Chapter 103
Yuki thought for a few seconds, then decisively left the ruins. Suspicious things aside, the most important thing now was to take care of the remaining three.
Killing the red-haired woman not only prevents cooperation between the two sides, but also creates a dilemma and a trap.
If I don't step forward, the Smoker will definitely become hostile; if I do step forward, it will be impossible for me to hide and survive the remaining ten hours.
At least according to the information provided by Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, neither of them possesses a hidden ability similar to that of their senior.
The way out was on the east side of the city, Yuki was closer than them. Without any tedious dungeon quests, Yuki found it particularly easy, with only one challenge remaining:
The Smoker has stealth abilities, so he's definitely moving towards the bridge, but not to escape.
If a teammate dies and he doesn't get any intelligence, how is he supposed to explain himself when he gets back?
'Does the fisherman benefit from the fight between the snipe and the clam? He's betting that I'll kill those two boys.'
Yuki ran at full speed and saw a red cable bridge spanning the river in the distance.
Coincidentally, I also bet you're not willing to leave like this.
Chapter Seventeen: I Am Your Limit (4K)
Four people, three parties.
This relationship might seem complicated to others, but Yuki was used to being tormented by dungeons and accustomed to the unpredictable enemy-ally dynamics, so he found this random dungeon to be more monotonous than ever before.
There are no brain-teasing dungeon hints, no mastermind behind anything, just a few people, kill them all and you're done.
The best option for the Smoker is to stand by and watch, make sure Yuki isn't faking it with the two boys, then attack and use the combined strength of the three of them to kill him.
The two boys wanted to get away as quickly as possible and bring the information back.
"And what I need is this time difference."
His leather shoes kicked up a bit of dust Yuki stopped a few hundred meters from the bridgehead. He first glanced to his left at the red cable bridge.
The road surface was riddled with cracks, from which some tenacious little grasses grew, and the end of the bridge pierced through the thick fog; running across would lead to escape.
Similar to regular missions, these player-versus-player arenas have many solutions: you can fight head-on, hide, or run away.
The Tyrant's account Yuki had some thoughts on how to survive if he were the weaker party.
This is difficult. The simpler the task, the less room there is for maneuver. When the intelligence difference between the two sides is not significant, the survival rate of the weaker party is extremely low.
"Fortunately, this time I was the stronger party, with everything prepared from intelligence to psychological warfare."
Yuki looked away, he heard the roar of an engine approaching from afar, and instinctively raised an eyebrow.
The city had been abandoned for a long time; it was impossible for any of the machines to still be running. How did they manage that?
"Good manners, they realized they should run away so quickly."
The two wasted a lot of time meeting up and didn't linger in the city. Instead, as Yuki had thought, they decided to return to reality first.
Rushing things is not the best option. If it were me, I would let the Smoker make the first move and then take the opportunity to escape.
Yuki tried to put himself in their shoes, but he knew he couldn't blame them; after all, this was a pre-planned psychological tactic.
The two boys who came out to deliver the message were terrified after killing the red-haired woman within three minutes. They thought the enemy was invincible and their first thought was Run.
Kanai, with two dungeon experience levels, has skills leaning towards the mental type, but his special characteristics are unknown.
The Tetsuto, with three dungeon experience levels, follows a trait-based build, the effect of which is muscle enhancement, and possesses a Chaos Item.
Information about the two people surfaced in Yuki's mind. It was certainly inaccurate, but like the red-haired woman, one or two instances couldn't change the essence. If he was extremely lucky, he might have other trump cards.
"Is this what they call pretending to be a tiger to eat a pig? No, in their eyes, I am the tiger all along."
Yuki took a deep breath. He also had experience in two dungeons, but he only realized after actually trying it that the difference in strength between the two sides was enormous.
The roar grew closer. Yuki stood in the middle of the road, drew his Chainsaw Sword, and, ever since he confirmed that player souls could replenish Demon Heart, he was filled with murderous intent.
Not only can it be used against enemies, but it can also be used to "replenish yang energy" – truly a wonderful thing. It will be difficult to find such perfect combat conditions next time.
