Richard didn't pull out the iron bar. Instead, he released his grip, pushed the assassin from behind, sending him flying higher and farther. He himself moved like a shadow, sticking close to the assassin's body. The assassin's limbs were already detached from central nervous system control, but in his shock, he could still think faintly. As he saw himself fly past the alley entrance, he suddenly thought of his companion hidden inside!

  With muffled thuds, two daggers simultaneously plunged into the assassin's body. One pierced between the ribs into the heart, the other drove into the spine from behind. The strikes were vicious, precise, and instantly fatal—unfortunately, they had targeted the wrong person. A fatal error.

  Richard emerged like a ghost from behind the assassin. He swiped his bare hand across the neck of the assailant who had lunged from the alley. The hand, belonging to a mage, nonetheless carried extremely sharp energy. The assassin's head instantly flew off lightly, blood spraying like a fountain from the severed neck!

  Richard reached out, caught the flying head, then bent down and rolled it along the ground like a ball. The assassin's face was frozen in shock and fear as it rolled deep into the alley, stopping before a dense patch of shadow. His still-wide-open eyes stared blankly at the shadow.

  The shadow seemed disturbed by the gaze, finally twitching slightly, splitting open two thin slits like a beast's eyes, meeting the assassin's gaze for a moment. It was a very slight change, almost imperceptible. Yet, in Richard's vision, it appeared as a set of jumping numbers. This patch of shadow was already discordant with its surroundings, instantly identified by Richard.

  With a whoosh, a burning fireball flew into the alley and exploded! In the semi-enclosed space, the fireball's power multiplied several times. The magical flames, approaching fifty energy levels, could kill any professional below level ten in a single hit. A piercing shriek echoed from within the turbulent magical flames, followed by a burning figure beginning to dance wildly in the inferno.

  A wave of heat washed over, feeling scorchingly hot even from over ten meters away. Richard didn't retreat; instead, he walked into the alley against the heatwave, then pressed himself against the wall near the entrance, concealing his entire aura. His right hand slowly rose, palm aimed towards the alley entrance.

  The gushing heat flow finally subsided, the magical flames dwindled, but the half-charred body deep in the alley still twitched, emitting a final, nearly extinguished, mournful cry. Just then, a thin man appeared at the alley entrance. He craned his neck to look inside, a heavy, single-handed axe, mismatched with his build, glinting faintly cold in his hand. The first thing he saw was Richard's palm—the palm just beginning to spew fire!

  A stream of fire erupted from Richard's hand, striking the man squarely in the face. The man howled in agony, his face burning, vision completely black, stumbling backward. Flame Hand, a first-tier spell with only two energy levels of power, was usually considered mediocre, often playing key roles like starting fires during wilderness adventures. But used appropriately, it could unleash considerable power.

  The man retreated two steps, suddenly felt a chill in his side, roared, and swung the heavy axe horizontally like lightning, grazing just past Richard's scalp!

  Richard, who had seized the opening for a sneak attack, broke out in a cold sweat. He hadn't expected the man, despite being blinded, could still launch such a swift and precise counterattack. Moreover, the heavy axe was imbued with surging Combat Aura—he was at least a level ten warrior!

  Richard instantly dropped to the ground in a bizarre motion, then slithered close to the ground like a lizard, flashing over ten meters away in an instant! This decision was incredibly timely and correct. The man's counterattack was a continuous chain; the heavy axe had already swept over Richard's position three times, constantly adjusting its angle of attack, getting closer each time. At the most dangerous moment, it had even sliced open the clothes on his back.

  Richard lay flat against the base of the wall, motionless. His chest burned painfully, waves of suffocation assaulting his consciousness like a fish out of water, forcing him to gasp for breath. Yet Richard restrained himself, enduring the splitting pain in his chest, breathing slowly at a fraction of his normal rate to avoid revealing his location to the blinded warrior.

  The effect of "Burst," the first ability from his bloodline, had passed. The consequence of unleashing several times his normal strength in a short period was a sleep-inducing exhaustion. Even drinking a potent stamina recovery potion immediately would require half an hour to recover. During this half-hour, Richard was virtually immobile.

