Chapter Seventy-Two: The Perilous Assassination Accomplished

In a short while, Han Shuo and Phoebe had already set everything up inside the room.

“Why is it that when that wind mage, Ellis, came by, you could so mysteriously detect his presence?” Phoebe, while inspecting the room, frowned in confusion and looked at Han Shuo with a questioning gaze.

At that moment, Han Shuo was crouched on the floor, carefully gathering some wooden dust from the floor into his space ring. Without looking up, he replied, “That’s my business, none of yours!”

Phoebe snorted and fell silent, but after a moment, she couldn’t help herself. Watching Han Shuo’s actions, she exclaimed softly, “Were you an assassin before? How are you so calm and cautious, and how do you possess such extraordinary perception?”

If it had been Han Shuo’s former self, he certainly wouldn’t have handled things with such steadiness and caution. However, the cultivation of demonic arts had forced Han Shuo to endure constant, inhuman pain, which had unconsciously forged his tenacious character. The ordeal in the Dark Forest and the death of Claude had further trained his caution and composure. Coupled with his astonishing perception, Han Shuo indeed displayed the qualities of a consummate assassin—no wonder Phoebe was so curious.

“No, do you think I’m like you? From the moment we entered the firm to now, I’ve been following your instructions the whole time. I doubt you could master such methods without some special experience. It seems to me you’re the one who’s been an assassin, otherwise you wouldn’t be this skilled.” Having finally cleaned up the wooden dust from the bed boards, Han Shuo glanced at Phoebe and spoke.

“You’re the one who’s been an assassin!” Phoebe shot Han Shuo a cold look and continued, “It’s just that my mentor taught me this sort of thing—mastering the art of assassination was one of my courses.”

“Oh? Then your mentor must be a formidable assassin!” Han Shuo remarked nonchalantly.

“Shut up! Don’t slander my mentor—he’s a true swordsman, he’d never do such things!” Phoebe’s face grew colder, and she glared fiercely at Han Shuo.

At that moment, faint footsteps gradually approached from a great distance. Han Shuo’s brows furrowed as he listened carefully, then said to Phoebe, “They’re coming back—I can hear them.”

Phoebe focused her attention, and a few breaths after Han Shuo spoke, she too caught the sound of approaching footsteps. She looked at Han Shuo in shock and whispered, “Regardless of how strong you are, your preternatural senses are truly frightening.”

Han Shuo didn’t reply. Following Phoebe’s earlier instructions, he crouched, rolled to the side, and slipped under the bed. Seeing that Han Shuo was ready, Phoebe scanned the room with her bright eyes, then leapt up, using the chandelier to hide herself in the shadows at the ceiling.

Holding their breath and calming their hearts, Han Shuo’s breathing and heartbeat grew slower and slower, until they were nearly imperceptible. His mind became crystal clear as he went over the arrangement of every item in the room once more, then focused all his attention on the newcomers.

By now, the footsteps were loud enough even for ordinary people to hear. The laughter of a man and a woman wafted in from outside, mixed with the smacking sounds of kisses.

With a creak, the door opened, and the pair slowly entered, making their way toward the bed under which Han Shuo was hiding.

“My dear, were you in heat tonight? You were so wanton at the banquet—have you set your sights on someone new?” Darnell teased Yuna with a laugh.

“What’s that to you, you beast who thinks with his lower half? You’re only thinking about that little slut Phoebe. If you hadn’t tried to make a move on her last time, we’d have finished Grover’s task and killed that little whore by now. Because of your blunder, her guards arrived in time, and we barely escaped.” Yuna complained, sitting down on the bed’s edge.

“Heh, her skin is as smooth as silk, her face like an artist’s masterpiece, and they say she’s never known a man. Such a beauty—if she doesn’t get to experience my strength before she dies, it’s a pity,” Darnell said with a lecherous grin.

Han Shuo’s senses sharpened to the utmost. Darnell and Yuna had no inkling of Phoebe’s presence, but Han Shuo could hear her elevated heartbeat and breathing—she was clearly in a state of intense anger. Alarmed, Han Shuo became even more careful, ready to act with Phoebe at any moment.

“Damn lecher, you’ll die under a woman’s skirt someday!”

“Heh, I’ll have you die under mine first!” The rustling of clothes being removed, Darnell’s lewd laughter, and Yuna’s soft gasps gradually filled the room.

Soon, the sounds of kissing, Darnell’s lascivious laughter, and Yuna’s gasps grew louder. The bed above Han Shuo went from still to rocking violently, like a boat in a storm. A moan, half sob, half cry, escaped Yuna’s lips, followed by the rhythmic sounds of bodies colliding and unrestrained cries, with Yuna’s voice growing more uncontrollable.

Listening to the sounds above and feeling the bed shake, Han Shuo didn’t need to imagine what the two were doing. The blood surged within him, and his mind began conjuring images of the scene overhead. He desperately wanted to crawl out for a better look, his body already responding with an uncontrollable masculine vigor.

A faint gasp drifted down to him—Han Shuo started, then realized it must be from Phoebe above. Whether it was anger or something else, he couldn’t tell.

Han Shuo, under the bed, could only hear. But Phoebe, above, had to keep her eyes on the pair at all times. She must have witnessed every movement, and, as an assassin, couldn’t afford any distraction. According to Darnell, Phoebe was still a virgin—this stimulation was probably even more intense for her than for Han Shuo below.