"Demon Possession really does turn a person into a demon, let me see—"
"How much do your souls weigh?"
Waaah--
The saw teeth whirred, emitting a sharp popping sound. Then, looking up, a rusty SUV appeared at the intersection, accompanied by a screeching sound of brakes. The vehicle was decaying, with parts falling off as it drove, and it was unclear how it started.
The Tetsuto frantically turned the steering wheel, drifting around the corner, initially excited by the surge of adrenaline. Then, looking ahead, he witnessed a horrifying scene:
A figure stood in the middle of the road, shrouded in mist, holding a terrifying-looking greatsword, as if he had been waiting for them for a long time.
"No way, how could he run faster than the two of us driving?!"
How would I know?
A heavy sense of oppression washed over him. Kanai gritted his teeth, considering two possibilities:
First, the opponent was too fast and got ahead of me.
Secondly, this was a series of traps; they had already anticipated that I would flee at all costs.
Either one would be deadly enough in front of him, and he was even somewhat bewildered.
It's just delivering a message, why would it involve a life-or-death crisis?
"Don't overthink it, floor the gas and go!"
It's too late to say anything now that we've met on a narrow path. I just put my hands on the chair, concentrate, and mutter to myself.
"It's okay, you're hard and fast."
It was like some kind of hint, but the effect was just like the Machine Soul's ecstasy: the rusty off-road vehicle suddenly accelerated, and its battered surface shimmered with a deep blue light.
When Yuki saw the steel behemoth suddenly accelerate, he felt as if he were back in Crimson Moon City, racing through the streets. The only difference was that back then, he was the one chasing the Living Corpse, and they were the ones blocking his way, but the will to survive was similar.
"Sorry, you are the enemy, so you must die."
Overload Mode. Storm Cleave.
The air whistled, and the ground was neatly sliced open. Yuki didn't want to crash into a car, so he simply created a trap.
Boom.
The ground suddenly became uneven, and the off-road vehicle's tires got stuck in a pothole, bouncing up due to the excessive speed.
Yuki looked up and saw the SUV spun overhead. Through the sunroof, he also saw two horrified teenagers.
Thump thump thump...
The car tumbled on the ground behind him, Yuki various parts flying. Without stopping or saying a word, Yuuki kicked the greatsword and charged back in.
Physical Enhancement. Extreme Speed.
The stronger output brought even greater speed. Before the tumbling off-road vehicle had even stopped, Yuki was already approaching with his sword. With a 'bang,' the car roof came crashing towards him.
Squeak--
Yuki his sword and sliced it to pieces, then saw a figure over two meters tall emerge from the wrecked vehicle.
Blood was still flowing from his forehead, his sportswear was stretched taut by his muscles, his forearms were covered in bulging veins, and he was holding a carpenter's Ram's-Horn Hammer in his right hand.
Characteristics. Muscle Mutation.
The overturned car wasn't enough to kill the Tetsuto, so he decisively activated his special ability, drew his Chaos Item, and charged headlong into the car, his anger blazing.
Damn it, I just wanted to go out for some ramen, did they have to beat me to death?
Two heads taller than Yuki, its massive body slammed down with overwhelming force, even from several meters away.
Thump!
The ground trembled, but Yuki had already jumped. He watched a white shockwave glide past his feet, then looked up and revealed a sinister smile.
The intelligence was correct; you're dead.
"He knows my signature move?" The Tetsuto was taken aback. He loved to use shockwaves to knock people off their feet, then pounce on them and kill them with a single blow.
But this time, the tried-and-true move missed its mark. The opponent jumped ahead of time, and the greatsword moved as nimbly as a venomous snake, its serrated edges slashing towards his outstretched arm.
He quickly withdrew his hand, twisted his waist and turned around, unleashing a spinning kick that met Yuki's knee strike head-on.
Bang!!
The impact of their knees striking each other sent him staggering back several steps. He looked up in shock.
Such immense strength! How could you fight me to a standstill in a head-on clash?
The LV3 muscle Alienated Grade was no different from the excellent-level Reinforcement Magecraft. Yuki was thrown into the air, watching the muscular boy pick up the Ram's-Horn Hammer again, and Kanai climbing out of the wreckage and taking off Kanai glasses not far away.
