Chapter 27: a.s.sa.s.sin Agency
Bone mapping technique?
Lin Shen was stunned. He didn"t know someone in this world could actually recognize people based on their bone structure!
Since the elderly man mentioned Lin Shen bought Dragon Spear with 20 spirit coins, he was obviously not bluffing.
At the very least, Lin Shen would rather believe the elderly man could recognize people through their bone structures than him being a cultivator master.
All the thoughts quickly went through Lin Shen"s mind. Lin Shen stopped feigning a puzzled expression, glanced at the elderly man, and snapped at him.
"Even if you can recognize me, don"t expect me to help you a second time!"
With that, he was about to leave.
Of course, the elderly man wouldn"t let his only savior leave. He anxiously stopped Lin Shen.
"Wait a minute, young man. I won"t let you help me for nothing this time…"
Lin Shen cut him off. "I don"t need your secret manuals."
"It"s not a secret manual. I have a piece of important information about you!"
Lin Shen raised his eyebrows. "Important information about me?"
"Yes, that"s right. I promise it"ll be worthwhile!"
Seeing Lin Shen stop, the elderly man heaved a sigh of relief and smiled apologetically.
"If you help me this time, I"ll tell you the information."
Lin Shen wouldn"t have it. "Tell me the information first."
"Well …"
"Forget it!"
"No, no, no…" The elderly man quickly stopped Lin Shen and agreed with a bitter expression. "I"ll tell you."
Only then did Lin Shen stop to listen.
The elderly man cleared his throat and said in a low voice, "Someone wants you dead!"
Lin Shen"s pupils contracted, but he didn"t say anything. He used his eyes to signal the elderly man to continue.
"Someone spent 300,000 spirit coins on your life in Lurking Snake. The bounty was just put up this morning!"
"What"s Lurking Snake?"
"The most famous a.s.sa.s.sin agency on the black street. They specialize in accepting employers" a.s.sa.s.sination requests. After that, they"ll post the requests for someone to take the order, and Lurking Snake will take a commission!"
"Who wants to kill me?"
"I don"t know about that." The elderly man spread out his hands and then revealed a fawning smile. "How about that? This information is enough for you to help me once!"
Lin Shen took a deep breath and calmed down. He turned to look at the thin man and the others.
"How much does he owe you?"
"500 spirit coins!"
Without another word, Lin Shen threw out five spirit coins worth 100 each.
After receiving the spirit coins, the pet.i.te man"s gloomy expression immediately eased a lot. He glared fiercely at the elderly man and returned to the shop with his men.
After the three of them entered the shop, Lin Shen turned to the elderly man and asked, "What"s your name?"
"Well, my surname is Wu. Many people call me Old Wu."
Lin Shen nodded. "Take me to Lurking Snake."
He wanted to see if Old Wu was telling the truth.
If Old Wu was lying, Lin Shen would kick this liar"s a.s.s.
If what Old Wu said was true, Lin Shen would have to think of a way to stop it.
Old Wu had obviously guessed what Lin Shen was thinking. He chuckled and turned around to lead the way.
As an a.s.sa.s.sin"s agent, Lurking Snake"s headquarters was naturally located in the darkest part of the black street.
Led by Old Wu, the two of them took many turns and walked for a while. Finally, they entered a small alley and stopped in front of an iron door.
"This is Lurking Snake"s headquarters." Old Wu pointed at the iron gate.
Lin Shen looked around.
They were in the back alley of a building.
The iron gate was in the middle of the alley. The walls on both sides were mottled. On the right was a spiral iron ladder covered in rust. On the left were black garbage bags piled up like a small mountain, emitting a nauseating stench.
The door was covered with a sheet of iron, and someone had painted malicious graffiti on it with chalk.
There was no handle on the door. It was bare except for an inconspicuous keyhole and a peephole.
Old Wu was smart enough to knock on the door.
Light footsteps came from behind the iron door. Someone approached and seemed to be checking the ident.i.ty of the people outside through the peephole.
After a few seconds, the iron door creaked open. A tall man with a tattoo on his right arm poked half of his body out and frowned at Old Wu.
"Old Wu, what are you doing here?"
"Why can"t I come?" Old Wu snorted. "Didn"t I bring someone here a few days ago?"
"It"s quite easy for you to earn your guide fee!" The tall man clicked his tongue and looked at Lin Shen. He sized him up expressionlessly. "Are you here to make an order or accept one?"
]Lin Shen immediately understood what he meant and said in a low voice, "I"m taking an order!"
The tall man gave him a long look and moved aside.
"Come in."
Lin Shen and Old Wu walked in.
Behind the door was a cramped room. Other than two sofas, there was no other furniture.
Three burly men with pugnacious looks sat on the sofa and looked at Lin Shen and Old Wu warily. Clearly, they were some sort of guards.
There was an entrance at the far end of the room and a long corridor behind it.
The tall man led Lin Shen and Old Wu through the corridor and finally arrived at a place that looked like a bar.
There were seven or eight people scattered in the dim bar. They were either drinking silently or quietly reading a stack of paper.
The tall man pointed at a man in a bartender"s uniform behind the bar and said to Lin Shen, "Just talk to him if you want to take an order."
Without waiting for Lin Shen"s response, he turned around and left.
"Are things done so casually here?" Lin Shen asked in a low voice.
Old Wu grinned. "a.s.sa.s.sin agencies are existences that can"t see the light of day. How can they have the right to check the ident.i.ty of someone who wants to take an order? As long as you can pay the mission deposit, who cares about your background and strength?"
Lin Shen nodded in understanding and walked towards the bar.
The bartender had long noticed his and Old Wu"s presence. Seeing Lin Shen walk over, he casually threw a list over and wiped his gla.s.s as he said,
"It"s your first time here, right? This is the mission brief. Pick the mission you want to accept first. Then look for me to get the detailed mission description!
"First of all, you have to pay a per-mission fee to view the details of a mission. In addition, you have to pay a 10% deposit in advance for accepting the mission. If you fail to complete the mission after the deadline, the deposit will not be refunded. If you complete the mission, this 10% deposit will be considered our commission."
Lin Shen nodded. Without another word, he picked up the list and looked at it carefully.
"No. of target: 1. Mid-level personnel of a company. Qi Transformation Level 6. Difficulty rating: D medium. Reward: 400,000. Time limit: 10 days."
"No. of target: 1. Martial arts school instructor. Qi Transformation Level 9. Difficulty rating: D advanced. Reward: 650,000. Time limit: 15 days."
"No. of target: 1. Ordinary member of the Martial Enforcement Hall. Qi Transformation Level 9. Difficulty rating: C medium. Reward: 1.5 million. Time limit: 30 days."
The description of the missions on the list was very concise.
Lin Shen even saw the mission to a.s.sa.s.sinate a member of the Martial Enforcement Hall.
The member was also at Level 9 of the Qi Transformation Stage, but the reward was more than twice that of the previous one. The difficulty ranking was also two levels higher.
But it was very normal.
After all, a.s.sa.s.sinating a member of the Martial Enforcement Hall was no different from stroking a tiger"s whiskers. Afterward, the Martial Enforcement Hall would spare no effort to get back at the a.s.sa.s.sin!
Who would dare to accept such a mission?
They might not have the chance to spend the money they earned from this mission!
However, Lurking Snake dared to accept such a mission, which meant it must be extremely well-connected.
Lin Shen clicked his tongue in wonder and continued reading.
Suddenly, his expression froze.
"No. of target: 1. Student of Willow Academy. Qi Transformation Level 5. Difficulty Rating: D minor Reward: 300,000. Time limit: 10 days."