DSMC Chapter 115

Yan Jiyun ran out under everyone’s watchful eyes.

The moment he entered earlier, he had already checked the layout of the “Tiger Door” casino. He still wasn’t sure how many floors it had, but judging by real-world casinos, there were likely at least a thousand gaming tables and several hundred slot machines.

Even if he wandered around the slot machine area, he could probably hide for quite a while. But there were likely surveillance cameras everywhere, and he risked being caught at any moment. So he sprinted straight toward the grand, golden staircase.

When the players outside saw him rush out, they all started clapping, some even whistling.

“Beating an NPC, not bad!”

“Run, run! They’re coming!”

“What a pity, I forgot to place a bet. If I’d bet on you, I would’ve won!”

Players understood things far better than NPCs. In their eyes, the casino boss had clearly tried to cheat after losing and flown into a rage. As far as they were concerned, Yan Jiyun had won the final round, not Ruan-ge.

Yan Jiyun wanted to roll his eyes at them. These players only cared about watching the show. As he ran past, he shouted, “He’s targeting me now, but once I’m gone, he’ll go after you! What’s so funny? You might as well work together against the NPCs!”

One player shot back, “What, you want us to take the bullets for you?”

Yan Jiyun replied, “Believe it or not!”

Just as he finished speaking, Ruan-ge’s voice rang out from not far away: “That kid owes me his life! Whoever helps me catch him will be rewarded with chips!”

Some players were tempted to help, but then reconsidered. Yan Jiyun had a point. If they helped Ruan-ge, he might turn on them next. No one trusted him anymore. His credibility was already gone, and nobody believed he’d actually hand over any rewards.

Although Yan Jiyun ran fast, guards were stationed both upstairs and downstairs. The moment he reached the staircase, two guards rushed forward to block him.

He dodged left and right with agile movements, barely avoiding their attacks. Grabbing a nearby trash bin, he smashed it into one of them, then kicked him down the stairs.

Chu Mo, who was in the same area, rolled up his sleeves and followed him up to the second floor when another group of guards chased after them.

At that moment, Yan Jiyun was entangled with another guard. Without access to his inventory, he couldn’t use any items against NPCs and had to fight barehanded.

But his combat skills were honestly mediocre. A guard swung a massive punch at him—if he hadn’t bent backward in time, it would’ve smashed right into his nose!

Just then, someone grabbed the pursuing guard from behind and punched him in the temple. The guard’s head wobbled before he was kicked down the stairs.

Chu Mo, who had just arrived, said to Yan Jiyun, “You looked pretty pitiful, so I figured I’d lend a hand.”

Yan Jiyun leaned against the padded wall behind him, having been running for his life. Seeing Chu Mo, he finally let out a deep breath. With so many guards, escaping alone would’ve been difficult.

“Thanks,” he said.

This temporary teammate wasn’t bad at all.

Chu Mo replied, “Don’t forget we’re exchanging information. I’m not helping you for free.”

Yan Jiyun made an OK gesture. “Deal.”

Several guards rushed at them again. Chu Mo’s combat ability far exceeded Yan Jiyun’s expectations. He could take down a guard in just a couple of moves.

Yan Jiyun kicked one charging guard square in the chest and asked between breaths, “Why are you here?”

Chu Mo replied, “I asked around. The other gates are likely different kinds of stages. This is the only place that’s a proper casino, only here can you earn points.”

There were too many guards. With just the two of them, the situation was tight.

“The guards are too many,” Yan Jiyun said.

So the “Tiger Door” was for earning points, then the other gates must be even harder.

After dealing with the guards closing in, they ran along the second-floor corridor, keeping about a hundred meters ahead of the pursuing group.

The casino was huge, and the guards were chasing on foot. Wave after wave came at them. It was exhausting for both sides.

Trying to rally other players to fight the NPCs was unrealistic. Without shared interests, no one would risk themselves. Watching the spectacle was far easier.

