60: Chapter 60: Going to the Meeting Alone, and Incidentally Resetting the Assassin Ranking.
Night wind howled, whipping up rose petals scattered by the poolside.
A thousand meters away, on the rooftop of the building opposite.
"Viper" adjusted her breathing and steadied the crosshairs firmly on Chen Yuan's brow. She was the nineteenth-ranked sniper on the Dark Web, best known for being able to blow a person's head open like a watermelon at this distance.
"Two hundred million dollars, it's mine."
A cruel smile curled the corners of her lips as her index finger slowly squeezed the trigger.
"Drip."
A drop of warm, viscous liquid suddenly landed on her scope.
Then came a second drop, landing on the back of her neck.
It carried a nauseating, fishy stench.
Viper froze, instinctively wanting to look up.
But she would never have the chance again.
A long, scarlet tongue shot out from the darkness, instantly wrapping around her neck. Before she could even scream, the bloody maw, split wide to the ears, had already crushed her skull.
"Snap."
The sound of chewing was jarringly loud on the silent rooftop.
Meanwhile, beside the rooftop pool of Jile Nightclub.
Chen Yuan seemed to sense something; he raised his glass toward the void, as if toasting an absent guest.
"The first one."
He said softly, tilting his head to take a sip of red wine.
"Ding—"
The elevator doors opened.
A blonde beauty in a fiery red, high-slit evening gown walked out. She had an enchanting figure, held two glasses of champagne, and her eyes were unfocused, like a lost lamb that had drunk too much.
"Ranked twelfth on the Dark Web, 'Black Widow' Sophia."
Alice stood behind Chen Yuan, her voice cold as she reported the opponent's background. "She specializes in neurotoxins, hidden in lipstick, rings, or... bodily fluids."
The beauty didn't seem to hear Alice; she cat-walked toward Chen Yuan, her soul-stirring eyes full of desire.
"Handsome, isn't it boring to drink alone?"
She walked up to Chen Yuan, leaned forward, and that proud bust was almost pressed against Chen Yuan's arm. She offered a glass of champagne, her fingertips lightly brushing across Chen Yuan's chest.
"How about you let me keep you company?"
Chen Yuan looked at her and smiled.
There was no desire in that smile, only the playful mockery of someone looking at a clown.
"Keep me company?"
He reached out his hand, seemingly to take the wine glass.
Just as a flash of cold, triumphant light crossed the beauty's eyes, and she prepared to press the poison needle switch on her ring—
"Whoosh!"
A sound of air being pierced, so subtle it was almost imperceptible, rang out.
The beauty's movements froze.
Between her brows, there was now a silver needle as thin as an ox hair.
"Ugh..."
She widened her eyes, looking in disbelief at Alice standing behind Chen Yuan. The woman, who looked like a secretary, hadn't even lifted a hand.
"Thud."
The corpse fell to the ground, the champagne in her hand spilled everywhere, and the liquid mixed with the deadly poison etched a wisp of white smoke into the floor.
"Not bad wine."
Chen Yuan didn't even glance at the corpse on the floor, stepping over her as he walked to the poolside. "Too bad, I don't like it when it's spiked."
"The second one."
The feast of slaughter had officially begun.
That night, the top floor of Jile Nightclub became a true Shura field.
Those top-tier assassins, famous on the Dark Web, rushed in like moths to a flame—from the elevator, the stairs, and even descending from the sky with paragliders—trying to claim the head of that Oriental man.
But what they faced was not a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, but a trap with its bloody maw wide open.
"Boom!"
A burly man covered in C4 explosives had just rushed out of the stairwell when he was blasted away by a punch from the Tyrant, who had been lying in ambush at the door.
The immense force shattered his sternum directly; before he could even press the detonator, his whole body was smashed into the wall, unable to be pried off.
"The fifth one, 'Explosive Genius', ranked ninth."
Chen Yuan sat on a lounge chair by the pool, even having the leisure to peel a grape.
In the shadows.
A Japanese assassin skilled in ninjutsu was sneaking along the wall; his stealth technique was superb, even deceiving thermal imaging radar.
He crept to within three meters behind Chen Yuan and drew a poisoned short blade.
"Die!"
He launched a sudden attack.
