"Mr. Cheng, it's nice to see you again."
Cheng Shanshui, who was anxiously waiting for the results, heard someone greet him. He looked up and saw a man standing in front of him. It was an assassin who had once refused a commission, codenamed Larson, a formal Scorpion-level Assassin.
"Oh, it's you. Is there something you need?"
Larson said calmly, "I'm available recently and can accept your request."
Cheng Shanshui's eyes lit up, then dimmed again, and he said with a wry smile, "I'm sorry, my commission has already been taken."
Once a contract is established, it cannot be changed; this is the rule of the Blood Pact Union.
Larson was slightly disappointed upon hearing this.
He was from Red Maple and came to Hesla to visit friends and travel around. He hadn't originally planned to do any missions, but when Cheng Shanshui approached him, Larson refused because the reward was too low.
After a few days of free time, Larson got a little itchy and decided to take on some simple jobs nearby. He immediately remembered Cheng Shanshui, whom he had previously turned down, and that's why he approached him. However, he didn't expect that someone else would beat him to it in just one day.
Larson was annoyed, but knowing he couldn't break the rules, he could only walk away and order a drink at a nearby bar.
He had just taken two sips when his phone suddenly rang. He looked at the caller ID and saw it was Yue Youzhu, a long-time customer who had previously entrusted him with his business.
"Hello, Larson," came the man's voice from the other end of the phone.
"It's me, Mr. Yue. What can I do for you?" Larson asked casually.
I have a request for you.
Larson's eyes lit up. "Tell me the situation."
"I want you to help me get rid of someone."
"Who?"
The information has been sent to you.
This is a private job, so it won't be kept secret.
Larson took out his tablet and suddenly looked up at Cheng Shanshui not far away—that was the target of the commission!
"What do you think?" Yue Youzhu asked, as the sound of a group of people coming down the stairs could be heard over the phone.
"I accepted it," Larson said calmly.
"Okay, I'll have someone from _Book_ transfer the prepayment to..."
"Bang!"
Suddenly, the sound of someone falling to the ground came through the phone, followed by a faint gunshot. Larson's body stiffened abruptly; he recognized the sound as Sniping rifle. Then came the panicked shouts of a group of people. Yue Youzhu remained silent. Larson immediately realized that Yue Youzhu had been killed.
"He only fired one shot and killed more than a dozen bodyguards and guards. He's a very skilled Sniping." Larson's Tu Shu hardened slightly as he figured out the key point. It seemed that Cheng Shanshui's request was to assassinate Yue Youzhu, and the two were enemies.
"Cheng Shanshui is waiting for someone; we'll see who the assassin is in a moment." Larson's eyes flashed.
Based on the intelligence provided by Cheng Shanshui, Han Xiao found a tall building a few hundred meters away from Yue Youzhu's business base and aimed from above. He originally wanted to Sniping Yue Youzhu from the window, but found that he had walked out of the door, making it easier for him to take action.
Yue Youzhu was surrounded by more than a dozen bodyguards, but they were practically useless to Han Xiao.
His latest creation, the [Spindle-Shaped Piercing Bullet], has extremely strong penetrating power against non-metallic targets. The bullet pierced through the body of a bodyguard, and with its remaining momentum, it accurately struck Yue Youzhu's heart.
One Shot, One Kill.
Assassination an ordinary person was far too easy for him; there were no unexpected twists or turns whatsoever.
The disturbance here would attract the police, Han Xiao had already changed his appearance with Simulation Mask and easily slipped away. Afterwards, no one could find him; it was practically an escape magic weapon.
Back on the 23rd floor of the Vitalia Hotel, Cheng Shanshui, who was restless, immediately stood up, looking very nervous.
"Resolved."
Cheng Shanshui relaxed completely and subconsciously checked his watch. From the time Han Xiao set off until now, only forty-five minutes had passed. Excluding the travel time, the actual killing only took less than ten minutes.
That's too fast!
"Pay now."
"Uh, okay." Cheng Shanshui looked respectful, took out a briefcase containing 100,000 yuan, and handed it to Han Xiao.
[Assassination Commission) ] Completed. You have gained 25,000 experience points.
Cheng Shanshui left, his steps light and quick, as if he had been relieved of a heavy burden.
Han Xiao pressed the table bell to call the waiter, preparing to continue accepting the bounty from the Rose Armed Forces, when he suddenly sensed something and turned to look to the side.
Is someone watching me?
Beside the bar, a man was scrutinizing him. Han Xiao didn't know who the man was, but the look in his eyes was clearly one of provocation and scrutiny.
