Why is his holy light red?

Mercury lives in the city of Aruja, which, on a map, resembles a towering tree.

The northern canopy area is home to the wealthy and famous, while the middle trunk area is a densely populated heavy industrial zone.

As for the southern part, which is located in a low-lying area, it is known as the slum. Due to its chaotic layout, the roads are like tangled tree trunks, hence the name "tree root area".

There is a reason for this distribution, because a large river runs through the city from north to south.

In the upper northern section, the river is crystal clear, making it a scenic tourist area. However, in the middle section, near the industrial zone, the water is dyed in various colors. After passing through some simple filtration and disinfection plants, the river flows into the slum areas in the south.

Mercury's home is in the Roots region in the south.

There are many gangs here, and you can see homeless people lying stiffly on the roadside every few steps. You can't tell if they are asleep or dead.

Moreover, these homeless people are replaced every now and then, just like a new batch of ants in an anthill every now and then.

As for where the homeless man who was replaced went, don't ask.

Mercury used to lament that a world with superpowers was still so miserable, wondering what those superheroes were actually protecting.

He's used to it now, and danger has its advantages; it's incredibly easy to double-cross someone in this place.

However, Mercury didn't just randomly go into any house and rob it; that would be too inefficient.

Mercury pulled an old cell phone from his pocket and sent a message to a number not in his contacts: "Last order, something big."

It was a seemingly random question, but I quickly received a reply, which was extremely brief: "Are you really quitting?"

Mercury replied: "Yes, after this job, I'll be cleaned up and back on my feet."

对方沉默了许久，最后发来了一个简短地址：【榆树街15号，三楼，保险柜密码是7、6、87、23、5。】

Mercury looked at the address and felt a sense of familiarity. This seemed to be the territory of the Raging Waves Brotherhood. Besides dealing in illegal drugs, this gang also seemed to be involved in human trafficking. They were indeed a fat target.

An ordinary person could never know where this gang hid their money, but the information broker that Mercury had been working with always seemed to know. As for knowing even the safe's combination, well, that's another story.

In a world teeming with superpowered individuals, the more you know, the more enemies you'll have.

The shadowy phantom traversed the maze-like streets and soon arrived in front of a three-story building.

On the surface, it is a very ordinary wooden house, but you can hear deafening music even before you get close.

Mercury frowned; he disliked noise so loud it made his heart ache. His senses were particularly acute from regular training, making noise even more effective at stimulating him.

I heard that his father, the Holy Angel of Light, can hear the voices of everyone in a city. I wonder how he can sleep at night. How many women in this city of Aru Tree must call out the name of the Holy Angel of Light at night?

Skillfully bypassing some eyes lurking in the shadows, Mercury arrived at the northwest corner of the house, where red holy light converged at his ears.

The deafening music began to gradually subside, and then countless vicious curses and screams reached Mercury's ears.

"Fuck... another five thousand gone. Are you bunch of black bastards all useless?"

"Who the hell took the money? Confess! I'll just cripple one of his hands, and if I dig him out, I'll rip out his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys and feed them to the dogs!"

"Speak up, you piece of trash, who did it?!"

……

Mercury laughed upon hearing this conversation.

It turns out it's the Brotherhood of Raging Waves' settlement day, and they're counting their earnings here. It really is their most lucrative time.

Without hesitation, Mercury climbed up the water pipes on the outer wall and quickly reached the third floor.

Looking through the window, several large, indistinguishable black men were arguing amongst themselves, cursing each other as "fuck you" and "nigger," and pointing their pistols at each other as if they were about to start a shootout at any moment.

So, you guys shouldn't be too good at math, because once you learn to do math, you'll easily turn on each other.

His eyes swept across the room; there were several thick stacks of Federal Dollars on the table, which he estimated to be tens of thousands.

But that's just a small amount. The half-person-high safe next to him is Mercury's real target, which he conservatively estimates could bring in two or three hundred thousand.

Not bad, for Mercury, this is already considered overnight wealth.

