Chapter 2744: Simple and Honest Local Customs
Before these people could answer, an enforcement team arrived near the park through a portal within the district. The woman in the red dress, sensing trouble, had already fled. They had small-range teleportation devices in hand, and by the time the enforcement team was dealt with, they had already escaped outside the park.
There was no need to clash with the district government right at the start of the instance. After dumping this group in another direction within the park, Xu Huo followed the path the woman in the red dress and her crew had taken.
The teleportation devices of the red-dressed woman's group couldn't cover too great a distance, and the city had no strict restrictions on spatial teleportation, so catching up to them wasn't difficult.
After leaving the park, they didn't immediately go home. Instead, they detoured to another bustling street, still posing as dancers to lure outsiders into dancing. Not only were out-of-zone players their targets, but ordinary tourists from other zones were as well. In less than an hour, they had succeeded five times, with two of those targets being players. Naturally, they were chased afterward, but thanks to the small-range teleportation items and the cooperation of the nearby enforcement team, both players backed off.
Afterward, they took a winding route back to the residential area in the southern part of the city.
It was worth noting that in Zone 022, even the residential areas on the city's outskirts were quite beautiful, with adequate infrastructure. Although the population was relatively dense, sufficient technology allowed these buildings to be constructed higher and higher.
Xu Huo followed them for a while before realizing that ordinary people in Zone 022 had decent welfare and didn't lack food or drink, but they had strict hierarchical divisions. These divisions didn't directly classify people into different classes of citizens but instead restricted the range of activities for some.
For people like the woman in the red dress, their range of activity was limited to only one-tenth of the entire Zone 022.
"Not bad tonight," the bearded man said, dumping items like props and wallets onto the table in the spacious living room, counting them with some satisfaction.
The woman in the red dress wasn't as optimistic. "The enforcement team lost face today. We don't know if anyone died. If someone did, we're in big trouble."
"They were outmatched. When others were willing to pay to avoid trouble, they insisted on seeking death. Who's to blame?" the bearded man said irritably.
Just then, a thin young man walked out of the room. "There's no news from the enforcement team. It shouldn't be anything serious."
"Why are you up?" the woman in the red dress asked, looking at him. "Did we wake you?"
"I wasn't asleep." The young man looked at the items on the table and asked, "Something happened tonight?"
The woman in the red dress didn't want to say much, but the bearded man was quick to speak, spilling the whole story like beans from a jar.
The young man's expression darkened. "Since that player could control so many enforcement team members, he must be able to track you. Keep the items you took from him on hand, and if he comes looking, return them to him. Tell the enforcement team we didn't succeed."
"Is it really that serious?" the bearded man hesitated.
The young man looked at the woman in the red dress. "Sis, I've told you many times—don't target players. You're all ordinary people. If you slip up, you could lose your lives."
"Props and devices are worth money. With these, we can trade for better equipment, and you can go to a good hospital for treatment," the woman in the red dress said. "Besides, this isn't just for the present. It's for the future."
"I don't want to be restricted every time I step out the door. If we haven't paid enough resident taxes, we have to pay a premium just to use free aircraft. Do you want to live like this until we die?"
Her words silenced the room. After a moment, the young man said, "Aren't there plenty of people living like that?"
The woman in the red dress stood up. "Others can, but I can't!"
She turned to go into her room, but at that moment, one of the props on the table suddenly vanished into thin air. The people sitting nearby all jumped to their feet, warily scanning their surroundings, but nothing else happened.
After a while, the young man said, "This time we met a generous player. Next time, we might not be so lucky."
Xu Huo, having retrieved his prop, found a hotel to stay in. He picked a photo of the enforcement team from a good angle, attached a picture of the prop, and posted it on his travel log with the title "Enforcement Team Deploys Dozens to Help Foreign Tourist Successfully Retrieve Lost Prop," along with a note of thanks.
Ordinarily, such travel logs weren't unusual—good deeds, real or fake, were common. But his log featured quite a few players, and now the enforcement team had appeared. Locals might not know outsiders, but they certainly knew their own enforcement team. For out-of-zone players, losing a prop—or even their lives—wouldn't matter to them. Moreover, judging by the static photo's positioning and the expressions of the enforcement team members, it didn't look like a scene of helpfulness.
Zhou Juanjuan and a few others liked and commented.
Soon, other out-of-zone players they didn't know also liked the post.
After dawn the next day, Xu Huo followed his usual routine: visiting different scenic spots, tasting local cuisine, buying souvenirs, and going to the local exhibition hall. When he spotted a gem on display, the game notified him that he had found the souvenir for this location.
There were quite a few players who had entered with him, clearly not the only ones to discover this souvenir.
Many were eager to try. Xu Huo withdrew from the crowd, found the exhibition's organizer, and offered to buy the gem.
The organizer repeatedly declined, saying it was a rare piece for exhibition and the original owner didn't want to sell. But when Xu Huo tripled his offer, a purchase contract was immediately sent over. However, when they went to retrieve the gem, it—along with the entire sealed display case—had vanished without a trace.
The organizer immediately closed the exhibition hall, forbidding anyone from entering or leaving, and notified the enforcement team to investigate. But before the hall was fully sealed, several players had already escaped. With prop interference, they couldn't successfully use spatial teleportation, so three minutes later, they were all gathered together for a group photo.
Soon, another illustrated diary entry appeared on Xu Huo's travel log: "Good Samaritan Finds Valuable Lost Item and Returns It to Its Owner."
Ordinary readers had already caught on to the pattern of his travel log. Those interested would chime in with a few words, praising the local customs for being simple and honest.
Rivi even replied below, "You found the souvenir that fast? I stayed up all night and got nothing."
Xu Huo replied, "Keep it up."
After successfully obtaining the souvenir, he went to a third city. At first, he just played around. If he hadn't found any souvenir after two days, he would "inquire" with nearby players. Sometimes, he got lucky and encountered "kind-hearted" people who "gave" him the souvenirs they had found. He didn't stand on ceremony, taking photos as mementos and giving them a local specialty in return.
By the time he reached the sixth city, the souvenirs were no longer randomly generated but came with specific requirements:
"A hummingbird with a red feather on its head in Rose Fortress."