Chapter 52: Why Would I Avoid Their Sharp Edge?

"Oh?"

Lin Mo paused slightly, a hint of amusement curling at the corner of his lips.

【Fireball Spell raged: Insolent! Simply insolent! Who gave them the audacity?】

Even Earth Shield Spell, who usually only thought of burrowing when trouble arose, was filled with righteous indignation.

【Earth Shield Spell: Damn it, ganging up on the master? Treating the master like a BOSS to be farmed, huh? Big brother, get them!】

【Fireball Spell's flames surged: We must get them! A bunch of chickens and clay dogs, daring to dig at the Taisui's head?】

Lin Mo calmly pointed to the chair opposite: "Don't stand, sit down and talk. Tell me what's going on."

Xia Qingyue glanced at the wreckage on the table, hesitated for a moment, then pulled out the chair and sat down, her expression still Serious.

"Lin Shao, the Zhao family contacted me just now."

"Because I followed your advice earlier and took their money, they now treat me as one of their own."

"The rules for the second stage of the Mist Wasteland are: besides gaining points by killing monsters, defeating other examinees allows you to directly plunder all of their points."

"As time passes, the storm circle on the periphery will continuously shrink, forcing all examinees to gather toward the central area."

"Teleportation is random, but communication devices have not been blocked."

"Zhao Yu's meaning is that after teleportation lands, he will notify everyone of his coordinates."

"Everyone will first converge and gather around him."

"Once they successfully form a group, they will begin... a carpet search and surround and kill you, Lin Shao."

After hearing these words,

Lin Mo nodded thoughtfully, picked up a napkin, and wiped the oil stains from the corner of his mouth.

Tsk tsk tsk...

Dozens of people forming a group.

They really intend to treat me like a BOSS to be farmed.

【Fireball Spell scoffed disdainfully: Heh, does having many people make a difference? These minnows, however many come, this one will burn them all!】

【Earth Shield Spell also grumbled: Exactly! We have Molten Battle Armor, and we have Earth Flow Wall, what are we afraid of?】

Lin Mo soothed the agitated skills, then looked at Xia Qingyue:

"So, is this their entire plan?"

"Yes."

Xia Qingyue nodded.

Seeing Lin Mo's calm and indifferent appearance, she couldn't help but admire this young master's composure.

"Lin Shao, you are indeed very strong, but that is still dozens of people. You... what do you plan to do? Should you avoid their edge?"

"Heh, avoid their edge?"

Lin Mo leaned back, a hint of mockery in his eyes: "Since they want to play, I will play along with them."

He looked at Xia Qingyue, a wicked smile curling at the corner of his lips:

"Xia Big School Beauty, after teleportation lands, once Zhao Yu releases the coordinates, forward them to me immediately."

Xia Qingyue was stunned, then immediately understood Lin Mo's intention.

"You want to... take the initiative to attack?"

"Mm."

Lin Mo nodded slightly.

Even if dozens of people attack together, he was not particularly afraid.

After all, they probably couldn't break the defense of Molten Battle Armor, although Molten Battle Armor could only last for 5 minutes.

But he had many skills; 5 minutes was enough to wipe out the entire enemy group.

But...

That would be so troublesome, wouldn't it?

As the saying goes, to capture the bandits, first capture their king.

If Zhao Yu could be dealt with right at the start, the ragtag crowd would naturally scatter.

Why wait for them to gather before dealing with them when one move could solve it?

Xia Qingyue looked at Lin Mo, paused for a moment, and asked hesitantly:

"Lin Shao, do you trust me so much? What if... I lead you into a trap?"

Hearing this, Lin Mo shrugged, looking completely indifferent:

"A trap? So what? It would just be a bit more troublesome, that's all."

At this, Lin Mo looked at Xia Qingyue with a half-smile:

"It's you, Xia Big School Beauty."

"You ran over to warn me; aren't you afraid of Zhao Yu's retaliation afterward?"

"After all, the Zhao family still has some influence in Jianghai City."

"I..."

Upon hearing this, Xia Qingyue's hands, resting on her knees, tightened slightly.

After a struggle, Xia Qingyue seemed to make a decision, raised her head, and looked straight at Lin Mo.

"Lin Shao, I have an A-rank talent; in the eyes of ordinary people, I might be a genius, but looking at the entire Dragon Nation, A-ranks are as common as cattle hair."

"My family has no background, no resources."

