93: Chapter 93 At least they didn't come at us wielding trash cans.

After finishing off the bunch of street thugs in the alley, the trio continued to advance in the direction the enemies had come from.

After walking about a hundred meters, the alley opened up, and they arrived at the city's main street.

Although Hu Jinsi was certain that they had entered the dungeon in broad daylight, it was clear that this dungeon had its own temporal laws. It was already dusk inside the dungeon; the evening glow on the horizon was sliced into strips by the skyscrapers, as if the buildings were set against a red canvas background.

The street was bustling and vibrant.

Streetlights were neatly arranged, casting ripples of orange light onto the ground. Street signs and shop signs along the street competed for attention, with neon tubes flashing colorful lights—red, green, purple, blue—interweaving into a flowing ocean of color. In the distant skyscrapers, office windows glowed with dots of light, and one could vaguely see the silhouettes of people working overtime moving in front of the windows.

But unfortunately, a dungeon is a dungeon after all.

On the entire main street, apart from the trio, there was not a single pedestrian to be seen. No white-collar workers rushing home after work, no couples shopping, no vendors pushing carts selling late-night snacks. The prosperity was merely an illusion; the entire city was like a meticulously constructed stage, brightly lit but completely empty.

Instead, the roar of motorcycles came from not far away.

The sound approached from afar, the roar of engines echoing in the empty street, causing the ground to tremble slightly. It didn't sound like just one; at least two or three motorcycles were speeding toward the trio.

Along with the roar of the motorcycles, a considerable number of figures gradually emerged from street corners and shop entrances all over the street. These people wore clothes of various colors and styles; some were shirtless, revealing tattoos, while others wore baseball caps pulled low.

They were carrying various items, and among them were some guys holding strange weapons—someone was carrying a golf club, someone was holding a nail puller, and someone was dragging a rusty iron pipe.

Obviously, standing in the middle of the street to fight this group of people was not a wise decision.

The squad currently only had three people, and in this state of being surrounded on all sides, it was a textbook case of being outnumbered. Once surrounded, Su Wan's casting space would be severely compressed, and Lin Rui's mobility would also be greatly reduced.

"Retreat." Hu Jinsi made a prompt decision.

The three quickly retreated, returning to the alley they had just come from. The narrow terrain of the alley became their advantage; the enemies couldn't swarm them and had to line up to enter one by one.

Lin Rui, who had retreated to the middle of the alley, held his riot shield high, blocking in front of Su Wan. The shield was covered in various scratches and dents, witnessing the baptism of countless battles.

Hu Jinsi, utilizing the effect of [lickers leg bind], exerted force with his legs and climbed up the side wall of the alley in a few leaps. He stuck to the brick wall like a gecko, preparing to launch an ambush from above on the enemies entering the alley.

Protecting Su Wan, Lin Rui felt such dense and complex attacks for the first time.

The riot shield in his hand had blocked the slashing claws of zombies, deflected arrows shot by skeletons, and withstood Magic Missile released by enemies. But this was the first time he had used a riot shield to block street-brawling debris like throwing knives, beer bottles, and stones.

A throwing knife spun and nailed into the shield face with a crisp "clink." Immediately after, a beer bottle smashed over, exploding on the shield, with glass shards and alcohol splashing everywhere. Then came a few fist-sized stones, thrown hard by the thugs, making the shield bang loudly.

Perhaps this was the first time the riot shield was doing its proper job, enjoying the treatment it deserved.

But clearly, these treatments were not what Lin Rui liked.

"How come these people fight like street hoodlums..." Lin Rui muttered in a low voice, his arm numbed by the vibrations.

After most of the thugs had flooded into the alley, Hu Jinsi on the wall gave Lin Rui and Su Wan a signal. He waved his arm; this was their squad's secret code, meaning "You can act now."

Su Wan understood and raised her staff to start chanting.

The first [Shattering Sonic Wave] burst from the tip of the staff, turning into a visible ring-shaped shockwave that rampaged through the narrow alley. The enemies were shaken, some were knocked directly to the ground, and some clutched their ears and wailed in pain.

