"When shall we move?"
"Anytime, as long as you're ready," Tang Shu replied.
Han Xiao nodded in agreement.
In his last life, a large guild had discovered this prize-pool quest. For the sake of maximizing profits, the guild announced news about the quest onto the forum, attracting tons of gamers. This caused the prize pool to increase to huge figures, and eventually, they managed to complete the quest, receiving the huge amount of rewards.
Now, Han Xiao was the first person to do the quest, and although he would not accumulate the prize pool to such an extent, the initial base prize was his to begin with. The main difficulty of this quest was that anyone possessing an antique would drop it the moment they were killed, making the quest a competition between the players. Thus, the quest was more difficult than usual. However, in Han Xiao's case, simply stealing the antiques from the municipal museum was a much easier task.
Han Xiao had no other competitors, so he decided to act immediately.
Tang Shu glimpsed and turned, rubbing his hands.
"How shall we split the reward?" he asked, smiling humbly in the process.
Han Xiao waved his hands. "I don't need that reward of yours. Let's act quickly—I have limited time to work with."
Upon hearing that Han Xiao did not need the monetary reward, Tang Shu immediately heaved a sigh of relief.
Hang on, if he isn't after the money, why is this uninvited guest participating in the heist?
Li Xin's heart began beating loudly, and scenes of various dominant CEOs came into her mind. Her two hands were place over her heart, and she stared at Han Xiao in adoration. "Could it be because of me that you…"
"You are thinking too much."
…
Han Xiao and Tang Shu spent over an hour traveling to the other end of the city to get to the Municipal Museum.
It was already late into the night, so the gates of the Municipal Museum had closed, and the surrounding streets were deserted. However, CCTV was surveilling the area around the clock.
The two of them hid in the alley across the street opposite the Municipal Museum. Tang Shu held onto the map and explained the plan.
"The Municipal Museum has three floors in total. The first and second floors are exhibition halls, and the third floor is the staff area. Here are the blueprints. Our goal is on the north exhibition area of the second floor. I have already surveyed the area; the showcase is equipped with laser alarms and a proximity detector. If we are one meter within the vicinity, we will trigger the alarm. There are resident guards around the museum, and we cannot alarm them. My plan is to sneak in from the window of the third floor, and then… Hey hey! where are you going?"
Tang Shu had yet to complete his sentence when Han Xiao walked toward the door of the Municipal Museum with wide strides. Tang Shu could not call him back in time as Han Xiao raised his foot and kicked the front door open and flying. The sound of the slamming doors travelled through the entire street.
Tang Shu was dumbfounded.
What on Earth! What about the plan of sneaking in‽
Han Xiao turned toward Tang Shu and shouted, "Why are you still daydreaming? Get in now."
"What on Earth are you doing‽" Tang Shu was stunned.
"That plan of yours is too complicated. It's just a museum; at the most, only a few cops will appear. Don't waste time playing Assassin's Creed; playing Berserk is the best option."
Tang Shu had already noticed residents popping their heads out of their windows, curious about the source of the boom, and someone was bound to call the cops within three minutes. Tang Shu, with a sullen look, had no other choice but to follow behind Han Xiao. He could only hold onto the that hope that Han Xiao was actual reliable, despite how unlikely that would be based on what had just happened.
The two of them ran to their target on the second floor. Han Xiao broke the showcase without much hesitation and took the ten antiques. Such extreme behavior immediately triggered the alarms, and the museum's guards, awoken from their sleep, rushed over.
"Thief!"
"Catch them quickly!"
Han Xiao ran with the antiques in his arms, while Tang Shu followed behind hurriedly.
They were soon back at the entrance of the Museum, only to see four cops already blocking the way out.
Han Xiao, with the antiques in his arms, was unable to raise a fist, so he turned to Tang Shu. "It's your time to shine."
Tang Shu pointed at himself with a look of disbelief. "Do I look like someone who can fight to you? You chose this plan, so shouldn't you be the one to fix the situation?"
While they were still conversing, the guards rushed over.
"Stop hesitating." Han Xiao kicked Tang Shu's butt, and he flew toward guards. "There, I gave you a boost!"
