Chapter 396: Picking a Fight

As soon as the words fell, the leaping monkey and his group sank completely into the ground, vanishing.

The spot where they had stood returned to its original state, as if nothing had happened.

The plaza fell into dead silence, finally realizing that the person before them held absolute authority in this area.

Among the crowd, several players clearly from other regions wore sour expressions, and, stunned by the scene, they opened private chat windows to glance at those players' avatars.

Gray.

Really dead.

In this Safe Zone, Wu Ya can snatch a person's life without even lifting a finger?!

Their first reaction was: if that's the case, who would dare enter the Safe Zone?

Isn't this a joke?

If a life can be taken at any moment…players would be no better than ants in the eyes of the Safe Zone's owner, killed with a flick of a finger.

Restrictions… of course there are.

Cheng Shuili simply didn't show them.

After all, this is about establishing authority—more bluntly, it's showing off, and having already started the act, Cheng Shuili will of course go all out.

Guests in the Safe Zone are indeed guests, and the leader, as the "host," normally cannot act against them.

But the rules aren't immutable.

When a guest insults or even attempts to attack the host, the host gains the right to act.

How to "punish" the guest is then up to the host.

For Cheng Shuili, this rule also serves as a reminder—when she later goes to places like Shou Ren Xiao Zhen, she must never lightly insult the Rat King.

At the same time, seeing this rule made her understand why the monster merchant feared the Rat King so much.

It devours a black rat each bite, which essentially gives the Rat King a chance to punish it, doesn't it?

Returning to the present, Cheng Shuili's gaze swept over the faces of the onlookers, committing those with odd expressions to memory.

Before leaving, she instructed 001 to record those people's IDs.

Whatever Lao Da assigns, 001 always carries out seriously!

But since they're not in the same region and lack regional channels and strong support, 001 can only obtain their IDs.

For Cheng Shuili, a single ID is already sufficient.

She always holds grudges; any she can avenge she does, and any she cannot, she records.

The puppet matter hasn't been resolved yet, and now the Safe Zone is being targeted by people from other regions.

Cheng Shuili truly finds it odd—where did these people get so many items, and how can they contact players in her sub‑zone?

And also, why are there so many "eating inside, pulling outside" things in her sub‑zone?

When that thought arose, Cheng Shuili pushed it back down.

The world has indeed changed; the so‑called "eating inside, pulling outside" is nonsense.

It's just a pity for the rows of names on Long Guo's regional leaderboard…

Opportunities to boost morale are few, and Long Guo's officials missed none; comparing them side by side, these people's actions are truly disheartening.

Cheng Shuili plans to detain them; once night falls, the Safe Zone will close, and those people will be forced back onto their transports.

To resolve this, she must act now.

A faint curve lifted Cheng Shuili's lips, her gaze precisely locking onto those players whose expressions kept shifting.

"Had enough?" her voice wasn't loud, yet it rang clearly in everyone's ears, "Is the spectacle entertaining?"

To ordinary players the words meant little, perhaps even puzzling, but those already suspicious players froze, instinctively trying to step back only to find their feet stuck to the ground, unable to move.

Nearby players immediately sensed something amiss, and the crowd quickly dispersed, isolating them.

"Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji?" a tall man forced calm, speaking what seemed like Chinese but with a strange accent; to Cheng Shuili it would be better to speak his native tongue and let the system translate.

His Adam's apple quivered, his drooping hand clenched into a fist, "What do you mean? Isn't the Safe Zone supposed to allow people to stay?"

"Staying is of course allowed," Cheng Shuili said leisurely as she approached, "but causing trouble on my turf is another matter."

The few's faces changed abruptly.

"What nonsense are you spouting!"

"We didn't do anything!"

"People from Long Guo…" the last person said with a shadowed expression and a mocking tone, "just love to falsely frame others like this?"

He was surrounded by Long Guo people; previously the dispute was just between that group and Wu Ya, but that sentence dragged all Long Guo folks into the fray.

The mudlings still have some anger left, let alone this being essentially Long Guo's home ground.

