A few hours after Klaus and his team and War God Henry's team settled in, the nine teams that went to the Tier 7 forbidden zones started arriving.
The first to arrive was the team led by his Uncle James, Klaus's brute uncle, whose preferred weapon of choice is the boomerang.
He was in charge of 61 warriors, and thankfully, they all arrived intact, though everyone could see their exhaustion.
Klaus provided them with a place to rest and rejuvenate inside the healing chambers. Naturally, only ten chose to sit and cultivate.
The rest passed out the moment they lay on their ice beds, which felt rather comfortable despite being blocks of ice.
Klaus saw this and could only smile. Some of them would understand the dangers they would be facing in the coming days when the time came.
For now, they can relax and feel comfortable.
After they settled in, he took his uncle to a fortress he had built for his five uncles.
He had a special place prepared for all the leaders handling the ten teams to undergo their first three weeks of training.
But for his uncles, he built a single fortress for them since they prefer being together always.
After Uncle Jojo arrived, Uncle Ziggy, the gunslinger, also appeared with his team. Just like the others, they were exhausted, so most passed out and would only wake up after hours of sleep.
Uncle Xian followed, then Old Lu. A few minutes after he arrived with his team, Instructor Victor, the instructor in charge of the outer area of the academy, also appeared.
He was a powerful warrior, so Klaus trusted him with the lives of 60 warriors, and he brought them back in one piece—though utterly exhausted.
He had worked them to the bone, following Klaus' instructions to ensure they each reached their limits during battle.
Uncle Mark also arrived a few hours later. Within nine hours of Klaus's arrival, all teams had gathered in the Monsterland Badlands.
Klaus let them all settle in first. Of course, he was still waiting for two more teams.
Lycos and his team, whom Klaus had befriended the hard way when he went to the moon with Ohema, had just undergone their tribulations and finally become Transcendents.
This was the main reason they hadn't joined him and his friends for their first training in the Ant Kingdom.
Klaus, of course, would use the first week to hammer some battles into their bones. He knew they were already battle-hardened warriors since they had come from the most dangerous place a human could go—
But still, they would have to undergo his training if they want to be on the team.
The second set of people he was waiting for were the triplets. He had already received word from Queen Lunara that they would arrive within the hour.
They had achieved their objectives, so he would sharpen their skills and then help them awaken their bloodlines.
He had already given them techniques to master, and the place they had gone for the past three weeks was perfect for that. Now, he would wait for them to return and see if they were slackers or warriors.
After welcoming everyone, he retired to his room.
Meanwhile, General Dane was meeting with his three subordinates in a secure room to discuss something important.
"First off, I want to say that this place now has some of the most powerful warriors in the world. However, none of them are important to this discussion," General Dane began.
"Klaus Hanson is the main person for this discussion. I know you all saw his display, and while it looked flashy, it was also terrifying.
I don't know about you three, but I was impressed. Because of that, I've decided to give him complete command over this place." He declared with no doubt in his words.
The three generals turned to look at each other before letting out a deep sigh.
"This saves us a huge headache," General Eric said with a faint smile. "We were actually planning on telling you that, General.
We all know we wouldn't be able to defeat him despite our years of training, and for some reason, even just speaking with him made me feel like a child in front of him.
That boy is both scary and wise. So I believe handing him supreme command of this base is a wise move. This will even allow us to sneak into his training and perhaps gain something from it."
If only they knew he indeed has tens of thousands of years of experience as a cultivator. But who is asking?
Klaus has memories of his past life as Fruity, and in that life, he lived for thousands of years, so in a way, he is indeed that old—very old, in fact.
This means giving him the helm to take charge of the base isn't a bad move. However, he couldn't just make that decision without consulting his team.
Luckily, they also share the same thoughts. But aside from them, someone else listening in on their secret meeting also agrees with their decision.
They thought they were in a secure room.
"Then it is decided, we will let Klaus Hanson take charge of the base for the duration of his stay here," General Dane said.
"You should do that," a voice spoke, causing the four inside the secure room to freeze. Nari looked at them with a sarcastic smile, appearing out of thin air.
Perhaps gaining the ability to feel emotions was a bad move. The phoenix was now playing with people's emotions like a chess game.
"Overlord Nari..." General Dane said, his voice barely above a whisper.
Nari laughed and settled down beside them, looking at them closely before sighing.
"You four should really sneak into his training. But before that, know that you will become like normal soldiers once you hand over your command to him.
However, the moment you become part of his training, you will be worked to the bone. And let me tell you—Klaus won't hold back, regardless of your status in the military."
The four nodded. They understood the implications, but they wouldn't back down no matter where it took them.
They knew that with Klaus at the head of the command, things would flow smoothly.
"Very well. I will ensure you all get the best out of this."
After saying that, Nari left, leaving the four generals to breathe a sigh of relief. Her presence was like death waving at them.
Nari will have to do more if she wants to paint a new image of herself. Her past self, as the destroyer, has made her a danger in the eyes of everyone.
They fear her like death itself.
Nari reappeared far from the secret room and took a deep breath.
"This is all I can do to help you now, Eric. Lady Margaret would be happy knowing you're still well and kicking," Nari smiled.
Though she had always known Eric—having grown up in the same orphanage long before the apocalypse—she hadn't been in a position to do much for him.
But now, she understood the meaning of familial love and care, so she would help all those who had been her friends in her robotic life.
Now that she has unlocked her emotions, she would do her best to keep them close.
Nari 2.0 is still a calamity, but a reasonable one...Lol.