Chapter 1 Long Time No See

"Yo, isn't this Captain Kai? Long time no see..."

The voice echoed through the tenement, and everyone could hear the mockery in it.

The "Steam Party" guys were high above, surrounding the Green Street gang at the bottom of the tenement.

The leader was none other than "Redhead" Kuntu, who had appeared at the Elephant Tavern before. He looked at Kai with an easy smile of assured victory on his face.

...

Suren looked at the enemies, his expression becoming serious. "Two Professionals, this is a bit troublesome..."

"Redhead" Kuntu's alchemical implant was the [Flame Lizard], with the main material being the oil gland of a flame lizard, an unpopular and somewhat useless cursed material. But this implant gave him super-high fire resistance and the ability to manipulate flames. With the addition of some refined flamethrowing mechanical devices, this guy became a "pseudo-fire mage."

His clever combination of mechanics and implants was the mainstream "new school" alchemist.

Although he wasn't as agile as a pure first-tier old school fire alchemist, and his main body wasn't as strong as a normal Professional, his lethality was not inferior. The key was that the casting process was cheaper.

It was like lighting a fire with a lighter versus lighting it with concentrated light; the paths were different, but the result was the same (limited to the low-level spell domain).

As "new school," the Steam Party preferred mechanics over alchemy.

For them, alchemical implants were just auxiliary tools, while mechanics were the focus. Although this clever approach resulted in a low upper limit for the implant, there was no upper limit to the mechanical modifications added. Moreover, implants with low curse characteristics were less effective, but the chance of aberration was correspondingly smaller, making them suitable for more people with less talent.

However, Kuntu alone did not have much of an advantage against Kai.

In a one-on-one fight, the high-agility assassin-type Kai would clearly have a higher chance of killing the pseudo-magic-type Kuntu.

But obviously, the enemy had also thought of this.

Another guy who had unlocked his implant appeared in their team.

That was a guy in a black trench coat, wearing an octopus metal mask, with a dark, metallic sheen on the exposed skin of his hands and neck.

When Suren saw this guy, he instantly matched him with the information in his head: "The captain of West City Thirteenth Street District, 'Steel Gorilla' Sith!"

Since he knew that the Cross Society and the Steam Party would clash from time to time, he had done his homework during this period, and had some understanding of the abilities of some famous Professionals from the opposing gangs.

This "Steel Gorilla" Sith had awakened the beast-transformation talent [Talent C-071-Ape]. This ability allowed him to transform into a giant ape like a werewolf, with a significant increase in the strength, speed, and toughness of his body.

It was a very good close-combat talent.

Moreover, this guy had also obtained a niche alchemical implant of [Salamander Iron Skin], combined with a super-tough "metal bionic skin" researched by the Steam Party, allowing him to obtain super-strong defense that could withstand muskets after unlocking the implant.

Therefore, Sith had the title of "Steel Gorilla."

"A bit tricky..."

Suren knew from this situation that they were probably targeting Kai.

One could fight, and the other could defend.

Although Kai's [Blade] was sharp, it could cut people in half with almost every strike.

But obviously, this "Steel Gorilla" was targeting this kind of assassin.

At least Kai's blade would not be able to kill him in a short time.

...

"'Redhead' Kuntu is not much of a threat, although his fire control ability is strong, his attack range is limited..."

This Kuntu was not much of a threat in Suren's eyes after becoming a Professional.

His attack methods were monotonous, and the attack direction of the mechanical flamethrower was very predictable.

Moreover, his marksmanship, which had now advanced to "Advanced Proficiency," was enough for Suren to use the "kiting" method to turn that guy into a bloody sieve.

But there was also the "Steel Gorilla" Sith.

Suren narrowed his eyes slightly, and looked at the trench coat man upstairs, pondering in his heart: "I wonder if the 'armor-piercing alchemical bullet' can penetrate that guy's goggles..."

Without real combat data, it was difficult to judge.

According to legend, this guy had a record of withstanding alchemical bullets...

The only apparent weakness, his eyes, were also hidden behind goggles with runes, which did not seem easy to break. Moreover, since it was one of the few "weaknesses" on his whole body, that guy would definitely guard it carefully.

Suren felt that it was not scientific to choose these two Professionals as the first attack targets.

Because the most troublesome situation now was not the two Professionals, but the number of enemies!

