Chapter 433: Stronghold

This man was a sharpshooter with unerring aim. As long as he was given enough space and had time to set up traps, killing a martial artist of the same level was as easy as flipping a hand. He could even potentially take down someone of a higher level.

Of course, when ancient martial cultivation reached a profound level, one could remain unafraid of most firearms. But that came only after breaking through to the Flowing Force stage, a complete transformation of the body.

Before that, even a martial artist at the Dark Force stage could withstand most light firearms. But facing a sniper, especially one wielded by another martial artist, was extremely dangerous.

As the saying goes, when a martial artist uses a gun, even gods can’t defend against it.

Bright Force and Dark Force stage martial artists relied on their keen senses to dodge bullets. They didn’t need to be faster than the bullet, only faster than the shooter.

Compared to ordinary people, no matter how well-trained, their reactions were still slow. To a martial artist, dodging bullets was relatively easy. But when it was a martial artist behind the gun, one with heightened perception, then evading became exceedingly difficult.

Lin Xiao was caught off guard and got hit. Of course, with his level of cultivation, it didn’t affect him in the slightest.

However, if Lin Xiao had only been at the Dark Force stage, then despite not being powerless like an ordinary person, taking a hit like that would have significantly weakened his combat ability.

Without wasting time, Lin Xiao flipped open the token he had taken from the man. On the back of the token were two small engraved words: Night Owl—the codename of this man within the Purifier organization.

According to the man, the Purifier organization was an extremely secretive assassin group. Most of its members didn’t even know each other’s true identities, thereby maximizing their anonymity.

Lin Xiao pocketed the token and mask, then pulled out his phone and called Huang Xinyu.

The call connected quickly.

Huang Xinyu’s anxious voice came through, “Xiao Xiao? Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“Auntie Xin, I’m fine.” Lin Xiao tried to make his voice sound gentler, though a surge of killing intent burned in his heart, adding a hint of coldness to his tone. “I just wanted to let you know not to worry. But I probably won’t be able to join you all for lunch.”

“As long as you’re alright. Little Yu and Caixing were worried sick about you. I… was worried too.”

Huang Xinyu’s voice was as gentle as water, soothing the killing intent churning in Lin Xiao’s heart.

“It’s okay if we can’t have lunch today. There will be other chances. Are you coming home now?”

“No. The matter isn’t over yet. I’ll be back later.” Lin Xiao toyed with the token in his hand. “Auntie Xin, please take care of Little Yu for now. I’ll come find you later.”

There was silence on the other end. After about ten seconds, Huang Xinyu softly said, “I understand. Be careful. Don’t take unnecessary risks, okay?”

“Okay, Auntie Xin. I’m hanging up now.”

“You’re not going to say a few words to the girls?”

“No need. You can pass it on for me. Goodbye, Auntie Xin.”

Lin Xiao hung up and, after a moment’s thought, dialed Wan Caixuan’s number.

“Hello, Lin Xiao.” Wan Caixuan’s cold yet pleasant voice came through.

“President, I need you to help me clean up a mess,” Lin Xiao said directly.

“What happened?”

Lin Xiao briefly recounted the situation.

“Alright. Where are you? I’ll head over now.” Wan Caixuan didn’t even ask for a reason and agreed instantly.

“No need for you to come. Just send the White Night Squad. I’m near Guanglai High School, in a small alley. You can locate me through my phone. Don’t come fully armed, it’s a residential area.” Lin Xiao glanced at the corpse on the ground and added, “Also, prepare a black suit, black shirt, black leather shoes, and a handgun.”

“I’ll have them leave now. They’ll be there within thirty minutes.”

Wan Caixuan was always swift and decisive. After ending the call, she immediately contacted the White Night Squad, ordering them to move to Lin Xiao’s location.

***

Thirty minutes later—

A black van pulled into the alley and stopped in front of a residential building. The door opened, and eight strong, imposing men jumped out.

After getting out, the eight scanned the surroundings out of habit. Four remained downstairs, guarding the entrance, while the other four headed upstairs, straight to the rooftop.

When they reached the rooftop, they instantly saw Lin Xiao standing in the shadows, eyes closed as if he were resting. They straightened up subconsciously.

“Mr. Lin.”

“Did you bring the items?” Lin Xiao opened his eyes.

Among the four was someone Lin Xiao recognized—Mo Yuanqing, the one he had once taught a lesson to.

“We’ve brought everything.”

Without even glancing at the corpse nearby, Mo Yuanqing motioned for his companions to hand the items to Lin Xiao.

“Miss instructed us to follow your commands in all things.”

Lin Xiao quickly put on the suit, holstered the handgun at his waist, and put on sunglasses. In an instant, his entire demeanor changed. His aura turned cold and fierce.

“Dispose of the body. Take the sniper rifle too. Don’t leave a single trace.”

After changing, even Lin Xiao’s voice and tone shifted to perfectly match the man he had killed.

“Once that’s done, you can withdraw.”

“Yes!” The four White Night Squad members responded in unison.

Lin Xiao gave a slight nod and strode away.

“You two carry the body down. Call the others up. You secure the sniper rifle. Also, get some water to clean up the blood.”

As soon as Lin Xiao left, the White Night Squad immediately got to work.

***

Central District, inside a luxurious villa.

From the outside, this villa looked no different from the others nearby. But no one would suspect that this was the secret stronghold of the Purifier organization in Jinghai.

For an assassin organization to set up a base in a heavily guarded, affluent neighborhood—bold didn’t even begin to describe it.

Inside, everything from the thick carpets on the floor to the crystal chandeliers above and the luxurious furniture made of rare nanmu wood spoke of extravagant wealth.

But that was only the surface.

The real secret lay underground.

Beneath the villa was a space the size of a basketball court, brightly lit 24 hours a day. Its luxurious decor even surpassed the villa above.

The area was divided into three zones: a conference area, a training area, and a leisure area.

At this moment, in the leisure zone, a dozen shadowy figures sat on couches in the dark, drinking and chatting casually.

The Purifiers enforced strict rules. No gambling or other vices were allowed at any stronghold. So aside from drinking and watching TV, members had no other forms of entertainment on-site.

Of course, that was only inside the stronghold. Outside, they could do as they pleased—no one cared.

“How did your missions go?”

A burly man tilted his head slightly, revealing a scruffy chin, and downed his glass of red wine.

“The guy I took out was just a civilian. No strength at all. Wet his pants when I scared him. I found him annoying, so I just slit his throat.” A hoarse voice came from the shadows. “You guys finished so fast. Guess you didn’t run into any real targets either, huh?”

No one responded. Their silence confirmed his words.

“Who hasn’t returned yet?” a sharp female voice asked.

“Only Night Owl. Looks like he hit the jackpot and encountered the real target.” Someone chuckled darkly. “You think that arrogant bastard might finally have eaten dirt?”

“To kill one of our own, it can’t be some nobody. You all saw how those two died before. They were brutally beaten to death.” A cold voice joined in. “But Night Owl is a sniper expert. No matter how good the other guy is in close quarters, against Night Owl, he’s likely done for.”

“Night Owl’s completed nine missions already. One more and he’ll advance to Earth level. Honestly, I’d like to see him fail. Getting overshadowed by him has always pissed me off.” The hoarse voice sneered. “Be honest, aren’t you all thinking the same?”