Chapter 134: Selecting Talent

"What? Have you taken a liking to these two?"

"They are called Long Bao and Long Yan. Long Bao is the fatty. Both of them are geniuses in my clan who rank in the top ten in terms of talent."

Seeing the obvious change in Long Qian's expression, Long Wanli asked with a smile.

Long Qian had no intention of hiding his inner thoughts at all. He nodded gently and smiled, "With the standard of these two, they would be rare geniuses even in the Western Lands."

"However, although these two have sufficient combat power, they might not necessarily win steadily against the geniuses of the Bai Clan."

"But if I were to personally design the Insect Armor for these two, then I presume winning two matches should be certain."

A sharp glint flashed in Long Qian's eyes; he felt that two matches were already in the bag.

Regarding the terrifying degree of the Earth Mover Beetle, he was, of course, clear about it. He himself was an Insect Armor Master; how could he not understand the terrifying aspects of the Earth Mover Beetle?

The Western Lands Long Clan now also possessed this kind of Gu worm, the Earth Mover Beetle. The Western Lands Long Clan had paid a great price to successfully trade for it.

The reason the two clans moved toward an alliance was because of the exchange of technology between them, and the Western Lands Long Clan had emptied most of their family fortune to make up the difference, which was how the alliance relationship was formed.

From now on, the two clans would advance and retreat together. Once the Soul Clan attacked the Extreme West Long Clan, the Western Lands Long Clan would certainly help at all costs. They had already tasted the sweetness of those technologies; how could they allow other forces to steal them?

This was also the reason why Long Wanli was so unreserved.

Of course, in order to trade for those few new technologies, the Western Lands Long Clan had almost emptied their family fortune.

However, the high-level members of the Western Lands Long Clan were also connoisseurs who could see the immense value of those few technologies, so they did not hesitate even if it meant emptying their family fortune. The two clans were completely a case of one willing to hit and the other willing to suffer.

And don't blame Long Wanli for being black-hearted; the contribution points in the hands of that brat Long Xuan were simply too many. He would empty the family Treasure Pavilion at every turn. No matter how large the Long Clan's family business was, it couldn't withstand him exchanging like this.

The Treasure Pavilion had been completely emptied by him, making many clansmen mistakenly believe that the family had become poor. Long Wanli had no choice but to take this opportunity to ruthlessly fleece the Western Lands Long Clan to quickly replenish the Treasure Pavilion with the plundered wealth.

"What? Brother Qian is actually also an Insect Armor Master?" Long Wanli asked, looking at Long Qian beside him in surprise upon hearing this.

"Hehe! A side job, a side job. Insect Armor is currently in a state of being in short supply on the market. Selling Insect Armor is truly too profitable, so I'm also taking the opportunity to earn some extra money."

"Now, refining large-volume Gu worms has become a trend in the Western Lands. Whoever can occupy the market first will be able to make a fortune. Once the market is saturated, it will be too late for anyone who wants to enter the industry."

"However, where is the Founding Ancestor of this Insect Armor Master? I would very much like to pay a visit. Many who have entered the industry are prepared to worship the Founding Ancestor, but they don't know who to worship, so they can only use an Earth Mover Beetle statue instead," Long Qian suddenly asked again.

Hearing this, the two geniuses behind him pricked up their ears. Clearly, the Extreme West Long Clan's confidentiality work was done very well; nowadays, basically no one knew who the creator of those mysterious technologies was, and they were all curious in their hearts.

"Hehe! Brother Qian, don't ask about this. Our clan will announce that person's identity, but not now. A tree that stands out in a forest will be destroyed by the wind. On the day he truly grows up, our clan will personally make a statue for him to be permanently stored," Long Wanli smiled.

Long Qian showed a look of disappointment, but he still nodded understandingly and looked toward the arena direction again.

He discovered that the two had already finished the battle at this time, but the result of the victory or defeat was something no one had expected.

Long Yan's Earth Mover Beetle was the first to push Long Bao's Earth Mover Beetle off the arena, and then quickly went to support its master.

Seeing that Earth Mover Beetle running toward him, Long Bao's expression changed drastically. No sooner said than done, he immediately had a flash of inspiration and actually grabbed Long Yan's arm, and they rolled off the arena together.

Because the incident happened suddenly and the speed was too fast, no one saw clearly who landed first. The referee could only hold down the two arguing people, simply judged it a draw, and then quickly arranged the next battle.

Seeing this scene, Long Qian stroked his beard and smiled, "He is quite witty. If he had reacted a second slower, he would have undoubtedly lost."

"These two are both very good. I want them. But why haven't I seen your clan's First Heaven's Chosen? Where did she go?"

Long Qian was frantically searching for Long Ziyan's figure around the arena. He had long heard of the Extreme West Long Clan's First Heaven's Chosen.

He had made comparisons; Long Ziyan was a Heaven-grade talent, possessed a Ninth-Rank bloodline, was also a rare Nine Yin Intercepting Body, and it was said that she was also born with a Sword Bone. With the combination of these four, her combat power could thrash all the geniuses of the Western Lands Bai Clan.

Therefore, this genius was a target he must obtain on this trip; he absolutely could not let her go.

Now that he didn't see the figure of the main person, he frowned slightly, feeling anxious in his heart. He hoped she wasn't performing some mission in some remote place; otherwise, the one-twelfth of the mine vein he was certain to get would be gone. This loss would truly be too great.

Long Wanli showed a bitter smile and sighed helplessly, "You don't know, she seconds anyone she faces. Gradually, no one would fight her. Everyone who faces her, without exception, chooses to admit defeat. So, after a competition, she just stands there without moving and is the champion."

