America: John Wick 1924

Chapter 3 [Role-Playing System]

Li Yu and the veteran stood side by side in front of a mound of earth, upon which stood a cross made of tree branches—the final resting place of poor Tom.

Li Yu held a cross necklace in his left hand, letting it hang naturally, while his right hand held a Bible in front of his chest, and his Qi family sword was worn at his left waist.

"When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. But when I became a man, I put aside the ways of childhood."

"So instead of saying you regret his departure, you should say with gratitude: you are grateful that he is here."

"We are now looking at ourselves in a mirror, but it is all blurry. Then we will be face to face."

"For I now know in part, but then I will know everything, as the Father knows me."

[Ding! Successfully played the role of "priest" at the funeral of the deceased]

[Priest progress: 1% → 2%]

After Li Yu finished speaking, the old soldier next to him stared blankly at the mound of earth while gently making the sign of the cross on his chest.

"Pastor, thank you."

The veteran forced an awkward smile and turned to give Li Yu a grateful look.

"Meeting a pastor at this time is a great help. Although you, as a pastor... are a bit eccentric."

As he spoke, he involuntarily turned his eyes and glanced at the Qi family knife at Li Yu's waist.

Li Yu smiled slightly:
"You're welcome. I was just doing what I could."

After seeing Tom off, the two of them picked up their luggage and retraced their steps.

The bodies of the four Irishmen were carelessly left on the spot, just as Li Yu had sung before the battle—they would surely be killed by swords and become food for wild dogs!

On the way back to the highway, the veteran suddenly paused, startled.

He seemed to recall something, paused for a moment, and then said in a serious and deep voice:
“Pastor, I remember now. Actually… I’ve seen white men with red tattoos on their necks.”

Upon hearing this, Li Yu's expression hardened. He turned his head to look at the veteran and gestured with his eyes, "Please explain in detail."

The veteran cleared his throat:
Five days ago, Tom and I ran into a group of Mexicans while passing by a motel.

"They are a local gang that calls themselves the 'Wolf Gang'."

"I could clearly see that one of them had a red tattoo on his neck."

"However, I'm not sure if it's a red skull."

“A few days ago, while drinking at a pub, I heard a lot of news about this ‘Wolf Gang’ from the bartender.”

"According to the bartender, their hideout is located in 'Paradise,' which is not far from here."

Upon hearing this, Li Yu immediately pressed for an answer:

What is 'paradise'?

The veteran patiently explained:

"That's an abandoned train station, right around here."

“There used to be many homeless people living there, so it was called ‘Paradise’.”

“After the ‘Wolf Gang’ arrived, they took over ‘Paradise’ directly, and the guests inside were either driven away or slaughtered.”

Li Yu lowered his eyelids and pondered to himself.

Soon, a faint voice drifted out:

"...Old soldier, do you know the exact location of 'Paradise'?"

Faced with Li Yu's question, the veteran pursed his lips, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes.

“Priest, I can tell you the exact location of ‘Paradise.’ But…”

He let out a long sigh and adopted a cautionary tone.

"I want to remind you that although you are very skilled, no matter how fast you swing a knife, it can't beat a gun."

"These Mexicans are not like those four thugs from before."

"They are a real gang! Ruthless, numerous, more than a dozen people, and very well-equipped with plenty of firearms!"
"With just a knife, you can't defeat them!"

Li Yu smiled calmly:
"Thank you for your concern, veteran."

"I'm not stupid, so I wouldn't be foolish enough to use a knife to fight against a gun."

"You just need to tell me the exact location of the 'paradise.' As for how to proceed, I have my own plans."

The veteran shrugged, a wry smile on his face:
"Well, then I can only wish you good luck."

The veteran rattled off a string of place names, which Li Yu memorized perfectly.

"Old soldier, thank you for your intelligence, it was a great help."

The veteran waved his hand dismissively.

"Don't mention it, consider this a thank you gift for helping Tom with his funeral."

As they talked, the two had returned to the wide, straight highway. "Old soldier, Tom's gone. Are you still going back to your hometown?"

