255: Chapter 256 Global Cleanup Operation

As the outskirts of Zhongnan City came into view, the hearts of the two sisters, Gu Shuanglin and Gu Xiaoyu, were still shaken by the extreme experience of crossing hundreds of kilometers in just over ten seconds, unable to calm down for a long time.

The bone dragon slowly landed on the white jade-paved ground of the Eternal Garden's central plaza. Its massive, grim skeletal body crouched down with a gentleness that was completely at odds with its terrifying appearance. Lin Muyang was the first to leap off the dragon's back, with Elena following lightly behind. Jialiya followed closely; her icy blue eyes swept over the magnificent and vibrant garden, a flicker of faint surprise crossing them, but she quickly regained her composure as if even this paradise-like scene couldn't cause much of a stir in her heart.

The Gu sisters were the last to dismount. Gu Xiaoyu gripped her sister's hand tightly, her small face somewhat pale from the previous high-speed flight and nervousness, but filled more with a dizzying excitement. When her legs stepped onto the solid, warm jade ground, she even felt a slight, surreal softness. Gu Shuanglin fared better, but her heart was still racing.

It wasn't that she had never ridden a flying mount, but like just now—in a mere dozen seconds, with the howling gale turned gentle by the protection Lin Muyang had activated, and the scenery blurring into a stream of light, traveling from the bustling center of Tianhai City to this quiet, vast plain in an instant—this kind of speed was completely beyond her understanding of conventional flying mounts. If Lin Muyang hadn't timely protected them with a gentle force to resist the terrifying air resistance and pressure changes, they probably would have been thrown off long ago. Was this the power Lin Muyang possessed? Even the mount of the summon maiden under his command was so incredible.

"Is this the Eternal Garden?" Gu Xiaoyu finally snapped out of it, opening her curious eyes wide to look around. The first thing that met her eyes was a vast, boundless plain with lush green grass dotted with countless exotic flowers. In the distance was a massive waterfall cascading down with a thunderous roar, its mist refracting brilliant rainbows under the sunlight.

Nearby, pavilions, terraces, small bridges, and flowing water were hidden among verdant ancient trees and rare plants, the layout exquisite and grand. The air was thick with pure energy that wouldn't dissipate; every breath was refreshing, and the mana within her body seemed to flow joyfully. Further away, the outlines of towering city walls and majestic building complexes were faintly visible. The entire garden was shrouded in a faint, translucent barrier, and the sunlight filtering through the barrier made it look quiet and sacred.

"Welcome to the Eternal Garden." Lin Muyang's voice pulled the two sisters back from their shock. He looked calm, as if he had only done a trivial thing. He raised his hand, and a faint light flickered at his fingertip.

The next moment, a tall, graceful, and enchanting figure appeared quietly beside him accompanied by a faint purple glow. It was the Succubus Maiden Elabess. Today, she wore a well-tailored black gauze dress with a swaying hem that perfectly outlined her breathtaking curves. Beneath the black gauze, her snow-white, slender legs were partially visible, every step she took carrying a natural charm. She first gave a graceful bow to Lin Muyang, her red lips curling into a smile that could captivate anyone: "Master~ You're back." Her voice was soft and sweet, striking straight to the heart.

Only then did she turn her gaze toward the newly arrived Gu sisters. Her purple eyes, which seemed to contain stars and vortices, lingered on Gu Shuanglin and Gu Xiaoyu's faces, her smile deepening: "Oh, more new sisters have arrived~ Our garden is getting livelier and more vibrant." Her gaze was scrutinizing but not malicious, more of a curiosity and a faint welcome.

"Se... Senior, hello." Gu Xiaoyu was stunned by Elabess's incredible charm and grace, subconsciously becoming a bit nervous as she greeted her in a small voice.

"Hmm... Senior?" Hearing this, Elabess covered her mouth and chuckled, her eyes rippling with charm. "Do I look very old? Or do I look very powerful? But since you're here, we're sisters living together from now on. No need to be so polite; you can call me Ella or Sister Ella~" Her tone was relaxed with a hint of teasing, effectively easing Gu Xiaoyu's tension.

"Sister Ella." Gu Shuanglin appeared much more composed. She nodded slightly in greeting and then looked at Lin Muyang.

Lin Muyang nodded to her and gave a simple instruction: "Elabess, take them to find two suitable guest rooms and settle them in. Whatever daily necessities are needed, the garden has them in stock, or you can take them to get familiar with the environment and they can get them themselves."

"Yes, Master, leave it to me~" Elabess readily agreed, then waved to the Gu sisters with a charming and friendly smile. "Come with me, little sisters. I'll take you to see where you'll be staying first. Our garden is huge and the scenery is quite nice; you'll get used to it slowly."