"She said that standing there is truly a waste of time. Rather than standing for a day and wasting time, it's better not to come. So, she really doesn't come. Every clan competition, she just signs up."

"We simply let the champion be exempt from the test and let her take the championship while lying at home. Anyway, giving the championship directly to her is also indisputable."

Hearing this, whether it was Long Qian or the two geniuses behind him, the corners of their mouths twitched non-stop. To be able to reach this point as a genius, they were truly convinced.

"Then what about that Ten Extremes Body genius? Where is he? Why haven't I seen him either?"

Long Qian began to frantically search for the figure of that Ten Extremes Body genius in the crowd again.

The Ten Extremes Body is known as invincible among those of the same rank, and since the genius arena tournament with the Bai Clan is strictly rank-for-rank, his match is a guaranteed win, securing another twelfth of the mine rights.

It is said that in his arena match against the Feng Clan, he didn't even release his Gu worms; he defeated his opponent in just a few moves, and his combat power is simply terrifying.

Therefore, this Ten Extremes Body genius is also a target he must obtain; he must be taken away.

Long Wanli and the elders on both sides smiled even more bitterly. Long Wanli said helplessly, "You don't know, but his contribution points are so high that he no longer cares about the small contribution rewards from the clan competition."

"That's why he never comes to the clan competition. He claims he wants to leave the opportunity to the young people and exercise a spirit of humility, so he simply doesn't show up at all."

Upon hearing this, Long Qian and the two geniuses behind him twitched their mouths repeatedly, completely losing control of their expressions. Are the geniuses of this Extreme West Long Clan all this peculiar?

They were truly shocked that they would just skip such a major event as the clan competition.

"What about Long Chao? His personality shouldn't be that peculiar, right?" Long Qian could no longer control himself and hurriedly asked about another genius he was very interested in.

Long Chao's Evil Dragon Emperor Eye has awakened a soul seed ability, and the soul seed ability is simply too terrifying. Looking at the whole world, it is one of the top-tier illusion techniques. As long as this illusion is utilized well, he is basically invincible among his peers, and they would steadily secure another twelfth of the mine's ownership.

Therefore, he is also someone he must take away. Long Chao is his third must-have target, followed by Long Qilin.

However, upon hearing this name, Long Wanli and the elders all sank their faces, and the smiles vanished.

Long Wanli put away his smile and said, "Don't mention this person. His personality is indeed very peculiar, but family shame should not be aired in public. I won't speak of his affairs, but he is indeed dead now, so you cannot take him away."

Noticing the obvious change in their expressions, Long Qian realized he had asked about a taboo and did not continue to inquire.

However, he felt a great sense of regret in his heart; the twelfth of the mine he had considered a sure thing was lost, and he felt a pang of pain.

"Don't ask about Long Qilin either. He just happens not to be here. He comes every time, but this time he is absent because he went out to find building materials for the Straw Gu. It is truly a coincidence." Long Wanli shook his head helplessly.

That silly son of his is truly addicted to building houses for the Straw Gu; he isn't even that diligent when building a house for himself.

"Is he also an enthusiast who likes watching the Straw Gu build houses? This is a sickness. This kind of sickness is spreading wildly in the Western Lands Long Clan, and it is incurable." Long Qian shook his head and smiled bitterly.

"But if he has this hobby, then it's easy to talk. As long as he wins one arena match for our clan, I will give him a large amount of Geng Metal as building material. Geng Metal is an excellent building material for houses, after all." Long Qian laughed loudly.

The subsequent arena matches were unremarkable, and until the end of the clan competition, he did not encounter any other geniuses who made his eyes light up.

Actually, there were some geniuses, such as Long Panpan, whose Earth Mover Beetle transformation effect was very good, but a genius of that level could not guarantee a win.

The Bai Clan is one of the ten great clans of the Western Lands, with geniuses as numerous as clouds. How could a monster capable of steadily suppressing the Bai Clan's geniuses be so easy to find? It was also that his requirements were too high.

Ultimately, he decided that Long Ziyan, Long Xuan, Long Qilin, Long Bao, and Long Yan were must-haves, while the other geniuses were pending. He needed more detailed information to make a decision. This matter concerned a large Geng Metal mine and was enough to affect the clan's fortune; he could not be careless.

As for Long Biao behind him, he felt very uncomfortable. He had originally thought about finding an opportunity to get on the arena to show off his skills and let them know the gap between geniuses from big places and small places.

Who would have thought that the Long Clan's strongest geniuses would have such personalities, skipping the clan competition just like that.

Yet he had his own pride and did not want to go on the arena to bully the weak; otherwise, even if he won, no one would think he was strong.

So he stood there without moving until the end of the clan competition, not having prepared a time to jump off the high platform to participate in the matches.

Now that the clan competition had finally ended, he spoke impatiently, "Junior Long Biao has come to your clan today to have a duel between geniuses with Long Xuan of your clan. I hope your clan will grant this."

"Nonsense! We are guests; how can I allow you to run wild here? Get down at once!"

Long Qian was furious, stood up immediately, and shouted angrily.

Of course, this was within his expectations and part of his plan. He intended to let Long Biao suffer a crushing defeat to curb his arrogance, so his current performance was, of course, feigned.

Long Wanli was not upset at all. In his view, Long Biao's chances of winning were slim, and it would be good for the geniuses of the two clans to spar. If they couldn't compete with the Western Lands Long Clan in the number of strong individuals, couldn't they at least compete in the number of geniuses?

He was very confident in the geniuses of his clan's generation; this generation of geniuses was enough for him to earn enough face and stand tall in front of the main family.

(End of chapter)