Outlaw Chen San

Page 1 of 3

The ordinary man, Chen Sheng, went to work.
The ordinary man, Chen Sheng, came home from work.
With ordinary composure, Chen Sheng pushed open the door—only to see thick, black smoke billowing from the kitchen, growing worse by the second.
“What the—!”
With that exclamation, Chen Sheng could no longer remain ordinary. In an instant, his figure blurred and vanished—not because he’d disappeared, but because he moved so fast that only a silhouette lingered where he’d stood.
“What are you doing?” Having twisted the gas valve shut and extinguished the flames, Chen Sheng glanced at the “little calico cat” whose face was streaked with soot, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Were you trying to turn yourself into smoked meat?”
“I’m cooking!” The “little calico cat” replied with righteous indignation. “I’m hungry!”
“Didn’t I order takeout for you?” Chen Sheng was taken aback.
“It wasn’t good.”
“I’ll take you out to eat…” Chen Sheng said helplessly. The kitchen was in such a state that cooking was out of the question until it was thoroughly cleaned—a task that would take at least an hour.
“I’ll pay!” The girl immediately raised her hand in delight.
“Naturally, I have no objections,” Chen Sheng replied—only a fool would refuse. Yet, to his surprise, after driving her out for a casual stroll, she insisted on returning home.
He looked at the girl climbing out of the car, utterly content, and could not help but ask, “So you just went out to sniff around for a bit?”
During the drive, You Yuxin had rolled down the passenger window and inhaled deeply the entire way.
“Because I didn’t catch a scent of anything I wanted to eat!”
“Then I’ll go clean the kitchen first.” Chen Sheng found her explanation reasonable and thought no more of it. Taking the cleaning supplies he’d picked up along the way, he turned to leave.
“Wait for me, Old Chen, I’ll help you!” the girl called, chasing after him.
She said it, and she meant it.
As a result, what should have been an hour’s cleaning took three full hours—and the kitchen was still not clean. So, when the girl later asked him to “team up” with her in a game, Chen Sheng refused without hesitation.
“Old Chen, didn’t you promise yesterday?” You Yuxin stared at him, sprawled on the sofa. She’d just learned that Chen Sheng had escaped from the old house in Shangsanjiang City, was no longer in the Dead World, and was far less at risk. She changed her mind at once, deciding to carry him for a while in the game.
Because honestly, seeing the chaos in the kitchen, she felt a bit guilty.
“Yesterday was yesterday. As for today… what a coincidence—I’ve just gained a whole new understanding of the term ‘useless teammate.’” Chen Sheng glanced at You Yuxin, his face expressionless. He didn’t even bother to complain.
To be this much of a hindrance was truly eye-opening.

Page 2 of 3

“Hmph!”
The disgruntled girl puffed out her cheeks and stomped away.
Tonight, she would try again!
Chen Sheng removed his black-rimmed glasses and put on a pair of gold-rimmed ones. In moments, his vision began to shift.
The scene around him changed.
On the gold-rimmed glasses appeared a line of text invisible to Chen Sheng: Verification complete. Curse immunity.
The words flashed and vanished, and Chen Sheng disappeared in an instant.
…
Shangsanjiang City.
Chen Sheng was utterly bewildered.
He had just entered this healing game and barely taken a few steps when a group of people suddenly emerged. At the shout of “That’s him!” they immediately surrounded him.
Click, click, click—one after another, they drew handguns and aimed at Chen Sheng.
“Don’t move! Undercover unit—police! You’d better behave yourself!”
“Undercover unit?” Chen Sheng was even more confused.
It wasn’t that he’d never heard of the undercover unit—rather, he knew their workings well.
When the “save point NPC,” Yan Shidong, had dragged him to the police station, Yan had explained the department’s structure in detail.
The undercover unit was one of the best options for rookie officers after their probation ended.
You had more freedom, generous stipends, holiday perks, and above all, you avoided the drudgery of daily patrols and enjoyed the highest survival rate among all officers.
For instance, Yan Shidong—the nephew of the chief, who’d been beaten up by Chen Sheng—was a member of this unit.
And there were many like Yan Shidong in the undercover unit.
So, rookie officers with no connections often nicknamed the undercover unit the “nursery group” in private.
“I’m one of you!” Even in the game, Chen Sheng had no desire to be shot out of nowhere and hear, “Hero, please start again.”
But his words only provoked the undercover officers further. One in particular barked, “Who the hell do you think you are? Since when were you one of us?”
“Enough!”

Page 3 of 3

The rebuke came quickly, cutting off the officer’s tirade. Their leader—a man in his thirties—addressed Chen Sheng sternly, “Chen Jueshen, due to the fire at the Li family’s old house and your subsequent disappearance, after repeated summonses, the police chief has ordered your probationary status revoked and issued a warrant for your arrest. My unit is to bring you in!”
“Wait a minute—Chen Jueshen?”
Chen Sheng’s mind whirled. It sounded like a major plot event was about to unfold!
He didn’t hesitate. “My name is Chen Sheng, not Chen Jueshen. If you’re looking for Chen Jueshen, what does that have to do with me?”
“Cut the crap! When did you ever call yourself Chen Sheng? You’ve always been Chen Jueshen!” the officer from before retorted, losing his temper.
Chen Sheng immediately understood.
It seemed that “Chen Jueshen” was the identity the game had assigned him.
To be precise, he was now the “Chen Jueshen”—standing in for the real one.
The original Chen Jueshen had offended someone powerful and was exiled to Shangsanjiang City, but had never made it out of Baiyun Mountain—or, if he had, he’d died en route.
Because Chen Sheng looked exactly like him and happened to appear in Shangsanjiang City, he’d been mistaken for Chen Jueshen by Yan Shidong.
Realizing this, Chen Sheng didn’t hesitate. He shoved past an officer and darted into the nearby woods, pushing his speed to the limit. Before long, he’d lost his pursuers.
Nonchalantly, Chen Sheng strolled back onto the mountain road.
But once again, before he’d gone far, another group of undercover officers appeared and surrounded him.
This time, Chen Sheng was prepared to repeat his escape, but these officers proved more agile. Their leader—a middle-aged man with a square face—shouted, “Don’t move! Try anything and we’ll shoot!”
Chen Sheng snapped back, “Who are you trying to scare? The chief only told you to arrest me, not to kill me! If you dare shoot, maybe nothing will happen to them, but you’ll definitely be disciplined!”
As expected, the leader’s face darkened.