However, Mercury waited for a long time, but these black men just raised their guns and cursed at each other; none of them actually fired a shot.

Mercury was planning to wait for them to fight amongst themselves and then reap the benefits, but they turned out to be nothing but cowardly bums with loud voices but little brains.

"Alas, fortune favors the bold; one can only rely on oneself."

Mercury's dark red energy surged instantly, enveloping him, and then he simply scaled the wall and entered.

The sudden intrusion startled the gang members inside, and they immediately pointed their guns at Mercury.

A deep, synthesized voice came from Mercury's mouth: "I know it's useless to say this, but if you don't resist, I'll take the money and leave."

Bang bang bang!

A barrage of gunfire replaced the gang members' response.

However, the bullets struck Mercury's protective holy light as if they were hitting armor made of titanium alloy.

After a series of clanging sounds, the bullets bounced off, and the narrow room was filled with howling and screaming.

The ricocheting bullets knocked several members of the Raging Waves Gang to the ground, their fate unknown.

Mercury didn't stand on ceremony and simply grabbed the tens of thousands of dollars in cash from the table and put it into his pocket.

He couldn't let a stray bullet ruin his money.

Seeing that Mercury, this "monster," was not afraid of bullets, a black man roared and raised his hands, creating ripples.

Mercury knew at a glance that he had encountered a superhuman.

This is not surprising at all. To establish a gang in this wretched place, one either needs a powerful backer or personal ability. Of course, most people have both.

It's not surprising that the Raging Waves Brotherhood has gained such a reputation, given that some members possess superpowers.

When facing superpowered individuals, Mercury never holds back.

Before the black superhuman could strike a pose and gather his power, Mercury took a step forward and kicked the desk between the two of them away.

This large table, made of solid wood, weighed at least two hundred pounds, but under Mercury's feet, it spun around like a ball and flew away.

Unable to gather more power, the superhuman could only extend his rippling hands to block the flying table.

Amidst the ear-piercing roar, azure energy rippled outwards, shattering the wooden table into countless fragments.

Amidst the flying debris, the superpowered individual roared in fury, "You dare mess with the Brotherhood of Raging Waves? You're dead! I'll tear your flesh to shreds..."

However, before he could finish speaking, a series of gunshots rang out.

His stomach, chest, forehead... several bloody holes burst open at the same time, his consciousness instantly plunged into darkness, and his tall body crashed to the ground.

The gun in Mercury's hand was still smoking; he had just picked it up from the dead man.

Kicking the table was actually a way to block the other person's view so he could pick up the gun.

I only intended to test the waters with bullets, but I never expected that this person would be killed like that.

Looking at the superhuman's corpse, Mercury shook his head and said, "Your power can't stop bullets? Then why don't you wear a bulletproof vest?"

Many people with superpowers are blindly confident; in reality, 90% of their superpowers are not as useful as a handgun.

Moreover, strong destructive power does not necessarily mean strong defensive power.

Most superpowered individuals will have their physique enhanced, but at most they will only reach the level of a professional athlete; not everyone can physically block bullets.

With their leader killed, the remaining henchmen were terrified and fled in panic.

Mercury did not let his guard down. Although the man looked as dead as could be, just to be on the safe side, Mercury added a kick, sending the body flying out of the window.

Even if this thing has some kind of rebirth ability, it will still take time to climb back up to the third floor.

After doing all that, Mercury went to the safe and entered the password he had just acquired.

The safe door clicked open, and Mercury's old friend certainly didn't disappoint.

Looking at the safe overflowing with cash, Mercury knew he had struck it rich.

"Hmm, what is this?"

After Mercury had looted all the cash, he discovered a small, exquisite box inside the safe.

Mercury examined it briefly but couldn't find a way to open it. However, since it was kept in a safe, it must be something valuable.

Mercury stuffed it directly into his pocket. This little thing didn't take up much space. He could show it to others later and maybe sell it for a good price.

After this job, I should have enough money to buy a new house for my family.