Secret Assassination

"Don't panic! Get out your fire starters. The people at the entrance are not to move around, and the people inside are not to come over either. Remember, anyone who dares come to the doorway, no matter who it is, stop them!"

The sudden darkness made Mu Li's face darken, but with his scheming mind, he remained very calm in the face of this abrupt situation.

With someone giving orders, the mercenaries of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group also calmed down from their panic. Some mercenaries carrying fire starters hurriedly pulled them from their clothes, and faint firelight softly lit the room.

However, before they could raise them high, a wild gust of wind suddenly swept through the stone chamber, and all the fire starters went out in an instant.

The stone chamber sank back into darkness, but very soon, a scream rang out.

Mu Li's sharp eyes swept constantly through the darkness. Following the sound of that scream, he tried to find where Lin Qingyun was.

"He's coming! He's at the stone door! Stop him!" the attacked mercenary shouted while enduring the intense pain.

Hearing his subordinate's shout, Mu Li's expression darkened again. At the same time, he sensed a blast of force rushing toward him head-on. He immediately retreated several steps in a row, landing right at the outermost edge of the stone door, while completely blocking off the space at the doorway.

Only, the imagined sound of a forceful collision did not appear. On the contrary, screams kept coming from inside the stone chamber instead.

Cold sweat broke out on Mu Li's forehead in waves. He had originally thought Lin Qingyun was merely an ordinary Dou Shi. No matter how strong he was, facing more than a dozen Dou Zhe, he would probably die here with hatred. But now, with this sudden turn of events, he abruptly felt that making a move against Lin Qingyun had been a wrong decision.

But things had already reached this point, and there was no room for even the slightest regret. He knew clearly that if Lin Qingyun could not be dealt with here, it would only bring endless trouble in the future, especially... the force behind him.

Mu Li took two night pearls from his clothes and tossed them forward. The faint glow could only illuminate the area within two or three feet nearby, but compared to the darkness, that bit of light was already enough for an experienced mercenary to see clearly and judge whether the person before him was an enemy.

"Hehe, if this is all you've got, then this farce should come to an end." Lin Qingyun's cold laugh seemed to come from all directions at once.

The remaining mercenaries in the darkness gripped their weapons and moved around warily. They were not sure when the person hidden in the dark would strike...

Ma Si held a steel blade in his hand. Among the mercenaries, he was the strongest, with the strength of a Six-Star Dou Zhe. Combined with his Yellow Tier Advanced Fighting Skill, he could even fight a Seven-Star Dou Zhe.

Years of walking the edge of danger made Ma Si extremely sensitive to crisis, even while he was in the dark.

His ears moved slightly as he listened to the faint sounds coming from all around. His gaze, seemingly like an eagle's eyes, appeared able to pierce through the darkness and see everything clearly.

Yet right at this moment, Ma Si stopped. Not far ahead of him, there were two streaks of golden light.

Ma Si was somewhat pleasantly surprised. He had already seen the person he was looking for and immediately shouted in a hurry, "Come over quickly, I found him, quick..."

When he got to this point, Ma Si's voice stopped abruptly. A strange sound, one that could only come when blood blocked the throat, came from his mouth.

Defeating the enemy in a single strike, Lin Qingyun looked around. Even in the darkness, he could rely on the special nature of his cultivation method to see the energy fluctuations coming from those mercenaries. His keen soul perception also gave him a certain reaction ability, and this allowed him to move through the darkness as smoothly as flowing clouds and water.

Thud!

Another person fell. Lin Qingyun, somewhat out of breath, withdrew his iron spear. Even though the Dou Qi in his body was abundant and comparable to that of a Dou Shi, killing more than a dozen Dou Zhe one after another still left him rather exhausted.

"Let's go. Time to break out!" Lin Qingyun said softly, pulling Xiao Yi Xian as he looked toward the stone chamber's doorway.

There were two Five-Star Dou Zhe guarding that place, while Mu Li was at the very outside, waiting in full readiness.

Bang!

Lin Qingyun waved his hand, and a gust of wild wind mixed with powerful force shot violently toward the two Five-Star Dou Zhe at the stone door ahead.

The expressions of the two mercenaries changed sharply. Their bodies shifted to either side, and if their reactions had not been timely, they would have nearly been blown away by that force. Even so, their figures were pushed until they staggered.

While the two of them were unsteady, two gusts of wind slipped out quietly through the gap between them like loaches. By the time they came back to their senses, it was already too late to stop them. One mercenary immediately shouted toward Mu Li, "Young Group Leader, be careful! They're charging toward you!"

At the same time, he threw out a fire starter. Its weak light made the narrow passage seem no longer quite so dark.

His pupils shrinking slightly, Mu Li slowly spread his feet apart, blocking the narrow passage completely. His palms clenched into fists, and pale-green Dou Qi gradually surged over them. Under the rendering of the green Dou Qi, those fleshy fists actually began to gradually turn a color like wood.

"Even if you are a Dou Shi, after killing so many people, you should be at the end of your strength!" With a cold laugh, Mu Li looked toward the place lit by the firelight. He could already vaguely see two figures.

Mu Li did not think he could deal with an exhausted Dou Shi, but he could still delay him for a little while. As long as he waited for the two mercenaries behind to catch up, they could hold him back for a while, then send a signal for the mercenaries on the cliff to come down. At that time, they could capture them in one move.

Borrowing the weak light, Mu Li could vaguely see the killing intent on Lin Qingyun's face.

"In your current state, you're nothing more than an arrow at the end of its flight." Mu Li sneered. His pair of fists, as if made from wood, glowed with green light and carried a vicious force as they smashed fiercely toward Lin Qingyun.

