Chapter 43: The Twin Guns Unleashed

Round seven.

The playstyle remained unchanged—a fierce clash in the middle lane.

By now, this was no longer a simple match, but a duel for honor between two swordsmen. No words needed, it was a straight-up brawl!

No fear in defeat—just regroup and come back stronger in the next round.

Perhaps inspired by Li Xin, Wang Shuai and his two teammates wised up this time, simultaneously lobbing grenades at a single point. On the big screen, the audience heard three tight, thunderous explosions—Jingbao Two was instantly blown to pieces. Meanwhile, the other side was bombarded by flashbangs without pause. Both defenders and infiltrators were blinded; all that remained was wild, desperate shooting.

The audience erupted in laughter and mockery.

“With Infiltrator’s idiotic style, they’d lose ten more games in a row.”

“Who’s calling the shots for Infiltrator? Is it Jingqian One? His commands are absolute garbage.”

“A good match, ruined just like that. Brainless. If you’re outmatched, why insist on a head-on fight? Ever heard of switching up the attack?”

The young man in black with long hair still wore a furrowed brow. From the start, he believed Jingqian One was a dark horse, perhaps capable of a miraculous comeback. Yet the current mess left him perplexed and doubtful. Relying on his own experience, he tried to put himself in Jingqian One’s shoes, to grasp the depths of his strategy and intentions.

Wang Xiaoqian, meanwhile, silently sprawled on the table, watching short videos on her phone—the match had lost its appeal. Losing a hundred thousand meant nothing to her; she wouldn’t even bat an eye.

“Hmph, what exactly is this guy relying on, so certain of victory?” Wang Xiaoqian pondered, when suddenly the internet cafe was rocked by thunderous boos and shrieks.

“What happened? What happened?” She spun around to look at the big screen.

Mission success. BlackList win!

Wang Xiaoqian was utterly bewildered. What had just happened? How did the Infiltrators steal a win out of nowhere?

She quickly grabbed the boy beside her. “What happened?”

“No idea! Wasn’t it just a flashbang exchange mid-lane? When the seven-second blind ended, only Jingbao One was left for the defenders. Infiltrators still had Jingqian One and Jingqian Four. By the time we caught the action, Jingbao One had retreated to the foot of the bunker, but was still gunned down together by the two infiltrators!”

Wang Xiaoqian understood now—the Infiltrators had seized a 4v3 advantage during the flashbang chaos.

“Strange, Miss Wang. Infiltrators lost six rounds straight, and now they’re making a strong comeback?” The boy whispered his amazement, but was quickly contradicted by those around him.

“Comeback my ass. Pure luck, that’s all.”

“Exactly. Defenders got complacent because they were so far ahead—slipped up and paid the price.”

Wang Xiaoqian didn’t join the argument, instead bowing her head in silent thought. Her instincts told her luck alone couldn’t explain it.

Meanwhile, Yang Yu’s face was dark, eyebrows knit in frustration.

“Ruiming, KK—how did both of you get killed by Li Xin at exactly the same moment?”

“No idea. By the time I reacted, I was already dead,” Ruiming replied with a bitter smile.

KK puzzled aloud, “The Dawn Rifle hits hard, so I’d believe it if he killed us one after another. But we died at the exact same time—that’s odd. Was he dual-wielding or something?”

As the team prepared for the next round, Dongjia’s five players held a quick huddle and decided to continue the aggressive rushes for the last two rounds of the half.

What KK didn’t know was that his guess was nearly spot-on.

The truth traced back to those six consecutive defeats. The choice to keep charging mid-lane wasn’t just due to physical exhaustion—Li Xin needed a high kill count to activate his “Phantom Reality” state.

Six rounds in, with twelve kills and six deaths, he just managed to break even, allowing his consciousness to merge with the game.

In this seventh round, with finely tuned speed, Li Xin surged forward at the instant the flashbangs flew, bursting into the B-tunnel and dodging the blinding light. With his “World in Hand” skill, his pistol and rifle fired in perfect unison, hitting both incoming enemies with deadly accuracy.

As a “King of Games,” Li Xin possessed a bug-like ability—a cheat code that let him rampage through the game without breaking a single rule, completely undetectable by the system.

No time for talk; round eight was already underway.

While commanding his teammates, Li Xin’s mind raced with another plan.

The mid-lane clash continued. Using the same strategy, Li Xin took out two opponents, and his teammates’ morale soared—they claimed victory for the round.

6:2.

The audience was momentarily stunned, clueless about what had just unfolded. Two rounds in a row, the Infiltrators emerged from the flashbangs with a numbers advantage. Not only the spectators—even Dongjia’s players were bewildered.

Was it rapid-fire? But even with rapid-fire, there’s a split-second delay—plus the time to adjust aim, it takes at least 0.05 to 0.1 seconds. These were professionals; they could tell Li Xin’s shots weren’t just quick succession.

How was he doing it?

No answers from the dead, but Yang Yu was ready to charge in again.

After a brief silence, as the final round of the first half began, the crowd erupted in thunderous cheers and applause. Jingqian One’s extraordinary skill and the Infiltrators’ calm resilience sent gaming fans into a frenzy. Of course, most chalked it up to luck, sure that the Defenders’ lead would guarantee their final victory.

As round nine began, both sides surged out once more. The LCD projector’s spectator view was fixed on Jingqian One; everyone wanted to see how this ace would showcase his prowess. The long-haired youth in black stopped pondering and focused entirely on the screen. Only Wang Xiaoqian remained sprawled over her phone.

“This oddball Li Xin is quite the gamer.”

“So be it, but why’s he hiding it from me? And what’s he doing with Liu Ran?”

Wang Xiaoqian’s brows arched slightly, her pearly teeth gently biting her lower lip. Lost in thought, she unwittingly revealed a side quite unlike her usual heroic demeanor—petite, gentle, and playfully charming.

A young man about to discuss the match with his friends caught this scene and immediately suffered a nosebleed...

Hundreds of eyes were glued to the action. Li Xin didn’t charge through the flashbangs this time but swiftly pulled back the instant blindness struck, bringing his entire team with him. Simultaneously, five high-explosive grenades arced toward the wall at B-tunnel’s entrance. As the flashbangs wore off, a barrage of explosions echoed from the center crates.

Jingqian Two’s grenade killed Jingbao Three.

Jingqian Four’s grenade killed Jingbao Five.

On the Infiltrators’ side, only Jingqian Five was lost to stray bullets.

What a tactical display—an advance with retreat, a feint in the east to attack the west. The audience sighed in admiration, just as they noticed Jingqian One, who had retreated, now standing atop the long center crate with the help of a teammate.

“What’s he doing? Isn’t he exposing himself to fire?” someone cried out in confusion.

The long-haired youth in black frowned deeper, unable to decipher Jingqian One’s strategy.

Inside the competition room, Dongjia’s players looked stormy, faces dark with frustration—especially Yang Yu. This time, he’d deliberately lagged behind to avoid the flashbangs, hoping to observe Li Xin’s shooting firsthand, but his opponent had switched tactics and was already atop the high crate.

“Not good!”

Suddenly, Yang Yu realized something. Eyes narrowing, he quickly maneuvered his character to retreat.

Bang!

A bullet whistled through the air—direct hit, headshot!

“Damn it! He was waiting to ambush me from the start!” Yang Yu cursed, ripping off his keyboard and glaring darkly across at Li Xin, who was still reaping the lives of his teammates.