The Blood Hand Gang's hideout was an underground bar.
The bar was a wreck.
Dozens of corpses lay sprawled across the floor, the bar counter, and the tables.
The Blood Hand Gang's leader was the only one still breathing.
The Person in Black Robes wore a golden mask engraved with two fish biting each other's tails.
There was scarcely a trace of a martial artist's aura coming from him.
"Wh... What Wang Biao?"
The gang leader had been beaten to a bloody pulp and couldn't even open his eyes.
He truly had no idea how he had offended this god of slaughter.
The man had kicked down the door early in the morning and started killing without a word.
Even all his dozens of brothers put together couldn't stand up to a single finger of their opponent's.
The Person in Black Robes slapped him, shattering all his teeth.
"Cloud Mountain Execution Ground, Wang Biao. Remember now?"
"If you don't, I'll help jog your memory some more."
The gang leader nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at rice.
"I remember, I remember now."
He felt terribly aggrieved.
If he wanted answers, why not just ask? Why kill people?
If he'd known this would happen, he never would have let the money blind him into taking that job.
And now look: he hadn't even finished spending the money, and his life was about to be over.
"Where's Wang Biao?"
The gang leader hurriedly answered, "He was taken away by an organization called the Hater Circus!"
"Their leader had a lightning talent ability. He was too strong, so we gave up the job because we couldn't beat them."
The Person in Black Robes continued, "Where was he taken?"
The gang leader shook his head. "I don't know. I really don't know."
"The Hater Circus usually keeps its movements very secret. After the Cloud Mountain incident, they've hardly been seen at all."
"Their old headquarters was abandoned long ago, too."
Afterward, the Blood Hand Gang had intended to take revenge, but when they found the Circus's warehouse, they discovered that everything inside had already been cleared out.
"Grandpa, that's all this lowly one knows. Please spare me..."
Crack-
The Person in Black Robes crushed the gang leader's neck.
"A bunch of scum who undermine fairness."
The Person in Black Robes straightened up and dusted off his hands in disgust.
"Hater Circus, let me see what you're made of."
Meanwhile, Qin Ze was at school, unaware that he had already been targeted.
The first thing he had done after returning from Cloud Mountain was have the little haters move.
Then he had everyone lie low and wait until the heat died down before coming out to act again.
During afternoon self-study, Qin Ze had nothing to do, so he fiddled with the administrator terminal on his wrist.
A group of martial artists suddenly appeared in front of the poisonous fog.
Their leader was an incredibly handsome Big Handsome Guy.
Qin Ze thought the guy's looks could give his own a run for their money.
The martial artists around the Big Handsome Guy clearly treated him with utmost respect and didn't even dare breathe too loudly.
Beside the Big Handsome Prick, Qin Ze also saw a familiar figure: Enforcer Number Three.
"Sir Executive Officer, we've found two passageways leading into the depths of the Otherworld, but both have been filled with poisonous gas."
"Intermediate Martial Artists can't last five seconds in there."
"The gas can even corrode mechanical parts, so sending drones in is useless too."
Qin Ze raised an eyebrow.
Was this the Advanced Martial Artist Number Three had mentioned?
He really was here for the Otherworld.
The Big Handsome Guy studied the poisonous gas for a moment.
His figure flashed, and he suddenly vanished from where he stood.
Two seconds later, he reappeared.
"So fast!"
The guy was so fast that even the camera could barely capture him.
"The gas acts directly on cells. No martial artist can withstand it, no matter how high their level," the Big Handsome Guy said calmly.
A martial artist beside him sighed. "It seems we can only wait for the Maka Race to arrive."
The Big Handsome Prick looked thoughtful, then suddenly raised his head and looked at the hidden camera in the corner.
Qin Ze sat bolt upright.
Even through the screen, he still felt as though a primordial beast had its eyes on him.
An Advanced Martial Artist's perception was actually this sharp.
That high-speed camera was invisible, invisible in the literal physical sense.
"Sir Executive Officer, have you discovered something new?" someone asked.
The corners of the Big Handsome Guy's mouth rose. "A rat is watching us."
Everyone's hearts jolted.
Someone was watching them?
Who was so eager to die?
The martial artists in their group averaged level three, and the highest-ranked, the executive officer, was level seven.
It was no exaggeration to say that this force could slaughter all of Jiang City.
Spying on them was no different from suicide.
The Big Handsome Guy raised a hand and flicked a wisp of qi and blood from his fingers.
A series of sparks suddenly erupted from a concealed corner above everyone's heads.
A pile of parts scattered across the floor immediately afterward.
"Is this... a surveillance camera?"
Someone immediately picked up the parts to examine them.
The Jiang City lord beside him said gravely, "Though we don't know how long this facility has existed, we can see that it hasn't been completely abandoned, since the electrical systems in some areas are still working. It stands to reason that there would be cameras."
The Big Handsome Guy said calmly, "The camera wasn't merely running. Someone was watching us through it just now."
The city lord was surprised. "How do you know?"
The Big Handsome Guy said, "Intuition."
Everyone frowned, realizing how serious the matter was.
An Advanced Martial Artist's intuition was as good as hard proof.
The city lord said, "Could there still be life in the depths of this Otherworld?"
This was a major discovery.
If life really did exist inside, it was highly likely they could obtain what they wanted.
"Who knows?" The Big Handsome Guy turned and walked outside. "The Otherworld is sealed off as of today. No one is allowed in without documentation from the Law Enforcement Department."
The city lord answered, "Yes."
Looking at the pitch-black terminal screen, Qin Ze couldn't help breaking out in goosebumps.
An Advanced Martial Artist's strength was actually this terrifying.
For the past two days, Qin Ze had been pleased with himself for breaking through to Level One Martial Artist.
Now that he compared the two, what the hell was a Level One Martial Artist worth?
Get stronger. I have to work hard and get stronger.
"Stop slacking off. All of you, start cultivating!"
Qin Ze began cracking the whip on his clones.
"Cultivate? Cultivate my ass!"
"The main body really is a freak. Getting stronger is all up to us, your daddies."
"Let's hear you call me good big brother."
"That Bone-Tempering Liquid last time felt pretty good. Get me another hundred portions."
"..."
Though they cursed and complained, the clones felt the same sense of urgency and all began meditating.
Just before school ended, their homeroom teacher suddenly entered the classroom.
"Tomorrow afternoon, an executive officer from the Law Enforcement Department will come to inspect our school."
"The one mentioned on the news. I expect you all to be on your best behavior."
"You represent the school. You can embarrass yourselves, but you mustn't embarrass the school..."
The Big Handsome Guy was coming to inspect the school?
What was he up to?
The sense of urgency in Qin Ze's heart grew stronger and stronger.
After dinner that evening, Qin Ze didn't lie flat as usual. Instead, he took out blood crystals and began absorbing them.
Qin Ze absorbed both blood crystals he had saved in one go.
His cultivation increased by 0.01.
Very good.
He had taken another successful step toward becoming a powerhouse.
Qin Ze continued diligently circulating the Lotus Visualization Method.
Suddenly, an unexpected incident on the clones' side interrupted Qin Ze's cultivation.
A little hater had been killed.