Chapter 485: Since You're Here, Don't Leave
This wasn't one million from Country N—this was the price in Country A!
That converts to over ten million!
With a price that high, someone was bound to take the job!
He'd been in the assassination business for many years, so he knew there were some truly formidable people out there.
'Unless I hide in my shell forever, my life will be in constant danger!'
"Who put out the bounty?"
"It's... Xiao Ye!"
Xiao Ye?
The man snapped back to his senses and immediately opened his computer.
Sure enough, it was related to an order someone had previously commissioned.
He usually just handed orders off to his subordinates and didn't concern himself with the details, but today, he had to ask more questions.
"What's the current status of this mission?"
"It's not complete yet. I'll go ask the branch office."
"Okay, hurry!"
While he waited, the man felt a growing sense of unease.
The subordinate rushed back, his expression utterly grim. "We just got word... Our branch office... was burned to the ground!"
"They found nearly fifty bodies inside, including the bartender's!"
CRASH! The man stumbled, nearly collapsing to the floor.
Although he was in the assassination business—a family enterprise—he himself was terrified of dying.
"How could this happen? I know... it must have been that Xiao Ye, right?"
"That's right. We found surveillance footage at the scene. It was Xiao Ye!"
'How could someone like that leave surveillance footage behind? Unless... unless he did it on purpose!'
"He's warning me, telling me not to make a move on him again, or I'll meet the same end!"
"Quick! Cancel the mission! We're not taking the job! Contact the client and tell him the deal is off!"
'If I keep this contract, my own life might be forfeit!'
——
「In a dark cave.」
A piercing voice echoed, "Useless! All of you are useless!"
"They can't even handle a single person! What's the point of keeping them around?!"
"To think such a major assassin organization would actually cancel my contract!"
The black-clad man standing below lowered his head. "Master, what if... we send our own people?"
"Many of the assassins that come from agencies are third-rate. It's no surprise they failed."
"Dragon Country is a major power. The person they sent to deliver the secret key must be extremely capable."
"You're right. Send our own people! Send Number Three first. If he fails, we'll send in a higher-ranked expert."
"Yes!"
In the darkness,
a black shadow flickered and vanished, leaving the cave with incredible speed.
Afterward, he took a vehicle to a road that was on Xiao Ye's route.
After about an hour, the target vehicle finally appeared.
Xiao Ye immediately spotted someone standing on the side of the road, waving frantically.
It looked like they were trying to hitch a ride.
He had no intention of stopping, but the person stepped out, apparently intending to block the car with his own body!
Xiao Ye had no choice but to slam on the brakes!
A young man, who looked to be in his early twenties, gave him an embarrassed smile. "Sorry about that. I just couldn't catch a ride, so I had to do something drastic."
"Could I possibly hitch a ride? Please? Otherwise, I'll have to sleep out in the open tonight, and security around here... it's really not great."
Xiao Ye glanced at the person before him and finally agreed.
The other man grinned and got into the passenger seat. "Thank you so much."
With that, he held out a bottle of water. "Think of it as a small payment. It's all I have besides this water."
Xiao Ye didn't take it.
The man didn't seem to mind and just placed it to the side.
They drove all the way into the next city's urban center.
The moment they arrived, Xiao Ye stopped the car. "Get out."
"This is still a long way from where I need to go. Can you take me the rest of the way?"
Without a word, Xiao Ye kicked the man out of the car and tossed the bottle of water out after him.
SLAM!
The car door shut.
The young man watched Xiao Ye, a slow smile spreading across his lips.
"I was going to give you a quick death," he muttered. "But since you're so ungrateful, I'll just have to enjoy torturing you."
He picked up the bottle of water and casually gave it to a beggar.
The beggar thanked him profusely and eagerly took a drink.
「An hour later.」
A corpse now lay by the side of the road.
Xiao Ye found a hotel to stay in for the time being.
He sat cross-legged on the bed, raised his arm, and made a light cut with his dagger.
Blood flowed out, and with it, a tiny black dot.
He pinched it and was startled to see it was some kind of bug-like creature.
However, Xiao Ye didn't kill it. Instead, he placed it in an ashtray, nurturing it with his blood.
This was the handiwork of today's hitchhiker.
The reason Xiao Ye hadn't exposed him on the spot was to follow the trail back to the person pulling the strings.
After dealing with the problem, he went downstairs to get a proper meal.
The constant travel had taken a heavy toll on his body. He had to replenish his energy to maintain his peak condition.
He made his way to the hotel's buffet restaurant.
There was hardly anyone inside.
Xiao Ye picked up a plate, took several pieces of steak, and found a secluded corner to eat his dinner.
After finishing his meal, he returned to his room to find the little bug in the ashtray writhing.
'It seems my pursuer is getting impatient and is about to make his move,' he thought.
Xiao Ye closed his eyes, using his own blood to sense the other's location.
「In a very ordinary room.」
The man was frantically chanting a spell.
He could already picture Xiao Ye in excruciating pain, even rolling on the ground in agony.
The bloodlust in his eyes intensified.
Suddenly, the man stomped his foot!
"Die!"
「A moment later.」
He returned to his normal demeanor, picked up his phone, and dialed a number. "The target has been eliminated. You can go collect the body."
「At the same time.」
POP!
The ashtray exploded, splattering blood.
Xiao Ye looked at the bug's corpse, knowing the other man likely thought he was already dead.
'In that case, all I have to do is wait for them to come to my door,' he thought.
He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
In the darkness.
The wind began to howl.
Xiao Ye's eyes snapped open. With a CLICK, the room's door opened.
Following that, a group of men in black slipped inside.
They carried tools for cleaning a crime scene, presumably thinking he had been blown to bits.
Xiao Ye remained perfectly still.
CLICK.
Someone turned on a flashlight.
The bloody scene they had expected was nowhere to be found.
Instead, their target was sitting on the bed, watching them with a smirk that wasn't quite a smile.
"Since you're here, you're not leaving."
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
「A moment later.」
The group sent to clean the scene and find the secret key now lay on the floor, securely tied up.
Without a shred of politeness, Xiao Ye grabbed one of them, killed him with a single kick, and then looked at the others.
"Next, you'll answer my questions. If you don't, you'll share his fate!"
The men trembled in fear. "Yes!"
They were just the cleanup crew; they had never personally witnessed such a terrifying scene!