6. The Formidable "Gunfire Mode"

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Seemingly to verify Zhou Hongyi’s identity, “Bodhi” personally carried over a cup of coffee.

“Sir, your coffee.”

By the time “Bodhi” approached, Zhou Hongyi had already seen his face clearly.

The man was no more than forty, with slightly grayed temples, a long face, steady and resolute eyes, exuding the air of a British gentleman.

The moment “Bodhi” set down the coffee, he swiftly whispered in a voice only Zhou Hongyi could hear:

“Who are you? How do you know our rendezvous code? Where is ‘Clear Mirror’?”

Zhou Hongyi tilted his head toward the window, lips slightly parted.

“I am ‘Four-Faced Buddha.’ Comrade ‘Clear Mirror’ is detained in the police station’s dungeon. He’s not in immediate danger and will be released soon. But this message is urgent, so I’m delivering it on his behalf.”

Hearing “Clear Mirror” had been captured, “Bodhi”’s expression remained unchanged, as if nothing had happened.

“What message does he want to convey?”

Zhou Hongyi didn’t hesitate.

Covering his mouth with one hand, he said quietly, “The enemy will launch a crackdown in the Pudong area in two days, including Nanhui, Fengxian, Chuansha, and other districts. I suspect there’s a traitor leaking secrets from within. You must notify the guerrilla forces immediately. Whether to retreat or fight, preparations must be made in advance. Also, our current code is at risk of exposure and must be discarded immediately.”

“What?!”

After hearing this, Zhou Hongyi noticed a tag above “Bodhi”’s head reading [Alert].

“It seems he still doubts my identity, which is understandable, given the nature of our underground work... Hmm?”

At that moment, Zhou Hongyi glanced through the window and saw several men in suits approaching the café. Above each of their heads was the same tag: [Agent of Special Operations Headquarters No. 76].

“What are they doing here... No, there’s a traitor who’s betrayed our contact point!”

From the tag on the leader of these agents, it appeared this traitor within the Red Party had significant knowledge. The café contact point had been compromised; Unit 76 had come to make arrests.

Zhou Hongyi withdrew his gaze and quickened his words.

“This place is exposed. Evacuate immediately. I’ll hold them off and buy you time. If you need to contact me, go to the Jing’an Police Station entrance. The new code phrase is ‘Daddy’s daddy is grandpa.’”

Without waiting for a reply, Zhou Hongyi lowered his hat, stood up, and as he reached for his civility baton, subtly flicked his arm to conceal a Browning M1910 pistol in his sleeve.

“Bodhi”’s expression shifted momentarily but quickly returned to calm, revealing a remarkably strong psychological resilience.

At that instant, the café door was pushed open, the wind chime chimed “ding ding,” and a group of men filed in.

The leader scanned the room, and upon his gaze falling on Zhou Hongyi, his expression visibly froze.

Zhou lowered his head, noticing the attention, then swiftly turned and hurried toward the café’s kitchen.

“You! Stop!”

The leader of Unit 76 shouted, but Zhou Hongyi didn’t halt; instead, he quickened his pace and slipped into the kitchen.

“After him!”

Zhou Hongyi’s flight effectively confirmed his allegiance to the Red Party. The agents surged after him without hesitation.

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The café’s patrons quickly rose and fled, while “Bodhi” exchanged a glance with a young waiter behind the bar. Instead of exiting through the main door, they headed upstairs.

This small villa near the river had two emergency escape routes, one of which led to the rooftop.

Back in the kitchen, the moment Zhou Hongyi slipped inside, he activated [Combat Mode].

It was as if possessed—the Browning M1910 slid smoothly from his sleeve into his steady grip.

“Hmm? The barrel is 153 millimeters long, the thickness about 20 millimeters, unloaded weight roughly 0.6 kilograms. The gun comprises 27 parts; its fixed notch rear sight and front sight are entirely concealed within the top groove of the slide; the trigger is flat; the entire gun has a sleek profile with no protruding edges... Why do I know all this?”

As he held the pistol, an odd surge of knowledge flooded into his mind.

He crouched slightly, lowering his center of gravity, both hands gripping the pistol at a 45-degree angle, eyes fixed intently on the kitchen entrance.

The moment the first enemy appeared, Zhou’s gaze hardened, and he sprang into action.