  Richard focused his gaze on the ground before the warrior's feet, observing his movements only with peripheral vision. This was a small trick from the dark world, preventing direct eye contact from alerting the observed person. Simultaneously, Richard silently calculated his remaining mana. His body was near collapse, and he had used magic in a very short time earlier. Now, he only had enough mana left for a single, normal-power Fireball. However, against a warrior above level ten, a fireball below 10 energy levels had limited effect.

  After missing several consecutive axe swings, the warrior clearly paused. He couldn't comprehend how his continuous slashes had all missed. Though blinded, his perception and skill remained. Based on the memory of the attacker's last position and the sensation during the sneak attack, he could judge the opponent's speed and evasion direction. His combo technique had clearly sealed off all possible escape routes; one strike had even touched the opponent! Yet it still failed? Unless Richard had crawled away like a lizard.

  He held his breath, slowly turning, preparing to find the hiding place of that damned brat. But as his body moved slightly, he suddenly felt the chill in his side again. A forty-centimeter long gash appeared, and blood, intestines, and other unidentifiable fragments spilled out with a gush. The warrior swayed, an expression of disbelief on his face. His hand loosened, the heavy axe clanged to the ground, and his body slumped like an emptied sack.

  At this moment, flashing magical lights appeared in the distance. A clamor of voices arose, and hurried footsteps rapidly approached. The disturbance here had already alerted the Enforcement Mages. Even in the fringe district, openly casting area-of-effect destructive magic was forbidden. And Fireball was a typical example of such magic. The arrival of the Enforcement Mages was clearly a good thing for Richard. He relaxed emotionally, letting out a breath of hot air.

  Just as Richard relaxed, a string of hoarse, low laughter suddenly sounded near his ear, followed by a seductive female voice whispering almost directly beside him, "You can die peacefully now, Richard!"

  The assassin herself, however, wasn't as close as her voice suggested. Before her words finished, a dull, lightless dagger emerged from the void three or four steps away, stabbing towards Richard's back. The dagger was a strange, dead grey color, coated with a lethal poison. Forget hitting a vital spot; merely scratching the skin could kill Richard within half a minute. Only as the dagger neared Richard's back did the assassin's body outline faintly appear, like a translucent creature.

  But her sure-kill strike failed. A strangely shaped short blade, wreathed in dark red, blood-colored light, appeared out of thin air, arriving first despite starting later, blocking her dagger.

  This was no nameless blade. On the contrary, its bizarre edge connected to blood grooves and its signature blood-colored glow held considerable renown in the dark world.

  "Calamity Blade!" the female assassin cried out in alarm. Her form became clearer now, even her face faintly visible. She watched in astonishment as a ray of dark red light shot from the blood-colored blade, instantly sinking into her body and disappearing. The female assassin instantly recalled numerous past legends about Calamity Blade. Though they were old tales buried for over a decade, they all flooded her mind now.

  The most terrifying aspect of "Calamity Blade" wasn't the sharpness of the dagger itself, but his exquisite art of assassination and his bizarre, unpredictable Calamity Curses. Every time the dagger killed someone, it would absorb a portion of their soul force, storing it to power the Calamity Curses. "Calamity Blade" possessed 6 Calamity Curses. Although each could only be used once per day, those afflicted were almost unable to detect they had been cursed. Therefore, the longer one was targeted by "Calamity Blade," the more dangerous it became.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  The dark red light shot from the dagger caused no sensation upon entering her body, but the female assassin knew Calamity Blade must have activated the Tracking Blood Seal. This was Calamity Blade's most widely known Calamity Curse, allowing him to know the cursed person's location at any time for three days.

  The female assassin performed an aerial backflip, landing silently ten meters away, crouching low like a shadow panther, her lightless eyes fixed deadly on the blood-colored blade.

  A hand appeared gripping the dagger's hilt, followed by a somewhat thin arm, then ordinary, even slightly shabby clothes, and finally, an unremarkable face, though the smile on it seemed mercenary and lewd. If not for the ferocious, terrifying short blade, Naya looked entirely like a proprietor stuck running a small tavern, barely scraping by on meager income, whiling away his free time after daily drudgery by fantasizing about beautiful women. By no means could he be associated with the handsome man who had dazzled the dark world over a decade ago.

