The King of Eastern Mountain is a formidable Great Luo Golden Immortal Ninth Liquid Realm expert, his power is immense. When angered, his strike is vastly powerful. Ding Chunqiu, having just lost a limb, was already injured, and now suffered yet another severe blow, his body was sent flying, spewing blood, evident of another serious injury.

The subordinates of the King of Eastern Mountain were also knocked back, but they weren't greatly harmed. Clearly, this strike which seemed to be a vent of anger, was in fact an opportunity to punish the Beardless Daoist Master.

"Can't even watch over a female disciple. Such uselessness, what's the point of living?" After knocking everyone back with his strike, the King of Eastern Mountain's tiger eyes turned to the Beardless Daoist Master lying on the ground in the distance.

The Beardless Daoist Master trembled. He knew that the King of Eastern Mountain was violently temperamental and could do anything; if his anger was triggered, he would dare kill him.

At this moment, Wang Xiaoqiang laughed loudly from upstairs, "Haha, King of Eastern Mountain, you were deceived by the Beardless Daoist Master. His daughter, Xiuchan, is a national beauty. You ignore what's available and insist on fighting with me over a woman, aren't you ashamed?"

The King of Eastern Mountain seemed reminded, his angry eyes flashed, and he immediately ordered his subordinates, "Go, bring the Beardless Daoist Master's daughter, Xiuchan, to the Tribal King Court. If anyone dares to obstruct, kill without mercy."

"Yes!!" The subordinates who had risen from the ground replied in unison, then headed towards the Tri-Element Sect.

"No, don't!" The Beardless Daoist Master screamed hoarsely, disregarding his severe injuries, and leapt up to chase after them. Unexpectedly, the King of Eastern Mountain locked his energy, rendering him immobile.

Seeing the King of Eastern Mountain turning to deal with the Beardless Daoist Master, Wang Xiaoqiang laughed joyfully, brought Fairy Zixia inside, and couldn't care less about the grudge between the King of Eastern Mountain and the Beardless Daoist Master. Let them fight; the fiercer, the better.

...

Half a month after arriving at the Wind Rain Pavilion.

Wang Xiaoqiang and Ding Chunqiu finally received their first task.

On this day, they were called to a secret room by Ann Qilang, along with three other assassins.

Among the three assassins, two were men and one was a woman, one man and one woman did not live at the Wind Rain Pavilion,

Only one man lived at the Wind Rain Pavilion, but the assassins hardly interacted with each other, so none of them was acquainted.

Once everyone was present, Ann Qilang began introducing the five assassins to each other. After the introductions, Wang Xiaoqiang learned that the man and woman living outside were named Heavenly Net and Bai Sha, appearing to be a couple, and the male assassin living at the Wind Rain Pavilion was named Hu Liu.

Names were merely codes, especially for assassins like them; they generally never used their real names. Wang Xiaoqiang and Ding Chunqiu, however, didn't change their names, as Wang Xiaoqiang never changed his name or surname.

After the introductions, Ann Qilang then briefed them about their assassination mission,

The target was a Vice Sect Leader named Ann Tiannan. Ann Tiannan was a Vice Sect Leader at a sect called the "Heaven and Earth Sect" and had a cultivation base of Great Luo Golden Immortal Fifth Liquid Realm.

Ann Qilang revealed just this much, directly skipping over the character traits of Ann Tiannan, as they didn't need to know these details,

Assassins are only responsible for killing people—sometimes bad guys, sometimes good—whether they're good or bad doesn't concern them.

As long as there's a bounty and the payment is sufficient, the Wind Rain Pavilion will dispatch assassins.

Among the five assassins, Ding Chunqiu had the weakest Qi Refining cultivation, followed by Wang Xiaoqiang, then Hu Liu, who lived at the Wind Rain Pavilion and had an Immortal Emperor Ninth Qi Realm cultivation, Half-Step Great Luo Golden Immortal,

Then there's the woman named Bai Sha, who had a Great Luo Golden Immortal First Liquid Realm cultivation, the man named Heavenly Net had a Great Luo Golden Immortal Third Liquid Realm cultivation.

This group of five assassins, none had a higher Qi Refining cultivation than Ann Tiannan, making the task of assassinating Ann Tiannan seemingly precarious. Moreover, Ann Tiannan, as a Vice Sect Leader, surely had competent disciples under him, meaning they'd have to deal with more than just Ann Tiannan.

However, once assigned a mission by the Wind Rain Pavilion, assassins have no right to protest or refuse; they must obey.

