Zhao Lingyun hurried back to Inferno City.
The moment she regrouped with Zhang Dong and the others, Zhang Dong immediately unleashed a furious barrage of insults at her, "This is all your fault! You worthless money-loser! If you hadn't been flirting around everywhere, why would that Shadow Sword God target us?"
"I didn't!", Zhao Lingyun's face flushed red as she defended herself, "I wasn't flirting around, and I don't even know them."
"Don't talk back to me!"
Pointing at Zhao Lingyun, Zhang Dong pinned the blame for the studio getting wiped out entirely on her and shouted furiously, "Ever since your mother accepted my 180,000 yuan bride price, you became something I paid for. From now on, you'll serve me like a maid."
"If you dare talk back again, I'll go straight to your mother and demand that 180,000 back."
"Let's see who'd still want you after you leave me."
Hearing this, a trace of fear surfaced in Zhao Lingyun's heart.
It wasn't that she was afraid of leaving Zhang Dong.
It was because after she rejected him during the blind date last time, her family had actually locked her up over it.
They forbade her from leaving the house and even confiscated her Oracle device.
Left with no other choice, Zhao Lingyun agreed to be with Zhang Dong, and only then did she finally beg for the chance to continue entering Oracle.
If offending Zhang Dong caused her family to lock her up again, then for the rest of her life, she would truly become a bird trapped in a cage.
As long as she could still remain in Oracle, at least she still had a chance to prove herself.
As long as she could achieve something in Oracle, she could completely shatter this prison forever.
Never again would she have to live by anyone else's expression.
Never again would anyone arrange her life for her.
Thinking of this, Zhao Lingyun no longer dared argue with Zhang Dong. Lowering her face and biting her lip, she quietly apologized to him.
"I'm sorry. It was my fault. I won't talk back anymore."
Zhang Dong assumed it was his financial power that had intimidated Zhao Lingyun and made her unwilling to leave him.
His sense of superiority instantly swelled.
"Hmph! Good that you know you were wrong."
At that moment, one of the studio members ran over and asked Zhang Dong, "Boss, the brothers suffered pretty heavy losses just now. Are we really just letting this go?"
"Of course not!"
Zhang Dong exploded with rage, "A gentleman never forgets revenge! So what if that Black Night has a hidden class? That brat doesn't know the power of heaven and earth if he dares stir trouble on my turf!"
"I'll contact President Gao right now and have him back us up. Once President Gao steps in personally, I'll make sure you suffer for this."
As he spoke, Zhang Dong immediately opened WeChat, found a contact labeled "President Gao," and sent him a message.
At the same time, Zhao Lingyun watched from beside him, worry filling her eyes.
'Even though I don't know this Black Night at all, he offended Zhang Dong because of me.'
'He may be able to deal with Zhang Dong and Qingfeng Studio, but if this President Gao really steps in… with his strength, Black Night is definitely going to be in huge trouble.'
Zhao Lingyun frowned. Her innate kindness would not allow something like this to happen.
'No! I have to warn Black Night as soon as possible and tell him to be careful.'
With that thought, Zhao Lingyun quietly avoided Zhang Dong, who was still talking with "President Gao."
She secretly opened Inferno City's rankings, found Black Night on the leaderboard, and anonymously sent him a temporary message request.
———
Meanwhile—
Through auditory sharing, Lin Mo heard Black Night say to the clone: "Boss, someone just sent me an anonymous message telling me to watch out for the Golden Age Guild lately."
Hearing this, Lin Mo fell into thought.
"The one who sent the anonymous message should be Zhao Ling'er."
"If that's the case, then this Golden Age Guild is probably exactly what I suspected, the backer behind Zhang Dong?"
Just as Lin Mo was considering this, Ning Fei's side also uncovered some clues.
"Brother-in-law! I found something!"
"Isn't Zhang Dong's real-life identity the deputy manager of a construction company? Their company is called Golden Age Group. The boss is Gao Han, and he's also playing Oracle. He even established a guild in Oracle called the Golden Age Guild."
"According to the information I found, the Golden Age Guild's main force is also concentrated around Inferno City, and the guild already has more than three thousand members."
Hearing this, Lin Mo became even more certain.
"So the true force Zhao Ling'er fears, the backer behind Zhang Dong, really is this Golden Age Guild."
Most importantly, Golden Age Guild's president, Gao Han, was also Zhang Dong's superior in real life.
Zhang Dong was probably excellent at flattering Gao Han in reality, so the two likely had a pretty good relationship.
That was why, with the enormous umbrella of protection from the Golden Age Guild inside Oracle, Zhang Dong had managed to make Qingfeng Studio grow despite its small size.
At this moment, Ning Xi frowned and said, "The main issue is that your clone's faction still hasn't fully developed yet, Brother Lin Mo."
"This Golden Age Guild has over three thousand members. Its scale is even bigger than the Dragon Soul Guild. Dealing with them definitely won't be easy."
As soon as Ning Xi finished speaking, Lin Mo smiled calmly.
"No, we don't need to fight them."
Lin Mo looked completely confident, as though he already had a foolproof plan.
"We only need to become part of them."
Lin Mo naturally understood that the clone had only just begun developing. At present, the only person it had recruited was the Shadow Sword God, Black Night.
With only the clone and Lu Ye, going head-on against a massive guild with three thousand members would be like throwing eggs against a rock.
Besides, Lin Mo never actually needed to destroy the Golden Age Guild in the first place.
To win Zhao Ling'er over, he had another method, far more feasible, and one that wouldn't cost a single soldier.
After all, not every problem in the world of Oracle had to be solved through force.
Sometimes, strategy was the better option.
"This Gao Han, since he's Zhang Dong's boss in Oracle, and also his boss in real life, their relationship is basically like father and son. Zhang Dong has to listen to him in everything."
"As long as I find a way for the clone to infiltrate the Golden Age Guild, and then earn Gao Han's trust, this problem might solve itself."
A boss naturally liked capable subordinates.
And Ning Fei's next words only confirmed Lin Mo's thinking.
"This Gao Han is a ruthless guy."
"When he was only twenty-five, he married into the Ruan family of Golden Age Group thanks to his outstanding looks and elite educational background. He married Ruan Wenwen, the daughter of Golden Age Group chairman Ruan Tian. But less than two years later, both Ruan Tian and Ruan Wenwen died in separate accidents, and Gao Han smoothly took over the entire Golden Age Group."
"Almost everyone outside says he murdered his wife for wealth and that he's cold-blooded… but Gao Han's psychological resilience is terrifyingly strong. In just one year, he completely secured his position as head of Golden Age Group."
"And Gao Han places extreme importance on ability. If someone lacks capability, even if they're a company veteran personally brought up by former chairman Ruan Tian, he'll fire them without hesitation."
"But if someone has talent, ability, and potential, even a fresh graduate can be heavily promoted by him."
Hearing this, Lin Mo smiled faintly, "In that case, even better."
In the world of Oracle, strength mattered even more.
Just like Lin Mo himself, relying on his strength, he had already become a scorching-hot target being fought over by every guild in Inferno City.
And this clone of Lin Mo's was even stronger than Lin Mo himself.
As long as it joined the Golden Age Guild, earning the approval of their guild leader Gao Han would be no problem at all.
And based on Ning Fei's description of Gao Han's personality, as long as he could gain Gao Han's recognition, Lin Mo's clone would definitely be entrusted with important responsibilities.
By then, taking Zhao Ling'er away from Zhang Dong's side would be nothing more than a single sentence away.
[T/N: And, he has only one month.]
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