I Have Infinite Skill Points-Chapter 574: The Connection is Also a Test

Boarding the plane, Wang Lan received an initial mission letter, marking the start of their assessment. They had to complete the mission outlined in the letter to officially activate it.

Wang Lan’s squad was number seven, and their initial mission was simple—to rendezvous with a certain person at a hotel. Completing the rendezvous would kickstart the assessment. If this task wasn’t completed, the assessment would remain inactive, and no matter how well they did, their scores would be zeroed out.

Upon meeting the contact, the contact would inform them of the detailed examination rules.

"How much do you know about St. State?" Wang Lan asked after reading the contents of the envelope.

"I don’t know much, only that St. State is nicknamed the capital of sin. I also know that it’s home to the world’s most brazen drug dealers, the biggest casinos, and the most booming sex trade services," Xu Xiangwen said earnestly.

"St. State is one of the most prosperous regions in New Blue Country. Originally intended as a dumping ground for criminals, this policy unexpectedly spurred an economic boom in the desolate St. State. In just a short hundred years, St. State’s GDP has surpassed that of New Blue Country’s capital city. The New Blue Government has always hoped to take real control of St. State. However, contrary to their wishes, officials they dispatched were quickly corrupted and assimilated, covertly defying the government while apparently complying to aid St. State’s underworld operations. The armed forces sent by the New Blue Government are either helpless or double-dealing; those who took a hard stance were even killed. St. State is nominally under New Blue Country, but in reality, New Blue Country has long since lost control over it." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"With the strength of us candidates, it wouldn’t be difficult to take down St. State, but afterward, its economy might not be able to sustain itself."

"New Blue Country doesn’t care about that," Jiang Xinyu said indifferently.

A few hours later, a helicopter dropped Wang Lan and his teammates hundreds of kilometers away before leaving. As for providing Wang Lan and his team with identities... there was nothing of the sort, but these minor details weren’t a problem for Wang Lan’s group of four.

They slipped into St. State unnoticed and coincidentally ran into a gang of thugs who thought they were easy targets and tried to rob them. The attempted robbery backfired, resulting in the would-be robbers providing Wang Lan and his team with a few hundred Jade Coins as startup funds.

Jade Coins and Green Currency are universal currencies in this world. In St. State, Jade Coins are more stable than Blue Coins, the currency of New Blue Country. Using Jade Coins or Green Currency in black market transactions signifies sincerity.

Arriving at the seventh district, their designated area of responsibility, they followed the instructions on the envelope to Aier Hotel, booked two rooms, and waited. The mission card simply instructed them to wait for their contact.

An uneventful night passed, and dawn arrived.

Wang Lan’s team of four gathered and waited from sunrise to sunset. After dark, St. State, the so-called capital of sin, lived up to its name, with gunshots ringing out almost incessantly throughout the night.

Driven by curiosity, Xu Xiangwen activated his Heavenly Eye to scout the surroundings. Though his Heavenly Eye could see up to eight kilometers, the imagery at that distance was very blurry—like trying to count sesame seeds on a plate from three meters away.

That night, robberies, gang shootouts, assassinations, arson, and all sorts of chaotic activities never ceased.

The four of them waited in the hotel for three days, but the contact person never showed up. This made Wang Lan anxious. Have the other teams already started while we’re still waiting? He repeatedly examined the contents of the letter; there was no misinterpretation or hidden code.

Without the contact initiating the assessment, even if Wang Lan fought crime, it wouldn’t count for points, and causing damage might even lead to penalties. Even if Wang Lan managed to combat evil without harming a single blade of grass, what would they do during the actual assessment if everything was already done beforehand?

Just as Wang Lan’s patience was wearing thin, the phone in the room suddenly rang.

Wang Lan picked up the phone, listened to the voice on the other end, and quickly hung up.

"How did it go?" Jiang Xinyu asked anxiously.

"The contact called. He said he’ll come here at eight o’clock tomorrow morning. He’ll be wearing a gray suit, a white hat, and holding a black cane."

"Finally! I’m so fed up with waiting, I could die."

「The next morning.」

Wang Lan’s team gathered in their room, peering through a slit in the curtains at the street below. At seven-fifty, a taxi pulled up to the hotel entrance right on time.

A man in a gray suit stepped out, donning a white gentleman’s hat and holding a black cane topped with an ivory sphere. Clearly, this was the contact.

The contact got out of the car, adjusted his attire, then handed the driver two Jade Coins. As the taxi roared away, the contact straightened his clothes again and walked toward the hotel.

Suddenly, the top of the contact’s head exploded.

Blood and brain matter splattered everywhere.

Half a second before, the contact had been walking calmly towards the hotel; half a second later, he was felled by a bullet fired from a great distance, directly to his head.

Wang Lan and his teammates were stunned by this abrupt turn of events. It wasn’t that the incident itself shocked them, but... the contact was dead? How would the assessment start?

After a moment’s hesitation, they immediately stood up and rushed out of the room. The letter had instructed them not to reveal their identities as Star Martial Warriors before the mission started, so they had to run down the stairs like ordinary people.

