Chapter 50

Qin Ran lay on the roof, feeling as if his whole body was about to fall apart. Although he had tried his best to keep his distance, he was still slightly affected by the explosion.

At this moment, he was in pain all over, and his health points had dropped by nearly 50 points.

If it weren't for his constitution reaching E-, giving him 200 health points, this blow would have put him in a moderate injury state.

However, it was all worth it!

Qin Ran took a deep breath and checked the quest bar.

[Side Quest: Crazy Schubert! (Completed)]

Clearly, the unknown leader of the underground force had died in the explosion.

"Qin Ran! Qin Ran!"

A series of urgent calls came from a distance.

Qin Ran stood up, his steps a bit unsteady, and waved to Lestrade, who was rushing over, to indicate that he was fine.

"You lunatic!"

The deputy sheriff gave Qin Ran the most direct evaluation of his actions at this moment.

Then he sent two subordinates to help Qin Ran get down from the roof.

The two subordinates had no complaints; their gazes were filled with deep admiration for Qin Ran.

Qin Ran's actions had thoroughly convinced them.

From the shooting, to his agile movements, to saving their deputy sheriff and colleagues.

And the reckless assault just now!

Each of these actions was enough to earn respect, let alone all of them in one person.

In fact, not only the ordinary police, but even Deputy Sheriff Lestrade had a greatly improved impression of Qin Ran.

However, the stubbornness in his heart prevented him from showing it.

"Prepare to extinguish the fire and see if anyone is still alive!"

Lestrade instructed his subordinates who could move freely.

No one believed that anyone could have survived the previous explosion.

But the fire had to be put out.

Even though it was a two-story building, no one could be sure that sparks wouldn't be carried by the night wind to somewhere else.

Buckets of water were poured onto the flames, and steam hissed and dissipated.

In the distance, the sound of rapid footsteps could be heard.

Thud, thud, thud!

Even in the darkness, the uniforms were clearly visible, especially the tall figure leading them, which made everyone know that Sheriff John had arrived with his men.

Everyone greeted Sheriff John.

Qin Ran was no exception.

However, he was somewhat distracted.

Because, as the flames were extinguished, a book wrapped in white light faintly appeared in the sea of fire.

A skill book!

Without needing to identify it, Qin Ran knew what it was at first glance.

After all, in the entire underground game, only one type of book was wrapped in light: the skill book!

Qin Ran, who had learned from 'Lawless,' knew very well that skill books were also divided into levels.

White, green, orange, gold!

Four known levels.

White represented the ordinary level, and most of the skills Qin Ran had mastered were at this level.

Green represented the magical level, which, as the name suggests, could produce effects similar to magic.

Orange was rare, and gold was legendary. According to 'Lawless,' these skills were as rare and legendary as their names suggested.

As for whether there were higher-level skills above these?

'Lawless' said he didn't know.

Because, to date, the highest-level skill in the underground game was the legendary gold.

The appearance of that gold skill book even sparked a war in the main world of the underground game.

Not a small-scale conflict like in Steam City or with steel war vehicles.

But a war with countless casualties.

Qin Ran clearly remembered the slightly fearful silence in 'Lawless' when he mentioned this, even though it was just text.

Qin Ran naturally didn't ask too much.

Therefore, he knew more.

In addition to these leveled skill books, there was another special type, which was purple!

Qin Ran's skill [Tracking] was at this level.

Special skills could be very powerful or very weak, and could not be defined by ordinary standards.

Qin Ran had already deeply experienced this.

A proficient-level [Tracking] had no direct combat ability, but in terms of support, it had long become indispensable for Qin Ran.

Similarly, Qin Ran wouldn't underestimate a white skill book.

After all, his current strength was built on such white skill books.

Moreover, in the 'Black Market' formed by veteran players, the price of a white skill book was between 1000-2000 points.

As for higher-level ones?

Unless one was crazy or had no choice, they would definitely keep them for self-study.

So, the moment Qin Ran saw the skill book, he forgot the pain.

He even suggested to Sheriff John somewhat arbitrarily and unreliably.

"John, have everyone extinguish the fire quickly; there might be some clues left!"

"Okay!"

Facing Qin Ran's suggestion, Sheriff John nodded.

Their friendship made Sheriff John willing to accept such a suggestion, even if it was arbitrary and unreliable.

Moreover, he was also deeply puzzled.

Where did Schubert get so many firearms and explosives?

Dozens of firearms and a large amount of explosives together had already gone beyond the scope of a thug or a bully.

