PART 17

Jason loaded a new magazine and held his guns with both hands, remaining alert. He didn't recognize the man with the shoulder bag, but he knew another figure that he was expecting.

"I really want all the gangsters in New York to witness the fate of the leader of the dignified Russian mafia," he thought to himself.

What's in the bag?" Jason demanded.

The men groaned and gasped for breath, but remained silent.

Vladimir struggled to raise his head, his eyes bloodshot and his face contorted with rage. "Jason, you devil! I'll haunt you in hell!" he spat.

Jason didn't have time for empty threats. He raised his gun and fired three quick shots, each one piercing the heads of his targets.

The sound of gunfire echoed through the abandoned warehouse, bouncing off the walls like a macabre symphony.

As the smoke cleared, Jason surveyed the scene. The Russian mafia lay dead at his feet, their bodies still twitching. He couldn't help but feel a twinge of satisfaction.

"The villain died of too many words," he muttered to himself. "I guess I'll have to keep that in mind for next time."

Jason had always been ruthless, but he knew that in this line of work, it was a necessity. After all, there was no room for weakness in the criminal underworld.

[Ding! Kill 1 mafia, get 100 villain points, current progress: 815/4000]

[Ding! Kill Vladimir (Daredevil), get 500 villain points, the current progress is 1315/4000]

[Ding! [Start first is stronger] The task is completed, the reward is 500 villain points, the current progress: 1815/4000]

As Jason opened the shoulder bag, he couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. The sight of the stack of green US dollars brought a smile to his face. With a quick count, he estimated that there were four or five million dollars in the bag, enough to pay off his debt to Morgan.

After disposing of the bodies, Jason returned to the Mercedes-Benz and handed over $300,000 to Morgan. He also left $170,000 for Paul's wife and daughter, a promise he intended to keep despite Paul's unfortunate fate.

Although Jason was a ruthless criminal, he had a strict code of honor. He believed that keeping his word was the foundation of his reputation and survival in the dangerous world of the mafia

As Jason handed over the money to Morgan, he couldn't help but feel a sense of relief.

But as he turned to leave, Morgan's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Where are you going? I'll give you a ride," Morgan offered, a sly grin spreading across his face.

Jason hesitated for a moment, unsure if he could trust the man, but ultimately decided to accept the offer. He climbed into the passenger seat of Morgan's car, feeling the weight of the shoulder bag full of money beside him.

As they drove through the city, Morgan seemed in high spirits. "I thought it was just to make a deal, but in the end I got a great news for free," he exclaimed. "And I also watched a wonderful fire show by the way."

Jason remained silent, lost in his own thoughts.

"Send me to Nancheng!" he suddenly spoke up, breaking the silence.

Morgan raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Oh, so your safe house is in South City

Jason looked at Morgan incredulously and replied, "Are you crazy? I would never reveal the location of my safe house to anyone, especially not to someone like you who can't be trusted."

Morgan shrugged and responded nonchalantly, "Well, a cautious man. But in these times, it's better to be even more cautious so that you can live longer."

The Mercedes-Benz sped towards South City, passing by dozens of police cars and fire trucks. It seemed like half of Manhattan's police force had been deployed to deal with the aftermath of the apartment bombing, mall shooting, and now the warehouse explosion in Hell's Kitchen. The police in Manhattan were surely going to be working overtime.

The media, always eager for sensational news, would never have to worry about running out of material to report on.

Jason arrived at an alley in Nancheng and stepped out of Morgan's Mercedes-Benz. He walked towards Paul's apartment with the shoulder bag on his back. He made his way to the fifth floor and knocked on Paul's door.

Lisa had been feeling restless ever since Paul had left, suspecting that her husband was keeping something from her. She was sitting on the sofa, waiting for him to return when she heard the knock on the door.

Excited at the prospect of Paul's return, Lisa got up and walked to the door, asking tentatively, "Paul?"

However, there was no response from outside the door.

Feeling nervous, Lisa walked to Paul's study and retrieved a Remington M870 shotgun from the cabinet. She loaded a steel ball into the gun and prepared to open the door.

Click!

The door swung open, but there was no one outside. Lisa cautiously looked through the peephole and saw nothing but darkness.

Holding the shotgun tightly, Lisa stepped out of the apartment and saw a black shoulder bag lying on the ground.

After leaving Paul's house, Jason made his way back to the safe house in South City. He was exhausted after a long and eventful night, so he quickly dozed off on the sofa and slept until noon the next day.

Upon waking up, Jason freshened up and settled down on the sofa with a hearty breakfast, while also opening the system light curtain to check on his progress. He had been upgraded to level 4 and was given an additional 10 attribute points to distribute.

Jason decided to allot most of the points to his agility and intelligence attributes, bringing both to 40. He then distributed the remaining points to his strength attribute

[Host: Jason Walter]

[Level: 4 (1815/4000)]

[Strength 35→38]

[Agility 38→40]

[Endurance 35→35]

[Intelligence 35→40]

[Remaining attribute points: 0]

[Reputation: 37→95]

[Party: none (reputation required for next recruitment: 100)]

[Points: 3]

[Ability: Fighting Proficiency (Level 4), Driving Proficiency (Level 3), Firearm Proficiency (Level 5), Cold Weapon Proficiency (Level 2)]

[System mall: click here]

While snacking on a piece of bread, Jason pondered which bank to visit to withdraw one million US dollars, the remaining amount required to unlock [Firearm Mastery 6].

Aside from attribute points, Jason's reputation had reached 95 points, and he was closing in on the 100-point mark. With some media coverage, he would soon be able to recruit fellow villains.

Thinking of the news, Jason pulled out his phone and opened the official website of CNN.

Jason had once again made it to the headlines, with a photo taken from a helicopter of a dazzling sea of fire in the center. The homepage of CNN was showcasing this as their top story.

Upon clicking on the news article, it was revealed that the gang house in the Clinton area of Manhattan, New York had exploded the previous night. The explosion had led to the death of 25 gang members, dozens of residents being injured, and multiple buildings being burned down. The police had identified the deceased as members of the Russian mafia, including Vladimir, the wanted mafia boss who was also the mastermind of the apartment bombing and shopping mall shooting that had occurred the day before yesterday.

The case had now become more complicated as the police suspected that Vladimir had been shot. The FBI's New York branch had officially become involved in the investigation, and both FBI and NYPD had formed a joint investigation team in order to solve the case quickly and to reveal the truth.

As Jason browsed various news websites, he couldn't help but feel a rush of excitement as he saw that the headlines were dominated by his latest act. Although the reports largely covered the same information, he still relished in reading every detail.

He now understood why some criminals would often revisit the scene of their crimes; the thrill of reliving their heinous acts was truly intoxicating.

As he continued to peruse the news, a recent report caught his attention and soured his mood. "Breaking News: The joint investigation team has made a breakthrough in the case. The incident has been confirmed as a premeditated suicide attack, and the main suspect is Jason Walter, who has been missing since the previous attack." Along with the article was a photo of Jason, leaving him feeling exposed and vulnerable.

Jason was taken aback and couldn't believe what he was seeing. He scrolled through the news article, but the more he read, the more shocked he became.

The joint investigation team consisting of the NYPD and the FBI seemed to have spared no effort in uncovering the truth behind the incident. They utilized state-of-the-art technology to meticulously analyze the evidence and reconstructed the events of the previous night, ultimately pinpointing Jason as the mastermind behind the attack.

What was even more astonishing was that the FBI and NYPD had submitted their findings to the Department of Justice, and after deliberation, the department had authorized a global arrest warrant for Jason. To make matters worse, the authorities had set a reward of 10 million US dollars for his capture