Chapter 120: This Is Not What We Agreed Upon

"Team Leader Zhou, you must leave now. Those are our orders—"

"The orders you received were to assist me," Zhou Shu interrupted, casting a sharp glance at the leader of the squad. "What, if I refuse to retreat, are you going to throw me off?"

Throw him off? They didn't have the guts to even think about it. If they were parachuting, even if Zhou Shu resisted, they could have a soldier forcibly drag him out. But with single-person flight packs, the weight limit was strict—it could only carry one person. If Zhou Shu didn't cooperate, they were truly helpless. And initially, no one had expected Zhou Shu to be so uncooperative!

The current situation was just absurd. You’re a sniper—why are you on the "front line"?

Seeing that they had fallen silent, Zhou Shu continued, "Good. Since no one has any objections, then listen to me: we’re going to wipe out those invaders together."

Left with no choice, the squad leader braced himself. "Team Leader Zhou, we have to report this to the command center."

"Report? What is there to report? Just do as I say!" Zhou Shu’s glare silenced the four men instantly.

His mental attribute was now over 4.3, with his strength and agility hovering around 3 and other stats above 2. His life magnetic field was incredibly powerful. He added a subtle pulse of psychokinesis, making them feel as if a sudden gust of wind had slammed into them. He wished he had the legendary "mental shock" ability, but for some reason, despite manifesting psychokinesis, that particular skill hadn't appeared.

As he spoke, several red dots appeared on the "mini-map" integrated into his abnormal perception—the very targets marked as "enemies." Since they were moving with Bai Huayue, they were undoubtedly enemies; it wasn't as if she’d brought them along to surrender.

"Get ready," Zhou Shu told the four soldiers. "Aim at the stairwell. When I say open fire, you fire."

The four soldiers: "..."

They were in too deep to retreat now. They had no choice but to follow through. "Understood!"

Perhaps this Team Leader Zhou had tactical command talent on top of his sniping prowess? They were overthinking it. In truth, Zhou Shu’s experience in individual combat was the most comprehensive, and frankly, they were hindering his performance.

His instruction to "fire when I say" was based entirely on his mini-map. He knew the enemy's movements like the back of his hand; the moment they appeared at the stairwell, he could coordinate the squad to strike instantly.

However... the enemies seemed clever. They reached the stairwell, and even as the command to "fire" was on the tip of his tongue, they didn't step out.

"Is Mr. Zhou Shu on the rooftop?" a strange, accented female voice asked.

"I'm not," Zhou Shu retorted irritably.

The woman didn't seem offended by his attitude. Instead, she laughed, "Hehe, Mr. Zhou Shu is truly adorable. I quite like you, so I’ve decided to give you a chance."

"If you join the Evolution Organization, you won't just be spared; you can immediately take the position of a Bronze-level leader. You’ll also receive a large amount of evolutionary material to accelerate your evolution."

Zhou Shu was stunned. Good grief—they weren't here to surrender; they were here to recruit him. And judging by her voice, she wasn't a native of the Great Qin Empire like Bai Huayue; she sounded foreign, perhaps from District 11.

It was literally a case of "The Imperial Army sent me to bring you a message."

Not only was Zhou Shu stunned, but Bai Huayue was also dumbfounded. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Wasn't the plan to kill Zhou Shu? Why was he suddenly being spared, and offered a Bronze-level leadership position?

According to her understanding, becoming a Bronze-level leader required being a B-rank superhuman. Zhou Shu, a first-level Demon-Slaying Practitioner who had only joined the Demon Suppression Bureau two months ago, what right did he have? At most, he was a C-rank superhuman. Was it because he was a superhuman sniper with high lethality? Or because he had invented the powered exoskeleton armor and had a promising future?

She had betrayed the Ascension Society, revealed Zhou Shu’s existence, triggered a war between the Society and the Demon Suppression Bureau, and had come personally to the battlefield to end his life. And since she was already B-rank, she had earned her place as a Bronze leader. Why would Zhou Shu get it just like that?

And she had begged to join, while Zhou Shu was being courted! Why!! Does this slut have her eyes on him?!

Bai Huayue nearly wore her indignation on her face. Kuri Kaoruko noticed, but she didn't care. Compared to a small fry like Bai Huayue, a high-quality target like Zhou Shu was what the organization really needed. Whether as an assassin to eliminate high-ranking targets or for his genius mind, he was far more important.

Unfortunately, such "temptations" were useless on Zhou Shu. While Kuri Kaoruko was speaking, Zhou Shu had already pinpointed her head based on the sound source and the red dot. Feeling the position was right, he pulled the trigger, and a 12.7mm tungsten-cored sabot armor-piercing round flew from the muzzle.

"Bang!"

"Ah!"

The bullet pierced through the wall. Zhou Shu heard a scream, but it wasn't the woman—it was some other poor sap. His sniper shot had actually been dodged! Even without activating Bullet Time, his aim was top-tier. The fact that it was dodged, even with the wall as cover, proved the woman's strength.

The shot had its effect, however. On the other side of the wall, Kuri Kaoruko, furious, clutched her blood-soaked left ear and shouted, "Take him out! Kill him!"

At her command, the remaining subordinates—minus the poor soul who had been headshot and rolled down the stairs—charged out with a roar. Two others didn't rush in; she held them back, ordering them to go downstairs and break through the top-floor windows to flank Zhou Shu from behind. She wanted to execute a "feint to the east, attack to the west" maneuver. Regardless of whether the tactic was perfect, it was what she had learned in District 11.

Standing behind Kuri Kaoruko, Bai Huayue didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the sudden turn of events. Ultimately, a sneer crept onto her lips, especially when she saw Kuri Kaoruko's severed ear.

*Serves you right, you bitch! Enjoy being one-eared from now on!*

The expression lasted only two seconds. When Kuri Kaoruko turned to look at her, Bai Huayue’s face quickly shifted to one of feigned anger, and she charged out with the others.

Outside, the sound of gunfire intensified. Only Kuri Kaoruko and Wu Xinghe remained at the stairwell.

Wu Xinghe, that old scoundrel, saw Kuri Kaoruko's ear bleeding and licked his lips. "Miss Kuri, although I specialize in poisons, sometimes poison can save a life. My saliva has healing properties; the female believers of the Ten Directions Society often come to me for treatment. Would you like to try it, Miss Kuri?"

He wanted to say that other parts of his body were even more useful and that the female believers preferred those, but considering Kuri Kaoruko's status, he held back.

"No need. Mr. Wu should save it for your believers. My bleeding has already stopped."

Kuri Kaoruko said calmly. When she moved her hand, the ear had indeed stopped bleeding.

Seeing this, Wu Xinghe didn't restrain himself; his eyes grew even more fervent. *This Japanese woman's constitution is impressive. If she were my test subject, my poison arts would definitely reach a new level.*

Kuri Kaoruko remained outwardly calm, but she felt utterly disgusted inside. If not for the organization's needs, she would have killed everyone on the scene! This place was revolting. Even though they were all illegal organizations defined by international and domestic standards—all mass murderers who did nothing right—she had never thought of the Evolution Organization as evil; she knew she was working for the future of human civilization.

And yet, what did she get? The organization actively invited Zhou Shu, and in return, they were met with gunfire. The Qin organizations that collaborated with them were equally disgusting. The organization’s work was truly difficult!