Yujing.
The Su family manor.
The once majestic and imposing residence was now shrouded in a somber, oppressive atmosphere of black and white.
A funeral hall had been set up in the main villa's hall, surrounded by white chrysanthemums and wreaths.
The cloyingly sweet scent of incense, candles, and flowers filled the air.
Su Qingqian, the eldest daughter of the Su family's direct line and their most precious jewel, had recently perished in Fluorite Valley.
After the wake, today was the day of her funeral.
Almost every influential power in Yujing had sent a representative.
Beyond the members of the Su family, there were spokespeople from other major transcendent families, celebrities friendly with the Su family, and several personnel from the Bureau headquarters.
Dressed in solemn black attire, they spoke in hushed tones, their faces masks of gravity.
A funeral was not only a time for mourning but also an important social occasion.
Many were taking this opportunity to observe the political winds, maintaining or redefining their networks of relationships.
Su Tianyan, the current head of the Su family, stood near the entrance of the funeral hall. Clad in a well-tailored black suit, his face was etched with deep sorrow and grief.
He shook hands and exchanged pleasantries with every important guest, accepting their standard condolences.
Su Tianyan appeared as steady as a mountain, seemingly unshaken by his daughter's death.
Only the indelible gloom deep within his eyes betrayed his true emotions.
Losing a daughter in middle age was certainly tragic, but the decline of his family was even more heart-wrenching.
At the very front of the hall, Su Qingqian's mother sat slumped in a chair, her eyes red and swollen like walnuts.
She stared vacantly at her daughter's portrait, oblivious to the noise around her.
It was as if her soul had departed along with her daughter.
Meanwhile, Su Qingqian's brother, a young man who looked equally bereaved, moved gracefully among the guests.
He handled the necessary social duties on his father's behalf, his words sincere and his demeanor impeccable.
No one noticed a small, pitch-black crow perched silently on a branch of a large tree outside the manor.
The crow looked down coldly at the funeral.
Grief and hypocrisy were intertwined; even among the closest kin, it was so.
When all the important figures had arrived and the funeral proceedings reached their midpoint, the master of ceremonies prepared to speak.
“I hope I’m not too late.”
A clear yet mocking male voice rang out abruptly.
In the relatively quiet hall, everyone heard it with startling clarity.
Startled, everyone turned in unison to look.
A slender figure walked unhurriedly along the manor's main path.
Long black hair fluttered in the wind, and his handsome features bordered on the sinister.
However, the most eye-catching thing was the clothes he wore.
A bright red trench coat, its color so vivid it looked as if it had been dyed in fresh blood.
In his hand, he toyed with a lush, dripping red rose.
This splash of red was exceptionally striking amidst the surrounding black and white.
It was, quite simply, a blatant provocation!
“It’s you!” Su Tianyan’s pupils shrank as he growled through gritted teeth.
The others present, whether they were Su family members or guests, turned pale and gasped the moment they saw the newcomer’s face!
Yue Shi!
The man who had destroyed Lab 0, causing massive losses to the Su family and leading to the deaths of Su Qingqian and many other family disciples.
Moreover, he was the one who had defeated the Bureau captain, The Executioner, and had been listed as an S-rank fugitive by headquarters!
This bringer of calamity actually dared to show up in Yujing, in the very heart of the Su family’s territory, at Su Qingqian’s funeral!
Su Tianyan suppressed his fury, but before he could speak, a figure rushed out from among the Su family women!
It was Su Qingqian’s mother, her well-maintained face now twisted with hatred.
“It’s you! You monster! You killed my Qingqian!”
She pointed at Yue Shi, her voice shrill and her eyes filled with venom.
If those beside her hadn't held her back firmly, she likely would have lunged at him.
“You actually wore such bright red clothes to her funeral! You won't even let her rest in peace!”
“Give me back my daughter! Give my Qingqian back to me!!”
Faced with this blood-weeping accusation, Yue Shi merely spread his hands helplessly, his expression innocent and indifferent. “I didn't want to wear something so dazzling.”
“But today is a grand day for Miss Su. She has left this filthy, hypocritical, and disgusting world, and is about to be reunited with her friends and family.”
“This is a joyous funeral. By rights, there should be gongs and drums reaching the heavens and firecrackers set off in unison~”
The words “joyous funeral” were like a knife stabbing into the hearts of everyone present.
The undisguised, bone-chilling killing intent caused the atmosphere to plummet to the freezing point.
“Yue Shi!” Su Tianyan barked, forcing himself to stay calm despite his internal fear.