The guards swung their batons. Tang Shu was terrified, and he anxiously took his crowbar out to defend himself and fight off the guards. However, his head was beaten into a bad shape in one round of fighting. He could not take the pain and rushed back to Han Xiao, crying, "It's impossible. I'm just too weak."
"Tsk, let me teach you a mysterious spell that would double your combat ability. Say it after me, RUA!"
Then, Han Xiao kicked the Tang Shu back toward the group of guards while he was still confused by what was happening.
Tang Shu was not able to go against Han Xiao, and he became extremely furious. He could only vent his anger by hitting hard on the guards, and he managed to take down two guards. However, he was soon concussed by a strike to the back of his head from one of the guards, and as a result, stars started appearing before his eyes. He ran back to Han Xiao, crying out desperately, "I really can't do this anymore. I am begging you. You have a gun, and you can fight so well. Can you please finish them off‽"
"I can't help you even if you beg me." Han Xiao did not move an inch, and without a second's hesitation, he kicked Tang Shu back into the fight scene for the third time. "I'm supporting you in spirit, and if you really need, I can give you a buff to enhance your combat ability."
Tang Shu was in a tight spot. He eventually took down the guards with much effort. His face was fully battered, and he was panting heavily. Suddenly, he felt a gush of wind blowing past him—Han Xiao had run out of the door.
"You'd better wait for me!" Tang Shu followed behind closely, flustered and exasperated.
When the two of them walked through the alleys and passed by a grocery store, Han Xiao smashed open the door and searched for several large backpacks from the store. He then placed the antiques inside and stuffed them with sponges to prevent any damage. He felt much more comfortable after emptying his hands.
The alarm suddenly sounded, and the four police officers who were patrolling nearby quickly rushed over. They blocked the entrance of the alley. As they saw Han Xiao, who was carrying the bags, they immediately drew their guns and aimed him.
"Don't move!"
To the side, Tang Shu was dumbfounded.
Suddenly, Han Xiao grabbed Tang Shu's throat and used him as cover. He took out his pistol at pointed at Tang Shu's head. "Place all the guns on the floor! I have a hostage!"
Tang Shu was stunned beyond comprehension.
What kind of plan is this‽
The four cops had looks of disbelief on their faces. They were lost for words. A young cop could not help but say, "Who are you trying to kid? He's your accomplice!"
"Tsk, I guess that plan didn't work." Han Xiao pouted.
Tang Shu turned his head around and shouted at Han Xiao, "Did you actually think that could succeed‽"
"Well, I was just trying my luck. We had nothing to lose anyway."
Han Xiao then threw the bags into Tang Shu's hands and grabbed him by his collar. Within a split second, he activated his Electromagnetic Hover-boots and rushed toward the entrance of the alley. The four cops were shocked by the bursting speed, and they simultaneously fired their guns in his direction, but his magnetic armor deflected all the shots.
Han Xiao's crossed his arms, and using the extreme speed at which he is moving, he rushed toward the cops like a bowling ball.
Strike!
The wind gushed past them, and Tang Shu's mouth was wide open whilst he was being dragged by Han Xiao. The wind gushed down his throat, and his lips fluttered as a result.
Even though Han Xiao noticed Tang Shu was in a state of discomfort, he still decided to increase his speed further.
…
It was a bar in Seagull City. Lights were shining, and music was thumping. The dance floor was full of impassioned men and women moving their bodies, with a look of intoxication. The extravagant atmosphere could be felt.
Volcano and Hunter were each with a beautiful lady, caressing them all over their bodies. The table was filled with liquor bottles.
Both of them were a little drunk as they walked out of the bar with their beautiful ladies. They were intending to go to a nearby hotel for the night.
After turning into a small alley, Hunter stepped onto a pool of stagnant water. The sound of the splashing water could be heard clearly in the quiet alley.
The night wind blew, and the two of them started to slightly sober up.
Even in such a drunken state, they kept their basic vigilance, constantly observing their surroundings. They had noticed the stalker from Division 13 early on, but they had chosen to ignore it.
However, they failed to realize that, in the air behind them, a pair of eyes opened wide.