The Participants gathered once more. Lin Feng caught Chen Fang's eye, subtly signaling that he had the key.
"Alright, everyone, let's tally up the number of blocks we've collected."
Old Deng continued to direct them. Each person reported their findings in order, and they quickly pieced together the password to open the iron gate.
At that moment, there were still two minutes left before Lu Zihan would break through the iron gate on the other side.
A massive gap had already been hacked into the gate, but unfortunately, it wasn't quite large enough for Lu Zihan to squeeze through.
Just then, Lin Feng suddenly stepped forward, blocking the way to the door. Everyone's eyes turned toward him.
"What's the meaning of this?" Old Deng frowned, staring at him coldly.
"Old Deng, while we have a moment, there's something I want to ask you." Lin Feng smiled, flashing a row of white teeth in a seemingly harmless manner, but his words struck right at the heart of the matter.
"You never actually intended to let the rest of us clear this, did you?"
"Crazy talk. Get out of the way!" Old Deng snapped coldly, racking the slide of his gun.
"What's the rush? I've heard that you Holy City folk have 'accidentally' injured plenty of us Outercity folk just to snatch resources in these Instances."
Lin Feng's voice suddenly turned frigid, like the flick of a viper's tongue. "Answer me. Is it true, or not?"
His final words rang out with authority. The nurse and the chef exchanged panicked glances as an uneasy commotion began to spread through the silence.
"Of. Course. Not." Old Deng spoke each word deliberately, his gaze sweeping over the crowd as he tried to suppress the unrest. "Are you trying to get us all killed by listening to this instigation? As for you..."
He leveled his muzzle steadily at Lin Feng. "Any last words?"
Clang!
Lu Zihan's hacking paused for a brief second. His rule had been satisfied once again.
【Contribution points +1】 Ren Yi faithfully carried out his role as the system.
Inside the jade pendant, Ren Yi's eyebrows twitched slightly.
He had originally chosen Lin Feng because of that "chuunibyou" air mixed with ambition, as well as the boy's unconditional acceptance of the "system."
But Lin Feng's performance right now seemed to go beyond mere chuunibyou antics.
Was his excitement regarding the Anomaly Instance born from ignorance, or... from absolute confidence in his own trump cards?
Old Deng wasted no more words and pulled the trigger with force.
However, the trigger felt as if it had been welded shut, refusing to budge an inch.
No matter how much strength he applied, it didn't move at all. A sudden, icy chill crawled up Old Deng's spine.
The mockery on Lin Feng's face was no longer hidden. He casually raised a hand.
In the next instant, the firearms in the hands of Old Deng and Chu River seemed to suddenly spring to life. They vibrated violently, emitting a low metallic hum as they tore themselves away from their owners' grip. They hovered in mid-air, their dark muzzles pointed back at their former masters.
"An Esper," Old Deng's voice sounded dry.
Inside the jade pendant, Ren Yi watched the two floating guns silently. He felt no shock, only a desire to complain.
Fine, an Esper.
Over the past few days, his worldview had been repeatedly crushed and rebuilt until it was now as solid as a rock.
Never mind controlling guns; even if someone claimed they could transform into a giant of light right now, he'd probably just calmly reply, "Oh, and then?"
【Lu Zihan: Stool! What's all that banging inside? I can teleport now. Should I go in?】
Lu Zihan was anxious because he couldn't see the drama unfolding.
【Ren Yi: Calm down. Let's see what he's planning.】
Ren Yi gave Lu Zihan a quick verbal play-by-play of the situation. Immediately after, Lin Feng made his next move.
Enjoying the terrified gazes of the crowd, Lin Feng spoke in a cold tone that carried an unquestionable sense of control. "You two, back up. The rest of you too, stay away from me."
He paused before adding, "I've lacked a sense of security since I was a child. If these guns happen to go off... don't blame me."
Under the pressure from Lin Feng, everyone began to retreat in terror. Chen Fang hesitated for a moment but stayed by Lin Feng's side.
Lin Feng beckoned the machine gun into his own arms, while the pistol belonging to Chu River hovered in the air, following the others as they backed away. When the rest of the group reached the middle of the room, they didn't dare take another step back.