The Wind Rain Pavilion's missions are never foolproof, with some failing and resulting in the assassins being counter-killed, occurrences that are quite common.

Despite the Wind Rain Pavilion assassins' seemingly untouchable status, most cultivators preferred joining a sect or tribe as a disciple, receiving monthly cultivation resources and rigorously cultivating, rather than becoming an assassin at the Wind Rain Pavilion, as it was too risky, with the threat of death constant.

In reality, Wind Rain Pavilion assassins were either loners with eccentric personalities, like Wang Xiaoqiang who had no other way out after offending someone, or talentless individuals unable to open their immortal veins, thus not accepted by sects and forced into the life of an assassin.

After Ann Qilang finished explaining, he prepared masks for each assassin, then dispatched a subordinate to pilot an invisible flying boat to send the five on their journey.

Once on their way, the flying boat became invisible.

On the flying boat, the other three exchanged glances, then all eyes turned to Wang Xiaoqiang and Ding Chunqiu, sizing them up, scanning their cultivation base with divine sense, showing looks of annoyance, disdain, and scorn,

The assassin named Hu Liu said nothing, but the woman named Bai Sha immediately frowned and bluntly said, "How is this task arranged, bringing two newcomers along, isn't this dragging us down?..."

Heavenly Net continued, "The newcomers aren't scary, what's scary is two useless ones,"

Wang Xiaoqiang and Ding Chunqiu's anger flared when they heard this, as this couple dared to call them useless to their faces.

Ding Chunqiu moved slightly, but Wang Xiaoqiang held his hand, signaling him not to act rashly.

The man named Heavenly Net clearly showed no regard for the pair. He stared at them again and said, "Their strength is negligible, leaving just the three of us. Besides, Brother Hu Liu, you've been stuck in the Immortal Emperor Ninth Qi Realm for three years without breaking through, what do you do all day... Heh heh..."

Heavenly Net jeered sarcastically.

Hu Liu wasn't annoyed but laughed, "Brother Heavenly Net, your lesson is noted. For this mission, please take care of me and Sister Bai Sha. Once I advance to Great Luo Golden Immortal, I'll certainly treat you two to a drink..."

"Tch, you know I don't drink," Heavenly Net replied coldly and disdainfully.

"How about this then, I'll give half of my reward from this mission to the two of you, what do you think?"

In assassination missions, no matter how many are involved or what cultivation level they have, each person receives an equal share of the reward once the task is completed. To curry favor, Hu Liu offered half of his reward to them.

Heavenly Net and Bai Sha exchanged a glance. Their faces finally softened, then their eyes turned to Wang Xiaoqiang and Ding Chunqiu, saying, "Brother Hu Liu, you're quite shrewd. No wonder you'll live a long life, while others... might not see things your way..."

Wang Xiaoqiang, discerning the hint, realized they were suggesting he and his partner offer up their rewards. His anger surged, transforming into Raging Waves and wielding the Sword of Furious Fiend, forming the "Raging Waves Swordfall". The Swordfall thrived, power skyrocketing again.

Wang Xiaoqiang detested such intimidation and extortion, subtle though it might be. He cast a cold glance at the two and remained silent.

Heavenly Net, seeing Wang Xiaoqiang's apparent lack of social awareness, sneered, "Humph, two more short-lived fools. But this isn't so bad; if two die, that's two fewer to share the reward with us, meaning more reward for us, haha..."

Observing Heavenly Net's repulsive demeanor, the intent to kill emerged in Wang Xiaoqiang's heart. Inspiration struck him, as he considered: yes, if two died, there'd be more reward to share...

With this in mind, Wang Xiaoqiang suddenly laughed, his laughter somewhat humble, yet he cupped his fists to Heavenly Net and said, "I'm just a newbie, my first mission, please, Big Brother Luo and Sister Bai, take care of me. I'll give my entire reward to the two of you, how about that?"

He then discreetly nudged Ding Chunqiu, who, uncertain of Wang Xiaoqiang's thoughts and unable to contemplate further, quickly cupped his fists to Heavenly Net and Bai Sha, "Yes, yes, my cultivation is weak, an arduous assassination mission might take my life, I hope you two can look after me. Once the mission's over, not only will I give my share of the reward to you, but I'll also offer one hundred Qi Gathering Pills to each of you, what do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Heavenly Net and Bai Sha's faces turned from gloomy to bright, their joy apparent as they said, "Haha, sure, sure. As the saying goes, those who understand the times are wise. With this knowledge, we'll put in the extra effort to ensure your safety." (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you're welcome to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)

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