From the onlooking crowd suddenly came a shout: "What is that scrawny kid saying?"

Those words sounded like a charge horn, and others glared angrily.

"How dare you be so arrogant on our turf?"

"Wu Ya Dalao, deal with him!"

Cheng Shuili suddenly laughed.

She raised her hand, signaling everyone to be quiet.

This is Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji; all Long Guo people know the Number One's reputation, so they naturally gave her respect.

Thus the outraged crowd fell silent, eyes fixed unblinking on Cheng Shuili.

Cheng Shuili squinted, a withered smile on her face, and simply displayed that rule, enlarging the screen to ensure everyone could see.

The crowd was first puzzled, then after reading the text, they began to argue.

"What does this mean?"

"So within the Safe Zone, the leader can only act against malicious players?"

"So, these people really have malicious intent?!"

When that conclusion came out, the players from Long Guo instantly straightened their backs.

"This rule is pretty interesting! If the lord can see clearly who has hostility, then whose problem is obvious at a glance!"

"So!" someone in the crowd's eyes lit up, voice trembling with excitement, shouted loudly: "Since Wuya Dalao can strike them, it proves they truly have a problem!"

Seeing someone reveal the truth, Cheng Shuili's smile naturally widened.

The provoking player tried to argue: "What kind of joke is this?! Right now you're the only leader of the safe zone; you say it's a rule because it's a rule? On what grounds?!"

At first glance the words sounded reasonable, but on closer thought they were wrong.

"What do you think this place is? Wu Ya has even produced screenshots! You think it's like the old world where you could Photoshop and fool you?!"

"Exactly! No shame at all, huh?! Even when death is near you still talk tough? Wuya Dalao, let the big guys vent their anger!"

"Let the big guys vent!!"

The words quickly sparked a chorus, frightening the few players from other zones into trembling; even one noticeably smaller figure started to tremble, as if about to wet themselves the next second.

Cheng Shuili hadn't anticipated this situation.

She'd given lessons in such situations many times, but this level of popular support was a first.

It was getting late, and the reason Cheng Shuili first restrained them without acting directly was to display this rule.

Thus the players all understood that as long as their actions and words conform, the safe zone remains safe, and they won't be afraid to enter it.

The remaining matters weren't suitable to do in front of others.

Cheng Shuili sent a message to Ailin to bring a few people over and escort these individuals down for interrogation; even if they could only extract one behind‑the‑scenes person's ID, that would be enough for Cheng Shuili.

The ID in this cursed place is like an identity card; those players found her zone precisely because the system broadcasted her ID server‑wide.

Ailin and a few others arrived quickly, bringing several Black Feather members who looked deliberately selected—each hulking and muscular, their arms twitching with power, making Cheng Shuili's face darken with frustration.

Does this girl misunderstand what "interrogation" means?

Ailin leaned in with a self‑congratulatory grin, lowering her voice: "Lao Da, how about it? I specifically chose the strongest among our forces! This was Xinxue's idea, saying that since you have many people here, we should show these folks the muscles of Black Feather."

The burly men who met Cheng Shuili's gaze puffed out their chests in unison, muscles bulging.

Just kidding! This is Lao Da!

Opportunities to perform in front of Lao Da and so many others are rare, and they were all eager.

Cheng Shuili now felt like she could dig a hole and crawl into it.

Shameful!

Really shameful!

She even heard the onlookers start commenting, saying, "Do Black Feather players always have such massive muscles?"

"Is it a muscle faction?"

"Seeing that makes me want to join Black Feather, I'm craving it to death."

The line came from a pure‑looking male player, frightening the other male players standing nearby into scattering.

Cheng Shuili hadn't expected to see a Sichuan opera.

But now whether it's a Sichuan opera or not doesn't matter; if they don't take the people down soon, the players watching those muscle men will start reaching out to touch.

This is a scene that can't be broadcast!

"Very well," Cheng Shuili said, rubbing her forehead, "First take the people down, don't scare the other players."

The players from other zones, seeing this group of hulking men, felt their legs go weak, almost being dragged away.

The watching Long Guo players, seeing this, shouted approval:

"They should be dealt with like this!"