Gu Shuanglin glanced at Lin Muyang again. After receiving his reassuring look, her heart settled. She gently squeezed her sister's hand and said politely to Elabess, "Sorry for the trouble, Sister Ella." Then, she led the still excited and curious Gu Xiaoyu, following the swaying Succubus Maiden toward the exquisite guest room area deep within the garden.

Lin Muyang, meanwhile, led Jialiya and Elena toward the most magnificent and important main building in the center of the garden. Along the way, they encountered some girls who were busy or resting. Seeing Lin Muyang, they all stopped what they were doing to greet him. Lin Muyang only nodded slightly and kept walking.

Entering the spacious, bright, elegantly and luxuriously decorated hall of the main building, Lin Muyang immediately saw a familiar figure curled up on a soft sofa by the window. It was Shen Muyao. She seemed a bit tired, leaning against the sofa with her head tilted to one side. Her smooth long hair was somewhat messily draped over her shoulders, and her long eyelashes cast a small shadow under her eyes. Her breathing was even; she had actually fallen asleep. The afternoon sun shone on her through the glass window, giving her a warm glow. Her sleeping face was peaceful, with a hint of a young girl's innocence.

Lin Muyang lightened his steps, walked to her side, and looked down at her for a moment, shaking his head helplessly. He reached out and gently tapped her shoulder: "Mu Yao, wake up. Why did you fall asleep here? Did you skip dinner again?"

"Hmm...?" Shen Muyao wasn't actually sleeping deeply. As soon as Lin Muyang's hand touched her shoulder, she opened her eyes dizzily. When she saw clearly that the person in front of her was Lin Muyang, her beautiful eyes, still sleepy, instantly lit up like falling stars. Her drowsiness vanished, replaced by full joy and dependence. "Lin Muyang! You're back!" She sat up straight at once, a bright smile blooming on her face, and naturally reached out to grab Lin Muyang's arm.

"I've reached level 55 today!" Shen Muyao said as if showing off a treasure, her tone carrying a bit of pride and excitement. "This speed—even a rocket isn't this fast! It feels like a dream!"

Lin Muyang sat down beside her and smiled at her words, reaching out to help her tidy her somewhat messy hair from sleep. "It seems Father Shen's schedule for Dungeons and secret realm journeys was quite full. You must have worked hard, right?"

"Not at all." Shen Muyao wrinkled her small nose and said a bit shyly, "Actually, my dad mostly arranged secret realms around Zhongnan City and within the province, so their levels and intensity were limited, and the farming efficiency wasn't that crazy. It's mainly..." She paused, a grateful look in her eyes. "It's Senior Xu Ruohan! Seeing that I was leveling up slowly, she took the initiative to take me to high-level maps and secret realms in the neighboring provinces! The monsters there are dense and the experience is high, and with Senior Xu protecting and guiding me, the efficiency shot up instantly!"

"Xu Ruohan?" Lin Muyang raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised. He didn't expect that woman with the cold temperament and powerful strength would even look after Shen Muyao's leveling. She really was becoming like the head housekeeper of this garden, considering everything thoroughly. With her around, Lin Muyang indeed saved a lot of worry.

Now, many people lived in the guest room area of the Eternal Garden. Besides the core members who followed Lin Muyang from the start, Xu Ruohan, by virtue of her great strength, fair handling of affairs, and special relationship with Lin Muyang, had naturally become the person with the most say and prestige there, managing the area harmoniously and orderly without any trouble.

"Yeah, she takes great care of me." Shen Muyao nodded vigorously, then as if remembering something, she sat up a bit straighter, her expression becoming more serious. "By the way, Lin Muyang, there have been a lot of people from the Oracle Organization contacting me lately."

"Oh? How so?" Lin Muyang gestured for her to continue, while glancing at Elena. Elena understood and obediently walked toward the nearby open kitchen area to start preparing dinner for Shen Muyao. Holy light flowed, and the aroma of various ingredients began to spread.

"A lot of people, through various channels, have been asking indirectly or sending messages directly to me..." Shen Muyao lowered her voice, even though there were no outsiders in the hall. "They're asking me if the deity we in the Oracle Organization believe in and follow is you."

She observed Lin Muyang's expression, and seeing no change, she continued: "I followed your previous instructions and didn't explicitly admit it, but I didn't deny it either, just told them to wait for the Oracle. Now more and more people are asking, including several elders who already held high positions and made significant contributions to the organization. Their attitude seems very urgent and very devout. How should we reply? Should we make it clear?"

Lin Muyang's fingers lightly tapped the sofa's armrest as he pondered for a moment. With the explosive growth of his own strength and influence, as well as his miraculous performance in Bear Country earlier, the Oracle Organization's development speed was beyond imagination, attracting many members with real strength and ambition. Now, the speculation within the organization about the "deity's" true identity was already buzzing and had almost become an open secret. There was little point in continuing to hide it; instead, it might cause unnecessary suspicion.

