Chapter 59: The Assassin

Cui Jinpeng’s face darkened.

Before the Blood Blade Tavern… no one could act high and mighty! Even the legendary founding emperor who once unified the entire land and established the Longshan Empire, as a divine being, still upheld the supreme status of the Blood Blade Tavern and the Earth Temple.

But three million gold coins? He truly couldn’t afford it!

Could he just abandon his revenge?

He would never accept it!

“I… I will change the mission!” Cui Jinpeng gritted his teeth. “Forget the others, I only want the murderer ‘Dongbo Qing Shi’ dead!”

“Murder?” The woman in the purple robe raised her eyebrows slightly but said nothing. It was the Blood Blade Tavern’s rule not to pry or disclose information.

“Yes, the murderer!” Cui Jinpeng trusted the Blood Blade Tavern’s reputation. He gritted his teeth and continued, “I want that damned murderer dead! His name is Dongbo Qing Shi. Tell me, how many gold coins does it take to kill such a mage? Oh, and it must be done quickly—I fear that Dongbo Xueying might uncover the truth, and that could bring many complications.”

“Please trust the speed of the Blood Blade Tavern,” the woman in purple smiled. “Please wait a moment. The price for killing this murderer Dongbo Qing Shi will be given shortly.”

She glanced at the crystal ball on the table.

“One million gold coins! Within a day, we can complete the mission!” she said.

“One million? He’s merely an ordinary mage, not even reaching the Earth-tier!” Cui Jinpeng’s eyes widened. “Just send a capable assassin to infiltrate and kill him—it should be simple enough!”

“Snowstone Castle will surely be heavily guarded now, and Dongbo Qing Shi likely won’t leave the castle for some time,” the woman explained. “If you gave us a year, this mission might cost only one hundred thousand gold coins. But since you demand it be done within a day, we must transmit the mission to the assassin, who will need time to prepare and travel. It’s far too short notice… and they might face resistance from others in Snowstone Castle.”

The woman smiled gently.

Cui Jinpeng clenched his teeth.

At the Blood Blade Tavern, prices were non-negotiable. Either pay up or walk away.

“Fine!” Cui Jinpeng’s face twisted with rage. “Do it now! Finish it quickly!”

“Pay first,” the woman looked at him.

Though Cui Jinpeng was heartbroken, the grief of losing his son had driven him to madness. He would stop at nothing.

With a wave of his hand, he pulled out a thick stack of golden notes—exactly one million. He used to enjoy flipping through them and counting every single one, savoring the joy of his wealth. This was nearly all the wealth he had accumulated through years of struggle in the underworld.

“Business pleasure,” the woman smiled. “We will immediately arrange a suitable assassin!”

“Good.”

Cui Jinpeng nodded, his eyes burning with hatred.

He could already envision Dongbo Qing Shi’s death. He had full confidence in the Blood Blade Tavern’s strength! The Tavern usually completed missions once accepted, unless under extremely special circumstances—for example, if a mission was issued to kill a Named-level opponent, but upon execution, it turned out to be an Extraordinary Lifeform. In such cases, the Tavern would temporarily suspend the mission and request—additional payment! And no refunds would be issued!

That was the Blood Blade Tavern’s rule. If you couldn’t accept it, don’t come.

In fact, the Blood Blade Tavern already had a strong reputation.

…

That very night.

Through its secret channels, the Blood Blade Tavern swiftly notified three terrifying assassins currently stationed in Qinghe Prefecture. The mission was urgent—each had only one hour to respond! If none accepted… the Tavern would immediately contact powerful assassins from other prefectures.

Because of the potential interference from Dongbo Xueying, this mission was especially dangerous. Dongbo Xueying might be a Named-level warrior.

Therefore, only assassins with Named-level combat power were notified.

Since Dongbo Xueying wasn’t required to be killed, the price was one million gold coins. If Dongbo Xueying were to be assassinated, only one assassin in the entire Qinghe Prefecture would qualify to accept the mission—Xiang Pangyun! The strongest existence in Qinghe Prefecture, possessing overwhelming power capable of annihilating an ordinary Named-level warrior in a single strike.

His strength was terrifying.

Even Siliang Hong, the old demoness who had transformed into a blood demon and lived for hundreds of years, was ranked behind Xiang Pangyun on the Longshan List. The rankings of the Longshan List were extremely accurate.

Soon, the assassin was confirmed.

He was an extremely skilled assassin, codenamed “Wind Demon.”

…

In a relatively spacious courtyard within the prefectural city, five figures gathered under the bright lanterns, seated together discussing.

“Big Brother, I can handle it with Old Third and the others,” a thin man wearing silver-gray soft armor, with an eerie bronze breastplate on his chest, and half his face hidden behind a silver-gray mask, urged from the side. “This small assassination mission is too simple. Although the intelligence report says Dongbo Xueying might be a Named-level warrior, hah! He’s only twenty-two! Twenty-two and already a Named-level? Impossible?”

“Even if he really is, he can’t do anything to me,” Wind Demon grinned. “Big Brother, you don’t need to get involved.”

He was Wind Demon!

A terrifying assassin with Named-level combat power!

“Right, Big Brother. Besides, we three will help,” a white-haired mage also chimed in. Though proud as a Silver Moon Mage, none dared to be arrogant in front of their Big Brother.

Seated at the head was a burly man in a loose dark red robe, his chest partially exposed. Though only about six feet tall and muscular, he was far from matching the divine messenger Dongbo Xueying had encountered before—whose body was like a monstrous beast. Yet, in terms of pressure, this burly man sitting there exuded far more terrifying aura than that divine messenger.

That divine messenger was like a small kitten, while this burly man was like a peerless ferocious beast.

His killing intent was overwhelming.

It was forged through countless killings!

Assassins usually concealed their identities, but he didn’t care at all about revealing his. Because all his killings were missions accepted from the Blood Blade Tavern—no one could openly confront him!

Wind Demon was also a formidable expert, but in front of Big Brother, he dared not even breathe heavily, behaving obediently.

“That old demoness Siliang Hong keeps hiding, refusing to come out to play with me. It’s been a while since I’ve stretched my limbs. I’m getting restless. This time, I’ll go with you. If the mission is simple, you can handle it. But if Dongbo Xueying is truly a Named-level warrior, I’ll have a plaything,” the burly man said casually, his blood-red eyes glowing from the martial arts cultivation method he practiced.

He was the strongest warrior in the entire Qinghe Prefecture, and the most terrifying assassin—Xiang Pangyun!

“Alright, alright, since Big Brother insists on going, then let’s go. This mission is actually very simple. Probably, Big Brother won’t even get a chance to act,” Wind Demon joked with a grin.

“Since it’s decided, we’ll depart for Xueying Domain in Yishui City early tomorrow morning,” Xiang Pangyun stood up and issued the order directly.

“Yes.”

The four of them, including Wind Demon, responded in unison.