The end of the world is approaching, I'm handing myself over to the country.

Whispers erupted from the crowd, and countless people turned in that direction, their faces filled with anticipation for a good show.

In a corner of the crowd, a well-dressed, composed middle-aged man trembled slightly.

Jin Buhuan's heart was instantly filled with turbulent waves.

If he had known it would escalate to the shop owner's point of view, he would never have made such a big deal out of a mere 8.8 million source crystals!

If I had known, I would have just accepted my bad luck!

Now that the shop owner has publicly called me out, I'm in big trouble!

Jin Buhuan hesitated for less than a second before steeling himself and stepping out of the crowd.

He knew very well that hiding was absolutely useless now.

In this wasteland paradise, the shopkeeper is the only rule. Once you anger him, you're truly doomed.

When Jin Buhuan appeared before the crowd, a chorus of pointing and whispering immediately arose.

"It really is him!"

"Who would have thought? Such a respectable person, yet he does something like this!"

"Bah! The rich are heartless!"

Jin Buhuan remained deaf to the harsh comments around him, showing not even a superfluous expression.

He strode up to Lin Mo, bowed slightly, his posture extremely humble, and cautiously began, "Shopkeeper, you...you called me?"

He did not explain immediately.

How could someone who has risen to this position possibly have completely clean hands?

But blindly defending oneself at this time will only make things worse.

If one says something wrong and displeases the person in front of them, the consequences could be disastrous.

Lin Mo glanced at him indifferently, said nothing, and simply reached out and grabbed a slightly yellowed old parchment, which appeared in his hand.

The parchment emanated a visible power of rules.

The moment Jin Buhuan saw the parchment, his legs went weak and he almost knelt down.

Contract terminated!

This is the most severe punishment in Wasteland Era, without exception.

Once signed, all data of the signatory will be wiped clean, and they will be permanently expelled from Wasteland Era!

The desolation of lying on the ground only served to conceal his true feelings, but when he saw the parchment, he was overjoyed and his joy almost overflowed from the bottom of his heart and burst through the top of his head!

He won!

He made the right bet!

Once Jin Buhuan is expelled, no one will be able to cause him any more trouble! Those 8.8 million source crystals will then belong to him completely!

Jin Buhuan broke out in a cold sweat instantly. He could no longer maintain his composure and hurriedly spoke, his voice trembling, "Shopkeeper, I...I can explain! This matter..."

However, Lin Mo interrupted him directly.

"This isn't for you to sign."

One sentence left Jin Buhuan speechless, unable to utter a single explanation he had prepared.

"Me... huh???"

Lin Mo casually tossed the fatal parchment in front of Jin Buhuan, speaking in a calm tone as if he were talking about a trivial matter.

"It's for you to use."

"Get your own problems sorted out and stop bothering me!"

"Honestly, I'm so busy all day, and you still have to bother me."

Lin Mo glanced around at everyone: "And you guys, don't come here causing trouble for no reason, understand?"

In that instant, time seemed to be paused.

Not only were Jin Buhuan and Beiliang trying to cover up their true feelings, but all the players around them—whether they were watching the show, feeling sympathy, or filled with righteous indignation—were completely dumbfounded.

The open space in front of the grocery store was completely silent, save for the sound of the wind.

Jin Buhuan stared blankly at the parchment that had fallen in front of him, then looked at Lin Mo, who was expressionless. His mind was completely blank, and he was utterly unable to process the revolutionary information before him.

Is this for me?

These few words echoed repeatedly in his mind, each word as heavy as a thousand pounds, making him dizzy.

Meanwhile, the expressions of the indignant players around them, who were ready to see the rich player suffer a setback, were even more fascinating.

Their mouths were slightly agape, as if they had seen a ghost.

The scene, which had been filled with heated discussion just moments before, was now so quiet that you could hear your own heartbeat.

"No... wait a minute, my mind is a bit muddled..." A player subconsciously rubbed his temples, trying to sort out the chaotic logic.

"If this 'contract termination' wasn't signed by Kim Bu-hwan, then... that means it is..."

In an instant, everyone's gaze was drawn back to the man still lying on the ground, his pathetic state only serving to conceal his true feelings.

If the previous gazes were filled with sympathy and pity, now they have turned into scrutiny, suspicion, and a chilling realization that the deception has been seen through.

The female player who had just been gently comforting him subconsciously took a step back, distancing herself from him, her face filled with astonishment and shame at being deceived.

The desolation of lying on the ground only served to conceal its true nature, and his body suddenly stiffened.

The overwhelming joy that welled up from the bottom of my heart had no time to spread to my limbs before it was instantly frozen by a bone-chilling cold.

No...that's not right!

The story shouldn't have gone this way!

Shouldn't the shop owner stand up for justice for himself, the "weakling," and severely punish that rich and heartless "bully"?

How could... how could the tools of punishment be handed over to the bully himself?

The desolation, though seemingly concealed, only served to highlight the change in the gazes around him. Those gazes were no longer an aid to him, but rather sharp steel needles, piercing his entire body with pain, leaving him nowhere to hide.

He tried to maintain his pathetic facade, but his facial muscles were completely stiff, and he couldn't muster even a trace of sorrow.

In the eerie silence, a completely emotionless, mechanical synthesized voice suddenly exploded in everyone's ears!

[Server-wide Announcement: Player "悲凉总欲盖弥彰" maliciously used a low-quality item—a Servant-level pet egg—to disguise it as a Lord-level pet egg during a transaction, and imitated the name "墨方" to defraud player "金不换" of a total of 8.8 million Source Crystals. This egregious behavior severely disrupts game balance.]

[According to the rules of Wasteland Era, player 'Sadness Always Trying to Cover Up' is now subject to the highest punishment: permanent expulsion, data wipe, and a permanent ban from logging into Wasteland Era!]

The announcement was spoken clearly, word by word, echoing in the open space in front of the grocery store.

It rang three times!

It was as if they were afraid someone might not hear every detail.

When the announcement completely disappeared, the entire scene was first deathly silent, and then erupted into a huge uproar!

"Wow! I'm totally speechless!"

"Eight million eight hundred thousand?! Did I hear that right? Eight million eight hundred thousand source crystals?!"

"My God, what an incredible scam! How did he do it? He swindled eight million eight hundred thousand with a piece of junk?"

"A role model for us all! How did he do it?"