"Mystic Rank Low Level Fighting Skill: Wood Hardening!"

Lin Qingyun frowned slightly. Sensing the force rushing toward him head-on, he could not help cursing under his breath, "Madman!"

How could he not see that Mu Li was risking his life, using all his strength to keep him here?

Immediately, Lin Qingyun released Xiao Yi Xian's hand and opened his stance. His fist clenched tightly, veins bulging one after another as terrifying power rapidly gathered.

With a fierce shout, the Dou Qi in his body began to circulate wildly along the pathways of the Fighting Skill.

"Sky-Breaking Strike!"

The shout that rang out in his heart almost made Lin Qingyun's sleeve cuffs suddenly tighten. The originally soft fabric was now comparable to steel.

As his sleeve cuffs swelled, containing powerful force, Lin Qingyun's fist first drew back sharply. An instant later, it shot out violently.

Bang!

Two fists collided thunderously in the narrow mountain cave, and the muffled thunder-like sound lingered in the passage for a long time.

Then came a series of cracking sounds.

Mu Li's body slammed heavily into the wall beside the passage. One of his arms was already bent.

"How is that possible? How could you still have Dou Qi in your body!" Mu Li's expression was horrified. Everything had been within his plan: use those mercenaries to first consume Lin Qingyun's strength, then have the mercenaries guarding the doorway intercept him. And yet...

"Nothing is impossible. You can go die now!" Lin Qingyun said expressionlessly, showing no mercy as he pierced Mu Li's body with the iron spear.

"Go!" After doing all this, he did not even bother confirming whether Mu Li was dead or alive. He put away the iron spear, directly grabbed Xiao Yi Xian's hand, and rushed swiftly toward the outside of the cave without looking back.

Just after Lin Qingyun had left, two mercenaries rushed over. Seeing Mu Li lying on the ground, seemingly no longer breathing, they were immediately scared out of their wits.

If the Young Group Leader died, their heads would definitely be twisted off by the Group Leader.

"Whew! Good thing he's not dead!" A very capable-looking mercenary half-squatted down and placed one hand in front of Mu Li's nose, sensing briefly before finally letting out a breath.

"Arthur, take good care of the Young Group Leader. I'll go after those two. Send the signal and have the brothers above make a move together!" The mercenary looked at the short man beside him and said.

After the words fell, he chased in the direction Lin Qingyun had left.

"With Mu Li's scheming mind, the people of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group must already be arranged above the cliff." Panting hurriedly, Xiao Yi Xian reminded him.

"You should have a flying Magical Beast, right? I'm counting on you. I don't have much strength left!" Lin Qingyun said.

"How would you know? Did you secretly investigate me?" Xiao Yi Xian was immediately shocked in her heart. She broke free from Lin Qingyun's hand and said with a serious expression.

"If I said I understood everything about you, would you believe me?" Lin Qingyun chuckled, looked at the bamboo flute at Xiao Yi Xian's waist, and said, "That flute of yours, I haven't seen you play it at all along the way, so you don't understand music at all. Since you don't understand music, why would you carry a flute? Other than using it to control some Magical Beast, what else could it be used for?"

"I've always been a very cautious person. You know that," Lin Qingyun said.

"Is what you said true?" Xiao Yi Xian said with a frown. The reason Lin Qingyun gave could indeed explain everything.

"Absolutely true! But now isn't the time to drag our feet. We definitely can't use the rope to climb back up the cliff right now. The only one I can trust is you." Seeing Xiao Yi Xian's hesitant appearance, how could Lin Qingyun not know what this equally cautious girl was thinking? He immediately urged her helplessly.

Slowly exhaling, Xiao Yi Xian nodded slightly.

"I believe you!"

As the words fell, Xiao Yi Xian took off the short flute at her waist, placed it against her small mouth, and blew lightly. A somewhat strange sound wave swiftly spread from the short flute, then passed through the passage and finally spiraled into the night sky beyond the cliff.

"What species is that Magical Beast of yours?" Lin Qingyun did not remember the original plot especially clearly, so he asked curiously.

"Blue Eagle. Why? Interested? Don't even think about it. That's my most important companion." Xiao Yi Xian's expression gradually eased, and she revealed a trace of a smile as she spoke.

"I don't have the habit of stealing what others love!" Lin Qingyun said with a smile.

"What a pity. There was still one last stone box we didn't open." Following closely behind Lin Qingyun, Xiao Yi Xian spoke with some regret.

"Do you think I'd let such a precious treasure go?" Lin Qingyun smiled and looked toward the exit of the passage close before them.

"What a greedy guy!" Xiao Yi Xian muttered.

Once again, they ran swiftly along the dark passage for a while. The moonlight at the cave entrance grew brighter and brighter. An instant later, their vision suddenly lit up, and a sky full of stars, as well as that enormous silver moon, appeared within their sight.

Appearing at the cave entrance, Lin Qingyun reacted quickly and pulled Xiao Yi Xian against the wall. His gaze glanced up toward the cliff, and as expected, he discovered that quite a few people on the cliff were holding torches and patrolling everywhere.

"Heh, that guy really is thorough." Lin Qingyun sneered a few times, then his brows suddenly furrowed. The sound of hurried footsteps came from within the passage.

"Looks like it's those two mercenaries who are still alive. Too bad there's no time to deal with them now."

Lin Qingyun looked at Xiao Yi Xian and said, "Where's that companion of yours? Why hasn't it come yet?"

Xiao Yi Xian once again took out the short flute, placed it at her mouth, and blew lightly. Strange sound waves pierced into the clouds.

At this moment, in the dark night sky, the faintly visible clouds tore open, and an aged, powerful cry followed.

"Li!"

Please give me a recommendation ticket. I'm begging you, everyone!