The night was moonless, and fierce winds howled through the narrow alleys of the harbor town, drowning out all other sounds.
Chu Dingjiang extended his Mental Strength to cover the entire area, confirming which houses were occupied and assessing the Martial Arts levels of their occupants based on the markings provided by Sang Nu on the map.
In a residence near the outermost edge lived a seventh-rank expert.
With a wave of his hand, Chu Dingjiang signaled Lou Mingyue and Qiu Yunxiao to move in together, aiming for a swift and silent resolution. The others remained in position, ready to respond to any unforeseen circumstances.
The success of this first battle would directly impact their confidence moving forward, and everyone felt varying degrees of tension.
Sun Dixian swallowed hard.
An Jiu listened intently. After roughly the time it took to drink two cups of tea, a faint sound came from inside the house before silence resumed.
Two figures emerged from the courtyard and hurried toward them.
Qiu Yunxiao nodded at the group.
The atmosphere instantly relaxed. The fact that an experienced seventh-rank assassin had been eliminated in such a short time was a tremendous morale boost for everyone.
Chu Dingjiang led the group past the neighboring courtyard, heading toward a distant building.
An Jiu was puzzled but soon realized that although the person living there wasn’t highly skilled in Martial Arts, they specialized in poison. Aside from Qiu Yunxiao, no one else was particularly suited to handle such a threat.
This time, Chu Dingjiang selected An Jiu and Sui Yunzhu.
Sui Yunzhu wasn’t particularly strong, nor did he possess any extraordinary abilities, but his Mental Strength was similar to Chu Dingjiang’s—capable of detecting all living beings.
An Jiu recalled that the resident here was only fifth-rank.
Having witnessed An Jiu’s archery skills before, Sui Yunzhu was satisfied with the arrangement despite knowing she lacked Inner Force.
The two exchanged a glance and a nod before silently approaching and scaling the wall into the courtyard.
It was a small courtyard paved with stone slabs, now covered in slippery moss.
An Jiu pointed upstairs: Was the target up there?
Sui Yunzhu shook his head and pointed downstairs.
Seeing how small the building was, An Jiu retrieved Trance smoke and slipped it through the door crack. After waiting half a cup of tea’s worth of time, she pried the door open with a dagger and slipped inside.
With Sui Yunzhu able to pinpoint the target’s location, An Jiu followed closely behind, gripping her Dragon Subduing Bow, ready to strike at any moment.
Just as Sui Yunzhu was about to pry open the inner door, a startled female voice softly called out from within, “Who’s there?”
For a moment, both of them had the illusion that the person inside wasn’t an assassin but a sheltered young woman.
An Jiu frowned. This was the first time Mo Sigui’s Medicine had failed her.
The unexpected situation momentarily stunned Sui Yunzhu.
An Jiu lightly nudged him and held up one finger: Just one person?
Sui Yunzhu nodded, pointing toward the southeast corner: Over there.
At that moment, the door creaked open.
A heavy wave of perfume wafted out. Inside, sheer curtains swayed gently, and a candle flickered near what appeared to be a bed. A woman’s languid, coquettish voice complained, “Didn’t I say I wasn’t feeling well these days? Tonight, I—”
This female assassin was actually a courtesan! Seizing this rare opportunity, An Jiu already had her Dragon Subduing Bow drawn.
Sui Yunzhu’s expression abruptly changed as he stared at the speaking figure. He whispered, “Above us.”
As he spoke, a fragrant breeze swept down from directly in front of them. An Jiu looked up—the woman was barely three feet away! Without dodging, she fired a Startling String infused with pure Mental Strength.
A resonant hum echoed as the full force of her Transformation Realm Mental Strength exploded inside the woman’s mind.Her mind went blank as her body plummeted straight down. An Jiu raised her leg to block, drawing her twin swords that pierced mercilessly through the woman's chest.
The delicate figure slid off An Jiu's leg. The woman finally regained her senses, enduring the excruciating pain in her chest as she struggled to grip the ground. An Jiu stomped on her fingers and swiftly delivered another slash across her pale neck.
The silhouette by the bed collapsed as well.
Sui Yunzhu's legs weakened, forcing him to stagger back several steps. He pushed open the window, taking deep breaths to barely suppress the restlessness surging within him.
The fragrance in the woman's room wasn’t cosmetics—it was an aphrodisiac incense, designed to target men, with only a mild effect on women.
The wind stirred the gauzy curtains, revealing a pitch-black puppet lying on the bed, its mouth slightly agape as wisps of white smoke curled out.
Sui Yunzhu panted heavily, his eyes bloodshot. In his blurred vision, a slender figure approached him. The barely contained agitation within him erupted anew, as if his blood had ignited and surged violently, rapidly pooling below his waist. An unbearable urge to release overwhelmed him, driving him to claw desperately at the approaching figure.
An Jiu blocked him with the Dragon Subduing Bow, keeping the crimson-eyed Sui Yunzhu at bay.
She hadn’t expected the mission to go smoothly, only to end up confronting her own ally. She abruptly raised her leg and kicked him in the abdomen. But Sui Yunzhu, unleashing strength beyond his usual capability, remained unharmed. Instead, he seized An Jiu’s ankle, attempting to yank her toward him.
Gritting her teeth, An Jiu’s eyes flashed with killing intent.
Just as she was about to release a hidden dart from her sleeve, she suddenly paused. Her fingers drew the bowstring, channeling all her mental strength into her fingertips.
The two were barely two feet apart. She released the string—a low hum echoed as Sui Yunzhu’s body stiffened abruptly.
An Jiu struck the back of his neck with force, catching his limp body before hurrying out.
At the rendezvous point, An Jiu tossed him onto the ground and muttered, "Aphrodisiac."
Qiu Yunxiao immediately crouched to check his pulse. Moments later, he took out a medicinal pill and fed it to Sui Yunzhu before handing another to An Jiu.
She accepted it, lifting her mask to mimic swallowing the pill—though it remained hidden between her fingers. The dim light concealed her deception. It wasn’t ingratitude; she simply wasn’t accustomed to taking unknown substances, especially medicine, from others.
Sui Yunzhu would need a while to wake. Chu Dingjiang ordered someone to carry him as they pressed forward.
An Jiu trailed at the rear, feeling a faint heat creeping through her body. After a moment’s thought, she took out the antitoxin pill Mo Sigui had given her and swallowed it.
Soon, the symptoms eased slightly.
The next team was Sun Dixian and Li Qing, tasked with dealing with a fourth-rank martial arts master.
This was Gu Jinghong’s battle plan—taking turns to eliminate as many as possible. As for the on-site arrangements, Chu Dingjiang was in full control. Under his command, barring unforeseen circumstances, they could wipe out half of Misty Villa’s forces.
About ten miles north of the dock, atop a barren hill, dense woods sprawled.
Over twenty burly men guarded the forest’s edge. A woman in green robes stood at the forefront, surrounded by hundreds of butterflies. The fierce winter wind scattered them like withered leaves, but once the gusts subsided, the surviving butterflies fluttered slowly into the woods.
"Mo Sigui, you escaped the first time. You won’t escape the fifteenth," the woman in green sneered before darting into the forest, her entourage of strongmen following closely behind.The wind was lighter in the dense forest, and the butterfly flew dozens of times faster than an ordinary one, crossing over the earthen hill and entering a small valley.
Upon entering this place, everyone clearly felt the wind had ceased, and the temperature had risen significantly. Though it was already winter, the surrounding vegetation remained lush and verdant. (To be continued...)
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