Chapter 86: The Azure Dragon Strikes Back


    Number One found himself unceremoniously dragged into a dark alley, only to see his teammates Numbers Two, Three, and Four lying unconscious, surrounded by three masked martial artists.


    <em>I didn’t sense them at all…</em> Number One thought despairingly, his gaze fixed on the ‘woman’ who had not only ensnared him, but effortlessly neutralized an entire assassin squad.


    CRACK.


    The ‘woman’ began to remove her makeup and undo her intricate bone contortion, growing taller to reveal a remarkably handsome man.


    It was Baek Suryong. He surveyed the fallen assassins and spoke to his maskedpanions, “Good job, everyone. I’ll handle the rest. You guys report back to Grandfather.”


    Silently, the masked figures, Ak Yeonho, Myeong Il-Oh, and Jaegal Soyeong, nodded and disappeared over the wall with a flourish of their movement arts.


    “…They seem to be having fun ying assassin,” Baek Suryong muttered, clicking his tongue. He then turned back to Number One and unlocked his sealed acupoint. “You can talk now, but do try to keep the screaming to a minimum. Let’s keep this professional, okay?”


    Number One remained silent, prompting Baek Suryong to chuckle at his stoicism before suddenly dislocating Number One’s shoulder with a swift motion.


    Why aren′t you reading this at northdetldo?“Khh!” Number One fell to his knees, his assassin’s training the only thing preventing him from screaming.


    For a while, he red defiantly at Baek Suryong.


    “…Do you think torture will make me talk? Kill me. You’ll get nothing from me,” he finally spat.


    Baek Suryong smiled faintly. “If you really wanted to die, you could just bite your tongue. Why ask me to kill you?”


    “……” Number One fell silent.


    Baek Suryong crouched down, a faint red gleam appearing in his clear, ssy eyes as he met Number One’s gaze. “You want to live, don’t you? I know your type. You think you understand death because you deal with it every day. But do you really?”


    “……”


    Seeing Number One’s continued reticence, Baek Suryong rummaged through the assassin’s clothes and confiscated his hidden weapons. He then grabbed a throwing dagger, tossed it yfully in the air, and abruptly hurled it sideways.


    THUD!


    The dagger embedded itself in the forehead of the unconscious Number Four, killing him instantly. Number One flinched at the sight, but Baek Suryong only looked down at him with azy smile.


    “Seeing death often doesn’t make you immune to fear. Every time you see the terror in a dying person’s eyes, your own fear of death deepens,” the handsome young man chuckled.


    Number One tried to maintain a neutral expression, but Baek Suryong’s words resonated deeply in his mind.


    SWOOSH!


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    Baek Suryong threw another dagger, and this time, it struck Number Three’s heart. Blood dripping from the handle embedded in his chest, the trembling assassin quickly became still.


    Number One clenched his teeth.


    “Assassins train to kill their emotions, to dull their pain, and to be numb to murder. And so, many also think they’ve conquered their fear of death. But watch closely.”


    “Stop…!”


    Baek Suryong threw a thin gold needle at Number Two.


    “Ugh, ugh…!” Number Two’s eyes snapped open as he writhed in agony, clutching the golden needle in his neck.


    <em>The blow wasn’t immediately fatal. He did it deliberately, to give Number Two a slow, painful death,</em> Number One thought, shaking uncontrobly as he watched hisrade’s life ebb away.


    “Humans might get used to pain, but never to death. Everyone faces death for the first time,” Baek Suryong whispered softly into his ear.


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    “I…”


    Baek Suryong tapped Number One’s chest with the hilt of his sword.


    Startled, Number One fell backward and screamed, “Ahhhh!”


    Baek Suryong looked down at the pale, terrified Number One. “I’ll ask again. Do you want to live?”


    Number One nodded without hesitation. Witnessing hisrades die had terrorized him to the core. “Yes, I want to live. I want to live!”


    <em>I want to live. I don’t want to die. If I die by his hand…even my soul won’t be saved.</em> Tears streamed down Number One’s face as he experienced true fear and a desperate will to live for the first time.


    “Please… spare me. Please…” he begged.


    Baek Suryong put away his sword, his gaze softening. “If you want to live, you’ll answer my questions. Which organization are you with?”


    “I-I’m from the ck Forest…” Number One began, confessing everything he knew about the ck Forest—their numbers, methods, and leaders. As a squad leader, his knowledge was limited, but he gave what he could to save his life.


    “You signaled each other with bird calls earlier. How does that work?”


    “That’s…” Number One revealed the uniquemunication methods used by ck Forest assassins.


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    Baek Suryong grinned. <em>This could be useful,</em> he thought.


    A short whileter, having divulged all he knew, Number One copsed in exhaustion.


    “How ruthless,” a voice suddenly said from the shadows.


    Baek Suryong spun around to face the neer.


    Head Constable Cheong Cheon stepped into view and surveyed the scene, his face turning pale as he realized the grim fate that had befallen the assassins. “Were you an assassin yourself?” he couldn’t help but ask.


    Given Baek Suryong’s recent violent actions, Cheong Cheon’s question seemed reasonable. Baek Suryong shrugged nonchntly, replying, “No, but I’ve taught assassins before.”


    “Hah…” Cheong Cheon sighed, but restrained himself from asking more questions. Instead, he hoisted the unconscious Number One over his shoulder and asked curtly, “Should I lock him up?”


    “Yes, we might need a witnesster.”


