Eighth on the Assassin Rankings

Ji Chuxing found a place in the underground casino and forged herself a set of silver needles.

They were no match for the set she had used in the laboratory in her previous life, but they were barely passable. At any rate, they were usable.

By the time she came out, it was completely dark outside.

Bo Yanchen had sent her a message, asking when she was coming home.

Home?

Ji Chuxing looked at the word on her phone, and her lips curved.

She went to a nearby mall and bought milk tea. It was buy one, get one free—an amazing deal!

As she left the mall, she spotted a figure. She had only glanced over by chance, but then she paused and turned a corner.

South City was not a particularly prosperous city.

The underground casino was tucked into a corner of the old town. Though this shopping district was crowded, it was not the most upscale one, and old residential buildings stood all around it.

Many of the old residential compounds were slated for demolition and completely deserted, making them look frightening.

But Ji Chuxing was not afraid.

Carrying her milk tea, she unhurriedly turned into an old alley.

She paused and listened intently. The footsteps ahead grew hurried. Ji Chuxing tossed her nearly finished milk tea into a trash can in the corner of the alley and quickly disappeared into it.

The old double-corridor apartment building was almost abandoned and had been unoccupied for a long time. Everywhere she looked, she could see the character "demolish" painted in large red letters.

Ji Chuxing kept an eye on her surroundings as she walked. When she came around a corner, she struck with lightning speed.

Her opponent seemed to have been prepared and attacked him head-on.

It was too dark in the residential building for either of them to see the other clearly, but both moved with exceptional speed and precision.

Then a shaft of moonlight fell upon the girl, revealing her face.

His movements faltered, and he pulled back at once. As a result, Ji Chuxing punched him in the face.

Ji Chuxing finally saw what the person lying on the ground looked like, too.

"..."

Well, that was awkward.

The two walked toward the mouth of the alley. Ji Chuxing still held a cup of milk tea, her eyes on the path ahead.

"I heard them," Ji Chuxing suddenly said.

The imprint of a small fist remained on Wen Li'an's face, proof that Ji Chuxing had not held back in the slightest when she hit him.

If he had not deftly tilted his head with the blow, he would have lost his molars!

He still could hardly believe he had run into Ji Chuxing here, much less been beaten up by Zhou Ru's supposedly weak daughter!

He had gone out on a mission tonight and been pursued by assassins. Just before Ji Chuxing attacked him, she had already dealt with one of them for her.

Hearing her words, he paused and looked at her silently.

He still had not recovered from the fact that Ji Chuxing had dealt with an assassin for him.

In fact, three people had been following him tonight. He had dealt with two of them, and although he knew the other was there, he did not know where they were hiding. The enemy was in the shadows while he was in the open.

And Ji Chuxing had dealt with that one!

He looked back at the scene. The girl had been even quicker and more efficient than he was.

"They called you Gouchen." Ji Chuxing looked straight at him, and a closer look would reveal a trace of interest in her eyes.

They both knew now anyway, so Ji Chuxing saw no reason to keep quiet about it.

Wen Li'an: "..."

Ji Chuxing added, "Gouchen is the eighth-ranked assassin on the Resource Network!"

Wen Li'an again: "..."

Wait, how did an underage girl know so much?

Just what kind of immortal was Zhou Ru's biological daughter?

Ji Chuxing glanced at him casually. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. I owed you a favor for this."

Wen Li'an knew what favor she meant.

She was talking about what had happened at the police station.

"It was what I should have done." Besides, she had saved Grandma. Although he had only learned that later from the old traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, Wen Li'an was glad he had contacted Director Zhou at the time, even if Bo Yanchen might have been the one who actually made a difference in the end.

"You saved me tonight, so I'm the one who owes you a favor." Wen Li'an thought for a moment, his expression solemn and serious.

Ji Chuxing held out her hand.

Wen Li'an: "?"

"I charge money for saving people," Ji Chuxing said seriously.

Wen Li'an: "..."

He looked at the girl's earnest, serious expression and finally chuckled. "I don't have any on me right now. I'll bring it to you tomorrow."

Ji Chuxing nodded in satisfaction.

That was exactly what she had been waiting for Wen Li'an to say!

Since they had run into each other anyway, there was no reason to avoid talking openly. Ji Chuxing was quite curious. "How do you get onto the assassin rankings on the Resource Network? How do you price a job?"

