Chapter 180: Tonight’s performance

Although he suffered a direct blow to the face, the Bar Owner quickly crawled back up, though a prominent wound remained on his face; even if it healed, it would leave an ugly scar.

“I never imagined the life-saving item I just bought would actually come in handy.”

The Bar Owner held his face, his expression nearly twisted.

Ever since the former Bishop in charge of them was assassinated, he had naturally taken over the position, having had a vague premonition that he would face the same danger.

The higher one’s status and the more power one holds, the more dangerous it becomes.

“Cough, cough!”

“Bishop, are you alright?”

Before his request for promotion had even received a response, the Bar Owner had specifically ‘touched up’ his status, packaging himself as the successor who inherited the former Bishop’s last wishes, hoping to become the true Bishop.

“Stop talking nonsense and get me the Boiling Blood!”

“U-understood!”

Whether it was the club or the bar, they were both just fronts; their true purpose was to provide a location for the trade of the Boiling Blood potion.

That was a prohibited item heavily targeted by the Execution Division; once exposed, they would absolutely be hunted down to the end.

“Bishop, it’s here!”

The Bar Owner shoved his subordinate aside, grabbed the Boiling Blood potion, and drove it hard into his own arm.

As the purple liquid was injected into his body, his expression gradually turned into one of enjoyment, and his pale face regained a hint of color.

“Hoo…”

Strength returned to his body, and he stood up once more.

Just then, a figure closed in rapidly—

Lu Yunze broke through the defense line, raised his Heavy Sword, and slashed down with all his might!

“Got him!”

However—

The Heavy Sword smashed the bar counter to pieces, but the Bar Owner had vanished into thin air.

Wine bottles shattered, wine splashed everywhere, and it mixed into mottled colors on the floor.

By the time Lu Yunze looked again, the owner had already appeared in the distance, a cocky grin on his face.

“A fool who only knows how to use brute force thinks he can provoke me?”

As he spoke, he pulled open his coat—it was packed densely with knives of various sizes, reflecting a cold light in the dim surroundings.

Lu Yunze gripped his Heavy Sword, preparing for battle.

The owner casually pulled out a few knives and tossed them into the air.

—They did not fall.

The knives hovered in the air, their blades all pointed at Lu Yunze.

The owner raised a hand, making the gesture of a Gun, and whispered:

“Bang.”

The next instant, all the knives vibrated violently, and then—they vanished.

No, they had shot toward him at incredible speed!

Lu Yunze ducked sharply, holding his Heavy Sword in front of him.

The sound of clashing continued as sparks flew, making his arm go numb.

Although his vitals were protected, his limbs were still grazed, causing sharp pain.

‘What kind of ability is this…’

Clearly, it was a long-range attack centered on speed.

As long as he could get close to the opponent, he could suppress him.

But the problem was—he couldn’t get close at all.

Lu Yunze burst forward with speed, but the opponent always managed to dodge in advance and quickly redeploy the throwing knives.

He had been able to block the first two rounds, but in the third, a few strays slipped past his defense and struck straight at his chest.

“Heh…” the owner grinned.

But a second later, he couldn’t laugh anymore.

That flying knife had been lightly flicked aside by Lu Yunze’s finger, falling to the ground.

“You actually have defensive measures?”

Lu Yunze did not answer.

He wasn’t even sure if that counted as a Secret Art.

The Black Scales could not be controlled actively; they only manifested when he was in danger.

It was an ability he discovered only after stabbing himself with a knife once.

Uncontrollable, but real nonetheless.

The battle reached a stalemate.

The owner had the Boiling Blood potion and could recover continuously; Lu Yunze’s stamina, however, was steadily depleting.

It seemed to be a war of attrition.

However—

Lu Yunze suddenly stabbed his Heavy Sword into the ground and even nodded toward his opponent, looking relaxed.

“…”

The owner felt a chill in his heart and whipped his head around—

It was too late.

Jiang Sui had appeared behind him, raising her Scythe high and bringing it down in a brutal slash!

“Ah—!!”

With a scream, an arm fell.

Fresh blood sprayed, staining the floor red.

Jiang Sui withdrew her blade, her expression showing slight disappointment.

“I wanted to cut your head off directly.”

The owner stumbled back in panic, his legs unsteady from blood loss and terror.

Jiang Sui kicked the severed arm away, exchanged a glance with Lu Yunze, and closed in together.

The owner’s face was deathly pale; even the Boiling Blood could not compensate for the weakness caused by blood loss.

Just then—

“Bishop, use this!”

A subordinate rushed over and threw a Crystal Ball.

Jiang Sui and Lu Yunze both saw their pupils contract.

A familiar item.

But they were still a step too slow—

The Crystal Ball landed in the owner’s hand.

He held it up high, and light like a starry sky burst forth.

Everyone was shrouded within it.

After the light faded—

Lu Yunze and Jiang Sui stood frozen, their gazes hollow.

The owner was ecstatic.

“Haha… it worked!”

He placed the Crystal Ball on the ground and waved his hand in front of them to confirm.

Absolutely no reaction.

“This is an item blessed by the King in Black Robes…”

He licked his lips and looked at Jiang Sui.

“I really want to know what you two saw.”

“After all this trouble, I’m the one who won!”

“Wrong.”

Jiang Sui’s gaze suddenly returned to clarity, growing cold.

“The one who won is me.”

“What—”

A flash of cold light.

His other arm was also severed.

The owner collapsed to the ground, screaming.

“How are you possibly fine?!”

Jiang Sui touched her chest, her tone casual:

“Want to guess?”

She sat in front of him, letting out a long breath.

The battlefield was silent.

The fallen and the controlled were scattered about.

Only three remained conscious—

Jiang Sui, the owner, and the Black Cat, who was slowly appearing.

“Senior, were you slacking off just now?”

“I was giving you a chance to shine.”

“We almost flipped the car.”

“I believed in you.”

The owner suddenly realized what was happening and shouted in terror:

“You’re that Assassin?!”

“Ah, discovered,” the Black Cat’s gaze was cold. “Then let’s just kill him.”

“Can’t you let me rest for a moment…” Jiang Sui rubbed her shoulder and stood up.

The owner struggled and roared:

“You dare to defy the King in Black Robes—”

“The King in Black Robes?” Jiang Sui scoffed. “Just a scrub who borrows my power.”

As her words fell—

The Scythe pierced through his heart.

His voice cut off abruptly.

The battle ended.

“When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.”

The Black Cat turned to leave. “I’ll go check if there are any stragglers.”

Jiang Sui walked slowly toward Lu Yunze.

He was still standing there, motionless.

She reached out to cup his face, whispering:

“Your performance tonight really satisfied me.”

She pinched his cheeks, seemingly getting hooked on the habit.

Just then—

The Crystal Ball behind her suddenly shattered on its own.

Lu Yunze’s eyes instantly regained their clarity.

His gaze slowly drifted downward—

Landing on the slightly embarrassed face before him.