Ambush Kill

Qin Ran froze as he watched the other person rush out.

When the other person suggested, "One draws their attention while the other attacks!" Qin Ran had instinctively assumed that she would have him draw the attention of the two armed thugs.

But what Qin Ran had not expected was that she would volunteer to take on the riskier part.

"Ha ha, what an unexpected find!"

The woman's scream and the armed thug's laughter quickly snapped Qin Ran back to his senses.

His moral bottom line kept Qin Ran from taking the chance to flee, and he was even less willing to give up this opportunity.

Qin Ran tightened his grip on the dagger and sprang forward.

Two figures immediately entered Qin Ran's field of vision.

They advanced one in front of the other. The one ahead had been completely drawn in by the woman's screams, while the one behind cautiously scanned the surroundings.

The moment Qin Ran darted out, the one in the rear spotted him and immediately raised his gun to fire.

"Not good!"

Qin Ran's heart jolted as he watched the other man raise his gun.

Qin Ran knew very well that he could not dodge bullets, and the man was still three meters away. At that distance, Qin Ran could not stop him before he fired.

A certain death situation!

Qin Ran could practically smell death.

Cold and bone-chilling!

Yet what Qin Ran felt more strongly was a trace of heat rising within his body!

It was the unwillingness to accept death, the desire to survive!

It was precisely because of that warmth that Qin Ran had stubbornly scraped together money for treatment in the real world instead of giving up in despair.

Therefore, he would not give up now either!

Qin Ran did not stop moving. His eyes widened as he stared at the two armed thugs before him.

His mind raced as he searched for even the slightest chance of survival!

The armed thug, meanwhile, began to laugh.

His smile was full of contempt and mockery.

He had seen far too many people struggling desperately at death's door, and he had personally finished off seven—or perhaps eight—such people.

The number was a little hazy.

He could not remember clearly.

But it did not matter. With the guy in front of him included, he could call this one the ninth!

The armed thug stuck out his tongue and licked his lips with faint excitement as he prepared to pull the trigger.

But at that moment, Qin Ran, who had been charging forward, suddenly took a huge step to the right!

The armed thug's muzzle instinctively tracked his movement!

Yet what he saw was the back of his companion's head!

The armed thug immediately froze.

"Now!"

Qin Ran, racing ahead, burst out with even greater speed. He hunched his body and slammed hard into the first armed thug, whose attention had been drawn away.

The dagger in his hand moved like a shuttle, slipping past the man's ribs and plunging swiftly into his heart.

[Thrust: Vital attack, dealt 100 damage to opponent's Health (50 Cold Weapons (Dagger) (Basic) x2), opponent died...]

Splurt!

As the dagger was pulled free, blood sprayed out violently.

That scorching sensation splashed across Qin Ran's face once again, but having learned from before, Qin Ran had already narrowed his eyes as he withdrew the dagger.

Qin Ran did not stop moving just because the enemy before him had died.

Because Qin Ran knew that his true enemy was the man behind him!

"Ha!"

With a furious shout, Qin Ran used every ounce of strength in his body. Grabbing onto the corpse before him, he used it as a shield and rammed it toward the remaining enemy.

Bang!

Amid the dull sound of impact, Qin Ran, the corpse used as a shield, and the remaining armed thug all fell to the ground.

The corpse used as a shield landed on top of the remaining armed thug, while Qin Ran rolled away to one side.

Qin Ran swiftly scrambled to his feet and pounced at his enemy.

The armed thug sensed danger descending and struggled wildly.

But the weight of the corpse pinning him down clearly exceeded his expectations. Before he could fully shove it away, Qin Ran had already pounced in front of him.

Qin Ran showed no mercy toward an enemy. He pressed directly down on the corpse, making it even harder for the armed thug to break free, while the dagger in his hand stabbed toward the man's gun-holding right hand.

Firearm!

The armed thug's greatest reliance—and what Qin Ran feared most.

Slice!

The metal blade pierced straight through the man's wrist.

"Ah!"

With a scream, the armed thug's gun-holding hand flew open, tossing the pistol aside. But Qin Ran did not stop. He raised the dagger sharply and drove it straight at another vital point: the man's neck.

Compared to the vital spot on his chest, which was blocked by the corpse, the man's neck was clearly visible to Qin Ran.

Splurt!

The dagger pierced through the man's throat, abruptly cutting off his scream.

[Impact: Dealt 2 damage to opponent's Health, opponent entered a stunned state for 1 second...]

[Thrust: Dealt 12 damage to opponent's Health, opponent's right hand entered a crippled state...]

[Thrust: Vital attack, dealt 86 damage to opponent's Health (43 Cold Weapons (Dagger) (Basic) x2), opponent died...]

As the combat notifications appeared, Qin Ran suddenly slumped to the ground, gasping for breath.

Though the battle had lasted less than five seconds, it had consumed an enormous amount of Qin Ran's mental and physical strength!

