My career aspirations have come true.

Chapter 16

"Brother Chao, wake up!"

In the dimly lit room, the stench of cheap incense mixed with the stench of tobacco and alcohol lingered.

The scantily clad woman shook Tian Chao's shoulders violently.

Tian Chao groggily opened his eyes, angrily slapped the woman's hand away, and yelled in a hoarse voice, "What are you howling about? You've ruined my sweet dream!"

"No, no..." The woman shrank back and glanced towards the door. "There seems to be something going on outside."

Tian Chao frowned, realizing that something was amiss.

Although his second-floor lounge was soundproofed, he could still faintly hear music and shouts from the dance hall below. But at this moment, it was completely silent outside.

This is very unusual.

"Stay here."

Tian Chao pushed the woman away, quickly put on his clothes, then took out the enchanted pistol from his equipment inventory. He crouched down behind the door, held his breath, and listened for a long time, but there was still no sound.

After hesitating for a moment, he slowly turned the doorknob and poked half his head out.

The corridor was completely silent, without a single person in sight.

"Where have those damn bastards gone to slack off again?"

Tian Chao cursed under his breath, suppressing the inexplicable unease in his heart, and quietly walked into the corridor.

blah blah blah!

Just then, a soft footstep sound came from the direction of the stairs.

Tian Chao tensed instantly, raised his pistol sharply, and aimed it intently at the corner at the end of the corridor.

The footsteps grew louder as they approached, and soon an unfamiliar figure turned the corner and came into his view.

The moment he saw the unfamiliar face of the person who had approached him, Tian Chao pulled the trigger without hesitation.

The Gunslinger's signature skill, [Rapid Fire], is activated instantly!

Bang bang bang!

A deadly net woven from deadly metal descended upon the approaching figure.

Swish!

A chilling sword light suddenly burst forth, swirling into a rapidly leaping ball of light, dancing so densely it was impenetrable.

Ding Ding!

A series of sharp, cracking sounds erupted, and countless sparks flew and flickered around the young man—the marks of bullets colliding at high speed with sword blades.

When the halo faded, the young man remained motionless. Instead, a row of bullet holes of varying depths appeared on the walls and floor on both sides of the corridor, with gravel and wall dust falling down in a flurry.

"!!!"

Tian Chao's eyes widened, his expression as if he had seen a ghost.

What kind of reaction speed is that?

Before he could recover from his shock, the newcomer had already rushed forward in the blink of an eye.

In a dimension imperceptible to Tian Chao's naked eye, less than ten centimeters above his head, a guillotine mark suddenly appeared, seemingly drawn with blood, so crimson it was almost dripping with blood.

Execution mark!

Mark an enemy, increasing the damage dealt to them for the duration, and greatly increasing your movement speed towards them.

In the blink of an eye, the distance of more than 20 meters was traversed.

Lin Ze flicked his wrist, and the longsword slashed horizontally with a sharp whooshing sound. Before the blade even arrived, the chilling sword energy had already made Tian Chao's cheek sting.

"Damn it!"

Tian Chao was terrified and, disregarding his dignity, he rolled backward in a disheveled manner while simultaneously pulling the trigger.

"Go to hell!"

boom!

The bullet exploded half a meter from the muzzle, and the scorching flames instantly engulfed the young man's figure. The temperature in the corridor soared, and the carpet was even scorched black.

Elemental Infusion!

It can add fire/frost/lightning effects to bullets.

"Did you hit it?"

The thought had just crossed Tian Chao's mind when he caught a glimpse of a blood-red streak of light out of the corner of his eye. The figure that should have been engulfed by the flames had mysteriously appeared beside him.

A flash of crimson light!

The fierce sword light swept out again, so fast that it left only a blur.

puff!

Tian Chao's head flew off with a thud, his pale face still frozen with a look of bewilderment, fear, and disbelief. Hot blood gushed from his headless neck, splattering the entire carpet red.

Swish!

A rich red light peeled away from the corpse and disappeared into Lin Ze's brow like a weary bird returning to its nest.

