Assassin's League

Lin Xin hesitated for a moment, then finally moved, placing the weapons she carried one by one in front of Lin Qi.

"Explain. Where did you get these?" Lin Qi asked, feeling a headache coming on. He had never imagined Lin Xin would get mixed up with Extraordinary Items.

"I stole them from Dad," Lin Xin said, making it up on the spot.

If there had been any Extraordinary Items at the Cybernetic Clinic, how could Lin Xin have gotten her hands on them? Lin Qi would have taken them long ago to fuel his advancement as a Wizard.

"I'll give you one more chance. Explain properly, or I swear you won't leave the Cybernetic Clinic—not until you do."

Lin Qi took his family's safety extremely seriously. Otherwise, he wouldn't have spent the enormous sum of 150,000 Credit Points per person each year to buy his family Platinum Memberships with the trauma response company.

That was practically the same as having a Mercenary Group ready to respond whenever you called, as long as you were injured and in danger.

To keep their clients safe, the emergency teams even dared to take on HGPD and the Red Fruit City Mobile Unit.

It was an international company operating independently of Red Fruit City, backed by numerous financial conglomerates.

In other words, as long as a client's membership level was high enough and they were still alive when the emergency team arrived, they were unlikely to die.

Lin Qi's goal was to upgrade his family's memberships to Black Diamond Level.

It wasn't expensive. Only 100 million Credit Points a year.

It was said that most of the people at the helm of top companies had memberships at that level.

Hearing this, Lin Xin immediately flew into a rage. "You're unlawfully detaining me!"

Lin Qi didn't care. There was no Red Fruit City crime monitoring network here, after all.

Even if HGPD came knocking, Lin Qi could afford the fine. Besides, he could also call in a favor from Liu Xuan.

The arguing fell silent.

Lin Xin finally understood that she couldn't keep this from Lin Qi.

"Have you heard of DEEP?" Lin Xin asked.

DEEP?

Lin Qi's brow furrowed even more.

That was the official website of the Intercontinental Deep Web Company. In terms Lin Qi was more familiar with, it was the Black Market.

Accessing that website meant getting involved in illegal activities beyond the usual scope of gangs.

"Did you join a Mercenary Group?" Lin Qi continued.

The easiest way to access the Black Market was through a Mercenary Group.

"How did you know?"

Lin Xin clearly hadn't been involved with the Black Market for long. She didn't have nearly as much experience as Lin Qi.

Lin Qi's head started to ache. What Mercenary Group was so generous that it would give an Extraordinary Item to a newcomer?

Lin Qi recalled his own experience joining "Highest Level."

It had started with a random pop-up, followed by a strange conference room. Then four old hands had sweet-talked him into joining, without giving him a single benefit.

After carrying out his first mission for no apparent reason, Lin Qi had earned his first windfall from the Black Market: 100,000 Credit Points.

"Which Mercenary Group would take an idiot like you? And why did you make that decision without discussing it with me or Dad?"

"You hate cybernetics normally. Aren't you afraid someone will take you away and modify you?"

"And besides..."

Lin Qi was getting irritated, and the "Advanced Language Application" chip he'd loaded was also doing its part, chattering incessantly in Lin Xin's ear.

"They won't. Our Assassin's League rejects all forms of cybernetic modification."

Lin Xin's reply stopped Lin Qi's incessant lecturing.

Assassin's League?

It wasn't that he hadn't heard of them. Their name was legendary.

Compared to a third-rate Mercenary Group with a joking name like "Highest Level," the Assassin's League was practically a household name among mercenaries.

It was one of the top Mercenary Groups beneath the two TO-level groups, and one of the T1-level Mercenary Groups.

Rumor had it that no one had ever seen a living member of the Assassin's League.

But the Assassin's League opposed cybernetic modification?

Lin Qi had never heard that before. It sounded more like the code of conduct followed by Wizards.

Lin Qi planned to ask about it at the next "Highest Level" meeting. He was sure Guangleng's intelligence network would know something.

It was just that...

Lin Xin, his foolish little sister, had somehow gotten mixed up with the Assassin's League?

Something about it felt off.

He wanted to ask more, but Lin Xin said, "The Assassin's League has special methods. Telling you who I am is already the limit. If I reveal anything else, something very bad will happen."

Lin Xin pointed at the Extraordinary Short Blade on the table, then at her own neck.

Lin Qi immediately activated Psychic Vision to examine the Extraordinary Short Blade on the table.

As Lin Xin moved, the Spiritual Energy Particles within the Extraordinary Short Blade fluctuated, as if the Extraordinary Item were deeply bound to her.

The Assassin's League had a method like this?

It seemed less like something an assassin would do and more like something a Wizard would do.

Wizards had all sorts of abilities. There were practically no two Wizards in the world with the same powers.

But Lin Qi knew that once Wizards reached Third Rank, their abilities underwent a qualitative change. They could use Extraordinary Items on a deeper level, and even reforge Extraordinary Items that had collapsed after being analyzed by them.

He really shouldn't ask any more questions.

But Lin Xin needed more protection.

Lin Qi asked, "Aside from equipment, did the Mercenary Group give you any missions? Do you have any Credit Points?"

Lin Xin eyed him warily. "Are you trying to borrow money? You aren't planning to borrow from me to buy an A-level Cybernetic Body, are you?"

Lin Xin covered the pocket of her clothes with one hand.

Lin Qi's Psychic Vision swept over her. There was a Bearer Savings Chip in her pocket.

Judging by its specifications, it was a high-security chip holding over a million.

The veins on the arm hidden beneath his Exoskeleton stood out.

What kind of Mercenary Group was the Assassin's League?

Lin Xin's behavior made it obvious she'd never done a mission.

So why had the Assassin's League given her so much?

Equipment, an Extraordinary Item, and a million in funds...

Lin Qi's hostility toward the Assassin's League grew stronger.

As a veteran mercenary, Lin Qi knew that in the cyberpunk era, nothing was given away for free.

The Assassin's League had given Lin Xin all of this because they saw some value in her.

What was so special about his foolish little sister that the Assassin's League would invest so much in her?

Lin Qi immediately used his Brain to email the "Highest Level" mailbox, asking Guangleng to call a meeting early.

There was no time to wait!

If the Assassin's League really had ulterior motives, Lin Xin would be in grave danger.

"Right now, use the funds on your chip to upgrade to Black Gold Membership with the Intercontinental Stabilization Trauma Response Company! Then have them send over a Life Monitoring and Positioning Device immediately."

"You've got a million. You can afford it!"

"Don't leave the Cybernetic Clinic before the upgrade is complete!"

The trauma response company wasn't just a medical institution. It was also a top-tier bodyguard team.

If anything happened and you were injured, all you had to do was hold on for fifteen minutes.

A medical combat team suited to your membership level would arrive. They would do everything in their power to save your life.

Then they would bring you back alive to the Intercontinental Stabilization Trauma Response Company.

The only catch was that afterward, you'd have to pay an additional fee of no more than 300% of your annual membership fee, and the following year's membership fee would double.

[We are responsible for the life of every member]

That was the motto of the Intercontinental Stabilization Trauma Response Company.