DSMC Chapter 35.2

Jiang Yan sneered. “Go ahead. You’ve killed plenty of agents. The only reason you haven’t killed this one is because he’s yours.”

The agent’s face flickered, but he kept silent.

Lin Xie turned toward Jiang Yan, who met his gaze and said, “He betrayed us long ago.”

Lin Xie only hesitated a moment before adapting. “Makes sense. He never notified my superiors. But I had a backup plan.”

Yan Jiyun: “……” Were all these NPCs born schemers with hundreds of tricks up their sleeves?

Still, he wasn’t stupid either. He added, “Because you reported to the police three days ago.”

Lin Xie shot him an approving glance. “Smart.”

Yan Jiyun pressed on. “This undercover killed Manager Wang.”

[Congratulations, Player Yan Jiyun, for finding Manager Wang’s killer. Rewards will be granted after the instance ends.]

Lin Xie confirmed. “That’s right.”

It clicked into place. Lin Xie knew the traitor would silence Manager Wang because the man had learned his identity. Afterward, Lin Xie tipped off the police, but they couldn’t cross the river because Zhao Renfu had blown the bridge. The three-day repair time coincided exactly with the dungeon’s time limit.

Zhao Renfu had discovered Lin Xie’s secret. At first, he hadn’t believed Lin Xie was undercover, as his earlier tortures hadn’t proven it. But once the traitor was caught, Lin Xie’s theft of documents from the study had been exposed.

Jiang Yan asked, “Then why talk to him like you didn’t know?”

Lin Xie replied, “Standard cover, to avoid tipping him off that I knew.”

Jiang Yan grunted. “Got it.”

Zhao Renfu chuckled coldly. “Exactly. I just had to wave a gun, and he spilled everything. So then, boy— hand over the Red Field Poppy.” He kept the muzzle leveled at Yan Jiyun.

He shoved aside the now-useless agent and seized Yan Jiyun instead.

Yan Jiyun found himself staring down the barrel. “Kid, take the box and come with me.”

There was nothing he could do but comply. With a gun to your head, who wouldn’t? And he wasn’t even sure his armor could block bullets.

Hauling the fifteen-kilo box, he followed Zhao Renfu down the stairs, all the while frantically thinking of how to break free.

Clearly, Zhao Renfu was the true boss of this dungeon.

Lin Xie and Jiang Yan, despite their exhaustion, immediately pursued, worried for the stranger held at gunpoint.

As for the exposed traitor, he stood there bewildered, still bound, and no one moved to untie him.

Yan Jiyun’s heart thudded wildly as he trudged along, the system timer making him even more nervous.

[Time until the instance ends: 15 minutes, 15 seconds]

[Human Form Time Card remaining: 14 minutes, 15 seconds]

“Hurry up!” Zhao Renfu snapped from behind. “Didn’t you eat?”

Yan Jiyun pulled a pained face. “This thing’s heavy! I’m an office worker, no exercise at all. I can barely carry it.”

Zhao Renfu knew full well how heavy the item was. “Move. Or my bullet won’t miss.”

Yan Jiyun: “……”

Just then, footsteps sounded from the third floor. It sounded familiar. 

It was the couple, Mr. and Mrs. Jiang, the ones who had handed Cheng Li over to the supervisor. Seeing Yan Jiyun, they raised something in their hands and shouted, “Put that down! Give it to us!”

Yan Jiyun would’ve loved to dump the weight on them. He couldn’t complete the missions anyway.

But Zhao Renfu’s gun was faster than their words. Two shots rang out.

One bullet struck Mr. Jiang square in the forehead. The other missed, only knocking Mrs. Jiang’s hairpin loose.

They hadn’t even realized Zhao Renfu was right behind them. Mr. Jiang dropped dead on the spot, while Mrs. Jiang was spared, but stunned.

Zhao Renfu snarled, “Any random dogs and cats think they can steal from me? Pathetic pests!”

It was the first time Yan Jiyun had seen a player die directly under an NPC’s gun. Alongside his shock came a heavy sadness. They were all just puppets in this game.