However, what greeted him was not Chen Yuan's panic, but a large alloy net descending from the sky.
"Zzzzt—"
High-voltage current instantly passed through the mesh.
The ninja, known as the "Shadowless Ghost", didn't even manage a scream before becoming a charred corpse, smoking as it fell at Chen Yuan's feet.
"The seventh one."
Chen Yuan tossed the grape into his mouth and clapped his hands. "Tastes pretty good."
Fresh blood stained the expensive teak floor and flowed into the azure pool, dyeing the water a strange, pale red.
Bodies piled up in the corner like a heap of worthless trash.
In less than half an hour.
Seven of the names in the top ten of the Dark Web assassin leaderboard had turned gray.
The remaining assassins, hiding in the shadows downstairs, listened to the constant screams and the sounds of heavy objects falling from above, and their legs began to tremble uncontrollably.
Was this a hunt?
This was clearly a suicide mission!
That man hadn't even lifted a finger! He hadn't even put down his wine glass!
"Are there any more?"
Chen Yuan stood up, walked to the railing, and asked loudly toward the darkness downstairs.
His voice carried through the night wind, spreading across the entire block.
"Two hundred million dollars, it's right here."
He pointed to his own head, his face wearing a chilling arrogance. "Does nobody want it?"
Dead silence.
No one dared to respond.
Fear spread like a plague; the originally greedy assassins began to quietly retreat, as no one wanted to become one of that pile of corpses.
"How boring."
Chen Yuan shook his head and sighed with some disappointment. "Looks like the show for tonight ends here."
He turned around, preparing to go back inside.
Just then.
"Snap!"
A crisp whip crack exploded in the night sky without warning.
Immediately after, a black figure seemed to defy the laws of gravity as she descended from the sky.
She hadn't taken the stairs, nor had she used a paraglider.
She had used a long black whip, wrapped it around the lightning rod on the top floor, and swung down from several hundred meters high like a ghost on a swing.
"Boom!"
The person landed steadily in front of Chen Yuan, her high heels shattering the floor tiles and kicking up a cloud of dust.
Chen Yuan stopped in his tracks, narrowing his eyes as he looked at this uninvited guest.
This was a woman.
An extremely dangerous woman.
She was wearing a skin-tight black latex suit, which outlined her devilish figure to perfection. She wore a half-face black cat mask, revealing only her lips, painted with black lipstick, and a pair of cold, frosty eyes.
In her hand, she held a three-meter-long black soft whip, the tip covered in barbs, shimmering with a ghostly blue light in the moonlight.
"Ranked first on the Dark Web."
Alice's voice showed a trace of fluctuation for the first time; it was the vigilance of encountering an equal. "Codename: 'Assassin Queen'."
"Chen Yuan."
The woman spoke, her voice hoarse and magnetic, like silk polished with sandpaper. "Your life, I want it."
Chen Yuan looked at her, neither calling the Tyrant nor letting Alice make a move.
He just quietly watched this woman known as the "Queen", the corners of his mouth slowly curling into an interested arc.
"Want my life?"
He took a step forward, ignoring the long whip poised like a venomous snake.
"Many people have said that."
Chen Yuan pointed to the pile of corpses in the corner. "But they are all lying there now."
"Do you think you'll be an exception?"
The Queen didn't waste words.
She flicked her wrist.
"Snap!"
The long whip shot out like a venomous dragon, carrying a screech that tore through the air, aiming straight for Chen Yuan's throat.
The speed was extreme.
It was even faster than any of the previous assassins!
Chen Yuan didn't dodge.
He stood in place, motionless, not even blinking an eye.
Just at the moment the whip tip was about to touch his skin.
"Zzz—"
An invisible electromagnetic barrier instantly deployed in front of him.
The whip lashed against the barrier, exploding in a burst of dazzling sparks, then was fiercely deflected.
The Queen froze for a moment.
"High-tech?" She snorted coldly. "Let's see how long your battery lasts!"
Her figure flashed, and she transformed into a black whirlwind; the long whip in her hand danced into an airtight web, enveloping Chen Yuan from all directions.
"It's not just technology."
Chen Yuan's voice rang out amidst the shadows of the whip, calm and composed.
"It's also... the power of money."