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"You may reply now." Lin Muyang finally nodded, having made his decision. "There is no need to deliberately conceal it any longer. You may confirm to them in the capacity of an Oracle messenger that the one they follow is none other than me. However, you must also clearly inform them that what I require is not blind worship, but actual action and value."

He paused for a moment and added: "From today on, we will officially implement a contribution system within the organization. Tell them that as long as they make sufficient contributions to the organization—whether by providing high-value secret realm scrolls, rare intelligence, special resources, or completing tasks issued by the organization—they can use their contributions to make a request of me. As long as the request is reasonable and within my capabilities, I can satisfy it. Of course, the evaluation criteria for contributions must be clear; you should select a few reliable people to help you formulate them. The focus is on secret realm scrolls; this is the highest priority collection target at the moment, so its contribution weighting can be set to the highest."

Shen Muyao listened attentively, committing every word Lin Muyang said to heart. She knew this marked the transformation of the Oracle Organization from a semi-secret, loose special group into a formal organization with greater cohesion, clearer goals, and a more rigorous structure. And Lin Muyang would officially step from behind the scenes to the forefront, becoming the undisputed supreme faith and ruler of this organization. This would undoubtedly attract more powerhouses and factions to defect, but it also meant greater responsibilities and potential challenges.

"I understand." Shen Muyao nodded solemnly. "I will discuss it with Senior Xu and draft the detailed rules for the contribution system as soon as possible, then announce it. I believe that once this news is released, the enthusiasm of the organization members will be completely ignited." Collecting secret realm scrolls might be extremely difficult for others, but for a vast organization with tentacles everywhere, as long as the profit incentive was sufficient, they would always find a way.

"Mm, I trust you with this." Lin Muyang patted her hand, a hint of a gentle smile on his face. "Alright, with business concluded, let's eat first. Elena's cooking is getting better and better." As he spoke, he naturally reached out to wrap his arm around Shen Muyao's shoulder, brought her to her feet, and walked toward the dining room from which the aroma of food was already wafting.

Jialiya followed quietly behind. Her ice-blue eyes swept across the cozy dining room, then looked at the backs of Lin Muyang and Shen Muyao walking side by side. Her face remained expressionless, but the cold aura around her seemed to melt just a little. She silently found a seat and sat down, waiting for the meal to begin.

Just as Lin Muyang was enjoying a warm dinner and arranging organizational affairs within the Eternal Garden, the outside world was caught in a global storm of boycotts and purges triggered by the atrocities of the Savior Organization.

The details of the Bear Country camp tragedy had become known to the global public following extensive reporting by international media and the tearful accusations of survivors. In order to frame Lin Muyang, the Savior Organization had ruthlessly slaughtered hundreds of innocent Class Transferees, including a large number of wounded and medical personnel. The cruelty of their actions and the baseness of their motives completely ignited everyone's fury. In this era of crises, humanity should have been more united to deal with the threats of monsters and Dungeons, but such behavior was tantamount to igniting the flames of war within humanity itself—it was outright anti-human terrorism.

Consequently, an unprecedented joint operation, transcending borders and ideologies, was rapidly launched. Led by Bear Country, numerous victimized nations and major powers deeply wary of this development took the lead in quickly forming a temporary official organization called the Global Counter-Terrorism and Order Maintenance Joint Agency. Its primary goal was to completely eradicate this malignant tumor.

The first task after its establishment was to integrate the intelligence forces of various countries and begin all-out efforts to collect detailed lists of Savior Organization members, the distribution of their strongholds, financial flows, and identity information of their core high-level personnel. Although the Savior Organization acted secretly, in the face of state apparatuses and the power of global collaboration, its Disguise was peeled away layer by layer. The list was expanding rapidly, wanted notices were issued synchronously across the globe, and high bounties stimulated the nerves of countless bounty hunters and lone wolves.

Following that came precise and lethal clearance operations. Joint task forces composed of elite special forces from various countries and high-level Class Transferees, acting on intelligence, launched thunderous strikes against strongholds, safe houses, and isolated members scattered across the world. These operations were often swift, covert, and lethal, striving to sever the organization's branches before the Savior Organization could react.

Of course, the Savior Organization had existed for many years, so it was not without its trump cards. There were indeed some formidable top-tier powerhouses within the organization, and it might even hide legendary or higher-level existences. They also possessed mysterious means and powerful anti-reconnaissance and anti-assassination capabilities. The clearance operations were not smooth sailing; they encountered stubborn resistance and suffered tragic losses, and there were even instances where teams were counter-killed and intelligence networks were destroyed.

