Chapter 5: The Twenty-Ninth Kill

“Kai Ge, what the hell is this place?”

The voice of a young man cut through the air, his tone laced with complaint as he spoke to another man beside him, who was currently lying prone on the ground like a bush camper (TL Note: 伏地魔, Fúdìmó, refers to a player who stays hidden by lying prone, often in tall grass or bushes, to ambush enemies in battle royale games).

“It looks like a game map, but we’re actually fighting in it for real! This is far too dangerous.

What if we get hit? We’ll get injured, it’ll hurt! If we’re eliminated, does that mean we’re truly dead?”

“Backpack, magazines, frying pan…”

The prone man, Kai Ge, meticulously checked his weapons, equipment, and ammunition, all while propping up a sniper rifle and speaking in broken Mandarin.

“Everything’s here.

A Fei, don’t be scared.

With your Kai Ge here, what is there to fear?

Haven’t you seen your Kai Ge’s skills?

I don’t even need to hold my breath to aim; that’s how confident and arrogant I am!”

He continued, “Watch your Kai Ge show you what ‘awesome’ truly means! There are still five people alive.

You and I are a team, which means three others are still out there.”

“Kai Ge, quick, look! Someone’s lurking behind a tree at forty-five degrees southeast!”

The young man, A Fei, possessed remarkably sharp eyes.

In an instant, he spotted an enemy most would miss—a player positioned atop another mountain peak.

“Heh heh, this ‘clairvoyance’ ability really comes in handy.

Even though my aim isn’t great, I can see almost all the enemies, haha!”

“Heh heh, A Fei, well done.

Watch your Kai Ge show you a trick! Bang, take that!”

Following the direction indicated, Kai Ge, the prone player, swung his sniper rifle, and a bullet flew out with pinpoint accuracy.

The enemy on the opposite mountain peak immediately fell, a headshot killing them instantly.

“Ha, twenty-eight kills! I’m definitely the MVP of this whole match! A Fei, check again, is anyone else nearby?”

“Let me take a look… Hey, Kai Ge, look! There’s a guy hiding behind a bed over there! See, right there! Thirty-two degrees west!”

A Fei scanned his surroundings and quickly spotted the player standing near Wang Tianming.

“That’s strange.

This map isn’t like the game at all, but why is there a bed just sitting here?

It looks completely out of place, doesn’t it?”

“Haha, who cares?”

Kai Ge dismissed it, “This damn game is insane anyway.

Forget a bed; I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a mahjong table here!”

He hadn’t given it much thought, nor could he actually see that far.

However, he possessed a “head-locking ability” (TL Note: 锁敌头, suǒ dí tóu, refers to an aimbot-like cheat that automatically targets an enemy’s head when firing in a certain direction), guaranteeing a headshot whenever he aimed and fired in an enemy’s general direction.

“After this kill, I’ll have twenty-nine! I ask you, who else is left?”

“Bang!”

“Bang!”

“Bang!”

Several bullets whistled past in quick succession, “bang-bang-bang-ing” into the ground around Kai Ge, leaving his face looking awfully swollen from the near misses.

His infallible aim, it seemed, had suddenly failed him.

“Damn it!

This guy’s got an evasion hack (TL Note: 闪避挂, shǎnbì guà, refers to a cheat that allows a player to dodge all incoming attacks)! My bullets can’t hit him! We’ll have to take him down in close combat!”

Kai Ge’s expression turned grim.

The earlier gunshots had already given away their position, and the enemy had reacted, unleashing a torrent of bullets with reckless abandon.

Moreover, the opponent also had grenades, which, while not precisely aimed, were accurate enough to kill them before they could even reach the enemy.

“Is my lifelong reputation about to be ruined by this twenty-ninth kill? This is agonizing, A Fei!”

“Kai Ge, let’s go! Your brother here will help you to the very end!”

A Fei’s demeanor abruptly shifted, filled with soaring heroism.

He declared loudly, “Your brother will shield you from bullets upfront; you try to rush in from behind and finish this guy off!”

He added with a determined shout, “Kai Ge, I’m going first! If there’s a next life, I’ll still be your good brother!”

“A Fei! My good brother!

Go on, your big brother will avenge you!”

Kai Ge, deeply moved by A Fei’s loyalty, watched with tears streaming down his face as A Fei charged forward.

The enemy, seeing such a human target, showed no hesitation, firing directly at A Fei.

A Fei, enduring the relentless hail of bullets, dashed dozens of meters forward, with Kai Ge following close behind, a long blade clutched in his hand as he surged toward the enemy.

Ultimately, A Fei collapsed to the ground, no longer able to shield Kai Ge from the gunfire.

Kai Ge, however, was now mere moments away from confronting the enemy.