Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Upon hearing Zheng Hong Yi’s words, the gentle and relaxed expression on Wang Hong’s face changed slightly. In the end, she looked at him meaningfully and asked, “Since you came looking for me, does it mean you have a way of dealing with that person?” Killing intent flashed in the depths of her eyes when she spoke. She loathed the person who robbed her of the position of a true disciple! Just as Zheng Hong Yi had said, she cared about this position more than anyone else.
“Wang Hong, since there are only two of us here, I won’t mince my words,” Zheng Hong Yi said as a Formation compass appeared in his hand. When he sent his Celestial Origin Energy in the compass, a light barrier appeared around the duo. This formation was a sound and vision isolation Formation. Even Celestial Kings could not hear or see inside the barrier unless they forcefully destroyed the Formation.
Upon seeing this, Wang Hong raised an eyebrow and said, “You’re quite careful… Speak.”
“Wang Hong, I intend to hire an assassin to kill Duan Ling Tian!” Zheng Hong Yi bluntly said.
“Hire an assassin?” Wang Hong smiled mockingly. “And I thought you had a great idea… The assassin organizations in the Profound Nether Mansion might be able to keep a simple assassination a secret. However, this concerns the Three Sects and Two Clans. Do you really think they’d be able to keep it a secret? Put everything else aside, if your master applies just a little pressure on the assassin organization, you’d be found out immediately.”
If the assassin organizations in the Profound Nether Mansion were capable, any candidates who were an obstacle on Zheng Hong Yi, Zhuang Fan, and Wang Hong’s path in becoming a true disciple would not have survived. After listening to Zheng Hong Yi’s words, she felt he was too simple-minded.
“Did I say I’ll hire an assassin from the assassination organizations in the Profound Nether Mansion?” Zheng Hong Yi was not angry when he heard Wang Hong’s mocking words. He calmly said, “I intend to hire a powerful assassin from the Blood Skull Gang, one of three most famous assassin organizations in the Southern Heaven Territory.”
“Blood Skull Gang?!” Wang Hong’s eyes widened imperceptibly when she heard Zheng Hong Yi’s words.
The Blood Skull Gang was one of the three biggest and infamous assassin organizations in the Southern Heaven Territory. The Blood Skull Gang had a terrifying reputation. Rumor had it that the Blood Skull Gang had assassins who were Celestial Lords. There was news of their assassin killing a Ten Directions Celestial King with just a strike. Although it was a sneak attack, to be able to kill a Ten Directions Celestial King with just one strike, the assassin had to be a Celestial Lord at least.
After Wang Hong tried to calm down, she said with a slight tremble in her voice, “You… Y-you have means of getting in touch with the Blood Skull Gang?”
Zheng Hong Yi could clearly see the obvious change in Wang Hong’s attitude, but he did not make fun of her. After all, the Blood Skull Gang’s infamy was truly terrifying. Let alone Wang Hong, even her grandfather or the elders of the Simplicity Celestial Sect would be frightened if they knew he had means of contacting the Blood Skull Gang. After all, despite being known throughout the Southern Heaven Territory, not everyone would be able to contact or employ the Blood Skull Gang’s services.
Just to get in touch with the Blood Skull Gang and employ their services, one needed a grade-six force’s leader or someone of equal strength and status to act as a guarantor. Since the gang only accepted high-profile and highly difficult jobs, their clients were, naturally, those with high status.
When Wang Hong recalled this point, she frowned and said skeptically, “Wait a minute. Even if you have a way to get in touch with the Blood Skull Gang, you don’t have a guarantor!”
“Normally, that would, indeed, be a problem…” Zheng Hong Yi nodded slightly as he said, “However… what if I told you the last time I left the sect, I met the young master of the Blood Skull Gang and befriended him?”
“The young master of the Blood Skull Gang?” Wang Hong gasped.
“Yeah, his father is one of the three Vice Leaders of the Blood Skull Gang. Although he’s just a b*stard child, he still has a little say in the gang. Because I helped him, we exchanged our Soul Pearls, and he had promised that I’d be able to hire an assassin from the gang without the need of a guarantor from a grade-six force,” Zheng Hong Yi said in one breath.
Zheng Hong’s Yi words were partially false. The truth was the young master of the Blood Skull Gang had promised him two chances to hire an assassin from the Blood Skull Gang without a guarantor. He, naturally, did not reveal this to Wang Hong since it would make her wary of him and guard against him.
“If that’s the case, you don’t need my help at all in taking Duan Ling Tian down,” Wang Hong said.
