Chapter 99: The Latent Field (Part 2)

The most important thing in the Sneak Field is to remain concealed. Once players enter the Sneak Field, every individual has identical attributes. Even the lowest-level Sneak Field holds a thousand players, so only by hiding far more effectively can one possibly slay more enemies and rack up points.

Players may claim up to forty Sneak attribute points from the Sneak Field. Each entry can yield as many as ten through successive kills. The point system works like this: the first Sneak attribute point demands the elimination of ten enemies, the second twenty, the third thirty, and so on. Thus, securing the fortieth point requires slaying four hundred foes in total.

Should a kill streak prove achievable, the gains become far more lucrative. Without one, however, the cumulative toll for ten points equals ten plus twenty plus thirty up to one hundred, demanding five hundred and fifty kills. Yet if a player maintains unbroken slaughter from the outset and evades expulsion from the Sneak Field, the system defaults to the first-tier calculation, awarding ten points after a mere one hundred eliminations.

Crisis abounds at every turn within the Sneak Field, where strength remains uniform across all combatants. Single-handedly dominating the arena proves impossible. Players may resort to myriad concealment tactics here—posing as non-player characters, weaving leaves into disguises, seeking refuge beneath the water’s surface, and more. Countless tales speak of seasoned lurkers who, after enduring long hours and finally felling an adversary, reach for the slain foe’s identity tag only to fall victim to a third party’s blade in a cruel twist of fate.

As Chen Hao reached for the identity tag of the enemy he had slain, a player lay hidden inside a tree hollow not far distant. Slightly stout, the figure had compressed itself into a tight ball within the narrow confines of the hollow. Persisting there for so long truly demanded exceptional endurance.

The hidden man’s name was Fat Dragon. In everyday life he possessed a distinctly unsavory streak; within any game he delighted in delivering sneaky, backhanded strikes. Upon entering the War, he sought to preserve that same spirit, positioning himself as a cunning intelligence operative. Yet the game’s interface allowed his appearance to shift while his physical form mirrored his real-world build at roughly eighty percent fidelity. Fat Dragon’s exaggerated physique made concealment exceedingly difficult.

Even after the system granted him a larger frame, Fat Dragon clung unchanged to his perverse inclinations. Discovering the Sneak Field’s existence, he now devoted most of his waking hours to its perils.

His build proved ill-suited for stealth, yet Fat Dragon possessed an array of cunning stratagems. On his first incursion he eliminated twenty-two foes and claimed two Sneak attribute points. Now he toiled toward his seventh.

By chance, Fat Dragon chanced upon a tree hollow nestled among the trees. It accommodated smaller players without issue, yet his own frame strained the limits beyond all proportion. Desperate to earn points, he seized the triangular bayonet randomly dispensed by the system and enlarged the hollow’s mouth. Thereafter he remained sealed within.

The cramped quarters forced his fat flesh into an uncomfortable mound, yet the hollow stood as one of the finest vantage points available. His haul proved bountiful; five hours inside the Sneak Field yielded forty plus players who had wandered into the forest. With but twenty-three more kills he would claim the seventh attribute point.

Chen Hao’s victim had already been spotted by Fat Dragon, entering from his firing blind spot and immediately lying still. Patience became their only contest. At that moment Chen Hao respawned within the small thicket. Fat Dragon dared not fire first, lest the motionless figure in the undergrowth seize an unexpected advantage.

Having lurked in the Sneak Field for many hours, Fat Dragon understood that safety often outweighed the chance to slay. When the player rose and advanced toward Chen Hao, he refrained from shooting. The hollow must remain hidden. As the two clashed and only one survivor remained, Fat Dragon would claim his point and the hollow would stay concealed.

What truly baffled Fat Dragon was that neither target rose after the gunshot. He could not even determine the victor. Pressing his eye to the tiny aperture drilled through the trunk by the triangular bayonet, he gripped his Colt pistol tight. The instant the enemy stood, he would fire without hesitation.

After claiming the identity tag, Chen Hao hesitated to depart. Drawing upon memories from the future, he recognized the hollow as an excellent hiding place. Ten paces away loomed a colossal tree able to shelter four men at once. Such grand specimens offered a high probability of successful concealment; rising hastily would invite a swift death.

Crawling six or seven meters through the dense brush, Chen Hao located a mouse hole. He seized an axe and began digging. Moments later a plump rodent appeared in his grasp. He severed a thumb-thick branch, bound it horizontally to the mouse’s body with grass, then looped a vine around its hind legs and positioned the creature toward the grassy undergrowth.

The moment its paws touched earth the mouse plunged into the foliage. The thirty-centimeter rod on its back swept the grass aside, parting it like a living creature advancing. Every few steps Chen Hao tugged the vine to halt the rodent briefly, then released it once more to scurry onward.

Fat Dragon’s eyes never left the parting grass, confirming every shift in position without the slightest relaxation. When the target reached the grass’s center, he froze. Twenty-odd meters from the hollow, Fat Dragon calculated the odds of striking from that spot.

Once the vine exhausted its length, Chen Hao lashed the end to a shrub and resumed crawling in the opposite direction. The forest teemed with unseen foes; any sign of exposure invited disaster. By luring all enemies toward the opposite flank, the mouse would allow Chen Hao to vanish once more, slipping beyond their sight.

The technique Chen Hao recalled from forum discussions and frequent player use now served him perfectly. The elaborate effort stemmed from his desire to seize the nearby hollow, a prime scoring spot. Respawns occurred frequently within the trees, and the hollow offered both perfect concealment and resistance to stray bullets.

Soon Chen Hao circled to the tree’s far side. Tall grass over a meter high blanketed the trunk’s rear. From a short distance he spotted fresh soil at the grass roots. This confirmed a hidden occupant. After the foe had vanished inside, he had gathered and arranged the grass at the entrance to conceal the hollow’s presence from outside view.

Chen Hao drew his pistol and approached from the side, pressing the barrel against the grass at the hollow’s mouth and squeezing the trigger. Fat Dragon heard only the sharp report. The world before him shattered. He received the system alert at once: “Player Fat Dragon, you have been shot and eliminated inside the Sneak Field. You have been expelled.”

The abrupt crack sent every lurking player’s nerves into a taut wire. They could gauge only the general direction of the sound, never pinpointing its exact source. The mouse’s frantic dashes along the vine only heightened their tension; they assumed the freshly respawned foe still hid among the grass.