183: Did the Ravens fail?

The man's face first blanked in shock, then instantly flooded with wild ecstasy!

"Hahaha! It's working! It's working!!!"

"Kid! You're finished! You've been hit by my 'Soul Devouring Incense'!"

"Once poisoned by this, you'll lose all five senses and all your internal strength! Do you feel your vision darkening and your limbs weakening right now? Is there a buzzing in your ears?!"

"Kneel down and beg me! Beg me to give you a quick death!!!"

He grew more excited as he spoke, as if he could already see Ye Chen slumped on the ground, at his mercy. Even the intense pain in his leg seemed to lessen slightly.

However—

Ye Chen's pale face suddenly regained its healthy color at a speed visible to the naked eye.

And then.

He gave the man a "playful" wink.

"Fooled you."

"That look on my face just now? I was faking it."

The man: "???"

Fake?

He was being tricked?

His mind went blank with a loud buzzing sound. He couldn't understand it at all—how could this person be perfectly fine after being hit by 'Soul Devouring Incense'?

He could even put on an act?!

While he was questioning his reality—

Ye Chen's right hand held a Silver Needle, moving so fast it was a mere afterimage as it accurately pierced the man's Ancestral Aperture at the center of his brow!

*Pfft.*

The faint sound of the needle entering flesh rippled out. The man's entire body jerked violently, as if struck by high-voltage electricity!

The next second.

The confusion on his face was instantly replaced by terror!

A sensation of his soul being frozen and eaten away was frantically spreading to his entire body from the point where the needle had pierced his brow!

His skin began to turn an unnatural grayish-blue, his vision blurred rapidly, the buzzing in his ears turned into a sharp screech, and a needle-like stinging and weakness spread through his limbs... This feeling... was clearly the sign of the 'Soul Devouring Incense' taking effect!

But... "How can this be???"

The man's pupils dilated and his lips trembled as he squeezed out a few words in disbelief. "How am I poisoned? The incense was clearly shot at you..."

Ye Chen stood up slowly and looked down at him.

"Your incense is quite potent."

"However, while I was choking you just now, I used my True Qi to force it out of my own body and temporarily sealed it within this needle."

"Now—"

He paused, his tone as light as if he were sharing a fun little secret.

"I'm returning it to its rightful owner."

"Surprised? Unexpected, right?"

Hearing this, the man felt his consciousness sinking into icy water. His five senses were being stripped away rapidly, and the fear of death wrapped around his heart like vines.

"Anti... antidote..."

His fingers trembled as he pointed at the long box. "In the side pocket of my box... there are red pills... give them to me... please..."

Ye Chen didn't move, only tilting his head slightly.

"I can give them to you."

"But first, you have to tell me..."

"Who exactly are you?"

"I've met people from the Black Prison before, and they don't operate like you."

The man's body went into spasms. The toxicity of the Soul Devouring Incense took effect extremely quickly; he already felt as if his soul were being gnawed by ten thousand ants. That kind of pain was far more soul-crushing than physical injury.

He couldn't hold out any longer. His psychological defenses collapsed completely, and he shrieked through tears and snot.

"I... I am from the Black Prison! I didn't lie to you!"

"But I... I belong to the headquarters' 'Dark Crow' direct squad!"

"I was sent down directly by headquarters!"

Hearing this, a flash of realization crossed Ye Chen's eyes.

Directly from headquarters?

No wonder the Black Blind Man hadn't heard a peep. It turned out this assassin used a different, independent channel, taking orders directly from the core level of the Black Prison.

He continued his questioning, his voice cold.

"Why does the Black Prison headquarters want to kill me?"

The man's consciousness was beginning to blur. His survival instinct made him dare not hide anything, and he confessed intermittently.

"Be... because you've sabotaged the Black Prison's missions several times... and killed our people..."

"The higher-ups feel their face has been tarnished... their reputation damaged... they believe you have become a threat... and must be eliminated..."

Ye Chen's eyes narrowed slightly, a cold light flashing within them.

Just because they felt they lost face and that he was a threat, they would relentlessly attempt assassination?

This Black Prison headquarters was quite overbearing.

He suddenly laughed.

"Fine, I understand."

Before his voice had even faded, Ye Chen raised his right foot and stomped down mercilessly on the man's twisted neck!

