Chapter 11: Be the Reaper

Zhou Qi waited for a few seconds, peering into the darkness. He took his time, waiting until his eyes got used to the dark.

This was supposed to be a normal day. Zhou Qi's side-hustle and relaxation, his favorite hobby. Looting, I mean, local criminal cleansing.

Zhou Qi never thought that he would face something more.

With his steps mum of any noise, Zhou Qi wiggled his way around. The place was covered with a disturbing rotting smell. And he knew it came from humans. It was something familiar especially during the beginning of the void quakes. Something common during the early zealot attacks five years ago.

The scent of death.

Zhou Qi pinched his nose and continued his warehouse exploration. As he moved, he was shocked. He thought that there was only one cage. Never did he thought that there was quite a lot.

"One, two, three, four, five, six…."

Then, Zhou Qi stopped counting. Zhou Qi kept the silence along with each of his steps. Even though there was no one guarding the room. He still wanted to avoid unnecessary panic and noises.

A few shouts of 'Save me' wouldn't fare well for anybody. The abominations in human form outside would rush here if they heard anything. It was something that would alert the stupid guys outside.

He heard many captives crying their heart out. Even when the lights were on, this place would remain dark.

There were also a lot of people with dead eyes. They don't care about anything anymore. It was prevalent among the women captives. Seeing this, Zhou Qi cursed inside his heart.

"Bullshit! These fuckers are dead meat. Are they even still human?"

Zhou Qi's wrath peaked after seeing the story state of the captives. He couldn't imagine what kind of suffering these ladies had undergone. He wished he could just tear the neck of all those guys outside.

Zhou Qi could do it, but he chose to wait. Based on the size of the warehouse, there were more than one of this room. He couldn't risk anything yet. He must wait for reinforcement. He would hate himself if the captives in the other rooms suffered due to the crossfire.

"Damn."

Zhou Qi also realized that he only brought his wooden bat. No pistol or any protection. He started envying those guys on the upper ranks. Those guys don't even need armor or weapons. With their power, a swipe of their hands would crush cities.

They're like global-range flying swatters. Even nuclear warheads don't work on them.

Ding!

_____________________

Mission Updated

When Fools Lose their Minds (2)

Mission Introduction: Your mission is now updated. The system had felt your anger. Your turf or not, when you see a devil dress like a human, smashed their guts! Wipe these devils from the face of the planet earth. I want the f*ckers dead!

Mission Requirements. Dead devil smugglers 0/53, Save captives 0/507, Search for more information.

Mission Grade: [F- (System Notes: F*ck this!)] [E-(New!)]

Rewards: Krav Maga Book (Master), Pistol Mastery (Expert), Random Class skill, +Stats, +Influence

Failure Penalty: Death

_____________________

"The heck is it really my anger or yours!?"

Zhou Qi looked at the failure penalty and laughed inside his heart. His gift was starting to release its true colors.

The first time he encountered the death penalty was against the former Lord of the slums, Stupid Bu. He was still weak back then.

With the help of many people, he managed to take down that blockhead. Fatty Jin's wit. Sasa's indomitable will. Cheng Shi's ghost-like skills. He succeeded. It was not a one-man show.

These types of missions were high-risk missions with high rewards. After facing it last time, he learned his lessons. This time, he didn't panic. He also thank the system for the Sharp Mind talent it gave. At least right now, he was not engulfed by anger or stupidity.

"Class Talents."

_____________________

Sharp Mind: +20% better understanding and processing information.

Hard worker: +10% faster improvement in learning.

Will of Mercy: +5% charm power.

_____________________

Zhou Qi understood that the talent was working within him. After receiving the talent, he felt like his brain was greased with a performance drink. His thoughts clear. Processing information was also easier, putting less burden on his brain.

It was also one of the reasons why he helped the kid named Zhai Baiwu. Though his wrath flared up a little, making mistakes. He still wanted to thank the boy as well as help him. He doesn't want the innocent boy to become like him.

The face of the boy made him see his past hateful self. He asked for help but couldn't even help himself.

Fate loved playing with him.

Zhou Qi climbed back to the big windows again. He jumped like a cat. He moved his wooden baseball bat away first, making sure that it would not make any noises. With finesse, he climbed up to the roof.

"The hell! I almost thought that the roofs were made of galvanized sheets again."

It was fortunate that it was all-stone. So, Zhou Qi didn't manage to leave any shoe-sized prints. Zhou Qi dashed again, checking first the position of the armed dumb mutts.

It seemed like he would have free reign.

He saw the armed men all alert. No, anxious would be a better word. They were still hiding in the boxes. They were like sardines-in-a-can.

He also saw the dogs who beat up the crying man. The fools were sweating bullets.

"The fools thought it was a sniper!" Zhou Qi held his breath, trying not to laugh.

Zhou Qi lowered his head, punched the stone roofs a little. He made a few pebbles from it. He then aimed at the legs with one of his eyes closed. Then, he threw the pebble as if it was a bullet.

Soon, a cry was heard. A heart-wrenching cry.

He struck one of the dumb mutts in the leg. He saw blood dripping from his leg. Zhou Qi made sure to crush the bone.

In Zhou Qi's mind: 'Even though I can't kill you yet. I could still make you suffer.'

"Dexterity is really useful."

He then threw the pebbles at random. Most of it struck the boxes or the ground.

The dumb mutts shuddered. They thought that many snipers were aiming at them. One move and they are dead.