"If I don't fight for it, the best path after graduation is to join a large guild as a hired muscle, or join the army and start as a common soldier, risking my life for those meager resources."

"I am not willing to accept that."

Saying this, her tone became incomparably firm:

"Lin Shao, you have strength, you have backing, and you have bearing…"

"Alright, I got it."

Lin Mo waved his hand, cutting off Xia Qingyue's long-winded speech.

His heart was clear as a mirror.

This Xia Qingyue was nothing more than wanting to latch onto a powerful thigh, to find a backer.

But as for taking on underlings, Lin Mo had absolutely zero interest right now—managing people was too tiring.

Lin Mo picked up the juice beside him and took a sip, saying casually:

"No need to pledge loyalty to me, I don't buy that act."

"Since you helped me, I won't let you have worked for nothing."

"Once the Grand Exam is over, I'll put in a word with my dad."

"However…"

Lin Mo shifted the topic, saying offhandedly:

"I'm only responsible for mentioning it. As for how my dad arranges things on his end, what treatment he gives you—that's his business. I'm too lazy to manage it, and I won't make you any promises."

Although it was only mentioning it, for Xia Qingyue, this was already a ladder reaching to the heavens.

What kind of person was Lin Tianhao?

The War God of Jianghai City!

If she could enter his elite troops, it would simply be ascending to the heavens in a single step!

Who needs a bicycle?

Xia Qingyue's face showed delight, and she quickly stood up and bowed:

"Understood, Lin Shao! As long as I can be of help to you, that's enough! Thank you, Lin Shao, for your patronage!"

"I definitely won't let you down!"

Lin Mo nodded, pointed at the two remaining chickens on the table and said: "Mm, have you eaten? If not, let's order more? This chicken really tastes pretty good."

Xia Qingyue glanced at the tempting roast chicken and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

"Thank you for your kindness, Lin Shao, but I'll pass."

"I need to leave first, to avoid being seen with you and arousing Zhao Yu's suspicion, which would ruin your big plans."

"Alright, go ahead, stay safe."

Lin Mo didn't press the matter, and waved his hand.

Xia Qingyue turned and quickly left the private room.

The private room door closed once again.

Just then, the phone on the table suddenly buzzed, with the words "Father Emperor" flashing on the screen.

"Hello, Dad?"

"Son!!"

Lin Tianhao's booming voice came through, jolting Lin Mo into instinctively holding the phone a bit farther away.

"Hahahaha! Beautifully done! You've really made your old man proud!"

"Floor thirty! A 24-second speed clear! You know what? Just now that old Zhao Lei's face turned as green as a goblin! Hahahaha, laughing me to death! So satisfying!"

Lin Mo listened to his old man's maniacal laughter, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curve up slightly.

"Basic operation, don't @ me."

"You brat, still putting on that act!"

Lin Tianhao laughed and cursed, then his tone grew a bit more serious:

"Right, let me tell you something serious."

"The Long Xu Ban admissions officer is extremely satisfied with your performance—it's no exaggeration to say they're amazed!"

"As long as you don't mess up in the second stage, getting into Long Xu Ban is basically a done deal! This is a glorious achievement that brings honor to our ancestors!"

"That's a given—do I even need to say whose son I am?"

Lin Mo said with a smile.

"You stinky brat…"

Lin Tianhao laughed and cursed.

Lin Mo held the phone, calculating in his heart.

Should he tell his dad about Zhao Yu's plan to gang up on him?

After thinking for about 0.5 seconds, Lin Mo dismissed the idea.

What's the point of telling his dad?

Besides giving them unnecessary worry, it serves no purpose.

Moreover…

Honestly, with Zhao Yu's bunch of small fries, he really hadn't taken them seriously at all.

For such a small scene, he could handle it with a flick of the wrist—why disturb the two elders at home?

At this moment, Su Wan's voice came through:

"Old Lin, move aside, let me say a couple of words to my son!"

"Hello? Mo'er?"

Su Wan's voice instantly turned gentle as water:

"You must be exhausted from earlier? If that second stage is too tiring, let's just find a place to hide. The first stage results are already good enough…"

"Mom, I'm eating right now, at the restaurant by the square. The food is excellent."

"That's good, that's good. Eat more, don't mistreat yourself..."

After lingering with his mother for a few more words, Lin Mo hung up the phone.

By now, the food on the table had been almost entirely devoured.

Lin Mo let out a burp, stood up, and strolled leisurely back to the square; the second phase was about to begin.