"Let's see if they still dare to run wild on our turf!"

Cheng Shuili turned to the crowd and announced loudly, "Today's matters end here. Everyone knows the safe‑zone rules; as long as you follow them, this is the safest place."

Cheering rose again.

Amid the grateful gazes, Cheng Shuili slipped away quietly.

Back at the banquet, the dishes had been mostly eaten.

But Wan Yi, thinking of Lao Da, deliberately took a plate and set aside a bit of each dish for Cheng Shuili; otherwise, given how these people ate, Cheng Shuili might have had no food tonight.

She picked up her chopsticks, ate a few hurried bites, and just as she tasted the flavor, Ailin burst in excitedly: "Lao Da! We got it!"

The Black Feather members still seated around perked up their ears.

Cheng Shuili gestured for Ailin to sit: "Take your time."

Ailin shook her head, a smug expression showing a hint of contempt, and sighed, "Your mouth is too soft, it never gets a beating."

That demeanor was so much like Xinxue that Cheng Shuili couldn't help glancing at Xinxue.

If she hadn't looked, it would have been fine; the comparison showed they were truly identical.

Xinxue was leisurely wiping her mouth, noticed Cheng Shuili's gaze, and innocently blinked: "Lao Da, I didn't teach anything."

But Ailin learned it spotless!

The atmosphere at the table grew subtle; Ailin then realized she had gotten carried away, quickly composed herself and lowered her voice:

"The leader gave a statement: the one who ordered them is the Number One of their zone; they must have signed a trade contract, so the ID can't be disclosed. However, I did find out the zone—it's White Eagle Federation Zone 1!"

"As for the rest," she made a wiping‑mouth gesture, her expression turning serious, "I barely uttered a word before the system dealt with it."

Cheng Shuili, unsurprised by the result, calmly asked, "Is the person gone?"

"Gone."

The people at the table showed little reaction to the answer; they were battle‑hardened, and none would respond to news of an enemy's death.

Xinxue frowned, thought for a moment, opened a private chat and sent a message; after a while she closed the page and said, "The Number One of White Eagle Federation Zone 1, real name Jieke Fuluode, ID is Handsome White‑headed Eagle. I just interviewed a White Eagle Federation member today; this person is famous in their zone, so he must be the Number One of their major zone."

Hearing this, Jiang Tang finally reacted, "Lao Da, you've been targeted by another Number One!"

This conclusion was drawn too lightly, showing that Jiang Tang's intelligence isn't very high.

But everyone had long grown accustomed to it, so nobody said anything more.

Those who had been following Cheng Shuili since morning looked even calmer, even linking the earlier assassination in the Instance with today's incident: "Last time in the Instance, Lao Da was assassinated by Fengyun Tianxia—this probably isn't unrelated to this person, right?"

"「He's got nothing better to do? 」 Jiang Tang really couldn't figure it out, 「Stretching his hand that far, even across a big district to come cause trouble for our Lao Da? 」"

Wan Yi, however, was unfazed; she turned her head to glance at the calm-faced Cheng Shuili, then withdrew her gaze and said: "Our Lao Da is too eye-catching. In the hearts of narrow-minded people, isn't he just a thorn in the eye, a splinter in the flesh?"

Cheng Shuili listened to the discussion, her expression remaining calm.

She picked up a piece of braised pork that Wan Yi had specially set aside, savored it carefully, then spoke: "Wan Yi is right—there's too much groundless hatred; can't blame myself for being excellent?"

That remark was somewhat amusing, and the atmosphere at the table relaxed considerably.

Xinxue pondered: "Lao Da, want me to look into Jack's background?"

"「Not for now. 」 Cheng Shuili waved her hand, 「But I'm curious about one thing: how did he accurately find the players in our district, and what did he use for that? 」"

Cheng Shuili still had another doubt she hadn't voiced.

Why are there not so many people in Shou Ren Xiao Zhen and Jiao Yi Zhan?

Besides the overly random entry into these places, there must be other reasons, because Cheng Shuili hasn't seen players from other districts in those places.