Volume One, Chapter 21: Taking the Mission, Black Abyss

"Mayor Gong, it... it is nothing. This... this worker saw someone throw a cigarette butt on the ground and stepped in to handle it. I didn't expect the young man to be unhappy about it, so... so they started arguing, but everything is fine now," Hou Qinghua said, breaking into a cold sweat over his own lie.

An Baixue did not understand these things, but she vaguely sensed that Long Qicong was in danger. She took his hand, and a chill struck her. Startled and anxious, not knowing what else to do, she instinctively began channeling her spiritual energy into his body.

The Master of Yuhu Temple said, "Yes, there is always an unsettling feeling... as if... there are thousands of eyes watching us from all around." The Masters of Shanyan Temple and Xiangyu Temple nodded as well, their expressions darkening.

"Present!" Cheng Feng responded reflexively. Years of military life had ingrained this reaction in him.

The Demon Lord’s eyes seemed to be dripping blood as he looked toward Su Qianhe. With a leap, he struck out with a fierce palm. At that moment, Li Zhichen lunged forward, thrusting his long sword into the Demon Lord’s back until the hilt was buried, the cold, blood-stained tip protruding from the Demon Lord’s chest.

However, at that very moment, his eyes suddenly lit up, and the nervous, teary-eyed expression he had just worn vanished instantly.

One man had a short, stout figure like a round ball. His round, oily, and shiny face was covered in pockmarks, and he wore a thin mustache beneath his nose. Looking like a wealthy, gluttonous landlord, he was likely the shopkeeper, Zhuang Yan.

Skill [Assassin’s Agility]: Entering a non-combat state for 5 seconds triggers stealth; attacking breaks stealth. [Skill: Slippery Feet]: Increases escape speed by 25 percent.

Wang Tang, however, remained indifferent. He even produced a dagger from somewhere and handed it to Su Tang.

Yun Zhui offered a few token words of comfort; firstly, to distract the old lady, and secondly, having nowhere else to go for the time being, he stayed at the Su residence.

"Why haven't you left yet? If you don't leave, you'll die here. It’s better to live a wretched life than to die a good death!" Hu Yu said, sitting down beside him while eating.

Yesterday afternoon, Huo Qing went along the canyon to check on the situation at Shaoling River and had not been heard from since. With the time for detonating the explosives drawing near, Lu Fengxian, Shen Yanran, and Jiang Yang were becoming restless. Could something have happened? But time waited for no one, and Lu Fengxian finally lit the explosives.

After listening to Niya’s introduction, the two men exchanged glances. There was the usual contempt in Philip’s eyes, while Xu Yunlong’s eyes remained calm. Simultaneously, they both raised the champagne flutes from the dining table and nodded to each other.

Lan Yue felt a vague sense of unease, but she still harbored a shred of wishful thinking—a confidence born from being too deeply immersed in the role to pull herself out.

However, after Ye Changsheng left, he had seemed to vanish into thin air; no one expected he would appear here.

Upon spotting the trail of light, Fang Yan immediately swallowed two drops of Ancient Spring Spiritual Liquid, intending to trigger his Wings of Thunder to escape. However, he noticed the light ahead veer off to the side and disappear in an instant.

"It is only right. Come, everyone, a toast to Lao Jiu. Lao Jiu has truly worked hard!" Bawang said, raising his glass as well.

Hai Zhongyan and Zhuge Tianyuan nodded simultaneously. Nangong Ruoli was right; they had already raided three of the six Immortal King Palaces, plus two more that were unguarded.

Wei Yuan drove the Mercedes to the foot massage center from last night and parked. This was the only way to reach Fatty Guo’s jade processing plant. He parked in such a conspicuous spot, not worried that Liu Lei would miss it later.

Fang Yan did not venture deep into the Ancient Wilderness battlefield. He stayed on the periphery where Nascent Soul cultivators appeared and found a secluded spot free of any high-level demonic beast aura to hide.

Zhao Yun’s gaze sharpened. He held his long spear horizontally, and his mount, Feilong, dove down from the hill like a gust of wind, heading straight for the oncoming Holt.

However, Hong Yi currently lacked the credits to learn the general skills of the Evolution Department. For now, he had to set his sights on the Mercenary Association.

A series of roars erupted as the four incandescent bolts of lightning struck the ground, blasting out four charred craters, with arcs of electricity sweeping across the area.

He was Fu Qingyang’s master, and despite his cultivation being only at the late Saint Emperor stage, his status was unique. The two of them clearly looked like Fu Qingyang’s elders, but since addressing them was troublesome, it was simpler to just call them "Fellow Daoists."

The Empress looked at Prince Rui in surprise, then looked behind her; the "Empress" whom the Prince was addressing was not her, but He Linwan.

Was this truly how he was to die? Feng Du was filled with unwillingness and, at the same time, deep regret for his drunken behavior the night before! The pitch-black object descended from the sky—it was the martial technique "Dragon-Fixing Pillar" unleashed by the old man, capable of killing any weakling instantly.

The relationship between the Song and Jin dynasties had remained delicate ever since the battle a short time ago.

After the order was given, a strange, mystical talisman pattern appeared on each of the Nine-Tailed Earth Scorpion’s nine venomous hooks.

"Sigh, what do you want me to say? If he fell into a ten-thousand-foot abyss, how would you find him? Don't even count on finding a corpse." She Qing’er was secretly annoyed. He was such a blockhead, a guy who insisted on being stubborn.

Suddenly, a loud commotion erupted outside, as if someone had broken into the courtyard. Zhang Zhuangmo’s expression changed; she whipped out the long lash at her waist and walked out without a word. As soon as she reached the courtyard, she saw a group of Mongols fighting her guards. Her guards were no match for them and had nearly all been beaten to the ground.

Because Zhu Yuanzhang had progressed so much, especially after defeating Chen Youliang, his territory had expanded several times over. It was rumored that Zhu Yuanzhang had secretly captured Zhang Shicheng, and the unification of China was just around the corner.

This situation had left Neo and the others in complete despair. They were not even on the same level as their opponent; even if they truly wanted to kill Long Yun now, it would be nothing more than a death wish.

"Come with us!" Seeing this, the middle-aged man said nothing more and took Chen Yi away, accompanied by the beast-man from earlier. As for the other Undead and Beast-kin, they ignored them entirely, as if what had just happened had never occurred.

The Tianwu Qinglin, the flowing moonlight. The delicate soul and plain petals unfold in the Wuyang night. The clear posture is like a jade lamp; how fortunate to be by your side in the distance?

The couple now looked ashen, but being able to keep their lives was a great stroke of luck. It was only child trafficking; at most, they would be sentenced to ten or eight years, and they would be fine men again once they got out. Thinking this, they felt much better.