Chapter 3029: Do You Think I'm an Idiot?
The group glared at the Painting Woman. Under these circumstances, it was hard to believe she hadn't done it on purpose—she clearly wanted to hit someone!
"What do you want to do?" Xiao Yue stepped forward and asked, "Has Mr. Xu arrived?"
The Painting Woman looked at them. "Why should I tell you?"
Although they had heard that Xu Huo always had a female player by his side, no one knew exactly who she was. However, according to inside information, Xu Huo had secured Ting City for her in a transaction. Ting City was now under government control, but nominally it already belonged to the Painting Woman.
The two had a close relationship. Since Xu Huo refused to show himself, she was naturally the breakthrough point.
"We just want to see Mr. Xu," Xiao Yue said. "Is he in the office building?"
The Painting Woman stared at her, then suddenly laughed and said into her communicator, "You're lying to me too."
"You're trying to trick me. Do you think I'm an idiot?"
Xiao Yue quickly said, "I absolutely didn't mean that. Of course you don't have to answer."
The Painting Woman thought for a moment and then proposed a condition. "If you all let me hit you, I'll consider it."
She was talking about slapping faces.
Xiao Yue smiled. "We don't necessarily have to wake him up by hitting him. There are plenty of other stimulating methods."
"Why? I really like it." The Painting Woman pointed at the person who had just been hit. "I think he likes it too."
The man who had just been slapped had already come to his senses. Though angry, he maintained his composure and didn't fight back. "I don't like it!" he emphasized.
The Painting Woman looked at him with confusion. "Why are you lying? You clearly like it."
The veins on the man's forehead bulged. He really wanted to throw a punch, but the person next to him held him back.
The Painting Woman wasn't afraid at all. She said to the others, "If you want to see Xu Huo, agree to my condition, and then I'll go ask him."
"Can you guarantee he'll definitely see us?" Zeng Guangyao asked.
"No guarantee." The Painting Woman replied with a grin, seemingly uninterested in continuing the topic. Her attention was drawn to the tray of food a nearby patient was carrying. She turned her head to look, then headed straight for the cafeteria counter.
"The food here isn't real anyway," Zheng Zhixuan couldn't help but say.
"As long as it feels real, that's enough." Xiao Yue raised her hand and turned back to look at Zong Lanzhi. "Let's just agree to her condition first. Getting slapped is simple—apply some medicine, and it'll heal quickly."
That was true. The person who had been hit earlier hadn't come downstairs with a swollen face.
Zong Lanzhi had a feeling that if they couldn't see Xu Huo in person, this instance would probably kill them. He could only nod in agreement.
But they never expected things to take a strange turn. Over the next period of time, someone would go crazy almost every half hour. Although they would quickly come to their senses after being slapped and questioned, some people who had been hit would repeatedly fall into hallucinations and then ask questions. Their faces would swell up, then go down, then swell up again.
"Why do you keep picking on me?" A Knife-Wielding Player who had been hit again cried out in frustration and anger. This was already his fourth round of being slapped!
The Painting Woman blew on her hand in front of him and said sincerely, "Maybe this is your innermost wish, but you just won't admit it."
"Don't stop me! I'm going to kill her!" The Knife-Wielding Player was about to strike, but at that moment, the "Dream Lover" burst in from outside the window, knocked him over, and pinned him down, biting his neck!
The Knife-Wielding Player screamed. Although he managed to kick the "Dream Lover" away in time, his neck was still bitten bloody. Seeing the monster suddenly attacking, Zong Lanzhi waved his hand and sent it flying back into the hallway outside. Just as the other players were about to deliver the finishing blow, countless shreds of paper suddenly flew up inside and outside the room. Like sharp blades, the rapidly spinning paper pieces continuously cut the players' hands and faces, forcing them to retreat.
Someone's defensive device finally activated, blocking most of the paper pieces. The group turned to look at the Painting Woman, who was controlling the paper, their expressions ugly.
The scene of paper control in Hai City during the Super Item incident was still fresh in their memories. That was their first encounter with the impact of a Super Item. No matter how grand the scenes they had witnessed since, that moment would never fade from their memories.
Although there had been much speculation about the ownership of the Super Item afterward, and with Xu Huo's rise, many people naturally assumed the Super Item was in his hands, who would have thought the item had never left District 014 and was still in the hands of a fool!
After spending half a day with her, everyone understood that the Painting Woman probably had some mental issues... Whether her mind was normal or not didn't matter much—what mattered was that she had strength!
"She is my friend." The Painting Woman pointed at the "Dream Lover" crawling behind her. "You can't hit her."
"I think that's what I saw in the ward earlier," Zeng Guangyao said.
"Alright, it's just a heated argument," Zong Lanzhi stepped in to mediate. "No one make a move."
After speaking, he looked at the Painting Woman and gave a gentle smile. "Since she's your friend, she's our friend too. Friends should get along harmoniously. You don't object to that, do you? Could you please ask your friend not to hurt anyone?"
The Painting Woman had no concept of self-reflection and replied matter-of-factly, "Your friend wanted to hit me, so my friend bit him. You should teach your friend a lesson."
Zong Lanzhi signaled the Knife-Wielding Player with his eyes. The latter's face stiffened for a moment before stepping forward. "Sorry!"
The Painting Woman patted the "Dream Lover's" head and said for her, "I don't want to forgive you."
The Knife-Wielding Player's face twitched. She's picking a fight!
"I won't forgive you, but I won't kill you either." The Painting Woman grinned at him.
The Knife-Wielding Player's expression turned very ugly.
Zong Lanzhi pushed the man behind him and took the initiative to ask the Painting Woman how she had made this "friend."
"A friend is a friend." The Painting Woman gave him a strange look, pulled a pack of jerky from her backpack, and waved it left and right like teasing a dog. After watching the "Dream Lover" crawl back and forth twice, she giggled and fed it to her.
Zong Lanzhi's fake smile instantly collapsed. He was wrong. He shouldn't have tried to understand an abnormal person with a normal person's mindset, especially when one of them was an item.
But he was still very interested in the Painting Woman. When night fell, he found that she didn't sleep. She just sat on the opposite bed, staring at him with wide eyes. He spoke up again, "Why do you follow Mr. Xu?"
"No reason."
"Do you like him very much?"
"Yes."
"Your friendship is truly enviable," Zong Lanzhi said, as if sighing from the bottom of his heart. Then he added, "You're considered a strong player in the game. Have you ever thought about striking out on your own?"
"No money," the Painting Woman replied.
Zong Lanzhi laughed easily. "If you wanted to, I'm sure plenty of people would line up to give you money. Not to mention far-off places, even the Enforcement Headquarters would treat you as an honored guest. Forget money—asking for two more cities wouldn't be a problem."