Go Forward (The Chess Player) Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Clash of the Mediocres

The city, silent and diminished, carried sounds far and wide. After the explosion came the crack of gunfire. Blood streamed from the rhinoceros beast, but it showed no signs of fatal injury, darting nimbly toward Li Xiaojing's position. She fired a volley of bullets, uncertain how many struck, then decided to throw away the submachine gun altogether, brandishing her baseball bat and swinging it hard—landing a precise blow to the creature’s head.

This single strike proved more effective than several shots. Despite a brief stint at the shooting range, Li Xiaojing’s marksmanship was, to put it kindly, questionable. She couldn’t tell how many bullets had missed or hit; the results were a mystery. But with one swing to the head, the rhinoceros beast finally collapsed. Challenge complete, Li Xiaojing earned three coins and snatched up the horn that had fallen from the beast.

The translucent rhino horn granted a minute of enhanced defense upon use—a consumable item, similar in nature to the rat’s tooth. In this way, Li Xiaojing felt the scenario was straying from the usual battle royale style.

“The coins can be exchanged for items within the game, or converted to points after leaving,” Li Xiaojing explained, storing them and sharing information with Wu Hui and the others.

“So there’ll be NPCs, or vending machines,” Wu Hui mused, tapping the table. “My advice: complete several challenges as quickly as possible, spend your coins within the game, then go for the decisive battle. The enemy likely heard the explosions and gunfire. If they want to approach, they’ll be here soon.”

Li Xiaojing nodded. She noticed there was no food anywhere in the city—though there was drinking water. In any case, procrastination was not an option; swift victory was necessary.

Alternatively, she could wait, hoping the enemy might succumb to hunger or be killed by monsters before her. Both sides were still preparing. The more thorough the preparation, the greater the chance of victory. The enemy understood this as well; the periodic system announcements echoed, yet the distance between them never narrowed.

She completed two more challenges along the way and entered a sprawling shopping mall.

At the roadside stood two vending machines, filled with weapons: guns, ammunition, and a host of other items—nightmare chess pieces, a fire book, invisibility potions.

“So expensive,” Li Xiaojing muttered, contemplating the machines. After several challenges, her strength and agility had each increased by one point, and she had acquired the Shadow Split technique.

She now possessed a total of seven coins.

The nightmare chess piece cost five coins, its exact function unknown. The fire book cost four, and the invisibility potion three. The fire book seemed unnecessary; its attack range resembled that of a grenade. So, she bought a chess piece and used the remaining coins to purchase grenades—one coin per grenade, a fair exchange.

“Nightmare Chess Piece: War Altar
When this piece is present, nearby allied units gain increased attack power.”

Simply holding the piece activated its effect. Li Xiaojing had already received its boon. The nightmare chess pieces were likely part of a rich series.

Satisfied with her preparations, and with Wu Hui’s approval, she set out to hunt down the enemy.

Outside, Li Xiaoyue gulped water from her cup, parched from relaying messages between the two sides. The last system prompt had occurred five minutes prior; the enemy was likely in the suburbs. Now, unless they remained hidden, an encounter was probable.

The game seemed designed so both sides felt ready before meeting.

Now, both were prepared.

A bullet landed five or six meters from Li Xiaojing.

At that distance, an untrained shooter—even with the best sniper rifle and scope—would have little chance of hitting the target.

Still, the bullet startled Li Xiaojing. She quickly ducked into a corner.

Suppressive fire: even if you don’t hit or kill, the bullets alone can keep the enemy’s head down.

A game where your life is on the line is nothing like tapping keys at a computer. In reality, someone banging their thumb against a wall might howl for ages; a bullet’s wound is far worse.

Those cinematic scenes where heroes valiantly charge after being shot multiple times… not impossible, but only achievable by players of level five or higher.

Li Xiaojing, for her part, hid in a corner.

“With the mist, even if he has items to see through it, they won’t last long. Look for a tall building nearby; he’s probably hiding inside.”

The advice from Wu Hui was relayed to her. Li Xiaojing mustered her courage, grabbed an iron pot she’d found somewhere, placed it atop her head, used the rhino horn, and dashed forward.

But this tactic mattered little. If a sniper rifle struck her, neither the pot nor the horn’s defense would stop it. Nevertheless, until the horn’s effect expired, Li Xiaojing managed to charge into the building most likely harboring the enemy—without being hit.

On level one, most combatants are amateurish. The person upstairs seemed to realize this, or perhaps had run out of bullets, for he abandoned his sniper rifle and produced a pair of small, bat-like wings. Smashing the building’s glass, he leapt into the sky.

Through the mist, he drifted from one building to another.

Clearly, this was another item akin to the rhino horn or rat’s tooth, granting flight.

“Troublesome… She’s just a young girl, how is she so bold?” the player grumbled, pulling a grenade from his pocket and tossing it toward Li Xiaojing’s building.

Embarrassingly, he missed the intended floor. Li Xiaojing only heard an explosion below.

After a moment’s pause, she wondered if the enemy was still in the building. Even with the rat’s tooth to maintain her vision, she couldn’t locate him.

Of course, the enemy who had flown to the other building had lost sight as well. “Tsk, effect’s expired. Where is she?”

One street, two tall buildings, and two enemies searching for each other.

Gunshots and explosions shattered the mist’s tranquility. Yet, up to this point, neither side had managed a proper hit—an embarrassing display.

Suspecting the enemy had fled elsewhere, Li Xiaojing descended the stairs, baseball bat in one hand, pistol in the other, her running posture awkward. She activated the Shadow Split technique; a shadow moved ahead to scout.

Li Xiaojing was clear-headed—and even if she wasn’t, Wu Hui and Ren Yin could help her via Li Xiaoyue.

She had used up her previous items, but still had the chess piece’s blessing in her pocket, the Book of Life borrowed from Wu Hui, a healing crystal, and the substitute doll she’d bought with her entire fortune.

Not just her entire fortune; she’d borrowed two hundred from her sister. But the expenditure was worthwhile. Among the early-stage items, the substitute doll was the best: it could absorb one fatal blow. It was said that, in the higher levels, it became useless as many attacks could bypass its effect, likely due to a limit.

Nevertheless, it gave Li Xiaojing the confidence to charge at her enemy.

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