Second Contact (Part 2)

"Another corpse delivered to our doorstep?" the tall, thin guy sneered.

"Tsk-heh~" Slumber's lips curved upward. He then crossed his arms over his chest, looking at them coldly.

It was that move. His hands erupted with swirling chi, quickly forming two chi blades.

"~Soul Annihilation~"

Slumber, wielding two short chi blades, slashed at the golden scorpions on the chests of the group of black-clothed figures. After severing the lifelike scorpion tattoos, the figures collapsed to the ground.

They hadn't even seen him move to strike. In an instant, the figures fell to the ground, their spilled blood gradually dyeing the severed scorpion tattoos red, making the scorpions appear even more lifelike. Those who were full of life just a moment ago were now corpses. In a short time, their bodies turned into black liquid and vanished into the ground. Everything returned to normal, as if nothing had happened, except for the marks on the concrete floor that were just cut by fingernails.

"Thanks, but why..." Lin Yingbin's words were cut off as Slumber answered the question he was about to ask.

"Exorcism spell. They set this up on this street to drive away unwanted people. They aren't ordinary assassins." After answering, Slumber prepared to leave.

"Hold on! Are you here to laugh at me, Snake!"

Ryuseki roared at Slumber, who was about to leave.

"Snake? Tsk-heh~" Slumber turned his head, looking at the two and sneering.

Lin Yingbin was still somewhat dazed, looking at Ryuseki, completely unaware of what Ryuseki meant.

Ryuseki became somewhat angry. "This is the second time, isn't it? What do you want? Why do you always interfere with me? We don't have any grudges between us!"

"Tsk-heh~ Interfere with you? I don't understand what you mean." He stared at Ryuseki with his blood-red pupils.

Ryuseki increasingly disliked Slumber's indifferent expression and mocking laughter. "Why do you always meddle in our affairs? I didn't ask for your help, why are you so nosy?"

Lin Yingbin looked at Slumber in surprise, then at Ryuseki, and said, "Don't be like that, he's just trying to help us!" Lin Yingbin didn't really understand why Ryuseki was so angry, but his intuition told him there was definitely some friction between them.

"As a bounty hunter, it's natural to step in when encountering something like this. This time it's on the house; next time I'll charge." Slumber turned and waved his hand. Perhaps he was satisfied with his explanation, but Ryuseki didn't buy it.

Ryuseki hated it most when others did things for him without asking. It made him feel like he was being replaced. Under this feeling, he felt incompetent. He would never accept such an answer.

"Hold on! Snake, Kikka You's death has something to do with you!"

"Snake? Didn't I tell you I'm a bounty hunter known as the Black Hunter, Slumber?"

Ryuseki lunged forward, blocking Slumber's path.

Slumber frowned, looking at Ryuseki blocking his way, and thought to himself, So fast.

Ryuseki said angrily, "You want to leave before we're done talking?" As he spoke, Ryuseki instantly wrapped his chi around his fist and swung it at Slumber.

However, Slumber blocked Ryuseki's furious punch with just one hand.

"Why do you always cause trouble? Always meddling in our affairs, I'm getting really angry with you."

However, at this moment, instead of continuing his attack, Ryuseki instinctively pushed Slumber away, then leaped back, creating some distance between them.

Slumber sighed and explained calmly, "If I hadn't intervened, they would have killed you. It was the situation at the time..."

Ryuseki interrupted Slumber before he could finish explaining.

"Kill us? I think you're talking nonsense. I was going to defeat them; why did you have to steal the spotlight?"

Slumber let out a breath and replied, "Then how do you want to resolve this?"

"I've been waiting for you to say that. I lost to you last time. I won't lose this time. Tomorrow afternoon, same time, Eastern District Abandoned Airport. We'll settle this with our fists." Ryuseki's voice sounded very agitated, and Lin Yingbin could tell. He also realized that Ryuseki was determined to confront this guy he disliked.

"You want to fight me? Forget it!" Slumber replied after some thought.

Hearing this, Ryuseki immediately became displeased. "What do you mean by that? Are you looking down on me, or are you afraid of losing?"

Ryuseki's reaction surprised Lin Yingbin. He knew the other party's strength and quickly tried to intervene.

"Hey, Ryuseki, calm down!..." Lin Yingbin started to say more, but after thinking about it, he stopped. Based on his understanding of Ryuseki, once he said something, it was like spilled water and couldn't be easily taken back. So, he didn't try to stop him anymore. However, he also knew the vast difference in their strength; even if he and Ryuseki combined, they might not be able to defeat the person in front of them.

"Fine!" Slumber accepted Ryuseki's proposal with apparent helplessness. "I'll let you try and challenge me!"

Meanwhile, in a dark, hollow place, a conversation unfolded that would change Ryuseki's future.

"Go and capture him now to complete the next step of the plan."

A rough, authoritative male voice spoke.

Another slightly hoarse voice responded, "Yes!" Then, the owner of this voice, a bulky figure, disappeared into the shadows with unimaginable agility.

Following a set of footsteps, another tall, slender man walked slowly from the pitch-black corridor. He said to the source of the voice, "I hope your 'Project Destiny' can be successfully launched, Zhi!"

"You're quite rude!" the man called 'Zhi' replied in a low voice.

Just then, a bolt of lightning flashed across the night sky. In that instant, the light produced by the lightning illuminated the man named Zhi. He sat on a towering throne with a regal presence like a monarch, his deep gaze like a bottomless black hole, as if wanting to devour and tear everything apart. Although it was only for a moment, his aura alone was enough to exert pressure. This was the man who had once terrified the entire world.