Han Xiao narrowed his eyes. He had no scruples now and didn't want to be stared at with hostility, so he suddenly mustered his courage and threw a cold glare at him, conveying a universally understood, simple message:
What are you looking at!
Larson froze, feeling locked onto by a terrifying hostility. A strong sense of danger washed over him, and he quickly averted his gaze, at which point the feeling of crisis vanished.
Within seconds, cold sweat appeared on Larson's forehead.
"Such a dangerous aura, this guy is not to be messed with!"
Larson quickly dismissed his ulterior motives, hurriedly paid the bill and left, not wanting to stay a moment longer.
"We meet again."
Han Xiao chuckled at the waiter.
The waiter, who had never seen a newcomer become a full member so quickly before, clicked his tongue in amazement and said, "You have officially become Scorpion-level Assassin. Higher-level privileges will be available to you. You will receive junior VIP treatment at the Vitalia Hotel in other cities."
Han Xiao suddenly asked, "Where do I rank on the Dark Web Assassin Ranking?"
The waiter said helplessly, "Only the highest-ranking assassins can be ranked at the top of the list. Your current ranking is at least outside the top thousand."
As he spoke, he opened his handheld computer, brought up the assassin ranking list, and showed it to Han Xiao.
Han Xiao glanced at the list and nodded secretly. At this moment, the top ten assassins on the list were around level 40 on average, and their strength was not top-notch. Only the top three assassins were truly terrifying, with levels close to the 1.0 version cap. The assassin ranking list looked at mission experience and deeds. For players, they had to complete missions to get on the list. There was also a Mercenary Ranking next door, which followed the same principle.
The combat strength of Planet Aquamarine is not high. In the early stages of the open beta, players will rarely encounter strong individuals above level 40. Those strong individuals at levels 50 and 60 are the top combat force on Planet Aquamarine. They are basically leaders of major forces, hidden secret weapons, reclusive lone wolves, or super criminals who commit heinous crimes. They generally do not appear in front of the world (and players), forming another circle of strong individuals.
You'll only have a chance to meet them by completing missions or becoming stronger...
These thoughts flashed through his mind. Han Xiao opened the bounty board, pointed to one of the bounties, and said, "I want to take the bounty from the Rose Armed Forces."
"Okay, the request is being processed, please wait."
The waiter wrote it down on a piece of paper, tore off the page, rolled it up, put it into a specially made metal cylinder, went behind the counter, and inserted the cylinder into a round metal pipe, with the inlet fitting perfectly with the diameter of the cylinder.
With a "poof," the cylinder was suddenly sucked into the pipe.
The cylinder travels at high speed through the pipe, passing countless intersections and occasionally flashing past other cylinders. Before long, the cylinder arrives at a new exit.
This is a spacious room, laid out like a customer service call center, with rows of tables, each with several computers. Office staff sit in front of the computers processing documents, and there is a cylindrical pipe next to each table.
A man in black working in the office pulled a slip of paper from a cylinder, Warning his fingers on the keyboard, and quickly entered the contents into the computer.
Bounty Target: Rose Armed Forces (Armed Organization)
"Requirement: Annihilate all targets."
"Initiator: The Chaisrod Family"
Location: Somar Desert
"Date of initiation: November 17, 685"
Bounty: Three million Aquamarine Dollar
Difficulty Assessment: Hard
Mission Log: 685.11.27, Codename - Hall (Dark) [Dead]
685.12.11, Codename - Blood Hand (Dark) [Dead]
686.3.10, Codename - Demon Flower (Dark), Freeman (Dark) [Dead]
"Mission Intelligence Update: The Rose Armed Forces currently have between 80 and 120 members, including four superhumans, leader Luo Qing (Esper Class), instructor Dorothy (martial artist), instructor Ghost Fox (martial artist), and an unknown (suspected mechanic). Their area of operation is the Somar Desert."
"Authorizing... Authorization successful."
"Task log updated."
"688.4.1, codename - Mr. Black (Scorpion) [Result to be recorded]."
At the same time, Han Xiao also triggered a new mission.
[You have triggered a Grade C mission [Bounty Hunter) ]!]
[Mission Hint: The Somar Desert is home to many factions: wanderer settlements, armed mercenary groups... But why does this desolate region attract so many forces? Perhaps it's related to some past events; maybe you should explore it.]
[Mission Requirements: Annihilate the Rose Armed Forces; Time Limit: 15 days]
[Task Reward: 150,000 Experience Points]
[Special Reward: 250,000 experience points, unknown rewards]