Chapter 195: Other Dangers

“Can you see the target yet?”

“Yes, I can see them. They’re still watching the parade float. It doesn’t look like they plan to leave immediately.”

On the rooftop of the shopping center, a group of heavily armed thugs were quietly observing the situation on the street below, especially the location of Lu Yunze and Luo Yao.

“By the way, even if they’re just a young master and a young lady, they’re still Secret Arts Practitioners, right? Can we really handle them just by ourselves?” one of them couldn’t help but ask.

“What’s there to be afraid of? No matter how strong a Secret Arts Practitioner is, they’re still human. It’s not like they can become gods,” another said disdainfully.

“I wouldn’t be so sure. Didn’t you all take this job to join the Black Star Cult? Since it’s a cult, what they believe in is basically a god, right?”

“You don’t actually believe gods exist, do you?” a companion laughed. “As long as we can make a living, who cares if it’s the Black Star, White Star, or even the Ziwei Star?”

The order they received was to wait for the right moment to launch an attack on Lu Yunze and Luo Yao.

The parade float was just a decoy to confuse the Execution Division and the police. The real key to this operation was actually them, the group lying in ambush on the rooftop.

To ensure the mission’s success, these thugs were equipped with expensive firearms, attempting to use mortal bodies to fight against Secret Arts Practitioners.

Although they didn’t understand the structure of the Secret Arts Practitioner world, just from the Luo Family’s background, they could tell this mission was extremely dangerous.

Those who dared to take on such a task were basically desperadoes. For money, they would dare to do anything, unafraid of death or offending major powers.

The reason they hadn’t acted yet was because their boss hadn’t given the order.

While his subordinates started chatting idly, the boss remained seated at the back, propping his chin, seemingly deep in thought.

“Boss, when are we moving? The parade float is almost gone.”

His subordinate’s words pulled him back to reality.

The boss swept his gaze over the group and slowly let out a breath.

“Then let’s not waste any more time. Prepare—”

Before he could finish, he suddenly stopped.

“What’s wrong, boss?”

“Since when did we have a female member on our team?”

“What? Where’s a woman?”

Everyone followed his gaze and indeed saw a female figure.

She wasn’t heavily armed like the others. Instead, she was dressed in casual clothes, arms crossed, leaning against the wall as if she had been watching for a while.

“Who are you?”

Facing the question, Jiang Sui’s pale purple eyes held a faint smile. Even with guns pointed at her, she showed no fear.

“Wait, I think I’ve seen her before… Isn’t she the Luo Family’s maid?”

“So she’s an enemy? She’s pretty cute.”

Just as everyone started laughing, the boss suddenly shouted:

“Don’t move! Don’t go near her!”

Everyone froze.

“Boss, why?”

The boss’s face turned grim—not because his legs went weak, but because a hand had gently come to rest on his shoulder.

The pressure wasn’t heavy, yet it made him feel an immobilizing force.

“I heard you guys are planning something big. Want to bring me along?”

The person who had appeared behind him without anyone noticing was none other than Lü Ziyi.

The atmosphere on the rooftop instantly froze.

With Jiang Sui in front and Lü Ziyi behind, both had infiltrated without anyone noticing, as if they had surrounded the group of thugs.

“You… who are you?” the boss asked, his voice tight.

“Just a little specialist from the Execution Division,” Lü Ziyi smiled slightly, but it sent shivers down their spines.

“Of all times to run into someone from the Execution Division…” the boss’s heart turned cold.

Jiang Sui examined their equipment. “You don’t look like professional assassins from the Black Star Cult. Someone’s funding you from behind, right?”

She walked over and opened an ammunition crate.

Inside were blood-red special bullets, cold to the touch, clearly weapons designed to target Secret Arts Practitioners.

“The Black Star Cult is quite generous, even reimbursing you for this kind of equipment. Without a stable source of funds, they couldn’t sustain this level of expenditure.”

Mentioning funds reminded her of the previously seized “Boiling Blood.”

It seemed the Black Star Cult’s trading network was even larger than she had imagined.

“You… what do you want?” a thug asked nervously.

Someone raised a gun, aiming it at Lü Ziyi.

“Don’t shoot!” the boss immediately shouted. “I’m their hostage now!”

“Huh?” Lü Ziyi was taken aback.

“Specialist, I’ll cooperate with whatever you want. We’re all just working stiffs. No need to make things difficult for each other,” the boss said with an ingratiating smile.

“That’s true, but there are two differences,” Lü Ziyi said flatly.

“What two?”

“First, I joined the Execution Division not just for money, but also to temper myself and not bring shame to my family.”

“Second—you said you’re a hostage?”

She suddenly let go of his shoulder.

“To deal with you lot, there’s no need for a hostage.”

The battle erupted instantly.

The thugs didn’t even have time to fire their guns before they were swiftly taken down by Lü Ziyi and Jiang Sui.

The entire process took less than ten minutes.

Lü Ziyi was the main force, her close-quarters combat almost overwhelming the opposition. Jiang Sui assisted from the side while observing her fighting style.

She had previously thought Lü Ziyi was skilled in long-range sniping, but now it seemed her close combat was equally formidable.

Faced with this kind of coordination, the thugs had no chance to fight back.

By the time the boss came to his senses, all his subordinates were already on the ground.

The gazes of Jiang Sui and Lü Ziyi simultaneously fell on him.

Only then did he realize—a hostage truly wasn’t needed.

“Alright, tell us everything you know,” Lü Ziyi said, pulling out her phone and setting a ten-second countdown.

“For every useful piece of information, I’ll add three seconds. If the timer reaches zero before you’re done—face the consequences.”

The countdown began.

The boss was so scared he started talking rapidly, wishing he could say everything in one breath.

Most of the information wasn’t very valuable, but one sentence caught their attention:

“Even if you deal with us, this attack won’t be over!”

“What?” Lü Ziyi frowned and added three seconds for him.

“It’s confidential! To ensure success, the higher-ups arranged multiple teams. We’re just one of them!”

The countdown stopped.

“Where are the others?” Lü Ziyi asked.

“I don’t know… We all operated independently. As long as the target is eliminated, it’s considered a success.”

“I see.”

Lü Ziyi nodded, then punched him, knocking him unconscious.

“Good work.”

“It seems there are other dangers,” she glanced at her phone. “Reinforcements will be here soon. I’ll go meet up with them. What about you?”

Jiang Sui looked out at the street beyond the rooftop, silent for a few seconds.

“I’ll continue the investigation.”

“You, a maid, can handle it?”

“I can’t do it alone, but I have two reliable helpers.”

“Who?”

“A Secret Arts Practitioner friend, and—Lu Yunze.”

Lü Ziyi frowned slightly. “Is it really okay to drag him into this? He doesn’t even know he’s being targeted.”

“That’s exactly why you should go notify him,” Jiang Sui smiled.

“Why me?”

“Because…” Jiang Sui just smiled without answering.

Precisely because their relationship is the closest, she couldn’t be the one to tell him personally.