Splitting the Land to Become King

Within the pillar of light, one could vaguely see the silhouettes of countless buildings flashing past at high speed.

Majestic castles, sturdy fortresses, bustling towns, and exotic spires... it was as if the epitome of thousands of civilizations and architectures were being presented in this moment.

At the same time, a vast and majestic stream of information forcibly surged into Cheng Shuili's mind; it was all the information regarding the safe zone!

She could clearly feel that at this moment, she had become a newborn creator, possessing the authority to establish order!

This feeling was truly magical.

To the previous Cheng Shuili, "authority" was a noun, a vague concept. But at this very moment, Cheng Shuili could feel that "authority" was like a tangible object, tightly grasped in her hands.

What she did not know was that all the players driving on the highway could see the strange phenomenon appearing here!

The regional channel had already exploded:

"Holy crap!!! Friends, look out the window! What is that thing?!"

"I see it, I see it! A golden pillar of light! It goes straight to the sky!"

"What's going on? Why does this look like some treasure appearing in a cultivation novel?! Aren't we in a highway survival game?"

"Isn't this something the system caused? How come the system hasn't said a damn word!"

"This golden light is like a miracle. Could it be that we are about to get some benefits?"

"Can you be realistic? Let me make a reasonable guess. The system hasn't made an announcement, which means this probably isn't the system's doing, so there is a high probability it was caused by a player. I'll bet ten cents that Angry Crow Takes Flight did it! Boss Crow, come out and speak!"

"I usually tolerate you people blowing smoke for Crow, but you're still doing it now? How could this possibly be something a player created? No matter how awesome a player is, they're still human, okay? Does this look like something a human could pull off?"

"It really doesn't look like something a human made, after all, this golden light looks like a miracle..."

"But she hasn't acted like a human for a long time now."

As soon as this sentence appeared, the regional channel fell into an eerie silence for a moment, as if everyone agreed with this statement.

And following closely behind was a long-awaited full-server announcement!

【Congratulations to player Angry Crow Takes Flight for successfully establishing the safe zone "Black Feather"!】

【A new trade zone has been added to the world. Players passing by during their highway travels will have a chance to enter the new zone after meeting the conditions set by the leader, "Angry Crow Takes Flight"!】

【Congratulations to player Angry Crow Takes Flight for being the first player in the entire server to establish a safe zone, achieving the title "Splitting the Land to Become King"!】

【Reward: Exclusive title "First Crown King", special building blueprint "Monument of Heroes"!】

The full-server announcement rang out three times, and the cold system voice now seemed to carry an indescribable weight, slamming into the heart of every player.

After a brief dead silence, the regional channel became like cold water poured onto a red-hot soldering iron, completely boiling over!

"Holy crap!!! It really is her! Angry Crow Takes Flight! This strange phenomenon really was caused by her!!"

"Splitting the Land to Become King... a safe zone... am I still dreaming? What is going on? I'm still sleeping in the open on the highway, and the boss has already built a city?!"

"Black Feather safe zone! That name is so cool! So that golden light really was a miracle? It was a miracle created by Boss Crow!"

"A trade zone? So now Black Feather's territory has the same functions as a trading post or the beastman town?"

"Doesn't that mean a new special building has been added?! The most magical thing is that this special building was created single-handedly by a player! Damn, who would believe this if I told them!"

"Are there entry conditions? Boss, hurry up and announce the conditions! I've been coveting Black Feather's territory for a long time, let me in to see it!"

"Is no one paying attention to this achievement? Splitting the Land to Become King!! Does no one understand how domineering and cool this idiom is?!"

"I get it, I get it! I also understand First Crown King and Monument of Heroes! This is too cool! So, is Boss Crow there? Hurry up and let me join Black Feather!!"

Meanwhile, in other sub-regions of Dragon Country, and even in player channels of other nations around the world, this sudden full-server announcement stirred up a massive uproar.

Inside Great Wall Watching:

"Establishing a safe zone? This world can even have safe zones established?"

"Looking at the announcement, it should be about the same as the beastman town or the trading post."

A faction that could pool resources to pile up a second-place ranking naturally saw things more thoroughly than the idle chatter on the regional channel. After a few messages, someone mentioned the core issue:

"If those special buildings are collectively called safe zones, then aren't all the safe zones we can come into contact with controlled by the Rat King?"

