993: Chapter 978: A Display of Authority 993: Chapter 978: A Display of Authority For mercenaries, making money is the top priority.
As an employer, you just need to tell them what the target is, pay them if the mission is completed, and forget it if it’s not.
But for someone like Satan who’s just temporarily hiring some mercenaries and then going to war with them, things are a lot more complicated.
The mercenary ranks are a mixed bag of backgrounds, each with different training and combat experiences; it’s not easy to forge such a group into a cohesive unit.
However, the most troublesome aspect isn’t the problem of capability and coordination, but that there are no good men among mercenaries; basically, every mercenary is a troublemaker.
Inherently a trouble-making bunch, Gao Yang had recruited people who had made some name for themselves in the mercenary circles.
To put it bluntly, these guys were all elites, and to get such a group of proud and haughty people to obey orders, just paying them was obviously not enough, far from enough.
As an employer, you can tell mercenaries what to do, but you shouldn’t micromanage how they do it; yet, Gao Yang needed not only to tell these proud people what to do but also to have them do it his way.
In other words, he needed to ensure their absolute obedience, which was no easy feat.
Gao Yang wanted these people to listen to him completely; it wasn’t enough just to pay them, he had to earn their total respect so that they would willingly accept any order from Satan.
So, when Gao Yang and the rest went to meet them, aside from welcoming them, there was another very important task—show them who’s boss right from the start.
It’s fine if you don’t submit; just duke it out.
You can fight however you want, but if you submit and are willing to follow orders in battle, you stay; those who are obstinate to the bitter end, despite being beaten down, can just fuck off, to prevent any chaos at a critical moment in combat.
That’s the deal.
After asking if there were any questions, a very young-looking guy, at most sixteen or seventeen, Clown, immediately raised his hand and said loudly, “Boss, when I received the invitation, I was quoted a daily salary of five hundred US dollars, three thousand during wartime.
I admit the price is attractive, but I want to know when we get paid and when we can start fighting?
I’m eager to earn the combat pay.”
Gao Yang said in a deep voice, “You should all know about the commission issue, but I can repeat it.
Your salary starts now, paid daily, and the money will be directly deposited into your accounts.
Next question.”
Aimer didn’t raise his hand but stared at Gao Yang and said in a deep voice, “The four of us didn’t come for the commission you offered.
Satan has been making a big name recently, and I came for Satan’s reputation, especially you!
Ram, since you claim to be the number one marksman, I want to know how good you really are.”
Aimer was one of the four from the Firestorm Mercenary Corps.
Gao Yang remembered his information; this man was Russian and a marksman, Little Donnie said that he had made some name for himself in the mercenary world.
It looked like he was challenging his authority, which was fine; if you don’t submit, let’s fight.
Gao Yang had never intended to be modest; his goal was to have everyone submit to him, and so he replied directly, “Very good, at least much better than you.
If you don’t agree, you can try.
Those who want to know how good I am, step to the side.
Soon, I’ll show you why I am the first and you are not!”
A bold answer, but for mercenaries, you talk less and fight if there’s disagreement.
Aimer didn’t say anything, stepped to the side, and indicated he would wrestle with Gao Yang’s abilities.
But he wasn’t the only one curious about the worth of the number one marksman; Eagle Claw stepped out, Shotgun too, and finally, the leader of the Firestorm Mercenary Corps, Alcohol, also stepped out.
Gao Yang waved his hand and said, “Good, even though you lack self-awareness, I like people with courage.”
Arrogant to the extreme, but for a group that knew nothing of humility, only bravado, arrogance was just right.
Looking at a group of faces filled with incredulity, Gao Yang didn’t hesitate and continued, “As mercenaries, you are all elites, but sadly, Satan is the elite among elites.
In front of us, you have nothing to be proud of.
You must understand that it’s your fortune to be able to fight alongside Satan.
To avoid any false confidence or pride you might have, I’ll give you a chance to know that in front of Satan, you are nothing.
Alright, those of you who think you have a unique skill, step forward.
Compare it with our best, and if you show a skill on par with ours in any category, your commission is doubled.
If you beat us, it’s doubled again.
I mean what I say.”
Gao Yang’s attitude was sure to be annoying, but the doubled and redoubled commissions would surely be welcomed.
Who wouldn’t want to shut up the annoying Gao Yang, slap the complacent Gao Yang twice, and then casually take a doubled commission?
Red Feather immediately stood out, glaring at Gao Yang with hostility, “I hope your fighting skills are as good as your mouth.
Come on, let me see.”
This meant a challenge to hand-to-hand combat.
Gao Yang didn’t even look at Red Feather and said sternly, “You’re not worthy to fight me.
Toad, correct his attitude for him.”
Li Jinfang stood out and beckoned with his hand.