"Well, I'm going to give Tom's belongings to his mother, then find any job I can find, and if I can't find a job, I'll beg on the streets, just to live one day at a time."

"I see. Take good care of yourself. Don't succumb to poverty and illness. May God's peace be with you."

"Hahaha! Even the god of war (artillery) couldn't kill me, so poverty and illness certainly can't kill me either! Priest, take good care of yourself! I wish you find that white man with the red skull tattoo on his neck soon!"

The two of them simultaneously extended their right hands and shook hands firmly.

Then, just as they had agreed beforehand, the two released each other and turned around, walking in opposite directions.

Neither Li Yu nor the veteran looked back; they went their separate ways without hesitation.

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap...

On the deserted avenue, the sound of the cane tapping the pavement was exceptionally clear, like an echo in an empty valley.

The veteran gripped his cane tightly, looked ahead, and slowly walked toward the sunrise.

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap...

……

……

Li Yu carried his luggage in his right hand—a large suitcase containing a few changes of clothes and some daily necessities—and walked unhurriedly along the straight road.

His Qi family sword had been re-wrapped in cloth and casually slung over his left shoulder.

Based on the intelligence provided by the veteran, he will head straight to "Paradise" to find the so-called "Wolf Gang"!
With no companions and no sights to see, Li Yu gradually grew bored.

To kill time, he decided to check out the system.

And so, with a slight thought, a screen of light, visible only to him, unfolded before his eyes:

[Host: Li Yu]

Currently available roles:

Priest Lv.3 (2%)

Paladin Lv.2 (1%)

Berserker Lv.1 (0%)

Good Samaritan Lv.1 (0%)

Current skills:
Qi Family Knife Technique Lv.C
Bajiquan Lv.D
Ikki Tousen Lv.B
Lever-action Rifle Mastery Lv.A
Bullet Time Lv.B

—It's getting harder and harder to play the "priest" role. Leveling up is getting slower and slower, and every time I play the role, I have to try my best to look like a charlatan.

Li Yu pondered to himself while revealing a helpless expression.

At this moment, Li Yu belatedly realized that he had been living in this time and space for a full six months.

Six months ago, he was an ordinary online novelist.

With a decent income from his writing and a naturally low level of materialism, he spent his days leisurely reading, listening to music, playing the piano, and writing diligently when it was time to write.

One day, while he was reading in his study, he suddenly felt sleepy, so he leaned back in his recliner and took a nap.

When he opened his eyes, he found himself transported to the United States in 1924, in an ordinary town called Starlight.

The body is now an unfamiliar one, but the name remains a familiar one—the original owner's name was also Li Yu.

The moment he realized he had transmigrated, he received a special cheat code unique to transmigrators.

With a "ding," a new system appeared in his mind.

Li Yu named this system the "Role-Playing System".

In short, its function is to unlock a number of characters. As long as you successfully play these characters, you will gain experience points. After the character level increases, you will gain powerful skills and unlock new characters to play.

The first role Li Yu got was "Priest".

He was dumbfounded when he saw the word "pastor".

Growing up under the red flag, he was a pure atheist.

Is it too much to ask an atheist who has never even touched the Bible to play the role of a pastor?

Despite feeling troubled, with this cheat code at my disposal, there's no reason not to use it.

So he gritted his teeth, bought a Bible, studied it repeatedly, and frequently went to the nearby church to observe firsthand how the pastors carried out their work.

The veteran had no idea that this seemingly professional Chinese pastor was actually an atheist who didn't believe in God at all!
And so, Li Yu found a job—a handyman at a coffee shop—working diligently while trying his best to play the role of a priest, accumulating experience points little by little.

It took him nearly two months to finally upgrade his "Priest" level from Lv1 to Lv2.

After his "Priest" level was upgraded, he gained his first skill since transmigrating: "One Against a Thousand LvB".

[“One Against a Thousand Lv.B”: Possesses a physique far exceeding that of ordinary people, with all physical functions reaching the level of a top-tier athlete!]

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(End of this chapter)