“This is Yujing, the Bureau’s territory! I want to see how much courage you have to act so presumptuously here!”
“You say you won't allow me to be presumptuous, yet I have been so many times already.”
“And what of it? What can you do?”
Yue Shi smiled maliciously and arrogantly, the hem of his blood-red trench coat fluttering despite the lack of wind.
“Stop wasting your breath. You, and some of the people here, should know exactly why I found my way here.”
Su Tianyan’s face was grim. He did not lower his head to speak soft words of plea, nor did he attempt to negotiate.
At this stage, pleading or negotiating was meaningless.
Yue Shi even dared to kill a Bureau captain; his actions made it clear that he intended to fight the Su family to the death.
Su Tianyan shot a glance at several of his confidants and representatives from allied families.
Everyone understood the signal. The most important thing now was to stabilize the situation and stall for time while waiting for Bureau reinforcements!
There were also people from headquarters present, but they all remained as quiet as mice, none of them stepping forward to speak.
They weren't stupid.
Yue Shi was ruthless and acted without regard for consequences.
The status of being from headquarters might be a life-saving badge for others, but in front of this ruthless man, it was worth absolutely nothing.
Yue Shi took all of this in, laughing softly as if he had seen something extremely amusing.
His laughter was filled with mockery and cynicism.
“You’re only thinking of calling for help now?”
“Too late!”
He stopped laughing, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.
“Enjoy it. Enjoy your final moments.”
As his voice fell, his wrist flicked slightly.
The bright red rose shot out like a projectile.
With a thud, it embedded itself deeply into Su Qingqian’s portrait at the center of the funeral hall!
The fragile glass of the picture frame shattered upon impact, cracks spreading until Su Qingqian’s face was fractured into pieces.
The rose struck right between the eyes, looking like a hideous bloodstain.
At the same time, Yue Shi’s figure blurred and vanished from the spot.
A dead silence fell over the funeral hall.
Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment and uncertainty.
Had Yue Shi just left like that?
Had he come just to provoke them and throw out a few threats?
That hopeful thought lasted for less than three seconds.
Hum!
A heart-pounding, invisible ripple centered on the manor suddenly expanded.
The sky was covered with an extremely faint, distorted filter.
At the edges of the manor, the scenery began to blur and distort, as if seen through a layer of shimmering water.
“What’s happening?”
“It seems we’ve been locked in!”
Someone tried to walk out, wanting to leave this place of trouble as quickly as possible. However, they found that even though the manor gate was right before their eyes, no matter how much they ran, they could not reach it.
“Hey, I’m from headquarters! Your grudge with the Su family has nothing to do with me! Can you let me leave first?” someone shouted loudly.
At a time like this, he didn't care at all about offending the Su family.
His own life was the most important, and whether the Su family would even exist tomorrow was still an unknown.
“I’m just a passerby, a member of the funeral team! This has nothing to do with me, let me out!” another Bureau member shouted.
Considering Yue Shi’s relationship with headquarters, it was safer to pretend to be an innocent bystander.
Unfortunately, none of them received any response.
Su Tianyan’s face turned green with rage.
“Caw!”
A sharp crow’s cry pierced the air.
Everyone looked up to see countless crows circling high above, their eyes peering down like messengers from hell.
Panic began to spread.
...
Investigation Bureau headquarters.
Office of the Vice Minister of the Action Department.
The door was suddenly thrown open, and a young intelligence officer rushed in without even knocking, his voice urgent:
“This is bad, Vice Minister! Something has happened in Yujing!”
Behind the desk, the Vice Minister, who was reviewing documents, looked up with displeasure.
He put down his documents and criticized, “Young man, why are you in such a fluster? It’s quite unbecoming. The sky isn't falling, so speak slowly.”
“Yujing is the core area of headquarters' influence. What could possibly happen there?”
The intelligence officer, lectured by the Vice Minister, immediately took a deep breath, adjusted his emotions, and said unhurriedly:
“It’s like this, Vice Minister. The Su family is holding a funeral for Miss Su Qingqian today.”
“Just now, we received an emergency distress signal sent by a Bureau member who went to attend the funeral.”
“The message was only half a sentence: ‘Yue Shi has broken into the funeral...’”
“What did you say?!”
The Vice Minister, who had just taught his subordinate to be steady, now looked as if his seat were on fire.
He stood up abruptly from his chair, his calm replaced by shock.
“And then?!”
The intelligence officer remained calm and said slowly, “And then, we lost contact completely.”
“All communication methods have been cut off. We immediately tried to contact the Su family and other personnel on-site, but none of them could be reached.”
