Chapter 4148 — Joining the Center

"This junior is Nan Tianjiguang. Greetings, Senior." Nan Tianjiguang had meant to carry himself with the air of an early Profound Ascension expert, but the moment he laid eyes on this mysterious figure, he no longer dared put on any airs. He greeted him with the utmost respect.

Though he could not see the man's face, he reasoned that anyone of such formidable strength must surely be far older than himself, so addressing him as Senior cost him nothing.

"I have had my eye on you for a long time. No need for such formalities. Sit," the mysterious man replied indifferently.

Nan Tianjiguang hurriedly nodded his thanks and took the seat opposite the mysterious man, with Si Haitao sitting beside him. As for Patriarch Xuanchen, who had come with them, he had no qualification even to meet the mysterious man and had been left outside the door.

"In this contest for the position of deputy island lord of Central Island, Di Xingdao thrust in his hand and cut it short halfway. Even so, I still think highly of your strength, so I intend to invite you personally to join our Center. Are you willing?" The mysterious man came straight to the point.

"I am deeply grateful for Senior's regard. I owe my present standing entirely to the unflagging support of the Central Chamber of Commerce over the years. Since Senior has spoken, I ought not refuse. But I am now vice principal of the Cultivator Academy. If I were to join the Central Chamber of Commerce, I fear the Academy would be hard to answer to..." Nan Tianjiguang said with feigned bitterness.

Before coming here, he had already anticipated this question and had long since prepared his wording. Much as he needed the Central Chamber of Commerce's backing, he was hardly willing to simply join it outright.

These were two entirely different things. At present they were merely partners, equals dealing with one another. But if he agreed to join the Central Chamber of Commerce, he would become the man's subordinate and would inevitably be bound by all manner of constraints. Nan Tianjiguang saw this matter of interests quite clearly.

"That is no obstacle. If you join our Center, you will be given a secret identity, not made public, so the Cultivator Academy will naturally have no trouble on that account. As for your future standing and treatment here, you need not worry either—it will certainly satisfy you," the mysterious man said blandly.

At that, Nan Tianjiguang was at a loss for how to decline. He saw Si Haitao beside him repeatedly shooting him looks urging him to agree, and he knew that to keep making excuses would truly be an affront to propriety. If he actually provoked this mysterious man's anger, then in days to come the Central Chamber of Commerce would no longer be an ally but a bitter enemy—and that would be a great deal of trouble.

"Then... this junior shall obey rather than presume to decline." Nan Tianjiguang nodded and agreed at once, thinking that in any case it was only a private joining; the outside world would not know of his ties to the Central Chamber of Commerce, and if trouble arose later, he could still renege and deny it.

"Very good. Then take this pill. From now on you are one of us." As he spoke, the mysterious man placed a pill before Nan Tianjiguang.

So he had to take a pill as well! Nan Tianjiguang's eyelid gave an involuntary twitch. This was not at all what he had anticipated. Even one who has never eaten pork has seen a pig run—there was no need to look twice to know that the pill before him must be poison, and once he swallowed it, he could forget forever about escaping this mysterious man's control.

For a moment Nan Tianjiguang could not help but want to fling back his sleeves and storm out. After all, his relationship with the Central Chamber of Commerce was one of mutual exploitation; never had he imagined that from then on he would become a puppet in its grip.

Yet the overwhelming aura of the mysterious man opposite pressed down on him until he dared not stir at all. Nan Tianjiguang even suspected that if he dared refuse to his face, he would probably not walk out of here today.

He dared not leave, yet he would not consent. Nan Tianjiguang was caught in a dilemma; within moments sweat poured from his brow, and his whole back was soaked through.

"What? You are unwilling?" A hint of menace entered the mysterious man's voice. He released no earth-shaking aura, yet it was enough to leave Nan Tianjiguang, an expert of the early Profound Ascension stage, gasping for breath in fright.

"Old friend Nan Tian, just take it quickly. We would never do you harm." Seeing this, Si Haitao hurried to chime in: "Nothing is gained without giving. If you want higher power and standing, you must show sincerity. Otherwise, how could the Center justify investing even more in you? Don't you agree that this is the way of things?"

One applied coercion, the other temptation. Nan Tianjiguang could no longer refuse even if he wished to—and besides, Si Haitao had spoken truly. In this time he had witnessed the immense power of the Central Chamber of Commerce and knew well how fearsome and astounding it was. If he could obtain its full support at any cost, the very thought of such a prospect was enough to set a man's blood racing.

In the end, Nan Tianjiguang gritted his teeth, picked up the pill from the table, and swallowed it. There was no help for it—if he did not, he could forget about leaving here in one piece today.

"Good. From this moment you are one of us. Rest assured, the Center has never treated its own shabbily." The mysterious man smiled in satisfaction.

"What should this subordinate do next? I beg Senior to instruct me," Nan Tianjiguang asked respectfully.

Nan Tianjiguang was a man who knew how to read the times. Having taken the pill, he knew that going back on it was now impossible; better to lower his posture altogether, serve this mysterious man well, and reap greater benefits in the future.

"Since you failed this time in the contest for deputy island lord of Central Island, we will look for another opportunity next time. What you must do now is lie low in the Cultivator Academy for a while, secure your footing, and find a way to make a bid for the post of executive vice principal. As for other matters, we will decide later," the mysterious man instructed.

"Yes. I shall obey Senior's instructions." Nan Tianjiguang accepted the order with alacrity.

Since he could not contend for deputy island lord of Central Island again in the near term, then securing the post of executive vice principal of the Cultivator Academy first was a fine idea as well. With the Central Chamber of Commerce at his back, he believed this step would be his for the taking.

Coming out of the mysterious man's room, Nan Tianjiguang felt as though he had just sat through a sauna—his whole body was drenched in cold sweat. Looking back at the tightly shut door, he was seized with lingering fear. Fortunately he had known how to read the times just now; otherwise, had he said half a word amiss, he might well be a corpse by now.

Since Nan Tianjiguang had been settled, Patriarch Xuanchen, who had been waiting outside the door, naturally joined the Center as well. But unlike Nan Tianjiguang, a valued core figure, even after taking the pill he could only count as a peripheral member, and in days to come he would remain Nan Tianjiguang's underling and follower.

To celebrate the two men's entry into the Center, Si Haitao had a private room prepared and a table of fine dishes laid out, and the three of them drank and made merry. R1152