Chapter 173 Trapped

“It’s gotten so bad, even I’m finding it hard to get out of this situation.” Feng Bujue muttered to himself, “If I use Ling-Shi Convergence Technique to force my way out, even if these three guys don’t hit me, the police outside will shoot me full of holes.”

The bandit guarding the door walked past Feng Bujue. Feng Bujue slightly raised his head to look back and found that the elevator door behind him had disappeared and turned into a wall. Obviously, the entrance to the script was only visible to the players themselves, and it would disappear as soon as the players came out. The NPCs were oblivious to this; perhaps in their eyes, there was nothing there at all.

“Let’s see what happens first…” Feng Bujue decided to wait and see how things developed. He temporarily turned his attention to the game menu.

…

Since entering the script, Feng Bujue had not yet examined the five opponents in this script, so he took this opportunity to take a look.

He was shocked when he saw them.

“Are you kidding me! Three of them are in the top twenty of the combat rankings?” Whenever Feng Bujue entered the mall, he would glance at the rankings. With his memory, he had stored all the famous individuals and guilds in his mind.

“I remember this level thirty-one called Wu Si Can Xuan is one of the ‘Drunk Life Dream Death’ Four Great Masters of the Order… the same level as that smoking, drinking, and perming guy! And this level thirty-one Qi Sha seems to be the number three person in Dragon Bro’s guild…” Because he frequented the forums, Feng Bujue could now call out the nicknames of star players in various studios, “Wait… that level thirty-two Shiva is the boss of the Gods, right? His level is also in the top five on the rankings! Just like the top four, they are all level thirty-two?”

Besides these three names, another one was Cai Bupa Ne, whom Feng Bujue had encountered in a team survival mode. “This girl is not to be trifled with either…” He felt a sense of foreboding. “Wait… Could it be… that these five people besides me are all in the top twenty of the combat rankings?”

Feng Bujue instinctively thought of the worst-case scenario, and sadly, he was right…

Wu Si Can Xuan, Level 31, Male, Order Studio, Combat Ranking 8th.

Shiva, Level 32, Male, Gods Studio, Combat Ranking 2nd.

Qi Sha, Level 31, Male, Blade Studio, Combat Ranking 15th.

Cai Bupa Ne, Level 30, Female, Jianghu Studio, Combat Ranking 20th (Anonymous).

Zhao Ying Wang, Level 30, Male, Independent Professional Player, Combat Ranking 19th (Anonymous).

These were the five people Feng Bujue had to deal with. In terms of level, they were all significantly higher than him, and in terms of combat power, they should be much stronger than him.

If Thriller Paradise had a “Comprehensive Player Strength Ranking”, Feng Bujue would definitely be ranked very high. And the five above might even fall out of the top fifty.

But the reality was that there was no such ranking because “intelligence” was simply impossible to quantify…

Therefore, from an outsider’s perspective, or from the perspective of any of the other five players, they would all think that Feng Bujue was the weakest in this killing game.

However, being regarded as the weakest also had its advantages.

As the saying goes, the tallest tree catches the most wind. In this indiscriminate melee mode, everyone’s focus would naturally be on Shiva, the strongest on the surface. They would also be wary of Wu Si Can Xuan and Qi Sha. As for Cai Bupa Ne and Zhao Ying Wang, they were anonymous on the combat rankings. The three big shots might not have heard of them, and they might not even know each other, so they would be relatively underestimated.

As for Feng Bujue… People would glance at the game menu, see the names of the other opponents, and finally see a line: “Feng Bujue, 28, Surviving”. Presumably, a series of reactions would run through their minds… Don’t recognize him, lowest level, weak.

Under such circumstances, the “weakest” Feng Bujue was easily overlooked, even ignored… The others should not put too much effort into guarding against or assassinating him, which was also a kind of advantage.

Of course, not everyone took it for granted that he was the weakest.

Wu Si Can Xuan had heard Meng Jing Chan mention the name “Feng Bujue”, but he didn’t take it seriously and quickly forgot.

Qi Sha had also heard Long Ao Min introduce this suspected serial killer, and then… he didn’t remember either…

And Shiva and Zhao Ying Wang had no impression of Jue-Ge’s nickname at all.

Only Bupa Mei Zi recognized this guy, and her memory was still fresh… At least in her opinion, Feng Bujue was not easy to deal with at all.

…

“Damn it! I told you to hide! Get out here!” The bandit who went to look for an escape route returned to the lobby not long after, dragging a person back with him.

The man was probably a bank employee, wearing a bank uniform, covered in sweat, and looking panicked.

“What’s going on?” The bandit with the submachine gun asked while suspiciously looking out of the bank.

“He was hiding in the toilet using his mobile phone to talk to the police,” the bandit with the pistol replied.

The bandit packing the money interjected, “Did you find any other exits?”

“Almost all the windows outside have bars, and the window in the toilet is too small. Besides, there are police on the streets behind.”

“Damn it!” the money-packing bandit cursed.