  Naya showed none of the female assassin's guarded stance. Instead, he showily twirled the blade like a juggler, then let his lewd, middle-aged lecherous gaze wander over the female assassin's curvaceous yet powerful body. "So it's you. What was your name again? Let me think... Blood Parrot, or Gray Sparrow... doesn't matter what it's called anyway. In the blink of an eye, over ten years have passed. Didn't expect your figure to still be so hot! But your level, tsk tsk, how should I put it, why hasn't it changed at all after so many years? Still level fourteen? Have you been too busy sleeping with noble lords all these years to cultivate?"

  Blood Parrot maintained her ready-to-strike posture, but Naya's casual stance, movements, even his somewhat vulgar, street-punk-like bluster, left no openings in her perception, neither for attack nor escape. A level fourteen assassin, yet so close to being completely powerless—what kind of terrifying presence must Naya have possessed in his prime?

  Naya, however, showed no intention of striking immediately. He continued to taunt Blood Parrot with cold sarcasm, exercising his talent for ridicule to the utmost. "Aiyo, look at your posture, why stick your butt up so high? Trying to seduce me? Although I have indeed earned quite a bit of extra cash recently, how did you know I had money? Hehe, hehe..."

  He chuckled strangely again, then his tone suddenly turned serious, shedding the exaggerated vulgarity and lewdness. He said coldly, "Blood Parrot, trash like you dare run wild in Deepblue? Speak. Who is the mastermind behind you? Tell me, and I'll let you go. If you want to be stubborn, I don't mind practicing certain techniques I haven't used in a long time! Hey, Richard, you can stand up now. Don't be so tense. This is my territory; she can't touch a hair on your head."

  Richard rose at the cue, but not in the usual way. He first moved sideways to the corner, then plastered himself against the wall like a lizard, and finally stood up. The entire sequence was incredibly swift, the direction of movement exceedingly tricky. If someone had attacked suddenly during the process, they would most likely have missed due to misjudgment.

  Naya was very satisfied with Richard's actions, while Blood Parrot was first surprised, then understanding dawned. She said in a hoarse, unpleasant voice, "Calamity Blade, you taught Richard all your assassination arts? No wonder those guys failed."

  Naya shook his head discontentedly, spat, and said, "What do you mean taught him everything? Pah! What I've taught him now is just a tiny bit of the basics at most, can't even be called the art of assassination! But this little fellow learns fast and diligently, never forgets to be vigilant, quite talented indeed. But my dear Blood Parrot, are you stalling for time? Haven't you noticed I'm stalling too? This is my territory. Even if you call for more reinforcements, you won't escape my grasp..."

  Just then, a resonant, imposing voice suddenly echoed from afar: "Her reinforcements have been dealt with by me, and so have yours! Also, I must correct you on one point: this is Deepblue, Her Highness's territory! Since you stand on Her Highness's territory, you must pay taxes!"

  The Enforcement Mage corps, having made a grand commotion long ago but only now arriving at the actual scene, finally appeared.

  Blood Parrot's body trembled violently, yet she still didn't dare change her crouching posture. She realized that any slight movement would immediately invite a fatal attack from Naya. And now, a short but imposing figure emerged from the end of the alley—it was the Gray Dwarf.

  Blackgold's imposing aura came from the phalanx of Enforcement Mages behind him, far more than just a dozen. Moreover, the mages were protected by over ten heavily armored infantry knights. These steel-clad behemoths were incredibly strong, all wielding heavy weapons, immensely powerful in street battles. Even Naya would find them troublesome, not to mention the dozens of mages behind them, packing ample firepower.

  The infantry knights dragged three corpses and escorted two men forward. The living were the two men Richard had seen in Naya's tavern. However, despite being captives, they appeared quite relaxed. Because Blackgold had indeed come only to collect taxes, and paying taxes was Naya's business; they had no income. As for the three corpses, they were the reinforcements Blood Parrot awaited. Unfortunately, their minds weren't very flexible; they dared to resist and were instantly turned into corpses, failing to inflict even the slightest casualty on the Gray Dwarf's forces. In a direct confrontation, assassins versus heavily armed regular troops were a complete tragedy.

  In fact, with the Gray Dwarf leading such a lineup, forget just three of Blood Parrot's accomplices; even thirty of Naya's companions would have had to flee in disarray, and Naya himself would have been among them.

