I've Got Your Back

Upstairs.

The teenager started a new match, but his mind wasn't really on the game.

"Why does something feel off?" he muttered.

He clicked his tongue and began weaving through the map with agile movements.

"Have you ever been hiding in a bathroom stall, squatting over the toilet while gaming, only to look down and see your homeroom teacher's feet right outside, with their head poking over the top of the door, staring at you?"

"That's exactly how I feel right now... Hell, why am I even having this feeling?"

Thanks to his past experience of getting his head kicked in, the Doppelganger thought long and hard before answering this time.

"Boss, a human body isn't that long. How could their feet be outside while their head stretches all the way to the top of the door?"

The teenager cursed at the screen, unleashing a string of profanities at his useless teammates.

"That was a dungeon I cleared," he said impatiently. "The homeroom teacher got dragged in, and I was the boss."

"Interesting, right? Her ability was surveillance, so she could stretch her neck really long."

The Doppelganger fell silent again.

The teenager thumped his keyboard in frustration. "So I chopped off her head and ate her brain."

"What I'm trying to say is, don't you think I missed something?"

The Doppelganger couldn't grasp it.

It just shook its head dully, and the teenager finally stopped his gaming, slamming the mouse down with a crash.

Plastic shards flew everywhere, and with a thud, the Doppelganger's head was kicked in again.

"Idiot!" the teenager spat. "I fucking forgot to get that old Dragonfly to install surveillance! You useless piece of shit!"

...

Zhu Yan, hiding inside a puppet, sheathed his combat knife again.

This was already the second room he had slaughtered.

The grotesque creatures in this room were strange—they couldn't express themselves, only parrot everything others said, including tone and pitch.

"In a low-tier dungeon, this would be pretty creepy," Zhu Yan commented idly. "The effect wouldn't be bad."

He had split himself into two parts.

One part was in the brand-new puppet he was currently using; the other was in the room right next to the main chef's workspace.

The work in this room was clearly more refined than elsewhere.

A group of grotesque creatures in white uniforms were further cutting up cleaned slabs of meat into thin slices, bone strips, or smaller chunks, then dumping them into basins for a quick marination.

Three creatures wearing chef hats, with long, pointed proboscises, were in charge here.

They patrolled the workspace like foremen, sometimes slicing ultra-thin pieces of meat themselves or tasting the seasoning with their proboscises.

"Looks like the conveyor belt isn't sending new meat anymore, Head Chef," said one creature, eyeing the end of the belt.

"See? The meat's stopped. Can we take a break now?"

One of the "Head Chefs" flicked its proboscis. Its voice came from its abdomen, sounding like a little boy of five or six.

"No. We have to finish cutting all this meat before we rest."

Its proboscis lashed out like a whip, striking the questioning creature's back hard.

"No slacking off! With all the food they brought back this time, we've got plenty to keep us busy."

The creature who asked seemed annoyed.

It continued its work while grumbling, "Head Chef, how many big shots from the Eye of the Abyss are coming, anyway?"

"We've cut so much meat—even for a level 30 grotesque creature, that'd be enough to eat until they're stuffed."

"Who's all this for, exactly?"

The Head Chef flicked its proboscis with a human-like irritation in its tone.

"How should I know? I'm not exactly a core member."

It replied coldly, in that little-boy voice.

"I heard they're planning some kind of game, based on some movie from the players' world..."

"This food is for that game. Honestly, if you ask me, isn't this dungeon enough?"

"We're supposed to have an entrance exam, so why make it so complicated? Ugh, it's driving me crazy."

Seeing the Head Chef getting agitated and complaining, the low-level creature fell quiet. A few seconds later, it mumbled, "So... that game..."

"It's called the Chaos Game, I heard," the Head Chef said impatiently. "I don't know the details. Just keep slicing your meat!"

Zhu Yan, floating in midair, was intrigued.

Fangcun Mountain's mission was to obtain a piece of something called the Chaos Order.

If this game was called the Chaos Game, there was probably some connection.

But Zhu Yan didn't want to play another game.

It had only been less than two days, but he felt utterly exhausted.

Once he secured Key Fragment 5, he'd immediately find a way to grab the Chaos Order fragment before that so-called Chaos Game started.

As soon as the dungeon ended, he'd go home and sleep like the dead.

Zhu Yan thought this as he gathered his misty, cloud-like body, drifting toward the corner nearest to the Head Chef.

...

Upstairs.

The teenage grotesque creature named Ji Xiting dialed Dragonfly's number again.

This time, Dragonfly was stiff-necked and arguing heatedly with Yang Zhanbai and the others.

"Enough! I said enough! I know nothing!"

Its temper had clearly hit its peak.

"Get out! All of you, get the hell out!"

Chen Zhaoxing stuffed two bone gold coins into one of its insect legs, and Yang Zhanbai immediately chimed in.

"Excuse me, Mr. Dragonfly. But we're just guys genuinely fascinated by high-quality weapon craftsmanship."

He respectfully presented his own dagger with both hands.

"If you're not willing to share the crafting techniques for weapons at the [Hunter] level, could you at least give us a demonstration?"

"Money's no issue—I have plenty more, and I'd be happy to pay extra."

Chen Zhaoxing added, "And I can carve you another ten cockroach-shaped chocolates..."

"Enough!!" Dragonfly was so furious it leaped up from its recliner.

It was about to go ballistic and kick them out when, at that very moment, an annoying phone rang.

"Damn it..."

Dragonfly's compound eyes trembled with rage.

After clenching its jaw for a few seconds, it still stomped over, grumbling as it picked up.

"Hello?" Dragonfly's tone was hostile.

"It's me, Ji Xiting," came a voice from the other end—the arrogant tone of a teenager.

"I just remembered something—don't have surveillance installed in the Kitchen yet."

Dragonfly was fuming. "Didn't I tell you? I can't do any manual work at all!"

"If you can't, I'll chop off your puppet legs one by one," Ji Xiting replied, entirely unfazed. "Say it once, lose a leg. If I'm having a bad time, you can bet you won't have it any better."

Dragonfly was furious.

Tears welled up in its large, faceted eyes, then fell helplessly.

"I'm pretty sure [Hunter] is in the kitchen—it's my little gut feeling."

When Ji Xiting said the last few words, he switched to a little-girl voice.

"Before [Hunter] makes his move, I want to see his downfall play out right in front of my eyes."

"Get here quick. Get that surveillance set up properly for me, and once we're out of this dungeon, I've got your back, you hear?"