Each Person's Task (Continued)

"Hmph, how naive. An assassin's greatest advantage lies in their ability to remain hidden in the shadows. With patience, they will eventually find an opportunity. On the other hand, the target is in the open and cannot remain vigilant forever."

That being said, after witnessing Si Ming's strength at the Mohist Knight Guard base, Qingyan dared not rashly attempt an assassination. Such a thick-skinned, impervious character is the most hated target for assassins, whether as a target or a bodyguard. This is why he specifically went for three months of training to obtain his agent qualification certificate.

"Everything is difficult at the beginning. This is undoubtedly a test from heaven for me. Nothing is more suitable as the start of a legend than assassinating a person with great fortune."

Qingyan straightened his collar in front of the mirror, exuding confidence, and said, "You're unlucky to have gotten this mission. If it were any other assassin chasing profits, they might have given up long ago and taken on easier missions. But I don't care about money, and I have plenty of patience. Even if it takes two, three, five, or even ten years, I will persevere until the mission is completed. In this chase, I, as the hunter, am destined to be the ultimate victor!"

Qingyan, in a good mood, had just returned to her apartment when the landlord said, "You've come at the right time; here's your phone number."

Qingyan took the microphone and heard a familiar voice say, "Qingyan, the mission has been canceled."

"... What?" After a long while, Qingyan finally came to his senses and hurriedly said, "I've successfully gotten close to my target. Just give me another week, and I guarantee the newspaper will have the headline 'The First Genius Painting School of Su State Has Been Assassinated and Died.' Please tell the client this and ask him to give me a little more time."

"It's not your problem, it's the client's problem. He passed away two days ago, so the mission has been cancelled."

"The client is dead?" Qingyan found it utterly absurd. "How did he die?"

"Recently, the whole world has been plagued by demonic calamities. Unfortunately, the city where the client lives has also been attacked by a demonic tide, and he couldn't escape this calamity. According to the organization's regulations, when the client encounters an accident and is unable to fulfill the transaction, the task is automatically cancelled and will not be recorded in the task record. Of course, the deposit paid by the client in advance will not be refunded, but will be automatically transferred to your account within ten days. Congratulations, you have received a huge sum of money for free."

"It's not about the money; I don't care about compensation at all..."

"In short, for your personal safety, you should leave Su State as soon as possible. Recently, the Mohist Knight Guard is about to launch a major operation against our Crimson Eye Society. In addition, there is a traitor in the organization who has leaked the list of some members. Fortunately, because you have not yet completed or failed a mission, your name is not on the list."

Qingyan said weakly, "I'd rather not have that kind of luck."

"But just in case, you should leave as soon as possible. Anyway, the organization has decided to scale back its operations in Su State and withdraw its branches from various regions. If you stay any longer, you won't be able to get any more missions."

"... I understand, I'll be leaving soon."

No matter how unwilling he was, there was nothing he could do in this situation, and Qingyan could only hang up the phone dejectedly.

The landlord, standing nearby, asked curiously, "Are you moving out?"

Qingyan nodded.

The landlord said somewhat apologetically, "The TV in my room is broken, and the water pipes seem to be clogged with something. Could you please help me fix them?"

To conceal his identity and maintain good neighborly relations, Qingyan specially taught himself plumbing and electrical repair skills and often helped his neighbors repair their appliances. For this, the landlord specially waived part of his rent.

"No problem. By the way, ma'am, you can talk to all the tenants and see if anyone has anything broken. Have them fix it while I'm gone."

The landlady clapped her hands, gave a thumbs-up, and said, "I knew you were a great person!"

After saying that, she hurriedly wiggled her big buttocks and shouted to inform the tenants.

With a bewildered Qingyan, he gazed at the sky at a 45-degree angle. "Am I a good person? I clearly wanted to become a legendary assassin..."

Mohist Knight Guard Base Research Institute.

"Doctor, can't you make an exception? I really need power right now. If I had had a set of specially made Profound Armor when the demon tide came, things would definitely be different."

Si Ming sincerely pleaded with the doctor, who shook his head vigorously.

"That won't do. Rules are rules. I gave you a chance, but you forgot. If I make an exception for you, it'll be like opening a loophole. Others will inevitably come knocking on my door, asking me to forge Profound Armor for them. You know, making a set of Profound Armor takes a lot of time and effort. I don't want to waste my life on it. I still have many research topics I want to study—you can use a standard Profound Armor as a substitute."

