Chapter 1541: The Hunt Begin

The car spun out of control, tires shrieking against the asphalt, sparks screaming into the night. In that heartbeat of chaos, a shadow tore itself free from the open window and launched toward the black car beside them.

It happened too fast.

The men inside barely had time to turn their heads before gunfire erupted. Bullets rained down in a brutal arc, smashing into the windshield. Glass exploded outward, shattered into a storm of glittering shards that caught the streetlights before vanishing into the dark.

Protective charms flared to life, their magic absorbing the impact. The bullets were stopped, but not without cost. Cracks spiderwebbed across the charms, sigils flickering and dying one by one, while the reinforced suits beneath them groaned under the force.

The men reacted on instinct. Guns were drawn, muzzles snapping forward, fingers clenched tight around the triggers as they fired in a flash of blind panic, bullets shot rapidly—but there was no one there.

Their breath hitched, then suddenly, the door beside the driver exploded inward. Metal screamed as it caved under a devastating blow, the frame buckling violently. The impact hurled both men out of the vehicle.

They hit the ground hard, bodies rolling across the asphalt just as their car, driverless and broken, slammed into the guardrail. The barrier bent once, then twice, before finally giving way. The black car plunged into the ravine, swallowed whole by the abyss below.

The men scrambled, minds still struggling to comprehend what kind of power they were facing. Their hearts pounded violently, heads throbbing from the impact. Fear clawed its way into their chests as realization set in. Undeniably, they had taken a job far too big to chew.

Sadly, it was too late to regret.

Two loud sounds echoed in the air. Crimson blood sprayed across their vision, so sudden...so warm. They never saw the shooter.

They don’t have time to comprehend what had happened. Darkness rushed in, heavy and final, as their bodies collapsed face-first onto the cold asphalt.

Lory exhaled slowly, the barrel of her gun still smoking. Two clean shots, both heads down. A dark puddle of blood slowly formed beneath the men’s skulls, spreading across the cold asphalt.

She closed her eyes, willing her racing heart to calm. Killing was never something she took lightly. No matter how many times she had done it, it never sat comfortably in her chest. But these men were assassins; they were professionals.

It was easier when she fought inside the enemy’s lair, when the corridors were tight, the alarms blaring, and her body had no choice but to keep moving.

There was no room for memory there, no space for regret. Each step demanded the next, each strike drowned out the echo of the last. Survival left her no time to count the bodies behind her.

But not like this. Here, the moment of stillness, making it...real.

"Lory."

The deep, gentle voice reached her through the ringing in her ears.

She turned to see Zhao Li Xin striding toward her, long steps cutting through the aftermath, anxiety written plainly across his face. "Are you hurt?"

The concern in his voice eased her heart at once. "I’m fine," she said, offering him a reassuring smile.

Zhao Li Xin studied her more closely. He could see the heaviness lingering in her eyes. His gaze drifted to the two lifeless bodies on the ground, and understanding settled in. From the beginning, he had known Lory was not cut out for this life.

But ironically, she was blessed with an extraordinary gift and an innate talent for combat. She was sharp in her decisions, resourceful under pressure, and fearless when it mattered most. She possessed everything needed to be a great warrior. Everything except the violence that comes with it.

Unlike him...

Lory stored the guns back in the ring. She did not linger long in her emotions; she had learned long ago how to let go. Fargo used to say to her: We do whatever it takes to survive. These people will not spare you—they won’t care. They’re just doing their job, and you are the job. So when you face them, make sure you do it quickly and clean. And when it’s done... It’s done.

Lory centered her breathing, sharpening her focus as her eyes swept the surroundings. "This is too easy," she muttered under her breath.

"That’s because they’re only testing us," Zhao Li Xin replied, his voice cold and flat.

"Testing?" Lory frowned.

Zhao Li Xin’s gaze shifted toward the hill rising behind the cliff. His expression hardened, turning glacial. "They’re watching us."

Lory froze. Her eyes widened before following his stare to the same distant point. Zhao Li Xin walked toward the edge of the road at an unhurried pace, every step steady, controlled.

"This ant dares to trouble this lord..." A chilling, murderous intent bled into the air, radiating from his dark, cold eyes.

Zhao Li Xin rested one hand behind his back and lifted his other hand beside him. His movement was slow and graceful, like he was dancing, but then the energy around him shifted.

It felt like the world around them responded to his calling. The air was vibrating as if struck by an unseen force. Wind surged violently, howling around them as Zhao Li Xin gathered his qi into his right hand. With a single, fluid motion, he swung his arm forward.

A razor-sharp wave of energy tore through the air, slicing forward like a colossal invisible blade.

A thunderous explosion erupted from the cliffside. Trees snapped and collapsed, earth shuddering and crumbling as though struck by a cannon. Dust and debris billowed into the night sky.

’What the...’ Lory stared, stunned, her mouth slightly open. The cliff looked as if it had been carved apart by overwhelming force.

Slowly, she turned to Zhao Li Xin to see his expression. For other people, he looked impassive and indifferent, but for someone who knew Zhao Li Xin very well, she knew he was quite angry; perhaps this testing thing offended him.

However, what Lory did not know was that what truly angered him was actually because these people had make Lory sad. Worse, he blamed himself for not killing the men first, for letting Lory do it instead. Unlike her, death had never weighed on him. No matter how many lives he ended, it never left a mark on his heart.

Zhao Li Xin clasped his hands behind his back as if admiring his job. After that, he turned to Lory, "Next time, if it’s not necessary, let me do the killing."

Lory tilted her head; it dawned on her what really upset him. A warm smile bloomed on her face, though it’s not necessary cause she had learned to control her emotions, but still...

"Okay," Lory said sweetly.

Zhao Li Xin intertwined his fingers with Lory. "Let’s go, before your Ice cream melts."

They walked hand in hand toward their car, their footsteps unhurried, the night quiet enough to lull the senses. The air was cool, carrying the faint scent of dust and dry grass, and for a fleeting moment, it felt as though the danger had finally passed.

Suddenly, Zhao Li Xin’s step stopped, and his expression hardened.

The sudden halt tugged at Lory’s arm. She turned toward him, confusion flickering across her face, about to ask what was wrong, when a sharp, piercing sound tore through the air. It came too fast to track, a shrill whistle that made her blood run cold.

The world around them seems exploded. A violent blast erupted behind them, igniting the night in a burst of red and orange. Heat slammed into their backs as the ground convulsed beneath their feet. The roar was deafening with the sounds of metal shrieking, stone cracking, the road splitting apart as the cliffside gave way.

Chunks of asphalt and earth were hurled into the air, swallowed by fire and smoke, while the shockwave ripped through the silence like a living thing.

In that instant, he yanked Lory against his chest, his grip iron-tight, and launched himself into the air just as the ground where they had stood vanished in flame.

The explosion bloomed beneath them, a seething inferno, but they were already gone, rising above the chaos as debris and sparks clawed upward in their wake.

They landed atop the hill in a single, controlled motion. Zhao Li Xin absorbed the impact, his stance steady as if he had merely stepped over a puddle. Below them, the road lay in ruins, the cliff still collapsing into the fire-lit abyss.

Lory remained in his arms, unscathed, her heart pounding as the echoes of destruction rolled through the night. Zhao Li Xin stood untouched, his gaze cold and alert, watching the devastation he had sensed seconds before it was born. Lory turned to the chaos below with a heavy sigh.

"I think my ice cream has melted..." she sounded disappointed.

"Worry not, we can just do a delivery order later," Zhao Li Xin said, indulging her whim, nonetheless.