Chapter 220: District 014 Accelerated Gamification
The officials were quite quick, having already figured out the situation in the instance so fast.
"You're talking about Zhang Biao and his partner," Xu Huo said, pouring a little water into the flowerpot. "They didn't complete the game mission."
"The mission required staying in the Little Flower Red Red Building for ninety hours, not just surviving in the instance for ninety hours. They left the building midway."
Team Leader Wu was speechless for a few seconds before saying, "Isn't it obvious? And they lost their lives because of it!"
Without clearing the instance, the best outcome would be getting stranded in it. But if the instance had any forced penalties, Zhang Biao and his partner would have died unjustly.
"You really can't be careless at all in the game," Team Leader Wu sighed.
Xu Huo put down the watering can and suddenly asked, "Has Dai Wenqian joined you? Is he with Tang Guangbo now?"
After receiving two affirmative answers, he hung up the phone.
Dai Wenqian was a clever self-interested person. People like that weren't easily persuaded or hypnotized. The tactics Tang Guangbo used on him might not necessarily work.
But such a person was a good collaborator—sufficient benefits would get them moving.
The free player organization that Gu Yu belonged to had only narrowly escaped this disaster. But after experiencing two or three instances, they would understand that if they wanted to band together, it was best to stand with the nation. Relying on just one D-level player couldn't carry the load, especially since the D-level player Gu Yu mentioned might not be genuine.
Tong Tong came to knock on the door. After the Painting Woman opened it, he stood outside without coming in. "Brother, Auntie told me to call you downstairs."
Xu Huo took a lollipop from the Painting Woman and gave it to the child, who ran off happily.
Xu Huo went downstairs with the Painting Woman.
The Xu family was all there. Yu Qingqing's mother was wiping her tears. When she saw him, she immediately stood up. "Xu Huo, Qingqing listens to you the most. Talk to her. Tell her she absolutely must not become a player. Why would a girl like her go do something so dangerous?"
"How many days has she been gone?" Xu Huo asked.
"Three days," she said. "Not long after you left, she ran out. I thought she was just hanging out with friends, but then I couldn't reach her by phone. She only just sent me a message saying she went to sign up for the Evolver test."
"Xu Huo, she's my only daughter. I don't want to see the old bury the young. You need to talk her out of it."
"She's an adult. She knows what she's doing," Xu Huo said calmly.
"She doesn't!" Ms. Yang suddenly got agitated. "She's been wild since she was little, acting on impulse, bold and reckless, never taking herself seriously. Once she becomes a player, there's no turning back. By the time she sees the real dangers out there, it'll be too late to regret it!"
"Even though you're not blood-related, she still calls you cousin. Think about her."
"Back then, she dropped out of school and followed you to Ting City to be an actress. Now you're a player, so she wants to be one too. She learns everything from you!"
Ms. Yu saw she was going too far and quickly pulled her back. She glanced at Xu Huo's expression and said, "Didn't Qingqing tell you? No one can talk her out of it."
"She's not thinking straight!" Ms. Yang covered her face. "If I'd known, I should have sent her to a mental hospital for treatment. Let her out only when she was cured. Then she wouldn't be going crazy one moment and fine the next..."
Xu Huo gave her a cold look, turned around, and went back upstairs. After closing the door, he called Yu Qingqing.
Yu Qingqing didn't answer. She only sent a message informing him that she was now an Evolver.
"I won't eat people. How disgusting would that be? How could anyone swallow that?"
Looking at the text in the message, Xu Huo rubbed his brow. He suddenly looked up at the Painting Woman, who was eating snacks in large mouthfuls. "Do you know where Yu Qingqing is?"
The Painting Woman nodded.
"Go hang her up and give her a beating. Be careful not to expose yourself."
The Painting Woman's eyes lit up. Taking advantage of the night's cover, she jumped out the window and left.
Having not rested properly for several days, Xu Huo set aside all matters for the time being, lay down, and slept through the night.
Only after waking up the next day did he begin browsing the various pieces of information on the Vanguard Player Forum.
The inside story about the Dimensional Rift Game and players had been made public to the entire population. Compared to other countries that stubbornly denied it, and considering the official players' performance in the last incident, the response was still decent. People were gradually signing up for the Evolver test.
After being attacked by Xenomorphs, Country B also quickly disclosed the existence of players and increased their numbers.
Notably, three Safe Zones had been established one after another. Smaller countries with fewer people and weaker strength were banding together for warmth, beginning to resist Country Y, which was trying to ignite war everywhere.
Country Y had been hit by an infectious disease and simultaneously went to war with its neighbors. In an extremely short time, its population decreased dramatically. After the war swept through the southern part of the country, a sudden wave of Xenomorphs attacked. They established a temporary Safe Zone headquarters in the north, begging for help from major powers while probing the limits of surrounding small countries. Anyone who saw it would call them foolish.
But at this point, no one could afford to care about anyone else. After the Hai City incident, Country X's border defenses also needed to be reinforced—not just against Xenomorphs, but also against people from other countries.
In short, the world was in chaos. The domestic situation was still relatively good.
However, judging from the increasing number of discussion posts on the Vanguard Forum, District 014 was accelerating its gamification process. In just three months, it was already moving toward a state where everyone could become a player.
"This could be considered a good thing."
After resting for two days, with half a month left before the next instance deadline, Xu Huo planned to return to Ting City.
Before leaving, Gu Yu arranged to meet him. She told him that under Dai Wenqian's persuasion, two-thirds of the free players who had originally joined them had now joined the official player organization. Now their side was left with only the original few.
Brother Qiao wanted to invite Xu Huo to join, but Zheng Liang disagreed, so the matter had to be dropped.
"You're still going back to Ting City?" Gu Yu couldn't understand. If he stayed in Jing City, he would definitely have a bright future. Why fight alone?
"I'm used to it there," Xu Huo said casually.
Gu Yu knew he was brushing her off. She joked, "Then you better do well in Ting City. Maybe one day I'll have to come seek refuge with you."
Xu Huo didn't respond, only saying, "Just stay alive."
Gu Yu forced an ugly smile.
After briefly explaining things to his family and informing Team Leader Wu, Xu Huo took a plane back to Ting City.
The Painting Woman came back with him. Just as they were getting off the plane, tears and snot splattered all over the flowerpot. She used big red characters to accuse him: "My house is gone!"
Xu Huo raised an eyebrow. After all, the national hero "Painting Woman" had already been sacrificed. Not only was this to avoid minor disputes, but more importantly, after this incident, the nation had realized that the law could play an unexpected role in the game. To prevent players from exploiting loopholes in unexpected ways, taking back the land and house was normal.
The Painting Woman followed behind him like a soulless shell, occasionally wiping her tears and sometimes looking up to steal glances at him.