(1)
Xiao Li Flying Knife?
In this world, there truly was such a lineage.
But by Li Fayuan’s generation, it had transformed from a killing technique into a self-defense skill. As the new century arrived, public security gradually improved, and there was almost no need to carry flying knives for self-defense anymore. This art became a family tradition. Perhaps by the time of Li Fayuan’s next generation, these skills would be used for playing dart games—if he ever had children.
Perhaps because he had been in contact with these sharp weapons since childhood, Li Fayuan chose to become a barber apprentice after turning fifteen. Slowly, he graduated and opened his own hair salon. It had been over ten years since then.
His flying knife skills had grown a bit rusty; he only practiced on a target at home after closing the shop each day.
But those were skills he had learned in the first half of his life, deeply engraved in his soul—there was no way he could ever forget them.
And at that moment, he felt as if he had returned to his eighteen-year-old self, at his peak.
That time, surrounded by eight thugs, he hit all eight of their palms with eight flying knives in rapid succession, scaring them off in all directions.
Thinking back, the line, “If you don’t leave now, the next target will be your eyes,” was truly a declaration of youthful spirit.
“Clang!” Li Fayuan accurately blocked a fruit knife flying toward his body, followed by a series of “clinks and clangs.”
In the eyes of ordinary people, the fruit knife was so fast only a blur remained, but in his eyes at this moment, it was as slow as a crawling snail.
How many years had it been since he last felt this way?
It was as if the lost years were flowing back into his body; Li Fayuan felt so excited that he seemed to know no fatigue.
Too slow, too slow! Still too slow!
He seized a momentary gap and flung a flying knife from his other hand, aimed at the shoulder of the young man in front of him.
But the next second, the opponent’s seemingly slow movements became extremely swift. Although in Li Fayuan’s current state they were still visible, it was enough to dodge the flying knife.
“Fsss—!” Half of the specially made willow-leaf flying knife instantly embedded into the ground. The black asphalt road was as fragile as tofu.
If the first hit was luck, then the second, third… eighth—it absolutely could not be luck.
The slowly flowing time finally returned to normal speed. Although Li Fayuan was still standing steadily, he couldn’t help but take a huge gulp of air. After all, he was no longer young and didn’t have endless energy.
“Hoo… haah…”
Panting, he looked up at the young man before him. The latter’s breathing was still very steady—meaning he was still at ease.
“The flying knives are exhausted, and it seems you have reached your limit.” Jingye Luqiao said calmly, opening his overcoat to reveal dozens of gleaming fruit knives, making one squint involuntarily. “I can see you didn’t aim for my vital points—so I won’t aim for yours either. However—excuse me.”
“Pfft!”
The next second, Li Fayuan’s eyes widened.
Jingye Luqiao, who said he wouldn’t aim for his vitals, directly stabbed a fruit knife into his chest.
His heart trembled violently, then he felt that no matter how wide he opened his mouth, he couldn’t breathe. His brain began to lack oxygen, and everything in his sight blurred at a visible rate.
As he fell, Li Fayuan mocked his own naivety—the opponent was an assassin, not a martial artist. How could he expect a fair duel…?
—
“How are you feeling now?”
“Captain Xue…”
The young man lying on the ground blinked dazedly, then suddenly sat up as if remembering something, and whispered in panic, “I lost him!”
“Don’t rush. Don’t move too much.” Another broad-shouldered young man pressed his shoulder, letting him lean against the low wall behind him. “What exactly happened earlier? How did we lose contact all of a sudden?”
“At first… I saw the protection target come out of the apartment building. I sensed her state was off, suspected she was sleepwalking.”
“Yes, your memory is correct. Continue.”
“Then I contacted my superiors. After receiving instructions, I got out of the car to follow and check the situation, ready to call for backup.”
“Correct. In your last report you said everything was normal, but ten seconds later we lost contact with you.”
“Yes… yes. I didn’t feel anything… After waking up… I saw you.”
“Any other sensations?”
“My head hurts a bit… My eyes are hard to open…”
“I checked the back of your head. No wound found.”
The young man sitting on the ground against the wall touched his neck: “Ah… Captain, look here. Is there a needle mark?”