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    “Got it. I’ll call my men to clean up the corpses,” Cheong Cheon said. He was certainly shaken by Baek Suryong’s brutality, but the deaths of a few people didn’t bother him, especially since they were assassins. <em>Mere contract killers don’t deserve my sympathy</em>, he thought.


    Turning back to Baek Suryong, who was now donning Number One’s mask and clothes, he asked, “Will you keep hunting assassins?”


    “Of course. They don’t listen to reason.”


    “…Didn’t you just persuade one with words?”


    Baek Suryong, now disguised as a middle-aged woman, nced back at Cheong Cheon and shed a warm smile. “Setting that kind of atmosphere takes too long. Plus, it doesn’t work on everyone. There’s a much faster and easier way.”


    “……”


    “See you around.” Baek Suryong waved back casually, walking out of the alley.


    Watching him disappear into the darkness, Cheong Cheon muttered to himself, “He just might be the best assassin here.”


    He was genuinely relieved that Baek Suryong was not his enemy.


    The ck Forest assassins were thrown into disarray.


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    “Chirp! Cheep! Chiiiirp!” Bird calls resounded from every corner. Initially, these signals were exclusive to the ck Forest assassins, but now, unseen foes employed them, throwing the assassins into confusion.


    By the time the assassins grasped the truth of their predicament, nearly half of them had fallen.


    [Hold your positions!]


    [Identify the enemy locations!]


    [Do not panic. Ignore the audio signals from now on.]


    [Maintain your distances. Hide among the crowd for now.]


    As they blended into the crowd, cold sweat trickled down their backs.


    <em>Who could it be?</em>


    <em>Every squad that got close to the target has been wiped out.</em>


    <em>These tactics … the enemy are assassins as well.</em>


    <em>There are at least three of them. We lost multiple telepathicmunications simultaneously.</em>


    <em>Are they from Bloodletter? Or Deathshroud?</em>


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    Despite their training to remainposed under any circumstances, the assassins couldn’t stifle their fear as unknown enemies systematically eliminated theirrades.


    WHOOSH…


    Feeling a gentle breeze, an assassin flinched.


    “How disappointing. It appears the vaunted ck Forest isn’t much after all,” a voice taunted from behind.


    <em>That wasn’t a breeze!</em> The realization hit him instantly, but it was toote. Before he could fully register the mocking tone, a dagger had already plunged into his chest.


    A shadow strolled past the faltering assassin, casually remarking, “Soon, the main force will wipe you all out. Enjoy the show from hell.”


    Copsing, the assassin watched the blurry figure disappear.


    <em>Bloodletter… It was the Bloodletter bastards!</em> he cursed inwardly, feigning death. Fortunately for him, the dagger had narrowly missed his lung.


    <em>I must report to the Third Captain…</em>


    Convinced he had identified the enemy, the ck Forest assassin staggered off to find the Third Captain, unaware that the ‘assassin’ who had just attacked him would soon repeat this maneuver, albeit slightly altered, on a Bloodletter assassin.


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    CRASH!


    “Those Bloodletter bastards!” the Third Captain growled furiously, smashing the table in front of him with a single strike. He had just heard from his subordinate that the assassins they had sent to eliminate Gongson Su were ambushed by Bloodletter.


    “So, this is how they want to y it?”


    Even though the three major assassins’ guilds were all vying for Gongson Su’s head, such a tant attack was practically a deration of war against the ck Forest. As a self-styled professional who had always scorned Bloodletter, the Third Captain found this affront unbearable.


    “Since they started this, I’ll make sure they regret it.”


    He clenched his teeth andmanded all avable assassins to assemble. Determined to annihte Bloodletter and im Gongson Su’s head, his killing intent sent frosty waves across the room as he barked orders, “Tell everyone to stand by. I’ll be there soon.”


    “Yes, sir!”


    Meanwhile, a simr scene unfolded at Bloodletter’s Nanchang branch.


    “Those ck Forest bastards have lost their minds! How dare they attack our men!” The branch chief, a burly man adorned with scars and tattoos who typically ran an underground gambling den, bellowed as he processed the news.


    “Call in all our men! We’re going to ughter them!” he roared, seizing a massive axe from the wall. “I’ll split their arrogant faces in…”


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    BOOM!


    At that moment, an explosion rocked the entrance on the ground floor, and something heavy crashed to the ground—it was the gatekeeper, bloodied and unconscious.


    “An attack!”


    “It’s the enemy!”


    About fifty frencers in the gambling den instantly armed themselves. The branch chief, exuding confidence, yelled toward the stairs, “Do you know where you are? Show yourself if you dare, fucking son of a bitch!”


    Slowly, someone began descending the stairs, each step deliberate and precise.


    “You…” the branch chief gasped.


    A venerable old man with snow-white hair and beard, dressed in a deep green robe, surveyed the gambling den with an upright posture and hands sped behind his back. Calmly, he inquired, “So, are you the butcher gang known as Bloodletter?”


    “Shit… Who the hell are you, you damn geezer?” the branch chief shouted, raising his axe, though sweat beaded on his forehead. <em>A master. He’s a master…</em>


    The old man clicked his tongue in disdain. “Tsk. Judging by the killing intent in your eyes, you must be the ones.”


    “To hell with this… Attack!”


    “YAAAAAH!” With a loud war cry, the Bloodletter frencers charged forward.


    Sword Addict Mae Geuklyom slowly drew his sword.