War Sovereign Soaring The Heavens

In the Simplicity Celestial Sect’s estate in one of the regions under the Profound Nether Mansion’s control.

In a secluded valley, Zheng Hong Yi and Wang Hong were sitting in front of a stone table waiting for the message from the Blood Skull Gang’s assassin to inform them of his mission completion.

“What’s taking him so long?” Wang Hong furrowed her brows. “With his strength, it should be easy for him to kill Duan Ling Tian. He should’ve sent us a message by now, notifying us of the job completion.”

“I agree. Although I’ve confirmed the matter with him, is it possible he’s being cautious and taking his time to make sure Duan Ling Tian didn’t bring anyone with him?” Zheng Hong Yi speculated out loud.

“That’s possible. Why don’t you send him another message and urge him to finish the job quickly?” Wang Hong suggested.

Zheng Hong Yi nodded slightly.

Wang Hong waited as Zheng Hong Yi sent a message to the assassin from the Blood Skull Gang. Suddenly, she noticed the drastic change of expression on his face. An ominous feeling rose in her heart, and a frown appeared on her face as she asked, “What’s wrong?”

“H-he… He’s d-dead!” Zheng Hong Yi replied with a trembling voice. A feeling of dread welled up in his heart.

“Wh-what?!” Wang Hong was taken aback.

Zheng Hong Yi raised his hand, revealing a shattered Soul Pearl lying on his palm. “T-this is the assassin’s Soul Pearl that I’ve been using to communicate with him.”

“D-dead? H-how’s that possible!” Wang Hong looked at him incredulously, “Is it possible that Duan Ling Tian sought help from your master? Is it possible that your master sought help from powerhouses who aren’t from the sect to help Duan Ling Tian?” This was the only reason Wang Hong could think of. Not even in her wildest dreams could she have expected that Duan Ling Tian was the one who had forced the assassin to his death.

“I have no idea…” Zheng Hong Yi shook his head. He was still stunned, unable to regain his senses.

After calming herself down, Wang Hong said, “Contact Young Master Chen. The Blood Skull Gang should be the first to know if their assassins are dead. Moreover, the assassin had most likely sent a message back to the gang before he died.”

Zheng Hong Yi took out another Soul Pearl and sent a Communication Celestial Talisman to the owner through the soul mark imprinted on the pearl. The owner of the Soul Pearl was none other than the illegitimate son of one of the Vice Leaders of the Blood Skull Gang, Chen Li.

“Young Master Chen… The Soul Pearl left by the assassin you sent has shattered. H-he’s dead. Did he send a message back to the organization before his death?” Zheng Hong Yi asked without beating around the bush.

As the duo waited for Chen Li’s reply, Wang Hong asked, “Zheng Hong Yi… Do you think the assassin managed to kill Duan Ling Tian before he died?”

“I have no idea.” Zheng Hong Yi shook his head. “We’ll have to wait for Young Master Chen’s reply to find out what happened. I hope the assassin managed to send a message back before his death.”

Wang Hong nodded slightly.

The duo continued to wait in silence. As time continued to pass, their expressions turned grimmer and grimmer.

“It’s here!” Zheng Hong Yi exclaimed suddenly as his eyes lit up.

Wang Hong instinctively turned to look at Zheng Hong Yi. Her eyes were shining brightly as well.

It did not take long before Zheng Hong Yi’s expression changed drastically as his eyes widened in shock.

“What’s wrong?” Wang Hong asked.

Zheng Hong Yi remained silent. He was shocked to the core by the message he had just received from Chen Li.

The content of Chen Li’s message was as such: Zheng Hong Yi, the assassin from our Blood Skull Gang has failed his mission. Based on the rules of our organization, the mission will continue and our price will be reduced by half. Since the dead assassin had collected half the price, you no longer need to make any payment. We will arrange for another assassin to take care of Duan Ling Tian. However, we’ll need your cooperation if it’s deemed necessary.

“Young Master Chen, do you know who killed the assassin? Was he killed by a powerhouse from the Simplicity Celestial Sect?” Zheng Hong Yi asked.

“No.” Chen Li lightly replied and dispelled all of Zheng Hong Yi’s thoughts with his following remark, “You don’t need to know how he died… All you need to know is that the Blood Skull Gang will complete this mission.”

Zheng Hong Yi’s expression changed drastically after hearing Chen Li’s words. He no longer dared to ask any questions.

At this moment, Wang Hong asked again, “Zheng Hong Yi, has Young Master Chen replied to you?”

