"Tuzi: Boss, you're too modest. It's your arsenal that's really impressive! Hehe."
"Huli: Next time, I'll draw them out—nobody try to fight me for it, understand?"
"Shanqu: If that's the case, that hunter's doomed!"
Since the animals couldn't speak to each other, Ye Shu and the others simply chatted openly in the group chat.
At this very moment, Su Bai, hidden away in the mud, glared resentfully at the obsequious Fox and Rabbit displayed on the screen.
It hadn't even been an hour and already more little monsters had gathered around Shushu...
She absolutely couldn't stand it!
The most exasperating thing was that she was still a round, rolling egg—she could only roll, not run.
At first, the plan to lure the hunters had worked like a charm—every attempt secured a target—but gradually, no matter how much the little animals tried, the hunters refused to chase. They only used their guns to intimidate.
Thanks to the weapons provided by Ye Shu, the number of hunters kept dwindling.
"Number 111 is offline."
"Number 190 is offline."
"Tsk tsk, how tragic! Over a hundred hunters have been knocked out—shouldn't we go out and give them a proper fight? Otherwise, if word gets out that hunters were killed by their prey, what a loss of face that would be!"
"Ahaha~ that's hilarious."
"We're just little animals. They've got every fancy tool and still can't win. What if we were people—what then?"
The group of hunters was in an awkward spot.
They'd never imagined the prey could push things this far.
Now, the prey were even provoking them to their faces, completely shedding any initial fear, even competing to see who could take out more hunters.
It was an utter humiliation. If not for that damn Meihualu... there was no way these prey would be so brazen.
In their own territory, they should have had control over every inch—but somehow, Meihualu always slipped through.
And now she was handing out a mountain of hot weapons.
Never in the history of the game had prey managed to fight back against hunters. Now, faced with these upstart prey, the usual restrictions on their own weapons only made things worse.
……
On the hospital staircase.
Meihualu shook off the hunters pressing in and, with a bound, leapt up to the rooftop—flashing a strange, taunting smile at them as she did.
"This is bad... the deer did that on purpose!"
"We have to get out of here—"
The lead hunter realized it too late—several grenades arced through the air, taking them all down in a fiery blast.
"Number 65 is offline."
"Number 23 is offline."
Another dozen hunters, gone in an instant.
By now, Ye Shu had carved out quite the reputation among the players.
In addition to her arsenal, Da Piaoliang the Oddity did more than her share—hunting indiscriminately across the map, just as, once upon a time, the players themselves had been hunted.
"Help... the prey brought their own monsters."
"What the hell is that thing? Bullets don't even scratch it—no damage at all."
"They're totally cheating!! This is so unfair."
"Awooo—"
These people only knew how to bully players weaker than themselves—when they ran into Da Piaoliang, well, it looked like it was the hunters' turn to get slaughtered.
Since following her master, Da Piaoliang hadn't had a meal like this in ages... Admittedly, the quality of the food wasn't great, but it was better than nothing.
In full view of the players, Da Piaoliang gobbled up dozens of hunters in a row.
It didn't take long before someone recognized the beast.
"Luosiding: Isn't that the Oddity from the first survival game? Why is it here in this round? And it seems to be helping the players—am I seeing things?"
"Shugan: There must be some kind of mixup, right? How could the Oddity be in this game?"
"Tianxian: I played in the first round too—I swear I saw that big black tiger before."
"Tuzi: You're not seeing things! That's our boss's mount! Jealous? You should be. I'm not even bragging—Da Hei Hu could take on a thousand hunters by itself!!"
In the bushes.
Meihualu brought a hoof down squarely on Tuzi's head.
Ye Shu suddenly regretted ever recruiting this loudmouth. Thank the heavens she hadn't friended Tuzi in-game, or all her secrets would be out by now.
Ten minutes left before the end of the fourth round.
There were only half the grenades left in Ye Shu's space; she decided not to spend any more. Anyway, the hunters had been taught a proper lesson by now.
Not that she was stingy—just prudent with her weapons.
Tuzi whimpered twice and went silent.
Da Piaoliang seemed to sense a growing threat, narrowing its vivid green eyes at the hospital's side door. A figure appeared before it in no time.
Lin Qingyue cast a glance at the giant tiger, as if by accident.
Da Piaoliang, who had stood proudly only a moment before, instantly cowered and hunched its back.
Clearly not an Oddity itself, Lin Qingyue still managed to instill terror in it. Da Piaoliang stole a furtive look at him... then bolted in a flash, disappearing into the woods.
"Pfft—"
A laugh broke from Lin Qingyue, as if provoked by a sudden happy memory.
Pets really did take after their owners—when they couldn't win, they ran for it, and even the tail-tucked trot was the same.
Five minutes left on the timer.
Da Piaoliang shot back into the trees.
Seeing its panic, Ye Shu immediately guessed who it had met.
She quickly stowed the Oddity away in her space, then dismissed her animal task force.
She herself took off at a run toward the hospital; every kilometer she covered was marked by another alarm bell.
Three minutes on the clock.
Fatefully, Ye Shu came face-to-face with Lin Qingyue himself.
Meihualu froze ten meters away, holding his gaze, then retreated a few cautious steps.
Before the game began, she'd stabbed that man twice.
To her surprise, Lin Qingyue didn't attack. He simply smiled faintly. "I killed you a few times before, by accident. Tell you what: I'll stand here, unmoving, and let you vent your anger—how's that? Go ahead, seven times. However many left, make up the difference. Satisfied?"
Ye Shu: ".............?"
Did he even hear what he was saying?
It felt like she was the one in the wrong here... and it just made her angrier.
And there was something sticky about his gaze, nothing like the assassin who'd killed her before. Ye Shu almost wondered if he'd been replaced.
Meihualu tossed a grenade and sprinted in the other direction.
In the towering flames, a shadow remained upright in the distance.
What was this...? Surrender?
But wasn't that man supposed to be immortal?
Without looking back, Ye Shu dashed into the next stretch of woods.
"The fourth round of Hide and Seek has ended!"
"Congratulations, players, on surviving four rounds. You will now be transferred to the rest area."
"Any player eliminated three times in a row will be erased!"
The same familiar room.
It was clear with a glance—the number of players had halved again.
On the far side of the transparent wall, the hunters had changed as well.
Those hunters devoured by the Oddity were never coming back.
Since the Hide and Seek game kicked off, victims had always been prey. This round, a hundred hunters had fallen, leaving them bitter and vengeful. They peered through the barrier, desperate to spot Meihualu.
If only that deer were dealt with, they'd have their pick of the remaining players—they would be back in control.
Even so, with two thousand players left, finding Meihualu in a crowd would not be easy.
"Watch closely—find her for me."
"We have to kill that damned deer!"
Worst of all, not a single one of them had even seen Meihualu's true face.
They had no idea where to start.
White mist drifted in again, lulling the players toward sleep.