Chapter 66 Recruiting Among the Descenders

Time flew by, and two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Over the past two days, Lin Yi had been busy reaching out to the group of Incarnates within Gutan Village.

Among these people, some, like Ultimate Teker and Jiang Hanxue, showed impatience toward him, but once they witnessed Lin Yi's martial prowess, they immediately became very well-behaved.

There were also complete newcomer Incarnates who understood nothing at all. Upon receiving the paper booklets given by Lin Yi, they became overwhelmingly excited, even begging Lin Yi to take them along to level up and kill monsters.

After an initial round of contact, the groups of Incarnates in Gutan Village seemed to have no major issues. None of them appeared to be sent by official authorities or to have already joined any private organizations.

Of course, it was also possible that some individuals were hiding deeply enough to escape Lin Yi's notice.

On the morning of the third day, Lin Yi notified all the Incarnates in advance, telling them to gather at the sports ground on the eastern side of Gutan Village.

Shortly after dawn, the Incarnates appeared in Gutan Village one after another, arriving at the sports ground designated by Lin Yi.

Amusingly, the majority of the Incarnates, much like Lin Yi, chose to conceal their faces with wooden masks, while others had crafted their own black gauze bamboo hats to wear on their heads.

The overall vibe today was extremely bizarre, resembling a masked convention of sorts.

In the past, such behavior would certainly not have been permitted in Gutan Village, but with Lin Yi taking the lead this time, village elders like Gu He found it difficult to object and could only tacitly allow the Incarnates' actions.

Dugu Feng and the others from the Fifth Militia Squad had also been summoned by Lin Yi. They too had received a copy of the attribute-allocation booklet distributed by Lin Yi and were standing within the crowd, observing.

"I feel like our Deputy Village Chief Lin is making a pretty big fuss. Are all the Incarnates in the village gathered here?"

"I'm not sure, but it should be. Hasn't Wang Zilong been working behind Village Chief Lin for the past few days? He ought to know."

Dugu Feng happened to possess a bit more information. He spoke up, saying, "I heard there are a little over sixty players in our Gutan Village in total. Excluding those who aren't in the village or haven't logged in for a long time, the remaining forty-plus people are all right here."

An Incarnate from the Fifth Squad leaned over and lowered his voice to ask, "Brother Feng, what do you think Big Shot Qingshan is trying to pull with this stunt? Could it be that he wants to unite all of us Incarnates and form some kind of organization?"

"I don't know either, but forming an organization is a thankless and exhausting task. You're overthinking it..."

Perhaps because the gathering of the Incarnates created too much of a stir, even the three squad leaders—Gu Laohu, Gu Chenghu, and Gu Man—made an appearance, standing outside the sports ground to watch.

Among them, Gu Laohu had a piece of dogtail grass clenched between his teeth, squinting as he sized up the Incarnates on the grounds. "I never realized we actually had quite a few Incarnates in our village. Such a massive crowd—they're almost half the size of the entire militia."

Although Gu Man had the least amount of contact with Lin Yi, he still nodded and said, "Village Chief Lin still has capability. In just a few days, he's managed to gather this crowd together. Anyway, those few Incarnates in our squad are exceptionally difficult to manage; they never step up first when there's nothing in it for them..."

Gu Laohu spat out the dogtail grass. "Aren't Incarnates all like that? If you want to make them protect the village, it's still safer to sign a contract..."

At this moment, Lin Yi stood on the earthen platform at the front of the sports ground, while Wang Zilong stood nervously yet solemnly by his side.

Lin Yi flipped through the roster of Incarnates in his hand, and after confirming that everyone was present, he said in a deep voice, "Quiet!"

Instantly, the commotion on the sports ground vanished, and every Incarnate raised their head to look at Lin Yi.

Lin Yi nodded slightly. It seemed his previous display of force had been the right move; otherwise, this bunch of Incarnates would never have listened so obediently.

"We are all Incarnates, so I want to make a few things clear in advance. I have not summoned you here to show off my status, but to establish an orderly Incarnate platform within Gutan Village based on mutual aid."

"First of all, I won't interfere with your personal actions, but you must strictly abide by the village rules. No random killing, and no leaving the village at will..."

"Second, regarding trade: considering that each of us logs in at different times, I will secure a designated location within the village for us Incarnates to use as a shop. Whenever you need to trade, go to that shop..."

"Third, regarding the training I promised you beforehand, that is no empty promise. From now on, this sports ground will be our exclusive martial arts training field. Here, you can practice external martial arts and weapon techniques. Every week, I will also schedule irregular lecture sessions to impart tips on practicing external martial arts, dealing with demonic entities, and so on..."

After finishing these points, Lin Yi looked at the Incarnates gathered below the platform and asked, "Alright, that is all I have to say. Does anyone have any questions?"

Down below, a newcomer Incarnate quickly raised his hand and asked, "Village Chief, Village Chief, I want to know if we Incarnates truly kick the bucket here when we die."

"Yes."

The newcomer continued to ask, "Village Chief, I heard that abilities acquired within the village can also be brought back into the real world?"

Lin Yi's eyebrows twitched slightly. Why were these questions so basic? Yet, for a newcomer, these two questions did indeed seem crucial.

"Yes, you heard correctly."

At that moment, Jiang Hanxue, standing amidst the crowd, suddenly spoke up, "Village Chief Lin, I want to ask if you have ever witnessed Apocalypse demonic entities in the real world?"

Upon hearing this, many of the Incarnates began to buzz with discussion.

"Holy crap, is that for real? The monsters from our game can actually be encountered in reality?"

"Yeah, that's a bit far-fetched, isn't it? How come I've never seen it reported on domestic news?"

Lin Yi said coldly, "Quiet!"

Without answering Jiang Hanxue's question, Lin Yi looked at the crowd and said, "Considering that you have entered the Apocalypse world at different times and suffer from an information gap in your understanding, I will say a few more words."

"First, you are currently standing within a real transcendent world, so do not treat this place like a mere game. Otherwise, you won't just cause your own demise; you might drag others down with you."

"Second, since Jiang Hanxue has brought it up, I won't conceal it. In reality, you may encounter various monsters originating from the Apocalypse world, and this phenomenon will become the norm in the future. Therefore, strive to level up and enhance your own strength. Compared to the humans of Blue Star who have already perished in the jaws of monsters, you still have a chance to rewrite your fate."

"Third, I am not your babysitter. The reason I took the initiative to gather you here is simply to minimize chaos in Gutan Village. Do not mistake me for a saint or a good Samaritan; this is the absolute limit of what I can do."

"After all, I have secured a shop for your transactions and a training ground for your martial arts. Compared to the members of the militia, you only lack certain resources and the opportunity to engage demonic entities in direct combat, but you must fight for those things yourselves..."

After saying all this, Lin Yi thought for a moment and added, "Considering that we will need Incarnates in the future to receive newcomers to the village and manage the shops, I plan to recruit some people from among you. Anyone willing to work with me can register with Wang Zilong by my side. There is a monthly stipend, though not much. But remember: once you join, you must obey orders."