27: Chapter 27 Assassination and Counterattack

The night is the best fig leaf for Black Stone City.

It hides the filth on the streets, covers the piles of bones in the corners, and conceals the deepest sins within the human heart.

Emerging from the resplendent fortress of the City Lord's Mansion and stepping back onto this filthy land, Lin Xiao and Su Qingqian felt as if they had fallen from heaven back into hell.

The familiar scent in the air, a mixture of rot and poverty, made Su Qingqian subconsciously knit her beautiful brows.

"What is it? Not used to it?"

Lin Xiao reached out and draped a tactical trench coat, still warm from his body heat, over Su Qingqian's shoulders, shielding her from the malicious gazes around them.

That black cheongsam was a deterrent in the banquet hall, but here, it was nothing short of naked temptation.

"No," Su Qingqian shook her head, her voice cold and clear. "I just think... our vehicle is truly wonderful."

There is no harm without comparison. After witnessing the living conditions of Black Stone City, she truly understood what an incredible miracle the "Black Iron" that Lin Xiao had built with his own hands really was.

"That it is."

Lin Xiao smiled smugly, taking the opportunity to wrap his arm around her soft waist and pull her closer into his embrace. "After all, it is our home. When we get back, I'll let you take a fragrant hot bath to wash away the fatigue."

A warm, masculine scent washed over her. Su Qingqian's body stiffened slightly, but she did not pull away. In a spot where no one could see, a faint blush quietly crept onto her iceberg-like cheeks.

The two did not take the bulletproof sedan.

In a place like this, entrusting one's safety to outsiders is the most foolish act.

They chose to walk back to the parking area, and by the way... take a look at the night view of Black Stone City.

"Squeak..."

A massive mutant rat darted out from a pile of trash, dragging half of some creature's bone, and vanished into the darkness.

In the shadows by the roadside, several ragged children were biting each other like wild dogs, fighting over a piece of moldy biscuit.

This is the night in Black Stone City; real and cruel.

"Squad Leader."

Just as the two were passing through a relatively quiet block, Luo Yao's slightly tense voice came through Lin Xiao's micro-earpiece.

"The radar has scanned twelve high-heat reaction sources closing in on you from different directions. They are moving fast, have high heart rates, and are all carrying metal weapons!"

"Based on their trajectory, the three-way intersection three hundred meters ahead is the best ambush point!"

"Twelve?"

Lin Xiao's pace did not falter, and his expression did not change in the slightest; he only tightened his arm around Su Qingqian.

"It seems someone didn't enjoy their meal tonight."

"Should I have Sister Xiao Tang bring people out to provide cover?" Luo Yao's voice sounded a bit anxious.

"No need." A bloodthirsty arc curled at the corners of Lin Xiao's mouth. "Just a bunch of rats that can't see the light. Perfect, I haven't tested the effects of the new toy I just got."

He looked down and whispered to Su Qingqian in his arms, "Qing Qian, stretch your muscles in a moment. Don't take the main road; the dead-end alley on the left has a nice view."

Su Qingqian was sharp-witted and instantly understood Lin Xiao's intention.

She did not ask why, simply giving a soft "Mhm." Her previously relaxed body instantly entered a combat state, each step landing silently, like a cat walking under the moonlight.

This was a dead-end alley piled with discarded shipping containers.

At the end was a high wall, and the only entrance had been blocked by Lin Xiao and Su Qingqian.

The air was filled with a pungent smell of machine oil.

"Rustle..."

Faint footsteps came from the shadows at the alley's entrance, getting closer and denser.

A dozen black figures emerged like ghosts from the tops and gaps of the containers, surrounding the two completely.

These people were all dressed in black night-ops gear, their faces covered by masks, revealing only pairs of cold, murderous eyes. The weapons in their hands were varied: modified assault rifles, sharp daggers, and even a few crossbows equipped with silencers.

Well-trained and silent.

These were definitely not ordinary thugs, but professional assassins.

"Come on out."

Lin Xiao turned around, released his arm from around Su Qingqian, and brushed some non-existent dust off his trench coat.

He looked at the assassins surrounding him, his face showing not a hint of tension; instead, he looked like a master taking a stroll in his own backyard.

"Playing hide-and-seek in the middle of the night, don't you think it's childish? Speak up, who sent you? The remnants of the Wild Wolf Gang? Or that one-eyed dragon?"

The masked man in the lead did not answer.

He simply made a cold gesture.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft!" "Rat-tat-tat!"

The next second, gunfire erupted!

A dozen weapons opened fire at the same time!

Dense bullets and poisoned crossbow bolts formed a web of death with no blind spots, instantly enveloping Lin Xiao and Su Qingqian!

They had no intention of talking; they went straight for the kill!