“Yes.” Zheng Hong Yi finally returned to his senses. He nodded slightly. “Young Master Chen said the assassin failed his mission… However, the Blood Skull Gang will complete the mission of killing Duan Ling Tian!”

“He failed?” Wang Chen’s heart sank. “Did he say how the assassin failed? Was he killed by a powerhouse from the Simplicity Celestial Sect?”

“I asked him the same question, but all he said was the Blood Skull Gang will see the job to its end. Rest assured, even if the assassin died, our involvement won’t be exposed. The Blood Skull Gang is known for protecting their clients’ identities…” Zheng Hong Yi said.

Wang Hong narrowed her eyes and looked at Zheng Hong Yi knowingly as she said, “Zheng Hong Yi, based on what I know, the Blood Skull Gang has a rule that if they fail the first attempt, the price would be reduced by half…”

Zheng Hong Yi knew he could not hope to profit from this when he heard Wang Hong’s words. He sighed before he took out two ordinary purely defensive King Grade Celestial Weapons and handed them over to her.

Wang Hong received it with a smug expression on her face.

“Wang Hong, Young Master Chen said that the Blood Skull Gang might need us to cooperate with the new assassin. If you don’t want to be involved in this matter anymore, pass me the two King Grade Celestial Weapons I’ve just given you first in case further payment needs to be made,” Zheng Hong Yi said in a last-ditch attempt to regain his prized King Grade Celestial Weapons.

Wang Hong only sneered as she put away the two King Grade Celestial Weapons and retorted, “Zheng Hong Yi, why wouldn’t I be involved? The Blood Skull Gang won’t expose both of us. I don’t mind cooperating with them to kill Duan Ling Tian as long as it’s within my capabilities.”

All of a sudden, a thought appeared in Zheng Hong Yi’s mind, causing his expression to change dramatically again. “Wang Hong, if I’m not mistaken, the purely defensive King Grade Celestial Weapon that had been nurtured by a Celestial Lord that you gave to the assassin was obtained from the Profound Nether Mansion by your grandfather, right?”

Wang Hong was puzzled; she did not know why Zheng Hong Yi would ask such a question.

“Since the assassin is dead, his Spatial Ring must have gone to the person who killed him. If the person who killed him is a powerhouse from the Simplicity Celestial Sect, it’s possible that the powerhouse might be able to recognize your King Grade Celestial Weapon in the assassin’s Spatial Ring…” Zheng Hong Yi said solemnly as he looked at Wang Hong.

The gravity of the situation finally dawned on Wang Hong after she heard Zheng Hong Yi’s words. Her expression changed drastically as well. Indeed, the King Grade Celestial Weapon she had given the assassin was given to her by her grandfather. Most of the powerhouses stronger than Celestial Kings in the Simplicity Celestial Sect knew about that King Grade Celestial Weapon that used to be in her grandfather’s possession.

“Wang Hong, I think you should discuss this matter with your grandfather. If sh*t happens, I’m afraid you’re going to get in trouble if you don’t have your grandfather’s support,” Zheng Hong Yi said with a panicked expression on his face. His first thought was not to push all the blame on Wang Hong. After all, he knew, based on her temperament, if something were to happen to her, she would definitely drag him down with her.

“I’ll look for my grandfather at once…” Wang Hong did not waste any time and took flight to search for her grandfather.

After Wang Hong left, Zheng Hong Yi muttered under his breath with a grim expression on his face, “I didn’t expect it’d be troublesome to kill a peak Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestial… If the person who killed the assassin from the Blood Skull Gang is a powerhouse from the Simplicity Celestial Sect, that person must have already returned to the sect to report to master, right?”

…

Meanwhile, Duan Ling Tian went to look for Sun Liang Peng as soon as he returned to the Simplicity Celestial Sect’s estate.

Sun Liang Peng was slightly surprised when he saw Duan Ling Tian. He asked, “Duan Ling Tian, what brings you here?”

“Sect leader…” Duan Ling Tian began to recount what happened. He told Sun Liang Peng how he was lured out of the sect’s estate by an assassin from the Blood Skull Gang.

“What?! The Blood Skull Gang?!” A horrified expression appeared on Sun Liang Peng’s face as soon as Duan Ling Tian mentioned the assassin was from the Blood Skull Gang. “Why didn’t you inform me about this earlier?”

“I was worried that he had really captured Huan’er. If that was the case, I might jeopardize her life by telling you about it,” Duan Ling Tian explained.

“What happened after that?” Sun Liang Peng asked. He was drenched in cold sweat imagining what could have happened. Fortunately, Duan Ling Tian returned safely.

“After that…” Duan Ling Tian’s eyes glinted coldly as he slowly said, “… I killed him…”