A Kind Reminder

If you don't have supplies on hand right now, that's fine. Why not just sign a trade contract and pay them back later?

Resorting to fighting and killing would only waste the supplies the system has given to Cheng Shuili, wouldn't it?

Cheng Shuili smiled. To Qi Wanyi and the others, this expression seemed incredibly friendly, but to Qian Xun and his group, it was clearly the look of a smiling tiger.

However... Qian Xun narrowed his eyes, keenly noticing Cheng Shuili's choice of words.

Theoretically?

What did that mean?

He found it truly strange, so he simply asked.

Cheng Shuili turned to look at the coatings, then said with a playful, enigmatic smile: "Having enough to divide is one thing, but... why should I share them with you?"

That point was hard to argue with; Qian Xun was so choked up by the remark that he didn't know what to say. It was his teammate standing at the warehouse entrance who couldn't help but interject: "Then why did you call us in? If it isn't to split these coatings, I don't think there's any need for us to talk at all!"

Cheng Shuili ignored him, not even glancing his way, and kept her gaze fixed on Qian Xun with the same expression.

Yet, everyone present somehow understood her meaning—was it really the place of someone other than the team leader to speak here?

Qian Xun felt humiliated and turned to glare at the reckless teammate. The man was still unresigned and took a step forward as if to say something else, but was pulled back by another person.

The person who pulled him back only glared at the reckless one and whispered something, causing the man to finally settle down.

Xinxue watched the scene and just rolled her eyes silently. Cheng Shuili didn't say much else, quietly watching Qian Xun and waiting for his reply.

Choosing between one's life and supplies is a decision most people would make, but there are always those who are confused.

Qian Xun's expression shifted, and he took a deep breath, appearing to be suppressing his emotions.

He raised a hand to signal his teammates to stay calm and refocused his gaze on Cheng Shuili.

"Angry Crow Takes Flight, are you saying that if we want the coatings, we need to pay a price?"

He asked in a low voice, his tone betraying no anger or joy.

Isn't that obvious?

Cheng Shuili raised an eyebrow slightly. Did they really think she was here in the dungeon to do charity work?

She nodded in approval, as if praising a student who had finally caught on: "It’s so much easier talking to smart people. That’s right. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. We opened the warehouse, we bore the risks, and now our position is exposed and we face constant trouble. Naturally, these coatings cannot be given away for nothing."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over Qian Xun and his teammates, and continued at a measured pace: "You are the second team to arrive, and your attitude is acceptable, so I am willing to give you a chance to trade. As for those who come later... heh, that’s another story."

Qian Xun was silent for a moment, quickly weighing the pros and cons.

Use force to seize them?

The opponent held the high ground, their firepower was unknown, and there was the unfathomable top-ranked player, Angry Crow Takes Flight. The odds of winning were extremely low.

Trade?

Although it would cost them, it was at least a secure way to obtain the necessary supplies and complete the dungeon objective, which was the primary goal.

The choice was obvious.

"What do you want?" Qian Xun asked directly.

"Straightforward!" Cheng Shuili smiled. "I see you’re a practical person. Let’s do this: the coatings are calculated by the person. Your team has six people, so you need sixty units. I won't ask for too much—one unit of coating for 2,000 game coins, or five vehicle cards. Of course, I don't want trash like duel cards. Also, if you have anything particularly rare, the value can be calculated separately."

In other words, each player had to spend 20,000 game coins to buy a victory in the dungeon from the Crow?

This price couldn't be called expensive, but it was within an acceptable range. Moreover, everyone here was a player capable of entering a hell-level dungeon; her only asking for 20,000 game coins was already being very polite.

If they really failed the dungeon... they would randomly lose ten types of supplies, which might cost even more than 20,000 game coins.

It went back to the same point: since they were already in a hell-level dungeon, who didn't have a few good things on them? If those items were on the list of losses, they would have nowhere to cry.

Qian Xun turned back to exchange a few whispers with his teammates and quickly reached a decision.

"Fine." He nodded. "But the supplies we have on us might not be enough to cover all sixty units. Can we sign a system contract and make up the difference after leaving the dungeon?"

This was exactly what Cheng Shuili had in mind.

She smiled slightly and immediately produced a contract she had already prepared.

She had made it on a whim while drinking tea and waiting for people. The terms were clearly listed and absolutely fair and impartial.

Qian Xun carefully read the contract, and after confirming everything was correct, he signed it on behalf of his squad.

"Pleasure doing business with you."

Cheng Shuili waved her hand with a smile, and Qi Wanyi immediately counted out sixty units of anti-corrosion coatings and pushed them over.

Qian Xun's teammates stepped forward and quickly gathered the coatings. Throughout the process, both sides remained highly vigilant, but no conflict occurred.

"By the way, did you find any useful information?" Cheng Shuili asked as she watched them tuck the coatings into their backpacks, her tone seemingly casual.

Qian Xun paused, looked at her for a moment, then shook his head.

So he wasn't willing to share.

Cheng Shuili felt a bit helpless, but she never liked forcing anyone, so she let it be.

However...

"A word of warning," Cheng Shuili said suddenly just as Qian Xun's squad was about to leave. "The map only shows which squad has finally obtained the coatings and updates their position in real time. In other words, now that you have these sixty units, you will immediately become a target for other players the moment you step out."

Qian Xun stopped in his tracks, his expression shifting slightly, but he quickly regained his composure: "Thanks for the warning. We have our own plans."

He took one last long look at Cheng Shuili, as if trying to see something in the face of the woman who always wore a smile, but finally just nodded and led his teammates to vanish quickly into the rain.

The warehouse door closed once more.

"Boss, are you just going to let them leave like that?" Jiang Tang asked, puzzled. "What if they team up with others after they get out..."

"Don't worry," Cheng Shuili sat back down by her 'tea table'. "The contract states that within seven hours of the trade, they cannot initiate an attack on us or leak detailed information about the warehouse. Seven hours from now, we'll all be out of the dungeon. Besides, there are far more people watching us right now than there are watching them."

Qi Wanyi stood to the side and shook her head, suddenly patting Cheng Shuili gently on the back. "You're too relaxed... Be more cautious. Don't flip your boat in the gutter."

Cheng Shuili was startled and instinctively tensed her back.

This was definitely a kind reminder, a sign of Qi Wanyi's concern for her.

But that was exactly the problem.

Although the few of them had always been her partners, there had absolutely never been any intimate contact between them.

This kind of natural, effortless concern was terrifying.