Janus Quarter, inside a high-rise building on Fourteenth Street.
Nicole led Su Chen and the others, weaving through the building in search of a safe exit.
"Damn it, why are there Red Fang Gang members everywhere?!"
Nicole leaned against the wall, her breathing unstable.
No matter where they went, a group of Red Fang thugs would inevitably appear to block their path.
"Maybe this is their main base, or they've mobilized most of their people because of that safe?"
Su Chen speculated aloud.
He knew well what was inside that safe—a powerful AI named [Fairy]. Not only was it one of the keys to triggering a major event, but also an essential tool for Hollow exploration.
Although the Red Fang Gang was just hired muscle and had no idea of the safe's true value.
Still, the employer must have paid them handsomely—enough to make the gang go all in.
"Makes sense." Nicole nodded in agreement, then suddenly heard the sound of pursuers. "Damn it, they're on us again. Go left!"
"Don't let those thieves get away!"
"Especially that bastard who took down so many of our brothers!"
The sharp sound of footsteps and curses followed closely behind.
"Hey, bro, you're quite the popular one!"
Billy winked at Su Chen as they ran.
Even though Billy's eyes were lightbulbs, Su Chen could clearly sense his teasing.
"No choice. All part of covering for you guys!"
Su Chen shrugged helplessly.
"Less talking, keep running!" Anby grabbed Nicole, who was falling behind. "They're catching up!"
After a long chase, they burst into a sealed room.
There were no other exits—only a large floor-to-ceiling window.
"Looks like we've hit a dead end."
Nicole pressed a hand to her forehead, visibly frustrated.
"We can smash the window and get out through there!"
Billy pointed at the window, glancing at Nicole.
"Looks like a Hollow down there, doesn't it?" Nicole rubbed her chin. "Whatever, escaping is our priority. Billy, can you break it?"
"Of course! Leave it to me!"
Billy saluted, then drew his pistol and fired at the window.
The bullet struck dead center—but...
Whoosh!
It ricocheted straight back, grazing Billy's face.
"Tss!"
Billy's electronic eyes blinked like a crashing stock chart.
"Ricochet. It's bulletproof glass."
Anby stated flatly.
"Damn it, I knew it wouldn't be that easy!"
Nicole frowned deeply.
"Want me to give it a shot?"
Su Chen pulled out Ebony, giving it a casual twirl in front of Nicole.
"No use. That's reinforced bulletproof glass. Billy couldn't even scratch it."
Nicole glanced at Su Chen's pistol and shook her head. "That little thing of yours..."
"What, already forgot what happened earlier?"
Su Chen chuckled.
"..."
Nicole remembered.
She had called Su Chen's gun a toy earlier—only to be proven very wrong.
She sighed, "Alright, give it a try."
Su Chen adjusted his angle.
After ensuring any ricochet wouldn't pose a threat, he pulled the trigger at the window.
The muzzle of Ebony flared with a bright, foot-long tongue of flame.
Bang!
Crash!
The window shattered on impact.
At some point, Billy had recovered and now stared at Su Chen and Ebony in disbelief.
Same kind of gun—why was Su Chen's so much stronger?!
"Whoa whoa whoa! Your partner is amazing!"
Billy's eyes glowed as he gave Ebony a huge thumbs-up.
"Don't say weird things like that." Su Chen rolled his eyes. "You can just call it Ebony."
Ebony was a high-caliber handgun with sniper-level performance—worthy of its rare blue-tier classification.
Its power was immense, with recoil strong enough to launch someone into the air.
Only Su Chen's powerful physique allowed him to wield it with ease.
"Impressive, but the hole's too small. We need it bigger."
Nicole examined the shattered section of the window.
Being bulletproof, it hadn't shattered completely—just partially.
"Then I'll shoot again."
Su Chen shrugged. Bullets were cheap anyway.
Just as he raised his gun to fire, a cold and furious voice rang out.
