To put it simply, if Guo Haishen were to join a small stronghold, it would be enough for the chief there to abdicate on the spot.
If he joined a stronghold with tens of thousands of lackeys and the chief did not give him the top five or even the top three seats, that chief would be mocked by the world.
This was the effect of making a name for himself.
According to Zhou Jing’s understanding, the Green Forest was recruiting people just like how businesses would recruit partners.
The partners had to be either famous, capable, or had power, money, or connections. They had to get involved to fill the gaps in the business.
As for Guo Haishen, he could be considered a top partner with an extremely high reputation. With this person joining the stronghold, their reputation would increase greatly, and one could automatically obtain a series of “Buffs” such as “Recruitment Increase”, “Hero’s Arrival”, and so on. He was like a flag with a halo effect.
When Gao Yun heard Fang Zhen’s words, he was stunned for a moment before he suddenly became overjoyed.
“Are you two brothers here to see him too?”
“What a coincidence. We did plan to visit him on the way. It’s a pity not to meet such a hero.” Zhou Jing smiled.
He could not go with Li Chun and the other two to discuss business, but it would be a missed opportunity if they did not visit such a famous character.
On the other side, the thief who had been accompanying him had his head lowered as he ate. When he heard this, his expression changed slightly, revealing a surprised expression as if he was hesitating.
However, at this moment, there was a series of footsteps coming from downstairs.
Bam!
In the next moment, the door of the private room was pushed open and a few burly men barged in. All of them were wearing bamboo hats and stiff faces. They were actually all wearing human skin masks.
“Who dares interrupt our meal?!”
Fang Zhen was furious. He threw the wine bowl in his hand at this group of people.
The person in the lead was a middle-aged burly man with some white hair at his temples. He was dressed in luxurious clothes and looked like a rich man, but he had a stern aura, as if he was accustomed to giving orders all year round.
This person casually flicked his sleeve and hit the wine bowl, shattering it with a bang, revealing his profound skills.
“Hmph, what good skills!” Fang Zhen immediately frowned. He raised the iron banded staff beside him and was about to attack.
However, at this moment, the middle-aged man in a rich man’s disguise did not attack. He pointed at the thief sitting at the table and cupped his hands politely at everyone.
“Gentlemen, please. This little thief is my friend. He’s still young and rash, and ended up offending all of you, so I apologize on his behalf.”
Seeing this, Fang Zhen could not attack immediately. He turned to look at Zhou Jing.
Zhou Jing guessed that this group of people was the companions attracted by the thief. He stood up, cupped his fists, and snorted.
“Your friend stole my brother’s belongings and wanted to frame me when he escaped, so I invited him over for a drink. Seeing that he was still young, I didn’t plan to do anything. However, I didn’t expect him to find a group of helpers after failing to steal… If I don’t let him go, what will you do?”
As soon as he finished speaking, someone in the group immediately shouted, “Then let’s see who’s the real deal! I’ll show you my methods!”
“Shut up! Don’t be rude!”
The middle-aged rich man in the lead shouted to stop his companions from shouting.
Then, he bowed solemnly to Zhou Jing and took out a bulging money bag. He placed it on the table and lowered his posture.
“Sir, please let my friend off. It’s our fault for disturbing everyone’s mood. As compensation, this meal is on me.”
When Fang Zhen heard this, he was furious. He suddenly flipped the table, and the dishes and wine immediately splashed all over the ground.
“You bunch of hiding birds. You only took out some silver and didn’t even report your origins. You want my brother to let him go just like that? Who do you think we are? How dare you bully us like this!”
Among this group of people, many of the burly men were almost splashed with wine and food. They were also furious. Someone shouted, “Don’t be aggressive. Do you think we’re afraid of you?!”
Just as the two sides were about to pounce on each other, the thief hurriedly stood between the two groups and hurriedly spoke to the middle-aged rich man.
“Brother, don’t attack! These three are not idle people. They’re also here for Brother Guo Haishen! We’re all on the same side. Don’t engage in friendly fire!”
With that, the little thief hurriedly turned to Zhou Jing and the other two. He bowed respectfully to apologize.
“Please don’t blame them. Previously, I didn’t know what the three of you were doing in this city, so I didn’t dare to tell you… This one is named Shi Qing, also known to others as the Thousand Faced Swallow.”
During the feast, he had actually already recognized the names of the trio seated. He knew that they were all powerful people from the Green Forest or the martial world. However, he did not dare to introduce himself just now because he had various reasons. He did not know if Zhou Jing and the other two were here for Guo Haishen or if they were just passing by. After listening for a while, he confirmed that these three had the same goal as them.
Unexpectedly, his reinforcements arrived at this moment. He could only quickly come out to apologize and stop both sides.
“Thousand Faced Swallow?”
Gao Yun had originally raised his staff to help Zhou Jing, but when he heard this, he was stunned. He suddenly thought of something and hurriedly cupped his fists at the middle-aged rich man.
“May I ask if you’re the leaders of the Heavenly King Stronghold?”
Hearing this, the group of burly men stopped clamoring and looked at Gao Yun carefully.
Suddenly, someone exclaimed. Clearly, they had been acquainted before.
The middle-aged rich man looked at Gao Yun carefully before exclaiming in surprise,
“Aiyo, isn’t this the Breaking Ranks Spear, Brother Gao Yun? But why are you paler than before? I almost didn’t recognize you!”
When Gao Yun heard this, he was really a little embarrassed. He said helplessly, “I haven’t been traveling for the past few years, idling at home while cultivating, so I wasn’t exposed to the elements.”
“No wonder we haven’t seen you in the martial world in the past few years. The brothers thought that you had retired.”
Seeing an acquaintance, the middle-aged rich man hesitated for a moment before taking off his human skin mask, revealing a masculine and determined face.
After revealing his true appearance, he cupped his fists solemnly and introduced himself.
“I’m Xiang Tianjie, the fourth leader of the Heavenly King Stronghold. I’m titled the Great Sage Flipping River. Greetings, heroes.”
The Heavenly King Stronghold was the base built by the number one expert in the Green Forest, the Heavenly King. There were 70 to 80 people in charge on the mountain, and they possessed as many as 200,000 lackeys. They were the top Green Forest faction in the north.
The four leaders of such a top-notch stronghold were true big shots in the Green Forest.
Fang Zhen did not expect to meet such a person here. He was quite surprised.
Since they were both from the Green Forest and they knew each other, Fang Zhen temporarily restrained his anger and only said that he had heard a lot about them. Then, he said his name and title, attracting the attention of the people from the Heavenly King Stronghold.
Over the past few days, Zhou Jing had learned some of the rules of the Green Forest from Li Chun. Since the other party had already reported their background, he had to report his background as well. Therefore, he did as the Romans did.
“My name is Chen Feng.”
Unexpectedly, when they heard this, the leaders of the Heavenly King Stronghold exclaimed in unison.
“What! You’re the one who fought 100 alone, the Death Beckoning Yama?!”
Zhou Jing: “…”
Good lord, shout louder please. The officials will come and join in the fun later.