Better to Teach Someone to Fish

Even though the grand region channel was refreshing at a blinding speed, she still caught two characters—Black Feather!

The members of Great Wall Watching had their tails up; although they were second-ranked, they had certainly enjoyed plenty of limelight since the grand regions merged, making it inevitable for some pride to take root.

Who would have thought that as soon as Black Feather made a move, they would do it in such an eye-catching way?!

Inside Great Wall Watching:

"What kind of item is this? Can't we get one too?"

"We aren't exactly doing poorly, are we? Not to mention, didn't we compile an item compendium? Where is an item like this on that list?!"

"This is too much! I knew there was something wrong the moment Black Feather stayed silent! Sure enough! It's a good thing we were only competing in secret, otherwise, we would have lost all face."

"Sigh, Brother Wolf has already given orders; we cannot go up against Black Feather. Let's just keep a level head; there's nothing else we can do."

"This must be a new item that appeared after the grand region merge, right? I saw someone mention it in the channel! They said it's called a pinned post card! That person doesn't seem to belong to a faction and is looking to sell it! @Undying War Wolf Soul, Brother Wolf, should we buy it?!"

"Buy! Why wouldn't we buy it! We are the second-ranked faction, after all; we can't afford to be outdone, can we?"

"I think we should buy it too! @Undying War Wolf Soul, Brother Wolf, come out and make the call!"

【Undying War Wolf Soul】: Buy it! Do you have the person's ID? Contact them right now and offer a high price to secure it. Now is the critical moment to establish our impression on players in the grand region channel; the more we can showcase our strength, the better!

【Undying War Wolf Soul】: Keep a level head. We aren't competing with Black Feather; we are all factions of Dragon Country, no need to sour the relationship! We are just showcasing our image to attract players who want to join us!

"Yes, Boss!"

"I'll go contact them for the purchase right now!"

With the pinned post card in hand, War Wolf didn't even read the description before choosing to use it.

After inputting Great Wall Watching's recruitment information, he specifically posted in the group chat, "Using it now," to whet the appetite of all his members!

Just when they thought their faction's pinned message would be just as golden and prestigious as Black Feather's, a drab, gray pinned message drifted slowly to the very top of the grand region channel.

【Great Wall Watching is sincerely recruiting players from all walks of life! Leader: Undying War Wolf Soul (Ranked 2nd on the Dragon Country grand region leaderboard)! We possess...】

Although this message was pinned, its color was dull, the font was ordinary, and what made it even worse was that it was firmly pressed beneath Black Feather's glittering golden announcement like an inconspicuous subtitle.

The Dragon Country channel exploded once again:

"Pfft—! Is this contrast too brutal?!"

"Hahahahahaha! Sorry, I can't help it! One is an imperial decree with gold trim, and the other is a street-side flyer!"

"Both are pinned post cards, so why is the gap so big? Did Great Wall Watching use a fake?"

"Laughing myself to death; with an effect like this, it would be better not to be up there at all; it's just too conspicuous!"

"No way, even though I'm not in Great Wall Watching, I feel so embarrassed for them, hahahaha! How could it end up like this?"

The internal group chat of Great Wall Watching fell into a dead silence.

The members who had been shouting to buy it just moments ago wanted to bury themselves in the dirt.

Undying War Wolf Soul stared at the drab, gray pinned message, the corners of his eyes twitching violently.

He clicked on the item description to take a closer look, only to discover that there was a tiny level label after 【Pinned Post Card】; he had bought the most ordinary 【Ordinary Pinned Post Card】.

And what Black Feather used was clearly a higher-level 【Supreme Pinned Post Card】!

"Damn it!" Even with War Wolf's steady temperament, he couldn't help but curse under his breath.

The loss of face was truly solid.

Cheng Shuili naturally saw that gray pinned message too. She raised an eyebrow and said nothing, but the slight upward curve of her lips showed her excellent mood at that moment.

The effect was even better than she had anticipated.

After Black Feather's recruitment information went out, the notification sounds for joining the faction almost never stopped; the dense list of applications refreshed frantically.

Having downed two cups of coffee, Xinxue and several core members were kept busy off their feet. Following the standards set by Cheng Shuili—attributes meeting the mark or possessing a specialized skill, showing no major personality flaws during the conversation, and finally passing a basic background check by 001—they could officially become peripheral members of Black Feather!

Although this system was established temporarily, it received unanimous approval from all Black Feather members.

