Chapter 91: A Duel Dragging the Innocent into Disaster

On the elevated platform above the night market, a woman clad in tight black leather looked down at Lin Huang with a cold, arrogant gaze. In her hand, the Black Hawk 33 had shifted into its handgun form, and she unleashed a barrage of shots at him. Yet Lin Huang’s movement was utterly elusive, impossible to predict; every bullet missed its mark.

On Lin Huang’s side, he faced a similar predicament. The woman’s movements were ghostly, swift and ethereal, her evasive skill at least equal to his own Cloud Step, and perhaps even superior. Despite firing several shots in succession, Lin Huang couldn’t so much as graze her.

Their first clash lasted only an instant, yet both immediately understood: they had met a formidable adversary. Far from dampening their fighting spirit, the realization only fueled their determination, burning ever brighter.

Lin Huang’s thoughts were simple—since he had encountered an opponent who matched him blow for blow, it was the perfect chance to hone himself. The woman in leather, meanwhile, was delighted by the hunt; rarely did she come across a foe with this level of combat awareness in the Black Iron Zone.

A faint smile lifted the corners of her pale lips, and her waist-length hair, black as ink, swayed gently as she moved. Even her evasive maneuvers were a pleasure to behold—graceful, never the slightest bit clumsy.

Below, Lin Huang wore a look of utter concentration. His movements were like drifting clouds in the sky, elegant and unrestrained.

Within a range of less than a hundred meters, the two exchanged shots again and again, neither ever landing a hit. To any bystander, it would seem their speed was so astonishing they could dodge bullets, explaining why neither was struck.

In truth, their speed was nowhere near matching a bullet’s velocity. Their ability to evade came from remarkable anticipation. Their eyes never left each other, tracking every minute movement or muscle twitch within the other’s line of sight.

With such meticulous observation, they could predict where the next attack would land and dodge preemptively. Even a delay of 0.1 seconds could mean defeat, yet neither made a single error.

This stalemate lasted several minutes before it was finally broken—not by either being shot, but by other players intruding upon their battlefield.

The first to enter was the leather-clad woman’s teammate, a short, stout boy. He hadn’t even raised his gun before a black bullet pierced his brow, and his body dissolved rapidly.

Lin Huang was the one who fired, his speed astonishing. The arrival of the stout boy didn’t distract him from his duel with the woman in leather.

The next to arrive was Mighty Brother, Lin Huang’s own teammate. Upon respawning, he rushed straight to the coordinates where he’d been eliminated. He had no idea what had happened until he watched the replay and saw that he’d been shot in the head by a girl who looked no older than sixteen or seventeen. Infuriated, he resolved to get revenge.

Hearing gunfire from afar, Mighty Brother recognized the sound of the Black Hawk 33 and felt a surge of hope. “That kid’s still alive?!”

He hurried toward the source, choosing a different route this time, circling around to approach the night market platform from the front, rather than exposing the back of his head to the enemy as before.

“You little brat, you dared ambush me. Now I’ll let you taste what it feels like to be shot in the head by surprise!” Mighty Brother grinned viciously, sneaking out from behind a snack shop.

Peeking from behind a wall, he spotted the woman in leather atop the night market platform. Just as he prepared to fire, darkness suddenly overtook his vision.

Lin Huang noticed as well: not far behind him, Mighty Brother had poked his head out from behind a wall and was promptly shot in the brow by the woman in leather—just as Lin Huang had dispatched the stout boy moments before.

Helplessly shaking his head, Lin Huang knew the woman was dead set on proving herself against him.

Neither Lin Huang nor the woman in leather could have anticipated how the battle would soon take a strange turn.

After being shot, Mighty Brother watched the replay again and began to realize the woman’s true strength. What puzzled him, however, was how Lin Huang could survive so long in front of her without being sent back to the respawn point.

At that moment, another teammate was eliminated—the middle-aged man with the nickname “Man in His Prime at Forty-One.” Mighty Brother immediately told him about the presence of a suspected real gunsmith in the night market district, and together they headed there.

Meanwhile, at the respawn point, the stout boy returned to find two others already present. He quickly informed them about the lone boy on the opposing team. The three joined forces and headed straight to the night market, intent on taking down Lin Huang.

Thus, what had begun as a duel soon turned lively, as more players converged on the night market district.

The stout boy and his two companions barely showed themselves before Lin Huang dispatched all three with headshots, sending them back to respawn.

On the other side, Mighty Brother and the middle-aged man had only just appeared when the woman in leather shot them both in the head, sending them back as well.

“What on earth just happened?” The three stout boys at the respawn point were baffled, and only after watching the replay did they realize Lin Huang had fired three consecutive headshots. They also witnessed the showdown between Lin Huang and the woman in leather atop the night market platform.

Meanwhile, Mighty Brother and the middle-aged man reviewed their own deaths, gasping in shock. Not only were they astonished by the woman in leather’s prowess, but they finally saw Lin Huang’s true skill.

“We must have run into real gunsmiths!” Members from both teams reached the same conclusion.

Among hunters, many enjoyed firearms, but not all who did could obtain formal gunsmith certification. The gunsmith exam tested one’s proficiency with firearms, and wasn’t directly tied to the candidate’s overall strength. Even the basic certification was tough; many gold-ranked hunters who loved guns couldn’t pass, like Yi Yeyu whom Lin Huang had met previously.

The opening of the Gunsmith Master game’s hunter section had greatly encouraged gun-loving hunters to join. They hoped to hone their skills in virtual combat, since real-world firearms training could be disastrous. Occasionally, they’d encounter genuine gunsmiths in the game, offering valuable opportunities to observe.

This matchmaking had resulted in an intense duel between two suspected gunsmiths—an event the gun enthusiasts didn’t want to miss.

“Everyone, there’s a gunsmith showdown at the night market—stop fighting and go watch the experts!” Mighty Brother shouted in the team channel.

On the other side, the stout boy relayed the same message in his own team channel.

Both squads abandoned their firefights in the courtyard and headed straight for the night market…