“Give me his phone,” the submachine gun bandit said at this moment.

His accomplice had already taken the phone, and threw it to him upon hearing this.

He took the phone, looked at the screen, and then pressed a speed dial button. It only took three seconds for the call to connect.

“How is it? Sir, are you alright? Why did it just cut off…” an officer said quickly in a low voice.

But the submachine gun bandit interrupted him, “No, he’s not alright, something very serious happened.” He gestured, signaling his accomplice to bring the man over.

The pistol bandit understood, stepped forward and kicked the man. The bank employee could only submit under the muzzle of the gun, and walked tremblingly towards the bank door.

“Listen, you dirty cops, listen carefully to my conditions.” Now that the submachine gun bandit had the phone, he didn’t have to risk his head to shout, he hid behind the wall and said to the police officer on the other end of the phone, “Prepare a helicopter for me, and a pilot, and get all your people to retreat three blocks away.” Before he finished speaking, he put down the submachine gun, pulled out the pistol from his waist, and immediately pulled the trigger.

The bank employee fell to the ground in response, blood splattering all over the wall and the ground. This scene was completely displayed in front of the police on the street and the citizens and reporters behind the cordon.

The submachine gun bandit raised his voice and said to the phone and the hostages in the bank lobby, “From now on, until I see the helicopter, I will kill a hostage every ten minutes. Anyone who tries to play tricks will end up like him!” After saying that, he hung up the phone.

“Oh God…” The money-packing bandit pressed his forehead with one hand, looking at the corpse on the ground, his breathing became rapid, “Huff… God… God… You killed him, this…” He suddenly couldn’t help but tear off his mask and vomit on the floor.

There were already many women among the hostages. They had seen blood spurting everywhere just now and didn’t have time to react because of excessive fear. Now that the man vomited, it caused a chain reaction, and many hostages who were lying on the ground changed to a kneeling position and also vomited.

“You idiot! Acting like a sissy, you’re really useless!” the submachine gun bandit cursed. He immediately picked up the submachine gun again and shouted at the hostages, “Hey! Hey! Hey! Who told you to get up! Get down! Hands on your heads!”

“The people inside, listen, I am the police’s negotiation expert. I don’t have any weapons. Can you let me come in and talk to you?” A middle-aged man came to the bank door, holding a loudspeaker in his hand, and not wearing a police uniform.

Ta-ta-ta…

The response to him was a burst of submachine gun fire, but the bullets were shot at the ground. The person shooting only extended the muzzle and fired randomly, without aiming.

The negotiation expert had to flee back.

“In eight minutes, I will kill another hostage!” This was the bandit’s response.

After the money-packing bandit finished vomiting, he seemed to feel better. After he evened out his breathing, he said, “Maybe… uh… maybe we should listen to what he wants to say…”

“Shut up! Shut your damn mouth!” the submachine gun bandit shouted, “I’m in charge here!”

“The helicopter won’t come,” a strange voice sounded.

Because the hostages in the lobby were all too scared to make a sound, Feng Bujue’s words clearly reached everyone’s ears.

“Who is it?” the submachine gun bandit asked, “Which bastard is talking?”

“It’s him!” The pistol bandit was closest to Feng Bujue, and he heard it clearly, “It’s that kid in the purple long suit.”

“You, guard the door for me for a while.” The submachine gun bandit said to the money-packing bandit, who upon hearing this, walked towards the door with a stooped body.

After the two switched places, the submachine gun bandit walked straight towards Feng Bujue’s location, “Get up, you bastard!” He grabbed Feng Bujue’s hair and lifted him up, turning him from a prone position to a kneeling position, “What did you say? Say it again.”

Feng Bujue passively looked up at the other party, his face calm and composed, “I said, the helicopter you want won’t come, not in eight minutes, not in eighty minutes.”

“Bastard…” the bandit fiercely pressed the submachine gun against Feng Bujue’s forehead, “You think you’re very smart? Huh? Say! Who are you? Are you a policeman too? Huh? Or do you want to mess with me? Want to be a hero?”

“I’m an insignificant little person. I just want to remind you that the two-lane road at the door, even with the non-motor vehicle lanes, is unlikely to allow a helicopter to land.” Feng Bujue’s answer was very skillful. He lightly avoided explaining his identity, and immediately shifted the topic to the part that the other party would be interested in, “Even if the police really send a helicopter, it can’t stop at the door. You have to walk to the nearest intersection to get on it. In this process, you will inevitably have to walk out of the bank, exposed to the sniper’s line of sight.” He paused, “You’ve already killed a hostage. Given the current situation in Gotham City these days, I believe the police have ample reason to shoot you on the spot…”

“Oh! God…” The money-packing bandit heard these remarks near the wall by the door, immediately covered his head with one hand, and said with an extremely frightened cry, “What have we done…”

“Alright! Shut up!” the submachine gun bandit shouted at his annoying accomplice again, then looked at Feng Bujue, released his hair, and said, “Hmph… is that what you wanted to say?”

