Chapter 18: Why Can't You Just Stick to the Script?

"Little Niu Niu, do you think medical instruments are such inconvenient things? Do you have any idea how hard the bones of a C-rank transcendent are? If we didn't use these, we wouldn't be able to perform surgery at all."

With such a bloody scene, coupled with the large stains of blood on his white coat and Ye Hongyuan's benevolent yet chilling smile, anyone would believe he had just walked out of Arkham Asylum based on that sentence alone.

Super Niu Niu shuddered, feeling that the bizarre, corrupted creatures in front of him suddenly looked much more pleasant. At least those seafood-like monsters were just disgusting in appearance; they weren't as terrifying as Director Ye.

"Now, it's time to properly warm up!"

Ye Hongyuan wiped the bloodstains off his hands onto his white coat and casually took off his black-rimmed glasses, tucking them into his backpack. This action felt like the breaking of a seal.

Whether it was Super Niu Niu, who was back in the thick of a brawl with the corrupted, or Wei Long, who had been providing long-range fire support, both simultaneously felt a shift in Ye Hongyuan's aura. The once amiable, slightly eccentric old man had suddenly transformed into a terrifying warrior radiating killing intent. In his eyes, beneath his sword-like brows, a fierce, burning fighting spirit flickered.

"You bastards, look at me!"

...

At the headquarters of the corrupted.

Having been mowing through enemies and leading Yuan Shi in a "perfect infiltration," Lu Wenwu had now killed his way—or rather, infiltrated his way—to the third floor. The process was extremely hardcore.

The third floor was also the top floor of the main building of the corrupted's stronghold. According to the intelligence Lu Wenwu had extracted through "reasoning" earlier, Lai San lived on this level. Ever since he had been targeted by multiple assassination attempts, he had essentially become a shut-in, refusing to step out of his lair. He spent his days tucked away like a turtle. Even the most hardcore shut-in otaku couldn't compare to him.

"Open the door!"

Lu Wenwu kicked open the soundproof door to Lai San's bedroom and strode inside. After preparing themselves for an ambush, the duo entered only to find the room empty. There was no trace of Lai San.

Yuan Shi scanned the room and whispered, "Brother Five, he might be in the office."

"Let's go."

Lu Wenwu turned around without a word, walked out, headed straight for Lai San's office, and kicked the door open once again.

"Open up, water meter inspection!"

Everything was deathly silent. The empty office held only two assassins staring at each other in silence. The scene was incredibly awkward.

One burst of energy, then a second, and by the third... pure rage!

Lu Wenwu was now extremely angry, silently cursing Lai San for not following the script. Yuan Shi, who had been slightly nervous, was no longer tense at all; he only felt that this entire journey was filled with twists and turns.

"It seems... he can only be in that place."

Lu Wenwu said gloomily, turned around again, and headed straight for the restroom. Yuan Shi touched the weapon tucked into his waistband and took a deep breath.

"Boom!"

When Lai San, halfway through his business, watched as Lu Wenwu kicked the restroom door to pieces, his mind went completely blank. Even worse was the agonizing feeling of being forced to stop mid-stream. To make matters worse, the shock made him jump, and he nearly wet his pants!

"Damn it, it's a trap!"

Qian Li, who was washing his hands, reacted faster. He instantly put distance between himself and the two invaders, readying himself for combat.

"Outsiders! How did you get in? What happened to our men?" As the brains of the operation, he figured out the situation in less than a second. "I'll send you two to join them right now!"

His answer was a heavy, powerful punch from Lu Wenwu. The violent Military Killing Fist whistled through the air, striking like a cannonball fired from its chamber.

"Damn it! Can't you two just stay in your room and let me follow the script properly? I really wanted to experience that cool, cinematic entrance!" Lu Wenwu, in extreme anger, unleashed his extreme anger with an extremely angry punch.

"Are you out of your mind?!"

Finally having pulled up his pants, Lai San blocked Qian Li. The thick arms on his back pressed down, stacking with his normal pair of arms. Countless tentacles coiled around, taking the brunt of Lu Wenwu's fierce assault at the cost of violently slamming his own body against the wall.

He was indeed a C-rank boss. Since entering the City of Evolution, Lai San was the first person to withstand one of Lu Wenwu's moves without dying. He didn't even look visibly injured!

Yuan Shi finally had a chance to pull out his prize: a somewhat crude-looking double-barreled shotgun.

"Bang!"

The trigger was pulled, and the muzzle roared. But... after a cloud of black smoke, nothing happened. He seemed to have missed.

At a distance of less than five meters, a special forces operator with over a decade of service had missed his target with a shotgun. This was absolutely unbelievable.

"Can't I even use the bathroom in peace? And you're trying to scare me with a piece-of-junk gun?" A giant, meat-grinder-like maw split open on Lai San's abdomen, and his thick, octopus-like tentacles lashed out in a counterattack. "Damn outsiders, become my food!"

"Get lost!"

Lu Wenwu executed his military combat techniques, throwing eight punches in the blink of an eye. Every time his iron fist, seemingly forged from tungsten steel, struck, a black-purple tentacle was blown to pieces. He pressed forward relentlessly, his punches falling like rain. With every punch, Lu Wenwu had something to say:

"Which dungeon boss makes the players wait when they arrive?"

"Do you have any professional ethics?"

"Do you have any professional integrity?"

"Are all bosses these days this lazy?"

"I'll teach you how to be a qualified boss!"

Lai San was forced into a steady retreat. One of his four arms had been smashed into a comminuted fracture by the ferocious Military Killing Fist. The thick tentacles on his back were even more pathetic before the brutal Lu Wenwu, tearing like fragile hair and spraying out gouts of viscous blood.

Proudly, however, he held on.

"Damn it! Damn it! I'm not some dungeon boss! You outsiders are obsessed with games!"

Under Lu Wenwu's storm-like barrage, Lai San was as precarious as a small boat in a tsunami. Even without suffering a fatal wound, he was suppressed by this unreasonable, overwhelming brute force, leaving him no room to counterattack.

"I am the King who rules the City of Evolution! You damn outsiders! If this were before, I would..."

"King of what, you idiot! 'Before'? Are you trying to scare me?" Lu Wenwu smashed down another punch, his face filled with disdain. "If you're bad, practice more. If you can't afford to lose, don't play!"

"The past is the past, and now is now. If you're always going to use the past to define the present, why don't you compare yourself to when you were just born?"