What was an assassin?
An assassin was not a person, but a weapon, a sharp blade. The highest state an assassin could attain was to cast aside all emotion and become absolutely rational, utterly cold.
What was assassination?
Assassination meant concealing a weapon on one's person, sheathing the blade meant for murder. Once an assassin struck, the fight ended only in death. Everything was staked on that one attempt.
And a Hidden Weapon was an assassin's natural weapon, their most loyal companion.
[Second principle of the Tang Sect's Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record: A Hidden Weapon is a weapon used from the shadows, an exquisite killing tool that leaves its target unaware of why they died. Assassination is not a sneak attack. It is a refined art. Remember, you are a practitioner of that art, not a filthy, despicable attacker. Understanding this is vital.]
Tang San had understood that long ago. He had honed the art to its limit in both body and mind.
With absolute sincerity came invincibility!
Today, he was ready to put it into practice. Following the habits he had learned in the Tang Sect, he drew up an "assassination checklist" in his mind.
[Time]: Although the target dozes in the morning, that is when he is most alert. After waking, he shows strange signs of remorse. He is most volatile at night and commits acts of violence every day. At three quarters past noon today, he will be drunk and taking a nap. That is the best time to strike.
[Location]: My so-called "home," the bedroom in the three-room mud-brick house.
[Target]: An ordinary man with some close-combat ability and exceptionally keen senses and tracking skills. When drunk, he rants wildly before gradually falling asleep.
[Method]: Poisoning his food is inadvisable. The snake venom I have collected