“…Yes, a larger type.”
“Could it be a high-dose anesthetic needle?”
“To get so close without you noticing and accurately inject anesthetic without any other sensation—how is that possible?”
“But… that’s all I know.”
“It’s okay. You did your best. Stay put. A rescue team will arrive soon.”
“Captain, the protection target should be safe now. Otherwise I’d probably be dead already.”
“Not necessarily. The assassin might have just wanted to avoid complications…”
The walkie-talkie crackled, followed by a slightly fuzzy female voice: “Xue Tianleng, surveillance cameras on three streets all went down ten minutes ago due to line failure…”
“I understand. I’m driving over now.” Xue Tianling pressed the walkie-talkie, glanced at three police cars approaching from afar, and gently patted the young man’s shoulder. “Report immediately if you remember anything else.”
“Understood.”
Bam. Then came the sound of a car door closing from a black Santana not far away, followed by the roar of an engine, and soon the air was filled with the acrid smell of tires grinding against the road.
—
When Xue Tianling arrived at this street with an undercover emergency support team, all that remained was a young man lying on the ground and a girl face-down, unconscious.
“Captain, this girl is fine. Even breathing, slightly fast heartbeat. Looks like she’s having a nightmare.”
“Take her to a safe place. Have the follow-up rescue team send her to the hospital for examination.”
“Yes.”
Xue Tianling frowned, standing before the young man. On the ground in front of him were several flying knives embedded into the asphalt—judging by their shape, they were specially made, completely different from the scattered fruit knives.
And in the young man’s chest was stuck an ordinary-looking fruit knife, radiating a cold aura, still retaining some of the user’s killing intent.
“Captain, there’s a faint breath!”
“Is the wound serious?”
“Only a small part of the knife entered his body. In theory, it shouldn’t have pierced his heart.”
“Captain! Found needle mark residue on his shoulder!”
“Anesthetic needle? How was that even done? It’s inhuman…” Xue Tianling frowned deeper. “How is he?”
“Stable for now, but to be safe, he should be sent to the hospital quickly.”
“Tell the rescue team to monitor him. If he wakes up, interrogate him immediately. We need more details.”
“Understood.”
“Captain, what’s our next move? The trail ends at the end of this street. Surveillance on the other street didn’t find anything unusual.”
“That street’s surveillance…” Xue Tianling frowned. “I remember it was never fixed.”
“The contractor completed repairs last week.”
“Xue Tianling.” Just then, the walkie-talkie crackled again. “That street’s surveillance had a technical fault—the software didn’t automatically delete video files, so after the storage filled up, it recorded nothing.”
“Those idiots!” A young-looking undercover punched the wall hard. “That guy’s really lucky to have gotten away!”
“He might have gathered this intel himself. Don’t let your guard down. That’s no ordinary assassin.”
“Captain, what now? If we wait until dawn, it might be too late.”
“Don’t panic. He went through so much trouble, so it’s definitely not just to kill. Otherwise, our protection target would already be dead.”
“You mean…” Xue Tianling’s second-in-command rubbed his chin. “His mission might be just to kidnap the target?”
“Exactly. And chances are he won’t complete the mission within the country. Immediately blockade all exits and conduct strict inspections. Also send people to check the nearest T City airport.”
“That should block him.”
“It’s not that easy. Since we thought of it, he probably has too. In a small coastal city, water routes might be safer.”
“Water routes still require customs clearance. Not easy to slip out.”
“True, not easy, but not impossible.” Xue Tianling’s expression sharpened. “He might use all kinds of unimaginable methods to leave the country, and likely won’t use any transportation, or at least for most of the time.”
“If he doesn’t use transportation… there’s a high chance he’ll ‘slip’ through somewhere.” The second-in-command nodded.
“That’s right.” Xue Tianling took a deep breath of the midnight’s somewhat murky air. “Tough opponent…”
“Captain, will we make it in time?” Another young officer looked anxious. “We were given strict orders to protect the target. No failure allowed…”
“At least before dawn, everything should still be in time. Get in the car! We’re heading this direction!”
“Why?”
“Instinct!”