Chapter 90: Assassination in the Dead of Night

“Boss, Pingyang City is thousands of li from the Imperial City. Don’t you think we ought to catch some demon beasts and ride as we go? Otherwise, if we walk the whole way, our legs will fall off.”

“Boss, where are we staying tonight?”

“Boss…”

All along the road, Niu Wuji chattered endlessly in Wu Tian’s ear. Ever since he had acknowledged Wu Tian as his boss, the fellow had become a complete clown. No, rather, he had always been one.

“If you say one more word, I’ll turn you into a dead ox in one second,” Wu Tian snarled, shooting him a vicious glare.

At once, Niu Wuji clapped both hands over his mouth and dared not utter another sound. Beside them, Xiaohui was amused and covered her lips with a soft laugh.

Seeing her smiling face, Wu Tian gave it some thought. What Niu Wuji had said actually made sense. Pingyang City was thousands of li from the Imperial City; walking there was out of the question. Damn it, when he had left Pingyang City, he had actually forgotten to buy a swift demon beast for transport.

“We’ve been out of Pingyang City for quite some time and we’re already in the wilderness. There should be plenty of demon beasts around. If we find a suitable one later, we’ll catch it and use it as a mount,” Wu Tian said, sweeping his gaze over the desolate expanse around them.

Yet to his disappointment, over the next several hours they did not encounter a single demon beast suitable for riding. By dusk, they still had found nothing.

“Boss, it’s already night, and the nearest town is still dozens of li away. Looks like tonight we can only sleep rough under the open sky,” Niu Wuji said mournfully as the evening deepened.

“There’s no help for it. I didn’t prepare properly before leaving, so for now we’ll just have to make do,” Wu Tian said helplessly. He had left in too much of a hurry and had not considered the journey at all.

At last night fell, and the three of them stopped to rest in a patch of forest. Though he had failed to plan their trip well, Wu Tian possessed a spatial ring, and he had plenty of equipment for resting in the wild: sleeping bags, blankets, even a simple tent of his own making.

After eating a meal of roast meat, Wu Tian set a few traps around the area, and then the three of them each crawled into their own tent to rest.

In the dead of night, the forest was extraordinarily still, peaceful to all appearances.

Then, suddenly, several black shadows swept through the trees without making the slightest sound. They avoided the traps Wu Tian had set and landed lightly outside the three tents.

The foremost of the masked men in black raised his right hand and gestured toward the tents: kill without mercy.

At once, the black-clad figures tightened their grips on their longswords and thrust swiftly toward the tents.

Boom!

Just as the swords were about to pierce the tents, a tremendous surge of true energy erupted and instantly blasted the assassins backward.

“What’s going on? What happened? Was that an earthquake?” Niu Wuji sprang straight up from his tent, utterly bewildered. But the moment he saw the group of men in black before him, he came fully awake. “Damn! Assassins!”

“Kill!” one of the black-clad men shouted harshly.

“A man can’t even sleep in peace. What a damned nuisance,” Wu Tian said impatiently as he emerged from his tent. “Who exactly are you people?”

The only answer was a joint assault from the assassins. Several arcs of sword energy slashed at Wu Tian at once. A chill flashed through his eyes, and he shouted to Niu Wuji, “Protect Xiaohui. Leave these bastards to me!”

“No problem, Boss.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the Black Dragon Blade appeared in Wu Tian’s hand. The incoming sword energy was instantly blocked, and in the next breath Wu Tian flashed before one of the assassins and swept the blade sideways. The man’s head fell at once.

“Hmph! Mere first-level Martial Spirits, and you dare act arrogant in front of me? If you mean to kill, at least send some real experts!” Wu Tian said with utter disdain after cutting down the assassin.

Before the others could even react, two more black-clad men lost their lives beneath the Black Dragon Blade.

The leader of the assassins turned deathly pale with shock. He had never imagined that Wu Tian would dispatch three of his men in an instant. He knew their strength well—they were all Martial Spirits—yet even so, they could not withstand a single move from Wu Tian.

Pfft!

Wu Tian pierced another man’s chest. Of the eight assassins in black, only four remained.

Seeing this, the leader immediately shouted, “The target is difficult—retreat!”

“You want to run? It won’t be that easy!”

Before they could withdraw, Wu Tian flashed in front of them again and slashed through the air with the Black Dragon Blade. A violent gale took shape, hurling the four men backward before they crashed heavily to the ground. Apart from the leader, the other three died on the spot.

“The only reason you’re still alive is because I want answers,” Wu Tian said coldly, planting his foot on the assassin leader’s chest. “Speak. Who sent you?”

The leader said nothing, only stared blankly at Wu Tian.

“Not talking?” Wu Tian arched a brow, a wicked smile curving at the corner of his mouth, and shifted his foot onto the man’s arm.

Crack!

With a crisp snap, the assassin leader’s arm was crushed beneath Wu Tian’s foot.

“Ah!” The man let out a shrill scream of agony, beads of sweat instantly forming across his forehead.

“Didn’t imagine this would be the outcome before you acted, did you? Too late now. Next is the other arm.” As he spoke, Wu Tian moved his foot to the man’s other arm.

The assassin leader’s expression changed at once. Grinding his teeth in pain, he gasped, “No… don’t! I’ll talk! I’m from Fierce Tiger Hall. I was only following orders from above!”

“Fierce Tiger Hall?” The name was unfamiliar to Wu Tian.

“Boss, I know of them,” Niu Wuji stepped forward to explain. “Fierce Tiger Hall is quite famous in the martial world. They’re basically a mercenary group that specializes in taking bounty missions. If I’m not mistaken, assassinating you was one of the jobs they accepted.”

“Fine, I understand. In other words, your leader knows who wants me dead. Very good. That means your usefulness has ended.” As he spoke, Wu Tian drove his blade straight into the assassin leader’s chest.

Ding!

“Congratulations, player Wu Tian, for killing eight members of Fierce Tiger Hall. Reward: 30,000 experience points, 5,000 taels of silver.”

“Congratulations, player Wu Tian’s teammate Niu Wuji, for gaining 10,000 experience points. Level increased by one. Current realm: fifth-level Martial Master.”

“Congratulations, player Wu Tian’s teammate Xiaohui, for gaining 10,000 experience points. Level increased by four. Current realm: sixth-level Martial Apprentice.”

Hearing the system notifications ring out in his mind, Wu Tian’s eyes widened at once. First-level Martial Spirits were nothing to him, but to Niu Wuji and Xiaohui they were powerful opponents. Since he had killed eight first-level Martial Spirit assassins, the two of them had gained a considerable amount of experience and both had leveled up. Xiaohui, in particular, had risen four levels in one stroke, which delighted Wu Tian greatly.