"First, there are currently nine people who have obtained silver treasure chests, including you and me. How do you plan to persuade the other seven to join this organization?"
Ji Chaoyang seemed to have anticipated Xu Xin's question, and replied in a relaxed tone: "Among the remaining nine people, I've been communicating with the three ranked third, fifth, and seventh since the newbie protection period. They also obtained their silver chests with my help. So we only need to convince the remaining four people. The key to this actually lies with you."
"Me?"
Hearing Ji Chaoyang's words, Xu Xin was secretly alarmed.
There were only nine people who had obtained silver treasure chests in total, and including Ji Chaoyang himself, four of them were actually connected to him!
This person was truly a big shot!
"That's right. If you join our organization, then in the entire Area 188, only we will be able to craft metal weapons, armor, and tools. I believe you've seen those items – their green-level performance is basically comparable to the blue-level equipment produced before.
Currently, iron ore and other metal ores are scarce, and we only have two people, so our production capacity is limited. So if we announce that for now, the metal tools we two produce are only available for trade within the organization, what do you think they will choose?
As strong individuals who ranked in the top ten during the event, they must want to become even stronger. Not to mention that our organization is full of powerful people, so the exchange of resources and information will definitely be much more efficient than exploring on their own.
At the same time, our organization doesn't have any strict requirements. It's all benefits without any drawbacks, so why not join?"
Well, well, monopoly, huh? This has a bit of a capitalist feel to it.
Xu Xin nodded secretly. There was nothing wrong with what Ji Chaoyang said. Even Xu Xin himself would definitely join such an organization if he encountered one. According to him, the only restriction might be the unified pricing of materials.
But there were nine people who obtained silver chests, which was not a small number. Compared to everyone setting their own prices and prices becoming more and more competitive, unified pricing actually had more advantages.
"Then the second question, how will organization members communicate with each other?"
Ji Chaoyang smiled and said, "You must have had very little contact with people these past few days, Xu Xin."
"Indeed, not many."
"After the newbie protection period, the treehouse opened a function similar to group chat. Currently, each person can only join one group chat. I was previously in the same group chat with those three who obtained silver chests. We can create a new group chat."
"May I ask how you helped them find the silver chests?" Xu Xin was very curious about this, because the process of him obtaining the silver chest was very strange, and he wasn't sure if it was the same for others.
"Of course. You also obtained your silver chest from the stream, right?"
"Yes."
"I just told them that my silver chest was in the stream, and asked them to explore along the stream, paying attention to the monsters in the water. You probably noticed too, that at the location of the chest, the stream's flow slowed down a bit, and the sound of the water was slightly different."
The stream slowed down? The sound of water? Xu Xin frowned as he tried to recall.
Not really? The stream was still rushing as before, and as for the sound of water, he hadn't paid much attention. Could it be that the terrifying crocodile he encountered was different from what others faced?
"Are all the silver chests in the stream?" Xu Xin continued to ask.
"I don't know. There were actually a few more people in that group chat, but only those three found chests."
"What kind of monsters did you encounter in the stream? Mine was a crocodile." Xu Xin concealed the fact that the crocodile didn't attack him, and asked probingly.
That terrifying crocodile didn't attack him, and even gave him a silver chest for free, which made Xu Xin think it was stranger the more he pondered it.
"On my end, it was a huge turtle as big as a round table, just lying on the bottom of the stream. It suddenly attacked me when I got close. Luckily, I reacted quickly and blocked it,
but it still bit through my weapon." Ji Chaoyang's tone was somewhat pained, "That was a blue-grade weapon! Fortunately, the turtle turned into fragments due to the treehouse's protection, otherwise I might have fallen there too."
Sure enough, the terrifying crocodile Xu Xin encountered was indeed different.
A turtle as big as a dining table was certainly large, but at most it would be a snack for that crocodile.
What exactly was that crocodile? Its red dot didn't even show up on the map.
When he was in the underground world, that bunch of monsters all appeared on the map. Could it be that this giant crocodile wasn't an underground creature?
"So, Xu Xin, are you interested in creating this organization with me?" Ji Chaoyang asked, seeing that Xu Xin had been silent for a while.
"It's a pleasure to work with you," Xu Xin replied.
"Haha, likewise!" Ji Chaoyang laughed and clapped his hands. "When the time is right, I'll create the group chat and add you. By the way, can we video chat? I still don't know what you look like, and some things are better discussed face to face."
"Of course." Xu Xin was also curious about Ji Chaoyang's appearance.
The two connected their video call, and Xu Xin finally saw what Ji Chaoyang looked like. He was a young man who appeared very refined, with delicate features and a meticulously styled haircut. Like Xu Xin, he was wearing the newbie two-piece set. Unlike Xu Xin, his clothes looked much cleaner and neater, probably specially groomed.
"You're quite handsome." Ji Chaoyang was a bit surprised when he saw Xu Xin's appearance, perhaps not expecting Xu Xin to be so good-looking.
"To be honest, I initially thought you'd be more of the burly type," Xu Xin replied with a smile.
"Haha. We're partners from now on. Now, let's talk about something that only the two of us know." Ji Chaoyang's expression turned serious. "Xu Xin, what do you think about those monsters in the underground world?"
"We will definitely have to face them in the future. This is very likely the reason why we came to this world." Xu Xin shared his insight. "Even now on the surface, if we're not within the protective range of the treehouse, we'll be attacked by these underground creatures. They're ubiquitous. Compared to wild beasts, they are our true enemies."
"I agree with that point, but Xu Xin, have you ever considered whether the monsters attacking us on the surface are really the same as those underground?"
"What do you mean?" Xu Xin's brows furrowed.
"You must have noticed that between the monsters attacking us on the surface and those underground, although the types are similar, there's a huge difference in size. The monsters in the underground world are obviously much larger."
"Yes, that's true." To be honest, Xu Xin felt that the crocodile wasn't small, but thinking of its special nature, he nodded in agreement with Ji Chaoyang's statement.
"Moreover, I observed from the cliff edge for half a day and found that those underground monsters don't seem to have the ability to fly up thousands of meters to reach the surface."
Xu Xin's frown deepened: "Are you saying that the monsters attacking us are not those underground monsters?"
Ji Chaoyang pondered for a moment and said: "Those monsters attacking us should also live underground, but they don't live in the underground world we saw. Instead, they live in the soil beneath our feet. We should view these two types of monsters separately."
Xu Xin gradually sorted out his thoughts: "You're saying that currently there are three types of monsters: the beasts on the surface, the medium-sized monsters in the soil, and the large monsters underground?"
Although called medium-sized monsters, they were still much larger than beasts. That man-eating flower was easily ten meters tall.
"Yes, and in my view, these seemingly smaller versions of the underground world monsters beneath our feet might have been artificially created and placed here."
Xu Xin's eyes narrowed, and after pondering for a moment, he said: "Is the purpose to make us familiar with the underground monsters in advance?"
"Exactly."
The two looked at each other, both seeing a hint of panic in the other's eyes.
They were probably just a bunch of lab rats.
Xu Xin suddenly thought of the skeleton he saw underground.
They weren't the first batch of people to come to this world. Before them, others had already been here early on.
Those people, were they survivors, or the ones controlling this world?