"So now that Crow is creating a safe zone, isn't she going up against the Rat King?"

The group went quiet for a while because of this question. A moment later, someone popped up and tagged Undying War Wolf Soul.

"Brother Wolf, what do you think about this? Should we take any action? Do we need to warn Crow? After all, we're all Dragon Country people."

"Warn him? He's been firmly pressing Brother Wolf's lead for a while now, and we haven't even vented that frustration. Now we have to spend resources to help him? I don't agree!"

A member with the ID "Sharp Axe" immediately retorted, his tone filled with indignation.

But this sentence was refuted by another member named "Vision":

"Truly short-sighted. Do you guys even understand what this means? It means that in the entire world, the only human safe zone was created by a Dragon Country person! With this safe zone here, all of us Dragon Country players have one more foothold and a retreat in the world! This is no longer just about personal rankings and petty pride!"

"Vision is right."

Undying War Wolf Soul finally sent a message. His prestige seemed to be very high; as soon as he appeared, all the arguments and noise vanished.

"Rankings are fleeting; survival and development are the fundamentals. Angry Crow Takes Flight being able to reach this step is her own skill and opportunity. What was our original intention in establishing Great Wall Watching? It was to let more of our compatriots live in this ghostly world, and to live better!"

He paused, then continued typing, his words clear and his goal specific:

"Now, a safe zone controlled by our compatriots, with potentially friendlier rules, has appeared. This is an opportunity for all Dragon Country players, including us. Sharp Axe, put away your unnecessary competitiveness. In this world, personal face is worth nothing, and collective survival and interests are above all else."

"Besides, her being able to take first place is her own ability. We concentrated all our resources on one person and could only get second place, can we still not accept defeat? We should be proud to have such a compatriot."

The group echoed with agreement: "Brother Wolf is magnanimous!"

"Brother Wolf is right! It was my thinking that was too shallow; I didn't realize what this meant."

"Anyway, I'll listen to Brother Wolf's arrangements!"

"So, should we find a way to notify Crow now?"

This question involved the next arrangement of actions, and everyone was waiting in the group chat for Undying War Wolf Soul's answer.

Looking at his previous statement, he definitely should be notifying Crow.

Many members were already prepared, but unexpectedly:

【Undying War Wolf Soul】: No need. Let's just do our own thing and wait for the server merge. Or, if you can enter Black Feather, you can contact Crow in advance.

"No need???"

Most people in the group chat had this thought, and Undying War Wolf Soul's answer could be said to be a matter of course.

"Do you think that even our faction, ranked second on the leaderboard, knows this, but Crow, who has been sitting in first place for so long, wouldn't know?"

...

White Eagle Federation, Region 1:

"***! Someone built a kingdom? On this damn highway? Angry Crow Takes Flight? This guy again!"

"First Crown King... a king certified by the system? This title is too domineering!"

"Fuck! Why is it Dragon Country people again? They are always one step ahead!"

"Complaining is useless! The point is, what should we do? How can we get in? The announcement says to meet the conditions set by the leader. What conditions will he set? Resources? Strength? Or is it only open to Dragon Country people?"

"We must find a way to make contact! This is the world's first player territory; its strategic value is immeasurable! Whoever can establish contact first will be able to seize the opportunity!"

"Agreed! Collect all information about Angry Crow Takes Flight and Black Feather! We need to understand her!"

Sakura Island, Region 6:

"Incredible... to think someone could do such a thing. A safe zone, like building an island of order in the endless sea of chaos."

"Splitting the Land to Become King... First Crown King... what a title full of vigor and aesthetic beauty. This Lord Crow has probably already walked ahead of everyone, reaching a realm we can hardly imagine."

"Black Feather, Crow... is it a symbol of ominousness, or wisdom and independence? Regardless, those who can pioneer are worthy of respect."

"Should we, the players of Sakura Island, also consider uniting? Even if we can't establish a safe zone like Lord Crow, at least we can form a more powerful mutual aid group."

"Well said, we can't always wait passively. Perhaps we can try to send a friendly signal to Black Feather and learn from their experience."