After a while, as Han Shuo realized Phoebe’s breathing was growing heavier and worried she might give herself away, the tumult above reached its peak—moans and cries growing ever louder, the bed shaking even more violently.

At that instant, there was a faint swish—the sound of something slicing through the air. Han Shuo tensed, knowing Phoebe had made her move, and focused all his attention.

“Aaah!” Yuna cried out in pain, shouting, “Assassin!”

Before Yuna could finish the word, Han Shuo stabbed upward through a small hole he had already opened in the wooden bed, his dagger thrusting viciously.

A scream, ten times more agonized than Yuna’s, erupted from Darnell, shrill and animalistic. Their minds, so close to climax, were shocked into clarity. Screaming, both of them leapt from the bed toward the door, Darnell’s wails unceasing.

As soon as his dagger struck, Han Shuo rolled out from under the bed. Looking up, he saw Phoebe shrouded in black night attire, her long sword radiating a dazzling, milky-white aura so bright it nearly blinded him, enveloping Darnell and Yuna as they tried to escape.

Han Shuo raised his crossbow and fired at Darnell, but saw both were naked. Yuna’s white thigh was already pierced by a crossbow bolt, her teeth clenched in pain as she moved awkwardly. Darnell was even worse off—his lower body a bloody mess, his face twisted in agony, howling like a wolf.

So the dagger had struck Darnell right in his manhood—no wonder his screams were even more pitiful than Yuna’s, Han Shuo thought with grim satisfaction.

The crossbow bolt shot toward Darnell’s back like lightning. Even in his agony, Darnell sensed the danger behind him. His sword, already drawn and glowing with a deep blue light, whipped around and shattered the bolt in midair.

Chanting rapidly, a shield of water appeared, covering both their heads. Under Phoebe’s milky-white aura, it burst into a shower of rain, drenching the pair.

But the water shield bought them a few seconds. Screaming, they ran for the door. Yet as they reached the middle of the room, the chandelier hanging overhead suddenly crashed down, forcing Darnell to halt and sweep it aside with his sword.

At that moment, Phoebe dropped from the ceiling, and Han Shuo, having fired his crossbow, sprang at them like a leopard. Phoebe, initially aiming for Darnell, saw his nakedness and, with a look of flustered disgust, turned her sword on Yuna instead.

Han Shuo fired another bolt, then tossed aside the crossbow. As Darnell smashed the bolt, Han Shuo’s dagger was already upon him. Maddened by pain and loss, Darnell raised his battle energy to the utmost, his sword clashing fiercely with Han Shuo’s dagger.

With a sickening thud, Han Shuo coughed up blood as Darnell’s battle energy surged into him. Though he restrained it with demonic force, he couldn’t resist completely and staggered back several steps.

Darnell, seeing Han Shuo retreat, wanted to pursue and kill him, but suddenly realized his sword was burning hot—his right hand searing with pain. Alarmed, he threw the sword away.

“Run!” Yuna shouted.

A water dragon appeared, coiling around Phoebe in a fierce assault. But with each stroke of her sword, Phoebe severed the dragon’s body, which turned to mist before it touched the ground.

Darnell glared viciously at Han Shuo but didn’t pursue. Clutching his ruined groin, he continued for the door.

At that moment, Han Shuo’s ears caught faint footsteps in the distance. Anxious, he rushed after the pair, as did Phoebe, who had destroyed the water dragon and kept pace with Han Shuo.

Both understood that if they didn’t kill the pair now, they’d never have another chance once they escaped. So they threw everything into keeping them in the room.

Now, a prior arrangement paid off. Han Shuo had tampered with the legs of the round table by the door. In their desperation, the pair didn’t go around but stepped onto the table, hoping to use it to leap from the room.

Suddenly, the unexpected happened. As they landed on the table, its legs gave way with a crack. Having put all their weight into the leap, they lost their balance and toppled with the collapsing table.

At that instant, Han Shuo and Phoebe arrived. Phoebe thrust her sword, targeting both.

Just as the two steadied themselves, they saw Phoebe’s sword enveloping them. Darnell, in a panic, yanked Yuna in front of him, pushing her into the path of Phoebe’s blade while he ran for the door without a backward glance.

But at that moment, the poison Han Shuo had coated on his dagger took effect. Darnell’s steps suddenly grew heavy as if weighed down by a thousand pounds. Before he could react, Han Shuo closed in and finished him with another slash.

After killing Darnell, Han Shuo immediately eyed the space ring on his hand. He tried to pull it off, but it was tight. Time was short, so he simply sliced off Darnell’s left middle finger, ring and all, and pocketed it. Turning, he saw a bloody hole in Yuna’s chest—Phoebe had dealt with her too.

“Let’s go!” Han Shuo called softly, rushing to Phoebe’s side. A faint fragrance drifted from Yuna and Phoebe’s direction. Han Shuo breathed it in but thought nothing of it. Noticing Phoebe’s eyes looked oddly dazed, he urged her on.

Using the same method, he sliced off Yuna’s left ring finger, taking her space ring as well. Grabbing the discarded crossbow, he pulled Phoebe along and, leaping through a hole in the ceiling they had prepared, the two swiftly made their escape across the rooftops.