Now alone, Mrs. Jiang no longer dared to advance recklessly. They had rushed up because they couldn’t complete Main Mission (5), hoping to snatch the item. But they hadn’t expected an NPC waiting behind. Their carelessness had cost them dearly.

In Zhao Renfu’s eyes, everyone else was nothing but ants; the only reason he didn’t kill Mrs. Jiang was because he wanted to save a bullet.

Yan Jiyun kept moving downward, when he heard footsteps again. This time it was the trio he was familiar with — Zhou Ying and her team. They had clearly also heard the gunshots and came running this way, just escaping from the black-uniformed guards. Barely making it out, they realized the mission timer was almost up. The final boss Zhao Renfu was about to flee with Red Field Poppy. And now, not only were Mr. and Mrs. Jiang here, they thought they even saw Jiang Yan. At first glance, the resemblance was striking, but on closer look, the face was that of a handsome young man. He was simply dressed the same as Jiang Yan.

And right now, that young man had a gun pressed to the back of his head by Zhao Renfu. That had to be a player.

Only ten minutes left. How were they supposed to finish the mission?!

The items they had just used were still cooling down. Were they going to have to stake their lives on this?

Not only did Zhao Renfu have a gun, his marksmanship was deadly accurate, and Mr. Jiang had already been executed with a single shot.

Zhou Ying’s team didn’t dare to rush in now, only biding their time.

What could they even do with ten minutes?

The box in the young man’s hands had to be Red Field Poppy, but even holding it hadn’t cleared the stage, and with Zhao Renfu’s gun against his skull, the mission difficulty had spiked again.

He must be the long-absent Yan Jiyun!

They were all newcomers, so why was he this outstanding?

Yan Jiyun had no idea what the others were thinking. He was still being forced forward by Zhao Renfu, but the stairs ahead were already gone.

“The stairs ahead are blown up. We can’t get down.”

Zhao Renfu knew the layout even better than him. He had come up after the stairs between the second and third floors were destroyed, so there had to be another way.

“This way. There’s a small stairwell in the middle that still leads down. Move it, stop dragging your feet!”

Yan Jiyun truly didn’t want to drag his feet, but the Red Field Poppy box in his hands was undeniably heavy.

The biggest problem was the gun in Zhao Renfu’s hand. He couldn’t hope NPCs Lin Xie or Jiang Yan would save him, let alone Zhou Ying’s team. They didn’t even know him in his human form.

Yan Jiyun thought as he walked. What he feared most was that when they reached their destination, Zhao Renfu would just shoot him in the head.

He wasn’t very familiar with the third floor’s layout, but Lin Xie and Jiang Yan had fought Lao Fang here before. They had thrown a grenade. Had it blown away the little stairwell Zhao Renfu mentioned?

Wait, he heard footsteps, coming closer.

From the weight and pace, it was Jiang Yan!

And someone else followed, so it must be Lin Xie!

[Time until the instance ends: 5 minutes, 15 seconds]

[Human Form Time Card remaining: 4 minutes, 15 seconds]

They had come to rescue him!

Building C was over a thousand square meters, with twists and turns aplenty. Following Zhao Renfu’s directions, Yan Jiyun turned corner after corner.

And finally, he reached the staircase. But wasn’t this one far too dangerous?!

It clung to the outer wall, without even a railing. Just looking down from the third floor made his legs tremble. He wasn’t afraid of heights, but he was terrified Zhao Renfu would just kick him off.

“I–I’m afraid of heights,” Yan Jiyun said with a trembling voice. He rarely spoke, so his fear sounded all the more genuine.

Zhao Renfu had no shred of pity. He snapped impatiently: “I don’t care if you are, you’re going down right now!”

If he didn’t still need him as a hostage, he would’ve shot him already. The biggest weakness of these “good guys” undercover like Lin Xie was their bleeding heart, their tendency to save civilians. 

Taking advantage of his “fear,” Yan Jiyun slowly edged backward, tilting his head slightly. Zhao Renfu was barely a meter away.

He deliberately tested, shifting his leg as if too scared to look down the stairs, angling his body sideways.

“S–so scary…”

Zhao Renfu raised his hand, about to strike him. Yan Jiyun seized the chance and smashed the box into Zhao Renfu’s face!