This recruitment drive definitely meant a surge in Black Feather's numbers. In a big forest, there are all kinds of birds, and with more people come more headaches.

Just in case, it was better to set up a peripheral member status first; after a long period of observation without any issues, they could then enter Black Feather's inner circle.

None of these matters required Cheng Shuili to handle them personally, but as the Boss, she still had plenty to deal with.

She had just finished creating the new group chat when the vehicle suddenly shook violently and then slowly came to a stop.

Cheng Shuili immediately perked up and stood to check the situation. Su Rui poked her head out from the driver's cab, a look of rare tension and confusion on her face as she whispered:

"Boss, it's the Rat King... He is standing right in the middle of the road, as if he's been waiting here for a long time."

Cheng Shuili's gaze sharpened, her heart understanding everything.

She straightened her collar, which wasn't messy to begin with, and pushed open the car door with a calm expression.

Ahead, not far away, the Rat King stood still.

He was still in his impeccably tailored formal suit, not a hair out of place. His walking stick tapped lightly against the ground. Though not tall, he carried an aura of deep, unwavering authority.

He had arrived faster than expected, and even more... unexpectedly.

Cheng Shuili opened the car door and jumped down.

The Rat King stroked his beard, his eyes squinting into two slits as he spoke first: "Young friend, all is well? This vehicle of yours is quite impressive."

His gaze swept over the roof of Cheng Shuili's vehicle, seemingly quite wary of the crossbow mounted there.

Cheng Shuili remained composed, replying in a calm tone: "Not as impressive as your ability to appear and disappear at will, Rat King."

Seeing the Rat King this time, his attitude seemed even more subtle than before—less of the initial warmth, and more of a sense of scrutiny.

The two kept up appearances, and Cheng Shuili sighed as if making idle conversation: "I had just sent the letter, and you've already arrived. How timely."

"Hehe, I happened to be handling some trivial matters nearby. Sensing that you needed help, young friend, I had no choice but to make the trip," the Rat King said dismissively, but Cheng Shuili didn't believe a word of it.

He looked Cheng Shuili up and down and continued, "You mentioned in your letter that you wanted to go to the Beastman Town? Is there something you need to do there?"

Cheng Shuili's thoughts raced, but her expression gave nothing away. She simply followed the Rat King's lead: "Indeed, there are some matters that need to be handled at the Beastman Town. Since you are here, Rat King, I assume you have a way to help me with this favor?"

The Rat King chuckled, his walking stick tapping the ground lightly: "A way, well, that naturally exists."

He shifted his tone, looking pointedly toward the direction of the Black Feather safe zone, "However, while the Beastman Town is stable, it is home to many tribes, making the situation quite complex. You have a large household now; if you were to do something reckless, I fear it might cause a chain reaction."

Cheng Shuili caught the probing nature of his words and replied with a light laugh: "You worry too much, Rat King. I am only going to handle some private matters; I will not interfere in the internal affairs of the beastmen."

As for Black Feather, since he didn't ask explicitly, Cheng Shuili didn't want to talk about it either.

"Oh? Private matters?" A gleam flashed in the Rat King's eyes. "I wonder what kind of private matters would be worth such a grand mobilization? Even my letter to you has been put to use. Could it be... related to the plague currently running rampant?"

Cheng Shuili's heart tightened. That wasn't the tone of someone asking a question; that was someone who was certain!

Searching her mind, Cheng Shuili was certain she hadn't told anyone her purpose for heading to the Beastman Town. Since it wasn't a leak of information, there was only one possibility...

The beastmen must also be in turmoil because of this disaster, right?

Cheng Shuili calmly countered: "Is the plague giving you a headache too, Rat King?"

A headache?

Why wouldn't he have a headache?

The Rat King cast a subtle glance at the Abyssal Ring on Cheng Shuili's finger. This plague had come on fast and fierce, and countless beastmen had fallen ill.

The beastmen of other tribes didn't concern the Rat King much, but the little rats under his command had been infected in large numbers. If he did nothing and just sat by while the disease progressed...

The darkness in the Rat King's eyes deepened. The intelligence network he had worked so hard to build was on the verge of collapse.

For this reason, he had run to several tribes to consult their priests, finally learning about the Vials of Eternal Life from the bear-race priest. But when he rushed to the hospital, he heard that damned director saying it had been taken by a human!

When the Rat King endured his anger to ask for a name, well, wasn't it the very young friend who had written him the letter?

The Rat King, standing before the special device, looked at the device, then turned to look at the letter in his hand that clearly expressed a desire to go to the Beastman Town.

