Shadow Nightmare

"An inch of time is worth an inch of gold."

After finishing his stretches, Fu Qian looked at Tan Mingxue with a wide grin.

"But don't worry. You'll soon be free from this boring business."

Tan Mingxue's response was simple. Her hair shuddered, and countless fine strands swept toward Fu Qian, converging to slice him apart.

The same trick wouldn't work on a Saint Seiya.

Fu Qian took another deep breath and raised his right foot.

Boom!

His foot slammed into the ground with tremendous force. The resulting shockwave raced outward, scattering the fine strands that filled the air.

Naturally, Tan Mingxue's signature move wasn't so simple. The strands whipped and recoiled, but only for the span of a breath before closing in again.

One breath was enough.

A piercing metallic screech rang out as Fu Qian tore the tabletop off the nearby dining table.

Almost everything in the safe house was made of special metal, and the tabletop was especially absurd: solid metal, and heavy as hell in his hands.

Tan Mingxue's poker face finally cracked when she saw this.

It was too late for regrets now.

Fu Qian gave her no chance to make a face. He lifted the heavy tabletop in front of his chest.

He turned and flung it.

The tabletop became a flying shield, hurtling toward Tan Mingxue's head with unstoppable momentum.

At the same time, Fu Qian spread the fingers of his left hand and silently fired five Air Bullets in succession.

Tan Mingxue's three-thousand-foot white hair instinctively snapped together, gathering into a mass in front of her in an attempt to stop the tabletop, which looked capable of crushing anything in its path.

Shards filled the air, accompanied by a continuous ripping sound.

The strands were incredibly sharp. The seemingly indestructible metal tabletop was instantly torn to pieces, then sliced apart into fragments.

Sharp, but pointless.

Fu Qian had been right. Even after being shattered, every metal fragment kept moving along its original trajectory, heading straight for Tan Mingxue's head.

And now that the tabletop had been broken up, it had become a shotgun blast.

Tan Mingxue clearly knew this too. While her strands blocked the flying shield, she shifted several meters sideways in an extremely awkward pose, narrowly dodging the shower of metal shards.

The fragments slammed into the wall behind her, gouging out a deep, honeycomb-shaped crater.

But in the next instant, Tan Mingxue's pupils abruptly widened. Though she had escaped being struck in the head, she shifted sideways again, her body nearly losing its balance.

Even so, an invisible bullet struck her waist, spraying blood.

Not bad!

She hadn't even fallen.

No wonder she was the Night Watcher team leader. This was a far better showing than that Mr. Ji's.

Huff, huff!

Panting heavily, Tan Mingxue clutched the wound at her waist. Her expression was awful.

She'd heard a general description when she got the message earlier, but she hadn't expected this guy to be even more terrifying than described.

What kind of monster was he?

"Cheap shot! You're despicable!"

"Someone who uses this as a weapon doesn't seem qualified to say that."

Fu Qian pointed at her hair.

"Ready?"

"Ready for what?"

Tan Mingxue had no interest in talking to this guy, but she certainly didn't mind having a moment to catch her breath and tend to her wound.

"Your last words."

Fu Qian slowly spoke the two words, but he wasn't looking at her. His eyes were fixed on Wen Li in the corner.

Wen Li had turned around. Her mouth was hanging open in an O, as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

When her eyes met Fu Qian's, she whipped her head around as if shocked by an electric current. She squeezed her eyes shut and focused on the tip of her nose.

"What are you, anyway?"

Tan Mingxue delivered a classic line that practically invited disaster.

"A hidden master."

As he answered, Fu Qian picked up an ashtray from the floor.

It had fallen off the table earlier.

"Hold them off! I'll rescue her first."

Just then, a shadow flashed overhead, and someone jumped down.

A man in his thirties, wearing a black top and gold-rimmed glasses.

"Qi Xue!"

The moment Tan Mingxue saw him, strength returned to her, and even her voice gained some force.

The opponent's earlier display of brutality and strength had nearly broken her confidence.

Seeing Qi Xue rush toward Wen Li, she thought it unnecessary, but gritted her teeth and once again sent all her transparent strands at Fu Qian.

Clang!

A loud crash rang out. Qi Xue abruptly stopped, coming to a halt several meters from Wen Li.

The ashtray Fu Qian had thrown had left a deep dent in the wall in front of him.

"You'd better stay away from there."

Fu Qian strolled through Tan Mingxue's attacks as if taking a leisurely walk. Carrying the two table legs he had just pulled free, he made his way over to Qi Xue.

He glanced at Wen Li, who was almost standing up.

"Do you really think he came to save you?"

"What do you mean?"

Wen Li had been thrilled when she saw reinforcements arrive, and had nearly struggled to her feet.

But Fu Qian's words left her baffled again.

Fu Qian said nothing. He pointed at her head.

This was...

Realizing how flustered she was, Wen Li took a breath and steadied herself.

The next moment, she suddenly stepped back and stared in terror at Qi Xue, who was standing nearby.

"You're not... Who are you?!"

"I'm not."

Qi Xue suddenly gave a sinister smile. The features on his face quickly melted and warped, and in the blink of an eye, he had taken on another man's appearance.

Ignoring Wen Li, he turned to look at Fu Qian.

"I'm a little curious. How did you know?"

"Do I really have to ask? This is the guy who took a job to kill you."

Fu Qian answered Wen Li, who was still staring blankly.

"You really are popular. The people who want to kill you and the ones who want to save you are both rushing in."

"As for how I knew?"

Fu Qian turned back to the fake Qi Xue.

"Take a guess. Heh heh heh."

Fu Qian, of course, wasn't about to tell him that he recognized him because he'd killed him once before and had memorized his aura.

That's right. This was the same guy who had controlled Wen Xiuxian last time.

"My disguise is flawless."

The man gritted his teeth.

"It really does look convincing. Just look at that fool over there. She didn't notice a thing."

Fu Qian pointed at Tan Mingxue. Her face instantly flushed red.

"What should I call you?"

After mocking Tan Mingxue, Fu Qian turned his attention back to the assassin.

"If your professional ethics mean you have to keep it secret, that's fine. You're distinctive enough that I can just look you up after I kill you."

This guy had caused him to fail the mission last time by breaking Wen Li's mind. He definitely wasn't getting away today.

"Shadow Nightmare. And yes, I take money to do the job."

The man looked at Fu Qian and smiled.

"You're strong. I really don't think I can beat you. But if you truly want to kill me, I'd advise you not to act rashly."

With a ripping sound, he tore the shirt off his upper body.