After Ning Xuan neutralized the snake venom, there was still a little less than half a bottle of the medicine refined from the Snake Gallbladder.

Although this assassin’s Spiritual Power Level was only A-level, his Comprehensive Combat Power was definitely not low. Snakes excel at concealment, stealth, and ambushes, so Spirit Controllers with snake-type Companion Spirits are natural-born assassins.

Furthermore, the assassin’s Companion Spirit—that Black Snake—was of an unknown species, but its venom was incredibly potent. If Ning Xuan’s senses hadn’t been so sharp, and if Chen Nan hadn’t arrived when he did, she likely wouldn’t have survived the day.

Seeing Ning Xuan lost in thought with her head lowered, Chen Nan worried she might think he was just making excuses for his family. He quickly explained, "Contractor, I want to help you find out who sent this assassin. We can only prepare a proper response once we know who our enemy is!"

Ning Xuan snorted lightly. "And how do you propose we investigate?"

Chen Nan looked up at her. "Contractor, tomorrow we’ll turn this assassin over to the Regulatory Investigation Division. They handle regional security matters. Since the assassin trespassed in a private residence, we can request they run a genetic test, check it against the Federation’s database, and identify any families with a close genetic match. That way, we can uncover his basic information!"

Ning Xuan looked at him and asked, "And what if they can’t find anything?" ’Not everyone has their genetic information registered, after all,’ she thought.

"Then he was trained by a Star Thief Group or a professional assassin organization!" Chen Nan answered.

"Your father told you to get rid of me and instructed you not to leave any traces. Did you contact any assassin organizations back then?" Ning Xuan asked, sitting in her chair and looking down at him. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"No!" Chen Nan denied, then explained, "I never planned on harming you. I transferred to the school just to see what kind of person you were. My father’s thinking was that hiring Star Thieves or assassins would be too expensive. Back then, your Spiritual Power Value was very low and you weren’t strong, so there was no need for professionals. Just hiring some common thugs would have been enough!"

This was precisely why Chen Nan was certain his father hadn’t sent this highly skilled assassin. In his father’s eyes, Ning Xuan was so weak that he would never have spent a fortune hiring such a professional. Why use a sledgehammer to crack a nut?

Ning Xuan got up, sealed the remaining half-bottle of Snake Gallbladder medicine, and placed it on the glass shelf with her other medicines.

"By your logic, whoever wants me dead sent a professional assassin, which means they must know my power has increased," Ning Xuan deduced, following Chen Nan’s reasoning.

"If I may ask, Contractor, has the Mainframe matched you with any other Contractors?" Chen Nan didn’t answer her question, asking one of his own instead.

"Yes," Ning Xuan confirmed with a nod.

"Contractor, when the Mainframe performed the genetic match, your Spiritual Power Level was D-level, with a value of just 56. My Spiritual Power Level is S-Class, with a value of 11,341. I’m four Levels higher than you. Because of that, I can use the High-level Spirit Controller protection to hide my information. If your other Contractors have also hidden their information, it’s likely for the same reason. However, in less than a month, your Spiritual Power Value has grown to 875. You’re still at C-level, but at this rate, you could break through to B-level at any moment. When that happens, the High-level Spirit Controller protection will automatically deactivate! All previously hidden Contractor information will be revealed." After he finished, Chen Nan looked up, watching for Ning Xuan’s reaction.

Ning Xuan raised an eyebrow. ’How could I have missed such important information? I searched all over the Star Network forums.’ When she had first researched forced Contracts, the only thing she found was that a High-level Spirit Controller could automatically dissolve the Contract simply by keeping their information hidden for ten years.

"Come sit over here," Ning Xuan said, patting the chair beside her.

"I wouldn’t dare. I failed to protect you, Contractor, allowing you to be injured and put in danger. It was a dereliction of my duty. I deserve to be punished!" Chen Nan remained kneeling ramrod straight, his face etched with guilt.

"From now on, don’t put that ring on unless you have to. You were just in a fevered state, not insane or out of your mind."

"You may have been derelict in your duty, but you also arrived just in time. Since the assassin wasn’t sent by your family, we’ll drop the matter for now. Tomorrow, we’ll go to the Regulatory Investigation Division and get to the bottom of this." Ning Xuan knew there was a high probability they wouldn’t find any specific information on the assassin, but they had to at least try.

"Contractor... you believe me?" Chen Nan asked, a hint of excitement in his voice.

"You’re my Contractor, and we’ve already established a spiritual connection. I can enter your Spiritual Sea whenever I please. If I die, it only harms you. Why wouldn’t I believe you?" Ning Xuan retorted.

"I’ve heard that a Spirit Controller whose Superpower Body dies becomes a cripple and doesn’t live for long. Keep a close watch on that assassin. Don’t let him die tonight," Ning Xuan said, yawning sleepily before getting up and heading to her bedroom.

As Ning Xuan slept, she simultaneously practiced her Cultivation of the Soul Nourishing Scripture. ’Tonight’s assassin... regardless of whether he was sent by one of my other Contractors, I have to reach B-level as soon as possible. I need to drag all those skulking cowards out into the open. How is it fair that they know all about me, while all I can see is ’Information Hidden’?’

Ning Xuan resolved to redouble her efforts. She would cultivate her spiritual power more diligently while also continuing her experiments to refine higher-purity medicine to sell in her Star Network shop for a profit.

「The next morning.」 Ning Xuan and Chen Nan hauled the half-dead assassin to the Regulatory Investigation Division. Chen Nan also brought along the assassin’s Superpower Body—the snake that had died after they removed its gallbladder.