Although Lin Yu usually had few friends, it was quite simple for him to win over specific individuals or groups.

The so-called "meeting" at Jiang'an Hall was more like a team-building dinner party—the work discussion part only happened before the food was served. After each member briefly reported their recent uneventful situations, everyone started...

Eating and drinking.

Tycoon hadn't lied to Lin Yu about this—the atmosphere within Jiang'an Hall was indeed very friendly.

And such an occasion gave Lin Yu ample room to shine.

After several rounds of drinks, the two Incense Masters beside Lin Yu, slurring their words, were already calling him "brother."

"Brother Yao, you're really something..."

"We hit it off right away, us brothers!"

Lin Yu smiled and raised his glass filled with juice. "What are you talking about? Both of you are my seniors, whether inside or outside the game. I still have much to learn!"

As he spoke, he downed the juice in his glass in one gulp.

And these two weren't the only ones who had an excellent impression of Lin Yu—he had already made rounds, toasting and drinking with everyone.

All the core members of Jiang'an Hall now felt varying degrees of goodwill and closeness toward "Old Yao."

Especially... Tycoon, sitting at the head of the table, his face flushed red from drinking.

He picked up his wine glass and swayed over to this side.

"Boss!"

"You two make some room, I need to chat with Old Yao," Tycoon said. The two Incense Masters moved their stools aside, letting Tycoon plop down next to Lin Yu. "Old Yao, seeing you fit in so well puts my mind at ease."

"To be honest, brother, when I first recruited you and gave you important roles, I really valued your connection with May May—he's a very promising newcomer with great potential, so I originally hoped you'd tie him down..."

"But brother, everything I said in the car came from the heart, genuine words without any falsehood... Now when I say I have high hopes for you, I truly mean it!"

"Our Jiang'an Hall welcomes all kinds of talents, and someone as socially adept as you is naturally also talent—for an organization to grow big and achieve great things, it needs those fierce generals and wise advisors. Look at Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang, who started his rebellion by slaying the white serpent—he needed Han Xin, Zhang Liang, Fan Kuai... but most importantly, he needed Xiao He!"

Tycoon let out a heavy sigh. "Old Yao, brother... you are my Xiao He!"

Lin Yu quickly raised his glass again. "Boss, you're giving me too much praise..."

"What too much praise? Phantom Hand, come over!"

A middle-aged man eating at the other end of the banquet table stood up, rubbed his hands, and hurried over.

"Boss, what do you need?"

"Take out those items I asked you to help select," Tycoon said, then looked back at Lin Yu. "After all, the Death Game is special. Ordinary talents can get by with just one specialty, but since we have to clear dungeons, we need to improve our abilities in all aspects—otherwise, it's easy to die inexplicably in a dungeon... Brother knows you just got promoted recently, so you probably lack sufficient foundation. That's why I got you two sets of items."

"Since I have a Unique Class, I don't understand these things well," Tycoon continued. "So I asked Phantom Hand to handle this matter—let professionals handle professional work... You two have the same Class, so communicate and build your relationship more in the future!"

As Tycoon spoke, Phantom Hand also smiled.

"Brother Yao, these two items are both things that first-tier Thieves really need... I heard from the boss that you chose the Wonder Pouch, so I supplemented your survival ability and attack methods for you."

Lin Yu quickly took the items handed over by Phantom Hand and immediately expressed his thanks.

"Thank you so much... Ah," Lin Yu's face showed an excited expression. "Boss, Brother Hand... You're really too thoughtful. Joining you all is truly the honor of my lifetime!"

After thanking them, Lin Yu looked at the prompts that appeared before his eyes one after another.

[Item: Assassin's Wrist Crossbow, bound!]

[Item: Earth Evasion Talisman Armor, bound!]

[Assassin's Wrist Crossbow: Equips six steel wrist bolts every 72 hours. Pull the trigger mechanism to fire them all at once. Before activation, this device will remain in a state of "absolute concealment."]

[Earth Evasion Talisman Armor: After activation, allows free movement within any solid medium for 15 minutes. Requires a 24-hour recharge time after each use.]

Looking at these item prompts, Lin Yu was stunned.

He originally thought that the items Tycoon and Phantom Hand prepared for Old Yao would probably be barely usable for him.

But these would likely be hot items worth thousands of points at an auction!

It seemed Tycoon was really afraid Old Yao would die in a dungeon... He must genuinely have high hopes for Old Yao!

After realizing the value of these items, Lin Yu immediately upgraded his performance of being moved.

He first showed astonishment: "This... this is too valuable, I can't accept it, can I?"

"What nonsense, I already said you've made huge contributions to the organization!"

Tycoon said seriously, and Phantom Hand also urged: "Yeah, these are specifically for you."

Only then did Lin Yu, feeling overwhelmed by such favor, pick up those two items. He didn't rush to put them away but examined them for a while, then showed some joy.

"I'm really grateful to everyone... I truly, the organization treats me so well, I don't know how to repay you!"

By the end, Lin Yu's eyes were slightly moist.

He vigorously rubbed his nose, half embarrassed and half joyful, saying: "Boss, sorry, I'm a bit emotional... It's just... thank you so much!"

His previously socially adept demeanor disappeared, replaced by a somewhat flustered appearance.

"Hey, it's no big deal, you deserve it all."

Tycoon patted Lin Yu's shoulder again.

"So, kid, you've got to give me some real information too," Tycoon said with a smile. "May May told me he has a life-and-death friendship with you... Looks like he must be the one whose life you saved."

"Old Yao, brother is being completely honest with you. I've shown you real, tangible things, so you know I'm not playing games with you... You should also tell your big brother the truth."

"How were you able to save someone that ruthless!"

Hearing Tycoon's words, Lin Yu still looked moved and immediately spoke up.

"Big brother, there's nothing to hide from you. I do have some trump cards!" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

At this moment, Lin Yu's tone was extremely sincere, as if he wanted to bare his heart to Tycoon.

But in his mind, when Lin Yu heard Tycoon ask this question, his first reaction was only...

Relief!

"Sure enough, an old hand like Tycoon couldn't possibly fail to notice the foreshadowing I left using May May's identity!"

"He finally asked."

Lin Yu leaned closer to Tycoon and lowered his voice.

"To be honest with you, brother, in a certain dungeon, I once saw a god!"