48 Hours a Day

(Name: Filter Lens]

(Grade: D]

(Function: Preserves the user’s field of vision up to 300 meters-user will be unaffected by factors including light and natural occurrences]

Zhang Heng and Abu were about 270 meters apart, just within the Filter Lens’ range. Equipped with this D-class prop, the blur of the rainstorm within a 300-meter radius of Zhang Heng’s field of vision magically vanished, and visible light had improved significantly.

Abu, on the other hand, was struggling. Constantly harassed by the pouring rain, all he could at the moment was to keep his ears open and try his best to locate his target amid the roaring patter.

As Abu was in deep concentration, his right ear twitched slightly. Then all of a sudden, he rolled out from behind the rock into a crouched position, raised his gun, and pulled the trigger. Without checking to see if he had hit the target, he hurried over to the next bunker.

This coherent set of actions took only less than two seconds, enough to put all the snipers in the world to shame.

But just as he was about to stand up again, he felt a sharp, overwhelming pain stab his waist.

Abu’s eyes widened, and the searing pain was suddenly overcome by confusion and bewilderment as his knees gave way to onto the muddy ground.

Though his mind told him that he was in grave danger and should get to a safe place as quickly as possible, the harsh reality was that Abu had lost all sensation in his body. He couldn’t even lift a finger.

No one knew the power of a sniper rifle better than Abu, himself a sniper.

He had once landed headshot on a target two kilometers away with a sniper rifle. The poor guy’s head exploded like a watermelon. Abu didn’t even have to look down to know how bad his injury was. That shot had not only blasted a fist-sized blood hole in his body but had also severely shattered his spine.

He was on death’s waiting list, and very near the top at that.

Zhang Heng took his time retrieving the backpack he had used as bait.

Even though there wasn’t much aiming involved, Abu’s blind shot still managed to hit the backpack, and the Lego bricks inside it spilled all over the ground. It was a testament to the sniper he claimed to be, where such fine marksmanship could only be described as otherworldly.

Even Zhang Heng, an opponent, couldn’t help but put him in the highest regard. So, after he finished tending to his backpack, he walked to Abu’s body to bid him farewell for the last time.

Abu was losing blood fast. All too soon, he was at death’s door, falling in and out of consciousness. As Abu slipped further into the jaws of death, he gave a final look of reluctance but there was nothing he could do in the last moments of his life. His mind replayed the scene of the fight, confirming again that he hadn’t made any mistakes and had done everything he could. Alas, everything ended in such irony. Now he lay in the mud like a defeated dog.

Though he couldn’t speak, Zhang Heng knew what Abu was dying to ask. So, he reached into his pocket and showed the dying man the Filter Lens. A sudden burst of energy snapped Abu’s eyes open. Then, miraculously, as if regaining the confidence of the best sniper in the world, he croaked in a raspy voice, “You… you won, but I… didn’t lose?”

“Mm,” Zhang Heng nodded.

When he finally got his answer, a look of content permanently plastered on Abu’s ashen face.

Zhang Heng had taken the crown in this battle, gaining him 20 points.

As the sniper duel concluded, the battle at the warehouse was about to reach its peak.

Once the men from the wine cellar arrived, Black Nest had the upper hand in firepower, even flying in two drones through the window to act as their eyes. Those holding up the warehouse were further driven into a corner. There were no catching of breaths, as a hail of bullets showered on them from all directions to the point they could barely raise their heads an inch.

When he saw the enemy outside about to barge in, Piercings screamed into the walkie talkie, “Are you f*cking done?! If you don’t get your ass here soon, you’ll be dragging my body out of this place!” This time, to his great relief, he wasn’t greeted by silence from the other end. “In position,” Zhang Heng answered as he pulled the trigger. The enemy running in the front suddenly leaped into the air. His rifle was raised, and he was about to face Piercings, but he did not even get the chance to fire. In fact, he’d never had the opportunity to fire ever again.

Zhang Heng, hiding in the forest, was in sniper mode. There were hardly any adjustments to be made, as he pivoted the barrel of his gun, and the next target was located almost immediately. As the second shell left the rifle’s elongated barrel, the target’s bone shattered to smithereens, and he fell to the ground, rolling and screaming in pain. Undoubtedly, it was a sight never to be witnessed by children. To Zhang Heng, this shot was a dud. The Filter Lens was only effective up to 300 meters, and since the warehouse was way out of range, his shots weren’t as accurate as they should. But they were sufficient.

He fired eight shots in total. Two missed, and the remaining six hit their targets, Mr. Coffee included. Now, they were all but sprawling across the ground.

While Piercings swore that he would never be bait again, the battle had come to an end. He stuck his head out, and other than faint groans and whines, the world was quiet again. Not to be missed, the two drones that were attempting an escape were also shot down by Zhang Heng. Finally, he put away the rifle, got up, and walked down the slope.

“Have you been notified by the system?” Piercings asked.

“Huh?”

“I mean, any opposition players among these

people?”

Piercings walked out of the warehouse, armed with a pistol as he examined the bodies with his toes and putting the poor bastards who were hanging on by a thread, out of their misery.

“No,” replied Zhang Heng. It was one of those things he was intrigued by. In terms of sheer firepower, Black Nest had the upper hand, and since they accepted the battle, players had to be behind it.

In theory, a player should be among the ones who fought this battle.

Zhang Heng had seen the woman in red from the rival team, but he wasn’t sure if she was dead or alive after what happened at the parking lot. As for the rest of the players, he knew nothing about them. Mr. Coffee seemed to be the group commander, but there were no notifications from the system even after getting gunned down. “Could the players from the rival team be so afraid they completely relied on Black Nest to eliminate us?” asked Piercings. He had already checked all the corpses on the ground, except for coffee man. The latter had performed relatively poorly in the battle, shouting orders to attack at his subordinates, while he pulled back. When Zhang Heng shot the man running in the front, the coffee guy immediately turned around and ran away. Unfortunately, that only kept him alive for only half a minute longer.