This Game Is Too Realistic-Chapter 475.2: ENGAGED

With his head pressed into the mud, Quit Smoking spat out a grasshopper that had gotten into his mouth and did a tactical reload.

He tried to return fire, but a burst of rounds nailed the mud pit in front of him, forcing him back.

Mud splashed into his collar.

"Contacted!" he yelled. "They’re after Falling Feather! These guys are like aimbots... They can’t miss!"

Gunfire echoed back in their ears. Clearly, Old White’s side was also under attack.

"It’s expected. They had drones too, so it’s fair game. Have you seen Falling Feather?"

"Not yet... Wait!" Quit Smoking’s eyes lit up as he spotted a blip on the VM map. "I see him!"

However, the next second, his voice was cut off.

Something slammed into the back of his head and his face hit the mud.

"Fuck! Sniper!" someone shouted.

Thinking fast, Prop Master yanked a smoke grenade and lobbed it into the reeds.

Taking over command, he growled, "Boss... Quit Smoking’s down again!"

On the eastern slope of the reed field, a young man with a sniper rifle smoothly pulled the bolt. With a blade of foxtail grass in his mouth, the corner of his lips curled into a proud smirk. "One down."

Smoke grenade?

One that can even avoid heat detection? Interesting...

As the brass shell casing ejected from the rifle chamber, Zhao Xiao continued aiming at the person who had thrown the smoke grenade.

But just as he was about to squeeze the trigger, a chilling sense of impending death crept over him.

Acting purely on instinct, he rolled to the side.

At that exact moment, a barrage of bullets shredded the rock slab he’d just been lying on, sending chips and dust flying everywhere. Half the blade of grass in his mouth was swallowed as he hit the dirt, gagging slightly.

He immediately abandoned his rifle, pulled the submachine gun from his waist, and without looking, fired a wild burst behind him.

The rocks exploded around him in a cloud of debris. Though the shots missed, it was enough to make Night Ten break into a cold sweat. “Damn... This guy’s a perception type too?”

He might not possess a godly ability, but his level was definitely pretty decent.

Taking cover behind a boulder that reached his waist, Zhao Xiao glanced at the sniper rifle he had just tossed aside and cursed under his breath. The next second, he yelled, "How’d you find me?"

Night Ten laughed. "What a joke. There’s only one high point in this whole area. You think I’ll miss that?!"

Zhao Xiao’s expression stiffened.

Right... That made too much sense.

The two fell into a brief stalemate.

They were less than 10 meters apart and both were behind cover. Neither could do anything to the other, at least for the time being.

Unwilling to drag it out, Zhao Xiao gritted his teeth. He set his submachine gun beside the rock, nudged it out with his boot, and drew a combat knife. Then he provocatively tapped the blade against the rock twice.

"Let’s go... Let’s fight like men in a hand-to-hand combat. Do you have the balls to challenge me?”

He had professional training. He felt that if his opponent agreed to a melee, he wouldn’t lose.

"Of course! Why wouldn’t I?" Night Ten grinned as soon as he saw the submachine gun kicked to the side. Without hesitation, he popped a grenade and tossed it toward the side of the boulder.

"Fuck your dad!" Zhao Xiao’s face twisted. Forgetting all else, he dove behind the other side of the rock.

The explosion boomed almost as soon as he hit the dirt, and the shockwave that brought shrapnel with it made him grunt in pain.

Just as he tried to get back up, a cold gun muzzle pressed against the back of his head.

"I suggest you stay still," a voice came from above him.

Zhao Xiao’s face paled as he clenched his teeth, unable to speak.

Night Ten was just about to gloat when a sudden sense of danger surged through him, followed by a wave of killing intent.

He instinctively jumped back to create distance.

At nearly the same instant, two razor-thin shadows slashed past, grazing his exoskeleton chest plate.

Only one thought flashed through Night Ten’s mind...

So fast!

A figure slowly walked up from the base of the slope.

His face was expressionless, almost robotic. He carried no gun, only a pair of short blades integrated with his forearms, folded inward like a mantis's claws.

Night Ten’s pupils contracted slightly.

What kind of cyberpunk monster is this?!

At the same moment, Zhao Xiao’s eyes lit up. "Xuan Feng!"

The man replied in a flat voice, "Leave this to me."

Zhao Xiao was just about to cheer, but then a grenade came flying their way.

