Villain? No, I'll catch up with the protagonist after passing the civil service exam.

The piercing howls echoed back and forth in the empty underground air-raid shelter.

The sound was too loud. The old incandescent bulbs overhead hummed and resonated along with it.

With a sharp "crack," the glass lampshade, unable to withstand the high-frequency sound waves, shattered one after another.

Shards of glass fell with a clatter, splashing onto the red wine soup scattered on the floor, releasing a few drops of sticky, dark red liquid.

Qiu Kun lay sprawled on the large solid wood desk.

His fingers gripped the edge of the table tightly. His fingernails curled outwards, drawing blood, and scraped against the wood with a piercing screeching sound.

He was like a wild dog cornered in a dead end. His throat made a wheezing, broken bellows sound, and his chest heaved violently.

"The money is gone. All of it is gone."

He clenched his back teeth, his mouth filled with the taste of rust.

The large iron door to the basement was forcefully pushed open from the outside. The hinges were dry, and the friction produced a harsh creaking sound.

Black Wolf stormed in with a dozen or so fully armed mercenaries. Their heavy leather boots clattered and rattled over the shards of glass scattered on the floor.

"Boss! The guys outside say the main control server has crashed, and our accounts are locked?"

Black Wolf yelled in a rough voice, his face contorted with bulging muscles, and large beads of sweat covered his forehead.

Qiu Kun suddenly raised his head.

A few greasy strands of hair clung to his forehead. His eyes were bloodshot, staring intently at the group of people who had stormed in.

"It wasn't locked. It was wiped clean."

He grabbed the remaining half-bottle of red wine on the table and smashed it hard at Black Wolf's feet.

Red wine splattered all over Black Wolf's trouser leg. He didn't dare dodge and swallowed hard.

"So, are we going to starve? The guys down here are waiting for their resettlement pay this month!"

A skinny henchman chimed in, his voice trembling.

Qiu Kun ignored him.

He turned around and stumbled toward a load-bearing wall behind his desk.

He pressed a few keys on the hidden keypad on the wall.

A dull creak of mechanical gears meshing filled the air. The wall split open in the middle, revealing a cold storage room more than two meters high.

The camphor smell of the desiccant mixed with the cool scent of gun oil wafted out with the cold air, making one's hair stand on end.

Inside the cold storage, there were rows of black metal weapon cases stacked up.

"Cut off my livelihood. Then none of us will survive."

Qiu Kun reached out and pulled out a long, rectangular metal box, dragging it onto the concrete ground.

With a clang, the metal latch popped open.

Inside, a dozen or so strangely shaped firearms were neatly stacked. The barrels were made of transparent polymer material, with a ghostly blue energy crystal embedded in the center.

"Alien high-frequency energy cutting gun."

Qiu Kun grabbed a handful and threw them into Black Wolf's arms. The guns were heavy, and Black Wolf stumbled back half a step before catching them.

"This batch of goods was originally intended as a last resort for bidding on the dark web. We're distributing it all today."

The mercenaries' eyes lit up.

Several people quickly surrounded the box, scrambling to grab the equipment. The clanging of metal filled the air.

A man with a scarred face was fiddling with something that looked like a monocle. He pressed a button on the side.

A row of alien green characters flashed across the lens, emitting a faint electrical sound.

"Boss, do these night vision goggles really work?"

"Tactical equipment phased out by Sirius infantry. Equipped with thermal imaging of vital signs and microwave X-ray vision."

Qiu Kun tucked a spare magazine into the tactical slot on his waist with a crisp click.

"Even if the cops cut off all the power, they're just like bright light bulbs in your eyes."

Black Wolf held the cutting gun, licking his dry lips. His fingers rubbed against the trigger guard.

"Boss, this is a good machine. But where exactly are we going to make our fortune this time? Robbing an interstellar bank?"

Qiu Kun turned around. Leaning against the cold storage door, he rested his hands on his knees and caught his breath.

"Capital Police Headquarters. The evidence storage room on the third basement level."

The basement fell silent instantly.

All that could be heard were the heavy breathing of a few people and the noise of the exhaust fan running outside.

"City Police Headquarters?"

