New Job

Chu Qing turned a deaf ear to the question.

He merely continued rummaging through Mei Qianluo's clothes. After a while, he found a needle pouch tucked inside his sleeve.

Only then did he smile.

"Found it."

"Plum Blossom Needles."

Xia Wanshuang's expression changed.

Chu Qing glanced at her.

"You know them? Do you know which one is the antidote?"

"...I don't."

Xia Wanshuang shook her head. It was not because Chu Qing had ignored her question and stirred resentment in her heart.

She truly did not know.

The Plum Blossom Needles were a hidden weapon Mei Qianluo would never speak of. Had she not kept a close watch on the Divine Sand Gang, she could never have known about them.

Chu Qing was not disappointed. Before coming here, he had considered every possibility. The most direct method had been to force Mei Qianluo to hand over the antidote.

But when he saw Ge Jingchun, he knew that would likely not work.

Ge Jingchun was Mystic Staff Crouching Dragon. His schemes came one after another, and his words were a blend of truth and falsehood, substance and illusion. Trusting him rashly would be anything but wise.

As the Third Boss of the Divine Sand Gang, Mei Qianluo would not readily hand over the antidote either.

Rather than waste time here grinding away with them, only to end up with an antidote of uncertain authenticity, it was better to pin someone down first, and then...

Holding the needle pouch, Chu Qing walked over to Ge Jingchun and pried open one of his hands.

"Don't be afraid. I'll be gentle."

Gentle for what?

Ge Jingchun's bewilderment lasted only an instant before a Plum Blossom Needle pricked his palm.

His face changed dramatically.

"You actually stabbed me with Plum Blossom Needles!

"Quick! The antidote is in the green bottle!!"

Hearing this, Chu Qing looked over the few bottles in his hand and immediately set the green bottle aside.

"You're bound to die tonight. Why would you cherish your life so much?

"You would rather die than tell me Cheng Sihai's whereabouts. Are you trying to borrow my hand to give yourself a quick death?"

"..."

A deathly gray washed over Ge Jingchun's face.

"Looks like I guessed right."

Chu Qing let out a breath.

"You people really do have black hearts..."

There were three bottles on Mei Qianluo's person in total. With the green one eliminated, two remained.

He took out the red bottle, poured out a pill, and stuffed it into Ge Jingchun's mouth.

Ge Jingchun swallowed the pill without expression.

A moment later, the patch of black on his hand faded at a visible rate.

Chu Qing smiled.

"Looks like luck is on my side tonight. I got it right on the first try.

"By the way, what is this for?"

He picked up the last small bottle. It contained ointment.

After thinking for a moment, Chu Qing used his knife to cut a small wound into Ge Jingchun's body. Once enough blood had flowed, he applied some ointment to the wound.

Yet after watching for a while, he saw no sign of pain on Ge Jingchun's face.

"Flesh-regenerating, blood-staunching medicine?"

Generally speaking, the effects of such things were not easy to see in a short time.

Besides, there was far too little in this tiny bottle. For injuries like Ge Jingchun's and Mei Qianluo's, it was a drop in the bucket and not worth using at all.

Chu Qing had severed one of Mei Qianluo's arms, yet Mei Qianluo had not intended to use this to stop the bleeding either.

Afterward, Chu Qing searched Ge Jingchun again. Ge Jingchun was much more aboveboard than Mei Qianluo; there were no bottles or jars on him.

There were no banknotes, but there was plenty of silver.

Chu Qing accepted it all without ceremony. Only then did he put away the antidote for the Plum Blossom Needles and look at Xia Wanshuang.

"You have a grudge against Cheng Sihai?"

"...I do."

"You want me to help you kill him?"

Chu Qing's question was simple and direct.

Xia Wanshuang's gaze shifted several times before she finally nodded deeply.

"You killed Ge Jingchun and Mei Qianluo. You and he are already locked in a fight to the death."

"That's not how you settle accounts. We need to keep each matter separate."

Chu Qing spoke softly.

"I can help you kill Cheng Sihai, but if you want me to act, you'll have to pay a price."

"A price..."

Xia Wanshuang did not understand. Why had things suddenly turned out this way?

Even if she said nothing, this man would probably have gone to kill Cheng Sihai anyway, wouldn't he?

So why had it become her who needed to pay a price?

"What do you want?"

Xia Wanshuang asked quietly.

"Silver, gold, either is fine."

Chu Qing's answer was rather vulgar.

"...You're an assassin?"

Xia Wanshuang stared at Chu Qing in astonishment.

Chu Qing touched the cloth covering his face.

"Can't you tell?"

A shadow passed through Xia Wanshuang's eyes. Assassins had always killed only for money.

Now that she had said those things, even if the assassin before her had originally been at odds with Cheng Sihai, he might not necessarily kill him anymore.

After all, this could bring him benefits.

With such thoughts in her heart, Xia Wanshuang did not know why, but the words slipped from her mouth.

"I don't have much money... My looks are passable. If I don't have enough silver, can I make up the difference with myself?"

The atmosphere seemed to freeze in an instant.

The words had already left Xia Wanshuang's mouth. Even if she wanted to take them back, she could not.

She only watched as Chu Qing gave her a somewhat stiff sideways glance, then muttered under his breath.

"Lunatic..."

What did he say?

Xia Wanshuang's eyes widened. She could not believe her ears no matter what.

Chu Qing, meanwhile, looked at the prompt before him.

Commission triggered: Assassinate Divine Sand Gang Leader Cheng Sihai!

Accept?

Although he felt the system was causing trouble again, Chu Qing did not hesitate and accepted it directly.

Chu Qing had always felt that his system was probably an exceedingly rudimentary sort.

It had no artificial intelligence and could not communicate with him. Its trigger conditions were rigid... It did not even have any requirements for the client, and the commission payment could be decided however one pleased.

Of course, whether Chu Qing wanted those payments in the end was his own business.

The system never asked about that. It was only responsible for triggering commissions, then providing rewards.

In a sense, it was rudimentary... but worry-free.

Xia Wanshuang was still in turmoil over Chu Qing's words when she heard him speak softly.

"Deal."

"??"

He called her a lunatic on one hand, yet agreed to her terms on the other?

Had this assassin split into two personalities?

But split personality or not, at least the fellow had agreed.

Killing Cheng Sihai would be difficult... While he was in the Divine Sand Gang, Xia Wanshuang had not had the slightest opportunity.

This time, Cheng Sihai had brought the Four Great Guardians and several bosses to Heavenly Dance City. It truly was the best time for an assassination.

Unfortunately, she was badly injured now and had no way to act.

Otherwise, why would she need to beg this person before her, whose origins and true nature she knew nothing about?

Now, she could only hope this person would keep his word... and not make empty boasts.

With his martial arts, if he truly went through with it, perhaps she could really avenge this grudge.

As for the payment...

Xia Wanshuang bit her lip, a flash of stubbornness appearing in her eyes.

"I'll just treat it as being bitten by a dog!"