Yan Jiyun had never expected Chu Mo to help him. He thought they’d gone their separate ways after entering the city gate and wouldn’t meet again. Who knew the “Peak Competition” would be this small?

No matter what, running came first.

That, at least, was his specialty.

But since the target was him and not Chu Mo, he said, “Go find the guide. I’ll lead them away. Once you find him, call me and I’ll come meet you!”

Chu Mo asked, “How do I contact you?”

Yan Jiyun replied casually, “If I’m hiding, just knock on doors or ask around for five to ten minutes and I’ll definitely show up. If I’m still being chased, just shout my name.”

Chu Mo made an OK gesture.

They split up. Yan Jiyun ran straight toward the third floor.

It was quieter upstairs, likely reserved for VIP guests. It depended on whether Ruan-ge would dare offend them.

Watching all the guards follow Yan Jiyun upstairs, Chu Mo muttered, “Why do I feel like he thinks I’m in the way?”

[Playing Safe to Survive] livestream channel: 

“Hahaha, you finally realized? He does think you’re in the way! And you still ran over to help him? Don’t drag trouble onto yourself!”

“Doggy, you’re stopping him from turning into a cat and hiding!”

“Before today, I didn’t even know players could turn into kitty cats. That little black cat is so cute! I’m switching streams to watch!”

“Wait for me! I’m going too. Sorry, Puppy Brat, blame the fact you can’t turn into an actual husky. Cats are way more appealing!”

“Hey, aren’t you guys watching him find the guide? Count me in!”

A portion of Chu Mo’s viewers flooded into the [Want to be Human] livestream.

“Hehehe, here to watch the live cat transformation!”

“Hurry up and transform!”

“But he’s still running, I feel tired just watching in first-person view!”

“He runs so fast in human form, like lightning!”

“Run, Kitty! That shameless Ruan-ge called more people!”

“This is just a point-farming casino, and he’s getting kicked out before earning much. What a waste.”

Yan Jiyun had no idea his stream had just gained more viewers. The third floor had many rooms, and he needed to find somewhere to hide.

His Human Form Time Card was about to expire. Once it did, he planned to slip into a corner and turn into a cat. No matter how hard the guards searched, they wouldn’t find him.

There were various VIP rooms on the third floor, each labeled. They were soundproof, but that didn’t matter to Yan Jiyun. He could tell which rooms were occupied and which were empty.

He figured the guards wouldn’t dare run wildly through the corridor once they got upstairs.

He turned into a numbered VIP room with no sound coming from inside. He decided to open the door and go in.

But the guards were fast. Before he could open it, one holding a long stick charged straight at him.

Damn, they even had weapons now.

Yan Jiyun had no weapons on him. If he clashed head-on with them, it would only lead to death.

To avoid being caught by the guards, he could only keep sprinting through the maze-like corridors on the third floor.

Why was his life so miserable? Why was he always being chased by NPCs? It was seriously annoying.

Were these guards all hundred-meter champions or something? He was already running this fast, yet they were still right on his heels.

After turning the third corner, Yan Jiyun stopped in front of a door to catch his breath. Suddenly, the door behind him opened, and a strong hand grabbed him and pulled him inside.

He thought it was someone trying to attack him, so he reacted instantly, preparing to drive his elbow into the other person’s stomach. But the other party easily caught both his hands, restraining him, and quickly dragged him fully into the room.

“It’s me, Qi Feng!”

Yan Jiyun had already recognized the scent, but he hadn’t expected Qi Feng, the first one to leave their temporary team, to take the initiative to save him.

A group of guards rushed past outside.

Yan Jiyun obediently stayed silent, standing close to Qi Feng until the guards passed.

He was surprised. Why was Qi Feng here? How did everyone know to come to Tiger Door?

Once it was quiet outside, Yan Jiyun looked around. It was a very luxurious lounge.

“How come you’re all here?” he asked, turning to face Qi Feng. “That guy earlier helped me downstairs too.”

“We’re all here looking for clues,” Qi Feng said. Meeting again like this was also a kind of fate. This newcomer’s abilities were even stronger than he had expected.