  So when the Gray Dwarf appeared, the smile on Naya's face truly transformed into a mercenary, fawning grin, albeit tinged with awkwardness and bitterness.

  Dangerous light flickered in the Gray Dwarf's eyes. "What you taught Richard was just the basics, not the essence of the art of assassination? And you dare charge 1000 gold a day for that? You should know, the money you ultimately take belongs to Her Highness! Her Highness's... money!"

  Naya forced a smile, pulled the Gray Dwarf aside, and lowered his voice. "Wasn't I just boasting earlier? Look, Richard can now handle four assassins alone! How could it be just the basics? It's the essence of my years of experience! So the tuition fee is very reasonable. Besides, I paid my taxes in full last month. You bringing so many people here, is this..."

  The Gray Dwarf also lowered his voice, glanced at Blood Parrot, and said, "I heard there was a little trouble here, so I brought extra people over to check, lest you couldn't handle it and Her Highness's little Richard got hurt. Who knew it was just this kind of trash! What do you plan to do with this woman?"

  Naya frowned. "It's actually quite tricky. I'm not confident I can get anything out of her. How about you stay and watch too?"

  "No, no! I only collect taxes. Other matters are none of my business!" The Gray Dwarf waved his hands forcefully, rejecting flatly. Then he suddenly blinked and said, "Besides, I don't want to hear what she says. If you find anything out, handle it yourself. Doesn't your dark world have its own rules?"

  Naya's eyebrows furrowed even tighter. "But this is Deepblue. Everything follows Deepblue's rules..."

  The Gray Dwarf waved his hand forcefully, rudely cutting Naya off. "Deepblue's rule is to pay taxes honestly, nothing else! Alright, I'm leaving. Remember this month's taxes! As for everything else, I saw nothing!"

  With a wave of his hand, the Gray Dwarf departed, the large contingent of mages and infantry knights immediately dropping the three corpses and two men on the ground, then escorting him away in a rolling tide.

  Naya's face darkened slightly. The Gray Dwarf's crude attitude was backed by armed forces capable of destroying the entire city's dark world. Moreover, the demonstration and warning were obvious: Her Highness didn't need to act personally; her subordinates were sufficient to deal with any ill-intentioned individuals, regardless of whatever impressive titles they held a decade ago or in the outside world. This is Deepblue! Her Highness's Deepblue!

  Throughout the entire conversation, until the Gray Dwarf left, Blood Parrot maintained her posture with her rear end held high, as if harboring some peculiar fetish. The ground beneath her was already soaked with sweat, but Naya's killing intent remained locked onto her, giving her no opportunity. And Blackgold's armed forces were an even more terrifying existence; she didn't dare make any extraneous movements.

  When Naya's gaze fell upon her again, Blood Parrot finally knew there was no more chance. With a wild cry, she lunged towards Naya!

  With a muffled thud, Naya's short blade miraculously appeared at the back of Blood Parrot's head, knocking her unconscious with one blow. After Blood Parrot collapsed, Naya kicked her a few times to confirm she was out, then turned to Richard and said, "Next, I'm going to interrogate her thoroughly. The process will be stimulating, and very bloody. You can watch from the side, even give me a little help; it will be very beneficial for your understanding of the dark world's arts. But it's not mandatory. After all, this content might be too early for you, the impact perhaps too great. So you need to decide for yourself whether to participate in the upcoming process. Well? Interested?"

  Richard's face was slightly pale. He had already received initiation into the knowledge of the dark world and understood what Naya meant by stimulating and bloody, but he still nodded firmly. The speed of Richard's decision surprised Naya. This assassin, who had roamed the dark world for over a decade, also couldn't quite understand why Richard, with such an illustrious background, pursued the arts of the dark world with such unwavering determination—a resolve so great it almost made one suspect Richard had innate perverted tendencies.

  In fact, when making the decision, Richard's thoughts were very simple: What would Gordon Akmond do? Would he be afraid? The answer was clearly no. Gordon had witnessed countless scenes far bloodier than this, and personally created countless more that were just as bad, if not worse. And the most important point was that, whether witnessed personally or heard from his mother, Gordon was fearless.

  So Richard decided to participate.

  Looking at Richard's paling but resolute face, Naya shrugged. "Alright, come on then. But prepare a bucket first, a big one. You'll need it."