Chapter Twenty-Seven: A Plan Within a Plan

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In the center of the room, beneath the energy pillar, a technician from Blue Ocean Corporation was crouched on the floor, working nervously. Beside her lay an open metal box packed with all sorts of tools.

Wu Hua recognized these tools—they were the same ones Fei MM used to modify robots.

“If you don’t want to lose a level, get up slowly and put your hands on your head,” Wu Hua said, pressing the muzzle of his Desert Eagle against the back of the technician’s head.

Clad in a white lab coat, the technician realized she’d been discovered. Raising her hands, she slowly stood.

“Disarm your corporation’s C4 explosive and rearm my M18 mine,” Wu Hua ordered coldly.

So it turned out that while Dragon Warrior Xingye and Linglan were locked in fierce combat, the technician had quietly slipped over, dismantled the high-grade mine, and swapped in Blue Ocean’s device.

“This young man, you must know we’re both just employees. There’s no need for this. I’m only a technician—I have no ability to resist. Why go so far...?” The technician, a bespectacled middle-aged woman, spoke earnestly.

“I’ll count to three. Three, two, one...,” Wu Hua’s voice was icy as a glacier. At the final moment, nothing could be allowed to go wrong.

“I’ll do it, don’t shoot!” the technician exclaimed, squatting down again. If she lost this level’s experience, her specialization would be gone with it—that would be a blow not just painful but enough to make someone want to cry.

Wu Hua let out a breath. He’d never met someone truly unafraid of death. But he relaxed too soon.

A hard, cold object pressed silently into his back. Icy and unyielding.

“You’re smart. But it’s useless. Your boss is downstairs locked in combat with my fourth sister. Hands up,” came a woman’s voice, even colder than his.

The technician turned to look, a strange, twisted smile creeping onto her face.

The moment Wu Hua saw that smile, he knew—the Snow Night Fairy had her SVD sniper rifle pressed against his waist.

“I should have known you weren’t stupid. You lay in wait here, hoping to catch us when we took the bait,” Wu Hua said, his tone cold. But inwardly, he cursed his own carelessness—why hadn’t he checked the sensor earlier?

Snow Night Fairy replied proudly, “I’m not stupid. It’s just you men are too clumsy. Drop your Desert Eagle, step over there.”

Wu Hua complied, though he longed to make a desperate move. But even if he died here, the mine wouldn’t go off in time—when he dropped his gun, the C4 timer read “10 minutes 21 seconds,” while their own mine showed “18 minutes 33 seconds.” Was this mission doomed to end with nothing more than a deposit?

Wu Hua was not resigned; his mind raced for a solution.

Walking to a computer console, Snow Night Fairy spoke again: “You, the journalist—if you don’t want to die, come out now. This isn’t a movie set.”

Wu Hua turned to see that the new reporter had somehow slipped unnoticed to the doorway. So professional, he’d become so absorbed in his filming that he’d forgotten someone had a gun trained on him.

The camera on his shoulder had captured everything that had just happened.

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In front of the satellite television, Mr. Tie and the others watching felt their hearts sink. Tianna was dumbfounded.

This mission had taken so many twists and turns—no one could have predicted it would come to this.

“Old Dragon is still too stubborn. Sigh—” Mr. Tie gave a long, frustrated sigh.

Tianna stared at the screen. “Blast Madman still has a chance. Snow Night didn’t kill him. It seems she doesn’t want to make an enemy of our company.”

By now, Tuo Tiao had respawned and arrived at Qimen Tower, his armor all blown off, stomping in wearing only red shorts and cursing, “Damn it, I died for nothing again this round.”

Back in the demolition center, an unprecedented silence had settled over the room. Snow Night Fairy, gun at the ready, aimed at the two of them, her eyes as sharp as blades fixed on Wu Hua.

Wu Hua said nothing, staring back at her with equally sharp eyes.

Suddenly, Snow Night Fairy felt a chill rise from within.

She hadn’t become a level 30 sniper by luck. It was earned through countless battles, facing all manner of opponents, always meeting a pair of eyes.

Eyes filled with malice and venom, with anger and murderous intent, with greed and lechery, or with fear and supplication.

But never eyes like these.

There was no emotion in Wu Hua’s gaze—his eyes were deep and unfathomable. When he stared at you, it felt like being lost at sea, any struggle or resistance completely futile. That kind of despair and helplessness was overwhelming.

Snow Night Fairy involuntarily took a half step back.

At that moment, Wu Hua moved. It was the only opening, and his sole chance.

With a swish, Wu Hua vanished into thin air.

Mimetic Stealth!

An old trick, but often the oldest tricks persist for a reason.

As a sniper among gunners, Snow Night Fairy reacted within a second, making the most logical and astonishing move—she swung her sniper rifle and fired a blind shot at the Desert Eagle on the floor.

She was still a step too slow. Wu Hua, in a nimble roll, snatched up his gun and, with a diving vault, dodged the deadly bullet. The floor was gouged by a deep bullet scar.

Wu Hua hit the ground, immediately aiming and firing back. Snow Night Fairy, startled, darted forward like an arrow.

“Bang, bang, bang, bang!” Computer screens in the demolition center shattered one after another, sparks flying everywhere.

Snow Night Fairy proved herself a level 30 master, dodging thanks to her lightning reflexes.

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The entire exchange lasted only ten seconds, leaving the new reporter dumbstruck, forgetting even to move his camera.

Inside Qimen Tower, Tuo Tiao, Mr. Tie, and Tianna felt as if their hearts would leap out of their chests.

“Brother, hold on!” Tuo Tiao was nearly in tears.

“Bang, bang, bang!” Wu Hua fired three more rounds. At such close range, aiming should hardly be necessary, but Snow Night Fairy’s agility was extraordinary. Rolling on the ground, she dodged again, though one bullet grazed her right hip—yet it only registered a “-713” damage number.

“What the hell kind of armor is she wearing? That’s almost as good as mine. No way!” Tuo Tiao yelled.

In the game world, just like in reality, masters are always emerging—there’s no highest, only higher.

While dodging, Snow Night Fairy also used the gunner’s “Stealth” skill. Wu Hua, caught off guard, reacted a moment too late, and a few seconds later she materialized right in front of him.

Smack! Snow Night Fairy landed a flying kick to Wu Hua’s face. He was a whiz with guns but a pure amateur when it came to hand-to-hand combat. The kick sent him flying into the display screens, toppling a pile of computers with a crash.

The gap between level 16 and level 30 was just too great.

“-99,” the damage number floated above Wu Hua’s head. The injury wasn’t severe, but his whole body ached so much he could barely move.

“Bang! Bang!”

The Desert Eagle fired again—the last two bullets in the magazine.

Snow Night Fairy never expected Wu Hua would fire even as he was sent flying. For a split second, she felt a hint of admiration—this was a true gunner: the gun is an extension of his body, never to be let go.

But she never could have guessed that Wu Hua’s last two shots weren’t aimed at her, but at the technician still working on the device.

With a sickening splat, the final bullet struck the back of the technician’s head, her skull bursting like a blood-filled balloon.

-8888!

Four eights! A massive critical!

A golden “lethal damage” number!

A true, point-blank headshot. Whether it was the new reporter or those watching on TV—Mr. Tie and the rest—none could hide their shock.

“If I don’t kill you today, I’ll kill myself,” Snow Night Fairy raged. With the technician dead, the C4 was unguarded, the insurance gone. With a wave of her hand, a purple-glinting Bayi Commando Dagger appeared in her grip.