From using the two armed thugs' positions to evade the attack, to launching his counterattack afterward, Qin Ran had given his all every time. Now that the two armed thugs had been taken down, stars swam before his eyes, then his vision began to darken in waves. The dizziness forced Qin Ran to remain half-crouched on the ground.

Even though the smell of blood was pungent, Qin Ran did not want to move a single inch.

And it seemed that he... was starting to get used to the smell of blood!

"What a terrifying habit!"

Qin Ran smiled mockingly at himself.

When it was either kill or be killed, Qin Ran had no choice.

Still wearing that self-mocking smile, Qin Ran looked at his attribute panel.

[Stamina: 20]

His Stamina, which should have been 100, had fallen to only 20.

However, with Qin Ran's breathing, his Stamina was recovering at a rate of +1 +2 per second.

Thus, after a little over ten seconds, Qin Ran was able to stand again.

He quickly stripped the two corpses before him of all their loot.

[Name: M1905]

[Type: Firearm]

[Quality: Damaged]

[Attack Power: Average]

[Magazine Capacity: 7 rounds]

[Attributes: None]

[Special Effects: None]

[Can be taken out of this dungeon: Yes]

[Remarks: An 11mm pistol lacking maintenance. Watch out for jams.]

...

[Name: Bullets]

[Category: Ammunition]

[Quality: Average]

[Attributes: None]

[Special Effects: None]

[Can be taken out of this dungeon: Yes]

[Remarks: 11mm rounds. They are highly effective as pistol ammunition.]

...

Two M1905 pistols and six bullets were Qin Ran's greatest gains. Beyond that, there was nothing else worth noting.

With the M1905 pistol in hand, Qin Ran felt a little safer.

He looked behind him.

"It's safe!"

Qin Ran gestured toward the woman not far behind him.

But the woman did not come forward immediately.

Having survived four months in a war-torn city, this woman was not only vigilant, but smart as well!

When she had volunteered to draw their attention earlier, aside from the reasons she had stated, it was more because she knew that if Qin Ran were made to draw their attention, their already fragile alliance would instantly collapse, and the armed thugs would defeat them one by one.

Qin Ran understood the reason now as well.

Therefore, Qin Ran wanted even more to communicate with her and... cooperate.

Cooperating with smart people was always pleasant!

Of course, you had to show sincerity—

"Look, we met by chance twice, and we've worked together twice. I think we can continue helping each other—in these damned times!"

Faced with her hesitation and vigilance, Qin Ran immediately tucked both pistols into his waistband and raised his hands high.

Qin Ran's actions displayed absolute goodwill, while his words moved her slightly.

A few seconds later, the woman walked over.

"I contributed earlier. I have the right to a share of the loot!"

That was what she said.

"Of course!"

Qin Ran nodded in full agreement.

In the earlier battle, her contribution had been crucial. Without her drawing one of the armed thugs' attention, no matter what Qin Ran did, he could not have escaped the two men's gunfire.

Therefore, Qin Ran did not mind her taking a share of the loot.

So, in the next moment, Qin Ran prepared to hand one of the M1905 pistols at his waist to her.

However, to Qin Ran's surprise, after he nodded, she turned and ran toward the headless corpse in the distance.

Qin Ran was stunned, then immediately understood.

Their previous confrontation had definitely not happened merely because they had encountered each other by chance.

It had to be because of one thing—or several things.

Although he was curious about what those things were, Qin Ran had already acknowledged that she was entitled to a share of the loot.

Then he absolutely would not go back on his word.

Standing where he was, Qin Ran kept watch over the surroundings while waiting for the woman to search.

Very quickly, she came over carrying a backpack.

"I think we need to find somewhere more secluded. It isn't safe here!"

That was what Qin Ran said.

The sudden gunshots earlier would definitely attract people.

In fact, Qin Ran could already feel the peering gazes filled with ill intent.

Those who still dared to investigate after hearing gunshots were clearly not easy to deal with.

Even though Qin Ran had obtained two pistols, with only six bullets, he did not want to fight an unknown number of enemies.

"Follow me!"

The woman spoke and gestured for Qin Ran to follow.

Having lived in this war-torn city for four months, the woman understood their situation better than Qin Ran did.

Battle itself was not frightening!

What was frightening was battle after battle, without end!

To avoid that, they needed to end battles as quickly as possible and leave the battlefield immediately.

Fortunately, that was not difficult for the woman.

Following behind her, Qin Ran turned left and right. Even when he stumbled underfoot, he did not pause for a moment, closely keeping pace with her.

After running for around twenty minutes, Qin Ran and the woman arrived before another set of ruins.

When the woman stopped, Qin Ran stopped as well, then instinctively surveyed the surroundings.

But Qin Ran found nothing.

In fact, the ruins before him looked no different from the ruins Qin Ran had seen earlier.

Collapsed walls, bricks and rubble, broken rotten wood.

However, there was one thing Qin Ran could be sure of.

After that run, with the sounds of pursuit fading farther and farther behind them, everyone following them had been shaken off.

He was safe for the moment.