“Bastard!” Zhao Renfu stumbled back. Yan Jiyun clamped down on his gun hand, desperate to wrest the weapon away.

Was Yan Jiyun physically weak?

Of course not. He had never neglected training.

Zhao Renfu was old, but his strength was nothing to scoff at either!

Yan Jiyun strained to pry his fingers off the gun, his nails digging cruelly into Zhao Renfu’s wrist. The latter nearly buckled from the pain but still clung tightly. Yan Jiyun, quick and flexible, used both hands and feet to pin him down, digging his nails harder!

In the struggle, Zhao Renfu’s grip slipped. The gun fired twice into the ceiling, deafening cracks echoing. Yan Jiyun forced his hand down, pulling the trigger until the bullets were spent, only then letting go.

Realizing his safeguard was gone, Zhao Renfu lunged for the box. If he could just grab it, he could flee. But Yan Jiyun wouldn’t let him. He kicked the box toward the stairwell’s edge. It teetered precariously, one more push and it would fall!

Panting, Zhao Renfu rasped, “Kid, you and I have no enmity. Let me go, and I’ll make sure you live in wealth and glory.”

Yan Jiyun: “Thanks, but no need. I’m not short of money. As for you, old man, it’s better you surrender.”

Seeing Yan Jiyun approach, Zhao Renfu reached to his leg, whipping out a hidden knife and slashing cunningly at him!

Yan Jiyun twisted aside, and the blade whistled past his cheek. A heartbeat slower and he’d have lost half his face.

Zhao Renfu slashed again and again, trained and ruthless. Yan Jiyun had only armor, no weapons. In the cramped space he could only dodge left and right. Cornered, he was driven to the unguarded stair’s edge.

Zhao Renfu’s grin turned feral. “Weren’t you acting tough just now?”

Yan Jiyun retreated step by step until his foot knocked against the box. Inspiration struck. “Isn’t this what you want?” He snapped open one of the latches.

Zhao Renfu’s face changed instantly. “That’s priceless! You wouldn’t dare!”

But Yan Jiyun did. He popped another latch, pulled out a packet of Red Field Poppy, tore it open. Red powder spilled onto the ground, and he ground it beneath his heel.

Enraged, Zhao Renfu lunged again, knife flashing. Yan Jiyun flipped the box up as a shield. The blade shredded through the spilling Red Field Poppy. Grain after grain rolled down the stairs.

[Time until the instance ends: 2 minutes, 05 seconds]

[Human Form Time Card remaining: 1 minute, 05 seconds]

Cold sweat broke over Yan Jiyun. He plastered himself against the wall, the system countdown nearly driving him mad!

Zhao Renfu watched his life’s work scattering, eyes bulging with fury. He hurled himself at Yan Jiyun, stabbing wildly. Yan Jiyun squeezed sideways along the wall, dodging narrowly again and again.

Zhao Renfu had gone insane.

Yan Jiyun was chased downward, when suddenly his foot slipped, sending him tumbling down several steps.

The knife came down again. Yan Jiyun slid off the stairs, barely hanging on by his fingers. A glance told him the drop was ten meters. Falling meant certain death, and his main mission wasn’t finished yet.

[Time until the instance ends: 1 minute, 10 seconds]

[Human Form Time Card remaining: 10 seconds]

Zhao Renfu saw him dangling and raised his boot, ready to stomp down on his hand.

Yan Jiyun felt despair. Just as Lin Xie had been moments ago, only now their roles reversed.

What a pity. To die without seeing his shit shoveler one last time.

Zhao Renfu’s foot hovered above his hand—

[Time until the instance ends: 60 seconds]

[Human Form Time Card remaining: 0 seconds]

Bang!

A gunshot rang out. Zhao Renfu’s hulking body jolted and toppled, plunging straight down.

As he fell, Yan Jiyun’s Human Form Time Card expired. His hands shrank back into cat paws. His body was lighter, but the cement steps were slick, and his claws couldn’t catch. Inch by inch, he slid further down.

‘Goodbye, my shit shovel—’

“Meow!”

“Blake!”

“Blake!!”