Chapter 95: Hoisting the Banner

Chapter 95: Chapter 95: Hoisting the Banner

District 122, Glimmerstone Isle.

After finishing their ore Collection, Zelda Parrish, Faye Sinclair, Owen Caldwell, Celia Lynch, Skye Schuyler, and several other players held an impromptu "offline meetup." Having previously formed a united front on the world channel, they already had a basic understanding of each other’s character.

"Are you all going to stay and keep mining?" Celia asked.

Over the past few hours, players had been arriving at Glimmerstone Isle one after another. Many abandoned Collection upon arrival, choosing instead to move on and harvest ocean resources. Through some comparison, they confirmed that—setting aside the need for ore—they could obtain far more resources through ocean harvesting on this harvest day. Therefore, an increasing number of players chose to treat the isle as a mere sightseeing stop, leaving the current population on Glimmerstone Isle surprisingly sparse.

Celia asked this because she was also planning to leave.

"I’m done mining! What I have should be enough," Zelda said. "There should still be tens of thousands of players who haven’t arrived yet. If they arrive after the harvest day ends, they will most likely mine. We won’t have a shortage of ore if we want to trade for it later."

Speaking of which, the existence of Glimmerstone Isle was actually beneficial to the latecomers. It was a perfect alignment of timing, location, and human harmony. As for early arrivals like themselves, as long as they had the ability to guarantee their own safety, they wouldn’t lose out either.

"We’re planning to leave too," Faye and Owen chimed in.

"Looking at the server-wide announcements, players are using Positioning Cards everywhere," Owen added. "We’d better return to our rafts and focus on upgrading them."

Owen’s words brought a wave of silence over the group.

Faced with the sudden appearance of Positioning Cards, no one could remain unconcerned. Although they had harbored this worry for a long time, they had always felt it was a distant threat. But the reality was that the threat was already here. As players in this game, they had no choice but to accept it. It was an invisible, suffocating pressure.

"Be careful, Zelda," Celia said, looking at her. "Your ranking is very high. If someone gets a taste of the benefits, they’ll target you."

"Mhm," Zelda nodded. "I’ve installed quite a few Fish Spear Guns on my raft. If someone tries to deal with me, it won’t be that easy. You guys should craft more and mount them on your rafts as well."

The group nodded in agreement. None of them had expected the situation to change so drastically in a single day. The shock was simply too overwhelming.

"Let’s go!"

The group then walked together toward the location where their rafts were moored. Their rafts were docked next to each other. Traveling as a group right now was highly beneficial. In fact, the players currently on Glimmerstone Isle were all gathered in small groups of three to five; almost no one dared to wander alone.

Originally, they were terrified that their hard-earned resources would be robbed. The appearance of the Positioning Cards made blatant robbery even more viable, so they didn’t dare treat the matter as a joke. Only with people by their side did they feel a sense of security. Many players had found allies on the world channel or directly on the island to form mutually beneficial partnerships.

As the group walked, they drew the gazes of quite a few people around them. Celia and Zelda keenly sensed this and glanced toward the source of the stares, only to spot Harold Thompson, Simon Quinn, and their cronies.

Harold and Simon were birds of a feather. They had already been echoing each other’s sentiments on the world channel, and it was no different here on the island. Although Harold was usually a bit erratic, he genuinely had some skills and resources, which allowed him to recruit quite a few followers. He had just led his team to mine a substantial amount of ore and was now preparing to leave. Due to where they had anchored earlier, his raft was docked near Zelda and the others, leading to this encounter.

"See you around if fate permits!" Harold suddenly said, his eyes fixed intently on Celia.

This undoubtedly implied one thing: if he had a Positioning Card, he was highly likely to come after Celia. It was a declaration of war.

Hearing this, Celia stiffened for a moment before looking back at Harold. "Sure! I’ll be waiting."

If he dared to come, she would make sure he never returned. It would serve as a solid deterrent to anyone else harboring similar ideas. After all, among the well-known figures in District 122, she was in a relatively weak position. She had no Skills and no formidable combat power. Harold and Simon had been coveting her wealth for a long time. The moment an opportunity arose, they would definitely take action.

Therefore, she had only one path left.

Fight!

Right after Celia laid down her tough words, Zelda cast a cold glare at Harold and Simon. "You guys seem to have blocked my path before. You’d better watch your backs."

Harold and Simon were left speechless. They thought, "Zelda has never been a busybody! She was so aloof on the world channel! Yet now she’s actually sticking her neck out for Celia."

Celia noticed this and looked at Zelda, deeply moved.

Harold paused for a moment before saying, "What we did before was wrong. We were short on supplies back then. Now that we aren’t, we won’t easily target other players."

Forget it, it was better not to provoke a top-tier player. This statement was, in fact, a clear expression of his stance.

Zelda said meaningfully, "I hope you keep your word. The mysterious big shot of our district isn’t someone who likes conflict. Take a guess—if someone starts ruining the atmosphere in District 122, will she step in and nip it in the bud?"

Seeing many surrounding players pricking up their ears, Zelda directly used Rowan Rhodes, the number one player on the entire server, as a shield to intimidate them.

Plundering would easily become a habit. Once the players of District 122 started robbing each other, it would absolutely turn into a disaster. When most players chose their targets, aside from looking at the leaderboards, they were very likely to pick familiar players within their own district. That would be naked infighting.

If she didn’t want District 122 to devolve into that, they needed a deterrent. It wasn’t just her; they needed Rowan. Rowan’s deterrence would only be stronger than hers. As long as Rowan didn’t initiate any attacks, Zelda believed that her little warning would absolutely prove effective.

Hearing Zelda’s words, Harold’s expression changed slightly.

Truth be told, Zelda’s warning carried genuine weight. And it wasn’t just Harold who felt it; the eavesdropping players around them felt it too. They were certain that the first person in their district to obtain a Positioning Card was none other than Rowan. Rowan had absolutely acquired it earlier than players in other districts. The fact that she hadn’t taken any action so far indeed demonstrated her stance.

Then, once they obtained Positioning Cards themselves, could they make a move? Yes, but perhaps they shouldn’t target players within their own district. Doing so would significantly lower the risks.

Having figured this out, a player immediately made a statement on the District 122 world channel.

"The big shot Zelda Parrish just said on Glimmerstone Isle that the boss Rowan Rhodes doesn’t like infighting in our district. What does everyone think?"

"I think it’s definitely true! Boss Rowan hasn’t made a move at all! If she wanted to target someone, it would definitely be a piece of cake."

"The boss really knows how to keep a low profile! If players from other districts hadn’t used Positioning Cards, we wouldn’t even know that there were Positioning Cards on Glimmerstone Isle."

"We’re all in the same district now, and our district’s survival rate determines the rewards we can get. Before it was 10 wooden chests, this time it’s 20. Maybe if we keep this up, it’ll be 30. Everyone, please don’t fight amongst yourselves."

"It’s a pact. Does everyone agree?"

"Agreed!"

"..."

The players on the world channel were incredibly enthusiastic in their agreement. They knew very well that this pact was beneficial to all players in District 122. Right now, they were safeguarding their shared interests, binding themselves together as a mutually beneficial community.

Zelda, naturally, noticed the comments on the world channel, a fleeting glint flashing through her eyes. Even if this hadn’t happened, she would have found an opportunity to bring it up anyway. She didn’t want District 122 to fall into chaos. Furthermore, she also wanted to confirm Rowan’s attitude toward this matter. If Rowan didn’t step forward to object, it would mean tacit approval.