His origin, his purpose, and his enemies were all critical information.
"We have enemies," the recruiter said, his voice hard. "We just lost almost half of our strength, are you here to join us or finish us off?"
T-800 stayed quiet for a moment and then he spoke.
"Recruit me or not…I don't care." T-800 turned and started to leave.
"Halt!" Another recruiter stood up to point something out. "Your dirty robes…those were the same worn by those Uru Cannibal bastards…are you not one of them?"
T-800 paused and turned to the person who asked it. The crowd also noticed and recognised the grimy tattered bandit like rough robes.
"I terminated them all and took their dirty clothes."
"Terminated?" T-800's unusual choice of words was strange to everyone. They usually use words like killed, murdered or slaughtered for taking a life.
The word 'terminated' was like cold, like ending a task, not a person. It revealed a complete detachment from the act of violence.
"You… killed Fang Lao?" They couldn't believe it.
T-800 nodded once. Then he pointed at the Penance Mark on his shoulder. "I got this after I Terminated all of them, all seven of them." His thick Austrian accent was not helping him at all that he is not one of them.
"...Didn't that pathetic Fang Lao had 9 stroke Penance Mark?..."
"...That explains his 20 Strokes Penance Mark…"
The main recruiter was listening to all of the crowd chatter.
"So you are new to the Boundless Seal Realm?"
T-800 again nodded once.
"Outside, from which place and sect you were affiliated with?"
"I am alone."
"A Vagrant Practitioner…" It was not a shocking information in any way. Boundless Seal Realm is filled with vagrants who do not like getting affiliated with any sides.
A Vagrant Practitioner meant he had no external loyalties. Sects were organized factions that controlled resources, territory, and information.
And those ties are so deep that it even works here, in the Boundless Seal Realm.
Many criminals from the same sect, clans and empires stick together here. Old grudges and alliances from the outside world do not just disappear.
They become the foundation for power structures inside this prison.
This makes the lone vagrant like Tie Yuan a valuable but dangerous asset. He brought no old or known enemies with him, which was a clear benefit. Recruiting him would not start a clear or new war with some distant sect.
But it also meant he had no history. No one could confirm his identity. He had no established loyalties that could be trusted or exploited. A powerful, unknown variable was always a risk in the Boundless Seal Realm.
But that's the reality, the risk but the greater risk is not manned enough, to present a show of power, even in rumors or else risk...getting wiped out entirely.
The Shadow Wolf Sect's weakness was public knowledge now.
Their rivals, especially the Sun Lizard Clan, who won against them would use this opportunity to attack them and seize their territory.
Losing their territory meant losing access to the mines that generated their income. Without income, the sect could not sustain its members and would completely collapse.
This is now about survival.
The main recruiter looked at the towering man from the North. Accepting a dangerous unknown was a massive risk. But showing weakness guaranteed their complete destruction within a month.
A potential traitor in their ranks was better than certain annihilation. He had to take the gamble.
Also, if he does not recruit this Northerner Barbarian, then Sun Lizard Clan would and that would be even more dumb.
Fine," the recruiter declared loudly for all to hear. "You are in. But you have to...prove your loyalty. You have to accept the Infernal Centipede."
The crowd gasped at the mention of Infernal Centipede. At any moment, they would chatter and reveal some clues about it but this time the whole crowd stayed silent, not uttering any word at all.
This forced T-800 to ask first. "What is Infernal Centipede?"
"The Infernal Centipede is a living poison, a small parasitic worm. It's the only way we ensure loyalty from powerful newcomers."
"You swallow this Infernal Centipede, where it will attach to your heart. The centipede remains dormant as long as you follow the sect's orders and do not betray us."
The recruiter tapped his own chest with a grim expression indicating he also has one in his heart.
"If you show any sign of treachery, the Sect Master can activate it. The centipede will then eat your heart from the inside, causing your death, a very painful and horrifying death."
The recruiter then pulled out a small, writhing centipede contained in a glass vial. It was thin as a needle and black as ink.
"The Sect Master holds the Queen Centipede, the mother of all the parasitic worms we use for this loyalty oath. She has a soul connection to all her offspring inside every host."
"This Soul link allows the Sect Master to activate any individual worm with a simple thought, regardless of distance. There is no antidote or medicine that can remove it. Only the Sect Master's direct command can make the centipede release its grip. It is our absolute guarantee against betrayal."
T-800 observed the expression of everyone, even the crowd and all of them were looking away or trying to say anything out of line.
This confirmed to him that this is not some fantasy story. According to his own database about Earth, it had no such power dynamic of using bugs to maintain loyalty.
This cements the fact more that he is not on earth.
Everyone was waiting for T-800, Tie Yuan's answer.
"...He won't do it…"
"...If this was that lucrative, then those Uru Bastards would not have lived a bandit life…"
"...Yes, a life under Infernal Centipede is worse than being a bandit's dog…"
"...Yes, you lose your will. You lose your future. You become a tool…"
A Tool? T-800 is already a tool, Losing his future was not a variable in his calculations. The crowd's fear was based on human emotions he did not possess or care.
"I accept."