There was a metallic hum as Chu Zihang’s katana vibrated intensely. Though it only touched Caesar’s hunting knife for a moment, the immense force made the blade of the katana quiver violently, like a struck copper reed. Caesar’s blade held immense power, and Chu Zihang’s blade was vibrating to dissipate that force.
Chu Zihang took a few steps back, examining his sword. “Compared to ‘Dictator,’ ‘Murasame’ still falls short.”
The two paused for a moment before lunging at each other again.
In Caesar’s hands, the hunting knife “Dictator” was powerful and forceful, while Chu Zihang’s “Murasame” was like a phantom merging into the air, always suddenly flashing out for a deadly strike. Every time it was intercepted by “Dictator,” it would immediately withdraw, turning back into an almost invisible glimmer with high speed. Their life-or-death battle was as graceful as a dance performance, moving so fast that Lu Mingfei couldn’t make out the details—just a blurred black figure, a blurred deep-red figure, the black shadow of “Dictator,” and the intense sunlight reflected from “Murasame,” all mixed together in an indistinguishable mess.
The vibration of Chu Zihang’s blade in the air grew more intense, mixed with Caesar’s roar, and the murderous aura was thick and palpable.
“‘Dictator’? ‘Murasame’? What is this?” Lu Mingfei muttered.
“Dictator” meant the Roman “dictator,” while “Murasame” was a blade that shouldn’t even exist in the world, only frequently appearing in Japanese games. It was said that the famous Japanese blade “Muramasa” would transform into the demon blade “Murasame” after killing a thousand people, with rainwater naturally seeping from it to cleanse the blood. But Lu Mingfei had looked it up—this blade was invented by the Edo-period playwright Kyokutei Bakin in Nanso Satomi Hakkenden. Yet here, in this college, someone actually drew such a blade.
Could it get any more absurd? Caesar, why don’t you pull “Frostmourne” from your back next? Lu Mingfei thought, lying there.
Suddenly, he heard faint footsteps coming from the back of the narrow passage. Lu Mingfei’s ears perked up slightly.
The footsteps were slowly approaching. Lu Mingfei’s heart skipped a beat as he realized the other person might have a gun. He didn’t have time to jump up and raise his hands, shouting, “I surrender! I’m just an innocent bystander!” when someone stepped on his back, lightly leaping out of the narrow passage. That step landed directly on Lu Mingfei’s lungs, squeezing the breath out of him, and he involuntarily let out an “Ow!” The person, startled, pulled a Colt pistol from their waist, spun, and crouched down, switching to a seated position, aiming straight behind them.
Their eyes met. Lu Mingfei blinked—those beautiful, captivating eyes were so familiar that he was overjoyed. The long dark red hair tied in a ponytail, the clover-shaped earrings dangling from her ears…
“Come on, little rabbit, give me a hug!” A voice echoed in his mind, those eyes gazing at him as they spoke, so beautiful it was almost terrifying.
“Nono, it’s me!” Lu Mingfei said excitedly. Besides the two lunatics fighting with knives, the last person alive here was Nono.
Nono was wearing a deep red combat uniform. Lu Mingfei was stunned, suddenly understanding that Nono was also part of this battle, and she was on the deep red team—the last girl left on Caesar’s side. Caesar had set an ambush when initiating the challenge: the last person would attack the black team’s headquarters. Nono was his “secret weapon.” Lu Mingfei realized he barely knew Nono; they had only spent a few hours together, and yet, on this journey across the ocean, this unfamiliar girl had somehow brought a sense of calm to his heart.
Why trust her? Perhaps because there was no one else to trust.
But now she was pointing a gun at him.
Lu Mingfei cautiously raised his hands. “Don’t shoot… I surrender… I’m… I’m just a bystander.”
Nono still held her gun steady, her expression unchanged.
“Senior… I-I…” Lu Mingfei stammered.
A faint smile appeared at the corners of Nono’s lips, and then she suddenly shouted, “Get down!”
Without a moment’s hesitation, she pulled the trigger.
The bullet whizzed past the top of Lu Mingfei’s head, missing by a hair. At the sound of her shout, Lu Mingfei instinctively dropped to the ground, covering his head.
That damn, inexplicable sense of trust—even with her pointing a gun at him, he followed her command without thinking.
A large patch of blood spread across Nono’s chest, staining her deep red combat uniform black. A high-caliber sniper bullet had struck her directly in the chest, almost knocking her flat, but she used her last bit of strength to remain upright.
She looked down at the wound on her chest and nodded at Lu Mingfei, her voice hoarse, “You were obedient… but still too slow…”
Lu Mingfei turned his head to see a girl in black combat gear lying prone with a sniper rifle, the barrel still smoking. He recognized that rifle—an American Barrett M82A1, the “King of Snipers.” With a .50 caliber round, anyone hit at this distance would be beyond saving—the bullet would turn their internal organs into bloody pulp.
The girl was the last remaining member of the black team, the skilled sniper. She had leaped out of a side window with her rifle, landing in the narrow passage. Originally, Nono could have taken her out with one shot, but Lu Mingfei had blocked her line of fire, so the two ended up in a cowboy-style duel. But Nono was still a fraction of a second slower in shooting, and Lu Mingfei… was still too slow.
Lu Mingfei couldn’t believe his eyes, but the blood flowing down Nono’s chest reminded him that it was all real. Her eyes were losing focus—signs of approaching death.
Lu Mingfei suddenly clutched his head, which started to throb violently. Deep within, something seemed to be trying to break free. Darkness enveloped his vision, and in that blackness, golden eyes opened, and a voice like a bell asked, “Would you like to make a deal?”
A deal? A deal for what?
He had an inexplicable urge to agree, as if agreeing would change everything, as if something would be different the moment he said yes.
The sniper girl leaped forward, abandoning her rifle and drawing a combat knife from her back. Lu Mingfei hadn’t even reacted when the girl stepped on his back, landing lightly beside Nono. She grabbed Nono’s long hair, raised the saber high, and was about to pierce her throat, shouting:
“We’ve won! Caesar, you’ve lost!”
They indeed won. At this moment, neither Caesar nor Chu Zihang could leave the battlefield. The girl could easily hum a tune while walking to the deep red team’s base, winning this murderous game. If this were a chess match, the game had already reached the endgame, with victory beyond reversal.
But a red piece appeared on the board, disrupting both sides.