"Hmph."

Facing this hail of bullets capable of tearing steel into shreds, Lin Xiao merely gave a cold snort.

Far from dodging, he stepped forward, shielding Su Qingqian behind him.

Just as the bullets were about to strike him, he pressed a device on his wrist that looked like a watch.

"Hum—"

A slight buzzing sound.

A pale blue, hexagonal, honeycomb-shaped translucent light screen instantly unfolded in front of Lin Xiao!

**[Portable Energy Shield (Prototype)]**

This was the blueprint fragment he had traded for with those few tomatoes, then rush-produced overnight by Luo Yao and the System Workshop! Although it could only last for ten seconds and the energy was unstable, it was enough to block this first wave of attacks!

"Clang, clang, clang!"

Countless bullets and crossbow bolts slammed into that thin layer of light, as if hitting an invisible wall, bursting into sparks before falling powerlessly to the ground.

Ripples spread across the pale blue light screen, but it remained firm.

"What?!" "Energy shield?! How is this possible!"

The group of assassins was stunned.

This kind of thing, which only existed in pre-war sci-fi movies, had actually appeared!

What on earth is this kid's background?!

"Is that all you've got?"

Lin Xiao looked at the shocked expressions of the assassins and smiled contemptuously.

"Now, it's my turn."

He snapped his fingers.

"Luo Yao, release the hounds."

"Received! 'Queen Bee' leaving the nest!"

Luo Yao's excited voice came through the earpiece.

In the night sky of Black Stone City.

The "Swarm Drones," which had been hovering thousands of meters in the sky and were almost invisible to the naked eye, silently opened their belly bomb bays after receiving the command.

Twelve palm-sized micro-drones, shaped like black bees, detached silently from the mothership like tears of the Grim Reaper, diving down at supersonic speeds!

In the alley.

The group of assassins was still immersed in the shock brought by the energy shield.

Suddenly, they heard a "buzzing" sound from above.

The sound was very faint, like mosquitoes flying.

"What's that sound?"

One assassin subconsciously looked up.

Then, he saw a red dot of light land between his eyebrows.

"Zzz—!"

The next second.

A red laser, thinner than a strand of hair, descended from the sky and precisely pierced through his forehead!

No explosion, no loud noise.

Only a slight sound, like roasting meat being scorched.

The expression on that assassin's face was still frozen in the confusion of the previous second as his body fell straight down, a charred little hole appearing between his eyebrows.

"Enemy attack! It's in the sky!" "Quick, dodge!"

The assassins finally reacted, scrambling in panic to find cover.

But it was too late.

In the night sky, twelve red lasers, like the scythes of the Grim Reaper, wove together into a magnificent and deadly dance of death.

"Zzz! Zzz! Zzz!"

Wherever the lasers went, flesh and blood flew.

Some were shot through the heart, some had their throats cut, and one unlucky soul was sliced in two from head to toe by the laser; the scene was incredibly bloody.

These professional assassins were as fragile as paper in the face of absolute technological suppression.

"Damn it! Use grenades! Blow them up!"

The lead assassin pulled two high-explosive grenades from his waist, ready to pull the pins.

However, at the very moment he pulled out the grenades.

A bone-chilling cold instantly enveloped him.

He felt as if his blood was about to freeze.

He struggled to turn his head.

He saw that the cheongsam-clad woman who had been standing behind Lin Xiao, looking impossibly beautiful, had appeared behind him without him noticing.

Her face was expressionless, her eyes colder than the Siberian wind.

The Tang sword in her hand had already been unsheathed, and a thin layer of frost covered the gleaming blade.

"You..."

The assassin leader only had time to utter one word.

"Frost... Sword Dance."

Su Qingqian's voice was like a whisper from the nine nether hells.

The blade light flared.

Like an ice lotus blooming at midnight, beautiful, yet deadly.

Countless sword lights carrying bone-chilling cold erupted instantly in the narrow alley.

"Swish, swish, swish, swish—"

A series of dense sounds, like cloth being torn, rang out in the air.

When the sword light faded.

Su Qingqian slowly sheathed her sword, her posture as elegant as if she had just finished a dance.

Not a single drop of blood stained her black cheongsam.

And behind her.

The remaining seven or eight assassins all stood frozen in place, holding various poses.

The next second.

"Crack..."

A layer of frost appeared on the surface of their bodies, and then, like smashed ice sculptures, they shattered into pieces of ice of various sizes, with their severed limbs and internal organs frozen inside.

They couldn't even let out a scream.

From the start of the battle to the end, it took less than thirty seconds.

Twelve professional assassins, completely wiped out.

Lin Xiao's portable shield just happened to vanish.