Not waiting for them to recover, Su Wan immediately chanted the second [Shattering Sonic Wave]. The interval between the two sonic waves was less than ten seconds, and the entire alley seemed to have turned into a resonating speaker.

When the second [Shattering Sonic Wave] dissipated, Lin Rui moved.

He directly activated [Charge], his massive body wrapped in heavy armor rushing toward the red-clothed thugs squeezed in the front like a human war chariot. He pushed his riot shield forward, knocking two or three thugs flying directly, slamming them heavily against the brick wall of the alley. Immediately after, [sigons saber] was unsheathed, sword light flickered, and flesh and blood flew.

Against a group of thugs with almost no protective gear, facing Lin Rui, a heavy-armored professional armed from head to toe, the battle scene could be described as a one-sided crushing victory.

Lin Rui slashed from the middle of the alley all the way to the entrance, and wherever the sword edge passed, enemies fell one after another. That momentum, according to Hu Jinsi's past life, was at the level of a gang leader who slashed all the way from Causeway Bay to Tsim Sha Tsui.

At this moment, Hu Jinsi was still stuck to the wall, waiting quietly without making any move.

Because the two motorcycle enemies were watching at the entrance of the alley. They didn't rush in with the thugs but stopped at the alley entrance, their engines idling and making a low humming sound. The two motorcycle gangsters in black leather jackets sat on their bikes, watching Lin Rui slaughter in the alley without any intention of intervening.

They were waiting.

Waiting for Lin Rui's stamina to be depleted, waiting for Lin Rui's expression to relax, waiting for that best moment to strike.

It wasn't until Lin Rui, holding [sigons saber], slashed the last enemy at the alley entrance, his sword tip drooping toward the ground, his shoulders slightly heaving, and his expression relaxing, that the two motorcycles finally moved.

One after the other, the two motorcycles accelerated simultaneously, their engines roaring as they rushed toward Lin Rui.

These motorcycle gangsters clearly wouldn't care about the fallen friendly forces on the ground. Although they were all projections, and some enemies hadn't died and turned into light spots, there were still many thugs on the ground moaning and trying to climb up. But these two motorcycle gangsters ignored them completely, rolling directly over the fallen bodies and charging at Lin Rui at full speed.

Unfortunately, Su Wan was right behind Lin Rui.

It was unlikely for him to dodge; once he moved aside, Su Wan, who lacked flexibility, would not have time to climb the wall or find other ways to hide. With her physique, being hit head-on by a motorcycle would mean breaking a few bones at the very least.

Therefore, Lin Rui could only grit his teeth and face the oncoming motorcycles.

He didn't retreat but took a deep breath and activated [Charge]. His massive body collided head-on with the motorcycle, and the two forces were about to clash directly.

At this very moment, Hu Jinsi, who had been hiding on the wall, moved.

He flew down from the wall, his body flipping in the air, and used [Nandou - Dragonfly Slash] on the first motorcycle gangster in an inverted posture. He used his hand as a blade, issuing several consecutive hand-blade slashes in a very short time.

The edge of Hu Jinsi's palm glowed with a faint aura, like a sharp blade.

First slash, hit the motorcycle gangster's scalp, [-15].

Second slash, cut the opponent's forehead, [-14].

Third slash, chopped on the motorcycle gangster's eyebrow, [-15].

Three slashes in a row, taking less than a second. The motorcycle gangster's vision was blurred by blood, the handlebars lost control, and both man and bike crashed into the wall next to them, making a harsh friction sound and metal collision sound.

Hu Jinsi did not pause. Utilizing the aerial movement ability of [Water Bird Steps], he exerted force from his waist, adjusted his body, and rushed toward the second motorcycle like a predatory bird.

He landed directly on the handlebars of the second motorcycle, clamped the head of the bike with his legs to maintain balance, and unleashed a set of [Flurry of Blows] on that motorcycle gangster. Fists were like wind, each punch carrying fierce energy, maintaining his balance during the attack by keeping [Crane Stance].

After hitting, Hu Jinsi jumped away immediately, his body flipping twice in the air, and landed steadily on the ground. The motorcycle behind him lost control, swerved and crashed into the other side of the alley, and the motorcycle gangster was thrown off, rolling several times on the ground before stopping.

