Wen Nan still remembers clearly how, in the No. 2 test space, Wei Zhe held a tool similar to the one in his hand now. He had managed to control a puppet more than twice his height, and ultimately used silver threads to slice its head into pieces. According to the background story, Wei Zhe was very skilled at controlling female characters, and one of the important methods must have involved the tool Wen Nan was holding now. Sure enough, as he was thinking about it, he heard Yang Mingzhong explaining in a low voice: "This is the ’Thousand Threads,’ a crucial tool used by many seasoned members of the [Ghost Control Master Alliance] guild to manipulate characters, and even objects." "The Ghost Control Master Alliance?" Sitting beside him, Hu Jiayao was startled, his eyes widening as he looked at Yang Mingzhong. "Are you saying players from one of the six major guilds, the [Ghost Control Master Alliance], have infiltrated this instance?!" Yang Mingzhong turned to look at Hu Jiayao, seemingly not expecting that his colleague hadn’t noticed the presence of Ghost Masters in this instance. However, Yang Mingzhong didn’t make any further comment, just nodded. "Yes, not only are there players from the [Ghost Control Master Alliance] here, but they’ve also managed to bring the characters they control into the instance." Hu Jiayao remembered what happened shortly after entering the instance, when Yang Mingzhong suddenly acted against a girl in the cafeteria. He recalled vividly that Yang Mingzhong made a gesture as if extracting threads from that girl. Previously, Hu Jiayao couldn’t understand what that gesture was about, but now he realized, "The first time you acted in the cafeteria, was it because you saw the ’Thousand Threads’ on her?" Yang Mingzhong nodded, "When the ’Thousand Threads’ are used, they are very concealed. If you’re not an old player who’s very familiar with this particular tool, it’s nearly impossible to notice the existence of those threads. "I was lucky. As soon as I entered the map, I encountered one of the characters being controlled. Fearing the clues might be lost, I acted on her immediately. "At that time, I thought that woman was controlled by a single line, but after extracting the ’Thousand Threads’ from her, I realized the user applied a network manipulation strategy this time." "What do you mean by single line? And network?" Hu Jiayao was slightly confused by these unfamiliar terms thrown at him. Yang Mingzhong shook his head, "You’re not from the [Ghost Control Master Alliance], so it’s normal that you’re unaware of these things due to lack of exposure to the ’Thousand Threads’— "The members recruited by the [Ghost Control Master Alliance] all possess certain manipulation and control abilities, achieved mainly through three forms: glyph control, thousand-thread manipulation, and voodoo sorcery. "The ’Thousand Threads’ are frequently used within the alliance because the tool is inexpensive and has a low entry threshold. "However, this tool is easy to learn but difficult to master. For average members, being able to proficiently control one character is already challenging, and that’s what we call single-line manipulation. "Moving up, to control between two to five characters simultaneously, one needs to learn multi-line manipulation. Those achieving this are considered leaders within the alliance. "The highest level is network manipulation. With this skill, there are no limits to the number of characters a player can control simultaneously. Holding the ’Thousand Threads’ is like embodying a black widow who spins a vast web from behind the scenes, with every character on that network being his pawns, completely at his disposal. "Throughout the [Ghost Control Master Alliance], only three elders and the guild master can achieve network manipulation." Upon hearing this, Hu Jiayao recalled the blonde, blue-eyed man they fought in the abandoned building, linked to rumors about the guild master’s appearance circulating in the community. "Could it be that the person we fought that day was actually..." Hu Jiayao paused, looked at Yang Mingzhong, who slowly nodded. "I didn’t expect him, a person known for being cautious, to personally step in this time." At this point, there was neither fear nor intimidation in Yang Mingzhong’s eyes. Despite almost losing his life confronting the guild master, his eyes still glinted with a wild and savage allure. That allure convinced Hu Jiayao that if Yang Mingzhong met that man again, he would latch on like a mad dog. Just how deep was the grudge? Was he so reckless he no longer cared about his life? While thinking this, Yang Mingzhong pulled another ’Thousand Threads’ from the backup equipment bar and pushed it to Wen Nan’s side as well, "The supply channels for ’Thousand Threads’ were long monopolized by the [Ghost Control Master Alliance]. Being a player who restarted from scratch, I have no chance to purchase this tool from the mall again. "I have only these two sets, both extracted from the characters controlled by the opposite side. Rest assured, Guild Master; with my skills in handling the ’Thousand Threads,’ the other side will not trace the source of these two missing tools. "I have now used these two sets for tracking; the end of one can locate the man behind the scenes, and the end of the other is attached to the woman who just left the milk tea shop." Upon hearing this, Hu Jiayao’s eyes gleamed, "You’ve located that woman? Amazing! She’s so cunning, with strong counter-surveillance skills; catching up to her is extremely difficult. With this, we can nail her down easily." Originally vexed for failing the guild master’s task earlier, Hu Jiayao now looked at the ’Thousand Threads’ in Wen Nan’s hand, eager to grab it immediately, "Master, please give it to me. This time, I’ll definitely catch her." Wen Nan nodded and handed the set corresponding to that woman to Hu Jiayao. Holding it in his hand, eager to act, Hu Jiayao glanced at Yang Mingzhong and couldn’t help but say, "Old Yang, you’re something else, clearly on our side, all the way with the Justice Alliance, yet still acting solo all the time. You ended up hurting your leg too. If you’d reached out earlier, with both of us working together—my strength and your abilities in scouting and looting—we’d definitely get twice the result with half the effort." On hearing this, Yang Mingzhong turned to Hu Jiayao, not knowing how to respond to him. Wen Nan shook his head in mild helplessness and looked at Hu Jiayao. Seriously, buddy, do you still think Old Yang’s a loyalist? Is there a chance he’s an [assassin]?