[Snake God Mountain Service Area]

Before Xin Jiu could speak, the girls erupted.

"Have you got no shame?"

"She can give her own points to whoever she wants. What the hell does it have to do with you?"

"You can ask your good buddies for some too. See if your good buddies will give you any."

The male player was too embarrassed to take it, but stubbornly retorted, "What good does sticking together do you female players? Your combat strength is still weak as hell!"

"Exactly," another chimed in. "All you can do is run your mouths."

Xin Jiu swept them with an icy gaze. "Say one more word, and I'll kill you."

The male player paled, but stiffened his neck and said, "You can't kill people after the instance ends."

"Then don't let me see you in the next instance."

"Ha, even if you see me in the next instance, you won't recognize me," the male player said fearlessly.

Before they entered their first instance, their pre-match guides had told them that players' faces would change. Someone who knew you this round might not recognize you in the next. What was there to fear?

Xin Jiu sneered. "I put [Tracking] on you. As long as we run into each other, I'll recognize you at a glance."

There was actually a [Tracking] skill?

The male player went white with fright, then ran off, cursing under his breath.

Bubu asked innocently, "Really?"

"You've been with me this whole time. When did you ever see me get that skill?" Xin Jiu asked him, amused. She had only been scaring that gossip of a man.

Bubu giggled.

Looking at that silly expression of his, he really did look like a dog when he ran.

An hour later, the service area opened.

Unlike the warm colors of the Bear Service Area, it was nighttime the moment they entered this service area, and a damp, rank stench hung in the air.

How could that smell be described? It was like entering a snake den.

Before everyone could adjust, a red lantern suddenly floated toward them from ahead.

The pitch-black night, coupled with the blood-red lantern, was truly terrifying to look at.

When the lantern floated closer, the players sucked in sharp breaths. Some of the more timid ones screamed outright.

It was an NPC from the service area.

Its body was like a human's, dressed in a long black robe, but above its neck was a snake's head. The head was blue-green and covered in scales, a scalp-prickling sight under the red light.

Xin Jiu felt her sanity dropping like crazy.

"Welcome, players, to the Snake God Mountain Service Area. I'm the employee responsible for receiving you. You may call me She Liu."

Its forked tongue flickered in and out as it spoke.

The players standing close could even smell the rank stench coming off it. Some began dry heaving, while others desperately shrank back.

She Liu ignored the players' reactions. Just as it was about to speak again, it seemed to notice something. Its neck suddenly stretched out, while its body remained where it was.

The players watched its neck extend over a meter before stopping in front of Bubu.

Xin Jiu scrunched up her face. What a disgusting sight.

"A player?" Its snake eyes were filled with confusion.

Bubu was a dragon. Snakes could only fear dragons, so even with it so close, there wasn't a trace of fear in Bubu's eyes. Instead, he glared back.

"Is that not allowed?"

She Liu probably hadn't expected such a young child to be a player, much less that he wouldn't be afraid with it staring at him like this. It looked for another few seconds, then withdrew its head as though nothing had happened.

How strange. I smelled a dragon on him just now, but once I got closer, I couldn't smell it anymore.

Someone in the crowd suddenly shouted.

"Why did my points turn into one thousand?!"

Xin Jiu looked over and saw a male player staring at his panel, his face deathly pale and his voice trembling. "I clearly had over twenty thousand before I entered the service area. Where are my points?!"

At his shout, everyone brought up their panels.

"I only have one thousand too!"

"Where are my thirty-eight thousand points?!"

"Is there a bug in the system?"

She Liu explained unhurriedly, "Guests, there's no need to panic. Everyone's starting points in our Snake God Mountain Service Area are one thousand. No matter how many you had before entering, they'll be reset to one thousand here. Those are the service area's rules."

Xin Jiu: So they swallowed all the players' points. What a rotten service area.

"What kind of bullshit rule is that?! This is robbery! Give me back my points!"

"What right do you have to deduct our points? We risked our lives for them!"

The crowd seethed with outrage, curses ringing out everywhere.

Someone suddenly rushed up to Xin Jiu. It was the male player who had mocked her for giving her points to others. He pointed right at her nose. "You spent all your points before entering the service area. Did you know something?!"

Everyone turned to look at Xin Jiu.

Xin Jiu sneered. "So what if I did?"

"If you knew, why didn't you tell us?!"

"You're so selfish!"

Tangtang Doesn't Eat Candy pushed through the crowd and glared at the players. "Before we entered the service area, no one knew what would happen. Besides, Bubu suggested everyone spend their points. You were the ones who wouldn't listen!"

They had mocked them for believing a child back then. How did they have the nerve to blame them now?

"Then she could've tried harder to persuade us! We're all players from the Nine Provinces. Was she just going to watch all our points get deducted?"

"If she'd been willing to remind us a few more times, this wouldn't have happened. It's all her fault!"

Tangtang Doesn't Eat Candy grew even angrier. "What obligation does she have to persuade you? You're all adults. You have to bear the consequences of your own choices!"

"Of course it's easy for you to talk when you bought items. We didn't buy anything!"

"You got the benefits, and now you're acting all innocent. If you give us your points, we can shut up. Will you? If not, stop screeching!"

Seeing everyone turn on Xin Jiu, the other girls stepped forward to speak up for her.

For a while, the scene descended into chaos.

Bubu clicked his tongue twice. "What a shameless bunch."

Just then, a burly player suddenly rushed up to She Liu, grabbed its collar, and roared, "Do you know how hard it was to earn my points? Three of my teammates died! Give me back my points!"

Idiot, Xin Jiu silently scoffed.

The eerie surroundings, the eerie reception NPC, and the rule openly robbing players of their points-these three things were all blatantly telling them that the Snake God Mountain Service Area was dangerous.

Yet this player actually dared to rush up and provoke She Liu. Was he brave or just brainless?

The moment She Liu was grabbed by the collar, the corners of its mouth stretched wide.

Then, before all the players' eyes, its snake mouth opened wider and wider, exposing sharp fangs.

The next second, its head shot outward. With a crack, the burly man's neck was bitten clean through at the base, and his head rolled to the ground.

His mouth was still open, and his eyes moved twice, as though he had yet to realize his neck had already been bitten through.

His body remained standing where it was. Blood first spurted from his neck, then he crashed to the ground.

Warm blood splashed onto a nearby player's face, and the player let out a piercing scream!

Some hurriedly backed away, while others crouched on the ground and dry heaved.

Fear filled everyone's faces. Wasn't this a service area?

Why would a service area's NPC kill people?!

She Liu licked the corners of its mouth, narrowing its eyes in pleasure. "So human blood tastes this good."

Its sated voice made their hair stand on end.

Even the few people who had blamed Xin Jiu most fiercely didn't dare make a sound now, afraid that any noise would draw She Liu's attention and get their necks bitten through too.

She Liu swept a satisfied glance over the silent crowd.

"Good, you've quieted down. If you make any more noise, I might just eat someone else."