“We urgently mobilized the surveillance and satellite imagery in Yujing, only to find that the Su family manor has mysteriously disappeared.”
“Everyone involved in the funeral—the Su family members, the guests, and our people—cannot be contacted. There are no signs of them, dead or alive!”
The Vice Minister could no longer maintain his composure. He walked around the desk, pacing back and forth anxiously.
He hadn't expected Yue Shi to move so quickly!
One moment he had caused a massive explosion in Fluorite Valley, the next he had slipped into Orphan's Grudge to do who-knows-what.
He hadn't even rested for a few days before immediately charging straight into Yujing!
Yujing was theoretically the location of headquarters!
Although the actual Investigation Bureau headquarters was not in Yujing, it was publicly declared to be in that city.
Did Yue Shi have no scruples at all?
How did he dare!
“Where is The Resonant Daoist? Go, bring him to me immediately!” The Vice Minister stopped pacing, his voice urgent.
“Yes.” The intelligence officer did not dare to delay and quickly ran out.
Before long, The Resonant Daoist arrived at the office.
He still exuded an immortal air, wearing a mask to hide his face.
The Vice Minister ignored his oddity and got straight to the point: “Yue Shi has come to Yujing, right at the Su family funeral.”
“The entire Su family manor has disappeared. Didn't you say before that you were fully prepared and had a way to deal with him?”
“Now! Immediately! Go!”
“What? Yue Shi actually dared to come to Yujing!” The Resonant Daoist was also greatly shocked.
He hadn't expected Yue Shi to be so bold as to strike right under the Bureau’s nose.
After the shock passed, endless rage and killing intent welled up in his heart, and his body seemed to start aching again.
He forced himself to calm down, his voice squeezed through his teeth: “Rest assured, I’m going now. This time, I will make sure he never returns!”
Watching The Resonant Daoist turn and hurry away, the Vice Minister still felt uneasy.
It was frustrating; those old fogies at the top played dead every day, leaving him here to suffer all the stress.
After a moment of deliberation, the Vice Minister walked to his desk and picked up the internal secure phone, dialing a number.
It was better to remove the cancer as soon as possible; he couldn't allow it to continue growing.
...
After leaving the Vice Minister’s office, The Resonant Daoist did not pause for a moment, immediately contacting his partner, Boss Pi.
At a hidden location, the two met once again.
Today, Boss Pi had switched to a new skin—a beautiful, charming woman whose every smile and gesture was full of allure.
Hearing the news from The Resonant Daoist, Boss Pi also looked shocked.
However, he quickly recovered and chuckled. “Heh, that’s certainly something he would do. Lawless and reckless.”
Both of their targets were Yue Shi, so they were temporarily cooperating.
Comparatively, The Resonant Daoist’s hatred was purer; he simply wanted revenge for himself.
Boss Pi, on the other hand, was more interested in obtaining that skin. Having seen the best, he looked down on ordinary specimens.
“We must formulate a meticulous plan. He is far more dangerous than we imagined,” The Resonant Daoist said deeply, his eyes behind the mask dark.
Boss Pi analyzed, “I’ve dealt with Yue Shi before. Although it was only a brief encounter, I made a key discovery.”
“No matter how many skins I change or how inconspicuous a crowd I hide in, he always seems to be able to lock onto me accurately.”
“So, I suspect he must possess some extremely powerful detection ability.”
“When approaching him, we must be cautious and absolutely must not be discovered by him. Moreover, the opportunity to strike will likely come only once!”
“Once he detects us in advance, with his abilities, we won't be able to stop him if he wants to run.”
“We either don't act, or we must strike for a certain kill!”
The Resonant Daoist nodded in deep agreement. “You’re right. Yue Shi’s spatial abilities are very powerful; locking down space to surround and kill him is useless. That trick was used in Fluorite Valley, and it failed.”
“Furthermore, he possesses extremely strong defensive capabilities. Conventional attacks simply don't work.”
“To truly wound him, there might be only one way—packaging a lethal attack as something harmless, so his defense mechanism cannot automatically recognize it, bypassing the defense judgment!”
The Resonant Daoist carefully recalled the battle with Yue Shi that day. He had repeatedly analyzed every detail, which led him to conclude these methods against Yue Shi.
Boss Pi raised an eyebrow with interest. “It seems you’re prepared. Are you really sure this time?”
“I don't want to go to my death with a guy whose head is clouded by hatred.”
The Resonant Daoist’s eyes were fierce, his lips tightened behind the mask as he said confidently:
“Don't worry. Last time I was careless and didn't understand his abilities well enough. This time, he won't have another chance.”
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