It's coming.
You will be in a daze.
Without hesitation, Kanai unleashed the Hypnosis of All Things. The combined gains from both dungeons brought him to the proficient level, a special skill that could even hypnotize machines.
Although they only worked together on one instance, the two already had a very good understanding of each other.
"And you will die!"
With a roar, the Tetsuto sprang up and swung his hammer at Yuki.
Clang!
Yuki the Chainsaw Sword Ram's-Horn Hammer, the spinning serrations sending sparks flying. Through the light white mist, he could see that the purple-haired boy looked somewhat bewildered.
No, he deliberately avoided the impact of the hammerhead; he must have seen this Chaos Item before...
"Be careful, he has a high level of mental resistance!"
With a low growl from Kanai, Yuki leaned forward in mid-air, firmly blocking the Ram's-Horn Hammer with his greatsword, and raised his knee to strike the strong boy repeatedly.
Thump, thump, thump, thump.
Each impact sent waves of flesh surging through the air; the muscles, more exaggerated than a bodybuilder's, were simply no match for them. The Tetsuto, barely holding back a mouthful of blood, retreated.
"Stronger than me, better fighting skills, and high mental resistance—is this one of the oldest players in the academy? And he's specifically designed to counter us?"
His special ability has no side effects, and his ferocious appearance doesn't turn him into a berserker.
The Tetsuto remained calm, forcefully slamming his hammer down on the ground. The shockwave pushed the two apart. After glancing at Yuki, who landed Lightness, the boy turned and ran.
"Let's go, let's go, what's the point of fighting here!"
The Ohashi was just a hundred meters away. If they couldn't win, they had to run. The Tetsuto grabbed the bespectacled man and took off running. Before they had run a few steps, they heard faint footsteps chasing after them. When they looked back, they were even more horrified.
The reddish-gray mist moved like it was teleporting, each flash covering several meters, so fast that the eye could hardly keep up, and the distance between the two sides was rapidly closing.
You can't escape.
The devilish Yuki did not give up the hunt, and after a brief exchange, he had made a rough assessment:
No wonder the Reincarnation Game has a team-up mechanism. Each of these two boys has huge flaws, but when they combine, the effect is excellent. With a little bit of tacit understanding, they can achieve a result greater than 1+1=2.
"But cooperation and teamwork ultimately have their Limit."
At that moment, the muscular Giant, who had been fleeing with his head down, suddenly turned around and swung his Ram's-Horn Hammer at the wreckage of the bridge.
The shockwave bloomed like a flower stamen, blasting cars, door panels, and other objects away; as far as the eye could see, there were nothing but 'projectiles'.
Swish--
But Yuki didn't stop at all. His Chainsaw Sword cut left and right, clearing a straight path. Various parts were scattered all over the sky, and the demon was leaping out from the 'raindrops' and stepping onto the bridgehead.
"No, this monster is too strong. It completely overwhelms us." Kanai immediately saw the difference in strength. These projectiles were too weak; they couldn't even Piercer the layer of gray mist.
"You run first, then trap him for two seconds, just two seconds!"
The Tetsuto turned around quickly. The demon was already within ten meters. At this rate, no one could escape. He knew that Kanai had a trump card that could definitely hold the opponent back for a few seconds.
Killing him is out of the question, but he's barely usable for escaping.
His hands were drenched in sweat, the hammer handle creaking under his grip. The gray mist demon loomed larger in his eyes, the intense pressure making his hands tremble. He could only take a deep breath, force himself to muster all his strength, and raise the Ram's-Horn Hammer high.
Earth Shock!
Before the hammer even struck, while the shockwave was still building, Yuki had already jumped, stepping on the Ohashi's steel cables to get around it. Then, with a loud 'boom,' the entire Ohashi began to sway like a swing.
The shockwave spread along the bridge surface, and by the time it reached the steel cable, it was already at its last gasp, not even needing a glance.
Oh no, I missed.
The Tetsuto's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly turned around and roared, "Kanai, watch your back!"