In online games, loot distribution is generally divided into dice demand mode and DKP mode.
Dice demand mode means that whoever wants the loot rolls the dice, and the player with the highest dice roll gets the loot. This mode also has various derivative rules.
DKP mode is a contribution competition mode for loot, with a commander or the system assessing each player's specific contributions and converting them into quantifiable points, which players then use to bid on loot.
The mode used in Thief's House is the DKP mode.
Seeing Yan Qing effortlessly claim Bingzi Pepper Forest with Thief Points, everyone noticed the loophole in this distribution mode.
All you need to do is kill a companion who has accumulated many Thief Points, or is about to gain a lot, during a mission, and you can obtain the Legendary Token!
You can see here that when Yan Qing designed this instance, he harbored sinister intentions: a seemingly fair distribution system that gives players the right to backstab each other. Even if you don't have this thought, you have to guard against teammates stabbing you in the back.
To facilitate players keeping a certain amount of Thief Points, Yan Qing also tampered with the bidding system.
The bidding starts at 5 Thief Points, with each increase needing at least 5 points, and there is an obvious loophole here.
In a normal auction, Yan Qing must bid more than all of Pharmacist's Wish's points to win Bingzi Pepper Forest, but since each bid must increase by at least 5 points, Yan Qing only needs to bid 36 points—others wanting to bid would have to bring it up to 41 points, which the 40-point Pharmacist's Wish clearly cannot do.
That means Yan Qing had anticipated that if Pharmacist's Wish bid 40 points first, he would at least need to bid 45 points to win Bingzi Pepper Forest.
36 points versus 45 points, a difference of 9 points.
Keep in mind that a mission only gives 30 points; having saved 9 Thief Points, Yan Qing will have a significant advantage in the next mission.
However, this loophole-ridden bidding rule will undoubtedly make the atmosphere among teammates even more tense, whether one bids less to secure items or forces others to spend more points; it equals sowing seeds of discord in the team.
Finally, Yan Qing added the seasoning of 'the player who has won an item has priority to bid first in the next round,' almost blatantly encouraging players to maliciously raise prices, forcing those who haven't bid yet to endure others' first-round price hikes!
The rules allow you to backstab teammates, the benefits suggest you should backstab teammates, emotionally you are almost eager to backstab teammates—Yan Qing felt like a genius, this instance was designed brilliantly!
It would be even better if he wasn't being glared at angrily by Pharmacist's Wish, Ying Rushi, and Shang Xinlei.
In fact, Yan Qing didn't take Bingzi Pepper Forest very seriously; for a planner like him, these Legendary Tokens were just transitional toys—he knew the real game starts after Foundation Establishment Fourth Transition.
But Yan Qing had no way of giving up Bingzi Pepper Forest, because doing so would be akin to telling his teammates 'I'm weak, I'm cowardly, come bully me'—a strong person should possess the best loot!
"The second item is the Storage Ring, please bid, thieves."
Suddenly, the hall went silent, everyone quietly observing the situation.
"I bid 26 points," Ying Rushi was the first to speak.
26 Thief Points meant that Shang Xinlei couldn't participate in the bidding. And if Pharmacist's Wish wanted to compete, she'd have to bid 31 points—and she would get it directly, as no one present could offer the 36-point bid.
But Pharmacist's Wish didn't speak.
"26 points going once, 26 points going twice, 26 points going three times."
"White Fox wins the Storage Ring."
The Storage Ring floated in front of Ying Rushi, who reached out to wear it and tested it, storing and retrieving the Brave General Sword. Shang Xinlei watched enviously, "Ah—had I known, I'd have bid 29 points to snatch it; I don't have a Storage Ring yet."
The hearts of the people moved; not yet... does that mean Shang Xinlei has a way of getting it if she wants it?
"The third item is the Random Advanced Skill Introduction Secret Manual, please bid, thieves."
No sooner had Thief's House finished speaking than Pharmacist's Wish promptly said, "I bid 14 points."
Ying Rushi said nothing, effectively giving up her priority bidding rights, making Pharmacist's Wish's bid valid.
Yan Qing thought this was truly a brilliant bid.
If Shang Xinlei didn't follow, letting Pharmacist's Wish win the manual with 14 points, then Pharmacist's Wish with 26 points left would possibly snatch the Comprehension Pill in the next round—since the 30-point Shang Xinlei just needed someone to bid 26 points to render her unable to compete.
If Shang Xinlei raised the bid to 19 points to follow, then she'd only have 11 points left and wouldn't be able to raise the price in the next round, and even if she did, it would be Yan Qing, as he still had 14 points.
Shang Xinlei pondered for a moment, sighed, "Fine, I'll bid 19 points."
"19 points going once, 19 points going twice, 19 points going three times."
"Red Snake wins the Random Advanced Skill Introduction Secret Manual."
"The fourth item is the Comprehension Pill, please bid, thieves."
"I bid 10 points!"
The speaker was surprisingly Shang Xinlei, who gave Pharmacist's Wish a sweet smile, "Sister, I'm helping you this time, you should remember my kind gesture!"
Why did Shang Xinlei say she was helping Pharmacist's Wish despite bidding herself?
Because her bid happened to prevent Yan Qing, with 14 points left, from raising the bid.
But the problem was, if neither Yan Qing nor she bid first, then Pharmacist's Wish could securely capture the Comprehension Pill with just 10 points. Shang Xinlei's so-called help was based on Yan Qing being eager to raise the price.
Therefore, Pharmacist's Wish showed no response to Shang Xinlei's words and just calmly offered 15 points.
All items were distributed, and the current Thief Points among everyone were as follows:
Yan Qing 14 points, Ying Rushi 7 points, Shang Xinlei 11 points, Pharmacist's Wish 25 points.
Pharmacist's Wish held a nearly overwhelming advantage over everyone else, and as long as the next mission was completed normally, she was likely to successfully bid on the Legendary Token. But it was only to be expected, as she essentially volunteered to forgo this session's spoils, only taking the Comprehension Pill, which nobody else wanted.
But, would the thieves who now understood the rules really watch Pharmacist's Wish claim the Legendary Token with their eyes wide open?
Getting rewards was supposed to be a joyous occasion, yet the hall was unusually somber, devoid of any celebratory atmosphere. The thieves' eyes flickered, and no one knew what mischief they were secretly plotting.
While everyone was itching to act, the narrator of Thief's House had yet to finish:
"In light of this mission's insufficient completion, you cannot hide your criminal actions; your deeds will spread widely, the Divine Marquis Mansion is taking notice of you, and has issued a wanted notice for thirty days."
"The next mission will be released at noon in ten days, at which time you will be forcibly teleported to Thief's House, please be prepared."
After a brief pause, a grand voice echoed in everyone's ears:
"Divine Marquis Mansion Announcement: Four unknown petty thieves recently arrived at the Thief's House who successfully stole the Legendary Token of Bingzi Pepper Forest from Chang'an An Guo Temple, hence the wanted notice."
The announcement echoed three times, and after it stopped, Yan Qing realized they could leave their seats.
However, no one was the first to leave. After a brief silence, Shang Xinlei asked confusedly:
"Why was that message repeated three times? And who are the Divine Marquis Mansion, can they really hunt us down?"
That's uncertain, thought Yan Qing.