"Not again!" Zhao Xiao’s face twisted in panic. He was about to dodge when a huge force struck his chest.

With a grunt, he tumbled down the slope and landed face-first in the mud.

Spitting out a mouthful of sludge, he grumbled in a low voice, "Dammit, can’t you be a little more gentle?"

Having kicked his comrade down the hill to safety, Xuan Feng turned around to face his enemy, now 10 meters away.

He was built to eliminate threats like mutants or abominations occupying old ruins. Deep in his AI core, there was even a line of code that specified him to not kill unless necessary.

In their current situation, it was clearly necessary.

Any hostile organic entity threatening their team, the ‘Signal’, was to be eliminated, by any means necessary.

Patting the metal shrapnel stuck in his synthetic skin, Xuan Feng said nothing. He simply began walking toward Night Ten, unhurried and unfazed.

Seeing the mechanical killer approaching, Night Ten broke into a cold sweat. His LD-50 pointed squarely at the enemy’s head.

"What the hell are you?"

This damn guy survived a blast from a grenade! Is he a fucking terminator?

"None of your concern," the man replied, unfolding his mantis-like blades. His legs bent slightly, taking a poised stance like a predator ready to strike.

Night Ten’s heart leapt into his throat. He could sense the threat of death, but that didn’t mean he could dodge it.

Just then, a dozen crimson tendrils shot out from the reed bed below, wrapping themselves around Xuan Feng from behind.

Like chains, they bound every joint in his body.

As his movement systems locked up, Xuan Feng’s eyes revealed a rare flicker of confusion. It seemed he hadn’t encountered something like that before.

He tried to move, but couldn’t. His blades snapped shut like scissors, but fell short of hitting the tendrils.

It was as if those tendrils knew human anatomy intimately.

He looked down and feel into deep contemplation. "... This is troublesome."

Coincidentally, in the reeds below, Little Feather found itself just as bewildered.

"Yiwu?"

The thing it had bitten felt cold and hard as stone. There was no eyes, no ears, no mouth, no cells to penetrate.

There were no neurons to hack.

Why can’t I eat this guy?

"What the hell is that thing?!" Zhao Xiao shouted in horror as he watched the crimson tendrils erupt from the reeds. He instinctively scrambled back.

Xuan Feng was their squad’s highest-spec android, specifically designed to counter high-threat targets like Deathclaws, mutant leeches, and evolved Slime Mold.

In terms of individual combat power, he was the absolute peak of their team, even stronger than their captain.

And now... He was completely immobilized.

Gritting his teeth, Zhao Xiao summoned his courage. He drew the pistol from his tactical vest, the last weapon he had, and aimed at the tendrils wrapped around Xuan Feng.

But before he could fire, a cold muzzle pressed against the back of his head.

At the same time, a stern voice rang out. "Drop your weapon. Put your hands behind your head and face down!"

Hearing the voice, Zhao Xiao froze.

He had been so distracted by the tendrils, he hadn’t even noticed someone sneak up behind him.

"This is your last warning," Falling Feather snapped, giving him a kick in the back. "Drop it. Now."

"Okay, okay! Don’t shoot!"

Got a gun pointed to my head twice in a minute...

Zhao Xiao chuckled bitterly, tossed his pistol aside, and slowly knelt down.

But when he saw the muddy puddle in front of him, his expression froze.

"Uh, can I lie down another way?" He asked awkwardly, trying to negotiate.

The person behind him had no patience. A boot hit his butt and his face slammed straight into the mud.

Rolling his eyes, Falling Feather muttered, "When I tell you to lie down, you lie down. Quit whining."

Tapping on his VM, Falling Feather opened a communication window and cleared his throat.

"This is Falling Feather. I’ve reunited with the pickup team... What’s your situation over there?"

Gunfire on the other end had already subsided.

"Almost done on our side. The attackers suffered heavy losses and they’re retreating. Can you make it back on your own? Or should I send a team?"

Falling Feather glanced back up the slope.

Night Ten was still trying to disable the android trapped by Little Feather’s tendrils, but it wasn’t going well. The three of them were stuck in a weird deadlock.

Falling Feather’s expression twisted slightly.

"Uh... There’s a bit of a situation here. If it’s convenient, you better send someone over."

Old White’s reply was quick and to the point. "Copy that."