However, although these two motorcycle gangsters didn't really collide with Lin Rui due to Hu Jinsi's interference, they clearly didn't suffer too heavy injuries after falling off their motorcycles.

Both were covered in blood, with nosebleeds mixed with dust and oil smearing their faces, blurring their vision. But looking at them, they still had the strength to fight; they were gritting their teeth, rubbing the parts that were hurt from the fall, and trying to climb up from the ground.

It was just a pity that one of them was too close to Lin Rui.

Lin Rui didn't give him a chance to get up. He directly took out the [MS—15 "Steel Nail" Heavy Pistol], stepped forward, pressed the muzzle against the motorcycle gangster's chest, and fired three shots in a row, bang, bang, bang.

[-18] [-18] [-10].

That motorcycle gangster didn't even hum, just died like that, and the corpse dissipated into light spots in the air shortly after.

After finishing, Lin Rui stood on the spot, blew the smoke from the muzzle, looking triumphant.

"Within seven steps, the gun is still fast and accurate." Obviously, this was a meme Hu Jinsi had told him.

Before he finished posing, the other motorcycle gangster clearly couldn't stand his overly flamboyant appearance. After that guy fell to the ground, he didn't even get up, just lay on the ground, curled into a ball, and launched a rolling-form collision.

His body rolled over like a human bowling ball, with astonishing speed, slamming hard into Lin Rui's abdomen.

Lin Rui's massive body was knocked flying, retreating a full five meters, slamming heavily against the brick wall of the alley, even his riot shield flew out of his hand.

Imagine, just Lin Rui's load alone was at least over a hundred pounds; to be able to knock such a heavy target back five meters, this guy's strength attribute must have started at eighteen or higher.

Hu Jinsi felt the pain just watching from the side.

He and Su Wan tried to step forward to help Lin Rui, but Lin Rui waved his hand, stopping the two from assisting. He climbed up from the wall by himself, patted the dust off his body, moved his shoulder that had been numbed by the impact, and his eyes became serious.

Lin Rui took a deep breath, directly activated [Charge], and slammed back into the front of that motorcycle gangster again. The edge of the shield slammed hard into the opponent's chest, making a dull impact sound.

But this was not enough.

After [Charge], he did a big jump backward, opened up a few steps of distance, and immediately followed with a [Tactical Roll], slamming back again. The whole set of actions was smooth and flowing, knocking that motorcycle gangster dizzy.

Finally, Lin Rui took out [sigons saber], sword light flickered, and he stabbed several times in a row, finally sending this enemy to see his friend.

After some tossing and turning, all enemies were eliminated.

Lin Rui suffered some minor injuries; there were a few abrasions on his arms, the armor on his abdomen was dented by the impact, and his ribs were aching faintly. Hu Jinsi rarely took the initiative to activate [Energizing Chi], pale golden energy flowed from his palms, and combined with the moist white mist of [Renewing Mist], helped Lin Rui restore his HP and relieved some soft tissue pain.

"Thanks." Lin Rui moved his shoulders, feeling much better.

These low-level street thugs obviously wouldn't drop any valuable items. Instead, the two motorcycle gangsters dropped a motorcycle vest and a pair of windproof goggles, the design was quite unique, and it felt heavy in hand.

[Scrap Metal Rivet Leather Armor]

[Type: Light Armor]

[Defense Bonus: +3]

[Windproof and Warm: The wearer has an advantage when driving vehicles in cold or strong wind environments.]

[Item Description: Thick and dense black leather, the surface is covered with oil from riding friction, and the lining is stuffed with coarse cotton wool. Although stained with oil, it can effectively lock in body heat in the cold wind.]

---

[Wind-Cutting Type-7 Goggles]

[Type: Head Equipment]

[Dust Vision: Reduces vision attenuation for the wearer in strong wind, sand, or smoke environments.]

[Item Description: Brass frame with dark glass lenses, the straps on both sides have become a bit loose. The lens surface is covered with fine scratches, but it is still clear. It once blocked wind, sand, and flying insects for its owner during high-speed racing.]