“That’s right. However, you should know that even the weakest assassin from the Blood Skull Gang is a One Basic Celestial King… Although I’d be able to hire an assassin, I would need a lot of Celestial Crystals. Let alone the strongest assassins, even the price to hire a One Basic Celestial King is rather high. It’d be somewhat troublesome for me to ask for such a huge number of Celestial Crystals from my family…” After Zheng Hong Yi finished speaking, he looked at Wang Hong meaningfully.
“So you found me to share the burden of hiring the assassin?” Wang Hong sneered.
“Indeed.” Zheng Hong Yi nodded slightly.
“Do you really think I’d jump into this hole you’ve dug? It’s your business if you want to kill Duan Ling Tian. What does it have to do with me?” Wang Hong said disdainfully as she looked at Zheng Hong Yi as though she was looking at an idiot.
“Oh, you will jump into the hole…” Zheng Hong Yi said confidently. “Wang Hong, it’s undeniable that your family background is superior to mine. I won’t be able to afford to hire a One Basic Celestial King from the Blood Skull Gang. The price would leave me penniless. If you’re unwilling, then both of us can only watch as Duan Ling Tian takes the position of the tenth true disciple.”
Zheng Hong Yi continued to say, “Although he’ll leave the sect sooner or later, when he leaves for the Profound Nether Mansion, he will still carry the title of a true disciple. Among the nine true disciples, six are already in the Profound Nether Mansion while three still remain in the sect. You should think about this carefully before you decide…” After he finished speaking, he dispersed the Formation and prepared to leave the valley.
This valley was the cultivation place of Wang Long Xiang, the Grand Elder of the Simplicity Celestial Sect. As his granddaughter, Wang Hong could freely come and go in this valley. The cultivation environment here was not inferior to the true disciples’ cultivation environment.
Despite being a direct disciple of Sun Liang Peng, the Sect Leader of the Simplicity Celestial Sect, Zheng Hong Yi was not afforded this kind of treatment. He was only able to cultivate in the inner disciples’ residences. This was because Sun Liang Peng wanted to make a point that his direct disciples would not be given any special treatment just because of their relationship with him.
“You have my Soul Pearl, I’ll wait for your reply,” Zheng Hong Yi said before he left, “It’s best if you make a decision as soon as possible. After all, they’d need to investigate the target before they send the assassin out to finish the job. They’d give us the price after they’re done with their investigations. Since Duan Ling Tian is just a sectless cultivator, it’s safe to assume the price would be in the range both of us can afford.” Then, he left, not the slightest bit worried Wang Hong would reject his proposal.
After Zheng Hong Yi left, Wang Hong’s expression darkened as she cursed, “Damn it!”
It was just as Zheng Hong Yi had said. With her temperament, she could not tolerate a newcomer of the sect occupying the position of the sect’s last true disciple. However, if she accepted Zheng Hong Yi’s proposal, it would mean she would be led by the nose by Zheng Hong Yi. This was, naturally, not to her liking. However, her dislike could not compare to her need to eliminate Duan Ling Tian who had become the last true disciple despite just joining the sect.
She thought to herself, “I can’t let Zheng Hong Yi have the upper hand. I’ll wait for him to contact me on his own initiative before I agree to his proposal. However, he can forget it if he wants me to bear half of the cost. At most, I’d bear 30% of the cost…’
Despite her thoughts, when Zheng Hong Yi came looking for her half a month later, she agreed to bear half of the cost to hire the assassin from the Blood Skull Gang.
Naturally, prominent Celestial Crystals were nothing to the Blood Skull Gang. Zheng Hong Yi and Wang Hong had to make up for the cost with King Grade Celestial Weapons and other precious treasures as well.
…
After Wang Hong had agreed, Zheng Hong Yi did not waste time and took out a Communication Celestial Talisman to contact the b*stard son of the Vice Leader of the Blood Skull Gang whom he had met by chance.
“Young Master Chen, I’m Simplicity Celestial Sect’s Zheng Hong Yi, the person you met in the Profound Forest. You promised me two chances to hire an assassin from the Blood Skull Gang without a guarantor. I’m ready to use the first chance now.”
Zheng Hong Yi waited for fifteen minutes before a reply finally came. The message was simple and direct. “Details of the target.”
Zheng Hong Yi hurriedly replied, “Duan Ling Tian. He’s a sectless cultivator, less than 100 years old, and has comprehended two profundities from the law of earth. He rose to prominence in the Profound Nether Mansion’s lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Lower Realm and joined the Simplicity Celestial Sect.”