The first thing that Xia Tian did after barging into Shadow’s room was to check whether or not there were any surveillance cameras. Usually, karaoke houses like the one he was currently in would not install surveillance cameras within the rooms or its corridors, and the only place where these cameras would be set up was the grand lobby downstairs.

In a way, this was done for the sake of those who did not want to draw attention to themselves and for those who did not wish to leave any traces of where they had been.

Shadow had recognized Xia Tian at first glance as he had already memorized Xia Tian and Lin Bingbing’s faces during his time at the bar. He had originally thought that he had shaken Xia Tian off, and as such, his appearance now was a surprise for him.

“And who are you supposed to be? We have laws, you know. What exactly are you up to?” Shadow did not intend on exposing his identity.

“I’m here to murder you, that’s all.” Upon stating his intentions, Xia Tian immediately activated his Unrestrained Cloud Sage Step and appeared beside Shadow. Xia Tian did not intend to waste any time. He wanted to finish off Shadow as quick as he could.

“You really are a pro.” Shadow knew that he was at a disadvantage once he saw Xia Tian’s actions. He had not expected him to be this adept.

There was no time for Shadow to retaliate as he had already lost the opportunity to strike first. He hastily did a barrel roll and avoided Xia Tian’s blow. However, it was at this moment that he felt as if there was a pair of monster eyes barrelling down on him.

Xia Tian’s eyes and hands moved quickly. He held out two of his fingers and struck them hard on Shadow’s body. With that single strike, Shadow instantly lost all ability to resist.

Xia Tian did not stop there. Instead, he increased his speed, and in a blink of an eye he assaulted thirty-six acupoints on Shadow’s body. With power coursing through his hands, Xia Tian twisted Shadow’s head until it snapped. He had committed his first murder.

There was no feeling of nausea, nor was there any feeling of discomfort. After all, he considered Shadow as someone that he had to kill, as it was the only way to protect those he cared for.

“It seems that my abilities have improved quite a bit these past two days.” Xia Tian nodded his head in satisfaction. Shadow’s strength was not all that different from his previous assailants. Back then, Xia Tian needed to put in a tremendous amount of effort to deal with them, but now, defeating someone like Shadow was a breeze.

Frankly speaking, Shadow was not by any measures could not be said to be a weak person. Since he was a killer, the skills he nurtured were related to the art of assassination. While he was amazing at being a silent killer, the same could not be said about his abilities in a direct confrontation.

This was the main reason that Xia Tian was able to easily defeat Shadow.

After killing the assassinShadow, Xia Tian directed his gaze at the package on the sofa.

“There’re probably some weapons inside. Let’s see what heat this guy’s packing,” said Xia Tian as he set his sights on the package. Shadow was extremely cautious, and no matter which city he appeared in, he would first transport his equipment there. Then, he would enter a transaction center, such as the bar from earlier to get his equipment back.

However, things would become more complicated should the equipment include guns, bombs, or any other things of the sort.

Due to this, the members of Quicksand rarely used guns.

Upon opening the package, Xia Tian was greeted with a dagger. Its handle was green in color, and the words ‘Emerald Cloud’ were inscribed on the blade. The blade was exceedingly sharp — even a strand of hair would be split in two if it were to land on the dagger.

“Neat, I’m taking this for myself.” Xia Tian hid the dagger beside his shoe and later used his pants to obscure it.

Following that, heXia Tian placed Shadow onto the sofa. With the package in his hand, Xia Tian then left the room and tossed the package into the nearest trash can.

Upon exiting the karaoke house, Xia Tian encountered Lin Bingbing by chance.

“Aunty Ye’s telling us to leave this place. She wants us to avoid revealing ourselves.”

“Alright.” Xia Tian nodded his head.

“I really appreciate your help today. I promise I’ll return your money in the future.” Lin Bingbing was beyond ecstatic at the moment as she had aced her test. From that point onward, she would be part of the Special Task Force.

“Congratulations!” After saying farewell to Lin Bingbing, Xia Tian took out his handphone.

“Xia Tian here.” Xia Tian had contacted Ceng Rou.

“Xia Tian!” Ceng Rou’s excited voice rang out from the phone. She had not been sleeping well the past few days, and ever since she left Xia Tian’s side, her head was filled with thoughts about him. She was of the notion that the only way she could sleep well was with him by her side.

“Yeah, it’s me. You’ve been in a lot of danger lately. It seems that somebody wants you dead. I just dealt with their hitman.”

“A hitman? Where? Do you need a lift?” asked Ceng Rou.

“Hmm, sounds good. I’ll be waiting for you at the roadside next to Bar Street.” Xia Tian paused momentarily before giving his reply.

“I’ll be there in a jiff.” Ceng Rou enthusiastically ran down the stairs.

Xia Tian was currently standing by the roadside and was feeling exceedingly bored. As such, he began observing the people around him. While plenty were here to seek joy, there were also some who were present to carry out shadier activities.

Naturally, there were also drug dealers present. Many of the unemployed turned to peddling drugs as their means of income, and plenty of them were operating within the karaoke houses and bars.

Although Xia Tian could report these people to the police, he had chosen not to do so. After all, sending these people to prison was meaningless as they were only the drug mules. Even if they were apprehended, a new batch would arrive in no time. If he wanted to eradicate the drug operation as a whole, he had to first seek the source of the drugs.

Brawls were commonplace in the area, just like the one taking place in front of Xia Tian at the moment. A couple of unemployed people were beating down on a teenager. Once the teen was pushed on the ground, he immediately brought up his hands to protect his head. The gangsters began kicking the teen’s body instead.

After enduring the hits for several moments, the teen rapidly shot up and began biting down on one of the gangster’s ears.

“Ahhhhh!” A wail of agony thundered from the gangster, whereas the teen’s mouth was filled with blood.

“Let go! Let go!” The other unemployed person doubled down on the beating.

Fresh blood splattered on the ground, and despite the crimson pool flooding everyone’s vision, the teen did not let go.

‘Vicious. This guy is goddamn vicious.’ That was the impression that the teen had left on Xia Tian.

Xia Tian approached the gangsters. As he stood before them, he launched a kick at each of them, whereas the teen laid in exhaustion on the ground, taking in deep breaths.

“Can you still stand?” Xia Tian asked the teen.

“Hmph.” The teen snorted coldly, and as he bore the excruciating pain, he made it onto his feet.

“Why fight with these people?” questioned Xia Tian.

“They stole my girlfriend,” the teen spat.

“Did your girlfriend go willingly with them?” continued Xia Tian.

“Yes.” The teen did not attempt to explain.

“Very well, if you don’t want to be bullied, you need to make yourself stronger than other people. If you don’t want to be abandoned by your girlfriend, you need to make it so that she has nothing she can complain about,” said Xia Tian as he turned around to leave.

Crash!

The teen knelt behind Xia Tian. “Please, take me as your apprentice! I know that you’re not just an amateur!”

“Would you give up your life for that?” Xia Tian turned around to look at the teen.

“I have no family; dying was never something I was afraid of.” The teen had a look of determination in his eyes.

“What’s your name?”

“Gao Fei.”

“Good, give this person a call and tell them that Xia Tian sent you. You can call the person Elder Xu.” With that, Xia Tian left.