It was noon.
Players logged off one after another to eat. They couldn't bear to spend in-game currency on food.
Gao Linzhi, however, went straight to the Village West Canteen with Zheng Dong and the others.
After all, he had a Guard Contract as a village guard, which came with free food and lodging.
It was easy to understand why someone wouldn't log off to eat, since logging on and off would waste time.
But just as Gao Linzhi was heading into the village, a player named Little Cat Fishing came over to him.
"Hey, buddy, can I have a word?" Little Cat Fishing asked.
"Is something up?" Gao Linzhi asked, glancing at Zheng Dong.
Zheng Dong waved him off. "Go ahead. I'll order you something first, so you can just sit down and eat when you get there."
"Sorry for the trouble, Captain Zheng."
Then Gao Linzhi followed Little Cat Fishing to a quiet spot.
"Brother, you're not a Company Executive, are you?" Little Cat Fishing asked bluntly.
"Oh? What makes you say that?" Gao Linzhi asked in return.
"It's simple. Company Executives would never sign a contract that puts their lives on the line." Little Cat Fishing scoffed.
"Their specialty is digging up Ordinary Players' real identities, killing them to make their posters drop, then capturing homeless people in the real world and training them to be expendable alt accounts in the game, so they can work for them and earn them a profit."
By the end, Little Cat Fishing was grinding his teeth, visibly indignant.
"I see. So I shouldn't reveal my real identity while playing this game." Gao Linzhi nodded slightly.
"Brother, if that's all you're thinking, you won't last long." Little Cat Fishing shook his head with a cold laugh.
"Oh? Why not?"
"You can hide your real identity in the village, sure. But the moment you're alone out in the wilderness, their capture squads could catch you."
"Then they'll torture you to force you to reveal your real identity. Think you can take it?" Little Cat Fishing asked.
"Fair point. So what should I do?" Gao Linzhi asked thoughtfully.
"Obviously, Rogue Players need to band together and face organizations with an organization of our own. Whenever we go out, we have powerful players lead us, and we move as a group. Then they won't be able to do anything to us." Little Cat Fishing looked fired up.
Linzhi nodded. Little Cat had a point.
"Then what's your organization called?"
Little Cat Fishing immediately brightened. "Our organization is called the Tianxia Guild. We stand for 'equality for all, one family under heaven.' Our purpose is to stand together against the companies' exploitation and protect every member."
"Oh, that's a fine purpose. Keep up the good work. You have my admiration." Gao Linzhi smiled, then turned to leave. "Let me know when you've succeeded. I still have to eat."
Damn, if I couldn't see through such an obvious fishing expedition, wouldn't my transmigration have been for nothing?
Wouldn't those twenty thousand hours I spent reading web novels have gone to waste?
"Wait... Don't you believe me? Are you planning to fight alone?"
"You should know that no one can take on Company Players alone in this game. They have ninety-nine ways to screw you over." Little Cat Fishing hurried after him, continuing to persuade him.
Gao Linzhi shook his head with a laugh. "Hahaha, isn't a game more fun when it's harder?"
"Life's script is far too simple."
"It's already too boring for me. Only a difficult challenge can make me feel truly alive!"
Little Cat Fishing was stunned at first, then felt contempt.
Damn, what a show-off!
Just wait until Company Players catch and torture you. Then you'll regret it!
Little Cat Fishing watched Gao Linzhi walk away, then turned and left.
He knew the other man didn't believe him now, but he'd understand soon enough.
Only the Tianxia Guild could deal with those big companies!
Then he spotted another player hauling bricks and immediately went over.
"Hey, brother, allow me to introduce you to the sun of Rogue Players: the Tianxia Guild."
Gao Linzhi shook his head to himself. What Tianxia Guild? I might as well start the Supreme Alliance!
The village canteen.
It stood at the western end of the village, right next to a Demonic Creature Prison. As its name suggested, the prison was used to hold demonic creatures and sell players the right to slaughter them.
The ingredients they dropped were sent straight to the canteen to be cooked fresh.
You could say the canteen had been built around the Demonic Creature Prison.
Gao Linzhi had arrived at the canteen and joined Zheng Dong at a table in the corner.
There were already quite a few people inside, most of them members of the Patrol Team. There were very few players.
"They've got rabbit meat today. If you eat ingredients dropped by these demonic creatures regularly, you can improve your constitution!" Zheng Dong said, pointing at the dishes he'd ordered.
Gao Linzhi smiled. "That's great. I'd better eat plenty."
The two of them sat down and began eating.
Before long, another player came straight over to their table.
The name above his head read "Xu Clan* Old Seven."
Seeing this, Zheng Dong wisely picked up his food tray and moved to another table.
"Is something up?" Gao Linzhi took a bite and found the food delicious.
Too bad this wasn't his own body. If he wanted to feel full, he'd still have to eat in his real body.
"Brother Canxue, I've got a kilogram of gold here. If you can figure out a way to lure Lin Qing outside the village, all this gold is yours. You'll get another four kilograms afterward." Xu Clan* Old Seven got straight to the point, speaking quietly.
As he spoke, he took out two large gold bars and set them on the table.
The gleaming gold bars made the people in the canteen draw in quiet breaths.
Clearly, even the locals valued gold.
Gao Linzhi looked at the gold bars and reached out to pick them up.
[Can recharge 1000 gold. Recharge now? [No.]
A kilogram was 1,000 grams. Clearly, the game treated one gram as one gold.
"Lin Qing and I are both village guards now, and we're both students of the Fourth Elder. She's practically my junior sect sister." Gao Linzhi scoffed.
"You only just met. You can't possibly have that close a relationship," Xu Qi said coldly.
"I'm saying you need to offer more. A hundred kilograms of gold might do it. Do you know what talent she has?" Gao Linzhi shook his head.
A hundred kilograms was 100,000 grams, or 100,000 gold.
If he could recharge 100,000 gold in one go, Gao Linzhi wouldn't have to fear Xu Corporation anymore.
At a thousand yuan per gram in the real world, that would be 100 million yuan!
Unexpectedly, when Xu Qi heard Gao Linzhi's outrageous demand, he didn't curse him out. Instead, he seemed to consider it.
He nodded slightly. "Then I'll have to ask the young master first."
Gao Linzhi couldn't help sneering inwardly.
As expected, these real-world companies could easily amass great wealth through economic monopolies.
A hundred kilograms of gold didn't seem to put much pressure on them.
They must have transported all that gold from the real world into the game.
He didn't believe a village could just produce that much hard currency.
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