Chapter 90: 1 vs 1
What surprised Lin Huai even more than holding two skill cards was that the Bone-Picking Child had the power to extract a player’s bound skill card in the first place.
In her previous life, she had never heard of skill cards dropping upon death.
Once activated, a skill card bound directly to a player’s soul. The physical card dissolved into light, and the skill’s imprint branded itself between the player’s eyebrows. If that player died, the ability was wiped out alongside them. There was no known item or mechanic capable of prying a bound skill from a corpse.
Yet by starting over and making a deliberate effort to build sincere bonds with underworld NPCs, Lin Huai had stumbled upon an incredible hidden secret.
Skill cards were legendary, top-tier items, rumored to number around thirty across the entire server. But now that Little Bone could extract them from the dead, wasn’t there a real chance she could eventually outfit every core member of her Elite Squad with their own card?
Lin Huai immediately mailed Little Bone several dozen Yin energy crystals as a grateful tip. She also struck a deal with him: whenever she took down another high-tier player equipped with a skill card, she would deliver the remains straight to his cave and let him retrieve the card for her.
For the Bone-Picking Child, peeling a skull and searching for a bone plate took little more than a flick of his finger—and he earned precious Yin crystals in return. Naturally, he agreed with utter delight.
This instance run had delivered one pleasant surprise after another. Enjoying her good fortune, Lin Huai didn’t forget to summon the Fuzzy Zombie from the Crematorium outpost.
To ensure that neither Chen Feng nor Dragon Crossing the River could ever find a loophole to resurrect again, she had their bodies collected and loaded up.
Straight to the furnaces for a thorough cremation!
The two hours passed quickly. Lin Huai was still reviewing her system inventory when the Yellow Springs Road Guide’s clear notification chime rang through the cabin:
[Hub town detected ahead. Estimated time of arrival: one minute. Drivers, please prepare for entry.]
Compared to her initial district integration battle, Lin Huai was far more relaxed this time.
Steering the armored hearse past the town gate, the first thing she checked was the rival sector they were slated to absorb.
Zone 72, Sub-zone 398. She had never heard of it.
Opening the local leaderboard to check their top seed, she glanced at the nickname sitting at rank one—Young Master Is Jungler.
A small smile touched her lips. “Well, look at that. An old acquaintance.”
It was the young eighteen-year-old boy she had shown mercy to during the arena tournament. She hadn’t expected their paths to cross again so soon.
Lin Huai opened a direct private chat with Young Master Is Jungler:
[Bone Ashes Mixed with Rice]: Little brother, do you still remember your big sister? Let’s save everyone the trouble. Meet me at the Bell Tower right now.
A long pause followed before a voice message popped onto her screen. The boy sounded utterly exasperated, groaning in defeat:
“Argh! This is so unfair! Why did I have to run into you of all people, woman?!”
“No way! I’m not going down without a fight. Meet me in the Bell Tower Plaza!”
“A one-on-one duel! If you beat me fair and square, I’ll bring our entire district over and surrender!”
Ten minutes later, in the center of Bell Tower Plaza.
The teenager was already standing by the fountain, his weapon drawn and his posture tense, looking as if he were facing his ultimate nemesis.
Lin Huai stepped down from her hearse and strolled forward at a relaxed pace, even finding the leisure to give him a friendly wave.
“Don’t expect me to hold back this time!” the boy yelled as he launched himself forward, leaping into the air to bring a double-bladed battle axe crashing down.
A violet war scythe materialized in Lin Huai’s grip. With an effortless flick of her wrist, she caught the falling axe blade mid-air, deflecting the heavy blow aside with a light metallic chime.
“Little brother, you’re no match for me. Just surrender.”
Young Master Is Jungler gritted his teeth, his face flushing red. “Whether I can beat you or not, I have to swing my axe! Otherwise, how am I supposed to look my brothers in the eye?!”
Word had quickly spread that Boss Bone Ashes was dueling the rival district’s leader in the town square. Fearing she might be ambushed, the Elite Squad hurried to the Bell Tower the second their tires touched the pavement.
