Chapter 54 - Fifty-Three:

Chapter 54: Chapter Fifty-Three: "Do You Have a Grudge?Su Ming’an silently raised his gun.

The next moment, the man recoiled like a rat seeing a cat, scrambling and crawling to escape the muzzle of the gun.

"I won’t kill you," Su Ming’an said. "Life here isn’t easy, and you newcomers don’t carry much on you. I’d rather not waste my bullets."

However, his actions remained unchanged, still pointing the gun at the group.

"Uh... well spoken, well spoken, big brother. Are you a local?" a non-mainstream haired man asked, rubbing his hands. The group exchanged glances and temporarily put aside the intention to kill.

Holding a gun and looking relatively well-dressed in such a place, the man must not be someone they could easily kill. Perhaps he was an NPC here to provide clues.

"I was about to ask you," Su Ming’an showed no signs of backing down. "What are you few outsiders sneaking around here for?"

"Uh, that..." The non-mainstream man signaled to someone beside him, who then brought over a bag of coins and handed it to Su Ming’an.

Su Ming’an hadn’t expected these people to be somewhat capable, managing to secure quite a lot of money not long after starting.

"We just want to go, to see Central City." The man who had been rolling on the ground finally stood up, scratching his head. "Big brother, are you going to Central City? You know, we’re newcomers and don’t know the way. Consider this money a tribute; please could you show us the way..."

After weighing the bag, Su Ming’an put it away and, pulling along Siyi, said, "I happen to be headed to Central City to deliver ’goods.’ Since you’re also going that way, I might as well take you along. However, you go ahead, and I’ll direct."

"Hey, hey, okay..."

The group immediately brightened up, thinking they had caught the chance to get clues, and swiftly took the lead, walking ahead with Su Ming’an toward Central Inner City.

Along the way, the group tried to chat with Su Ming’an, seemingly casually asking about the city, but Su Ming’an was mostly indifferent until they mentioned something—

"...Big brother, not to hide it from you, before entering Inner City, we still have something to do." One of the men, named Park Min-ho, a trainee from Korea with a slick tone, had been buttering up Su Ming’an and now tried to offer him a cigarette. Rejected but undeterred, he continued with a smile, "Our group here, along with two others, one named Su Ming’an and another named Noel, have a bit of a feud. We’re not sure if it’s okay to act in Outer City, but we’d like to settle it first, it won’t take much of your time."

"Oh, got a feud, huh." Su Ming’an felt Siyi gently tugging at him and, after meeting her gaze, he had his answer. "You’re free to fight in Outer City, but not inside Inner City. If you have things to sort out, finish them outside quickly. I don’t have much time."

"Hey, hey, alright." Park Min-ho immediately nodded, but after walking a bit, his gaze drifted back to Su Ming’an’s pistol: "That, big brother..."

"Hmm?"

"Actually, we’re a bit unsure." He rubbed his hands. "If big brother would be willing to lend a hand... ah, of course, there would be compensation, that bag of coins—right, Hank?"

The middle-aged man named Hank turned, quickly nodding. "Yes, just if big brother could use that pistol... to take a shot during our fight... that bag of coins is yours!"

This bag of coins was something they had robbed in an alley; naturally, they weren’t concerned about it. The plan was to take down the strongest two first, then sort out their own differences internally, potentially eliminating the local and taking his gun if there was an opportunity—their chances would be significantly better then.

They wanted to keep Su Ming’an, this "local," in Outer City, letting him help kill someone before finding a chance to take his gun—a weapon so convenient and powerful wouldn’t be easily passed up by anyone.

"Alright then." Su Ming’an smiled brilliantly.

Then, a few people discussed their next plan.

"I’ve looked at big brother’s map, and for those two people to enter the Inner City, they must go through this road, and this alleyway just before entering the main road...", Park Min-ho analyzed, "is our perfect moment to act. Those two are unbelievably strong, and it seems they use to leave together; whether we confront them head-on or ambush them, we don’t stand a chance. We must reach the spot first and set traps..."

"I’ve previously been in the military zone, I know how to handle it," a man with a scarred face said while stroking his chin, "Just gather some Points for me, and I can buy the necessary items from the store, like making simple Molotov cocktails."

"And falling rocks, we can move them to the roof beforehand... I estimate that Su Ming’an’s strength points absolutely do not exceed five, otherwise he couldn’t have been pushed back that much by Eli. As for Noel, I’m not sure, but he doesn’t look like the type with high strength points."

"Yes, yes, let them enter first, then ignite a fire to block the front and back so they can’t rush out. We can use bows, arrows, stones, and the like..."

"Kill him before that Number One Player releases his Cloning; without clones, he is really weak. And that Noel, he seems to be the close combat type; just don’t let him charge over."

Su Ming’an listened expressionlessly to the group’s "brilliant" plan, doubting their mental structures.

Anyone who seriously researched his combat videos wouldn’t think that a mere fire could stop him—he had already broken through Eni’s flames; how could he fear their little fire... Falling rocks might be effective, assuming one wasn’t using the "Shadow" state, but for the clones in the "Ming" state... a vitality body with 15 points in strength, fitness, and agility really wasn’t just talk.

Thinking that these people were confidently pointing fingers and gloating regarding the first and second best in the world, Su Ming’an felt hopeless about their future.

Such people... should honestly just go down and be spectators; this place isn’t for them.

While thinking this, someone suddenly looked towards him with eager eyes.

"Big brother, as we start the fire, that one shot is up to you!" Park Min-ho said with full expectation, "As long as you hit one of them, our job here is definitely successful!"

"Yes, yes, it’s best to hit the one who looks like a student; as long as he is dead, even if we don’t completely intercept them, it’s still a success!"

"Right, big brother, it’s up to you!"

"Wow, just thinking about our plan gets me all heated up..." the Kay with extravagant hair looked excited.

"If we really kill that Number One Player... we are the core of the world. His live stream has at least hundreds of millions of people watching."

"I can’t believe I’m participating in this crazy plan, even though Eni and his team failed."

Under the city’s night lights, a few men swung their fists, their shadows dancing along with their actions. They each held a map and small advertisements in their hands, looking incredibly excited.

Su Ming’an wiped his handgun and slightly looked up.

"What grudge do you guys have exactly... to risk your lives to kill Su Ming’an?" he asked.

"Ah, it’s just... competition, I guess," Park Min-ho explained, "You understand, right, big brother? If you remove the person everyone sees as the strongest, then you become the strongest in everyone else’s eyes. This is just the situation we play in."

Su Ming’an didn’t say anything but fed the bread from his pocket to Siyi next to him.

The girl looked timid but didn’t say a word throughout, just nibbling on the food that Su Ming’an fed her. A few men had the intention to turn their attention to her, but were shut out; she only stayed by Su Ming’an’s side and ignored everyone else.

Under the vibrant night lights, they reached the alley and began dividing tasks to get busy, while Su Ming’an leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and stayed alert to the movements of his clone.