"I totally agree with that, but it seems that you guys haven't joined any guilds yet, have you? No matter how strong you are in this world, you still fear being outnumbered. You need a powerful backer. Since I felt a connection with you guys the moment we met, I feel very close to you. How about you come with us to the safe zone, and I'll introduce you to join the Wuji Guild? Once you're in, I'll watch over you. Plus, there are lots of benefits in our guild, not just a good shade under a big tree, but also salaries, social security, and extra perks... oh, and plenty of ladies too..."
Sun Duoxiang became more and more excited as he spoke, eventually pulling them along.
"Really?"
Zhang Hao was also very tempted and couldn't help but respond.
"Absolutely true, I guarantee it on my personal honor."
Sun Duoxiang promised solemnly.
Watching his flamboyant maneuvers, Lan Xi almost couldn't keep her mouth shut, giving Sun Duoxiang a thumbs-up secretly.
Even the usually composed Su Mo couldn't help but slightly twitch the corner of his mouth. No matter how you looked at it, Sun Duoxiang resembled a pyramid scheme leader. Was he really just recruiting? Was he that good at sweet-talking?
"Fair enough, since that's the case, from now on, we brothers will follow you. What should we call you, big brother?"
Zhang Hao, true to his straits, was quick to bend and stretch, directly addressing Sun Duoxiang as "big brother".
"We're all family here. I'm Sun Duoxiang, but you can just call me Brother Sun. Don't worry, following me, you'll definitely have a good time."
Sun Duoxiang, shamelessly thick-faced, continued his spiel without a heartbeat of hesitation, thinking to himself that these guys all had guns and seemed capable enough to take down quite a few players. There was a good chance they'd pass the guild's approval process, and then he'd be counting his money, smiling all the way.
"Brother Sun, that's really decent of you. Now that we're brothers, this is for you."
As he spoke, Zhang Hao took a Type 64 pistol from his waist and handed it to Sun Duoxiang.
"You're too kind, but I'll reluctantly accept it."
As Sun Duoxiang took it, his face nearly split with joy. However, when he noticed Su Mo staring at him, his smile became a bit stiff.
So he quickly passed the pistol to Su Mo.
"This is for you."
Su Mo didn't refuse and accepted it.
"Brother Sun, since you're a high-ranking manager, doesn't that make him an even higher position?"
Seeing Su Mo, Zhang Hao suddenly realized that of the three, this guy seemed to have the worst temper, surely indicating the highest status.
"Uh, he's my big brother, just much more impressive, that's all."
Sun Duoxiang replied awkwardly.
"Oh, I see. No worries. Brother Sun, we still have a few spare guns. I'll bring over two more for you."
Hearing Sun Duoxiang say so, Zhang Hao looked at Su Mo with even more respect. He had long felt this guy was different from normal people, and his instincts told him he was dangerous.
"Good."
Sun Duoxiang was almost bursting with joy.
Zhang Hao turned and walked towards the backpack in the corner, ready to fetch two more pistols.
With nobody nearby, Su Mo lowered his voice to Sun Duoxiang.
"You sure know how to schmooze, huh!"
"Um, I had to, right? Plus, it's a good opportunity to recruit and earn some referral fees, killing two birds with one stone."
Sun Duoxiang explained awkwardly to Su Mo.
Su Mo didn't say much else. If things kept going this way, that wasn't bad either.
He toyed with the automatic pistol in his hand, disassembled the magazine to check it, and found seven 7.62MM bullets inside. It felt quite good to handle.
Before long, Zhang Hao brought over two pistols, handing one to Sun Duoxiang and the other to Lan Xi, and then asked,
"When do we leave for the safe zone?"
"Brother, no rush. At ten tonight, a brother will release a signal to clarify the location of the safe zone. We'll make a dash for it the moment we know where it is. The road will definitely be dangerous, so we need to rest up now to have the energy to run later."
Sun Duoxiang explained.
"No need to make it complicated. There's a police car in the backyard of the Security Department. We can just drive that in," he said.
Zhang Hao didn't hide anything and told Sun Duoxiang straightforwardly.
"A car? Is it usable?"
Lan Xi was also a bit surprised.
"Hehe! Don't worry, it definitely works, we've already tried it," Zhang Hao confidently replied.
"That's even better, but what about those people?"
Sun Duoxiang looked at the players squatting down, asking with curiosity.
"That's simple, watch this."
After saying this, Zhang Hao, holding a gun, walked over to the squatting players and roared fiercely.
"I'm giving you one last chance. Those who are willing to join us, I'll spare your lives. Those who aren't willing, I'll log you off directly. The choice is yours."
"I'm willing to join."
"Me too, don't kill me....."
.....
Several players on the scene were utterly unprincipled and immediately compromised.
Seeing this, Sun Duoxiang's smile grew even brighter. The more people, the better; all heads pulled back to the guild.
He was blissfully scheming in his heart. If this bunch successfully entered the guild, perhaps the higher-ups would really make him a squad leader, and then he would get promoted.
Just then, suddenly, the bracelets everyone was wearing vibrated once, and a notification popped up.
Su Mo took a careful look.
"Notification: Congratulations to Dawn Guild for successfully occupying the Hatch Ruins Base. The base will radiate over an area of five hundred kilometers, and guild members within the coverage area will receive communication support and..."
.....
"This Dawn Guild, they are so awesome!"
Zhang Hao's followers discussed in astonishment. They were still struggling for survival, while others had already secured a base—the difference was huge.
"It's not surprising. This Dawn Guild is supported by the most powerful consortium, Five Dragon Heads·White Dragon, under Dawn Group," said Lan Xi with a tone full of envy. Although her Dream Guild and the Dawn Guild were both female guilds, the scales were vastly different. Dream Guild had only a few thousand members in total, while the Dawn Guild reportedly had a million members. Moreover, they were all elite, also supported by one of the richest family consortia in the country.
Sun Duoxiang also awkwardly coughed and said, "They're not on the same level; we shouldn't focus too much on them. However, it doesn't matter. I believe that one day, we might rise to prominence as well."
He cursed inwardly, damn it, just as they were boasting about how awesome the Wuji Guild was, they were figuratively slapped in the face in minutes. But fortunately, the gap between the guilds was too large; there was nothing comparable, and they weren't interested in recruiting trash.
"Brother Sun is right. Let's not worry about them and prepare quickly," said Zhang Hao, agreeing eagerly. After all, it would be too awkward to consider joining the Wuji Guild one moment and then praise another guild the next.
"Alright!"
Sun Duoxiang quickly nodded in agreement.
As night fell, Su Mo and the others all gathered in the backyard of the Security Department, where six squad cars were parked.
Su Mo, Sun Duoxiang, Lan Xi, Zhang Hao, and his confidant Ma Ke, those five people walked to one of the squad cars, introduced themselves to each other, to facilitate communication in the upcoming actions.
Then, Su Mo naturally walked towards the driver's seat.
"I'll drive."