The night in Ironcliff City had deepened.
A cold stillness hung in the air, broken only by the occasional howl of distant beasts beyond the city walls. Lanterns flickered faintly along the streets, their dim glow doing little to push back the encroaching darkness.
Lin Xuan moved within that darkness.
His figure was nothing more than a shadow among shadows, his presence so faint it was as if he did not exist at all.
His breathing was steady.
His heartbeat calm.
His mind… razor sharp.
From atop a distant rooftop, Lin Xuan observed Gao Wen's manor once again.
It stood arrogantly at the center of Ironcliff City, surrounded by high walls and guarded gates. On the surface, it looked secure. Torches burned along the perimeter, and guards patrolled at measured intervals.
But to Lin Xuan's eyes—
It was flawed.
Predictable.
Weak.
"Sloppy… careless… overconfident."
Through All-Seeing Insight, the patrol routes became lines of inefficiency. Gaps. Blind spots. Delays between rotations.
Everything Thorne had said was accurate.
The eastern wall.
Post-midnight.
Weakest point.
Without hesitation, Lin Xuan moved.
His body flowed forward, silent and controlled. Each step was deliberate, each breath measured. His feet barely made a sound as he descended from the rooftop and approached the manor walls.
Then—
He leapt.
His body rose effortlessly, qi reinforcing his muscles just enough to grant him perfect control. His fingers caught the edge of the wall, gripping the stone with precision before pulling himself up in one smooth motion.
No noise.
No wasted movement.
He dropped onto the inner side of the wall like a falling shadow.
And vanished.
Inside the manor, the difference was immediate.
The guards were worse.
Much worse.
Lin Xuan moved along the darker edges of the pathways, his figure blending naturally with the night. His senses stretched outward, capturing every shift in movement, every fluctuation in qi.
A guard passed by.
Late Qi Refining Realm.
His steps were uneven.
His attention… lax.
Lin Xuan didn't even slow down.
He adjusted his path slightly—
And struck.
A hand shot forward, fingers locking onto the guard's throat. At the same instant, a precise surge of qi sealed the man's voice.
Before the guard could react—
The Verdant Origin Spirit Blade flashed once.
A clean, controlled arc.
The head separated before the body even realized it had died.
Lin Xuan caught the corpse before it fell, gently lowering it into the shadows.
No sound.
No struggle.
No trace.
[System Notification]
[+20 System Coins Acquired]
He didn't stop.
He didn't even look at the body again.
His movement continued, fluid and uninterrupted.
Another guard.
This one was slightly more alert.
But not enough.
Lin Xuan approached from behind, his steps perfectly aligned with the rhythm of the man's breathing.
Three steps.
Two.
One—
The blade moved.
This time, a thrust.
Direct.
Precise.
The tip pierced through the back of the neck, severing life instantly.
The body stiffened.
Then went limp.
Once again, lowered silently into darkness.
[System Notification]
+20 System Coins Acquired
"Forty coins… for two lives."
There was no emotion in the thought.
Only calculation.
"I could try hunting more guards for some coins; but that would be senseless killing."
Lin Xuan thought.
"An assassin moves with purpose towards a target and these guards are not my target."
Lin Xuan crouched briefly beside the second body.
His gaze swept across the uniform.
Standard guard attire.
Nothing special.
But useful.
Without hesitation, he stripped the outer layer of the guard's clothing and put it on over his own.
His original attire—
Stored instantly within his system storage.
Clean.
Efficient.
No wasted motion.
His posture shifted slightly.
His presence altered.
Now—
He wasn't an intruder.
He was just another guard.
Head slightly lowered.
Aura suppressed.
Movements natural.
And just like that—
He walked.
Not sneaking.
Not hiding.
Walking.
Straight through the manor grounds.
The deeper he went, the more obvious the decay became.
Guards leaned against walls.
Some whispered among themselves.
One was even drinking.
Lin Xuan's eyes remained calm.
"This… is the result of an incompetent ruler."
Arrogance.
Negligence.
Decay.
No formations.
No layered defense.
No real sense of danger.
Just blind confidence.
And greed.
He passed through corridor after corridor, his pace steady, unhurried.
No one stopped him.
No one questioned him.
Because why would they?
This place—
Had never expected a threat.
Finally—
He reached the inner section.
The air changed.
Quieter.
More isolated.
Fewer guards.
Better maintained.
But even here—
There was no real vigilance.
His steps slowed.
Then stopped.
Before him—
A door.
Large.
Ornate.
Gao Wen's chamber.
Lin Xuan stood there silently.
Still.
Unmoving.
Not out of hesitation.
Not out of doubt.
But calculation.
This was different.
The assassin in the alley—
That had been instinct.
Reaction.
Survival.
This—
Was judgment.
His fingers rested lightly on the hilt of his blade.
His breathing slowed further.
His mind sharpened.
"This is the first."
Not the first kill.
But the first deliberate execution in this world.
His gaze remained calm.
Cold.
Focused.
He didn't delude himself.
He wasn't a hero.
He wasn't some righteous savior.
But—
He understood something clearly.
"If rot is left untouched, it spreads. The places I wish to govern have no space for such rot to exisit.."
His hand moved.
The door opened.
Silently.
The room inside was lit dimly by lanternlight.
Rich furnishings.
Silk drapes.
Gold accents.
Excess.
Waste.
Gao Wen sat alone.
Slouched in his seat near his table.
A goblet dangling loosely from his fingers.
His face flushed.
Eyes half-lidded.
Drunk.
Lin Xuan stepped in without a sound, closing the door behind him just enough to leave a thin crack.
He remained near the shadows.
Unseen.
Listening.
Gao Wen muttered to himself.
Slurred.
Unrestrained.
"…bandits… hah… doing better work than half those useless dogs…"
He chuckled, taking another sip, spilling some wine onto his robes.
"Villages crying… running to the Lin Clan… begging for help…"
Another laugh.
Louder.
More unhinged.
"Let them deal with it… let them waste their strength…"
Lin Xuan's eyes narrowed slightly.
Gao Wen leaned back, staring at the ceiling.
His voice dropped into a conspiratorial murmur.
"Lin Qiming… that brat's got brains…"
"…funding the bandits… funding me…"
"…creating chaos…"
A pause.
A crooked grin spread across his face.
"While everyone's busy chasing bandits…"
"…his real business goes untouched…"
He raised his goblet slightly.
As if toasting an invisible ally.
"Smart… very smart…"
Lin Xuan stood in silence.
But inside—
Everything aligned.
The bandits.
The pressure on the outskirts.
His father being tied down.
The internal clan struggle.
It wasn't random.
It wasn't coincidence.
It was orchestrated.
"Lin Qiming…"
His grip on the blade tightened slightly.
Out of anger and clarity.
Anger because this was a rot withint the Lin Clan, possibly bigger than Lin Qiming; maybe even some elders. As Qiming alone couldn't possibly take care of this all.
Clarity because this now allowed Xuan to collect evidence and start some clean up in the near future, maybe also farm some coins and gather allies in the near future.
This was no longer just about a corrupt official.
This—
Was a move in a larger game. A game to keep the Lin clan blind from crucial spots, diverting their attention. To know more, he might need Gao Wen alive.
Gao Wen laughed again, completely unaware.
Completely exposed.
Lin Xuan took a step forward.
Silent.
Controlled.
"Have to subdue Gao Wen without alerting anybody. If not, eliminate."
His shadow stretched under the dim lanternlight.
Creeping.
Closing in.
The hunt—
Was about to end. Or was it?