Chapter 396: He Became the Client Holding All the Cards

Su Wan.

The head of Warring States Game Studio had also been worked to the bone lately, so stressed that her hormones were practically in revolt.

After Captain Bai left, Su Wangchuan had also gone off and founded his own studio.

Now even the members of the Land-Clearing Team—Monk Dalong, Old Qiu, Old Yuan, and the others—had started looking into setting up studios of their own in the future. It left the Land-Clearing Team feeling as though it had lost its spiritual pillar, turning into something close to a loose pile of sand.

If Lin Xun, Bai Yuhui, and Su Wangchuan had not been keeping the Gold-Farming Team running and holding the basic structure together, she truly would have wanted to resign.

It was then that her phone rang.

Su Wan glanced at the caller ID. Her eyes brightened at once. A lovely smile full of surprise bloomed across her face as she rose and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing toward the fifty-four-story tower of Sanjiang Studio as she spoke in a sweet, playful voice:

“Boss Wangchuan!”

“What made you think of your old home today?”

“What can I do for you?”

“Cooperation?”

“With my boss?”

Su Wan’s expression changed at once. The bright mask vanished from her face, replaced by solemn focus.

“You mean you want to cooperate with the boss of our Warring States Game Studio using the niche cultivation methods in your hands? You are not joking, are you?”

“Don’t hang up. I’ll contact our boss right now.”

The call switched to a three-way conference.

On the screen before Su Wangchuan, Su Wan was on the left, while on the right sat a man in his forties with rather cold-looking eyes, studying him from top to bottom.

“So you’re Su Wangchuan.”

“One of the employees who came out of Warring States Game Studio?”

“Yes.”

A faint smile hung on Su Wangchuan’s face.

“I worked at Warring States Game Studio for over a year. I never expected I’d only get to see the boss’s true face after resigning. Truly... your reputation was better than the reality.”

The boss of Warring States Game Studio was only a Fifth-Rank Martial Artist.

That genuinely disappointed him.

The man had gathered so many resources and wasted so much time, yet he had only reached the Fifth Rank.

The cold-faced man frowned in displeasure and took the cigarette from his lips.

“In just over a year, you went from a newcomer to a Fourth-Rank Martial Artist and even took the position of a Caobang hall master over a branch helm. You do have the capital to be arrogant. But the world and the Jianghu you face now were built by our generation.”

At that point, his tone sank.

“When dealing with your seniors, you should at least show some manners.”

“If I hadn’t fought my way out, I’d have died without ever knowing who I was working for.”

“As for Old Li, Instructor Yu, and that group, they probably would have died without knowing what the boss of Warring States Game Studio even looked like. Rather than saying this world was built by you, it would be more accurate to say that you stepped over countless bones and souls and only made it this far under their protection.”

Su Wan’s expression changed sharply.

She had not expected Su Wangchuan to sound as though he had eaten gunpowder today, unloading such a barrage of ridicule and sarcasm at her boss.

The boss of Warring States Game Studio’s expression stiffened for a moment. Then he shook his head and said:

“It’s true that over the years, more than a hundred people have died in the Gold-Farming Team. But those were rules handed down from above. It had nothing to do with me... You’re a studio boss yourself now. We’re the same kind of people. There’s no meaning in saying this.”

“Let’s get back to the point.”

“What niche cultivation methods do you have?”

The man’s composure was solid. He had not even gotten angry.

Su Wangchuan listed off a string of names.

Twenty niche cultivation methods.

The boss of Warring States Game Studio’s eyes lit up.

“Good!”

“There are eight among them that I haven’t learned yet. I want all of them! Name your price!”

“I’m not short on money.”

That single sentence made the Warring States boss feel as though something had jammed in his chest.

“What do you want?”

“Some intelligence I don’t already know?”

Then Su Wangchuan shot Su Wan a warning glance.

“The reason I came to you first is because I used to work for Warring States Game Studio. If you don’t show enough sincerity, or can’t offer what I need, then I’m sure plenty of Fourth-Rank and Third-Rank studio bosses would be willing to cooperate with me.”

“And one more thing.”

Su Wangchuan looked straight at the Warring States boss and said:

“All the waterways and dock-branch businesses in Sanhe Commandery are under my control now. Quite a few people from Warring States Game Studio make their living under me.”

“Think it over. Then have Su Wan call me.”

With that, Su Wangchuan hung up.

Su Wan’s face turned grave.

The Warring States boss’s expression also became extremely serious.

“How many of our people are making a living under the Caobang halls right now?”

He truly did not know the exact number.

Su Wan’s expression grew complicated as she answered:

“Probably more than eight hundred.”

The Warring States boss nearly choked on a breath.

The little underling who had once come out of their studio’s Gold-Farming Team had somehow become the client holding all the cards over them.

What kind of absurd turn was this?

“What do you think Su Wangchuan is trying to do?”

“Intelligence.”

Su Wan answered without hesitation. “Su Wangchuan has always wanted to know where spirit realm came from, what the purpose of its global rollout is, as well as the appearance of the Blood Moon Incident and the later impact the game world will have on the real world.”

The Warring States boss let out a silent sigh.

“That depends on whether he has the authority... If his authority is high enough, then it will be fine. The center will reveal important intelligence without us needing to say anything. But if his authority is not high enough, then I cannot tell him what he wants to know.”

Su Wan raised her head and asked her boss:

“But the eight niche cultivation methods in his hands are enough to push you directly into the Sixth Rank!”

“They are.”

The Warring States boss narrowed his eyes slightly.

“The niche cultivation methods in his possession are enough to let any newcomer break straight into the Second Rank. He now has the ability to directly produce Third-Rank Martial Artists. If he truly fully leverages his influence, then it is not impossible for him to force his way into the Second-Tier Player Sequence.”

“The Second Tier...”

Su Wan sucked in a cold breath.

She knew full well that her own boss could only be counted as a third-tier player.

And that was only because he had some background and some strength.

Su Wangchuan might actually be able to enter that level.

“What a headache.”

“Su Wan, I’m leaving this matter to you. Find out exactly what he wants to know. As long as it does not touch those sensitive subjects, any intelligence we can provide and any help within our power, we can satisfy.”

“But our employees making a living in Sanhe Commandery absolutely cannot be disrupted.”

The Warring States boss handed the task to Su Wan.

Facing the black screen left behind after her boss ran off the instant he finished speaking, Su Wan felt like crying.

She very much wanted to say that back then, she had not been gentle with Su Wangchuan at all...

Now, facing this increasingly mature and sharp-witted fellow clansman, she had no cards left to play.

She did not even know how to face this client who now held all the leverage.

“Just as expected.”

“When you eat another man’s food, your tongue grows soft. When you take another man’s money, your hand grows weak.”

“I should never have arranged for all of them to go under the Caobang...”

“Forget it. I can only have Lin Xun and Bai Yuhui go first and play the emotional card.”

Su Wan pressed a hand to her forehead, the headache growing worse and worse.