He walked over to a survivor who wasn't dead yet, with only one breath left and a leg shot through by a laser, and crouched down.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, how miserable."

He fished a pack of cigarettes from the other person's tactical vest and lit one for himself.

"Now, we can have a proper chat."

"Who sent you? Tell me, and I'll give you a quick death."

The survivor, looking at the scene around him which resembled an Asura hell, was already scared out of his wits.

Especially looking at Su Qingqian behind Lin Xiao, who looked like a god of death, he was shaking like a sieve.

"I... I'll talk... It's... It's Vice President Chen of the Chamber of Commerce..."

"He... he had his eyes on your supplies... and... and the woman in your vehicle..."

"He wanted to capture you all... and sell you to... to the underground 'pet' market..."

"Pet market?"

Lin Xiao's eyes instantly turned cold.

He knew what kind of place that was.

It was the filthiest, most cruel den of iniquity on the wasteland. The women sold there suffered a fate ten thousand times more miserable than death.

"Vice President Chen..." In Lin Xiao's mind, the middle-aged man with the sinister eyes who had been following Old Jin at the banquet appeared.

So, the snake wasn't killed, and he got bitten in return.

"Heh... Hehehe..."

Lin Xiao suddenly laughed in a low voice.

The laughter grew louder and colder, eventually turning into a wild, murderous cackle.

"Good! What a great Vice President Chen! What a great pet market!"

He stood up and stomped on the survivor's head.

"Crack."

Red and white splattered all over the ground.

He took out his walkie-talkie, his voice cold enough to drop ice shards.

"Luo Yao."

"Here! Squad Leader!"

"Check for me! Vice President Chen Dong of the Chamber of Commerce, his residence in Black Stone City, his mistresses, all his strongholds! I want all the information within ten minutes!"

"Five minutes is enough!" Luo Yao's voice was full of fighting spirit.

Lin Xiao turned around, looking at the mess all over the ground, the murderous intent in his eyes palpable.

He had originally just wanted to come and do some business, and take the opportunity to scout the path.

Since there are things without eyes that insist on courting death...

Then don't blame me for poking a hole in the sky!

He looked at Su Qingqian, her face stained with blood and slaughter appearing exceptionally enchanting under the moonlight.

"Qing Qian, are you afraid to follow me... and turn this Black Stone City upside down?"

Su Qingqian stepped forward, extending those slender hands that had just been killing people, and gently adjusted the collar of Lin Xiao's coat that had been ruffled by the wind.

There was not a hint of fear in her eyes, only burning infatuation and absolute loyalty.

"Your sword is unsheathed only for you."

"Even if the opponent is a god, I will stand before you."

"Good!"

Lin Xiao was filled with heroic spirit, pulling her into his arms and planting a heavy kiss on her cold lips.

"Then let the people of this Black Stone City see."

"What the outcome is for provoking me, Lin Xiao!"

He released Su Qingqian, his eyes flashing with a crazy light.

"Fleeing overnight? That's what cowards do."

"Since he doesn't want me to have a good time..."

"Then tonight, nobody will have a good time!"

The night in Black Stone City is destined not to be peaceful.

A movement of slaughter composed of blood and fire is about to begin.

Lin Xiao withdrew his gaze, never looking at that corpse again.

"Su Qingqian, follow."

"We aren't going to the parking lot."

Su Qingqian looked at his face written with murderous intent, didn't ask why, and simply followed silently behind him.

"Where to?"

"To the Chamber of Commerce."

Lin Xiao's voice was bone-chillingly cold, echoing in the dead-silent alleyway.

"Since he doesn't want me to have a good time, then nobody will."

"I've decided that before I leave, I'll teach this Black Stone City... a vivid art class."

"The name of the lesson is—"

"Explosion."

Black Stone City, Chamber of Commerce headquarters building.

This was a building converted from an old-era bank building, with several unlit neon signs still hanging on the outer wall.

At this moment, in the luxury bedroom on the top floor.

Vice President Wang was embracing women on both sides, enjoying the services of two female slaves bought from the slums.

He held a glass of red wine, leisurely listening to his subordinate's report.

"President, the 'Night Raven' squad has already set off. This time, it's foolproof. No matter how powerful that kid is, he can't stop the concentrated fire of a dozen submachine guns."

A trusted aide said flatteringly.

"Very good." Vice President Wang nodded with satisfaction, greedily licking his lips.

"Once they succeed, bring that vehicle back to me! I want to personally check the supplies inside!"

"And those women... especially the one wearing the cheongsam, save her for me! I'm going to let her know what a real man is!"

He fantasized about replacing City Lord Lei Hu and becoming the new master of Black Stone City, perhaps even possessing that invincible armored train, and couldn't help but let out a smug laugh.