The struck mutt tried to run inside the warehouse, planning to escape. He limped while crying. He was shouting that he still doesn't want to die.

When the dumb mutt tried to run, Zhou Qi had set his sight on him. Zhou Qi looked down and threw a few stones.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

…

The first one struck the other leg. A bone crushed once again.

The second one struck the shoulder, making the mutt scream in pain.

The last one struck his head!

The dumb mutt fell like a withered leaf.

"One."

The other dumb mutts watched in horror. They almost pasted themselves on the thick boxes. It seemed like they were both scared and scarred.

Zhou Qi heard a man shouting in fear: "A bad shooter, damn!"

Zhou Qi almost rolled on the floor. On the battlefield, the best thing to have was an easy death. An instant death. No suffering or anything at all. A bullet in the head, then you're gone. The ones the soldiers, hired-guns, and goons hated the most were bad shooters.

These guys could shoot you to death. But you will not die fast. You would undergo the torture of a lifetime, agonizing, and suffering in extreme pain. A bad shooter misses the target when the enemy needed it the most.

The armed buffoons huddled together. Avoiding any open spaces where the bad shooter could shoot them. The dumb mutts trembled under the threat of an imaginary sniper. A bad shooter at that!

"Mission."

Mission Requirements: Dead devil smugglers. 1/53, Saved captives 0/507, Search for more information 0/1.

"Tsk, I want to kill more. Anyway, it would take time before they realize anything."

Zhou Qi wanted to clean everyone up once and for all. Unfortunately, he might aggravate the remaining goons inside. Those fools might shoot his precious exper-, I mean precious lives inside. Thus, Zhou Qi chose safety as his top priority.

Zhou Qi also has to complete the other missions.

Zhou Qi jumped down, clasping into one of the windows again. He saw another room. This time, he saw something gruesome. It was dead bodies tied hanged like butchered pigs.

Zhou Qi realized something. His mind went blank for a second.

The people he was supposed to save was not only 507.

Wrath rushed to Zhou Qi's head, his eyes turning bloodshot. He thought that his anger had already peaked. But he was very wrong. He gritted his teeth.

"Animals!"

Disasters bring the worst of humanity.

His hands shook. He pulled up his phone and took a picture.

He immediately climbed to the other windows. He refused to take another look. He feared that he might lose control.

"Mission. Saving. Mission. Save them. Save them. Save them. Must Save."

Zhou Qi moved faster, chanting along the way. With his brain filled with emotion, he thought hard, formulating a plan. He took a picture of whatever it was.

Soon, Zhou Qi arrived in an empty room. No one was inside. With dexterity, he punched the window. But before that, he reached out to his pockets. It was a few pebbles. At once, he threw them to the side where the dumb mutts were.

That would keep them at bay.

He also broke the damn window before jumping inside.

It was an office room.

Well, a not-so-office one. It was an armory. Guns and ammunition were lying in boxes on a long table. There were Ak-47, AR-15, FN 5.7 caliber semi-automatic pistols, and others. There were also a few military hardware and programs.

The dumb mutts weren't only drug smugglers and human traffickers. They were also weapons smugglers.

Zhou Qi remembered one of his mission.

"Missions."

Mission Requirements: Dead devil smugglers. 1/53, Saved captives 0/507, Search for more information 0/1.

"Information."

Zhou Qi searched for any papers or anything that could be considered as information. A minute passed, he found a slip of paper hidden under an ammunition box.

It was an address and an order.

"Basil Street, Ice Street. Bring the goods."

"So it was really related."

Zhou Qi locked the door with the long table. Blocking it with all the furniture inside the room.

Ding! Mission Requirements Completed: Search for more information.

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Mission Activated

Be The Reaper.

Mission Introduction: You managed to find a critical lead. Your aim now is to search and destroy. The mission could be labeled as 'extremely hard'. Don't go solo or your dead. It's still too much for your level. So, the system would offer you a big reward. A big gift worthy of the mission's difficulty. Rejoice!

Mission Requirements: Destroy the Main Base. Kill the Wielder (0/1)

Mission Grade: E+

Rewards: Gift Random, +Stats, +Influence

Failure Penalty: Death

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Zhou Qi's eyes swam after he saw the reward. A Gift! Although, it was also a high-risk high reward mission. The system was very generous!

Though, this time he must also fight a wielder. Thorough planning is required.

Zhou Qi knew he must take this on. He had no choice.

The cogwheels of his brain ran. It was creating and crafting the best possible solution. He used all his brain cells. Along with his sharp mind talent, he wished for an ideal plan.

…

Zhou Qi closed his eyes, concluding and analyzing what he must do. The neurons on his head on a full-blown exercise.

A few seconds passed, his brain had found the answers.

…

"Damn! And it was pointing to Fatty. What's your use bro?!" Zhou Qi scratched his head.

If Zhou Qi's brain could only contradict its owner.

It would react like this: "Damn you feel you're smart with an Intelligence of 6?!"

"How about comparing the number of my neurons with Fatty's Intelligence of 9."

"You dumb? Or I dumb?!"

Zhou Qi picked up his phone again. He checked and searched around his phone contacts. He tapped the word 'Fatty Chin'. He clicked the phone icon.

The phone rang.

The other side picked up.

Zhou Qi heard the mouth-watering crunches from the other side. Fatty was eating like a boss again.

Before Zhou Qi could even say anything. Fatty Jhin laughed out loud, booming from the other side of the line.

"Finally realized that I'm still smarter than you?"

"…"

…

"I'll take your silence as a yes! Haha!"