Black Wolf felt a chill run down his spine, and his hand holding the gun trembled slightly. "Boss, are you crazy? That's Lu Jingyan's headquarters! That kid knows sorcery, he can tear alien warships apart with his bare hands!"

The skinny person also shrank back, their calves cramping.

"Yeah, right. The brothers who went to the black market last time didn't even see how he made a move before they were pinned to the ground. Aren't we just going to get our heads taken?"

"Shut your stinking mouth!"

Qiu Kun suddenly rushed over and slapped the skinny man across the face.

The crisp sound of a slap echoed.

The skinny guy was spun halfway around after being hit, crashing into a metal bucket. His lip was cut and bleeding.

"You guys don't know anything!"

Qiu Kun, panting, pointed to the ceiling above him. "Our informant on the dark web already tipped me off!"

He walked back to the table, resting his hands on the wine-stained surface.

"Lu Jingyan's sinister system has long been stripped away! He's a toothless tiger now. Stabbing him with a knife will still make him bleed, shooting him will still kill him!"

The mercenaries looked at each other in bewilderment.

The fear in his eyes slowly faded, replaced by the greed and ferocity characteristic of a desperado.

"R-really, you don't have superpowers anymore?"

Black Wolf stroked the stubble on his chin. His rough fingers rubbed his beard, making a rustling sound.

"Nonsense. Otherwise, why would he have had to chase after that sniper himself on a beat-up bicycle when he was catching him at the mall last time?"

Qiu Kun let out a cold laugh.

He pulled a crumpled cigarette from his pocket and put it in his mouth. His hand trembled slightly as he tried to light it, and it took two tries to get it to light.

The pungent smell of tobacco filled the air, slightly masking the stench of blood.

"In the evidence vault, the power core of Sirius's main ship is locked up."

Qiu Kun exhaled a puff of thick, grayish-white smoke. The smoke blurred his face.

"That thing is worth 3 billion on the Andromeda black market. If we can get our hands on it, we'll never have to worry for the rest of our lives. We can fly our spaceship to our private planet for vacation every day."

Three billion.

These words were like a shot of adrenaline, directly injected into the vital arteries of this group of desperados.

Black Wolf's breathing became rapid.

He tossed the energy gun in his hand; the gun emitted a low-frequency hum, and blue light illuminated his fleshy muscles.

"If that kid really becomes an ordinary person, I can burn a big hole in that piece of junk that's the city police station's security door with one shot."

He turned around and yelled at the dozen or so brothers behind him.

"Stop standing there, you idiots! Put on your gear! Fill up all the power cells!"

A series of chaotic metallic clanging sounds suddenly filled the basement.

The clicking sound of the latches tightening and the scraping sound of the magazine being pushed into the chamber mingled together.

Several mercenaries helped each other put on the heavy alien tactical vests.

Some people were so excited that their hands were shaking so much they couldn't even tear open the nylon Velcro.

"Bring along a powerful jammer."

Qiu Kun threw the half-smoked cigarette on the ground and crushed it out with the tip of his leather shoe. "When we get there, we'll cut off their power supply. In the dark, we have alien night vision goggles; they'll be blind."

"Don't worry, boss. We're experts at this."

Black Wolf put on tactical half-finger gloves and cracked his knuckles.

"If Lu Jingyan dares to show his face, the brothers will burn him to ashes with their weapons."

Qiu Kun did not respond.

He walked to the back of the cold storage room. From a separate metal shelf, he picked up a heavy black tactical helmet.

The helmet features a fully enclosed bulletproof glass visor with a built-in independent breathing circulation system.

It felt heavy in my hand, and the polymer metal casing gave off a chilling coldness.

Qiu Kun put the helmet on his head.

The collar around the neck automatically locks in, making a hissing sound as it seals with air pressure.

He reached for the pistol at his waist. He flicked the safety off with his thumb.

Pinch the sleeve with your index and middle fingers and pull it back forcefully. The metal recoil spring makes a crisp clanging sound.

Qiu Kun donned his heavy tactical helmet and chambered a bullet: "Without that sinister superpower, Lu Jingyan is just a bleeding sitting duck. Tonight, reclaim the core!"