*Crack!*

The sound of bone snapping rang out. The man's agonized howl stopped abruptly, his head lolled to the side, and the last spark of life in his eyes was completely extinguished.

Ye Chen withdrew his foot expressionlessly, walked to the deformed elevator car doors, gripped the gap with both hands, and applied a little force!

*Creeeeeak—!*

Amidst the groan of metal, he forced the elevator doors open wide enough for a person to pass through.

He slipped out, his figure vanishing into the dim elevator shaft. With a few bounds, he returned to the ground silently through the stairwell.

The night remained the same.

The street was empty, with only his car model still skewed in the middle of the road.

Ye Chen walked to the car, pulled out the crossbow bolt, snapped it casually, and threw it into a roadside trash can.

Then.

He took out his phone, found the Black Blind Man's number, and dialed it.

The phone rang a few times before being answered.

The Black Blind Man's voice came through immediately: "Mr... Mr. Ye? It's so late, is something wrong?"

Ye Chen got straight to the point.

"I was just attacked by an assassin from the 'Dark Crow' squad, directly under the Black Prison headquarters."

"They used a specially-made Runic Crossbow, and the bolts were dipped in 'Soul Devouring Incense'."

On the other end of the line, the Black Blind Man went silent instantly.

A few seconds later, his voice became incredibly grave.

"Dark Crow... Soul Devouring Incense..."

"Mr. Ye, are... are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Ye Chen said calmly. "The assassin has been dealt with, but I need to know: what exactly is the Black Prison headquarters' attitude toward me?"

The Black Blind Man took a deep breath and explained.

"Mr. Ye, to be honest with you..."

"The deployment of 'Dark Crow' means the headquarters' high-level management has already listed you as a 'must-eliminate' top-priority target."

"They act independently and won't notify peripheral managers like us."

"Since this attempt failed, they definitely won't stop. They'll only send someone even more troublesome..."

Ye Chen interrupted him: "So, the Black Prison headquarters is determined to fight me to the bitter end?"

The Black Blind Man gave a bitter laugh.

"Given their style of doing things... I'm afraid so."

Ye Chen nodded. "Tell the Black Prison that my tolerance is limited. If they want to play, I'll accompany them to the end, but they'd better weigh the cost!"

"The Black Prison isn't afraid of threats." The Black Blind Man hesitated for a moment but spoke anyway.

Ye Chen laughed nonchalantly. "It's fine, just tell them. Also, pass along one more sentence."

The Black Blind Man asked tensely, "Mr. Ye, please say it!"

"I've already wiped out the Hidden Sect..."

Ye Chen's casual voice made the Black Blind Man's entire body go cold. "If the Black Prison wants to seek death, I don't mind making them the second one."

With that.

Ye Chen hung up the phone directly and continued driving toward Yi Yue's home.

On the other end, the Black Blind Man stood there as still as a wooden chicken.

The Hidden Sect was wiped out by Mr. Ye!?

Good heavens!

From what he knew... the Hidden Sect's inner sect had many powerful experts, including over a dozen Xuan Realm experts!

And the result?

They were wiped out by Ye Chen?

This was too shocking!

He forced himself to calm down and immediately made a call to the Black Prison headquarters.

The call was answered quickly.

A slightly raspy voice came from the other end: "What is it?"

The Black Blind Man took a deep breath and said in a heavy voice.

"May I ask... if headquarters recently dispatched people from the 'Dark Crow' squad to Xiamen City to perform an elimination mission against Ye Chen?"

The other end was silent for two seconds before giving a cold warning.

"Black Blind Man, you are only a regional manager."

"'Dark Crow' operations are top secret and report directly to headquarters."

"How did you find out?"

The Black Blind Man had already prepared his explanation.

"Sir, it's not that I was intentionally prying."

"It's just that... the brother sent by the 'Dark Crow' squad seems to have failed his mission."

"His body, along with the signature Runic Crossbow and some equipment, was discovered!"

"The area I'm responsible for happens to cover Xiamen City, and my subordinates mentioned the 'Dark Crow' standard-issue weapons when they reported it."

"I followed the clues and found... the target, Ye Chen, is unharmed, while that brother has likely perished at his hands."

"What?!" The voice on the other end rose sharply in shock. "The Dark Crow operative failed? Are you sure Ye Chen did it?"