Chapter 1: The Magical Mission

"This is your reward for going to North Africa." The old man, Lin, carefully took out two crumpled hundred-dollar bills from a well-wrapped piece of cloth and handed them to Lin Yi, who was eagerly watching him.

Lin Yi couldn't understand why the missions he carried out were so dangerous, his enemies so powerful, and the benefits the clients received so substantial, yet his own rewards were so meager.

Where did the old man get these top-notch missions from? Each time it was a matter of life and death, and the rewards he received were fifty, a hundred, or even just a few dollars... Whenever he thought about this, Lin Yi wanted to cry.

Taking the two hundred dollars he had earned with his life, Lin Yi most wanted to curse, "Damn it!" Although he was an orphan and had no mother.

He had learned martial arts and studied for fifteen years under the old man who raised him, and he could be considered a well-rounded talent. In ancient times, he would have been a dual champion in both literature and martial arts, yet he was treated like a laborer... When would this life end?

He heard that people who built houses in the city could earn tens of thousands of dollars a year, while he, who faced life and death every day, could only earn a thousand or so dollars a year...

"Old man, are you playing me? Two hundred dollars? I seriously doubt you're not withholding my reward," Lin Yi had suspected this many times, but the old man dressed and ate the same as him, and didn't look like a rich person.

"Getting any money is good. Do you think money is easy to earn these days?" The old man rolled his bulging eyes and said irritably, "What? Don't you want it? If you don't want it, give it back to me. I haven't been to the village head's widow's snack shop for a long time."

"..." Lin Yi really wanted to beat up the skinny old man in front of him, but he knew that if he did, he would be the one getting beaten.

The old man's martial arts skills were so formidable that Lin Yi himself didn't know how strong they were. He only knew that every time he practiced with him, the old man never used his full strength. When his own skills improved to a new level, he suddenly found that the old man had also improved, and he was still the one who lost.

"Alright, you've been trained enough over the years. It's about time for that big thing," the old man didn't even raise his eyelids, sitting cross-legged on the bed, munching on a dish of fennel seeds in front of him, "If you do this mission well, you'll never have to worry about food and shelter for the rest of your life!"

"Really?" Lin Yi knew that since he was picked up by the old man at the age of three, he had been learning martial arts, medicine, and knowledge from the outside world, all for the sake of doing something big. However, Lin Yi doubted whether the reward for this big thing was as much as the old man said, that one mission could support him for life.

"When have I ever lied to you?" The old man threw another fennel seed into his mouth, "Are you going or not? If you don't go, I'll find someone else."

"Of course I'm going!" Lin Yi thought, such a good thing, only a fool would refuse! One mission for life, he wouldn't have to face life and death every day anymore. Even if it was a dragon's den or a tiger's lair, it would be worth it to fight!

"Hmm, then go. Go to Songshan City, Pengzhan Group, and find a man named Chu Pengzhan. He will tell you what to do next," a faint smile crossed the old man's lips, "But think carefully, once you take on this mission, you must see it through, and you can't quit halfway."

"Why? Can't I run away if it's dangerous?" Lin Yi wasn't the type to blindly charge into danger.

"Lin Yi, I've raised you for fifteen years, fed you, and given you a laptop and a 3G card..." The old man rolled his eyes and started to nag, "You have so many questions about doing a little thing. Don't push me!"

"Damn!" Lin Yi was furious at the old man's words, "The first three years you raised me, but from the age of six, I cooked, chopped wood, and made shoes to earn money to support you. Don't push me!"

"You sneakily watch porn on the computer at night, don't think I don't know!" The old man glared, "This is what you made me say! You even... in front of the computer..."

"Alright... I'll go... I won't run away, okay?" Lin Yi's face turned red, not expecting that his secret activities were known to the old man. It was embarrassing. If he continued, who knows what inappropriate scenes he might reveal.

Thus, under the old man's threats and inducements, Lin Yi packed his bag and boarded the northbound train, traveling a long distance to Songshan City, a modern international metropolis.

On the train, Lin Yi thought about encrypting his porn and hiding it in the system files, and being more cautious when doing such things.

However, Lin Yi was still looking forward to this mission. A mission that could make him retire was something he had dreamed of. Although from the old man's words, he could sense that this mission was not simple. Well, not simple means a challenge!

"Snap," the man with a pockmarked face sitting opposite Lin Yi opened a can of cola and casually threw the pull tab on the table.

The man with a flat-top, pretending not to notice, picked up the pull tab and fiddled with it. After a few moments, he suddenly shouted, "Wow! Wow! Wow! First prize!"

Although the flat-top's voice wasn't very loud in the noisy train carriage, the nearby passengers heard it and looked over.

The pockmarked man, of course, was no exception. Seeing the pull tab in the flat-top's hand, which he had just thrown away, his face turned awkward, "Give it to me, it's mine..."

"Yours? Where does it say your name?" The flat-top quickly pulled back his right hand, tightly gripping the pull tab, and glared, "Are you named 'First Prize'?"

"No... I'm not called 'First Prize'... That pull tab is mine..." The pockmarked man, intimidated by the flat-top's fierce appearance, was hesitant but didn't want to lose what was rightfully his, so he stammered.

"You said you threw it away. Once you throw it away, whoever picks it up owns it," the flat-top snorted, disdainfully.

"Hey, how can you be like that?" The pockmarked man became anxious and called out to a passenger opposite him, who was sitting to Lin Yi's left, a bespectacled man, "Sir, you look like a scholar. Please judge, is this not being unreasonable?"

"Who's being unreasonable?" The flat-top was also annoyed and turned to the bespectacled man, "Teacher, what do you think? Who should the pull tab belong to?"

"Hmm..." The bespectacled man pushed his glasses up, hesitated, and said, "I am a university teacher. Since you both trust me, I'll give you my opinion."

"Please, please!" The pockmarked man and the flat-top both nodded, anxiously looking at the self-proclaimed university teacher.

"Logically, the pull tab was pulled off by this brother, so it should belong to him..." The bespectacled man said halfway, and the pockmarked man looked smug, while the flat-top became anxious, about to speak, but the bespectacled man waved his hand to stop him and continued, "However, since this brother has already thrown it away, and it was picked up by this other brother, it should belong to the one who picked it up..."

"But you said it was mine..." The pockmarked man's face fell when he heard this.

"In my opinion, why don't you two split the prize? That way, neither of you will lose out!" The bespectacled man suggested.

"Split...?" The flat-top hesitated, bit his lip, and said, "Alright, let's split it."

Perhaps the flat-top felt his argument was weak, so he agreed to the bespectacled man's suggestion. The pockmarked man, seeing the pull tab in the flat-top's hand, realized that if he didn't agree, he might get nothing, so he also nodded in agreement.

"Alright, since you both agree, let's split it." The bespectacled man took the can from the pockmarked man, looked at it, and said, "It says here that the first prize is 100,000 yuan. After deducting 20% personal income tax, 80,000 yuan remains. However, since claiming the prize is complicated, whoever goes to claim it should give the other person 30,000 yuan, and then go claim the prize. What do you think of this idea?"

"Alright!" The pockmarked man, eager to get some money, immediately agreed, "You give me 30,000, and you go claim the prize!"