She looked so interested, as though she wanted to get on the rankings herself, that Wen Li'an's face immediately darkened.

"It's too dangerous. That's not something you should know about. And don't follow people like you did today again."

If the assassin had been a little more skilled, and a stranger, her life would have been in danger tonight!

This was a very serious matter.

In the end, Ji Chuxing failed to get any information out of Wen Li'an. No matter how she asked, he kept his lips sealed, and she went home in a bad mood.

Hmph! Was he afraid she would steal his business?

She had actually wanted a fight. She was not the real Ji Chuxing, and her strength was far too lacking. She needed to constantly hone herself against experts to improve quickly.

At her current level, she had not even reached thirty percent of her strength from her previous life, and she was very dissatisfied.

But Wen Li'an refused, no matter what she said.

Even the little tufts of hair sticking up on her head seemed to radiate displeasure.

When she returned to the residence, Bo Yanchen was drinking tea.

Seeing that the girl had only come home an hour after he sent his message, Bo Yanchen smiled faintly. "Xingbao, what time is it?"

Ji Chuxing was expressionless. "Ten. Nightlife has only just begun."

Bo Yanchen seemed to laugh in exasperation. "Fine, so our Xingbao wants a nightlife too."

"From now on, you must be home before ten. That's your curfew."

Ji Chuxing opened her mouth to protest, but Bo Yanchen was still smiling gently. "Young lady, don't forget, you're still a minor."

"Oh," said Ji Chuxing.

Bo Yanchen knew she had not really taken it to heart. He slowly wheeled himself along behind her. "Every time you come home late, you lose your snacks. No milk tablets, no jelly."

Ji Chuxing: "!"

She whipped around and glared at Bo Yanchen like a little beast whose food had been snatched away. The little tufts of hair on her head bristled too!

Bo Yanchen smiled with pleasure.

He had always known Ji Chuxing's emotions did not fluctuate much, and that she did not take many things to heart.

For instance, when she came home late, she never thought to let anyone know.

He knew she was used to having no one care about her and had never imagined anyone would wait for her.

It was rare to see such a lively expression on her face, and he could not help laughing. "To teach you a lesson, there's no jelly for you tonight. I've put the milk tablets away too."

Ji Chuxing marched over and pulled open the refrigerator. It was empty; there was nothing inside.

Even the yogurt was gone.

The ice cream was gone too!

There was not a trace of the juice or cola, either!

Her whole body drooped, and she looked at Bo Yanchen unhappily.

Bo Yanchen smiled gently. "Be good. Remember to come home earlier next time."

Ji Chuxing: "Hmph!"

The result of having her snacks confiscated was that the drink she brought out of the kitchen was so bitter that Bo Yanchen nearly spat it out.

Ji Chuxing gave a smug huff, the little tufts of hair on her head bobbing. Clearly, her mood had improved.

Bo Yanchen was helpless. He drank a few sips of tea to wash the bitterness from his mouth, but he still could not help feeling cheerful.

Even when the girl was angry, she had not forgotten to come back and make him a bedtime drink.

His affection for her had not been wasted.

The girl on whom his affection had not been wasted was currently tinkering with something on the computer in her room.

After hearing what the old traditional Chinese medicine practitioner and the young man at the underground casino had said today, she still planned to try the Resource Network.

Thirty seconds after she posted her first request to buy medicinal herbs, her computer came under attack.

The screen changed, and a progress bar labeled "reading information" was rapidly filling up.

Ji Chuxing narrowed her eyes. Her fingers flew across the computer, leaving only afterimages. Soon, her screen returned to normal.

After a pause, she began tapping rapidly at the keyboard again.

Ten seconds later, she pressed enter.

The screen turned completely black. Then, as if a streak of light had flashed across it, countless pieces of information began to flicker into view.

Meanwhile, in a corner of the world.

In a classified base, a man sitting in front of a computer cursed, "Shit, we're under attack!"

He frantically hammered at the keyboard, but there was no response at all. Before long, nearly all the files on the computer had been read.

"Disconnect from the network immediately. They're not easy to deal with!"

In her room, Ji Chuxing watched regretfully as the data on her computer stopped coming in. She murmured, "So that's how it is."