Peerless Martial Expert in the City-Chapter 246 - 249: Mishap

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A narrow path like this, in such a densely populated area, was exactly where he preferred to strike.

He often watched movies about assassins and enjoyed them because he liked the images of the assassins portrayed—utterly cold, always in the wild, reveling in the thrill of killing. Yet, he always knew clearly that those were just movies, meant for entertainment only; he would never imitate them. He was well aware that trying to imitate them would only hasten his own death!

A true assassin should act according to the situation, and more importantly, be adept at concealing their movements to facilitate escape.

In fact, to a certain extent, wild and remote areas were his least favorite places to operate. Although secluded, some aspects indeed offered convenience, but it was relative: convenient for him, but equally so for his adversaries, who would have more room to maneuver. Moreover, once trouble arose, seclusion did not necessarily equate to an easy escape.

On the contrary, he felt much more at ease acting in such densely populated areas. Each time, he was able to blend into the crowd amidst the chaos, vanishing from sight as smoothly as a fish slips into water, evading various dangers.

He had observed carefully for several days; he knew that the target would definitely pass through this path. Furthermore, should any unforeseen incident occur, he had also prepared a second plan.

In fact, he soon confirmed that his meticulous observation over the past several days had not been in vain; after walking a few steps, the target gradually entered the designated area for action.

Watching the target slowly moving forward on the path in the crowd, Liu Yan’s lips curved into a faint smile. He knew he was about to succeed. A rush of blood surged through him, and although he always felt palpitations after completing a mission, he experienced a profound excitement every time he was about to act.

It was a contradictory psychology, but it blended into his being.

His steps moved forward slowly through the crowd; nobody noticed his slightly irregular movements. Each time, he managed to just perfectly thread through the gaps in the crowd.

Like a loach slithering through the sea of people, he moved much faster than the average person.

Thus, he quickly managed to get close to the target. He believed that in such a bustling flow of people, one additional person getting close would absolutely go unnoticed by the target. Besides, he had already tested this; he had approached the target once before, and that time, the target had completely failed to notice him.

Once again, reality confirmed he was right.

His approach went completely unnoticed by the target; their steps continued at the same slow rhythm, never once turning to look at him.

Rest in peace, Buddha will have God bless you! 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Gazing quietly at the target walking straight ahead, Liu Yan’s heart released a sigh he had always muttered before executing missions since the first. His wrist flipped, and an incredibly sharp long blade decisively and swiftly stabbed towards the target’s heart.

In that moment as he released his wrist, he instantly let out a sigh of relief, his face showing a trace of faint disappointment.

He knew that the moment his hand thrust forward, another life would be lost in this world!

He was absolutely confident in his strike, for it was perfected through countless training sessions!

That seemingly simple stab was loaded with many elements, including the precise control of angle, force, and speed of his hand—achievable only with extensive and rigorous practice.

However, before he could fully relax, the expression on his face suddenly froze.

His countless practice sessions, which he believed were infallible, perfect to a percentage of one hundred percent, had failed!

He did not hear the familiar sound of a knife piercing the heart, slicing into flesh with a muffled squelch!

His knife had stabbed through thin air!

In just a moment of hesitation, almost without hesitation, his body slid like a loach back into the crowd, quickly moving towards areas with dense flows of people. Missing with one strike, he promptly fled!

Although he still had not figured out how that person had vanished from beside him, he no longer intended to attempt another attack. Just from that strike alone, he knew he had definitely miscalculated something!

This target was not as simple as he had initially thought!

In such a situation where he completely failed to understand the details of his opponent, and the opponent already knew that he made a move once, making another move was purely seeking death. This kind of foolish act was something Liu Yan would absolutely never do!

All his movements were almost as natural and swift as flowing clouds and water. The moment he just zoned out barely lasted a second!

Yet, the moment his figure began to move, his expression stiffened again. On his shoulder, he didn’t notice when, a slender and pale hand had appeared. This hand, seemingly whiter and more delicate than a woman’s, appeared fragile and elongated as if it was powerless. But on his shoulder, he felt a pressure that even a towering man couldn’t exert.

His body was firmly nailed to the ground; he struggled to move but couldn’t shift an inch.

"Friend, thinking of running away after making your move? That’s hardly polite."

A voice tinged with a hint of humor rang out beside his ear.

Hearing this all-too-familiar voice, Liu Yan’s face turned ashen as he slowly shifted his gaze from the pale, elongated hand upward, finally resting on a face that he had observed countless times in the past few days; this moment revealed an expression unfamiliar to him—a smirk that seemed neither mocking nor deriding.

His gaze instantly dimmed, streaked with a hint of despair, but it was only a momentary flash before his expression returned to a calm demeanor as he slowly lowered his head.

He knew he had miscalculated this time—the mission failed, a term that was like a nightmare for every assassin, and now it was truly happening to him, and furthermore...

...the person before him was his target for this mission—Xiao Yi, the student!

Not only had the mission failed, but he had been caught by the target. What consequences he would face were obvious. Every assassin who had faced such a predicament knew their fate well, and he didn’t anticipate his own luck to be any better, expecting no leniency from the other side.

If it were him, he would never show mercy as well. How could there be mercy for someone who was after his life, who directly aimed to end his existence?

Just from how Xiao Yi had silently dodged his strike and mysteriously controlled him with one hand, he knew he had completely misjudged the situation. The student before him was not an ordinary student, not only not ordinary but also a master, a very high-level master, at least at a level he had never encountered before!

Thus, he didn’t even think of fleeing or resisting, knowing it was futile to try. He felt there was no need to allow himself to suffer more in his final moments, believing that one should have respect for their own life!

Yes, one only lives once, even an assassin should respect their own life!

Thinking this, Liu Yan’s face gradually became calmer, and his eyes showed a resolute determination as his teeth slowly but firmly clenched together.

But his expression quickly changed again!

Right as his teeth clamped down fiercely, his body seemed to malfunction all of a sudden, completely devoid of strength! The strength inside him, which had felt like that of a cheetah, seemed to have been drained away suddenly!

"You...!!"

Fear finally appeared on his face as he turned to look again at the person behind him, staring at that young, somewhat gaunt but actually quite handsome face.

"You attacked me just now, and now you think you can just kill yourself to end it all? You people from Blood Slayer really underestimate me, eh?"

A mocking look surfaced on Xiao Yi’s face as he looked at the young man before him. He wouldn’t allow him to commit suicide—that was his own doing. How could he let an assassin who wanted to kill him get off that easily with suicide?

"You...!!"

Upon hearing Xiao Yi’s words, Liu Yan’s figure shuddered violently, his face displaying an utterly nervous and terrified expression as he stared at Xiao Yi.

The student-looking person before him actually knew about Blood Slayer!

This was truly shocking to him!

Blood Slayer was indeed the name of their organization. Normally, it wasn’t strange that people knew the name of their organization, but what was strange was that they had already changed their name; they hadn’t been called Blood Slayer for about twenty years now. Nowadays, apart from their internal members, very few people knew the name Blood Slayer. People only knew that a terrifying assassin organization existed under a poetic name, Azure Cloud.

Moreover, what was more bizarre was how he knew that he was a member of Blood Slayer?

From beginning to end, he had never revealed his identity! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)