---

The design of this motorcycle vest was actually not bad to a certain extent; the lines were clean, and the rivets were distributed with a good sense of design. Of course, there was some dirt and oil on the surface, which was indeed its real drawback; you could smell a scent of engine oil when holding it in your hand.

Hu Jinsi even suggested that the squad record this look and have Mother Su prepare a similar piece of white-tier equipment for each of them when they returned. This windproof and thermal function might come in handy in dungeons with extreme cold weather; it was better to be prepared than sorry.

Most importantly, from the perspective of the era when the game was released, these motorcycle vests might have been a bit avant-garde, carrying a hint of steampunk flavor.

But from the perspective of when Hu Jinsi transmigrated, this style was already similar to regular clothing. After all, the head of a certain tech company had been wearing a leather jacket to product launches for decades, and the public's aesthetic sense had long been conditioned to not find it strange.

Aside from that, the drops were just some watches, pocket knives, wrenches, and... another bicycle chain.

Hu Jinsi looked at the chain, the corner of his mouth twitching, and silently shoved it into the deepest part of his backpack, out of sight and out of mind.

As for food, there were two servings of fries and three hamburgers, though no pizza dropped. However, adding these up, it was already half of the three's lunch. It was estimated that if another wave of enemies came, their lunch for today would be entirely supplied by the dungeon.

The route for the next battle was clear: keep following the direction from which the motorcycle gang had come.

The city seemed large, with crisscrossing streets and towering buildings, but in reality, most places were just projections of the dungeon. Shop windows were filled with an array of goods, but they were all non-interactive decorations, and there was nothing inside even if you pushed the doors open. Apart from the fixed monster spawn points, there wasn't a single living creature in the rest of the city.

There was no point in looting the nearby shops.

Lin Rui adjusted his state, confirmed that his HP had recovered above the safety line, and the three walked toward the alley entrance. They picked up the motorcycles that the two bikers had dropped, checked the fuel levels, and surprisingly, there was still more than half a tank left.

"Want to try?" Hu Jinsi straddled one and twisted the throttle.

The engine roared, and the bike vibrated slightly.

The three mounted the motorcycles and slowly moved along the road. This was their first time riding this style of vehicle; the tall handlebars even exceeded the height of their shoulders, resulting in a somewhat reclined riding posture. The feeling of riding was completely different from the elegance of a magic broom or the ruggedness of an all-terrain vehicle; it had a unique street punk flavor.

The wind whistled past their ears. Hu Jinsi couldn't help but twist the throttle a bit more, the motorcycle accelerated forward, and the roar of the engine echoed through the empty streets.

However, before the three could fully enjoy the ride, less than ten minutes later, they heard the roar of engines coming from the distance again.

Sure enough, new enemies were appearing one after another.

As the engine roars drew closer, enemies in all sorts of strange outfits emerged from various places on the street.

Their weapons were still unconventional. In addition to the previous daggers, beer bottles, and bicycle chains, this time there were baseball bats, car rims, and even someone holding a giant frying pan.

Seeing them equipped with this messy assortment of gear again, Hu Jinsi couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

Before, when they heard the Pear Garden Squad talking about this outside the dungeon, the three hadn't thought much of it, finding it quite interesting. But in actual combat, they realized just how unlikable this place was. Faced with these bizarre items and drops, the three really didn't know how long it would take to deal with all of it.

Hu Jinsi and Lin Rui parked the motorcycles on the road.

Hu Jinsi jumped off the motorcycle and couldn't help but complain: "There are clearly plenty of proper weapons for street thugs to use—nunchucks, three-section staves, aren't those easy to use too? Why do they have to insist on using such unsightly things like bicycle chains and trash can lids that aren't fit for display?"

Lin Rui glanced at him and said indifferently: "I also wish they were fighting me with greatswords and shields, but what are you thinking? How much does a pair of nunchucks cost? Trash can lids on the road are basically items you can pick up anywhere. At least they aren't attacking us with trash cans; I think that's already being very considerate to us."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Su Wan poked Lin Rui in the waist.

