Lin Yu walked through the main entrance and into the event hall.
The hall was packed, a sea of bobbing heads as far as the eye could see.
From within the crowd, people were periodically shouting themselves hoarse, "Last spot! Last spot! Who else wants to join?"
Lin Yu tried to push his way into the crowd to see what all the yelling was about, but he couldn't get through.
Just then, he spotted someone nearby wearing a uniform and standing ramrod straight, who he figured was a staff member.
He squeezed forward and asked, "Excuse me, what's going on over there? I just got here, so I missed whatever was said earlier."
The staff member respectfully took a booklet from a display basket beside him. "Sir, they're recruiting for their respective organizations. There are great benefits for new lords who join one. For the specifics, please consult this booklet. This briefing manual contains all the details."
Lin Yu took the booklet, moved away from the crowd, and found a quiet spot to read.
After a good while, he finally understood the situation.
This briefing was mainly for new lords who had passed the first phase of the trials, intended to explain the details of the second phase of the competition. It was aimed primarily at new lords from commoner backgrounds.
The second phase of the lord competition, unlike the single-player experience of the first, introduced competitive elements.
In the first phase, one only had to focus on self-development. As long as your luck wasn't terrible and you didn't mess things up yourself, passing the trial at the end of the phase was quite easy.
In the second phase, the nearly 800,000 contestants from across the planet who had passed the first phase would be gathered on a single continent to continue their development.
In the end, the top 10,000 contestants, ranked by the overall strength of their territories, would advance to the third phase.
Eliminated contestants would have the connection to their territory severed.
The overall strength ranking was composed of three metrics: Prosperity, Combat Power, and Battle Record.
Prosperity was a value measuring the strength of a territory's infrastructure; every completed building contributed a corresponding amount.
Combat Power was a value measuring the strength of a territory's forces, which included professional soldiers, subjects, and heroes. Every combat-capable unit within the territory had a corresponding numerical value.
Battle Record was determined by the number of enemies killed during the second phase; the more enemies slain, the higher the score.
Furthermore, the second phase would involve segments where lords battled one another.
The briefing had elaborated on these points. At the same time, various teams were recruiting on-site: the official Imperial teams, private teams from powerful clans and corporations, and teams from the Divine Halls of gods allied with the Empire.
The official Imperial teams offered 100,000 points of assorted resources and one Purple-rarity building.
The teams from powerful clans and corporations offered 1,000,000 points of assorted resources and one Purple-rarity barracks.
The teams under the gods offered 1,000,000 points of assorted resources and a Divine Hall for their corresponding deity, which could summon Gold-quality Temple Guards.
The divine teams offered the best package, but they also came with the highest price. Once a Divine Hall for a specific god was built, the subjects of the entire territory would gradually become worshippers of that god, serving as a source of faith.
Moreover, it was said that if a lord managed to achieve Divine Enthronement, they could only do so as a subordinate god to that deity, forced to tithe a portion of their earned faith to the Main God.
However, the guaranteed Gold-quality Temple Guards would at least ensure a smooth run through the conflicts of the second phase.
Besides, not just anyone could join a divine team. After registering, applicants had to have their talent and Core of Dominion verified, and only the best would be accepted.
The private teams offered mid-tier rewards. The main benefit of joining them was a large cash payment. Regardless of whether one passed the second phase, there was a guaranteed signing bonus of 10 million. If one advanced to the third phase, the bonus increased to 100 million, with prize money increasing further based on the final ranking.
The price was that if one failed the second phase, they would be required to work for the corresponding clan or corporation for thirty years. If they passed the second phase, they would have to prioritize using their points to redeem five designated items for their sponsor.
These private teams also had certain requirements, verifying the talent and Core of Dominion level of applicants and only accepting the best.
The official teams formed by the Empire offered the lowest rewards but also had the lowest cost. The only requirement was that team members were forbidden from attacking each other during the second phase. They also didn't require any verification of talent or Core of Dominion.
However, if one's talent or Core of Dominion was outstanding, they could choose to report it. After verification and passing a test, they could join the official elite squad, which was said to offer rewards on par with the divine teams.
Lastly, there was a small portion of ambitious, unaffiliated individuals who formed their own factions, hoping to use their superior talent or Cores of Dominion to carve a bloody path for themselves amidst the major powers.
Having finished the booklet, Lin Yu now understood the situation. The people shouting were all recruiters for the private teams or the divine teams, as well as some smaller teams (which no one was paying attention to).
The people crowded around them all wanted to join a team, hoping to obtain resources and make a great leap forward in the second phase.
However, judging by the disdainful looks on the recruiters' faces, it was likely that the applicants' talent or Cores of Dominion were not up to their standards, and they had no intention of accepting them.
Without a second thought, Lin Yu went to find the recruiter for the official teams. Their hands-off approach of not demanding anything from the lords suited him perfectly.
The private and divine teams offered high rewards for joining, but for him, the price was too steep. It wasn't worth it.
The official recruiter was easy to find, located at the very front of the hall with few people around. Behind him was a large banner that read: "Unite as one to resist the foreign enemy!"
"Hello, I'd like to apply to join the team."
The person in charge was busy writing something. He looked up at Lin Yu, then pointed to a device on the table.
"Just tap your wristband on it and hit confirm. You have a wristband, right? If not, you can get one over there."
He then lowered his head and went back to his work, muttering under his breath, 'Another one who didn't pay attention during the briefing. Kids these days... sigh.'
If it weren't for Lin Yu's sharp hearing, he would have missed it.
Lin Yu couldn't be bothered to explain. He just held out his wristband and tapped it on the device.
[Do you wish to apply to join the Cuiwei Lord Corps?]
[Yes/No]
Lin Yu tapped "Yes" in the air.
[Uploading data...]
[Transfer complete!]
[You have joined the Cuiwei Lord Corps.]
"Huh? Kid, your talent and Core of Dominion are pretty good!"
"How about applying to the Elite Corps? Join the Elite Corps and you'll get 1,000,000 points of assorted resources, three Purple-rarity building blueprints of your choice, and you'll also be able to use points to redeem items through the official internal channels."
"Thank you, but no. I think the regular team is just fine."
"All right, then!" Seeing Lin Yu's unhesitating refusal, the recruiter didn't press the issue.
"Oh, by the way, you can still go try out for the other teams if you want. If you successfully join one, your registration here will be automatically deleted."
The recruiter added as he saw Lin Yu preparing to leave.
"Aren't you supposed to stop them from poaching people? Why are you recommending it?"
"What's there to be afraid of? No matter which team you join, you're all people of our Empire. It makes no difference!"
Hearing this, Lin Yu looked out at the crowd in the hall as if he'd had a sudden realization.