Chapter 79 - 079 A Piercing Arrow (Added for Alliance Hierarch Little Pit of Mo Yi)

Chapter 79: 079 A Piercing Arrow (Added for Alliance Hierarch Little Pit of Mo Yi)

An arrow pierces the sky, and a massive army comes to meet it.

Six Color Frost—not just fireworks, but flares and signal fires, too.

Players can’t be killed off; they fire poison arrows and find bugs to exploit. Lin Bai’s life is too valuable to be thrown away in a direct duel with them...

A sudden NPC popping out caused the barrage of scrolling comments to explode.

"What’s happening?"

"Can a BOSS summon reinforcements?"

"Looking at the situation, it seems like Lonely Old Man’s plan has been full of holes from the beginning. Lin Bai just laid a trap for him to jump into."

"So Deng Isnotmuch was a traitor after all!"

"It’s over, it’s over, there’s no hope anymore! The Jiamucheng prison is probably going to be overcrowded."

"One hard fact we’ve learned is that you should never fight a BOSS in a city."

"PFFT! Players’ levels in Jiamucheng will be further reduced, adding to the misery of their already pathetic lives."

"It’s not that serious; the game doesn’t have red names. As long as they’re masked and not caught on the spot, they’re safe."

"Yes, low-level accounts can just be deleted. The veteran players exploiting the disconnection bug didn’t even have a chance to make their move; Storekeeper Lin was too hasty."

"Although it appears Storekeeper Lin has won, he’s actually lost. He lost because of his lack of understanding of players."

「...」

Mad Man, Bitter Melon Vine, Silver, and others who were planning to attack Lin Bai while offline, seeing Lonely Old Man and his group suddenly surrounded, breathed a sigh of relief in unison after a brief moment of confusion.

They had to be caught red-handed, with the evidence.

The only pity was that Lonely Old Man was in for a miserable time...

「...」

"What should we do?" asked I’m Not an Alt Account. "Lonely Old Man, shall we charge?"

"Low-level accounts cover high-level players while they log off," Lonely Old Man made the most accurate judgment quickly, looking at the NPCs that surrounded them. "If you want to charge, go ahead. If you don’t, you can surrender. You can delete and restart your accounts if necessary; I will compensate all your losses."

"Okay," I’m Not an Alt Account nodded.

Reinforcements arrived. Lin Bai gracefully stepped out of Chef’s Divine Food Stall and, cupping his fist towards the martial arts hall members, said, "Thank you, esteemed hall masters, for your assistance."

"Storekeeper Lin, you’re too kind," said the Master of the Zhang Family Punch Palace. "These villains have disregarded the law, gathering to commit violence in Jiamucheng. Protecting the peace and safety of our city’s citizens is the duty of every martial artist."

"I’ve heard that some apprentices from the martial arts halls are among these culprits," the Master of the Mo Family Hall said, his gaze sweeping over the surrounded players. "We’ve come this time not only for our own safety but also because if those who gathered in the city to murder and cause mayhem are caught by the City Lord, our martial arts halls will inevitably be implicated. We must also thank Storekeeper Lin for not reporting this to the authorities; otherwise, we would find it hard to clear our names."

"Rest assured, Storekeeper Lin," said the Master of the Wu Family Blade Hall, a man with a prominent beard, a willow-leaf broadsword in hand, and a cold glint in his eyes. "If any apprentices from our Wu Family Hall are indeed found among these culprits, I, this old man, will personally cripple their Martial Arts and hand them over to the authorities. We will show no leniency!"

Behind the three masters stood several artisans, including Zhang Achun and Zhang Shutang, as well as the town’s physicians. They all chimed in, "Storekeeper Lin, rest assured, if any artisan apprentices are involved, we too will show no mercy..."

"Thank you, everyone," Lin Bai replied with a smile, cupping his fist.

"It’s our duty, it’s our duty," the NPCs all said. "We should be the ones thanking you, Storekeeper Lin."

"Everyone, let’s not go back and forth thanking each other," Lin Bai laughed heartily. "We’re all part of Jiamucheng; it’s our collective responsibility to maintain its harmony and stability, and protect our home..."

Naive NPCs, all of them just alt accounts. Who can they possibly catch? Mad Man chuckled drily, watching the NPCs who clearly thought they had the situation under control. But Lin Bai’s next words froze his smile.

"Everyone, in recent days, many ’Sky-Fallen People’ have appeared in the city, as I’m sure you’re all aware." Lin Bai looked at the alt accounts still standing there. "These Sky-Fallen People do not belong to this mortal world. They do not fear death, they come and go like the wind, vanishing in an instant, and possess Divine Skills comparable to Immortals. Capturing them is incredibly difficult. However, possessing Divine Skills is no excuse for them to disregard the law.

This time, most of those who caused trouble outside my shop were these otherworldly people. Therefore, I earnestly request all of you to remain stationed here for a few more days.

