesterday for the sake of his reputation. Zhao Hai was now a legendary figure in the Machine Field. Because of this, his history was uncovered by people. Therefore, people were aware that he had relationships with a few people back in the Ascender Academy. If Zhao Hai didn't say hello to them yesterday, then other people would think that Zhao Hai was an ingrate. This would heavily damage his reputation.
But today was a private meeting. There was no need for Zhao Hai to be cordial since nobody was looking at them. Moreover, nobody would listen to Barlett and the others if they complained. Because of this, when they were invited over by Zhao Hai, they already acted extremely respectful.
However, they didn't expect Zhao Hai to be very polite. When they heard Zhao Hai, their hearts immediately filled up with happiness. It seems like Zhao Hai was indeed a true friend.
The group entered the living room and sat down. Then the robot began serving them tea. Zhao Hai looked at Barlett and the others, then he smiled and said, "How are you? Is the camp treating you well?"
Upon hearing Zhao Hai, Barlett smiled and said, "Thanks to you, the Bone Symbol Camp has been treating us well. Although we're given tasks, they weren't very dangerous. We're having a good time here."
Zhao Hai smiled and said, "That's great. There's no need to be very polite with me. You can keep calling me Little Hai like before. I got some food and wine prepared, let's eat." Then everyone went to the dining area to eat. The robot had already prepared them some food and wine.
After inviting everyone to have a seat, Zhao Hai lifted his wine glass up and said, "Come, let's drink. We haven't seen each other for some time. We have a lot of catching up to do!" Barlett and the others were also very happy. So they raised their classes and drank with Zhao Hai.
Upon downing one glass, everyone began to loosen up as they chatted. Barlett and the others were naturally interested in the Cultivation Realm. So Zhao Hai retold his journey to them. The room's atmosphere became warmer.
After drinking a few more glasses of wine and eating a few dishes, Zhao Hai suddenly said, "Everyone, I invited you in today because I have something to tell you."
As soon as they heard Zhao Hai, Barlett and the others knew that it was time for proper business. The group immediately adjusted their seating position as they waited for Zhao Hai's next words. Seeing everyone turn serious, Zhao Hai smiled faintly but he didn't stop them. Then he continued, "Even if I just returned to the Machine Field, I will have to head out again to do a mission. And after I'm finished with this mission, I might be leaving the Ashley Family to go independent."
Barlett and the others weren't very surprised with Zhao Hai's words. In fact, they had been hearing rumors flying around about this, especially in the Bone Symbol Camp. Everyone believed that Zhao Hai would go independent. Moreover, it seems like it would be soon.
Therefore, upon hearing Zhao Hai, Barlett and the others weren't shocked. They just nodded. Seeing them nod, Zhao Hai added, "Me, Xiong Li, Lu Dingtian, Dongfang Yu, Li Kuangren, and Sun Fei are going to go on our own. And since I have gained a large merit this time, I will certainly be rewarded greatly. I want to use this opportunity to ask for a planet."
Upon hearing Zhao Hai, Barlett and the others were stunned. All of them looked at Zhao Hai in surprise. As soon as he saw their reaction, Zhao Hai immediately knew what they were thinking about. They didn't know that there were still unclaimed habitable planets in the Machine Field. But upon explaining it to them, Barlet and the others understood that there were habitable planets that nobody wanted.
Barlett nodded and said, "This rumor has been circulating in the Bone Symbol Camp. Everyone knows that you will go independent. However, nobody thought that you would take a planet. Little Hai, let me just say, if you want to operate a planet, then you will have to make a huge investment."
As soon as he heard this, Zhao Hai smiled faintly and said, "This is not a problem, don't worry about it. But if I want to go independent, then I would need people to help me. I wonder if you're interested in coming?"
When they heard Zhao Hai, Barlett and the others were stunned. Then they looked at each other, visibly confused. They didn't expect Zhao Hai to invite them to come with him. It was truly unexpected.
Barlett and the others have been in the Bone Symbol Camp for some time. They had also understood their present situation. Aged Ascenders like them had no status in families. Barlett and the others were among the lucky ones since they were taken care of by the Bone Symbol Camp. They would be given easy tasks and money every year. This way, their lives wouldn't be bad. However, that was it.
Other Aged Ascenders weren't as lucky as Barlett and the others. They generally won't be given missions so they don't have any money. And if they were given tasks, the tasks they were given were dangerous. There was a high chance for them to fall in those tasks. Therefore, there weren't a lot of aged ascenders left in the External Halls.
Zhao Hai looked at their expressions, then he smiled faintly and said, "I might go out to do a mission soon, but I'm sure that I would get the reward before then. I believe it shouldn't be a problem for me to ask for a planet that nobody wants. However, transforming that planet would be a top priority. Although I asked Margaret to take care of this matter, she's still young after all. There will be a lot of things that she wouldn't be able to deal with. So I thought of you. Don't worry, money, materials, and other resources will not be a problem. So what do you think?"
Barlett paused for a moment and then said, "Alright, I agree. In any case, we wouldn't be able to progress far in the Bone Symbol Camp. We might as well help you. What do you all think?"
The others agreed as well. People like them used to hold high status in the lower realms. But in the Machine Field, they were demoted to useless old men. It would take a long time for them to fully adapt to this situation.
Originally, they were dejected with their current state. They thought that they would rot and die in the Bone Symbol Camp. But now, Zhao Hai came to invite them for exciting work.
Seeing them agree, Zhao Hai immediately lifted his wine glass and said, "Alright, then when I get the planet, I'll depend on you to take care of it." Barlett and the others lifted their wine glasses up as well and gave Zhao Hai a toast. Then everyone downed their wine. But this time, the old men felt that the fire they had in their youths was reignited.