This global purge was destined not to end in a short time, and the process would inevitably be accompanied by blood, sacrifice, and twists and turns. But regarding this, Lin Muyang, who was in the Eternal Garden, only knew a little from the intelligence regularly summarized by Shen Muyao and Xu Ruohan; he did not pay much attention to it and had no intention of participating in it at all.

His attitude was clear: this was something the official authorities of various countries and the victimized nations should do. He would not, and did not need to, step into the arena himself. If he had that time, it would be better to explore a few more secret realms, improve his strength a little more, or spend more time with the people around him. Anyway, under the general trend of a worldwide joint encirclement, their destruction was only a matter of time; the only difference was whether the process would be fast or slow, and whether the cost would be high or low. And what did this process and cost have to do with him, Lin Muyang? He only needed to watch coldly from the sidelines and see them perish.

The next day, early morning.

The mist had not yet completely dispersed, and the Eternal Garden was shrouded in a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere. Lin Muyang was already prepared to set off to find the legendary mythic grade creature—the Six-Eyed Wizard Clan.

For this trip, he brought two people with him. One was the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox Su Daji; her stunningly beautiful face carried a faint expectation, and her nine fluffy, snow-white fox tails swayed gently and unconsciously behind her. The other was Marianne, who possessed a powerful mind-control talent but whose mood was clearly somewhat complex at this moment. Her face was slightly pale, and deep within her azure eyes, she hid a trace of imperceptible unwillingness and helplessness.

Xu Ruohan also went along. She remained in her usual cold and capable manner, dressed in green robes with a long sword on her back, responsible for coordination and support; meanwhile, her own formidable strength was also an important safeguard.

Before leaving, Lin Muyang had clearly informed Marianne of the purpose of this trip and the arrangements for her powerful mind-control skill.

"That skill of yours is gifted and has huge potential." Lin Muyang had looked at Marianne at the time, his tone calm yet unquestionable. "But given your current mental attributes and the focus of your own talent, [Mental Imprint], this skill cannot unleash its maximum power in your hands. It requires purer, more immense mental power to drive it, and it needs a talent more focused on mind control itself to amplify it."

He paused and continued: "Therefore, I have decided to extract your skill and craft it into a skill book. Then, Su Daji will learn it. Her talent is a top-tier one that purely amplifies the effects and duration of mind-control skills. With her casting it, combined with your [Mental Imprint] for pre-weakening and deepening the control, the two talents will perfectly stack, and the effect will undergo a qualitative change, potentially even reaching a several-fold amplification."

Marianne listened quietly, but her nails had long since dug deep into her palms. Extracting a skill, especially such a powerful and rare core skill, was a huge loss and pain for any Class Transferee, meaning that all previous investment, practice, and insights into this skill would go down the drain. What's more, this skill had once been one of the sources of her confidence and strength. Deep down, she was ten thousand times unwilling and unreconciled.

However, she dared not object, nor did she dare to show even a trace of dissatisfaction on her face. Because she knew her current situation and status better than anyone else. She was Lin Muyang's captive, having only temporarily saved her life by defecting and proving her value. Although Lin Muyang had controlled her with a soul contract, that control was not an absolute master-servant contract; it was more to ensure she could not betray him. Her life, death, and future were still firmly grasped in Lin Muyang's thoughts. Regarding Lin Muyang's orders, she had no qualifications to bargain; there was only obedience.

"...I understand, Master." Marianne lowered her head, masking the complex emotions in her eyes. Her voice was somewhat dry, but she ultimately said those words. She consoled herself that at least Lin Muyang had not completely denied her value, and extracting the skill might be for the sake of the team's greater power. Moreover, Lin Muyang had also promised that if there were suitable opportunities and resources in the future, he would consider upgrading her talent. Her talent was indeed a perfect match for Su Daji's—one applying negative status effects, the other conducting powerful control, complementing each other perfectly. From a tactical perspective, Lin Muyang's plan was indeed the optimal solution.

"Your talent is very useful; it is an excellent support." Lin Muyang seemed to see through her thoughts and added, "In the future, when team resources are abundant, I will prioritize improving your talent and base mental attributes. At that time, you won't need too many complex skills; you only need to maximize your talent effects and stack your mental attributes high, and you will be one of the top control support cores in the team."

These words served as a reassurance for Marianne and also pointed out her future development direction—specializing in talent enhancement and mental attribute growth, becoming the strongest catalyst for Su Daji's mind control. Her value and status might not decrease; they might even become higher.

Of course, the premise of all this was that Lin Muyang was willing to invest resources. And currently, the tears of the angel in Lin Muyang's hands were limited, so he certainly had to prioritize supplying core members like Su Daji, Lilia, and Ao Qingyan. Marianne still needed to use more loyalty, more outstanding performance, and a longer period of time to prove herself and earn that future.