Chapter 187: Scam

However, he continued speaking as though his proposal were perfectly reasonable.

"As for zombie crystals, we’d prefer to establish a credit-based trading arrangement first. After all, we need to make sure your base is legitimate and that this entire operation isn’t some kind of scam."

Ni Mengxue listened quietly.

Then she smiled.

"From what I remember, we never invited noisy guests into Fair Shallow Land."

Her voice remained calm.

"Especially people who behave as though they own everything around them when they might not even own the shorts they’re wearing."

Several residents nearly burst into laughter.

Jin Tao’s expression immediately darkened. He pointed at her. "Miss, I suggest you watch your mouth."

His voice became threatening. "I don’t appreciate being disrespected. And when someone speaks to me like that, I tend to get very angry."

Ni Mengxue didn’t retreat.

Jin Tao continued, "Here’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to bring your base leader out here. Otherwise, you’ll have to face the consequences."

Ni Mengxue smiled. "Really? Then show me these consequences."

Jin Tao’s face turned cold. He immediately waved his hand. "Move!"

The men behind him began marching toward the main building.

Seeing this, Ni Mengxue suddenly realized something important.

Although Fair Shallow Land had guards and soldiers stationed along its perimeter, she hadn’t yet established a proper internal combat squad.

The defensive personnel were primarily responsible for protecting the walls and monitoring external threats.

They weren’t organized to deal with armed intruders who had already entered the settlement.

’That’s a serious oversight.’ Ni Mengxue frowned. ’I’ll need to establish a dedicated security force.’

However, now wasn’t the time to dwell on the problem.

As the armed men advanced, she raised her hand.

A powerful wave of icy energy spread outward.

In an instant, frost covered the ground.

The temperature around the intruders plummeted.

Before they could react, thick layers of ice formed around their bodies.

One after another, the men were frozen in place.

Even Jin Tao was temporarily immobilized.

The surrounding residents stared in amazement.

"She froze them! That’s incredible!"

"Those Eagle Base thugs finally met someone they can’t bully!"

Several people began cheering. However, their excitement didn’t last long.

Approximately five minutes later, cracks began appearing in the ice.

The frozen surfaces slowly softened.

Water dripped onto the ground as the thick layers of frost began melting.

One by one, the intruders started moving again.

The residents’ expressions changed.

"What’s happening?"

"Why is the ice melting?"

Their earlier confidence quickly disappeared.

Some had genuinely believed that Ni Mengxue would defeat the Eagle Base intruders and avenge the humiliation they had suffered.

Now, however, they became increasingly anxious.

Jin Tao finally broke free of the remaining ice.

He rolled his shoulders and looked toward Ni Mengxue.

For a moment, his expression was unreadable. Then a strange smile appeared on his face. "Not bad."

He examined her with renewed interest. "You’re quite powerful, aren’t you? Why don’t you join us, beauty?"

Ni Mengxue remained completely composed.

Instead of responding to his invitation, she spoke calmly.

"Before we continue this discussion, perhaps I should inform you of something."

Jin Tao raised an eyebrow.

Ni Mengxue smiled.

"Just recently, Fair Shallow Land entered into a merger agreement with Silent Knight Base."

She paused deliberately.

"So, before you decide to cause any more trouble here, you might want to consider whether you’re prepared to deal with the other ten thousand people connected to our settlement."

For a moment, Jin Tao fell silent.

He didn’t dare make another move immediately.

Before coming to Fair Shallow Land, he had been warned that the settlement might have established some kind of agreement with a larger base.

If that was true, he needed to be careful.

Seeing his hesitation, Ni Mengxue smiled. "So, are you going to leave voluntarily, or do I need to call the soldiers over?"

Jin Tao suddenly chuckled. "Don’t think you can fool me so easily."

He narrowed his eyes.

"You probably recruited a few people from Silent Knight Base, and now you’re pretending that you’ve established some kind of merger with them."

As he spoke, he carefully observed Ni Mengxue’s expression.

Ni Mengxue immediately understood what he was doing. ’He’s trying to bluff.’

Perhaps Jin Tao had heard something about Fair Shallow Land’s relationship with Silent Knight Base.

However, judging by his reaction, he clearly didn’t know the full situation.

’If he wants to bluff, then I might as well play along.’

Ni Mengxue laughed, crossing her arms. "Then go ahead. Try taking revenge and see how I deal with you."

Hearing her confident response, Jin Tao hesitated again.

Finally, he forced a smile. "All right, all right. Young lady, you’ve certainly got quite a temper."

He waved his hand. "I won’t waste my time arguing with a woman like you."

Ni Mengxue smiled faintly. "Then please leave."

Jin Tao nodded, and he was about to turn around when someone suddenly shouted from the crowd.

"Those people are just meat pies of the Silent Knight Base and not residents! There’s no merger at all!"

Ni Mengxue immediately turned toward the source of the voice.

Unfortunately, it was already too late. Whoever had shouted those words had disappeared into the crowd. She couldn’t identify the speaker.

Meanwhile, Jin Tao slowly turned back toward her. The hesitation in his eyes had disappeared.

Instead, he was staring at Ni Mengxue as though she were a piece of meat waiting to be devoured. "So you really were lying to me."

The next second, he lunged toward her.

Ni Mengxue sighed as she tied her hair. "Looks like I’ll have to use violence after all."

Five minutes later, an astonishing scene appeared before the residents.

All fifty intruders were lying on the ground.

Some were groaning in pain, while others were struggling to move.

The surrounding residents stared at Ni Mengxue with wide eyes.

They had just witnessed her defeat the entire group.

Unlike her earlier attempt to freeze the intruders in place, this time she had combined her ice ability with precise combat techniques.

She had used her powers to restrict their movements before striking them down one after another.

Although several of the thugs possessed superpowers, none had managed to overpower her.

Now, Ni Mengxue was sitting on the ground, breathing heavily. The fight had clearly exhausted her.