Connecting the two, how could he not understand what had happened?

The smile on the Rat King's face faded, his shrewd eyes revealing undisguised anxiety. He sighed softly, his walking stick grinding against the ground unconsciously.

"It is far more than a headache..." the Rat King's voice was low and hoarse. "This plague is bizarre, and its onset is extremely rapid. The tribe's priests say that infected beastmen first suffer from high fevers and uncontrollable coughing, then grow increasingly weak. From infection to death, it takes at most three or four days."

"Coupled with the fact that this plague is highly contagious, if it is not brought under control, I fear that by the time this storm ends, several tribes will be lost."

Cheng Shuili put on an expression of surprise, though she wasn't surprised by the danger of the plague—there were no easy disasters in this world, let alone one that was uniform across the entire server.

What surprised her was that the number of beastmen would actually decrease.

Previously, Cheng Shuili had assumed the beastmen were just NPCs, and even if they were removed, new ones would appear to replace them.

But thinking about it carefully now, the beastmen of the wolf-race were still dragging their families along; if there was no ordinary reproduction, how could this situation occur?

The Rat King waited for a moment, and seeing that Cheng Shuili had no intention of speaking, he didn't want to continue with the pleasantries, so he simply got straight to the point:

"Young friend, I will be blunt. I know the Vials of Eternal Life are in your hands, and this plague is sweeping through the entire beastman population. My tribes have suffered heavy losses, and I need the power of the Vials of Eternal Life to curb this disaster. Name your terms; as long as it is within my power, I will not haggle."

His tone carried a trace of hard-to-detect urgency, his shrewd eyes locked onto Cheng Shuili, trying to discern something from her face.

Cheng Shuili's fingertips gently rubbed the cold surface of the Abyssal Ring, not answering immediately.

The Rat King's candor was both within and beyond her expectations. She certainly understood what his visit meant at this moment—it meant that this boss of both the black and white markets had lost his confidence in fighting the disease and could only beg for her help.

If she ignored his plea, the Rat King's influence might take a hit, but at the same time, the relationship between her and the Rat King would instantly plummet to freezing point, perhaps even turning into an irreconcilable blood feud.

Since he dared to say it so openly, it meant he wasn't afraid of Cheng Shuili taking advantage of this opportunity to strike.

A lean camel is still bigger than a horse; he still had the confidence to stand against a fledgling safe zone!

And if she helped the Rat King...

Could they turn swords into plowshares and become partners in the future?

The answer was clear: impossible.

There was only so much power, and the Rat King held it tightly in his hands; he would never loosen his grip by even a fraction.

But power—Cheng Shuili wanted it too.

The trade network in the Rat King's hands, the information network—they were all very mature. This was a very rare...

Opportunity to weaken the Rat King's influence!

Or... an opportunity to cut a piece of flesh from the Rat King!

Cheng Shuili raised her eyes, her gaze meeting the Rat King's burning anxiety calmly.

"The Rat King is a man of his word, so I won't beat around the bush either," she said slowly. "The Vials of Eternal Life are indeed with me. But as you said, this plague is coming on aggressively, and no one can guarantee whether the Vials of Eternal Life can turn the tide."

"Besides, such treasures are rare throughout the world, and their power diminishes with every use," Cheng Shuili's tone was appropriately troubled. "If I trade it to you, what if the effect isn't good, or what if Black Feather encounters a similar crisis in the future? What should I do then?"

This sounded like a refusal, but everyone present was a thousand-year-old fox; who didn't understand what the other meant?

The Rat King gripped his walking stick tighter, but a smile appeared on his face as he said gently: "If you have any conditions, young friend, feel free to state them. Resources, information, or experience in developing a safe zone... as long as I can provide it, I will not be stingy."

"I have already felt your sincerity, Rat King." Cheng Shuili returned a smile, though her tone was polite, the words she spoke were anything but. "The Rat King's arms business is booming, and I must admit I'm quite envious. Why don't you teach me how your factory was built?"

It is better to teach someone to fish than to give them a fish. If she wanted things, the same principle applied.

Instead of wanting bullets and firearms that would eventually run out, it was better to get a factory that could continuously produce weapons!

The Rat King's smile froze almost instantly, his eyes narrowed sharply, and the fingers gripping his gentleman's stick turned slightly white from the force.

"Young friend," the Rat King's voice dropped, carrying a trace of coldness that was hard to detect. "This joke... is not funny at all."