Chapter 84: The Assassin

Li Huan, Sun Feifei, and Li Ruotong discussed it briefly. By then it was about ten o'clock, and none of them felt like staying any longer to take part in the auction. They all rose and prepared to leave.

Su Ci was not especially close to Li Huan and the others, and since her parents were still here, she naturally could not leave with them. After saying goodbye, she returned to her seat. As for Fei Lengcui, it seemed she intended to stay a while longer, but when she saw Li Huan about to go, she lifted her head almost absentmindedly and met his eyes.

Li Huan felt a little awkward. It seemed he had infuriated this woman badly last time. Later, when they met again at the bar, her words had been full of barbed irony, and today, in front of Li Ruotong and Sun Feifei, she had openly expressed her displeasure.

"Goodbye." Li Huan always felt that this woman seemed to be deliberately targeting him. From their very first meeting outside, listening to her strange remarks, he had found it all rather baffling, and faintly sensed that there ought to be some uncertain connection between them. He just did not yet understand what it was.

Fei Lengcui rarely responded, but this time she nodded and, after a moment's frown, said, "The bald giant has been discharged."

Li Huan turned back and looked at her. There was still no great change in her expression; she simply set down her cup and said faintly, "Be careful. If you run into trouble, you can come to me."

For that unexpected olive branch, Li Huan was still a little unable to make sense of her intentions. He did not refuse, nor did he agree. He only thanked her and said, "Thanks for the warning. We'll be careful."

After walking out of the Emperor Building, he looked at the neon lights flashing outside and the traffic streaming endlessly along the road. Though the city was still prosperous, it seemed a little more real. Yet merely separated by one building, the inside and outside were like two different worlds, with a clear dividing line. That one name alone seemed to possess some invisible resistance, forever excluding most people in the city, while the luxury cars parked nearby proclaimed the wealth and status of those inside. Most of the people outside might never have the chance to step through those doors in their entire lives.

Once they had left the Emperor Building, Li Ruotong had no reason to keep monopolizing Li Huan as her boyfriend anymore. In truth, she had never really intended to do so. Still, if she truly had to pick one person to pretend to be her boyfriend, the first one she would think of in her mind was probably still Li Huan.

"Feifei, sleep with me tonight," Li Ruotong invited Sun Feifei in front of Li Huan.

Two such stunning women sleeping in the same bed—if by chance they both liked sleeping naked, what kind of intoxicating and alluring scene would that be?

Li Huan could not imagine it, but it would certainly be the most thrilling sensual delight in the world. Unfortunately, Li Ruotong had not invited him to share the bed with them, and that made Li Huan feel most wronged.

"Mm, okay." Sun Feifei did not mind. She nodded and agreed. She had a great many things she wanted to ask Li Ruotong anyway, and this was the perfect chance to do it at night, or she would not have been able to rest easy.

Li Ruotong and Sun Feifei were both so clever, and as best friends, they naturally had an excellent understanding of one another. So the only abandoned one was Li Huan, who had no choice but to leave alone. Fortunately, Sun Feifei generously let him take the car, so he did not need to hail a taxi himself.

Watching Li Ruotong's Bentley drive away, Li Huan also started his car and left the parking lot. If it were an ordinary day, driving a convertible BMW, he might have been unable to resist taking a lap through the city's most bustling district. Even if he failed to pick up any girls, he could at least enjoy envying other people. But tonight he was not in the mood. He needed to hurry back and complete the transformation into the glamorous older woman so that he could make use of the skill that enhanced his strength.

By the time he got back to the residential complex where his apartment was, it was nearly eleven. Li Huan carefully parked the car, checked his surroundings, and only then did he feel slightly relieved. The car was expensive—though it could not compare to Fei Lengcui's or Li Ruotong's, it still cost nearly a million.

There was no parking garage in the complex. The open space in front of the building had been simply divided into a few parking spots. Li Huan jumped out of the car and turned toward the stairwell, but the instant one foot stepped inside, an ominous premonition suddenly exploded in his chest.

Li Huan could not help frowning. After the briefest surprise, he suddenly felt a cold gust sweeping toward the back of his head. He was startled and immediately lowered his body, while at the same time driving his elbow hard backward.

A hard, rough palm blocked his elbow and shoved forcefully. Li Huan's half-crouched body staggered, almost toppling to the ground. Luckily, his other hand struck out in time against the floor. He did not care whether the stairwell floor was clean or not. He rolled on the spot, flipped aside, pressed his back against the wall, and with a sudden burst of force rushed out of the narrow stairwell.

A master?

