Inside a shabby two-story house in the West District.

  Pale and trembling， Ryker knelt on the floor， overcome with fear.

  Viper， leader of the West District， sat on a worn leather chair， his expression cold.

  “Ryker， you fled to this town from elsewhere. I took you in， gave you food. How did you repay me?

  You swore to me that if you failed to bond with the Forbidden Artifact， you would offer me your head. Now it is time to keep your promise.”

  Ryker trembled even harder and begged.

  “Leader， it wasn’t my fault! If Jax hadn’t interfered， I would have bonded with it for sure—”

  “Shut up， you waste!” Viper snapped.“I hate people who make excuses for failure. Look at yourself. Why could Jax succeed， but not you? Are you even human?”

  “Leader， please give me one more chance! I am useful! I’ve trained my right hand for over ten years. My sleight of hand is unbeatable! I can run a gambling den for you and win money!”

  “Gambling den? Everyone in Ashwood Town is poor! Where am I supposed to open a gambling den? If you won’t die with dignity， I’ll give you dignity myself!”

  Viper signaled his men. One immediately cocked his gun and aimed it at Ryker’s head.

  Ryker shook violently， tears and snot running down his face.

  “Leader! Leader! I don’t want to die! Spare me! My mother is waiting for me! I’m her only son!”

  His miserable begging made the man with the gun hesitate， but under Viper’s icy stare， he slowly squeezed the trigger.

  Suddenly， the begging Ryker exploded into action. His right hand moved like a blur， snatching the gun from the man in an instant. He lunged toward Viper.

  Viper only saw a flash. A gun was pressed to his head.

  Ryker was a completely different person now， fierce and threatening.

  “Stay back! Or I’ll kill him!”

  The sudden turn of events left everyone hesitant to move.

  No one had expected Ryker to have such courage， or such speed.

  Clap， clap， clap…

  Slow applause sounded in the room. Viper clapped with a cold smile.

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  “As expected of the Sleight of Hand. Your moves are extraordinary. I didn’t even see them.”

  “Cut the crap! Tell your men to move!”

  Viper remained calm， lit a cigarette， and exhaled smoke.

  “You know what I hate most in this world? People pointing guns at my head.”

  “Bullshit! You still act tough with a gun to your head? I’m pointing it right here! What are you gonna do?!” Ryker shouted， pressing the gun harder against Viper’s skull.

  The next moment， the barrel made a clear metallic clink when it hit Viper’s head.

  Ryker froze. His face turned ashen.

  “Alloy…”

  Crack!

  Bang!

  The sound of shattering bone and a gunshot rang out at the same time.

  “Ahhh!!! My hand!!!” Ryker screamed in agony. His right hand， along with the gun， had been crushed by Viper’s mechanical arm.

  Only then did everyone see it: Viper not only had a cybernetic eye. Hidden under his right sleeve was a cold， gleaming metal arm.

  “Hmph. Not bad eyes.” Viper released his mechanical grip and let his men tackle Ryker.

  He touched his slightly scorched skull. The artificial skin had broken open， revealing not white bone， but cold， shining metal.

  “I told you. I hate people pointing guns at my head. Someone once did that to me… After that， I spent a fortune to have an alloy plate embedded in my skull.”

  Ryker could no longer listen. He screamed in heart-wrenching pain， not from physical hurt， but because his Sleight of Hand was ruined. His pride， his years of training— all destroyed.

  “Ahhh!!! My hand! My hand， the Sleight of Hand!!!”

  Despair clouded his eyes. He looked like a puppet with his strings cut， his soul gone.

  He let the men hold him down without resisting.

  “Just kill me.”

  “Oh?” Viper smiled coldly.“You were begging for your life a moment ago. Now you want to die?”

  Ryker laughed bitterly.

  “My whole life revolved around this hand. Now my Sleight of Hand is gone. I’m a useless cripple. What’s the point of living?”

  Tears streamed down his face. He stared blankly into the distance and whispered.

  “Mom， I’m sorry. I’ll never make you proud now. My hand… it’s broken.”

  He collapsed to the floor， all strength gone.

  Viper burst into cruel laughter.

  “You want to die? I won’t let you. I want you to live on as a useless cripple and suffer for the rest of your life!”

  He savored the joy of crushing someone’s everything， then waved his hand， letting his men drag the broken Ryker away.

  Thud!

  Ryker was thrown into the junkyard like a dead dog. Trash piled on top of him， burying his body.

  The two men covered their noses in disgust and left quickly.

  Once they were gone， the trash shifted. Ryker poked his head out， his bright eyes showing no trace of despair.

  “Haha… Viper， you idiot. I knew perverts like you would love this.”

  He held his right hand， grinning through the stabbing pain， and limped away. The cold moonlight shone down， lighting his path.

  He looked up at the moon， dazed for a moment.

  It was the same moon as always， but tonight， it looked especially beautiful.

  Suddenly， he smiled.

  “Another day alive! Nice.”

  Joy flooded his face， but deep inside those bright eyes hid a shadow that would never fade.

  Despite his casual act， the loss of his Sleight of Hand had wounded him deeply.

  ---

  “Vice Leader Jax! There’s no time to waste. Let’s go wipe out the mutated beasts!”

  Early the next morning， Talan showed up at Jax’s door， followed by dozens of armed men.

  Jax yawned.

  “There’s an old saying: sharpening the axe doesn’t delay the chopping. I barely held a gun before. How can I rush into battle?”

  Talan blinked. It made a certain sense. The Breath of Bone was powerful， but it was still a gun… Without accuracy， it was worse than a machete.

  “You mean…?”

  “Practice shooting first， of course.”

  “Fine. I’ll help you train.”

  Talan had survived in the Wasteland for over a decade. He had no formal training， but he had learned through experience. He knew a thing or two about shooting.

  And so， on the first day， Talan led Jax in shooting practice all day.

  Jax had a great time， wasting piles of Talan’s bullets and eating large amounts of meat.

  Talan’s heart ached with every bullet and every bite. Both were extremely rare resources in Ashwood Town. But to defeat the mutated beasts， he had no choice but to spoil Jax.