Deep in my mind, the beautiful rhomboid crystal had solidified to about one-fifth.

"The soul energy of a level 2 professional is still substantial, while the soul energy of a level 1 professional is pitifully small."

Lin Ze glanced at the corpse on the ground.

This guy is the manager of Huanye Disco, and also the only Level 2 professional.

Their strength wasn't bad, but unfortunately, ranged classes like the Demon Gunner were most countered by the Executioner, and they were tragically killed in just two or three rounds.

Lin Ze then arrived at the door of the room where Tian Chao had come out and kicked the door open.

"ah!!"

A sharp scream suddenly rang out from inside the room, and the woman on the bed curled up in a ball, trembling violently.

Lin Ze glanced at her, but there was no trace of the red aura that represented evil. She was clearly just an ordinary woman of the night. So he withdrew his gaze and turned to leave without looking back.

Reaching the end of the corridor, he pushed open the window, leaped into the air, and landed with his knees slightly bent to deftly dissipate the impact. Then, he pushed off with all his might, rushing like a whirlwind into the shadows of the alleyway ahead, instantly disappearing into them.

......

Meanwhile, in the living room of apartment 403.

Lin Ze abruptly sheathed his sword, exhaled a long breath, and a thin layer of sweat slid down his jawline.

He opened the panel and glanced at it, only to find that the experience bars for each skill had increased by varying degrees in an instant.

In just two or three minutes of combat, the skill experience points gained are equivalent to two or three hours of training.

"Indeed, for professionals, real-world experience is the best way to increase skill experience."

"This kind of effect is already seen in real-world combat; I wonder how the potential points will work in dungeons?"

A sense of anticipation rose in Lin Ze's heart.

Legion members have a fixed number of dungeon entries per month, the exact number depending on their rank.

For example, a private first class has five opportunities to enter a dungeon each month.

Lin Ze checked and found that the North District branch currently only has one instance – [Blackthorn Tower].

The challenge level is 2-4, which is most suitable for low-level professionals.

As for higher-level challenge dungeons, you'll have to go to the Crimson Lotus Branch.

"I'll apply for the challenge instance tomorrow."

Having made up his mind, Lin Ze put the weapon into his equipment inventory and headed towards the bathroom.

I worked up a sweat during training, so I'll take a shower before going to sleep.

......

The next morning, as soon as the sun rose above the river, Lin Ze stepped into the office of Special Operations Team Eight on time.

As soon as I entered, I saw Tang Wangshu and Zhuang Yi chatting in front of the computer, with a gloating smile on Zhuang Yi's face.

"What happened?" Lin Ze asked as he walked over.

"An announcement was sent out on the intranet." Zhuang Yi pointed to the computer screen, his tone relaxed. "Last night, the Blackstone Society's Huanye Disco was raided. One Level 2 professional and thirteen Level 1 professionals died. Tsk tsk, a heavy loss."

"Oh? Who did it?" Lin Ze feigned surprise.

Zhuang Yi shrugged: "I don't know. I heard the Black Stone Society is like a madman, searching the entire North District for the attackers."

Tang Wangshu pondered, "The announcement said there was only one attacker. To be able to single-handedly take down so many professionals in such a short time, he must be at least a Level 3 professional. Not long ago, a Black Stone Society executive was assassinated in the street. Could it be the same person who did it?"

"Who cares? The more Blackrock members die, the better."

Zhuang Yi shrugged dismissively and changed the subject.

"I'm planning to challenge a dungeon, do you guys want to come along?"

Lin Ze smiled and said, "What a coincidence, I was just thinking the same thing."

"Count me in," Tang Wangshu said, raising her hand as well.

Lin Ze glanced around but didn't see Pei Xuan. He casually asked, "Where's Pei Xuan?"

Zhuang Yi curled his lip and said, "That guy went to the treatment area, probably to curry favor with the team leader."

Having been classmates for four years, they had long heard about Pei Xuan's sycophantic nature and naturally didn't have a good impression of him.

Lin Ze raised an eyebrow, unconcerned, and left the office with the two of them, heading towards the training area.