Zhang Yu was delighted to see Lu Hao. After all, Lu Hao had chosen Magic City Martial University, and with his talent, perhaps one day he could even knock Capital Martial University off the top spot.
"Since you've chosen our university, we certainly won't let your talent go to waste, Lu."
"President Zhang, I'll keep preparing for the college entrance exams, then just wait for the school year to start, right?"
"That's right. There's still a month until the exams and almost four months until the school year begins. I'm sure you'll have reached an even higher level by the time classes start."
After chatting with Zhang Yu for a while and signing Magic City Martial University's offer, Zhang Yu and the others left.
That afternoon, Lu Hao resumed his work for the Detective Bureau. This time, however, he focused on missions involving low- to mid-stage second-rank martial artists. He still needed seven more bones, and taking down even a low-stage second-rank martial artist would be enough. After that, he could advance to the second rank.
Lu Hao's strength now far surpassed that of a typical second-rank martial artist. Even his ordinary attacks, while not quite finishing moves, were nothing to scoff at. And with the Blood Battle Mad Blade, he could unleash a finishing move.
On top of that, Lu Hao's vital blood was no weaker than a second-rank martial artist's, so he could handle just about anyone below the high stage of the second rank.
The only first-rank missions left were the ones that required finding people. So he'd first see if any second-rank missions had a confirmed location for the target, then look for ones with at least some leads.
After getting into Viper's car, Lu Hao headed for the Detective Bureau.
When he arrived, he was in luck. A second-rank fugitive on the wanted list had been spotted that morning. Lu Hao took one look and quickly accepted the mission before anyone else could.
Once he'd accepted it, Lu Hao carefully read the mission details.
The target was a mid-stage second-rank martial artist, a woman named Lu Aoyun. During an altercation with an ordinary person, she had killed them outright.
She had also killed five innocent passersby. The Detective Bureau had been searching for her whereabouts, and only that morning had they found a lead.
Lu Aoyun was currently in the South Suburb. She seemed to have arranged to meet someone there and was preparing to leave Beiding District by water. Local officers were monitoring the area, so the mission had been pinned to the top of the second-rank listings.
That was why Lu Hao had seen it right away.
After learning the details, Lu Hao immediately headed for the South Suburb. What if he arrived too late and Lu Aoyun escaped? Or what if she noticed the officers watching her?
Half an hour later.
Lu Hao reached the destination and used the contact information provided in the mission to get in touch with the officer keeping watch.
"How's Lu Aoyun?"
Lu Hao got straight to the point.
"Mr. Lu, I spotted her this morning and have been following her ever since. She entered a factory around noon and hasn't come out. According to the map provided by the police station, there are no other exits, so she should still be inside."
Lu Hao nodded. Good. He hadn't rushed over as soon as he learned about the mission for nothing. After telling the officer to fall back, Lu Hao crept toward the factory.
Fortunately, this was the South Suburb, where hardly anyone lived. Otherwise, evacuating people from the wide-open area outside would have been a major problem.
As Lu Hao reached the edge of the factory, he heard faint cries of pain coming from inside. He strained to listen.
"Yunyun, I was wrong. Let me go. I know I was wrong."
A weak voice came from inside, accompanied by the smell of blood seeping out.
"Wrong? What did you do wrong? Do you know you're going to die?"
"Yu Jie, tell me, how did I wrong you? How could you betray me for another woman? Have you forgotten who gave you pills when your talent was poor?"
"Yunyun, I was wrong. I really was. Please let me go."
"Hmph. And what kind of person did you choose? An ordinary person? You betrayed me for an ordinary person?"
Listening to them from outside, Lu Hao felt like he was watching some juicy drama. So this was why Lu Aoyun had suddenly gone on a killing spree—her man had betrayed her.
Lu Hao shook his head and put the matter out of his mind. It wasn't his concern. His target was Lu Aoyun. She had killed people, so she had to be ready to pay with her own life.
As Lu Aoyun continued torturing Yu Jie, Lu Hao took the opportunity to climb in through a glass window above the factory.
Once inside, he immediately spotted a man tied to a chair in the middle of the factory. He had numerous injuries, and a woman sat nearby. She was Lu Hao's target.
This was the first time Lu Hao had gone after a woman. But he wasn't going to hold back. That would be putting his own life at risk.
Lu Hao slowly climbed onto the rafters, preparing to launch a surprise attack from above. Even if he couldn't kill Lu Aoyun in one strike, he could still inflict serious injuries.
When he reached the rafters, he saw Lu Aoyun pick up a whip and prepare to strike Yu Jie. Lu Hao suddenly sprang down.
Borrowing force from the air, Lu Hao brought his blade down on Lu Aoyun.
Lu Aoyun hadn't sensed his attack at all, but when she saw Lu Hao coming at her, she instinctively raised both arms to block him.
Lu Hao's blade came down. It didn't sever her arms, but it left a huge wound.
"Ah! You dare ambush me, you little bastard? I'll kill you!"
Pain hit Lu Aoyun at once. Staring at the young man before her, she roared. Her arms were injured, but her lower limbs had been fully tempered. Back when she was a first-rank martial artist, she'd feared for her life, so she had tempered her lower limbs first.
Lu Aoyun kicked at Lu Hao. He didn't just stand there and take it. The moment he'd finished his first slash, he'd already swung his blade at her a second time.
Blade and leg collided in midair. Lu Aoyun's kick contained a substantial amount of vital blood—about thirty cal. That meant she had truly mastered the use of vital blood. After all, a typical mid-stage second-rank martial artist had a little over three hundred cal.
Lu Aoyun was quite confident. Among independent martial artists who cultivated vital blood like her, those who could truly master its use were exceedingly rare.
Lu Hao's slash, however, carried nearly sixty cal of vital blood. Sixty against thirty—a twofold difference. The disparity was plain to see.
After the blade and leg collided, the force of Lu Hao's slash was reduced slightly, but it kept cutting forward.
The blade traveled up Lu Aoyun's leg and toward her chest. In an instant, she was sent flying, a huge wound opening across her chest as blood poured from her mouth.
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