Chapter 1149: The Inharmonious Duo
"What a great start," Lin Sanjiu thought, feeling a twinge of regret.
The skinny girl, stubborn as she was, made concessions to Bonnie Bunny but still clung to a semblance of resistance. As a result, she not only informed Bonnie Bunny that Lin Sanjiu "couldn"t move for five minutes," but she also unexpectedly opened another portal midair, tossing Ya Jiang out of it.
Theoretically, this should have given them some advantage in what was to come. However, Lin Sanjiu hadn"t antic.i.p.ated that Ya Jiang would land perfectly and precisely, defying all laws of physics, right into Bonnie Bunny"s arms.
He must have used [Common Comedy Tropes], effective in previous encounters, but why would it result in such a predicament now?
By the time Lin Sanjiu pieced this together, it was already too late. She lay on the ground, feigning limpness, planning a surprise attack when Bonnie Bunny approached. However, Ya Jiang, caught off guard, involuntarily gasped loudly. He resembled an oversized doll, pa.s.sively falling into Bonnie Bunny"s arms and covering his face. Then, two slender arms encircled from behind, effortlessly lifting Ya Jiang.
"She lied to me," Bonnie Bunny"s sweet voice commented. Her words were slightly m.u.f.fled by Ya Jiang"s jacket, but she clearly stated, "You can both move freely now."
As she spoke, Bonnie Bunny seemed to sigh. "There"s nothing to be done; betrayal of an agreement is also one of the surprises."
Ya Jiang looked down at the person holding him, then turned to glance at Lin Sanjiu, who had quickly risen to her feet. His expression s.h.i.+fted between embarra.s.sment, fear, and an attempt to appear nonchalant. His array of facial expressions fell short of fully capturing his emotions.
"I, uh... Is she... this person?" Ya Jiang stammered.
Lin Sanjiu"s eyes suddenly brightened as an idea flashed through her mind. Seizing the moment, she quickly said, "She"s the Lin Sanjiu you are looking for, right?"
From their conversation, Lin Sanjiu deduced that the other party was a woman and a registered player. Naturally, she concluded it was Bonnie Bunny. However, Bonnie Bunny couldn"t be certain if Lin Sanjiu was "Lin Sanjiu" or one of the two illegal immigrants. After all, Bonnie Bunny hadn"t heard her speak, so she couldn"t confirm if she was a player.
Lin Sanjiu considered pretending not to recognize Bonnie Bunny, hoping it might cause enough doubt to create an opportunity.
It was a sound plan, but there was one issue—she and Ya Jiang had no mutual understanding.
"What?" Ya Jiang, taken aback, quickly caught on to her ploy and frowned at her. "Isn"t this excuse a little too fake?"
Lin Sanjiu stared at him incredulously, momentarily at a loss for words.
The girl holding Ya Jiang chuckled. "You two are quite interesting!"
She showed no sign of releasing Ya Jiang. Despite her slender build, she held him effortlessly aloft, her strength belying her appearance, while Ya Jiang struggled in vain to free himself.
"But he"s right. Pretending not to recognize me won"t work," Bonnie Bunny said, her face hidden in Ya Jiang"s coat. If not for Ya Jiang"s feet dangling in the air, they might have resembled a pair of lovers parting reluctantly. "You"re the player Lin Sanjiu, and he"s the player Ya Jiang. And you"re looking for Hei Zeji, right? Are you friends with that male player?"
Bonnie Bunny"s goal was to eliminate all the players... Ya Jiang"s words echoed in Lin Sanjiu"s mind again.
"So what if we are?" she responded coldly.
"But you"re not his friend?" Bonnie Bunny asked, her voice lifting slightly as she inquired about Ya Jiang.
"No, no..." Ya Jiang quickly denied.
"I see," Bonnie Bunny said, still unseen but her voice now familiar to Lin Sanjiu. "I just need to leave her alone, then I can lure out the third player."
Lin Sanjiu"s heart suddenly constricted, and Ya Jiang also realized the danger. He hurriedly called out, "Wait—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Bonnie Bunny"s arm suddenly tightened around his waist, and his unfinished words turned into a scream of pain. Fortunately, he reacted quickly, and a white light emerged from his waist, somewhat blocking Bonnie Bunny"s arms from further closing in. However, the white light soon began to tremble, as if it was about to be crushed by her arms.
Lin Sanjiu"s heart skipped a beat, and she rushed over. But just as she was about to approach Ya Jiang from behind, she heard a bone-chilling "crunch" sound coming from his body. The next second, his skin, blood, organs, and bones exploded in Bonnie Bunny"s arms.
Ya Jiang, whose upper and lower body had been completely severed, dropped to the ground, half facing left and half facing right.
