Chapter 41

Listen!

It was so fast.

Qin Yuan fell to the ground, unable to speak or move. The blood seemed to have taken away all his strength, and he felt he was surely going to die. Even so, he was still in shock, so shocked that he couldn't even think about his own life, because it was really that fast.

His vision blurred, and the black shadow had already passed, like the night itself, wherever the night was, the black shadow was there.

In the blink of an eye, the shadow had already moved behind the two men, who hadn't even fully turned around.

Everything happened so quickly.

Qin Yuan shouted, "Wrong!" The black-clothed, masked man behind him was pierced in the neck. As they fell, the black shadow had already moved behind the two men, and the clear, bright blade cut through the darkness.

Not only was it fast, but it was also decisive and precise, as if all the movements had been meticulously calculated, with no excess and no shortage, everything was done perfectly.

The cold light flashed, blood splattered, and before they could even turn around, they had already fallen.

Efficiency.

The most important word in the City Lord's residence was efficiency. No matter what they did, they emphasized efficiency, which of course included killing.

In an instant, three black-clothed, masked men were reduced to one. He was still alive only because the City Lord's residence needed him to be. Otherwise, he could have died efficiently as well, and that cold light could have easily taken him too.

After completing all of this, the black shadow finally stopped his movements. He stood there, also dressed in black and masked, motionless, as silent as the night.

Everything happened so quickly that the only sound was Qin Yuan's shout of "Wrong!" No one was alarmed, and the surroundings remained as quiet as ever, with only the occasional nightingale's call.

But the last black-clothed, masked man found himself surrounded. Two more people appeared from somewhere, one on each side, blocking his escape.

Wei Ming and Wei Yang. The masked man identified them, and this matched the information he had. However, the black-clothed, masked figure who had just acted was not mentioned in the information, and this unexpected element ultimately ruined their plan, leaving them no time to think. Two strikes, two bodies, the efficiency of the killing was chilling.

"You... are Wei Ying..." The black-clothed, masked man's voice was dry. They knew the City Lord's residence well, even the name Wei Ying, whom even the headmaster of Xiakeng Academy, Baliliyan, had never heard of. What they didn't know was that Wei Ying would also be here.

This lack of knowledge was undoubtedly fatal, and Wei Ying had no interest in paying attention to him.

Rattling...

At this moment, a strange sound suddenly came from the forest, clattering and bumping, but it quickly approached.

This time, four people appeared, three men and one woman, one of whom was in a wheelchair, and the clattering sound was all from the wheelchair.

The four people did not get too close, stopping quickly and looking over. One of them, wearing a straw hat, pointed and said, "See, this is what I said during dinner. Acting rashly without knowing the opponent's strength is the same as dying directly."

The black-clothed, masked man's expression was grim. The man in the straw hat was right; they had failed today because they had completely misjudged their opponent's strength.

Dying directly was a good suggestion, but had it really come to that? He hadn't come with the intention of dying, and as long as there was a glimmer of hope, he still wanted to try.

At this moment, there was a sound from the tent behind him.

The black-clothed, masked man was quick to react, turning, stepping, and attacking. In that instant, he seemed as efficient as the City Lord's guards. Qin Zhen, who had just emerged from the tent, still half-asleep, didn't have time to ask what was happening before he was taken hostage.

"Ugh... ugh..." Qin Yuan struggled on the ground. The previous strike had injured his trachea, and he couldn't speak. Blood kept seeping from between his fingers, which were covering his throat, and his eyes were full of hatred and despair.

The black-clothed, masked man was surrounded by Wei Ying, Wei Ming, and Wei Yang, the three experts of the City Lord's residence. They had completely cut off his escape and were monitoring his every move. But when he rushed to take Qin Zhen hostage, none of the three moved.

Whether it was Wei Ying, Wei Ming, or Wei Yang, all of them had the opportunity and the ability to intervene, but they didn't move, not even a bit. They watched as Qin Zhen was taken hostage.

Because they already knew that the person in the tent was not their young lord, Wei Tianqi. The City Lord's emblem on the tent was a deliberate move.

They were using Qin Zhen as a substitute for Wei Tianqi, a substitute who would be in danger, but they didn't even warn him. When Qin Zhen was in danger, they had the opportunity to stop it, but they didn't move.

They didn't stop, so of course, they wouldn't care about Qin Zhen's safety next. Qin Yuan understood this, feeling angry and desperate, but he could do nothing, not even make a sound, and could only struggle helplessly on the ground.