“Not here to farm points?” Yan Jiyun asked, confused. He knew each gate contained clues, but almost all players were downstairs earning points.

“You can farm points here, but so far, the Horse Door, Tiger Door, Dragon Door, and Rat Door haven’t yielded clues,” Qi Feng said. He didn’t mind sharing information, though only a small number of players knew this.

Yan Jiyun thought of the Rat Kingdom King information card lying in his temporary inventory.

He asked casually, “How many pieces of information have you collected?”

Qi Feng didn’t hide it. “I cleared Pig, Dog, Ox, Sheep, and Rooster. Two information cards, three numbers.”

Yan Jiyun’s mouth parted slightly. As expected of a veteran player. While he was sleeping, this guy had already cleared five mini-instances.

He decided to be straightforward. “I’ve only entered the Rat Door. Got one information card.”

Qi Feng looked a little surprised. “Many players leave Rat Door empty-handed. It’s not easy to get an information card there.”

Yan Jiyun thought of those chattering, timid rats and nodded seriously. “Yeah, it was pretty hard.” There were just way too many of them.

More footsteps echoed outside. Ruan-ge had sent guards to search every room on the third floor. He was determined to dig Yan Jiyun out, even at the cost of offending VIPs. He wouldn’t let someone who embarrassed him leave alive.

One of Ruan-ge’s men shouted outside, “Search thoroughly! He could be hiding anywhere!”

Yan Jiyun glanced at Qi Feng.

What bad timing meeting his pooper-scooper now. If Qi Feng had shown up a bit later, he could’ve turned back into a cat and avoided all this without dragging him in.

Yan Jiyun looked for a hiding place and noticed a man and a woman lying on the bed in the inner room.

He gave Qi Feng a thumbs-up. “Impressive.”

He had been thinking of hiding in an empty room, but Qi Feng had gone a step further, knocking out casino guests and taking over their room.

Just then, someone knocked on the door.

Qi Feng pointed toward the inner room, signaling him to hide. Yan Jiyun immediately understood.

He slipped inside, pulling the blanket over the man’s head and covering everything below the woman’s neck, leaving only her long hair visible. From outside, it would look like just a woman lying there.

He positioned himself behind the door, leaving a small gap so anyone outside could see the “woman” on the bed.

Qi Feng opened the door. He had already taken off his coat and put on a bathrobe, holding a glass of red wine. Calm and composed, he frowned at the guards outside.

“Yes?”

Yan Jiyun listened from inside. Qi Feng’s attitude toward outsiders was completely different from how he treated companions, or cats.

In the real world, Yan Jiyun had never seen anything related to Qi Feng’s work. He had once thought Qi Feng might be a big company boss, but it didn’t quite fit. He didn’t have the aura of a businessman. Then again, after nearly three years in this deadly game, perhaps Qi Feng had already changed.

The guard asked, “Sir, sorry to disturb you. Have you seen a young man run in here?”

Qi Feng replied sharply, “So because you’re looking for someone, you get to interrupt my night?”

Knowing third-floor guests were VIPs, the guard apologized. “Very sorry, sir. That person is extremely dangerous. We’re worried he might harm guests, so we had to check.”

Even after explaining, the guard tried to push inside, slipping through the space Qi Feng had left.

Through the slightly open door, he saw a long-haired woman lying under the covers.

Qi Feng frowned, clearly displeased. “My girlfriend is sleeping, and you still want to come in and take a closer look? What exactly are your intentions?”

The guard quickly waved his hands. “No, no, of course not. Sorry, sir, sorry for the disturbance.”

Qi Feng snapped, “Then get lost. Or do you want me to invite you in? You’ve already ruined my night. I’m canceling my membership tomorrow!”

The guards apologized repeatedly. Qi Feng shot them a cold look and slammed the door shut.

Listening from inside, Yan Jiyun almost laughed. Qi Feng’s acting was incredible, better than any top actor. He’d have to learn from him someday, just in case he ever needed to play a domineering boss role.