As soon as Li Huan steadied himself, that thought leapt into his mind. The edge of that man's palm had just swept across the back of his head, carrying a fierce killing intent. Had he been struck, he would likely already have been knocked senseless.

The stairwell was narrow and dark. Li Huan naturally dared not remain inside to be trapped. If the other party really was a master, then with his present ability he might not be a match. Thinking of this, Li Huan could not help regretting it. If only he had done a flashy transformation into the older woman inside the car first. After all, no one would have been able to recognize him.

Three or four meters diagonally opposite him, a tall man's shadow blocked the stairwell entrance. The dim light in the residential compound stretched his figure long. Yet the bulb in the stairwell had long since broken, and his shadow vanished just short of the floor. In the eerie atmosphere, he looked chillingly sinister.

"Who are you?" Li Huan blurted out. Though he did not know the man's identity, he could more or less guess. In Zhonghai, the only people he had offended were Boss Dog and the bald giant. As for Gu Zexi, Li Huan did not think he could find a master to come after him in such a short time.

"Take money from someone, do their bidding." The man in black wore a baseball cap, making it hard to see the contours of his face beneath the brim, but from his voice he did not seem very old—probably only twenty-five or twenty-six. "Someone hired me to take you out, so don't waste breath. If you have any last wish before you die, maybe I can help you with it."

Li Huan was slightly taken aback. He had already guessed this fellow was most likely an assassin hired by either Boss Dog or the bald giant, but this was the first time he had ever heard of a killer agreeing to fulfill one last wish for his target before killing him. That was indeed a strange tale.

"Really? That's a rare one." Li Huan naturally did not quite believe him, but since the other man was an assassin, there was no need for him to say such things just to deceive him. That would only waste his own time.

The black-clad assassin shook his head. "That's my principle. One life for one wish. You'd better think of a wish I can actually help with."

"All right. In that case, my wish is for you, brother, to let me go. Murder is against the law. You ought to lay down your butcher's knife and become a Buddha on the spot!" Li Huan glanced around. The residential compound was still fairly open. Ahead was a small garden, and if he broke straight through it, he could reach the security booth in a minute.

"There is another line: after becoming a Buddha, take up the butcher's knife again." Since you won't cooperate, forget it. Killing you will count as fulfilling someone else's wish." The man in black sneered, reached out to grab, and hurled himself forward.

His dark skin gleamed with a sinister luster under the lights. The veins on his arm bulged out in knots, and the strength in that arm erupted with terrifying force, sending a tremor through the air around him as though it were being scattered apart by the power contained in his limb.

Li Huan's expression changed drastically. He hastily retreated two steps, only to realize there was no chance to escape at all. With that speed and power, the instant he turned around he would likely be struck down at once.

Five fingers shaped like claws, nails sharp and triangular, the tips glinting coldly—a natural weapon.

In his haste, Li Huan caught a glimpse of them and could not help sucking in a sharp breath. Escaping at this moment was simply impossible. He could only fight.

A true master possessed such a powerful aura that even without making a move, people could feel how different he was. Li Huan knew this all too well. Ever since childhood he had been exposed to Chinese martial arts, and he had a deep understanding of such things. When this man had first launched a sneak attack at the back of his head, that force alone had already put Li Huan on full alert.

Now, watching the sharp claws reach for his face, Li Huan's temper flared. He bellowed and thrust one hand upward to block the assassin's clawed hand, while his other hand went straight for the throat.

After all, Li Huan had solid martial foundations. Although some of his most lethal techniques had not been practiced to perfection, they still had a certain level of power. Moreover, because of the super transformation system, his bodily functions had recently changed. His tendons, bones, muscles, and latent physical capabilities were all being gradually developed—only he had never put them to the test, and so he was not fully aware of it himself.

The moment he unleashed this move, even he was startled. In ordinary circumstances, he could never have achieved such swift counterattack and coordination. After all, one hand had to ward off the attack of those sharp nails, while the other had to go directly to the fatal spot at the throat. That was naturally the most heavily guarded area; only when there was a vast gap in strength between the two sides could one strike succeed.

But Li Huan felt as though the power inside him had suddenly burst forth. Though the increase was not enormous, it was still enough to shock him greatly.

Even the black-clad assassin had not expected Li Huan to be so skillful. He had originally thought him merely a tough fighter, but this simple killing move nearly made him suffer a silent loss.

His left hand flipped upward, blocking in front of his throat, fingers clawed as he caught Li Huan's wrist and twisted. At the same time, his right foot lashed out, and a sharpened point thrust upward before stabbing fiercely toward Li Huan's chest.