Chapter 143: Justifiable Defense

Cheng Shuili sneered, treating being crawled on by a toad and a moment of disgust as something that ends with a roll of her eyes.

Long Yue Xin, seeing Cheng Shuili's crisp refusal, instantly got flustered. He had originally thought he could pin down this Number One big shot, make a good profit and also get solid talking material!

He didn't expect the other side wouldn't bite at all.

His fingers flew across the virtual keyboard, sending out a string of sarcastic and threatening messages:

【Long Yue Xin】: What are you pretending? Now that I know you're desperate for a Teleport Card, just ask on the World Channel; besides me, no one else has one, right?

【Long Yue Xin】: If you talk properly, I could give you a cheaper price, that's not out of the question; if you don't talk properly... hm.

【Long Yue Xin】: Tomorrow I'm raising the price to 8000; even if you kneel and beg me, I won't sell!

After sending that, he still felt unsatisfied, and added another snide line:

【Long Yue Xin】: Number One sir, you can't even cough up this little money, can you? Want me to lend you some?

Cheng Shuili looked at the wildly flashing message alerts, sneered, a typical petty person reveling in success.

Speaking so impolitely—was he inviting her to roast him? When it comes to roasting, she truly has never lost.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Borrow me? The little balance in your account isn't even a fraction of mine; keep it yourself to buy a coffin in Shou Ren Xiao Zhen.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Oh sorry, I really forgot—you might not even qualify to enter Shou Ren Xiao Zhen.

Long Yue Xin was drinking water when he saw this reply and almost choked. He had already seen on the regional channel someone say Wu Ya's mouth is poisonous, and when it actually hit him he realized just how toxic it was.

The first sentence was actually fine, but the latter hit his sore spot directly!

【Long Yue Xin】: Forget it, I won't spar with you. Teleport Card 6000 at a friendly price, take it now if you want to trade.

【Long Yue Xin】: After tonight I'll list it on the auction house; who ends up buying it… I can't say.

So disgusting.

Cheng Shuili twitched the corner of her mouth.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Friendly price? You're even worthy of talking about friendship? Your kind isn't even as good as spam in my friends list.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Also, if you don't need your eyes you can donate them, I said, never mind, just take your card and get lost.

Long Yue Xin's anger surged to his forehead instantly, his fingers trembling, the virtual keyboard clacking loudly under his pounding.

【Long Yue Xin】: Fine then, tough mouth? You think being Number One makes you great? I'll put it here today—my Teleport Card is for the dogs, a free giveaway! I still won't sell it to you!

Cheng Shuili watched the messages flicker on the screen, disdainfully twitching the corner of her mouth. Her slender fingers danced across the keyboard, replying swiftly and viciously.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Hey, getting nervous? With such meager ambition you're trying to be a shady dealer? Keep that busted card as a family heirloom; you're about to die and can only cling to it and whine twice.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Hurry and scram to the trading channel to list your sky‑high card, see if any sucker will bother with you. Oh, and set the price at 8000; if you're even a cent short I'll look down on you, after all this is all the achievement you'll ever have in life.

Long Yue Xin stared at the messages on the screen, his whole face flushed bright red, veins bulging at his temples.

【Long Yue Xin】: You're looking for death, huh?! You really think I'm too scared to deal with you?! Just wait for me; at sunrise I'll kill you!

【Long Yue Xin】: Damn! Damn! Damn!

This time Cheng Shuili smiled sincerely; he was the one who spoke first, and now her actions aren't about looting supplies but about self‑defense.

Cheng Shuili glanced out the window; the stars shone brighter, and it wasn't suitable to use a Designated Player Duel Card now—she'd have to wait until tomorrow.

Such a trivial matter doesn't require the Big Boss herself to step in, right?

If she has to do everything herself, what's the point of raising those younger sisters?

Cheng Shuili opened a private chat with Ailin, gave a brief account of what happened, and sent over a Designated Player Duel Card.

【Ai Mi Li】: No problem, Lao Da.

What a reassuring reply.

The next morning, Cheng Shuili woke up on schedule, had breakfast, and sat cross‑legged on the sofa waiting for Ailin's good news.

The good news never came; instead she received a system‑wide announcement.

【Yo everyone! Long time no see! Because a player in this region used an Instance delay card, the Instance originally scheduled for yesterday will now open today!】

【Your luck is truly unexpected, other zones have run several random Instances, but your zone hasn't triggered even once.】

【Alright, that's enough sentiment.】

【This Instance is a speedrun Instance! Solo battle! It should… objectively have no life danger, and the failure penalty is a deduction of 1000 Game Coin! Don't think you can escape just because you don't have that many Game Coins; our system lord is quite fair, deliberately allowing negative balances just for today!】

Cheng Shuili frowned at this, silently opened the regional channel, and unsurprisingly, it was filled with curses.

"What the heck? Negative?"

"The daily Mileage Ranking reward is 10 Game Coin, so if I fail this Instance I'll owe a hundred days of debt, right?"

"Wake up upstairs, if Game Coin truly stays negative you can't survive a hundred days. Some extreme weather requires items to survive; we all rely on the big guys to process for us—without Game Coin, who will craft for you?"

"Damn, so the lack of life danger isn't a benefit at all?"

"The difference between death penalty and death‑suspended sentence."

"I'm not admiring you! System lord! Stop torturing me!"

…

The regional channel kept cursing, but the system remained completely unaffected.

【This Instance's highest level is Hell, the lowest is Normal! Each difficulty is randomly assigned based on the wealth and Mileage Ranking! Survivors, please be prepared!】

【Instance Details: Labyrinth Gate】

【Instance Description: You open your eyes and see a completely unfamiliar setting. You are inside a house, you see a door that is locked, you understand… you need to find a way to open it.】

Open the door?

Cheng Shuili squinted; the description sounded oddly like the puzzle game she played in a past life.

Finding the key from the given clues and finally opening the door counts as victory.

That easy?

Cheng Shuili remained skeptical.

The regional channel was generally optimistic, though some were panicked.

Ah, this description sounds so familiar—it sounds like a game I played before, the one called "the game without a lock."

I've played it too; I hope it's similar—just find clues and open the door. I really don't want to fail, a thousand Game Coins! Where can I get them?

The punishment is too harsh. But from this description it seems pretty simple. In my past life I loved puzzle games the most, so I'm something of a veteran; this time should be safe.