The entrance was a chaotic mess; the scene was grisly. But the hotel staff and guests seemed accustomed to such events; though their faces showed some fear, they didn’t panic.

The bullet must have been fired from at least a kilometer away. Standing where the contact had been, Wang Lan activated his Void Purple Eyes, and his long-range vision instantly located a suspicious firing point one and a half kilometers away.

"Wang Lan, what do we do now? The contact has been killed..." Xie Sisi asked worriedly.

"If the wristbands don’t signal the end of the assessment, it means we still have a chance. Since the contact has been killed, our first move is to find the murderer. Let’s go!"

The four of them ran towards the target location, eventually arriving at the rear door of another hotel. This hotel had seven floors, with over a hundred windows above the back door, each fitted with anti-theft bars.

Two streets and four layers of obstructions separated this hotel from the Aier Hotel’s entrance. If the shot came from this hotel, only ten windows offered a viable firing position. Around the back of the hotel, seven or eight cameras provided comprehensive surveillance of every corner.

Wang Lan led the group to the main entrance of the hotel, which faced a bustling street. Besides the security camera at the hotel entrance, other shops also had cameras installed.

Wang Lan entered the hotel with his team.

"Sir, may I help you?"

"Get me a room."

"Just one?" The attendant glanced at the two men and two women, a knowing smile spreading across his face. "I’d be happy to serve you."

After getting a room, the money Wang Lan’s group had acquired from the earlier encounter was nearly depleted. They entered the room and turned on the computer. He plugged in a USB drive and uploaded Xiao Ai to the network system.

"Wang Lan, Xiao Ai 886 has been activated."

"Take control of all the surveillance equipment around us."

"Understood."

Twenty minutes later, the computer screen displayed grids for over twenty surveillance cameras, all replaying footage from thirty minutes prior.

"Affirmative," Xiao Ai responded, and the screens rapidly changed as Wang Lan’s eyes locked onto the twenty displays.

"Stop!"

Wang Lan suddenly called out. On one screen, a Caucasian man carrying a cello case walked out of the hotel and then hailed a taxi.

"That’s him. Xiao Ai, track this person’s movements," Wang Lan ordered again.

On the computer screen, only one surveillance feed remained. The man, after passing through five streets, got out of the taxi and entered a shopping mall. Xiao Ai continuously cracked security camera networks, ultimately tracking him to the mall’s underground parking lot.

Then they discovered the middle-aged man opening a private car, placing the violin in the trunk, driving away, and turning into streets with no cameras before disappearing completely.

"This man is the killer?" Jiang Xinyu asked.

"It should be him. Xiao Ai, find out where vehicle registration information can be looked up."

"It can be searched in the police traffic system."

"Hack into the traffic system for me and find this car’s information."

"Please wait."

After half an hour, a form popped up on the computer screen. The photograph on the form was of the same person Wang Lan had been tracking.

"Hansen, senior electrical engineer..."

"What do we do next?"

"Of course, we find him. Does he think he can get away with killing our contact so easily?"

Using the information from the registration form, the four of them located Queen’s Avenue, ten kilometers away. Queen’s Avenue was the most affluent street in the seventh district, Wang Lan’s area of responsibility, a place where high-society elites congregated.

Hansen lived in a very well-known, high-class apartment building there.

Wang Lan and his companions quietly infiltrated the apartment building and reached Hansen’s residence. Jiang Xinyu and the others hid in the shadows while Wang Lan quietly appeared in Hansen’s bedroom.

In the living room, Hansen no longer resembled the scruffy, bearded figure from before. His face was clean-shaven, exuding an air of vigor and a mature charm. He was dressed in a gray suit and a white gentleman’s hat, with a black cane placed next to the dinner table. Five steak dinners were arranged on the table, and Hansen was humming a tune as he meticulously plated the meals, looking exceptionally pleased.

Seeing this scene, a sharp light flickered in Wang Lan’s eyes as he seemed to suddenly understand something.

Wang Lan walked out from the bedroom without any attempt to hide. Hansen, seeing Wang Lan emerge, wasn’t surprised or panicked. Instead, he simply looked up and gave Wang Lan a casual smile.

"You’ve arrived quicker than I expected... Why are you alone? Where are your team members?"

"I still can’t confirm your identity."

"Since I knew you were coming, and my attire and the code word for our meeting are identical, what else are you unsure about?"

"But someone dressed exactly like you was shot in the head from one and a half kilometers away."

"That man... he committed murder, rape, robbery—countless evil deeds. He fell into my hands the day before yesterday. I originally planned to kill him, but then decided to use him as a test for my replacements. If you hadn’t found me within three hours, you would have been eliminated from the assessment. But you did well, arriving in just half the allotted time."

"Let me introduce myself. I am a level-four agent of the International Security Council. My real name is Lylek, Lylek Bond. The box on the table contains my credentials. You know how to verify their authenticity, right?"

Wang Lan approached the table, opened the box, and took out the credentials. They were indeed authentic.

"The purpose of my meeting with you is to give you an overview of the situation in the seventh district and to answer any questions you might have. I’m glad to see you all; I’m finally ready to leave this godforsaken place."