Si Ming complained, "I've tried the standard Profound Armor, and it's completely useless. In terms of defense, it can't even compare to my external martial arts, and its ranged firepower is inferior to the White Eagle Spirit Sparrow. The little bit of added strength is negligible to me, and it also restricts my agility. I can't even carry it with me on a daily basis. In comparison, I still prefer Master's Heaven-Soaring Armor, which has flight capabilities and is easy to carry."

"The performance of the Heaven-Soaring Armor is still unstable. It is currently in trial use, and many technical difficulties have not been overcome. Mass production will have to wait several more years."

As the doctor spoke, he took out a bodysuit and handed it to Si Ming, saying, "I can't give you the Profound Armor, but the tear-resistant underwear you mentioned last time is finished. Once you wear it, you won't be naked in battle unless you're attacked by an extreme move or high-temperature attack."

Then she took out a bottle of liquid. "This is the heat-resistant adhesive you requested. It can withstand temperatures below 1000 degrees Celsius. Apply it to your hair, and you won't have to worry about it burning. To be honest, what's the point of this stuff? If you encounter a powerful enemy, they won't deliberately target your hair. Surely your hair isn't your true form?"

"Once bitten by a snake, twice shy."

Si Ming quickly packed his things away, then persisted, "Can't we really make an exception? You didn't specify a date back then. How about this, since winter break is coming up soon, I'll just catch a live Sunlight Beast for you."

The doctor wasn't interested. "No need. Recently, a large number of Demon Beast have appeared, providing countless research materials. The military warehouses are almost full. Even the relatively rare Sunlight Beast can now be easily approved. All you need to do to study them is submit a report. As for the rest of the corpses, they'll all end up in the hands of pharmaceutical companies."

Scarcity drives up value. In the past, there weren't many Demon Beasts, and pharmaceutical companies had to pay exorbitant prices to buy their Demon Beast. Now, with raw materials plentiful, costs have dropped by 40%. The monster horde disaster has instead made pharmaceutical companies incredibly wealthy, profiting immensely from the dead.

Is there really no room for negotiation?

"It's not that there's no way. All you need is a set of custom-made Profound Armor. It doesn't necessarily have to be forged by me personally. If you help me with something, I'll recommend you to become Profound Armor tester at the Ink Mohist Academy of Science, just like your master. The Heaven-Soaring Armor he wears is actually a prototype, and it's even an improved Heaven-Soaring Armor Type II. However, your master has a lot of influence, and the people at the Mohist Academy of Science will make minor adjustments based on his physical abilities. If it were you, don't even dream of such treatment."

Si Ming recalled the super robot anime he had watched in his previous life. Prototypes, experimental models, and new models were often far superior in performance to regular models. This was because when developing a concept, the research team was always very willing to spend money, investing heavily in it and using the highest-grade materials and the most advanced technology. Only after the prototype was successful would they consider the cost-effectiveness issue, minimizing costs as much as possible while maintaining basic performance.

Thinking of this, he readily agreed, afraid the other party might change their mind. "No problem, a tester it is. It's an honor to contribute to the development of Mohist School science and technology. Tell me, what do you need me to do?"

The doctor said, "As you know, there are Demon Beast appearing everywhere lately, causing widespread panic. The Mohist Knight Guard are operating at near-maximum efficiency, with everyone working non-stop. Coastal areas that haven't yet been hit by the monster tide are sending out distress calls, and we've also dispatched quite a few people. So, the base is a bit short-handed. Luckily, a few days ago, some new recruits applied for the induction test, and I'd like you to be their supervisor. On one hand, you'll be recording the mission execution process, and on the other hand, you'll be responsible for their personal safety."

Si Ming patted his chest and said, "It's a piece of cake, leave it to me! Where are the new members who applied to join the group? Do you need me to meet with them?"

"Go find Pan De yourself, he'll handle this. I'm incredibly busy lately, I don't have time to waste on you guys."

The professor waved his hand, about to shoo the person away, when he suddenly remembered something and casually asked, "If, I mean if, a set of Profound Armor with artificial intelligence were developed, what do you think it should be called?"

Si Ming was terrible at coming up with names. He scratched his head, about to pick one from a science fiction book he had read in his previous life and make it up, when suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him.

"How about calling it 'Light of Taihu Lake,' prefixed with 'Sunway'? Anything related to artificial intelligence will belong to the Sunway series. What do you think of this name?"

The professor paused for a moment, repeated the phrase a few times, and then his eyes lit up immediately. "Godpower Taihu Light, indeed a good name, and it even points out the idea of using a deity as the central hub of artificial intelligence in the design scheme... Not bad, not bad, as expected of a novelist, this is a great name!"

He offered a few rare compliments, then closed the door and went off to tinker with things on his own.

Si Ming shook his head helplessly, then went to find Pan De and explained his situation.