There were nearly fifty enemies, with dozens of guns and rocket launchers aimed at the Green Street gang.

Under concentrated fire, there would inevitably be casualties.

Suren was not sure that he could avoid the concentrated fire in the first place.

But for him, there was also some good news... that was that most of the guns were aimed at Kai.

After all, in the eyes of those people, only Kai, the Professional, was the biggest threat.

Thinking of this, Suren's gaze began to wander...

...

Gang fights were also a daily occurrence for the gangs.

The veterans were also mentally prepared, and could die in a firefight with rival gangs at any time. But the newbies all seemed a little at a loss.

Probably because of this group of newbies trembling in the face of death, the Steam Party guys did not act immediately.

It was like a hunter who saw his prey fall into a deep trap; he would not kill it immediately, but would appreciate his masterpiece.

"Redhead" Kuntu looked down from above and smiled, "Captain Kai, yo, you don't look so good?"

"Heh... Is this all you Steam Party guys are capable of? Running away with your tails between your legs at the Elephant Tavern last time, and now you want to play dirty?"

Kai mocked mercilessly.

Then, he whispered to the gang members beside him, "Most of their attention is on me. I'll attract the firepower later, and you guys find a chance to attack. Prepare for a desperate fight, everyone..."

Surrender was impossible. Gang fights could only end when one side was wiped out by the other.

Everyone had this awareness.

Suren's adrenaline was soaring as he was pointed at by a gun.

He was also mentally prepared to face unexpected events, so there was no surprise on his face.

However, after careful observation, he also noticed something strange.

Suren's super eyesight allowed him to clearly see that among the pile of gunmen upstairs, there were actually two guys staring at him with their scopes.

The moment he made eye contact with those two, he was sure that he really had "special treatment."

Suren was also very strange in his heart: "Huh... why are those two guys staring at me instead of aiming at those veterans and Kai?"

The other gunmen were casually aiming at the crowd, but the gazes of those two gunmen were very precisely locked on him.

Suren's thoughts turned, and he immediately realized: Could it be that he had been too close to Big Shot Qian Tiao before, and someone had taken notice of him?

Thinking about it, he couldn't help but purse his lips slightly. It seemed that he should avoid getting involved with big figures in the future, otherwise he would easily be taken care of by the enemy.

...

Since he had observed that he was being targeted, Suren did not act rashly, but instead slowly loosened his grip on the shotgun in his hand.

In the eyes of the enemy, this was a non-threatening action that could make people relax their vigilance.

But others did not know that Suren was rapidly analyzing the situation in his mind: "The exit of the tenement must have been blocked. After the first round of concentrated fire, only by escaping into that 'cave' is it possible to use cover and the darkness to kill the enemy..."

The location of the Green Street gang was very awkward. There was almost no cover in this bottom level except for a few load-bearing pillars.

The enemies were high above. If they fought head-on, the Green Street side would be wiped out in an instant.

Therefore, Suren decided to strike first.

The feeling of adrenaline soaring made his body excited.

He licked his lips, and a strange ferocity appeared in his eyes, "Another killing spree..."

...

Suren knew very well that he had a "dangerous personality."

This was what the juvenile detention center's mental therapist diagnosed after he killed those hooligans when he was twelve years old.

But he didn't think it was another self. It would be more accurate to say that "he" was a part of his emotions.

Later, the learning and therapy at the juvenile detention center also taught Suren to precisely manage this part of his "emotions."

This allowed him to split off certain negative emotions in his daily life, such as violence, fear, killing, lust... or even pain.

Suren used to think this was a "disease."

Later, he discovered that it was also a way to protect himself.

When encountering danger, letting certain specific emotions erupt could stimulate potential.

It was like the news in his previous life about a young mother who, in desperation to save her child, moved a several-ton car with her bare hands.

It was like he was able to kill those strong hooligans at the age of twelve.

That was a potential called "hysterical strength."

The scientific explanation was that in extreme situations, hormones in the human body would rush out of the adrenal glands, flow into the blood, and spread throughout the body. This would fill the muscles with surplus oxygenated blood, allowing them to exert more strength. But this process was also accompanied by danger, with a high probability of causing various bodily tissues to collapse and die.

Suren wasn't sure if his situation was like that.

But once "he" was released, his body would become very excited, hormone secretion would explode, and his strength and nerve reactions would increase dramatically...

Now, being pointed at the head with a gun, he felt that feeling again.