Before leaving, Jiang Ruoxue did not forget to slander Lin Luoluo's results. She could not accept that Lin Luoluo had received a higher rating than her.
As Lin Luoluo watched the two walk away, a black tentacle shot out like lightning.
It forcibly coiled around Jiang Ruoxue's shoulder.
"L-let go of me!"
Jiang Ruoxue's face was full of horror as she struggled desperately to break free, but the black tentacle did not budge an inch from her shoulder.
In the end, Jiang Yuanpeng stepped in.
As the head of the Jiang Family, Jiang Yuanpeng was a fourth-tier Contract Spirit Master himself.
The physical enhancement he received from his fourth-tier Contract Spirit made his own strength formidable.
He reached out and grabbed the black tentacle wrapped around his daughter's shoulder.
Then he pulled with all his might.
Yet on his first attempt, he could not move it at all.
Visible astonishment appeared on Jiang Yuanpeng's face.
Just then, however, Lin Luoluo spoke up.
The girl lowered her head slightly, but her gaze remained fixed on Jiang Ruoxue. Her voice trembled as she said:
"I am a cripple!"
"But... I didn't cheat!"
"Xiao Bai and I earned this 3S assessment rating by genuinely killing Demon after Demon!
There was no cheating whatsoever!
I believe the Contract Spirit Master Guild's system has a complete record that can be checked!"
Since the Jiang Family wanted to stop her from joining a Mining Team,
she simply would not join one.
That had been what Lin Luoluo and Bai Chen had initially planned anyway.
But she would not allow it—she would never allow Jiang Ruoxue to dismiss the glory she and Xiao Bai had given their all to win with a few words, or slander them as shameful cheaters!
Bai Chen's tentacle released Jiang Ruoxue's shoulder.
Jiang Ruoxue was wearing a dress, and the fair skin on her shoulder had visibly reddened.
She even felt as though her bone had nearly been twisted and broken.
"Father, I want to kill her. Please let me duel her..." Jiang Ruoxue gritted her teeth, her gaze full of killing intent as she looked at Lin Luoluo.
This lowlife from the slums had actually made her look so wretched.
But the highly skilled Jiang Yuanfeng could tell at a glance that his daughter could never be her opponent.
"Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough?" Jiang Yuanfeng shouted coldly.
"Leave this place. Come back with me so we can treat your injuries first."
"But she—!" Jiang Ruoxue grew anxious, unwilling to let Lin Luoluo off just like that.
"Without a Mining Team's help, she won't be able to take a single step. You'll have plenty of chances to defeat her yourself."
Jiang Yuanfeng's expression was dark as he spoke.
As the head of the Jiang Family, he could not attack a young girl in full view of everyone.
He could only take Jiang Ruoxue and leave for the time being.
After Jiang Yuanfeng left, a brief silence fell over the room.
A moment later, the first person stood up.
He was the bearded captain who had just made the highest offer in the room: a monthly salary of eight thousand silver coins.
His face was full of inner conflict, but in the end, he spoke.
"I'm sorry. I have several partnerships with the Jiang Family. If they cut them off, our losses would be devastating."
He did not even dare look Lin Luoluo in the eye. As soon as he finished speaking, he hurried out of the meeting room without looking back, as though fleeing the plague.
His departure was like a signal.
The second and third followed...
The Jiang Family's influence in the Underground City was simply too great. Ordinary Mining Teams might resent the Jiang Family, but they did not dare speak out.
In the end, even Black Wolf, who had initially been determined to recruit Lin Luoluo, gave her a long look and finally let out a soft sigh.
If she had been a true S-rank genius, they would have found a way to take her in, even at the risk of offending the Jiang Family.
But unfortunately, the girl before them had only a Slime, and her leg was disabled.
Offending the Jiang Family for a genius with such flaws simply was not worth it.
In the blink of an eye, only the vice president of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion remained in the room.
The vice president of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, who had been smiling all along, now wore a somewhat strained smile.
The two of them had much the same thoughts as Black Wolf.
If Lin Luoluo's Contract Spirit had been S-rank, they certainly would not have given up so easily.
But unfortunately, she had contracted only a Slime.
Still, he did not walk away immediately like Black Wolf.
Instead, he took an exquisitely made business card from his pocket and held it out to Lin Luoluo.
"If you ever want to buy spirit materials or sell your spoils, you can come to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion and find me.
Although we weren't able to work together,
for the sake of our meeting today, the Hundred Treasures Pavilion will definitely give you a price that satisfies you."
With that, the vice president placed the card on the table, turned, and left as well.
Now the meeting room was completely empty.
Just then, the meeting room door was pushed open again. Mayor Liu De walked in with a broad smile.
He had been outside handling some business and had deliberately stayed away so as not to disturb the recruitment inside.
As he saw it, Lin Luoluo's astonishing 3S rating made it a foregone conclusion that every captain would fight to recruit her.
He had been planning to congratulate the child he had watched grow up once the dust had settled.
"Luoluo, how did it go? Have you chosen which..."
Liu De stopped mid-sentence. The smile froze on his face, replaced by astonishment.
The lively, bustling scene he had expected was nowhere to be seen.
The entire meeting room was empty, with only Lin Luoluo sitting alone on the enormous sofa.
What had happened?
Where was everyone?
How had the captains who had been arguing red-faced just moments ago all disappeared?
Liu De swept his gaze around the empty room, finally settling on the door that had just closed.
He recalled the smug figures of Jiang Ruoxue and her father as they left. His heart sank, and a bad suspicion came to mind.
He rushed over to Lin Luoluo in a few strides, unable to contain the anger in his eyes.
"Luoluo, why did all the captains leave? Did Jiang Ruoxue pull something again?"
Liu De's voice trembled with anger.
"The Jiang Family has gone too far!
Jiang Ruoxue wasn't strong enough and got a lower rating than you, yet she still tried every way she could to stop you from joining a Mining Team! Do they really have so little regard for me as mayor?!"
It was clear that Liu De was truly furious. His chest heaved, and his face flushed red.
"No! I'm going to demand an explanation from them!"
With that, he spun around, ready to rush out and confront Jiang Ruoxue and her father.
The moment Liu De turned to leave, a black tentacle, cool to the touch, suddenly emerged from beneath Lin Luoluo and rested on his shoulder.
The tentacle looked soft and weak, but Liu De's forward motion was stopped instantly. It was as though an iron clamp had welded him to the spot, leaving him unable to move.
Liu De was startled. He tried to pull free, only to find that although the force on his shoulder seemed gentle, he could not budge it in the slightest.