After closing the door, Qi Feng said, “What’s your plan? Ruan-ge has his eyes on you. You need to leave.”

Yan Jiyun answered honestly, “I want to go to the next door and keep looking for clues.”

Qi Feng removed the bathrobe. “I’m heading to the next door too.” From earlier, he could tell this newcomer was sharp.

Yan Jiyun was hesitating whether to invite him along when he heard Chu Mo’s voice.

The livestream had already exposed his sharp hearing, so there was no point hiding it.

“I heard Chu Mo found the guide. You coming?” Yan Jiyun asked.

“Let’s go,” Qi Feng replied.

Yan Jiyun was about to open the door and sprint out again when Qi Feng pulled him back.

“Change your clothes. You stand out too much. There are too many of them—if you keep running like this, you’ll collapse sooner or later.”

Yan Jiyun thought that made sense. He had just been too focused on escaping to think it through.

He checked the wardrobe and found it full of suits, basically the same as what he was wearing. “You want me to disguise myself as that pot-bellied bald guy?”

Qi Feng tilted his chin.

Following his gaze, Yan Jiyun pointed at the woman, then at himself. “Her? Me?”

Qi Feng walked over to the unconscious woman and, without a trace of gentleness, pulled off her wig. “Wear her clothes. You’ll be less noticeable.”

Yan Jiyun: “……”

He might as well turn into a cat.

Except he couldn’t. He had just extended his human form by another 10 minutes.

Fine. Survival first. Pride later.

Qi Feng seriously searched for clothes, completely straight-faced. Around others, he was cold and distant.

The woman only had two outfits: one was lingerie, the other a knee-length dress.

The woman was fairly tall, but Yan Jiyun could tell at a glance that the dress wouldn’t match his height. It would definitely look too short on him.

Making one last attempt, he said, “I think there should be another way?”

Qi Feng replied seriously, “The prop inventory is completely locked right now. Even the invisibility cloak can’t be used.”

Even the props they had bought beforehand were disabled. The game clearly had no intention of letting them use items in Angel City.

Gritting his teeth, Yan Jiyun began changing into the woman’s dress. Thankfully, his build was on the slimmer side, so it fit. 

Since both he and Qi Feng were men, they didn’t bother being modest and directly removed the system-issued clothing.

Qi Feng’s gaze fell on his back. “How did you get that injury?”

The wound was still clearly visible, though the ointment had been applied messily, probably by himself. Even the surrounding skin was smeared with it.

Yan Jiyun said calmly, “Got scratched by branches in the Demon Forest.”

After putting on the dress, he turned his back to Qi Feng. “Help me out.”

Qi Feng carefully avoided the wound and pulled up the zipper. “Done.”

Yan Jiyun quickly put on the wig, turned in front of the mirror, and thought to himself, ‘Not bad-looking at all.’

Under Qi Feng’s gaze, he put on the woman’s high heels and nearly twisted his ankle.

He couldn’t help complaining, “Being a girl who has to look pretty is really suffering!”

But the livestream thought otherwise.

[Want to be Human] livestream channel: 

“Damn, the system’s too much!! Just changing clothes and they censor it? What, VIPs can’t see this?”

“What’s the ID of the player streaming on-site? I’m going to watch!”

“Level 5 big shot’s stream is [Anyone Seen My Cat?¹T/N: not quite title drop. The CN title is 看见我的猫了吗？ while Qi Feng’s livestream room is 谁看见我的猫了。It roughly means the same though. The title is asking a yes/no question (statement+吗), but Qi Feng’s livestream channel is using the question word “Who/Anyone” (谁+question).]”

“Hahaha, don’t bother! I just came back from there, it’s censored too!”

“Ahh, what a pity.”

Yan Jiyun checked the time. Changing clothes had taken a few minutes. There was only three minutes remaining before his agreed time with Chu Mo.

He couldn’t wait to leave. The moment he got out of Tiger Door, he was throwing away this dress that made his legs feel chilly.

