After being poisoned by mushrooms, all the strange creatures became fascinated by me.

"Jie Bailing".

King Zhou of Han was personally carrying two large buckets of fresh meat outside.

He tilted his head back, put his hand to his lips, and let out a long whistle.

In just a few moments, a huge shadow began to hover in the sky. It descended lightly, finally retracting its wings, and landed not far from Han Zhou.

The golden eagle didn't look at him, but casually lowered its head towards its wings, elegantly using its sharp beak to groom the two protruding feathers.

King Zhou of Han tried to feed it.

It disliked the slow pace of the man, so it nudged Han Zhou's hand away with its head and then shoved its head into the bucket.

"You...sigh," Han Zhou truly had no way to deal with it, "the way you eat..."

The golden eagle looked up and glared at him. The feathers on its face were stained with blood, making it look somewhat terrifying.

"Eat up, eat up," Han Zhou waved his hand helplessly. "I wonder if that girl would still be plotting to steal you away from me if she saw you like this."

The golden eagle stopped moving, turned its head, and stared at him with one round eye.

Where did that little guy go?

"Don't worry, she's fine." Han Zhou chuckled, feeling like he'd gotten himself half-witted again. "Hmm? Didn't see her in the sect? I sent her into the city; she has some things to do."

It's unclear how he could decipher the golden eagle's question from that furry face, but even after receiving an answer, the enormous raptor still stared at Han Zhou with suspicion.

"Don't look at me like that. If she's in danger... I'll let you, or I'll go to her rescue myself."

King Zhou of Han slowly combed the golden eagle's feathers with his fingers for a while, then suddenly sighed.

"Oh, really, I'm starting to feel a little guilty being stared at by you."

"I assure you she's physically fine. At most, she'll just suffer some psychological trauma."

The golden eagle reluctantly rubbed against his palm.

"—Hopefully, she can return healthy and lively this time."

Inside the city, in a narrow alley.

The healthy and lively Tang Li restrained a boy with all four limbs intact with one hand.

She's a player too!

The two realized with despair that all their hard work had finally come to naught, and they had just kicked a steel plate.

Tao Yongjun was in so much pain that tears streamed down his face. He pleaded, "It was my fault, I was blind to your greatness, senior, please let go..."

Tang Li: Hehe, he calls me senior!

Tang Li finally released her grip, letting him withdraw his wrist. Tao Yongjun held his swollen hand with heartache, glaring at Tang Li with tears in his eyes: "You...you...you also..."

Why are you still repeating this nonsense?

"Players," Tang Li interrupted casually, making no attempt to hide her contempt, "If I weren't worried about the imbalance of combat power between players and NPCs, I really wouldn't bother reminding you two idiots."

She knew exactly what these two men were like—bullying the weak and fearing the strong. The more disdainful she acted, the more respectful they would be to her.

"Senior, what does Senior want to remind us of?" Shu Yijiao asked, leaning forward with a fawning expression.

Tang Li stood up and patted the dirt off her knees: "You've even tried to scheme against me? You're barely able to protect yourselves; NPCs have been eyeing you for a while now."

She stared at Shu Yijiao's incredulous face.

"—Has this woman named Sister Hong been constantly hanging around you all this way?"

"Has she been secretly watching you, muttering to herself? Does she follow you wherever you go?"

Shu Yijiao recalled for a moment, her face turning pale: I knew it!

Actually, Sister Hong didn't have any designs on Shu Yijiao at the time. It's just that the two of them were both lingering around Tang Li, and Sister Hong had to be constantly on guard against her taking their "prey" Tang Li away. If another manager took a fancy to Tang Li, the duck that was about to be eaten would fly away.

Therefore, it naturally evolved into a scene where "Sister Hong was always watching Shu Yijiao".

Tang Li straightened up, her gaze sweeping over the two pale faces in turn. "Sister Hong has been plotting to kill you two all along. If I hadn't asked to use you two as bait, there would be two more corpses in this alley now."

The boy and girl's expressions changed drastically: "This...how is this possible? We killed you for points, what could they possibly want from killing us...?"

"Sell the parts of your bodies for money." Tang Li stared at the two with a half-smile. "A beautiful woman's skin can be exchanged for a hundred taels of silver, and a pair of eyeballs can be exchanged for fifty taels. Take them apart, and your whole bodies can feed and drink dozens of mouths."

The two immediately felt a chill run down their spines, but what followed was a completely different emotion.

"So that's what you mean—" Tao Yongjun's anger was palpable. "Those NPCs... actually dared to set their sights on me?"

He almost shouted, "They actually dared to plot against me?!"

Tang Li looked at him, and the expression on his face was as if he had suffered a great humiliation.

A mocking smile crept across Tang Li's lips. She felt a sense of absurdity: when you treat NPCs as tools to earn points, you should also be prepared for them to sell you for money.

This instance is as cruel as a primeval jungle where laws have never existed. You and I are each other's prey. Since you have your claws, I naturally have my fangs.

There's no difference, is there?

"We didn't know your true identity before. You disguised yourself so well, senior. We're so sorry." Shu Yijiao changed her expression and apologized in a proper manner, speaking softly to Tang Li.

"Please rest assured, senior, there is no benefit to players attacking each other, and we will definitely not attack you again."

Judging from the way Tang Li just toyed with Tao Yongjun, he's clearly a trained fighter. Even if they were to fight, they wouldn't be able to beat her.

Tao Yongjun also joined in, forgetting all about the grudge on his wrist at this point, and said with a fawning smile, "Players help each other out, senior, how about we form an alliance?"

"That NPC arrived just in time..." He smiled mysteriously, trying to hide his intentions, "Senior, let me tell you a secret: we players can exchange NPCs' lives for points."

"I see you haven't become a trainee assassin yet, and Liu Lang has even taken your place under Instructor Han. Are you like us, having been tricked by that two-faced beast?" The girl, putting herself in our shoes, earnestly advised, "So, senior, why don't you join us in accumulating points to exchange for pills, and then go find Liu Lang to take revenge?"

Her eyes darted around. "Look, we've been spotted. Let's use us as bait to lure Sister Hong here, and then you can make your move..."

Tang Li sighed, as if she were looking at the most disappointing junior.

She spoke up, asking, "Is this enough?"

"She's just Sister Hong, a mere handyman's points. Are we three supposed to divide them? How much can each of us get?"

"After all that time and effort, how many points can I earn in a day?"

Tao Yongjun and Shu Yijiao exchanged a glance. It seems... they really have run into a big shot?!

Their hearts pounded with excitement, and their voices trembled.

"You...do you have a more efficient way?"