"Jinx, stop talking!"

Lin Rui looked back at her: "What's wrong?"

Hu Jinsi followed Su Wan's gaze and saw a massive figure slowly walking toward them from the end of the street in the distance. The person's physique was a full two sizes larger than a normal human, with muscles knotted all over, like a moving mountain.

It was exactly that Abobo whom Teacher Fan had mentioned earlier.

And what he was holding in his hand was a giant trash can—the kind that was fully loaded.

Lin Rui's expression froze instantly, feeling that his mouth was indeed a bit cursed. He stood there, not knowing how to back down from his statement.

Hu Jinsi patted his shoulder and said nonchalantly: "Alright, it's no big deal, everyone has moments of being a jinx. The problem now is thinking about how to face this wave of battle. Should we do the same as last time, find an alley and pull them in to fight? Or do you have other battle plans?"

Lin Rui rubbed his face and said: "My mind is a bit blank right now. How did the Pear Garden Squad say they fought this scenario?"

Su Wan recalled and answered: "I remember this part; Mo Ming told me about it. When they fought this part, they retreated a distance and, based on the different movement speeds of these enemies, spread out the distance between them."

"They dealt with the fast motorcycle gang riding on bikes first, then that mob of ragtag thugs, and finally the slowest one, Abobo."

She paused and added: "However, in the battle they described, Abobo wasn't holding a giant trash can. And this trash can is actually fully loaded. When Mo Ming told us about it, Abobo was just holding a tire."

Seeing that Lin Rui's mind was still somewhat chaotic, Hu Jinsi made the final decision.

"Then we'll get on the motorcycles and follow the Pear Garden Squad's strategy. After all, it's our first time in this dungeon; although this level isn't very difficult, there's no need to take risks right from the start."

The three got back on the motorcycles, twisted the throttles, and retreated backward.

They retreated for about a kilometer, then stopped the bikes, turned them around, and waited quietly.

With this distance to create separation, the enemies that had been gathered together indeed began to spread out. In the lead were the two bikers on their motorcycles, roaring as they sped toward them, leaving the group of thugs on foot trailing by nearly eight hundred meters.

There was another gap of nearly one hundred meters between the thugs and Abobo, after all, Abobo was carrying such a heavy trash can that he couldn't run much faster than a turtle.

Seeing this distance, Hu Jinsi felt relieved.

He got off the bike directly, grabbed his ironwood staff, and charged toward the bikers. When they approached, he sidestepped, swung his staff horizontally, and with two loud bangs, accurately struck the sides of the wheels of both motorcycles. The two bikers instantly lost their balance, flying out along with their bikes, sliding several meters on the ground before coming to a stop.

The subsequent battle was harvesting time. Hu Jinsi and Lin Rui coordinated, and in a few moves, they took care of the two bikers.

Unfortunately, they didn't contribute any valuable items this time, only some loose currency that could be exchanged for credit points, totaling about twenty credit points—better than nothing.

After cleaning all that up, the group of thugs holding various weapons slowly moved in front of the three.

Because the weapons in their hands had different weights, these thugs didn't maintain a good dense formation while moving, with at least ten meters of distance between them. Some were running fast with iron pipes, others were walking slowly while dragging chains; the group was sparse and scattered, like a string of broken beads.

Hu Jinsi glanced at their status and turned back to say to Su Wan: "Help me buff with [Marching Song II]."

Su Wan nodded, raised her staff, and began to chant. A melodious tune flowed through the air, and a pale golden light enveloped the three squad members, increasing their movement speed.

With the [Marching Song II] buff, Hu Jinsi and Lin Rui charged directly into the center of the mob. Their staff and saber danced, and enemies fell wherever they passed. The two coordinated tacitly, one on the left and one on the right, rampaging through the enemy formation like two harvesters, beginning another round of Double Flower Red Pole level performance.

After dealing with the thugs, Abobo was less than twenty meters away from the three.

But neither Lin Rui nor Hu Jinsi wanted to get close to this big guy.

Mainly because the smell of that trash can was really overpowering. The odor emitted after the fully loaded trash fermented could be smelled from over ten meters away, a sour stench mixed with the scent of rot, drilling straight into their noses.

