MMORPG: Crowd Control

The meeting started to become intense with numerous members of the Aries Guild ready to take their weapons out to fight Lei Zhen.

And as much as Tang Qiaolian hated the Aries Guild, she knew she needed to stop the two of them from having a brawl- at least not right now.

"Shan Lin, if you can't control the dogs under you and wish to drag this matter further, then just leave." Tang Qiaolian glared at Shan Lin and warned.

Being scolded as dogs, it was natural that the Aries Guild members were more riled up than ever. However, Shan Lin merely gave them a glare, prompting them to pipe down.

"Apologies, my members have shown some inappropriate behavior and will be reprimanded, Guild Leader Tang." Shan Lin said formally, ignoring the fact that Lei Zhen was the cause of this.

Sometime later, the two guilds finally managed to calm things down and moved on to the main topic.

"Although there are other guilds gathered around this time, most of their members don't care much because the affected players are not related to them or their region of control. Hence, I requested a secluded room for us two guilds because the affected players correlate with us."

Tang Qiaolian announced, nodding her head at Liu Lingxin, who proceeded to pass the documents to Shan Lin for view.

Shan Lin proceeded to read through the documents and realized most of the affected players are indeed from their region of control.

Region of control was a term used by experienced Magnolia players, especially those with a renowned guild of their own in which certain acres of land or region are technically controlled by them other than the known NPC rulers.

In other words, it was akin to being a territory ruler and having full authority over the land except for the NPC.

NPCs are a different category and no intelligent player would attempt to fight against an NPC that would always be higher in stats than the player by 10 times.

This was a lesson learned by many when a player attempted to attack a weak-looking woman, but got overwhelmed and jailed for 1 month in real time.

"Indeed, only our region has been affected so far. Those bastards profiting guilds outside wouldn't even bother to care if it wasn't for the chance that they might become the next target as well." Shan Lin said after finishing reading the documents.

Tang Qiaolian nodded her head.

"Your Aries Guild might be a part of the Zodiac Guild and seemed to be grand on the surface, but we both know that it barely qualified as one. I've already informed the matter with the representatives of the Cancer Guild and they will investigate further." She said, taunting them in the meantime.

Of course, her taunt was effective, but given that it was the truth, the Aries Guild members could only grumble in displeasure.

"If the matter gets any bigger, then even we would lose a ton of businesses. With the Cancer Guild's assistance, our workload could be lessened and prevent the culprit from committing any more crimes more boldly." Shan Lin said, agreeing to Tang Qiaolian's arrangement.

Sometimes, it is best to admit that you're incapable of doing something.

After all, trying to put up a strong front when you're incapable was no different than courting death against a strong enemy.

"Anyway, besides this document, I'm sure you have some more information, right? Otherwise, you wouldn't have requested a secluded room." Shan Lin then asked, clearly knowing there was a part two in this matter.

"Indeed, I have." Tang Qiaolian said but made sure to keep her eyes on Shan Lin's guild members.

Her action subsequently prompted the members to clench their fists as they understood what her indication meant. She was basically saying that they could not be trusted and should exit the room.

"They have been under me for 7 years already. I trust their personality and conduct." Shan Lin said, seemingly trying to reassure the doubts in her mind.

Alas, Tang Qiaolian had no intention of listening as she crossed her arms.

"The information I'm about to reveal is extremely confidential, and just because you trust them doesn't mean the same for me. So do me a favor and ask them to wait outside." She said calmly.

Shan Lin twitched his brows slightly. He didn't want to comply with this request because it would make them seem like a pushover.

Meanwhile, Lei Zhen took this time and smiled lightly at Shan Lin. "I'm sure you don't want to stall any longer. So just have them wait outside and we can move on. It's not like a few minutes of waiting is worse than lying to someone for 10 years."

The moment Shan Lin heard his words, he had no choice but to comply.

"Fine, all of you wait outside. This is an order!"