Hundreds of drivers from Zone 444 followed close behind, ready to charge into a massive district brawl.
To everyone’s surprise, this integration did not feature a chaotic group melee at all.
Left with nothing to fight, the crowd formed a wide ring around the plaza, casually watching the one-on-one showdown unfold like spectators at an exhibition match.
Seeing an audience of thousands gathered around the ring, Young Master Is Jungler tightened his grip and fought with everything he had. He had originally planned to sneak out, trade a few blows with the server’s top player, and gracefully surrender to save face.
Now, with a massive crowd staring him down, getting swatted away in three seconds would strip away what little pride he had left.
Lin Huai patiently traded blows with him to let him show off his moves, but the gap in raw strength was simply too vast. Within moments, the contest drew to an end.
The cold crescent blade of the scythe rested gently against the side of his neck.
The boy turned his head away, pouting with bitter defeat. “Fine, fine! I give up! Zone 72, Sub-zone 398 will merge into Zone 444. Happy now?!”
Lin Huai smoothly lowered her scythe. Giving his shoulder a light push, she nudged him straight into the waiting hands of Dragon Emerging from the Sea and the squad. “Brother Long, keep an eye on him for me. I’m going up to collect the integration crystal.”
“Leave him to us,” Dragon Emerging from the Sea replied steadily.
The moment he spoke, Lin Huai turned toward the Bell Tower. Planting her boots on the roof of her hovering jade coffin, she bounded halfway up the stone facade. Hooking the curved blade of her scythe over a carved stone cornice, she pulled herself to the summit in just a few quick leaps.
Snatching the glowing integration crystal from the pedestal, she dropped lightly back to the plaza floor. Slipping the crystal into her Space Jade Bangle, she waved toward the squad. “Let’s head over to the park pavilion. Lunch is on me!”
Dragon Emerging from the Sea held the scowling teenager by his collar like a scruffed kitten. “What about this brat? Do we drag him along for lunch too?”
Young Master Is Jungler had just spent the last two minutes cursing out the squad one by one. Hearing that they might invite him to eat, Sister Cai was the first to scoff:
“Why should this foul-mouthed kid share our table? If you ask me, we ought to put him down the second the merger finalizes. One mountain can’t hold two tigers—leaving him around is just asking for a headache!”
Dangling from Dragon Emerging from the Sea’s grip, the boy kicked his boots and shouted back, “You’re the foul-mouthed one! You’re built like a tank, completely unfeminine, a total tomboy! Nobody’s ever going to marry you!”
Jiangzhehu Inheritor offered a sweet, teasing smile. “Careful, little boy, or your parents might decide they don’t want you anymore!”
Old Wang looked at him with an amused smirk, striking straight where it hurt: “Look at you, still running your mouth. You’ve been dangling there as our prisoner for ten minutes now. Have you seen a single one of your loyal brothers rush over to rescue you?”
He clicked his tongue, shaking his head. “Tsk, tsk. To think you’re the rank-one champion of an entire district… Falling to this state is genuinely embarrassing~”
That comment hit him dead center. The boy stiffened, turning his head to scour the plaza.
Everywhere he looked, all he saw were drivers from Zone 444 chanting Lin Huai’s name, waving banners, and laughing together. There wasn’t a single familiar face from his own district in sight.
He forced out a weak, desperate excuse: “That’s… that’s probably just because there are too many of your people crowding the streets… They’re probably just stuck behind the crowd…”
Lin Huai walked over just in time to catch his trembling response. Raising an amused eyebrow, she tapped her screen and sent a clear voice announcement across the district channel:
[Bone Ashes Mixed with Rice]: Attention, drivers of former Zone 444. The integration process has been successfully secured. Everyone is dismissed—feel free to enjoy the town.
Her words carried immediate weight. The moment her voice cut off, the heavy rumble of hundreds of engines echoed through the square. Lines of vehicles turned in orderly formation, dispersing peacefully toward the various markets, taverns, and repair shops across town.
Within two minutes, the bustling plaza stood wide, open, and quiet.
Only Lin Huai and her inner circle remained by the fountain.
From Sub-zone 398, not a single soul had shown up.
