There Must Be Something Wrong With This Game!

"Let me tell you, Duan Someone, my ex has a bad temper and antisocial tendencies. You’re not going to succeed in recruiting her. Besides, I really don’t have any memories of when we were together. If we accidentally push the wrong buttons, we’re both dead."

On the way to his ex-girlfriend Anna’s place, Hyena tried nonstop to convince Duan Fei to give up on recruiting her. But the more he talked, the more excited Duan Fei became.

"Antisocial tendencies? Isn’t that even better! I was just thinking you’re too mild-mannered. Having an antisocial lunatic on the team would be more exciting! If you’re going to chase thrills, you might as well go all the way."

"I knew it! You’re a cyberpsycho!"

Defeated, Hyena led Duan Fei to his ex-girlfriend’s home: an underground training ground.

Even from outside, they could feel the deafening commotion from below. Once they went down, they were met with an astonishing sight.

Anna was swinging a two-ton barbell around as if it were nothing. With every exertion of force, the vents on her artificial muscles opened, expelling clouds of coolant gas.

After finishing a set, she injected a large amount of coolant into her muscles, then looked at the two men and one bird at the entrance and said with a smile, "Hyena, come here. Let me show you some love."

Hyena cowered at the entrance, refusing to go in for the life of him. Duan Fei, however, stared at her artificial muscles and asked curiously, "Do artificial muscles need to be trained?"

"The neural network has memory. Every time I add or remove muscle, I have to train here to re-familiarize it with my limits and how to apply force. For mercenaries like us, the slightest miscalculation is a death sentence."

Anna spoke while wiping the fluid from her body with a towel. She then looked at Duan Fei and asked, "I doubt Hyena would come looking for me on his own. Every time I miss him, I have to chase him for half a day before I can pin him down in the bushes. So, what do you want?"

"You’d better be talking about hide-and-seek. To make a long story short, join us to rob the Memory Bank. After we pull it off, you can do whatever you want with Hyena."

Anna glanced at the pale-faced Hyena not far away and said with a laugh, "So you finally found someone? Congratulations. This one even looks pretty reliable. However, I refuse."

"Why?"

"The pay is low, it’s too dangerous, and Luminous Heavy Industry is too powerful. They have plenty of mercenaries inside, too. I don’t plan on dying in there."

Hoisting a heavy dumbbell, Anna began doing squats as she spoke. "I’m a mercenary too. I’ve dealt with many of the people there, and I’d only be considered second-rate inside. This set of artificial muscles was hard-earned. I don’t want to lose them."

The Old Man built a massive network here in Chang’an City, one separate from the Moral Network. Everyone’s consciousness is uploaded to it. Upon death, it can be downloaded and restored to a new body.

Therefore, the people of Chang’an City don’t fear death, but they do ache at the loss of their Equipment. Once lost, it’s nearly impossible to get back.

Looking at Anna and her expensive artificial muscles, Duan Fei nodded and said, "What if we change the objective, then? We get money first?"

Anna tossed the pathetic dumbbell aside. The heavy weight bounced a few times, making the floor tremble.

Wiping the coolant from her muscles, Anna said, "Explain."

"First, a question. How much can you make in a day as a mercenary?"

"On a good day, three hundred Morals. On a bad day, maybe a hundred. If I get my hands on some good Equipment, I can sell it for an extra three thousand or so."

Pointing at the still-shivering Hyena, Anna said, "That guy’s a mercenary too, but he’s useless. And as soon as he gets some money, all he knows how to do is go drink it away at a bar. So don’t be like him."

"Mm, understood. Then work for me. I’ll give you three hundred Morals a day. On credit for now."

"On credit, you say?"

"My pet is a Natural Bird. A talking one."

Yan Yuan squawked, "...Master, I’m a Natural Bird, but you’re no damn human!"

Anna looked Yan Yuan up and down, then finally laughed. "Deal. You’d better protect your pet, though. I don’t want my property to get damaged. Hyena, you should learn from him. He’s much more persuasive than you are."

"Don’t worry. Do you know anyone else we can recruit?"

Anna thought for a moment, then said pensively, "I know a mercenary. He’s an excellent assassin, practically top-tier. We could find him. But he’s got a screw loose—the type to kill you for looking at him wrong. We’ll have to be careful when we meet."

"Understood."

With their business concluded, Anna walked over to Hyena, snatched him up with one hand, and tucked him under her arm. "Let’s go. I’ll take you there."

"Put me down!"

"Don’t struggle, my little cutie. I’ll take good care of you later."

"Put me down!"

It didn’t take long for the three of them to arrive at their destination, but as soon as they entered, they knew something was wrong.

The pungent smell of blood filled the air, so strong they could sense it even through their gas masks.

The door was unlocked. After pushing it open, Anna quickly blocked Duan Fei and Hyena behind her, her eyes narrowing as she surveyed the room.

The Assassin Anna had recommended had been run through with a spear and pinned to the wall. Black energy billowed from the dark spear, looking like some kind of Supernatural Power.

The fatal wounds came from behind; two spears had simultaneously pierced his heart and brain, killing him instantly.

To take out an Assassin by assassination, the killer’s own skills had to be in the top three.

Taking out the hammer from her waist, Anna suddenly put her strength into a massive blow. Half the wall shattered, and the flimsy roof began to collapse, burying everything inside.

Then, she grabbed Duan Fei and Hyena to escape, but a dagger was already pressed against her throat.

"A brilliant decision, but what a shame you ran into me. Tell me... Duan Someone?"

"Lone Ranger?"

The shadow behind Anna solidified into a figure. The Lone Ranger, dressed in a white robe, stood with his arms crossed, looking helplessly at Duan Fei. "It’s a small world. Why do I run into you everywhere?"

"It must be fate. So why don’t you hurry up, come over here, and bleed, sweat, and sell your firstborn for your guild leader, just to get extorted by me for the rest of your life?"

The Lone Ranger sighed again.

The last event dungeon, he was with Duan Fei. This time, it was Duan Fei again. He couldn’t help but feel they were bound by some twisted, unseen fate that made them cross paths every time.

However, the rewards from working together were always pretty good, so he quickly accepted this reality.

"Duan Someone, are you alone?"

"Just me for now. It’s a shame you can’t see other players in the event dungeon."

"Indeed. How much intel have you gathered? I just got here. My luck wasn’t great—I ran into a psycho right after entering, and this is what happened after I took care of him."

"I’m doing okay. I was about to go check things out outside."

Seeing the two of them just start chatting, Anna rubbed her neck where the dagger had almost cut her and asked, bewildered, "Who is he?"

Duan Fei thought for a moment, then said with certainty, "The fifth member."

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