"Don't move!" The black-clothed, masked man, having taken a hostage, immediately recognized that this person was not Wei Tianqi, but he still considered it a bargaining chip, giving him hope of survival.

"Stupid." Wei Ming said with disgust. This guy thought that taking a random hostage would make the City Lord's residence listen to him. Wei Ming found this idea extremely foolish, foolish to the point of making him sick.

He ignored it and continued to walk forward.

"I said, don't move!" The black-clothed, masked man shouted again, pressing the dagger against Qin Zhen's neck, cutting into his skin. He was a decisive person.

Wei Ming sneered. Such a fool, he didn't even bother to talk to him, and he continued forward without hesitation.

Qin Yuan was desperate, searching for something to cling to, and then he saw Lu Ping and the others. He didn't care who they were; they were his only hope. Unable to speak, he could only desperately signal to them.

"He wants us to save him." Xifan was an expert at reading expressions.

"The guys from the City Lord's residence clearly don't care about the hostage." Molin said.

So Lu Ping stepped forward.

"Hey..." Molin called out. Lu Ping's rash action was no different from the City Lord's residence. Qin Yuan, lying on the ground, looked even more desperate.

"Stop, stop right there!" The black-clothed, masked man shouted hysterically. His eyes also showed despair because he realized his hostage was useless. He raised his dagger to kill Qin Zhen. However, his movement was a bit large, not giving up hope, leaving a bit of space, hoping the other side would call a halt.

His expression and the slight larger movement did not escape Xifan's notice, who immediately understood his mindset.

"Wait!" Xifan shouted immediately.

This shout was like a heavenly sound to the black-clothed, masked man. Finally, he had won...

But he soon realized that the one who shouted was a liar, because what he got was a punch.

Punch!

The punch was fast and heavy.

He was still thinking about killing the hostage in this last moment, but he was already flying through the air.

Wei Ming?

It wasn't Wei Ming. Wei Ming was approaching and preparing to act, not to save Qin Zhen, but to do what he had planned. But this punch was faster, so fast that the black-clothed, masked man couldn't defend himself. Even without the "Wait!" shout, he felt the speed of the punch was enough to stop him.

Who?

He turned his head and saw Lu Ping, and he was shocked again. This young man, who was clearly some distance away, had landed a punch in just an instant? How many experts had the City Lord's residence sent today? Who was this person, completely unknown...

But the punch was really heavy. He felt like he was being shattered, losing all his strength, and fell heavily to the ground.

Wei Ming quickened his pace towards him. He knew what he would face next and remembered what the man in the straw hat had said.

Better to die directly.

Yes, rather than be captured alive by the City Lord's residence, dying directly was a happy choice.

But he immediately found that he couldn't make that choice because he couldn't even raise his hand. The punch was so heavy that it had taken away his ability to kill himself.

Truly worthy of the City Lord's residence, such skill...

He was desperate, but in his despair, he seemed to be grasping at straws, looking at the young man in front of him and pleading.

"Kill me." He said.

"Okay." Lu Ping agreed readily, grabbing his throat.

The black-clothed, masked man never expected the other side to agree. This happiness came too suddenly.

"Thank you..." He said happily.

"You're welcome." Lu Ping said, applying force with his fingers, and the throat bone shattered.

"What are you doing? Who told you to kill him?!!" Wei Ming, who had just arrived, saw Lu Ping applying force and lost his usual composure, screaming and rushing to stop him, but by the time he got there, the black-clothed, masked man was already dead.

"Him." Lu Ping pointed to the body, answering Wei Ming's question.

"Lu Ping, come over here." On the other side, Su Tang called him, and Lu Ping immediately ignored Wei Ming and went over.

"What do you know! Idiot, stupid, who asked you to interfere? Who gave you the authority?!" Wei Ming was still shouting. He had every reason to be angry. This was his carefully planned trap, originally intending to capture a live hostage and follow the trail, but it was ruined by Lu Ping, who had eliminated the last live hostage.

"I'll deal with you later!" Wei Ming glared at Lu Ping's back, quickly regaining his composure. Although there was no live hostage, there might still be clues from the dead bodies, and he had many important things to do, not the time to argue with Lu Ping.

"You two, protect the young lord." After instructing Wei Yang and Wei Ying, Wei Ming's figure quickly disappeared into the night.

(Preparing to watch the game. Last night, I witnessed a historic match. What about tonight? I bet 20 bucks, and if I don't win, I'll be in a bad mood!)

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