When Lin Sanjiu opened her eyes from the blood-soaked scene, Bonnie Bunny had already walked up to her.
This was the first time she had seen Bonnie Bunny"s face clearly, but it was difficult to make out her features. The girl had just crushed someone"s body, and her entire body was soaked in a large amount of blood. Blood slowly dripped down her denim shorts, staining her slender legs, socks, and shoes red.
Bonnie Bunny"s curly hair had become sticky and matted with black-red strands, with only the roots retaining their coppery hue. The thick blood flowed down her face, obscuring her facial features, and even her teeth were stained with blood when she opened her mouth to speak.
She blinked, her eyelashes clumping together as if she had applied too much blood-red mascara, and said, "I"ll deal with you first."
"Give it a try!"
Lin Sanjiu still couldn"t believe that Ya Jiang, who was full of life just a moment ago, had been torn apart just like that. She avoided looking at his corpse, and anger filled her fists as she activated [Mosaic Censors.h.i.+p], then rushed towards the girl in the center from both sides.
She knew that if the other party had Puppeteer-level strength, her attack might not be very effective. But this was just a probing strike. As long as Bonnie Bunny made a move, she could find another opening.
Bonnie Bunny"s distinct and clear olive-colored pupils turned in the sea of blood. She seemed to be about to make a move when her expression suddenly froze. She didn"t avoid the attack; instead, she just tilted her head slightly and said, "Huh?"
As Lin Sanjiu"s fists were about to reach her ears, they were suddenly trapped as if they were stuck in thick tar. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn"t pull them away.
"Oh no, your defenses are now wide open!" Mrs. Manas exclaimed, as if she didn"t know what was happening.
Bonnie Bunny frowned slightly, not rus.h.i.+ng to counterattack. She didn"t even spare a glance at Lin Sanjiu. She raised a finger, dipped it into the blood on her face, and put it in her mouth.
When the finger came out, it was clean, free of any bloodstains.
"It tastes like cherries?" Bonnie Bunny stared at her finger as if it had betrayed her. "And... tomato sauce?"
What? Lin Sanjiu was momentarily stunned, then realized something. Just as she raised her eyes, a shadow quickly pa.s.sed by Bonnie Bunny. As it pa.s.sed her, it shouted at Lin Sanjiu, "Hurry up and escape!"
It was Ya Jiang!
Lin Sanjiu"s gaze quickly scanned the ground and saw that the human body that had been cut in half had become a fake figure propped up by a wooden pole disguised with clothes, with the mop cloth masquerading as hair, looking almost lifelike. Ya Jiang had apparently put a lot of effort into the fake blood; a strong smell of blood could be detected even from a few steps away. If he hadn"t "bled" into Bonnie Bunny"s mouth, allowing her to detect something amiss, he might have continued to deceive her.
"I can"t leave!" she shouted as Ya Jiang"s shadow quickly rushed past. Then, even from a few steps away, the ground seemed to quake. Bonnie Bunny smiled at Lin Sanjiu and dodged her attack. She then headed toward Ya Jiang.
Lin Sanjiu"s Higher Consciousness surged forth like a wave, blocking Bonnie Bunny"s path and momentarily stalling her as she tried to chase after Ya Jiang.
A sudden thought flashed through Lin Sanjiu"s mind. "She doesn"t have Puppeteer-level strength!"
"Thank you so much!" Ya Jiang shouted as he ran. His footsteps accelerated rapidly, making his words sound more and more distant. "We"ll meet again if fate allows it!" The last few words were barely audible.
"He abandoned you," Bonnie Bunny said, turning her head. Her wet and messy curls stuck to her face. "Are you still going to stop me?"
Although she appeared to be an ordinary girl, Lin Sanjiu"s Higher Consciousness felt like a thin, tightly stretched plastic wrap in front of her, ready to break at any moment. As Lin Sanjiu gritted her teeth, enduring the pressure, she suddenly felt her grip loosen. The invisible force adhering to her fist seemed to expire and disappear. She hurriedly took two steps back, retracting her Higher Consciousness. By then, Ya Jiang had long disappeared, making it too late to catch up.
With Ya Jiang no longer by her side, Lin Sanjiu felt more relaxed. Bonnie Bunny slowly turned towards her.
The fake blood on her face and denim shorts dried quickly, forming layers of crusty brown flakes. She raised her hand to wipe her face, revealing half of her delicate, small facial features, looking pretty and arrogant.
"Hey," Bonnie Bunny said with a slight smile, tilting her head. "Since this round of the game began, how many Special Items have you used?"
Lin Sanjiu was taken aback, not having time to answer. At that moment, she heard a series of rapid footsteps from the other end of the street. As they approached, the person"s eyes widened. Eventually, the sound turned into Ya Jiang"s mournful cry, "How did I come back? Did I just run in a circle?"