With that order, only Tang Qiaolian, Liu Lingxin, Shan Lin, and Lei Zhen were left in the secluded room.

A few minutes later, Tang Qiaolian took a seat and showed a solemn expression.

"The reason why I want only the four of us present is because Liu Lingxin might be the next target." Tang Qiaolian suddenly revealed, shocking Lei Zhen and Shan Lin.

"What do you mean by that, Qiaolian?" Lei Zhen asked in an astonished tone.

"Recently, Liu Lingxin was working on a mission and was ambushed by a group of unknown people. They had a device that blocked off communication signals, and Liu Lingxin only managed to escape the pursuit because of a one-time use artifact." Tang Qiaolian explained.

"Mhmm, those groups of people were able to temporarily disable my skills and communication. They worked extremely well together and I was forced into a dead-end. When they thought they had succeeded, I heard one of them mention a nickname called Diablo." Liu Lingxin added, showing a slight fear in her expression.

It was clear that the incident had affected her mentally as she didn't expect that if she was to be caught, then she might be in the same condition as those affected players.

The room was silent completely as both Shan Lin and Lei Zhen held solemn expressions on their faces. If what Liu Lingxin said was true, then the culprit would most definitely attack Liu Lingxin again.

"Why didn't they attack you again if that was the case? I'm sure they would definitely not give up this easily and allow someone to escape scot-free." Shan Lin suddenly enquired, seemingly curious as to how she was still able to be in this meeting today.

"That's because she hadn't logged into Magnolia since that day until now." Tang Qiaolian answered on her behalf.

"And the reason why I have Lingxin come online today is because I wanted to use her as bait to see if anyone is suspicious." She added.

Shan Lin, however, shook his head and said, "This is too risky. We have practically zero information about the culprit and her safety isn't guaranteed. Why would you want to risk such a gamble?"

"It's because we have no information that we needed to take a risk." Tang Qiaolian retorted.

And she continued, "Lingxin also agreed to the plan and is mentally prepared. I'm not heartless enough to risk a bestie of mine without her approval."

"I still don't agree with it." Shan Lin shook his head and turned his attention to Lei Zhen.

"You wouldn't agree to such a risky plan either, right Lei Zhen?

All eyes are now on Lei Zhen since it was clear that he had a voice in this matter as well.

Tang Qiaolian's plan was to use Liu Lingxin as bait to have the enemies target her again to obtain valuable information whereas Shan Lin believed it was too risky of a plan and was against using Liu Lingxin as bait.

Both of them were acting with good intentions, except their opinions are different.

After a few minutes of pondering, Lei Zhen finally gave his opinions on the matter.

"Shan Lin's concern for Lingxin's safety is justified and understandable, but like Qiaolian had previously said. We have no information, so what we're doing now with this grand meeting is nothing but a clown show in the eyes of the culprit. Hence, I agree with Qiaolian's plan under the condition that Liu Lingxin would not be harmed." Lei Zhen said calmly.

"Are you trying to say that you remain neutral?" Shan Lin asked, clearly a bit irritated at his words.

Lei Zhen's opinion was the same as not saying things at all because he didn't choose a side.

Of course, Lei Zhen knew what he said but was too lazy to explain to Shan Lin.

Instead, he turned his attention to Liu Lingxin and asked, "Lingxin, what was the artifact that you used to escape and its function in precise detail?"

"It was an artifact that allowed me to teleport to the specific cathedral without any cooldown or restriction. When the unknown group of people disabled most of my skills and items, only this artifact was still usable and remained unaffected."

"Hmm, what else do you know about the artifact? Such as the materials or how it's made?"

"I don't really know much about the interior design of the artifact…" Liu Lingxin lowered her head and said in a low tone.

However, Liu Lingxin then recalled a moment that had occurred in a flash. "I do remember hearing some monsters screaming when the artifact was activated."

'Monster screaming?' Lei Zhen thought to himself, seemingly trying to recollect some memories as to why he found it familiar.