Hu Jinsi and Lin Rui didn't dare to gamble on the dungeon's respawn mechanics, not knowing if the trash and the odor would disappear after Abobo was eliminated. Based on the lessons they had learned in the dungeon over the past few months, if they accidentally got some of it on their clothes, it was highly likely that the smell would follow them out of the dungeon and wouldn't dissipate.

"This smell..." Lin Rui frowned and took two steps back.

Hu Jinsi also pinched his nose, turned to Su Wan and said: "Don't bother buffing me and Lin Rui with [Marching Song II] for now. Su Wan, can you try to interfere with Abobo's movements in a moment?"

"It doesn't need to be a big movement, just try to tug at his wrist or ankle. As long as he moves just a little bit, making him drop that trash can somewhere else, that's enough. I'll go up first to lure Abobo and help distract his attention. Lin Rui, you take out your rifle in a moment and fire a couple of symbolic shots to assist us."

The plan set, the three split up to act.

Hu Jinsi stepped forward with his staff, feinting in front of Abobo, his staff casting heavy shadows, posturing to attack the opponent's joints and ribs. Although Abobo was massive and had astonishing strength, his movements were slow; he was played in circles by Hu Jinsi's agile footwork, his attention completely drawn away.

Lin Rui took out his rifle, lay behind an abandoned car, and fired a few shots, bang, bang, bang. The bullets hit Abobo's thick muscles; although they couldn't cause any fatal damage, the pain was enough to distract his attention.

With Hu Jinsi and Lin Rui distracting his attention from the side, Su Wan's [Plucking·Initial Movement] finally took effect.

She chanted softly, her fingertips plucking at Abobo's "String of Existence," guiding the movement of his wrist. Just as Abobo was throwing a punch, his wrist suddenly loosened, the trash can held high above his head lost its support, and it came crashing down with a boom.

The trash can, along with the debris inside, tipped over onto him.

All kinds of rotten food scraps, paper fragments, and glass shards poured all over Abobo. The massive creature stumbled from the weight of the trash can, collapsed with a boom, and lay struggling in the pile of garbage.

Su Wan stopped interfering with Abobo and cheered on the spot, raising her hands high and shouting loudly at Lin Rui and Hu Jinsi: "Did you see my ability!"

But clearly, Lin Rui and Hu Jinsi's heads were even bigger now.

Originally, they were afraid that when fighting Abobo, the foul-smelling trash would stick to them, making the next seventy-two hours not very pleasant. As a result of Su Wan's skill being too successful, Abobo was now pickled and marinated; his whole body was covered in rotten residue, and the sour, foul odor was more than ten times stronger than before.

Neither Hu Jinsi nor Lin Rui wanted to engage in close-quarters combat with this Abobo who had been marinated in trash at this moment.

"...Let's finish this with ranged attacks." Hu Jinsi sighed.

He couldn't help but take out the [thunder spirit bead (fake)] in actual combat for the first time; three purple thunder beads rotated in his palm, emitting crackling electric arcs.

"Go."

Three [Lightning Missile] shots whizzed out, accurately hitting Abobo's body. Amidst the flashing electric light, Abobo let out a muffled roar. On Lin Rui's side, he also raised his rifle, firing several shots, bang, bang, bang; the bullets penetrated layers of trash and struck into Abobo's body.

Su Wan also kindly added an attack from her Magic Missile wand, a pale blue ball of light tracing an arc and exploding on Abobo's chest.

Under the three's ranged siege, Abobo finally couldn't hold on; his massive body collapsed to the ground, turning into light spots and dissipating into the air.

Unfortunately, the pile of trash that Abobo had accidentally tipped over in place didn't disappear with him; it remained piled on the road, emitting a sickening odor.

The three looked at each other, none of them willing to walk into that pile of trash to search for Abobo's drops.

"Forget it, we don't want it." Hu Jinsi waved his hand, "Let's go."

The three got back on the motorcycles, twisted the throttles, and continued along the road. The roar of the engines sounded again, leaving that pile of trash far behind.