Red Feather wasn’t very tall, but he was wide and incredibly muscular.
And particularly strong people usually move more slowly, comparatively speaking, and are a bit cumbersome.
Without saying a word, Li Jinfang beckoned and immediately approached Red Feather.
Red Feather threw a punch at Li Jinfang, who simply dodged to the side.
Red Feather tried to grab Li Jinfang with grappling control techniques common in fighting skills, but under the absolute advantage of strength and size, once Li Jinfang got caught, the likelihood of escaping was extremely small.
But the problem was that Li Jinfang came out to establish dominance.
Could he let Red Feather catch him?
Not only could he not be caught, but he also had to win in a very quick and decisive manner to break the spirit of anyone watching, winning had to be cool and impressive.
Li Jinfang posed like a master from the movies, tilted his head to dodge a punch, shrugged his shoulder to avoid a grab, and lunged directly into Red Feather’s embrace, bumping chest-to-chest with a shoulder strike known as ‘Charge of the Collapsing Mountain’.
Li Jinfang’s shoulder strike was a measured technique.
Despite the quickness of his movements, Li Jinfang’s first attempt didn’t topple the massive Red Feather.
However, quickly extending his leg to trip and employing another shoulder charge, Li Jinfang finally sent the gigantic Red Feather flying.
Strictly speaking, Li Jinfang had made a mistake, but he used this shoulder technique because it was effective against slow-moving strong men.
Seeing that the situation was turning unfavorable, he quickly followed up.
Without even using his hands, just two ducks, and he sent his opponent flying.
Not only was Red Feather confused, but the onlookers didn’t catch the details either.
Cool, fierce, and awesome.
It was all about the attitude of sheer disdain, showing the other was simply no match.
As Red Feather struggled to get up from two meters away, Gao Yang waved his hand and said, “Next, who else wants a go?”
Red Feather was somewhat bulky, so Li Jinfang didn’t manage to intimidate everyone.
Li Yunzhe stepped forward with a grin, “Pretty quick, let me give it a try.”
After wiping his nose with his hand and calling out a challenge, Li Yunzhe started hopping around in front of Li Jinfang.
Observing Li Yunzhe’s antics, Li Jinfang frowned and asked, “Isn’t this Taekwondo?”
“Certainly not, this is authentic Jeet Kune Do!”
Li Jinfang nodded, “Alright, let’s see if you can block my punch.”
When facing the slower Red Feather, Li Jinfang opted for a quick technical win.
But against the nimble Li Yunzhe, he decided to overpower him.
In any case, he aimed to end the battle swiftly.
Gao Yang knew Li Yunzhe was in for trouble.
The old Li Jinfang was a master in fighting, and now it was said that he had reached the threshold of grandmasters.
With a low roar from Li Jinfang, a swift punch was thrown, and Li Yunzhe was knocked down in response.
Block that, if you can.
Now, Li Jinfang truly mastered the art of release and retrieval, ensuring to hit his target whenever he decided to strike, not wishing to hurt the person, and really no harm done.
If Li Jinfang launched his best Half-Step Collapse, Li Yunzhe would have been long gone.
Li Yunzhe climbed up from the ground, rubbed his chest where the punch landed, and said incredulously, “What kind of punch was that!”
“Xingyi Fist.”
Gao Yang made a dismissive gesture, “Alright, anyone else who wants to compare fighting skills, don’t bother coming up here, it’s a waste of time.
Who else thinks they’re really good, step forward.
You can choose the type, be it a rush or a machine gun, anything goes, anything at all.”
The Clown hesitated for a moment before stepping forward.
Raising his hand, he spoke softly, “Does throwing knives count?”
Gao Yang looked at the Clown, who had no aircraft, obstacles, or people behind him, so Gao Yang suddenly drew his gun.
With a loud ‘bang’, Gao Yang drew his gun from its holster and fired from his waist.
The Clown had slightly long hair.
Gao Yang’s shot allowed the bullet to pass through the Clown’s hair, grazing his scalp.
No one could react in time; they all instinctively ducked.
By the time Gao Yang reholstered his gun, the Clown had just begun to touch his hair.
And by then, Gao Yang coolly remarked, “Is anyone faster and more accurate than me?
If not, then forget it.
What I need are combat skills, not juggling tricks.”
“That was fast!”
After blurting out a reaction, the Clown said defiantly, “A throwing knife can quietly eliminate an enemy.
True, given the nature of a knife, I admit it can’t be quicker than your gun, but I can take out an enemy silently, which you can’t do with a gun.
Plus, does climbing count as a skill?
If so, who can quickly scale a building and silently eliminate an enemy inside?
If you can do that, I’ll have nothing to say, but if you can’t beat me in this aspect, then you’ll have to pay me four times the mercenary fee.” (To be continued.
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