During this period, if any masked Sky-Fallen People in black appear within this cordon, please apprehend them. As for the apprentices who were training at your esteemed halls, if they do not show themselves in the next few days, it can be concluded that they participated in this violence. When they do eventually show their faces, you may expel them directly. I will cover all the hall masters’ expenses for these few days, including food and lodging..."

「...」

"Damn it!"

"Damn it!"

"That’s a savage move! Log in and get caught. Stay offline, and it’s the same as quitting the game. Storekeeper Lin’s tactic of pulling the rug out from under them is truly brilliant!"

"The main fighting force in this BOSS battle consists of players from the first and second closed beta tests. If they’re forced to stay offline for several days, all their early efforts will be wasted!"

"All Jiamucheng players are being rounded up in one fell swoop! This is true Hell Mode!"

"Damn, these NPCs aren’t competing with levels; they’re hitting you with the law!"

"It’s always been players corpse camping! Now it’s the NPCs’ turn. They’ve even figured out how players log off to escape. Shouldn’t the game company come out and explain this?"

"These NPCs are too smart!"

"Storekeeper Lin is the real BOSS. The bosses in other games are weak compared to him."

"I said it long ago, Lonely Old Man’s plan was never going to work. Who tries to kill an NPC inside a city?"

"Storekeeper Lin is personally demonstrating to all players: even in a game, you have to obey the law. Otherwise, you won’t even be able to play!"

"If we can’t freely kill and set fires within the game, what’s the point of playing? Are we just going to play house with the NPCs?"

"Shitty online game, boycott it!"

"This is what a truly realistic game is like! Otherwise, if you guys can just craft Crossbows and casually murder people on the streets, how are the NPCs supposed to live? Don’t forget the game’s setting: NPCs only have one life. If that were the case, the city’s order would collapse in a few days."

"Compared to NPCs, players are immortal and level up super fast. They already have a huge advantage. If the intelligence of NPCs is lowered further, what’s the difference between this game and some trashy online game?"

"This is doomsday for PK-focused players. After this live stream gets out, public anticipation for the game will drop by fifty percent. The developers are so stupid!"

"I play games to have a blast and let off steam! If I can’t kill freely, I suddenly don’t want to play this kind of game anymore."

"Real life is already frustrating enough; why would I want to go into a game to be bullied by NPCs?"

"I find it very interesting. The Immortal World was launched with ’realism’ as its catchphrase. If it were made like old online games where the BOSS just stands there waiting for you to hit it, *that* would be stupid."

"Well said! It’s much more interesting to battle a BOSS with both wits and courage."

"In such a realistic world, perfectly killing a BOSS would give an absolutely explosive sense of accomplishment!"

"High Levels mean you can do whatever you want. If this group of players had high enough Skill Levels, they could totally slaughter these NPCs and break out of the encirclement without any worries. The game’s Government Office still follows rules; they don’t just arrest people randomly."

"The correct way to play this game is actually to lie low in the early stages and then dominate in the later stages."

"There’s still a way! Log in and commit suicide. Have your own people guard the corpse until it respawns. When you emerge from the Resurrection Point, you’ll be completely clean. At most, you’ll lose one Level and some coins..."

「...」

Flustered, Mad Man kept a close eye on the barrage of comments. The vast community of players will surely find a way out of this, he thought. The idea of committing suicide to drop a Level made his eyes light up. That’s the option with the least losses!

But before he could even log in, Lin Bai plugged all loopholes with a single sentence: "...When Sky-Fallen People die and revive, all their belongings are left behind at the place of death. If anyone returns to their martial arts hall having ’lost’ their swords or weapons, they are the culprits..."

That’s right. When you enter a martial arts hall to learn Skills, the hall provides you with corresponding weapons. Most of these weapons bear the insignia of the martial arts hall. When players go out to fight a BOSS, no one considers changing weapons to hide their identity.

In their view, going so far as to wear black and cover their faces was already showing Lin Bai plenty of respect.

It wasn’t that they weren’t cautious; they simply lacked this awareness.

It’s just a game; who would clear out all their belongings and leave no trace when going to fight a BOSS!

A perfect crime?

Come on, they’re players, not high-IQ criminals.

「...」

"Except for new accounts, we’re totally screwed!"

"Storekeeper Lin hasn’t left them any way out at all!"

"Over ten days of hard work, all wasted!"

"I don’t know why, but looking at the miserable Jiamucheng players, I kind of want to laugh."

"@Wilderness Wolf. This is a bloody lesson. When you fight the Black Tiger Gang, make sure you don’t repeat this mistake!"

"I’m so incredibly grateful right now that I didn’t choose Jiamucheng back then."

"Weren’t some people complaining the game has no newbie guide? Well, now you have one! Storekeeper Lin is online, personally instructing you on how to play the game correctly..."

"Hahaha! The biggest winner of this BOSS fight is Deng Isnotmuch!"

"So, it turns out this is a game for honest people, hahaha, I’m dying of laughter!"

"Wrong, this is a game for smart people."