His feet pushed off sharply, his body sliding sideways like an arrow from a bow. Simultaneously, his right arm rose swiftly, fully extended, wrist firm to stabilize the pistol—classic center-axis shooting stance.

“Bang!”

Flames erupted from the muzzle. A bullet streaked straight, striking the lead adversary right between the eyebrows.

Before the enemy could collapse, Zhou shifted again, light and swift, stepping forward to use the fallen foe’s body as cover while firing backward.

“Damn it, return fire! Shoot!”

Unit 76’s agents raised their guns, bullets whistling through the cramped space, most striking the corpse of their foremost comrade.

Rounds pinged off pots and pans in the kitchen, clinking loudly. Zhou’s ears twitched, judging bullet trajectories by sound alone.

He dropped low to the ground, slid the pistol under the fallen body, and unleashed a rapid double shot. His index finger pressed the trigger smoothly and consistently, ensuring swift reset.

“Bang! Bang!”

Two bullets hit: one pierced the enemy’s throat, the other his heart.

“Damn... He’s alone; don’t be afraid! Suppressive fire!”

Though the leader shouted bravely, he himself cowered behind a wall, unwilling to expose himself.

Zhou glanced toward the kitchen’s back door, pushed the perforated corpses forward as a shield, and quickly retreated.

His mission was to buy “Bodhi” time to escape. He had to fight, but not too fiercely—just enough to hold off the agents.

Upstairs, hearing the gunfire, “Bodhi” hurriedly burned sensitive documents.

The young waiter in a white shirt frowned.

“Manager, who was that? I’ve never seen or heard of him before.”

“Bodhi” moved swiftly, packing essentials into a suitcase.

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“I’ve never seen him either. He must be a deeply embedded comrade of a very high rank... We must leave quickly. The message he brought is urgent and must reach the guerrilla forces immediately. I hope he escapes safely.”

The two quickly packed and opened a window facing the river, stepping onto the terrace. Using a pre-positioned wooden plank, they crossed to an adjacent building.

Meanwhile, Zhou Hongyi had already fled the café and slipped into a narrow alley.

As the fight dragged on, his magazine emptied.

Zhou flipped the pistol barrel upward 90 degrees, pressed the magazine release with his thumb, and the empty magazine dropped free.

Almost simultaneously, his left hand drew a fresh magazine from his waist, smoothly inserted it into the grip, and slammed it home with the heel of his palm. The magazine fit snugly.

The entire reload took less than two seconds, his eyes never leaving the enemy’s direction.

Enemy reinforcements circled from behind, but Zhou’s mind remained razor-sharp, utterly composed.

He twisted sideways in the alley, using his body’s rotation to drive his shooting instinctively, firing suppressive shots at the advancing foes.

“Bang!” Another agent fell, clutching his abdomen in agony.

“Ugh... Help me... Save me!”

The wounded agent screamed, but when another tried to drag him to cover, Zhou’s gunfire rang out again, hitting the would-be rescuer twice, who collapsed beside his comrade.

“Damn it, ignore him! Push forward! There’s only one of him, only one!”

The leader’s eyes reddened with fury. He couldn’t understand why, despite bringing over a dozen men, they dared not show themselves against a single opponent, as if outnumbered.

“Combat Mode... impressive!”

Zhou silently admired his own prowess but knew he had to withdraw immediately. The durations of [Combat Mode] and [Insightful Eye] were down to three minutes.

“Phew...”

Leaning against the weathered, uneven wall, Zhou took a deep breath, quickly assessing the situation before the enemy’s pincer attack closed in.

He spread his feet slightly, bent his knees, lowered his center of gravity.

As footsteps approached, he used the wall for support, leaned right, and thrust the pistol out, employing the Mozambique Drill—two rapid shots to the chest.

The struck enemy’s body jerked backward. Without pause, Zhou depressed his arm and fired a third round, hitting the foe’s head precisely.

Having killed one, Zhou rolled swiftly. Before settling, another bullet fired, hitting an enemy squarely in the forehead.

Each of his shots, evasive moves, and reloads was textbook-perfect.

Every bullet was like a summons from the reaper, impossible to refuse.

With a muffled thud, the nightmarish alleyway firefight for Unit 76’s agents finally ended.

“Damn... Who the hell was that? Damn, damn, damn!”

“Bang bang bang!”

Hu Junhe, head of Unit 76’s Second Division and leader of the arrest operation, angrily fired shots into the water.

But deep down, he knew today’s mission was a complete failure.