Special Reward

What was that move called again?

Fu Qian gazed up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle and took a deep breath.

That skill he'd never had a chance to use.

[Internal Organ Critical Hit]

[Find the right opportunity and strike directly through a wound to damage the opponent's internal organs, dealing devastating damage.]

Without hesitation, he slid his hand through the wound beneath his ribs.

A warm sensation met his fingers. They twisted and stretched like bloodthirsty snakes.

Countless tiny tendrils sprouted wildly, burrowing into the flesh and fusing tightly with it.

Die! For! Me!

His right hand clenched abruptly, activating Internal Organ Critical Hit.

As blood sprayed everywhere, Fu Qian felt that the blow had drained the flesh and soul from his body.

[Sanity Value -1]

[Sanity Value -1]

[Sanity Value -1]

...

A faint whimper filled his mind, tearing at his consciousness.

Warnings about his Sanity Value dropping appeared in a frenzy. It fell by a full seven points before finally stopping.

The whimper disappeared along with them.

Whew!

That should really have done it this time. Fu Qian let out a breath.

He raised his head. Under the Captain's and Su Gao's utterly horrified gazes, he arched an eyebrow and used the last of his strength to clasp his hands behind his back, striking the pose of a master.

[Containment conditions met. Number 2-133 successfully contained.]

The containment-success notification appeared, and the scenery before him rapidly faded away. Fu Qian returned to the Warehouse once more.

[Mission complete]

[Evaluation: God Slayer]

[Congratulations. Not only did you successfully prevent the Evil God's Progeny from descending, you even personally dealt it damage that will be difficult to recover from. This is an incredible feat.

With a mortal body, you taught a god a lesson. The title of mad, yet clear-headed, villain could belong to no one but you.

This incident caused enormous casualties, even leading to the death of a Night Watcher member. The Night Watchers have given it their utmost attention, and the relevant records have been strictly sealed.]

[Enemies killed: Evil God's Progeny, Maggot People *22]

[Rewards: Sanity Value +31; Inspiration +5]

[Special kill reward: Thug]

[Replay the incident?]

Finally, it was over!

The strange sights in the Warehouse had vanished.

Fu Qian breathed a sigh of relief, but his first reaction was to reach down and feel his stomach.

That Internal Organ Critical Hit had really left a strong impression.

After confirming that everything was fine and all his parts were still there, Fu Qian finally started checking his rewards.

[God Slayer]

That was quite an impressive evaluation. It probably came from his feat of godslaying.

As for the kill count, it had clearly included the number of Maggot People.

Judging by the increase in his Sanity Value, farming kills back there had apparently paid off.

His Sanity Value had taken a tremendous hit this time. It was nice to get some extra back; with this reward, he now had 43 Sanity Value.

His Inspiration had increased by another 5, too. He wondered what he'd see next time.

But aside from those, there was only one substantial reward. Wasn't that a little unreasonable?

Fu Qian frowned and opened his special kill reward.

[Thug: Transcendent Form, consumable. Using it will upgrade you to this form. This process is irreversible.]

[A powerful body and swift speed will let you completely break free of human limitations and change the very nature of your life. (Frail flesh, ascended flesh.)]

This...

Fu Qian was unusually stunned for a moment.

Transcendent Form?

That name made it hard not to think of Transcendents.

Thinking of his four Night Watcher teammates, Fu Qian had a vivid memory of White Porcelain Woman Su Gao's terrifying blade.

Her speed and killing power couldn't be described as the work of some swordsmanship master. They were a power unique to Transcendents.

If he understood this right, this thing could make him like them?

He didn't have to do anything. Just use it, and he'd become a superhero?

There really was such a good thing!

Still, he had to be careful. The process was irreversible, after all.

Fu Qian rested a hand on his chin and hesitated for about two seconds.

[Warning: This item will disappear after use. Confirm use?]

"Confirm!"

There was no way he'd pass up an opportunity like this.

Besides, after all that hard work, if he didn't use it, wouldn't the whole trip have been for nothing?

As Fu Qian confirmed, a warm current flowed into his body.

The next moment, the blood in his entire body seemed to boil.

His heart began beating wildly like an overclocked engine, while all the muscles in his body rapidly contracted and expanded.

After a long while, Fu Qian opened his eyes. His heartbeat had returned to normal, and his body brimmed with a strength he'd never felt before.

Fu Qian tried clenching his fist. He could feel the muscles in his arm, twisted together like steel wires.

He wasn't an ordinary person anymore. The feeling rising from deep within made that unmistakably clear.

What a great reward. It was worthy of being the prize for slaying a god.

His odds of success on future missions had improved considerably.

[Today's work is complete. Thank you for your hard work.]

[You may now leave the Warehouse. See you tomorrow.]

At the reminder, Fu Qian took off his work badge.

He was completely exhausted!

Today's work had been far more difficult than he'd imagined, and it had taken a great deal out of him.

The scenery shifted before his eyes, and he returned to his familiar home.

Fu Qian shook his head and soon realized he hadn't eaten anything today.

He was debating whether to make a quick bowl of noodles or treat himself to takeout when he suddenly felt uncomfortable.

He looked down. His clothes, which had fit him well before, were now stretched tight against his body, and the buttons looked ready to give way.

Realizing what had happened, Fu Qian ran straight to the bathroom.

The person in the mirror looked familiar and strange at the same time.

His body, which had been rather lean, had swollen considerably, as if it had been inflated.

His lines were smooth, his build perfect, and every muscle sharply defined.

Every movement radiated explosive power.

The rewards he gained in the scenario could actually come back with him!

What kind of job had he taken on?

Fu Qian washed his face, trying to calm himself down.

Fortunately, despite the title Thug, he hadn't grown a bushy beard. His skin even looked smoother and softer.

So the current trend was a thug in a suit?

When he came out of the bathroom, Fu Qian thought of something and pointed a finger at a bottle of mineral water on the table.

Pop!

Water splashed everywhere.

An invisible Air Bullet punched a hole straight through the bottle, spilling water all over the table.

Silence fell.

What would you do if you suddenly weren't human anymore?

Fu Qian had never really thought about that before.

If the thirty thousand yuan deposited into his account each day had saved him from scraping by and changed his attitude toward money, then becoming a Thug had changed his whole outlook on life.

The change was so huge that it took him the time it took to eat a hamburger to digest the reality.

He took a long gulp of ice-cold Coke and looked at the men and women in McDonald's, filled with emotion.

It was his habit to come eat junk food after a major undertaking.

It was a deeply indulgent, decadent satisfaction. It felt great!

From childhood onward, Fu Qian had always been the rebellious sort. Otherwise, he wouldn't have ended up in such dire straits.

But no matter what, the pressure of making a living had always been there. He'd still had to hustle to get by.

Now that pressure had suddenly vanished. He might not even be human anymore.

Thinking it over, was it really happiness to suddenly lose all purpose in life?

Yes. It was amazing.

Fu Qian answered himself without hesitation.

Though he was a freelancer, he had nothing in common with those sentimental, melancholy artists.

He was a practical person who disliked such affected thinking.

Make him choose ten thousand times, and he'd give the same answer every time.

Nothing was more valuable than having more choices.

While he was musing about life, the phone on the table suddenly rang.