Chapter 95: Opportunity to Get Rich
In the darkness of the night, only two faint lights pierced the gloom. The two masked men, No. 11 and No. 17, stood on the cylindrical platform, eyeing each other.
"Plan? The plan is simple~" No. 17 chuckled strangely. "According to my intel, the extraordinary criminal 'Cultured Outsider' is trapped inside the 'Bound Calamity Domain' and can't escape. The seventh team, which includes Mu Qingtong, will enter the disaster area tonight to surround Cultured Outsider. All we need to do is knock out that little beauty when she's alone."
"Hehe~ Owl, if you weren't in Area 51, I could handle this solo~~"
No. 17's tone grew increasingly lewd. Xia Feng rolled his eyes. Go alone? If you went alone, Goddess Mu would probably chop you into pieces and feed you to the dogs. Wouldn't that just waste your life points?
"By the way, how many life points do you have left?" Xia Feng asked.
"Why do you ask?" No. 17 instantly grew wary.
"I currently have 26 life points," Xia Feng replied with a faint smile. "Honesty for honesty—I want to make a deal with you."
26 points?! No. 17 stiffened slightly, narrowing his eyes. "Seems you really did kill No. 10."
"Obviously."
"Tsk tsk, hunting in reality is still the most profitable."
No. 17 sighed. "Right now, I've got 19 life points. Let me be clear—I didn't buy any skill cards in the first three rounds, but I have to get one in the fourth evolution round. If you're thinking of borrowing points from me, the answer's no."
Xia Feng tapped the table thoughtfully. "Which skill card are you aiming for?"
"Do you even need to ask?" No. 17 chuckled softly. "Every player's eyes are on that B-rank spirit attire. Anyone with decent savings is probably scrambling for it."
"But you only have 19 points. Is that enough? From my estimates, the B-rank spirit attire will go for at least 40 points."
"Of course it's not enough. That's why I'm looking for solutions," No. 17 scoffed.
"I can lend you 20 points," Xia Feng stated bluntly.
No. 17: "Huh?"
Xia Feng glanced at his own 26 life points. According to the rules, if No. 17 killed him, the latter could only inherit his cards—not his life points. The only way was to transfer them directly.
"I'll give you 20 points. Once you secure the B-rank spirit attire, you just have to share it with me."
No. 17 immediately grasped Xia Feng's meaning—he wanted to co-invest in the B-rank gear. It was a solid plan.
But he couldn't help feeling skeptical, narrowing his eyes. "Aren't you afraid I'll back out?"
"Back out?" Xia Feng tilted his head, then spoke in an utterly earnest tone: "I trust you!"
No. 17: "..."
"Transferring it now." Xia Feng acted without hesitation, like a naïve rich guy falling for a scam—if the scammer asked for a million, he'd hand it over without question.
[Ding~ Player No. 11 has transferred 20 life points to you. The transfer has been completed.]
No. 17's eyes bulged as the notification flashed across his panel.
[Life Points: (19 + 20) 39]
Gulp— He swallowed hard, feeling almost lightheaded. 39 points! He'd scrimped and saved for three rounds, and now his stash had doubled in an instant!
Xia Feng added casually, "Oh, right—I still have 6 life points left. You can use a predation card on me during the basic predation phase later and grab another 5 points. I'll enter the nature reserve."
The "nature reserve" referred to players who had been preyed upon in the basic predation phase—they'd be protected from further attacks, likely to prevent a single player from being ganged up on.
Hearing Xia Feng's generous offer, No. 17 froze. Another 5 points? That'd bring me to 44 life points!
The sheer speed of this wealth accumulation left him dizzy. He snapped his head up, scrutinizing Xia Feng with even deeper suspicion.
"Wait a second—do you even want to join the mission to capture Mu Qingtong?"
"Of course, it's a great opportunity to meet you," Xia Feng replied with a smile.
"My identity counters yours. Aren't you afraid I'll kill you in reality?"
"Kill?" Xia Feng blinked, feigning confusion before adopting that same earnest tone again. "I trust you!"
"..."
No. 17 was utterly baffled by Xia Feng's behavior. How could anyone trust a stranger so blindly?
Is this some kind of trap? He frowned, but the life points were already in his account—completely under his control. Even if No. 11 tried to kill him now, he couldn't reclaim the transferred points.
That left only one possibility: No. 11 genuinely believed he wouldn't betray him.
But why?
No. 17's instincts screamed that this was a setup, yet he couldn't pinpoint the angle. Xia Feng had already handed over all his points—what could he possibly gain from this?
Maybe there's a risk I'm not seeing...
Still, the benefits far outweighed the doubts.
They finalized the operation details and their meeting point. Before parting, No. 17 couldn't resist asking one last time:
"You really trust me?"
"Absolutely!" Xia Feng grinned, flashing a thumbs-up. The next moment, his figure and the platform vanished.
No. 17 stared into the empty darkness, silent for a long moment—before suddenly doubling over in laughter.
His wild, mocking cackles echoed through the void.
"Seriously... what an idiot!" He wheezed, straightening up with a cold glint in his eyes. His gaze dropped to the tablet.
[Life Points: 39]
"It's the fourth round now. Basic predation nets 5 points. The hunting phase doubles it to 10. And killing No. 11 gives an extra 6-point bounty..."
His lips curled into a vicious grin.
"That's another 5 + 16 = 21 points from him. 39 + 21 = 60 life points!"
"Sixty," he whispered, trembling with excitement. Just imagining tonight's haul sent electric thrills down his spine.
"Tch, if only I met suckers like this every day."
He shook his head in mock pity. "But first—I've got a job to do. Mu Qingtong."
A twisted smirk spread across his face as his pupils dilated with perverse anticipation.
"DONG——"
The deafening bell tolled.
"The free trade phase has ended. Prepare yourselves—the basic predation phase begins now."
The masked dealer in a black top hat hurled the 37-sided die into the air, its black-and-white facets spinning wildly.
As agreed, No. 17 used the Predation Card on Xia Feng. Watching his panel, Xia Feng saw his remaining 6 life points drop to 1 as he entered the nature reserve.
[Life Points: 1]
He smiled.
Now, all I need to do is find No. 17... and kill him.
Then take his place.
(End of Chapter)