“I’m not finished yet,” Feng Bujue replied. “I’ll tell you the police’s next course of action by the way. In a few minutes, they will claim that it’s very difficult to call in a helicopter, and ask you not to kill any more hostages for now, and wait a few more minutes. During this time, they will be busy deploying tactical teams and arranging snipers.” His thoughts were clear and his speed was extremely fast, regardless of whether the other party could digest it, “According to your plan to kill a hostage every ten minutes and wait for a helicopter to help you escape, there are only two endings:

“One, after you kill a certain number of hostages, the police will claim that the helicopter has arrived, lure you out and kill you.

“Two, after you kill a certain number of hostages, the police will launch a strong attack.

“As for what the police will do, it depends on the amount of information they have. The most crucial point is whether they know the number of robbers. Unfortunately, you killed that gentleman who talked to the police. If he were still alive, you could ask him how much information he revealed about the situation here to the police, but now…”

Feng Bujue sneered, “Also, I want to remind you that in the next few minutes, some ‘vigilante’ may intervene in this matter, Nightwing, Robin, Huntress, Black Canary… etc., excuse me, as long as one comes, I’m afraid the three of you will be captured alive.”

He took a long breath, looked at the bandit who was stunned in front of him, and added, “About ten minutes ago, the excessive secretion of adrenaline put you on the verge of losing control. The escape method you thought of during the hostage-taking stage is worse than the plan you thought of during the robbery planning stage.” He said in a mocking tone, “Heh… Of course, if that can be called a ‘plan’.” He smiled, “At the same time, your impulsive act of killing has also put you and your accomplices in a dead end. If you don’t want to die or go to jail today, it’s best to think of another idea, otherwise…” He imitated the sound of a clock, teasing the other party, “Tick tock… Time waits for no one, superheroes may come at any time.”

“You… who exactly are you…” After listening to Feng Bujue’s analysis, the submachine gun bandit really calmed down a bit, and was no longer in that bloodshot state.

Feng Bujue observed the eyes of the three bandits, and then, he showed a sneer and stood up without any scruples, “This is still a very minor question. At this moment, the most important thing for you is… how to escape.”

…

Five minutes later, the metal rolling door (electronically controlled, not manually pulled down) behind the row of glass doors in the bank began to slowly descend, and soon it was completely closed.

From this moment on, the police on the street and the bandits in the bank all lost the means to observe each other’s movements.

Almost in the same second that the rolling door was completely closed, the phone that the police had just used to talk to the robbers rang.

The bank employee who had been shot had previously reported the crime with his mobile phone while hiding in the toilet. The call was never interrupted, and when the police arrived, his number was transferred directly to another police phone on the scene.

“I’m Officer Clapton,” Clapton, who was in charge of the scene, answered the phone.

“Hello, Officer,” Feng Bujue’s voice came from the microphone, “I think you must have noticed that I am not the same person as the gentleman who just talked to you.” He paused for a second and continued, “But this should be good news for you. From now on, I will take over the communication work. You can call me Mr. Nobody.”

“How are the hostages now? Are they all safe?” Clapton couldn’t wait to say, “Listen… the helicopter still…”

“Forget the helicopter, officer, it was just a joke,” Feng Bujue interrupted. “As for the hostages, they are very safe. I can assure you that the rude scene just now was just an accident. I think neither you nor I want to see such a scene happen again, do we?” He chuckled twice, which made the other party shudder.

“Listen… If you come out and surrender now…” Clapton replied.

“There are two things I want to say. First, this phone is running out of power. Next, please dial the phone on the bank counter to talk to me. I think I don’t need to tell you the number, do I?” Feng Bujue said and hung up the phone.

“Quick, quick…” Clapton waved to his colleagues in the monitoring command vehicle behind him.

The staff in the rear compartment all heard the content of the call. Before Feng Bujue finished speaking, they had already taken action and connected the call in less than a minute.

Clapton listened to the beeping sound in the microphone for a few seconds, and then, Feng Bujue’s voice came again, “The second thing…” He got straight to the point, “If my guess is correct, a well-equipped, well-trained team is now working on invading the building I am in. I know they only need to use tools to remove a few iron bars to easily enter from the windows on the first floor. There are at least five rooms that can be used as entry points. Then, they will approach silently, confirming our number and location. Then, at a time they deem appropriate and confident, your people will cut off the power from the outside, plunging the place into darkness. Finally, before we can react, several strong men wearing night vision goggles will disarm and subdue us.”

Clapton covered the microphone with his hand, turned his face, and the expression on his face was extremely wonderful, “Is there an insider?” He said in a low voice to the person next to him.

Feng Bujue’s words continued, “The above situation is something I extremely do not want to see, so I thought of a preventive measure.” He paused and narrated in a leisurely tone, “I have transferred some of the hostages to the vault and changed the password for the gate. According to the size of that room, and their number… um… the oxygen can last for about thirty minutes.”