North Bear Alliance, Region 2:

"Ura! A tough guy built a stronghold! Black Feather? The name is a bit gloomy, but as long as it's strong enough!"

"Rules set by the player himself? I hope they're more reasonable than the rules of those Ratman vampires!"

"Can vodka serve as a pass? Just kidding. It seems we need to prepare some hard currency."

"Brothers, keep your eyes peeled! Find the road! Whoever can find the road to Black Feather is a hero!"

"Don't forget to inquire clearly about the rules there; if it's darker than the Ratmen, we'd be better off wandering on the highway!"

...

Cheng Shuili didn't know that the safe zone she had established had already become the biggest vortex in the entire highway world!

Countless eyes were fixed on this place, some wanting to defect, some wanting to cooperate, and even more... wanting to plunder!

Before facing the strong enemy of the Rat King, the first thing she had to face were these peers from all directions, each with their own ulterior motives.

But for Cheng Shuili now, it was obviously better to set the entry threshold first.

The Black Feather group chat had already exploded. At first, they were confused about why they couldn't enter the territory, but after discovering that their boss had done such a big thing without saying anything, it turned into:

"Boss!!! You are my only God!!! Safe zone! We have our own safe zone?!!"

"I was just gnawing on dry rations on the highway, and in the blink of an eye, my boss has built a city?! Is this reasonable? This is too reasonable!"

"First Crown King! This title is so perfect for the boss! So boss, what are Black Feather's entry conditions? Hurry up and let us in to worship!"

"I can't wait to see our home! Can those beastman towns and trading posts outside compare to ours?"

Cheng Shuili looked at the excitement and anticipation flooding the group chat, and a smile couldn't help but tug at the corner of her mouth.

The setting interface for entry conditions appeared clearly in front of her, and she could set multiple conditions.

After a brief thought, Cheng Shuili made a decision.

The most basic entry rule was a one-time donation of 100 game coins!

This amount was something ordinary players could easily afford; it could even be said to be quite cheap.

Cheng Shuili's goal was very clear! Attract more traffic and earn more game coins!

After all, the debt was right there, and the system would come to collect it sooner or later. This time, she might not have the luck to exploit a bug to get rid of the time limit like last time.

This rule was clearly aimed at those players who occasionally entered Black Feather. As for the players who wanted to be active in Black Feather for a long time, Cheng Shuili formulated a simple reputation system.

Maintaining friendly speech in Black Feather's external channels, actively sharing valuable information, or completing specific collection tasks released by Black Feather would accumulate reputation. Reaching a certain value could lower or waive the game coin entry threshold.

As for her own people, Cheng Shuili would naturally not charge any fees, so she decisively published the entry permissions.

After setting everything up, she explained it briefly in the Black Feather group chat, and the group chat immediately burst into cheers:

"Free entry and exit! Long live the boss!"

"We can finally go home! Hurry, let me in to see!"

"I'll donate 100 game coins first to support the boss's construction! Just a small token of my appreciation!"

Whether to donate or not...

Cheng Shuili looked at her nine-digit debt and sincerely stated: "I'm not exactly short on money."

This was the first thing the safe zone needed to solve, and as for the second thing...

Cheng Shuili looked up and let out a long sigh. She and Su Rui were still inside the gas station, and it was time to return to their vehicle.

She called Su Rui, and just as she was about to leave, the monster merchant suddenly knelt in front of her with a "thud."

This kneeling from the monster merchant was truly beyond the expectations of Cheng Shuili and Su Rui.

Its skinless face was now forcefully squeezing out a complex expression of sycophancy and begging, and its voice carried a tremor: "You... you! Did you just establish a safe zone? Please... please allow me to join your safe zone and serve you!"

After hearing clearly what this guy said, Su Rui's face changed instantly.

This guy was actually thick-skinned enough to... no, it didn't have skin!

Su Rui suddenly realized that it was precisely because it had no skin that it could do such a thing?!

It had caused her so much misery, and now it actually wanted to follow her boss?! And be her colleague?

It truly was shameless.

Su Rui gritted her teeth so hard they were about to shatter. She turned her head to look at Cheng Shuili, but when she wanted to say something, she found she couldn't bring herself to speak.

Her becoming a slave...

In the end, it wasn't caused by this monster merchant.