"You won't get another shot!"
Miguel Silver appeared at the doorway with a group of henchmen.
Dozens of gun barrels pointed at them. One wrong move, and they'd be riddled with bullets.
"Ahem."
Su Chen remained unfazed, drawing Ivory into his right hand—dual wield activated.
Anby readied her electric blade, Billy brought out both pistols, and Nicole's briefcase clicked into combat mode.
Miguel stared at the four of them, recognition dawning on his face.
He didn't know who the new guy was, but the others were unmistakably Cunning Hares.
"Universal Agency—Cunning Hares!"
"Why... why did you steal from us on Red Fang Gang turf?!"
Miguel leaned on a straight blade, tears streaming—whether fake or real was unclear.
They had started fake, but after losing twelve men, some genuine sorrow had seeped in.
"That safe was stolen from a research facility by you guys. We were just hired to return stolen property." Nicole scoffed. "Don't make it sound like we're the bad guys."
"Cut the crap! You killed so many of our brothers. Hand over the safe, and I might let you die with a whole body!"
Miguel dropped the act, eyes blazing with rage.
If it was just the safe, he might've kept pretending. But twelve dead comrades? The Public Security forces were already en route—he didn't have the luxury of stalling.
"We're dead either way. Why would we hand it over?"
Su Chen quipped, eyeing Miguel.
"The unknown fourth member of the Cunning Hares." Miguel narrowed his eyes at Su Chen. "You must be the one who killed my men."
As he spoke, all guns previously aimed at the group now turned toward Su Chen.
Dozens of thugs stared, frightened and furious.
Clearly, Su Chen had left quite the impression.
"Yep, that's me."
Su Chen didn't flinch.
He had Concept Skill: Dodge. As long as he rolled, he'd enter invincibility frames.
He was already considering taking them all down.
But then he remembered that sleek, black-furred little cat... So, he shelved the thought. Let Public Security handle them.
"Twelve bullets in two seconds. Twelve dead brothers." Miguel's face was like thunder. "With aim like that... who the hell are you?!"
That moment—those twelve shots—kept replaying in Miguel's mind.
Twelve shots. Twelve corpses. One even fell right in front of him.
If not for that guy shielding him, he'd be dead now.
And someone like that—why would they be coming after him?
"So badass?!"
Billy and Anby looked at Su Chen, stunned.
They had pieced together that Su Chen was a sharpshooter—but this level?
Twelve headshots in two seconds? That was god-tier marksmanship.
Even Nicole was utterly shaken. She'd seen a few bodies go down but didn't realize all twelve had died.
Looked like she'd picked up something—or someone—extraordinary.
Twelve? All dead?!
Even Su Chen looked surprised.
He had aimed near their hearts—not expecting a 100% kill rate.
All twelve bullets must've hit dead center. That was harder than scoring twelve headshots.
As expected, tenfold-enhanced Yàn Shuāngyīng was a beast. "Point and shoot" wasn't an exaggeration at all.
Miguel saw the shocked expressions on all four faces and nearly exploded in fury.
Those were their own kills—why the hell were they acting surprised?! Especially the shooter himself!
"What the hell are you pretending for?!" Miguel shouted at Su Chen. "Tell me—who are you really?!"
"New hire at Cunning Hares. Just a nobody from New Eridu."
Su Chen blinked innocently.
"Still lying?! Someone like you can't just be a nobody! Who are you?!"
Miguel barked, signaling his men.
Bullets exploded near Su Chen's feet.
Su Chen glanced at the bullet holes—completely unbothered.
He sighed and said, "Since you're asking so sincerely... I'll be magnanimous and tell you."
"I go by another name elsewhere—[Half-Man Half-Ghost. The Gun God]."
It was a title originally meant for Yàn Shuāngyīng, earned from sheer fear and awe.
Su Chen, having fused with the tenfold version of Yàn Shuāngyīng's gold-tier card, found it quite fitting.