Outside the Jingmao Warehouse, deep in the thick of night.

The operatives from the Xiaolin Martial Arts Hall held their breath, waiting in silence.

But as time dragged on, a sense of unease began to spread through the group.

Shanghai Mountain and his two companions looked toward the warehouse. They could faintly see the glow of fire from within, accompanied by a cacophony of voices.

"Did something go wrong? Why is there so much commotion inside? Could the Hall Master have failed to infiltrate and been discovered?"

Si Xinyong whispered.

"Should we launch a frontal assault? There’s chaos inside the warehouse right now. It’s a good opportunity."

Jiang Yiren added, his voice laced with worry.

"Let’s wait a little longer. If there’s an order, the Hall Master will definitely blow the short whistle."

Shanghai Mountain said in a low voice.

"In a life-or-death situation, you sometimes don’t have time to send a signal. I’m just worried that if anything happens to the Hall Master, the Martial Arts Hall Master will blame us..."

Si Xinyong said.

TWEEET!!

But before he could finish, a piercing whistle sounded from deep within the warehouse, instantly jolting everyone to attention.

"It’s the Hall Master’s signal! Move out! Leave the warehouse staff below the Cross-Training level to the others. We need to push deep as quickly as possible!"

Shanghai Mountain’s expression tightened, a look of shock on his face. According to the pre-arranged signals, a single whistle meant the plan was proceeding very smoothly. This meant Zhao Xuanqi had actually succeeded in taking down one of the three Cross-Training masters.

’Which of the three Cross-Training masters did he kill?’

In an instant, the hidden disciples of the Xiaolin Martial Arts Hall moved as one, scaling the warehouse walls. The full-scale assault had begun.

...

...

TWEEET!!

Meanwhile, Fan Shidong and Feng Rongke, who were checking the situation at Warehouse No. 9, also heard the shrill whistle. They both flinched and spun around almost simultaneously, looking toward the source of the sound.

’That’s... the main building, President Yan Pingchuan’s room?!’

Their pupils contracted. They exchanged a glance and immediately broke into a run, sprinting toward the main building.

However, just as they reached the base of the main building, they suddenly saw a figure appear on the terrace of Yan Pingchuan’s room.

The figure was backlit, its features obscured. It seemed to be holding something, which it abruptly flung toward them.

Their expressions changed. They immediately scattered to the sides, dodging the unknown object.

THUD... RUMBLE...

The object rolled across the ground and came to a stop. Only then did the two see what it was.

It was a human head. Its face, with eyes wide open in death, was one they knew all too well.

The President of the Trading Company, Yan Pingchuan!!

Yan Pingchuan... was actually dead?!

’How much time has passed?!’

’Yan Pingchuan was killed and beheaded without even letting out a cry for help?!’

For a moment, both men couldn’t help but gasp. An intense chill shot up their spines and into their skulls.

They knew full well how strong Yan Pingchuan was. And yet, he had died so quickly, so inexplicably, within the heart of his own territory, inside his own study!

Lifting their eyes to the backlit, unidentifiable figure on the terrace, they were overcome by a profound sense of fear and pressure originating from the unknown.

’Who in the world is this?!’

CRASH!!

Just as the two hesitated, unsure of what to do, a sudden uproar and clamor erupted from the outer perimeter of the warehouse, followed by waves of blood-curdling screams and the sounds of fighting.

The commotion made their scalps tingle once more, becoming the final straw that broke their will to resist.

A tiger before them, a pack of wolves behind.

They had gathered to work for the Jili Empire purely for profit. Who would actually risk their life for some resources and silver coins?

Feng Rongke, who came from a background of desperation, was the most decisive. Without a second thought, he turned, channeled his Force, and fled into the distance at extreme speed.

"Damn it!"

On the other side, Fan Shidong’s expression changed drastically. He too stopped hesitating and fled in another direction.

However, a terrible premonition grew in his heart.

He was round and stout, never skilled in Stepping Techniques. He couldn’t run as fast as Feng Rongke, which in this situation was a fatal weakness.

As expected, a hair-raising chill ran down his spine, making the fine hairs on his body stand on end.

He felt as if he wasn’t in a warehouse anymore, but in the middle of a deep, dense forest, where the red eyes of a terrifying beast stared at him from the dark shadows.

’I’m the target.’

Fan Shidong’s heart sank.

SWISH!!

Zhao Xuanqi leaped directly from the terrace, chasing after the fleeing Fan Shidong. At the same time, he blew the short whistle in his mouth, using a combination of short and long notes to inform Shanghai Mountain’s group of Feng Rongke’s escape route.

A new, bloody slaughter was underway, the sounds of screams and roars filling the entire Jingmao Warehouse.

「A quarter hour later.」

Shanghai Mountain and his two companions, their expressions grim, hurried toward the main building, carrying Feng Rongke’s head. They looked worried and anxious.

All three had sustained some injuries, but none were serious.

It was mainly because that desperado Feng Rongke was too cunning, constantly using the terrain to his advantage to run them in circles. They had paid a price to finally surround and kill him, but it had also cost them too much time.

They were extremely worried that the time they’d wasted had led to an accident on Zhao Xuanqi’s end.

But when they arrived near the main building, they were stunned to realize just how unnecessary their worries had been.

Zhao Xuanqi was sitting on the steps. Though his body was covered in wounds, none were deep, and he was largely unharmed.

And now, two corpses lay before him.

One was tall and thin, its head separated from its body.

The other was round and somewhat fat, its body riddled with at least dozens of bloody holes, a gruesome sight to behold. One of the holes went straight through his temple, stealing his life.

They had seen photo files on both men.

The President of the Jingmao Trading Company, Yan Pingchuan.

One of the three Cross-Training masters, Fan Shidong.

For a moment, Shanghai Mountain and his men were frozen in place, at a loss for words.

Two of the three Cross-Training masters from the Jingmao Trading Company had died at the hands of Zhao Xuanqi. That included Yan Pingchuan, the company president, a man whose strength was on par with a Martial Arts Hall True Inheritance disciple and who had once escaped a direct clash with Liu Changfeng.

The core strength of the Jingmao Warehouse had been almost single-handedly eliminated by Zhao Xuanqi.

As they looked again at the figure sitting on the steps, their gazes held not just admiration, but a faint trace of fear.

"It took you a whole quarter hour for a single Feng Rongke. A performance like that... is very disappointing."

Zhao Xuanqi slowly rose to his feet, his expression indifferent as he spoke to Shanghai Mountain and his men.

A suffocating mix of shame and pressure welled up in the hearts of the three men.

"We were inefficient, sir."

All three bowed their heads, not daring to meet Zhao Xuanqi’s gaze.

"Go. Don’t let a single person from the Jingmao Trading Company leave here alive. Also, notify Second Senior Brother’s perimeter team to get ready to enter. Take everything that needs to be taken. Leave nothing behind."

"Then, scatter the bodies throughout the warehouse. Be careful when you set the fires. Don’t leave any evidence for me to deal with. If you can’t even handle this properly, then you have no place in the Wind Shadow Hall."

Zhao Xuanqi said flatly.

"Yes, sir!"

The three men gave a slight fist-and-palm salute, bowed, and quickly turned to leave.

An hour later, bright flames began to rise from all corners of the Jingmao Trading Company.