Chapter 2961: The Fate of a District
Xu Huo paused, then asked again, "What happened to the Totem Squad that went into the Wisteria instance earlier?"
"They were lucky enough not to be found by anyone and were directly ejected from the instance." Nie Xuan was well aware of the military and the Special Defense Department's thinking. They actually wanted Xu Huo to try again to see if he could destroy this random instance in Jing City, as it would be low-cost and a permanent solution, eliminating the worry of the instance resurging.
"Don't count on it." Xu Huo said flatly. The Wisteria instance was lucky because they happened to destroy the Instance Authorization. Trying to find an Instance Authorization in Jing City? What difference would that make from simply abandoning the city?
Besides, this instance was different from the Wisteria one. Although Wisteria was a random instance, the instance venue was shared. Players entering from different districts all cleared the instance in one venue. It was hard to say whether the current A-grade instance in Jing City only had one venue.
Without further explanation, he only added, "Not every time is that lucky."
Nie Xuan nodded. The nation couldn't rely solely on one player. Would they have to call Xu Huo back every time something happened?
But this was an A-grade random instance, still too early for the vast majority of government players.
"Get some rest. I'll monitor the situation outside." Nie Xuan stood up. "I'll come find you if anything's wrong."
Xu Huo nodded slightly, then closed his eyes.
Nie Xuan moved quietly as he walked out. The moment he closed the door, he looked up and saw Minister Ji and Team Leader Ming standing at the end of the corridor.
The three of them entered the room at the end of the hall, which had been reinforced with special metal.
Inside the room, half of the people from the earlier meeting were present. Everyone looked at Nie Xuan, hoping to get an answer from him.
"It won't work." Nie Xuan said. "The collapse of the Wisteria instance had a certain element of luck involved."
The people present were somewhat disappointed, but at the same time, they understood that calling it luck was just an excuse. If Xu Huo didn't have some guaranteed methods, how could he have entered the instance at such a critical moment?
Even if hundreds of thousands of people in Hai City were trapped in the instance, compared to the entire nation or even the entire district, it was only a small part. It wasn't a question of whether to make a choice or not; Xu Huo prioritizing the first-level war zone was itself a form of choice.
"Alright, we can't place all our hopes on a young man." The elder at the head looked at Nie Xuan. "Is he badly injured?"
"Not too bad. He's probably just tired from coming straight out of consecutive instances." Nie Xuan said.
The elder nodded. "Since he can't do anything for now, let's get moving. Jing City cannot be abandoned under any circumstances. This isn't just a risk from a random instance; it's a test before the establishment of the district government."
"Yes!"
Xu Huo leaned back in his chair, the communicator in his ear emitting intermittent sounds. Although the entire safe zone was within the Painting Woman's perception range, many places had no paper, so she couldn't explore them. However, with so many people, not everyone kept their mouths shut. From their discussions, she learned that the reason the government wouldn't abandon Jing City was because of the establishment of the district government after the merger.
The game hadn't publicly disclosed the specific conditions for establishing a district government, but comprehensive strength and the recognition of the entire district were essential. This could be seen from the game's recognition of countries within the district. For example, the Painting Woman's range of paper control could be expanded through legally and legitimately designated real estate properties registered under her name. The district government wasn't something the game could just establish however it wanted.
Even though Xu Huo was from Country X, on the district level, which country he was from didn't really matter. Although the current situation favored him, the government couldn't afford to take any risks. This would determine the future fate of Country X.
This wasn't hard to understand, but Xu Huo felt such caution was unnecessary. District 011 was an example. District 011 had annexed several other districts, forcing subsequent new districts to fill in the previous designations. He estimated that if Hua Han hadn't messed up himself, District 011 might not have stopped there.
Super players were deeply bound to their districts. The former could protect the latter, and the latter could, to a certain extent, determine the direction of the former.
This was a turning point in a district's fate, naturally requiring collective effort.
"Are you asleep? Are you asleep? Are you asleep?"
The communicator's voice started repeating again. Xu Huo opened his eyes and stared at the Painting Woman.
The Painting Woman stared back, blinking her eyes.
"Stop pretending. If you have something to say, say it." Xu Huo said.
"I lost something." The Painting Woman was being very roundabout.
Xu Huo gave a cold smile. "Was it yours? How can you lose it?"
The Painting Woman giggled. "I saw it lying in the corner, no one wanted it, so I picked it up. What I pick up is mine."
"I lost something too." Xu Huo was indifferent to the disappointment on her face and closed his eyes again.
The Painting Woman, having gotten nowhere, dawdled over to the side. After holding it in for a while, she still had to ask: "Where did you lose it?"
"Why do you want to find it so badly?" Xu Huo was a bit curious now. Aside from the "Light Gentleman" badge, he had never seen her so fixated on anything else.
"I asked around. That piece of paper is very valuable." The Painting Woman didn't hide her excitement very cleverly. "Someone is willing to pay a hundred billion to buy it."
"A hundred billion. Who knows if they'd be buying the authorization or your life." Xu Huo waved his hand slightly, then paused and asked, "Did you tell anyone about the authorization?"
That was the Box Carrier's instance authorization. Considering such an important moment as the robbery of the Platinum Eye was missing a super instance, he could only imagine how furious he was now.
The Painting Woman gave him a "are you stupid" look. "If I told people about something so valuable, wouldn't everyone want to snatch it?"
Then she recounted her experiences after they had separated.
After discovering that Xu Huo and Yan Jiayu had left, she had originally wanted to sneak out too. But that was when the Box Carrier returned. Puppets were everywhere, so she had to hide all over the Clown City. It wasn't hard for her to hide. When the Box Carrier returned and found his home had been robbed, he seemed furious. At the main gate, he dug up the bones, smashed them, pieced them back together, and refilled the hole before angrily returning to the castle.
The Painting Woman followed the performance troupe for a few days until the Box Carrier left. She found Da Mao and escaped from the Clown City. They happened to run into a starship that was docked for repairs in District 039. Hearing the people on the ship say they were going to see a show, the Painting Paper and the Stone eagerly climbed aboard.
That's right, they just blatantly climbed on. During the repairs, the staff were busy. The crew thought they were props belonging to the passengers, and the passengers thought they were props belonging to the crew. Everyone welcomed them warmly. However, when their identities were checked on the ship, it was discovered they hadn't bought tickets. Just as they were about to face a hefty fine, someone offered to pay for their tickets, on the condition that the Painting Woman sell Da Mao to him.
The Painting Woman sold Da Mao without a moment's hesitation.