The night was dark and windy, perfect for murder and arson.
Inside the city, lights blazed, while outside, darkness reigned, with only the pale glow on the horizon illuminating the world.
In the disordered stone forest, over a dozen assassins rubbed their tired eyes, suddenly sensing something amiss around them.
"Ah San, is that you?" an assassin asked into the dark space beside him.
The only reply was the silent air.
His heart leaped into his throat as he raised his guard, only to have a gleaming blade pressed against his neck.
"You're not Ah San, who are you?" he stammered.
His answer was death.
A cold glint flashed, and a thin red line appeared on his neck.
With a thud, he fell to the ground, dead.
In an instant, fifteen thuds echoed. Only the last, a fourth-tier assassin, escaped this fate.
He clutched the wound on his chest, his eyes wide with surprise.
"Who are you? Why did you ambush us, and try to kill us?" he demanded, staring ahead.
In the distance, Lin Yu, controlling clone number one, replied, "The one who will kill you, Lin Yu!"
"What? Impossible!" he exclaimed in shock. "Absolutely impossible! You're only second-tier, how can you possess such immense power? Have you broken through to the third tier?"
Clone one offered no further reply. Instead, it, along with the other clones, raised their blades and attacked ferociously.
Facing Lin Yu, who possessed an A+ talent and third-tier combat strength, he didn't stand much of a chance.
"Shadow Stealth!" the assassin roared softly, and a shadowy mass suddenly enveloped his entire body.
At this moment, his speed and attack speed increased significantly. Although he would be exposed after a single strike, he was searching for Lin Yu's true body. If Lin Yu's true body were killed, these clones would naturally dissipate.
Unfortunately, he didn't know that Lin Yu was hiding a hundred meters away.
Lin Yu immediately commanded his clones to unleash their inner fire!
Boom!
The inner fire illuminated the surroundings, and a black shadow appeared beside clone number three.
Clone three immediately dropped its weapon. Using its hands and feet, it suddenly lunged and grabbed the assassin's waist.
The assassin was shocked. "Let go! Damn it, let go!"
He desperately elbowed clone three's waist, but the clone held on grimly.
"Die!"
However, in the next moment, he was met by over a dozen blades flashing with cold light.
Swish swish swish!!!!
The attacks formed an energy net, sealing off the surroundings.
"Ah!"
The assassin was enveloped by the blade light, his body covered in wounds. His eyes dimmed, filled with regret.
How could this happen?
They were supposed to be the assassins, so how did they end up being assassinated themselves?
Shameful! This was a disgrace for an assassin!
The clones showed no mercy. They continued to slash, even striking clone three along with the assassin.
Clone three could revive, but he was dead forever.
Seeing the assassin's demise, Lin Yu gave the order to search for survivors.
During the fight, some of the assassins were only severely injured, not yet dead. Soon, an assassin was brought before Lin Yu.
Lin Yu's expression was impassive. "Tell me, who issued the assassination bounty, and I'll spare your life. How about it?"
"Don't kill me, don't kill me! I'll tell you everything I know!" The assassin cowered, overcome by fear.
He had once believed he didn't fear death, but when faced with it, he couldn't control his primal urge to survive.
"I'll ask you a few questions first. I hope you won't try any tricks!"
"Please ask, I will tell you everything without reservation."
"Where did you receive the mission?" Lin Yu asked.
"The Black Market."
Lin Yu knew little about the Black Market, only that it existed within the underworld. He knew that registered assassins could accept missions there and receive far greater rewards than from the Awakener's Guild.
Unlike the Awakener's Guild, this place was for illicit missions like assassinations and robberies.
In fact, Bai Xiaosha had already told him that he was being targeted by the Black Market, but this was not his main concern.
He continued, "I'll give you a mission. If you can complete it, I won't kill you. How about that?"
"Tell me, I will definitely complete it!" He just wanted to live now; the pain had stripped him of his pride.
Lin Yu whispered a few words in his ear.
A moment later, the other nodded. "I... I'll send the message now. But what if they don't show up?"
Lin Yu smiled. "Then you'll be buried with them!"
A chill ran down the assassin's spine. He quickly said, "Don't kill me, they'll definitely come!"
Then, Lin Yu began to wait.
After killing someone, how would the mission be completed? They couldn't bring the body into the city, and the intelligent system could detect the presence of a corpse.
Therefore, they usually sent photos to the Black Market, or the employer would personally inspect the scene.
The message was quickly sent to the Black Market, which then relayed the completed bounty information to the mastermind.
Li Wu and Li Cong were overjoyed.
"It's done!"
"Let's go out of the city and take a look. I want to stomp on his corpse fiercely to vent my hatred!"
He knew that the Black Market had dispatched sixteen assassins, including one fourth-tier assassin, so he wasn't worried about Lin Yu surviving.
The two looked at each other, seeing frenzied excitement in each other's eyes.
The sky gradually brightened. When the two arrived, they saw over a dozen corpses lying on the ground. In the center of the corpses sat a person on a stone, watching them quietly.
"Li Wu, Li Cong, long time no see!" Lin Yu said with a smirk.
They were stunned. "How can you still be alive?"
Their minds reeled. These were over a dozen assassins, and one of them was fourth-tier. How had he managed to kill them all?
Even an S-class talent awakened being could only fight one tier above themselves, and he was only second-tier.
Wait, had he broken through again and already possessed third-tier combat strength?
If so, everything made sense. With his combined combat power, it was indeed possible to defeat a fourth-tier opponent.
He had lured them here again, could it be?
"Lin Yu, if you dare to kill me, aren't you afraid of the Li family?" Li Wu quickly recovered, his tone arrogant as he questioned.
Li Cong, however, changed his demeanor, his voice gentle. "Lin Yu, we have no deep-seated hatred. This was our mistake. If you let us go, I'll give you all my savings as compensation, how about it?"
"Heh heh, you only realize fear now? It's too late!"
Lin Yu chuckled, drawing his blade. "Too many words lead to mistakes. You'd better reunite in the underworld!"
"Quick and decisive, kill!"
The clones swarmed forward.
Li Wu and Li Cong, one a first-tier combatant, the other a third-tier, how could they resist clones that were all third-tier combatants?
Ah!!!!
Screams erupted. A moment later, their heads were severed.
Blood spurted high into the air. Lin Yu frowned slightly.
Glancing at the brightening sky, he commanded, "Burn it all!"
Then, he turned and walked towards the city gate.
As for the assassin, Lin Yu didn't kill him, but severed his limbs and threw him by the roadside to bleed to death slowly.