"It—it's about to get in!" The nurse looked in terror toward Lu Zihan outside the gate.
Indeed, the bars on the upper half of the iron gate had been completely hacked through, leaving enough space for Lu Zihan to thrust his upper body inside. The lower half of the door was also in shambles, looking as if it would shatter completely after a few more strikes.
"Don't worry," Lin Feng suddenly gave a twisted smile. "This door isn't going to break."
Before he had even finished speaking, the pistol hovering in the air suddenly jerked upward, aiming at the ceiling.
Bang!
The pistol fired a shot into the ceiling with a deafening boom, sending the remaining survivors scattering in a panic.
At that moment, Lin Feng whispered, "System, exchange one Target Transfer Talisman for me and use it on that Old Deng."
Good grief, so this was his plan. Ren Yi was speechless; he finally understood what this kid was trying to do.
If things went according to Lin Feng's plan, the two of them wouldn't have to do anything and would still come out on top.
He truly was a god-tier teammate.
Ren Yi decided to grant his wish. He acted immediately, sending the command to Lu Zihan to move while simultaneously popping up a notification in front of Lin Feng:
【Exchange successful. Contribution points -1.】
【Item "Target Transfer Talisman" has been used on target (Old Deng).】
Outside the door, Lu Zihan—who was already "well-fed" and itching for action—received the signal. A murderous glint flared in his crimson visor!
Old Deng felt the light above him dim as the aura of death poured over him like ice water. He roared and lunged forward, his survival instinct exploding to its limit.
However, he was still not as fast as Lu Zihan's blade. The whistle of the bone blade slicing through the air and the dull thud of a neck snapping rang out almost simultaneously.
Old Deng's body continued to lunge forward due to inertia, but his head remained behind, his face frozen in a mask of extreme horror and resentment.
"I'll kill you!" a grief-stricken voice cried out. Seeing Old Deng die, Chu River's eyes turned bloodshot as he glared death at Lin Feng.
Meanwhile, Lin Feng coldly admired his "masterpiece." In the center of the room, the steel monster stood tall, blood dripping from its bone blade. The survivors screamed and fled like headless chickens, completely broken.
Everything was as he had expected. The monster's teleportation was indeed triggered by "high-decibel sounds."
"System items really do work," Lin Feng thought with renewed confidence. He retreated to the door.
"Let's go," he commanded Chen Fang, who was pale and trembling. He turned the handle to the door leading to the next room.
Chen Fang was already scared white. Hearing Lin Feng's command, she shakily followed him through the door.
Clang. The iron door locked tight, cutting off Lin Feng and Chen Fang from the room—and cutting off the path to survival for everyone left behind.
At this moment, Lu Zihan's tall, terrifying form loomed in the center of the room. Blood dripped from the bone blades on his hands as a horrific, eerie aura spread in all directions.
Within the Anomaly Web, however, the atmosphere was quite different.
【Lu Zihan: Wait... Stool, what's going on? I only killed one, so why did they lock the door themselves?】
Under the steel mask, Lu Zihan's thoughts were filled with simple confusion.
He hadn't even put in any effort yet, and the enemies suddenly turned on their own and fired shots?
【Ren Yi: ...Maybe that's just how Humans are?】
He didn't know either. He had only given Lin Feng a vague mission to become a leader.
Before his new plan could even be set in motion, Lin Feng had taken it upon himself to push the plot in a direction he had never envisioned.
【Lu Zihan: So what do I do now?】
【Ren Yi: Just control your speed and kill them slowly. Take your time. At the very end, I might have a way to get them to trigger our rules voluntarily.】
【Lu Zihan: Roger that! I'll 'play' with them for a bit then.】
On the other side, Lin Feng was frowning.
He turned to Chen Fang. "I'm the leader between the two of us now, right?"
"Of course," Chen Fang replied with a forced smile.
Ren Yi rolled his eyes and promptly popped up a golden, glowing notification in Lin Feng's vision:
【Phase Mission "Establish Leadership" completed! Contribution points +2!】
Rate on N.U.
