“Chairman, we should leave.” A player from the First Association came over to Tan Yang, who was standing outside the restaurant. “Once the Special Defense Department gets involved, we won’t have a say anymore.”

“We can’t leave!” Tan Yang said gravely. “If we leave now, this matter will never end!”

Anyone with discerning eyes could see that Double Snake had backing. If the Special Defense Department was going to shield Mr. Qiu, and the First Association simply walked away, they would definitely be purged afterward. With so many players dead, the most important thing now was to seize the initiative.

“I found a few videos.” Huang Junjie walked over. “Enough to prove that Double Snake is a Player-Eater organization.”

“This is our leverage.” Pu Kang had also recovered by now. “Have our people negotiate with the Special Defense Department.”

“Wait a little longer.” Tan Yang looked at Xu Huo.

Pu Kang followed his gaze. “Who is that? I haven’t heard of any player organization having someone that strong.”

“You do know him.” Huang Junjie shot him a glance. “You were planning to teach him a lesson a few days ago.”

“He’s…!” Pu Kang’s face filled with shock, then he turned to look at the man whose sword was still pressed against Mr. Qiu’s neck, his expression slowly darkening.

By this time, Team Leader Song had arrived with his men. Since Xu Huo had changed his face, he didn’t recognize him. He simply raised his hand and ordered his subordinates to aim their guns at the players both inside and outside the club.

Between the First Association and Brother Liang’s people, there were nearly fifty players in total. After accounting for those who died or left during the fight—about a third—there were still over thirty left. Mr. Qiu’s men weren’t all dead either. A few stubborn holdouts, seeing the Special Defense Department arrive, hurriedly retreated, swimming toward the lake shore while shouting, “We’re on the same side!”

“Openly brawling with weapons—you people have absolutely no respect for the Special Defense Department!” Team Leader Song was furious the moment he arrived.

It wasn’t that he had a short temper; he hadn’t had a moment’s peace all night. First, Team Leader Wu bypassed him entirely and sent players to handle some cult gathering. Then someone reported a player murder incident at a hotel, with screams lasting several minutes. By the time he rushed over with his men, there was nothing left but a pile of half-burned corpses—he hadn’t gained anything.

After returning empty-handed, he had just lain down when he got another call about an incident at Taole Club. Since his main jurisdiction included Yang City, he naturally knew Taole Club was a special place. He immediately mobilized a large number of personnel, but before he could set out, he received word that someone had deployed an armed helicopter. Not to mention the several phone calls he got along the way.

He thought he’d made it in time, but when he arrived, the scene was nearly over. It made his eyes ache—he’d have to write a mountain of reports for this!

“Tan Yang, Huang Junjie, you’ve done well!” Team Leader Song started cursing from across the lake, but no one on this side took the bait. Instead, Mr. Qiu took the initiative to shout, “Save me! My surname is Qiu!”

Team Leader Song gave him a cold glance before looking at Xu Huo, who was stepping on him, mistaking him for a First Association player. “All of you, put away your items and come with me for investigation!”

Several players on Brother Liang’s side were wounded. Their hatred for Double Snake ran deep, and one of them immediately stepped forward, holding up his phone. “What investigation? Are you trying to cover for Double Snake, this Red Player organization? This is really the end! Such an organization openly screens people to form alliances and massacres ordinary players, and the Special Defense Department, which claims to be the nation’s front line, not only fails to deal with them but even tries to cover it up…”

His impassioned words were cut short by a sudden gunshot. The player screamed, clutching his right hand, which had been shot clean through, phone and all!

“What are you trying to do, silence us?!” Guan Zuhong shouted. “We’ve already uploaded videos online! Just wait for the judgment of the entire nation!”

Team Leader Song’s face darkened. He waved back the shooter and stepped forward. “Whether these dead people are actually Red Players still needs to be investigated. Even if the current situation is special, no one is above the law of this country. You can’t just kill people whenever you want!”

“You say they’re Red Players, and that’s it? Does that mean if you decide someone isn’t a good person, you can just kill them on a whim?”

“The nation and the Special Defense Department naturally have laws and regulations for dealing with Red Players. As long as you’re still citizens of this country, standing on this land, you must obey them!”

He then looked at Xu Huo. “Think carefully—can you bear the consequences of killing someone right in front of the Special Defense Department!”

Xu Huo slowly released his foot. Mr. Qiu, now free, wore a smug expression. But before he could stand up, a palm-wide, semi-transparent light screen swept through the back of his neck. His head hit the ground with a thud, and a large amount of blood sprayed out. The man who, just seconds ago, had arrogantly believed he would escape, ended his life in a pose with all four limbs on the ground.

“Clang, clang, clang!” Xu Huo swung his sword, deflecting the bullets flying toward him, while simultaneously throwing out “Lament of Plants.”

Most people on both sides of the lake covered their ears, unable to withstand the sonic attack. Xu Huo placed the “Severing Ties Door” in front of him, took out a bottle of fluffy fungi from his luggage compartment, opened the lid, and let it drift with the wind toward the lake shore.

The dandelion-like floating matter quickly caught the attention of Team Leader Song and his men. Someone probably inhaled a small amount and immediately started coughing.

“His lips are changing color! It’s poisonous! Don’t breathe it in!”

Only half of the men Team Leader Song had brought were equipped with gas masks. He quickly ordered those without them to retreat, but a few seconds later, he discovered that this stuff didn’t just cause poisoning when inhaled—even contact with the skin was toxic!

One player brought out an item that could create wind, but the light, fluffy fungi only spun around with the gentle breeze, far from being completely blown away.

Chaos also erupted on the lakeside club’s side, especially since the gruesome deaths of those gray-robed people were still fresh in everyone’s minds.

“You’re not really going to burn bridges with the Special Defense Department, are you?” Huang Junjie asked uncertainly. After a pause, he added, “That stuff is drifting over to our side!”

“This poison isn’t hard to cure—just need an antidote,” Xu Huo said calmly.

The players behind him heard this and immediately took out their antidotes. The Special Defense Department players on the opposite shore did the same. However, the symptoms wouldn’t disappear immediately even after taking the antidote. Fear of the unknown, and even more so, the fear that his own men might lose their lives, made Team Leader Song roar, “Are you declaring war on the Special Defense Department?!”

“I wouldn’t say declaring war. I just want everyone to calm down a bit.” Xu Huo picked up Mr. Qiu’s phone from the ground. “I hope those of you on the opposite side will stop pointing your guns at me.”

Team Leader Song couldn’t back down. He said firmly, “There’s no easy way out of this. You’re a First Association player—the monk may run away, but the temple can’t!”

Xu Huo placed the phone on the table. Sure enough, the video call hadn’t been disconnected yet, but no one was on screen. He took out his lighter and lit a cigarette. “The First Association is the First Association. I am who I am.”

Facing the screen, and at the same time facing Team Leader Song and the other Special Defense Department members, he blew out a puff of smoke and flashed a grin. “Player Xu Huo extends his greetings to all of you.”