"Lin, aren’t you coming with us?"

Lu Xiao turned around, his eyes fixed steadily on Lin Qingyue, who was still surveying the pond.

"I was never with you in the first place," Lin Qingyue replied without looking back, turning on his heel and walking away.

With the departure of Lu Xiao and Lin Qingyue, the hunters also scattered across the map.

Even though some had checked the area before, these hunters were relentless, refusing to leave until they had turned the pond upside down.

"Bah! There's really nothing here. What a waste of time! Let’s go, we can’t let that Lu Xiao kid get ahead of us."

"Damn it, this was all set up to fool us."

The group of hunters spat a few curses before hurrying off.

Hiding within the crevices of the rocks, Su Bai finally felt her cold sweat abate. Luckily, her luck held strong—as it always had. She’d survived more than a dozen turns in her previous life; surely, things wouldn’t go badly this time.

[Mother Cockroach: Why do I feel like someone’s got their eyes on us?]

[Your Dad: You're not wrong. Someone... someone’s coming back.]

On the glowing screen, the first to leave—Lu Xiao—had actually returned, now with another hunter beside him.

Ye Shu's gaze settled on the young man trailing behind Lu Xiao.

That man seemed even more dangerous than Lin Qingyue. Perhaps... it was time to change strategies and relocate.

"You little mice under the water—if you come out on your own, I’ll let you live a little longer."

Lu Zhan smiled, his gaze casually lingering on the large boulder beneath the water.

Ye Shu: "..."

A veteran fox, no doubt—his act just now had been pure show. She’d already been discovered!

This one was craftier than Lu Xiao himself!

Looking closely, the two men shared striking similarities in appearance—without a doubt, they were brothers.

[Mother Cockroach: Shushu, let's run!]

Staring at the Lu brothers, Su Bai felt old memories surge up—things from a lifetime ago.

In her past life, she hadn’t been strong enough; she could only hide far away, never daring to face the people within the game.

Lu Zhan had been her personal nightmare.

He’d hunted her from the second round of the game until the very end, even killing her along the way. If she hadn’t revived during a break, she would’ve been stuck working in the underworld by now.

[Your Dad: What? You’re not going to fight?]

Ye Shu could see that the man before her was no immortal like Lin Qingyue—he was just a normal hunter. With their rocket launcher and their own strange advantages, she figured she had a seventy percent chance of taking him and Lu Xiao out.

Snapped out of past sorrows, Su Bai suddenly realized:

Right! She’d been reborn into this life—with a living demon by her side. What was there to fear?

[Mother Cockroach: Kill! Charge! Shushu, you point, I'll shoot.]

Old debts from her previous life—this time, she’d see it settled.

Lu Xiao hadn’t truly believed anyone was hiding here. But after examining the big rock more closely, he began to trust his brother Lu Zhan’s judgment.

Ye Shu retrieved Da Piaoliang from her inventory and tossed it toward the water’s surface.

"Splash—"

A black cat appeared before the Lu brothers.

"Meow?"

Da Piaoliang blinked in confusion, glancing around, as if asking: Had he been tossed out as a projectile again?

Suddenly, Lu Zhan on the shore tensed with anxiety.

He clutched his chest and stumbled back two steps, his eyes wide with fear as he stared at the little black cat, as if facing a mortal enemy.

"Hahaha... Nice! Shushu, let me play with the little black one next time," Su Bai laughed.

It was the first time she’d seen that man’s face contort with fear and caution—it was almost comical.

Sisters really were the ultimate trump card!

She barely kept from rolling in the water with delight.

"Is this... that tiger?"

Lu Zhan’s face was grave. On the other side, Lu Xiao, who’d lost his arrogance, shouted, "Shameless! Cheating! This monster... it’s invulnerable. If you’ve got guts, come out yourself!"

Lu Xiao had met Da Piaoliang once before.

Back then, the anomaly had been feasting, and nearly swallowed him whole.

"Fine—since you said it!"

A dark shape burst forth from underwater. Ye Shu launched a rocket in midair.

The explosion tore open a gaping hole in the pond, and the Lu brothers, barely escaping, were gravely injured—missing limbs and baring mechanical prostheses. Pitiful, truly!

"Damn it."

Lu Zhan’s eyes burned red with hatred as he glared at Ye Shu, wishing nothing more than to tear her limb from limb.

"Shushu, I’ll do it!"

At some point, Su Bai had emerged from the pond as well.

Dripping wet, green waterweed atop her head, she looked at the rocket launcher in Ye Shu’s hands with wild excitement.

She finally had the chance—she could finally kill Lu Zhan herself!

Su Bai’s delicate face slowly twisted, becoming savage and fierce.

This was the hunter who had chased her through countless rounds, snatching her victory away at the very end.

Ye Shu sensed the storm of emotions swirling within Su Bai and didn’t object—she simply handed over the rocket launcher.

It was clear now: she knew the man before them.

Su Bai clearly had her own secrets.

"Don’t get cocky!"

Lu Zhan, dragging what was left of his body, stared daggers at Ye Shu—livid at the woman who had just handed his life over to another prey.

The ultimate humiliation. How dare she!

He locked eyes with Su Bai’s clear gaze and froze for a beat.

He felt like he’d seen those eyes before—so familiar, yet he couldn’t place them.

"Wait—you can’t—"

"Boom—"

Su Bai didn’t give him the chance to finish. She emptied the rocket launcher.

With a thunderous bang, both Lu Xiao and Lu Zhan were logged out, the wooden hut beside them blasted into mere splinters.

Only a few mechanical limbs lay scattered on the ground...

Her revenge was done.

The ferocity faded from Su Bai’s face as she turned to Ye Shu, her features melting back into gentleness—a harmless smile. She scratched her head in embarrassment. "Shushu, I wasted one of your rockets."

Ye Shu: "...It’s nothing."

This woman changed moods faster than anyone!

This, no doubt, was the real Su Bai.

"Shushu, ask whatever you want—I’ll answer everything."

Ye Shu shook her head. "I don’t want to know."

Everyone has their secrets. So long as they knew their bounds, she’d never meddle.

The two slunk back into the pond once again, lying in wait.

Throughout the period, several batches of passing hunters were all picked off by the two, turning the eastern pond into something of a forbidden zone.

Everyone knew people were hiding below the surface, but no one dared stir trouble. After all, when even a veteran like Lu Zhan—ten years in, was knocked out here, what hope did mere rookies have?

Meanwhile, in the southern forest—

Ye Wanwan had gathered a group of players, hoping to establish her authority through them, but they were not so easily controlled.

Especially Rabbit—she immediately sensed the delicate-looking woman before her was not the true leader.

She tried to leave, but was stopped.

"Zheng Lin, the team still needs you..."

Zheng Lin glanced dismissively at Ye Wanwan, the woman who couldn’t even hold a gun, and sneered. "You’re no boss. Of course I won’t play along!"

"Needs me for what? As bait again?"

"What are you thinking? Pretending to be my boss, and you want perks, too? Dream on! Get lost!"