Fortunately, Qi Feng was used to big situations and remained perfectly composed. He even handed Yan Jiyun lipstick and a handbag before opening the door.

“You look pretty experienced,” Yan Jiyun said.

“After being in instances for a long time, you have to learn all kinds of skills,” Qi Feng replied.

Curious, Yan Jiyun asked, “Have you ever disguised yourself as a girl?”

Qi Feng immediately denied it. “No. Doesn’t suit me.”

Yan Jiyun: “…” So it suits him, then?

Yeah, he suddenly didn’t feel like talking to his shit-shovel officer anymore.

He snapped off the top of the lipstick and lightly applied some. A faint red tinted his pale lips, making him look more lively.

“Can you walk?” Qi Feng asked.

Yan Jiyun hadn’t expected his feet to even fit into the heels.

“Barely.” He didn’t have the luxury to worry since this was an escape. Being able to wear them at all was enough.

Qi Feng opened the door for him and handed him the sunglasses left by the female NPC. “Put these on. Your face is easy to recognize.”

Yan Jiyun didn’t mind. The sunglasses were perfect. So many players had seen him through Ruan-ge’s livestream. If anyone recognized him later as the guy who cross-dressed, that would be mortifying.

This kind of black history had to be erased if possible! No way he’s showing his face!!

He tested walking in the heels, trying to look natural, though he was basically tiptoeing.

Seeing him struggle, Qi Feng asked, “Need support?”

“Even better.”

Qi Feng naturally offered his arm for support, to which Yan Jiyun linked his arm to.

It wasn’t Yan Jiyun’s first time interacting with him, but being this close in human form felt different. ‘That arm, that physique…’ definitely enviable.

Reliable.

The two entered the elevator while Ruan-ge’s guards were still searching rooms. From afar, they heard some guards whispering about him.

“That girl with the boss just now was pretty, just a bit flat.”

“Hey, people have different tastes. Some like big, some like small. She’s tall, so she’s probably a model. Models don’t have much boobs anyway.”

“Tch, wouldn’t feel great to grope.”

Yan Jiyun suppressed the violent urge inside him. ‘Get lost, you shameless perverts!’²T/N: Yan Jiyun crossdressed once and immediately got cat-called. He’s speedrunning misogyny% and winning.

If he weren’t in this situation, he’d have punched them already.

It took some time to reach the elevator.

Yan Jiyun thought he could finally relax once inside. But there was someone familiar: the man in the white shirt who had followed him earlier.

‘He didn’t recognize me… right?’

Quietly, Yan Jiyun leaned closer to Qi Feng’s arm, letting him block his face.

No reason, just preserving dignity.

This look was seriously embarrassing.

Qi Feng remained calm. When the elevator reached the first floor, the three of them exited together.

Clinging to Qi Feng’s arm, Yan Jiyun hurried forward on tiptoe. “Quick, quick!”

Following Chu Mo’s voice, he reached the fifth row of slot machines. It was quiet, no other players nearby.

Chu Mo sized him up and teased, “Miss, who might you be?”

Yan Jiyun pulled off his sunglasses, eyes blazing. “I suggest you forget what I look like right now and take me to the guide.”

He didn’t have a choice, okay?!

Chu Mo sighed. “Too bad you’re the wrong gender, otherwise I’d definitely pursue you.”

‘Damn, flirting with me?????’ 

Yan Jiyun didn’t hold back and kicked him!

Qi Feng’s lips curved slightly. ‘This newcomer was quite lively.’

• 1
  T/N: not quite title drop. The CN title is 看见我的猫了吗？ while Qi Feng’s livestream room is 谁看见我的猫了。It roughly means the same though. The title is asking a yes/no question (statement+吗), but Qi Feng’s livestream channel is using the question word “Who/Anyone” (谁+question).
• 2
  T/N: Yan Jiyun crossdressed once and immediately got cat-called. He’s speedrunning misogyny% and winning.