The Vitalia Hotel, a high-end hotel with 43 floors, has branches in major cities across Six Nations. It is backed by Dark Net Organization and only accepts members of the organization. Ordinary people are simply told that the hotel is "fully booked." It is a safe house and also a trading hall for various groups. Violence is not allowed here, and violators will be Pursuit endlessly.
After receiving the voucher, Han Xiao arrived at the Vitalia Hotel. The interior was elegantly decorated with Classical wooden furniture and a bar counter. The furniture was dark brown with a smooth, glazed sheen, and a tranquil atmosphere permeated every corner.
Han Xiao went to the front desk and showed the Blood Pact Union gold coins. A waiter led Han Xiao to the elevator and took him to the twenty-third floor.
Floors 22, 23, and 24 are the Blood Pact Union area. Floor 23 is the assassins' rest area and trading hall, where they accept employment, receive payment, and so on. There are also many entertainment facilities, such as bars, cafes, and restaurants.
Han Xiao handed over the dark gold coins to the receptionist on the 23rd floor. A waiter wearing white gloves greeted him, and the two sat down in a semi-private booth. The waiter held a black leather notebook and used a fountain pen to record the new member's information.
Please choose a code name.
Han Xiao thought for a moment and decided to come up with a flamboyant name, which might help Legend Points.
"Crimson Dynasty's Apostle-level Observer at Colton Star Cluster, ID number 9527."
The waiter looked puzzled but impressed.
The assassin list was filled with codenames like "Silver Fox," "Demon Serpent," and "Ghost," which were so tiresome. These unconventional, late-stage chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur) names would definitely catch the employer's eye and be exciting to look at... but they were just too long.
"Could you shorten the length a little?" the waiter coughed.
Hmm? I've only ever heard of people complaining about how short it is, never about how long it is.
Han Xiao thought for a moment, "Black."
The waiter was speechless. "That's way too short. A single-character code name is acceptable, but these color-themed single-character code names already have owners. The Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Cyan, Blue, Purple, and Rainbow teams are basically all veteran assassins who have been killed. The organization won't cancel their code names."
Han Xiao clicked his tongue, thinking to himself that naming someone was always a troublesome matter, no matter where you were. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Then let's call him Mr. Black."
"Mr. Black... okay."
This is a more appropriate way to address someone, so the waiter quickly wrote it down.
"You are currently a trainee assassin with a blank resume. You will need to complete one mission to be promoted to Scorpion Grade. Employers will select from the assassin list. Once someone chooses you, we will contact you. Alternatively, you can accept publicly available commissions and bounties, or take on private jobs. The guild doesn't have strict requirements for contract assassins, but we will take 5% of the bounty as a commission. If you have any questions later, you can call the front desk of the Vitalia Hotel."
"That makes perfect sense." Han Xiao nodded.
He joined the Blood Pact Union for two reasons. First, he wanted the large number of bounties piled up on the Dark Net, knowing that each of these bounties could trigger a lucrative assassination mission. Second, he wanted to gain some regional Legend Points by ranking in the top ten of the Dark Web Assassin Ranking.
With just over three months left until the public beta, it's time to accumulate a large amount of capital.
These are all bounty missions.
The waiter took out a tablet, brought up the bounty page on the Dark Net, and handed it to Han Xiao.
Han Xiao immediately spotted the most popular bounty on the Germinal platform, and the target was clearly himself.
"Zero, life or death at stake, bounty of five million, location: Stardragon West Capital... Heh, good luck!"
If he were to return to West Capital, he would definitely be restricted in his actions. Fortunately, he managed to slip away. Han Xiao chuckled to himself, wondering how long it would take for Germinal to realize that their efforts had been in vain.
His own bounty was the most talked-about item during this period, with Germinal relentlessly Pursuit him down. However, his bounty wasn't the highest; some of the backlog of bounties were much higher, some reaching tens of millions of dollars. These were almost all impossible to complete. For example, one bounty was for stealing top-secret information from a certain country. Given the tight security of the Thirteenth Bureau Bureau's underground mainframe, the success rate of this mission was less than one in a thousand, and the fatality rate was as high as ninety-nine percent. Nobody would do it; it was just hanging there for show.
He glanced at the bounties below and spotted a mission that targeted an entire mercenary organization called the Rose Armed Forces, which operated in the Somar Desert of the Southern Continent.
The Southern Continent is the continent where Stardragon Hesla is located, also known as the Southern Continent. It is vast and hot. In contrast, there are the North Continent, the Western Continent, and the Andia Continent located in the center of these three.
Han Xiao had chosen this task because it was relatively close by, and was about to accept it when the waiter suddenly paused, took out another computer, glanced at it, and said, "Mr. Black, we have a request for you."
Han Xiao was surprised. The information had only been uploaded to the assassin list five minutes ago, and there was already business?
"Your business is really booming," Han Xiao exclaimed sincerely.
The waiter was equally confused. "This is an exception."
What is a commission?
"The employer wants to speak with you in person." The waiter glanced at the computer and said, "He'll be there in about ten minutes. Please have a seat."
Han Xiao had no objection.
After waiting for ten minutes, a middle-aged man strode over. His hair was gray, and he looked prematurely aged, but his face was filled with deep sorrow. He entered the hall, looked around, and came to Han Xiao, saying in a deep voice, "My name is Cheng Shanshui."
Before accepting a commission, one cannot reveal the target's real name; only basic information can be obtained. Therefore, Han Xiao asked, "What is your fee? What is the enemy's defense strength and location?"
"Twelve to twenty bodyguards, located in Morning Wind City, with a reward of 100,000."
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow, "Only 100,000?"
This price wouldn't be enough to hire a hitman.
Cheng Shanshui nodded nervously. The other assassins immediately refused when they heard about his reward. He had only chosen a new assassin because he was broke and wanted to try his luck, which is why he approached Han Xiao.
"I'll take it." Han Xiao nodded.
Cheng Shanshui was overjoyed. He took out a stack of documents from his briefcase, placed them on the table, and slid them across to Han Xiao with his finger. "Yue Youzhu, the location is in Morning Wind City."
Yue Youzhu is a gangster in Hesla, always accompanied by twelve to sixteen bodyguards, all of whom are retired Reconnaissance soldiers. Not long ago, he expanded his influence into Morning Wind City. Cheng Shanshui, the local gang leader in Morning Wind City, could not withstand Yue Youzhu's invasion, and his power collapsed, leaving him all alone. So he decided to spend money to hire assassins to take Revenge.
After reviewing the information, Han Xiao signed the contract, and a notification appeared on the panel.
[You have triggered an Grade E mission [Assassination Commission) ]!]
Han Xiao didn't need to read the task requirements; he already knew them. He looked directly at the reward, which was meager—only 25,000 experience points.
"I'm leaving." Han Xiao stood up and turned to leave.
Cheng Shanshui hurriedly stopped Han Xiao and asked, "How long will it take you to complete the mission?"
Han Xiao paused, turned to look out the window. It was noon, so he said, "You haven't had lunch yet, have you?"
Cheng Shanshui was taken aback, not understanding Han Xiao's meaning.
Han Xiao glanced back at him and said calmly, "He'll be dead by the time you finish eating."
Cheng Shanshui's heart skipped a beat.
In his mind, an assassin needs to make preliminary preparations before killing a target, such as gathering intelligence and planning an escape route.
Is this Mr. Black arrogant or powerful?