Chapter 23: The Wanted Poster, Chaos Faction

[Ding, you have been killed by God of Dolls.]
[Ding, your equipment has been dropped.]
[Ding, the Thunderbolt Blade has been dropped.]

"Damn, damn, damn!"

At the resurrection fountain, the three of them hurled curses at the "old fox" behind the kill notification, greeting the entire family of the God of Dolls with every foul word they could muster. They never expected that a player would actually attack other players at a time like this. Instead of fighting the bandits, he chose to play the role of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. What a total scumbag.

Fortunately, the Black Wind Blade Technique had already been traded to a teammate, or it wouldn't have dropped. Otherwise, they would have been driven to the brink of madness.

"This God of Dolls... damn it, I’m going to expose him on the forums."
"What a beast."
"Just the forums? That’s not enough. I’m going to report him to the authorities and have them issue a warrant for his arrest."

Gugu gritted his teeth in fury. That Thunderbolt Blade hadn't been cheap. Equipment in this game was expensive, especially those with ratings; in terms of price, they were on par with martial arts manuals. Although the Thunderbolt Blade was damaged, it could still fetch five or six thousand credits. Each of them was entitled to a cut of one or two hundred. How could they let this loss slide? They couldn't swallow this insult. They had to take revenge. They had to get that bastard wanted.

...

Meanwhile, in the valley.

The God of Dolls crept out of the bushes, stealthily locating the spot where Gugu’s corpse had vanished to scavenge the dropped gear. Most of the loot was nothing but junk: second-hand crossbows, freshly crafted arrows, worn-out clothes, tattered grass sandals—a pile of secondhand trash. How poor could this group be? Dozens of them, and they couldn't even scrounge up one item of value?

However, the God of Dolls was patient. He searched meticulously, not missing a single object. Soon, amidst the pile of refuse, he found the Thunderbolt Blade, a damaged Yellow-tier piece of equipment.

Profit.

The God of Dolls grinned as he stowed the gear away, continuing his search in hopes of finding the martial arts manual. He had been observing for a long time. He had witnessed this group kill a minor boss and saw the manual drop. It was precisely for that manual that he had risked turning "red-named" to take those three out. His purpose was clear: murder for plunder. Unfortunately, he didn't find the manual. Otherwise, his haul for the day would have been even greater.

"What a shame, it didn't drop."
"Oh well, this place isn't safe to linger in."

Having packed his spoils, the God of Dolls headed toward Black Mountain City.

...

As for Worry-Free County, he couldn't go back.

[Ding, you killed Gugu, Chaos Value +1.]
[Ding, you killed Flying Kick, Chaos Value +1.]
[Ding, you killed Luo-Luo-Luo, Chaos Value +1.]
[Ding, having killed three players in a short period, you are judged to be of the Demonic Path. Chaos Value +10.]
[You have entered the "Red-Named" state.]
[During the Red-Named state, killing players or neutral/order-aligned NPCs will grant Chaos Value bonuses. The higher the Chaos Value, the greater your favor with the Chaos faction.]
[Chaos Value (Order Value) automatically decreases by one point daily.]
[If killed by the opposing faction, your Chaos Value (Order Value) is halved.]
[Killing members of the opposing faction grants you the amount of value lost by the enemy.]

Killing players turned you red-named. The more you killed, the higher your Chaos Value. Chaos Value influenced the attitude of neutral and Order-aligned NPCs toward you. The higher the number, the less they liked you—they might even become hostile and issue warrants for your arrest. To a certain extent, you became an agent of evil in their eyes, and such people were meant to be eradicated by all.

Conversely, NPCs of the Chaos faction would accept and welcome you. Many Demonic Path sects even had a minimum Chaos Value requirement for recruitment, often demanding a certain number of player or NPC kills as a prerequisite.

Until his Chaos Value faded, he dared not return to Worry-Free County; he could only hide outside. As for the quests in Worry-Free County, he had no choice but to abandon them. A few thousand credits was already a decent haul. Finishing the entire questline in the county wouldn't necessarily guarantee that much. Did people really think those bandits were easy to kill? He knew how many players were eyeing that group of bandits—hundreds of thousands. And how many bandits were there? Five thousand. He knew exactly how fierce the competition was. He didn't think he could secure many kills himself. Instead of wasting time, it was better to pull off one big score.

The mantis stalks the cicada, but the oriole is behind. He was that oriole.

"Bye-bye."

Shortly after the God of Dolls left, his friend list flooded with dozens of requests. He didn't even look at them; he clicked "Reject All." Want to curse him? Not a chance.

...

"Damn, damn, damn!"
"That bastard rejected my friend request!"
"What a scumbag."

With bloodshot eyes, Gugu and his friends marched into the magistrate’s office to report that they had been killed by the God of Dolls. Soon, the authorities issued a bounty on him. Of course, given the God of Dolls' current red-named status, the Worry-Free County warrant was only effective within its borders. Unless his Chaos Value increased again, the jurisdiction of the warrant wouldn't expand. A wider coverage area would mean higher rewards for killing him.

...

[Ding, ding, ding! The Worry-Free County Magistrate has issued a bounty (Yellow-tier).]
[Oh? With a great enemy at the gates, we still have such scumbag players?]
[God of Dolls, I’ve remembered this ID.]
[God of Dolls, where are you? Come out, let’s talk.]
[So that’s how you get Chaos Value?]
[So killing players grants Chaos Value? Haha, I finally know how to join the Heavenly Demon Sect.]
[Agents of evil must be wiped out! Die, you trash from the Heavenly Demon Sect.]
[Just say you want Order Value; no need to be so hypocritical.]
[Bullshit, I am a partner of justice and the bane of evil.]
[Oh, no wonder your ID is "Man of Justice."]
[Annoying self-righteous crusader.]

...

In the vast desert, beneath a sky filled with yellow sand, several figures were carrying supplies, trekking deep into the dunes.

"Boss, how much further?"
"Is there really some 'Yellow Sand Sect' deep in this desert?"
"We haven't been scammed, have we?"
"That NPC didn't seem like he was telling the truth."

The player at the back of the group, carrying a yoke, complained bitterly.

"What’s the rush?"
"Can’t you have a little perseverance?"
"Can’t you take a gamble?"
"It’s only ten days or so; we can afford the time. If we really can't find it, we'll just kill ourselves and respawn at the fountain. Think about it—if we can join the Yellow Sand Sect, we’ll hit the jackpot. It’s the strongest sect in the Great Desert."

The leader of the group was spirited; he had total confidence in joining the Yellow Sand Sect.

"Boss, that’s a Demonic faction—a Chaos camp. Won't we be wanted if we join?"
"Hey, hey, hey! We’re players! Demonic or not, what does that have to do with us?"
"We’re just here to play a game. Don't worry about all that nonsense."
"Alright then."