The fire was quickly extinguished.

Not only did the police work hard, but after confirming safety, civilians also came to help.

Some curious onlookers even inquired about what had happened.

However, Qin Ran and Sheriff John had no time to deal with these.

The two entered the nearly ruined scene without delay.

Deputy Sheriff Lestrade, without further instructions, had his subordinates cordon off the scene and wait quietly for Qin Ran and his superior to inspect.

Entering the scene, Qin Ran headed straight for the skill book.

[Skill Book Discovered: Gunpowder Weapon. Explosion!]

[Do you want to learn?]

There was no need to hesitate; Qin Ran chose to learn it straightforwardly.

[Skill Learned: Gunpowder Weapon. Explosion]

[Name: Gunpowder Weapon. Explosion (Basic)]

[Attributes: Strength, Agility]

[Skill Type: Attack]

[Effect: You know how to use homemade explosives, detonators, grenades, and other weapons, increasing damage by 10%]

[Cost: Stamina]

[Learning Conditions: None]

[Note: Make sure the thing you throw won't hurt you!]

...

Checking the skill information and feeling the coordination of knowledge in his mind and his body, Qin Ran nodded in satisfaction.

Grenades, as one of his essential combat tools, would be greatly enhanced with a matching skill.

However, it was a pity that to improve the skill level, he had to end the game instance and return to his room.

Having completed the most important task, Qin Ran turned to look at Sheriff John, who was still searching the ruins, and frowned slightly.

Qin Ran knew very well what Sheriff John was looking for.

After all, the one who made the unreliable suggestion earlier was him!

But Qin Ran was for the suddenly appearing skill book.

Now that he had the skill book, he couldn't say, "Let's go" or "It was just a joke," as it wouldn't fit his in-game identity.

Therefore, after sighing, Qin Ran joined the official search team.

And the result?

It was obvious.

For a whole hour, all Qin Ran found was charcoal!

The same was true for Sheriff John.

The two exchanged glances, gave up the search, and walked out of the ruins.

"Maybe there are secret passages or underground chambers!"

Deputy Sheriff Lestrade was still not giving up.

"Send people to clear this place, dig it up thoroughly!"

Similarly, Sheriff John was not giving up. After assigning Deputy Sheriff Lestrade full responsibility for this, he signaled Qin Ran to return to the police station with him.

Facing the sheriff, who clearly wanted to say something, Qin Ran did not refuse.

On the way, they returned to the police station without incident.

Still in the sheriff's office, as soon as they entered, Sheriff John started smoking.

After smoking two cigarettes in a row, Sheriff John still said nothing.

"Is it that hard to say?"

Qin Ran couldn't wait any longer and asked proactively.

"Um!"

"It's even harder than you think!"

"If it's as I suspect, everything will be complicated!"

Sheriff John nodded forcefully and said in a low voice.

"The military! That's quite a problem!"

"Recently, I've been encountering a lot of trouble related to the military!"

The first sentence was said with a sigh, and the second was whispered, audible only to himself, in self-mockery.

Now, the matter concerning Schubert was clear.

This thug wanted to take the position left vacant by the disappearance of 'Black Hand' Jimmy, so he contacted a supporter. Coincidentally, this supporter also needed a lackey like Schubert to handle some matters that couldn't be done personally.

So, they supplied a large number of firearms and explosives.

And the supporter who could supply such a large number of firearms and explosives could only come from one place.

The military!

No one else could possess such a large amount of weapons.

Even if the explosives were well disguised as homemade explosives.

But it was just self-deception!

Anyone who thought about it would never believe that those homemade explosives were made by Schubert or any of his men.

If they had such talent, Schubert would have been famous long ago.

More directly, if the maker was Schubert or any of his men, the skill book Qin Ran obtained would not be [Gunpowder Weapon. Explosion], but a life skill like making explosives.

However, this was not the most worrying thing.

It was not uncommon for the powerful to secretly collude with some thugs to do things.

What was rare was Schubert's audacity!

No matter how powerful the underground force, they would not openly confront the police.

But Schubert did!

And he did it thoroughly!

If Qin Ran hadn't intervened today, the situation would have been unpredictable, and the appearance of the military would have been inevitable.

Coincidentally, Schubert's supporter was from the military.

If there was no ulterior motive, Qin Ran would be the first to disbelieve it.

Qin Ran leaned back in his chair, in a more comfortable position, and looked at Sheriff John.

"What do you plan to do?"

He asked.