Chapter 115: Amidst Ten Thousand Soldiers (1)

As the long strand of hair fluttered down, the courtyard was enveloped in a heavy silence. All eyes fixated on Wu Yuan, their bodies frozen in fear by the single stroke of his saber.

The branch master, who had appeared indifferent before, involuntarily flinched. He couldn’t hide the flicker of terror that surfaced in his eyes when he saw his own hair floating down.

Heavens! The branch master might not be a Savant expert, nor was he listed in the Human Rankings, but his true martial prowess placed him within the top 200-300. How else could he subdue a group of proud and fierce assassins?

But that saber slash was unbelievably fast. To put it bluntly, if Wu Yuan had intended to end his life just then, his head would already be rolling on the ground.

A full moment passed.

The branch master cleared his throat and forced himself to regain his composure, disguising his fear with laughter. "Senior Thousand Mountains, surely you jest. With your strength, of course you are capable of undertaking five-star tasks."

"Custodian, hand the mission archives to Senior Thousand Mountains." The branch master subconsciously started addressing him as 'Senior'.

This Shadow Blade was clearly much stronger than what the Human Rankings had indicated. Such a person couldn't possibly be just any bottom-tier Savant expert. Perhaps only 20 to 30 others possessed this level of strength throughout the entire Jiang Continent.

"Yes." A deep voice of an expert echoed in the courtyard.

Whoosh!

In a flash, he darted into a nearby chamber, swiftly retrieving a dossier and extending it to Wu Yuan.

"Senior, if you would kindly turn to the final page, you will find two five-star assignments." The branch master said softly, "Five-star tasks are rare. Firstly, few assassination targets are worthy of such a rating in the Jiang Continent. Secondly, the price is exorbitant and beyond the reach of ordinary factions and powers. And there is a time limit."

Wu Yuan nodded slightly, flipping the dossier directly to the last page. The descriptions of two five-star assignments were written here.

The first assignment:

Kill Wu Yuan, a sixteen-year-old disciple of the Cloudstride Sect's Cloud Martial Hall, ranked first on the Jiang Continent Genius Rankings. Expected to be a second-rate Adept. This mission is rated five stars.

Task Reward: Five million silver taels, or two and a half million merits.

Requirements: Must be killed before the Year 3226, September of the Eastern Martial calendar. All methods are acceptable as long as the target is killed!

At first glance, it appeared to be an easy task.

"Kill Wu Yuan?" Wu Yuan murmured, "This Wu Yuan, is he the same person who's been making waves in the Jiang Continent these past few years?"

"Yes, if you are familiar with his name, Senior, then you should understand how talented he is," the branch master nodded.

"His personal strength is negligible. However, he's currently cultivating on Cloudhill, under the protection of the Cloudstride Sect's stronghold. Infiltrating Cloudhill and eliminating him is an exceedingly challenging task. Even a first-rate Adept wouldn't necessarily succeed, hence it's a five-star mission," the branch master explained.

"I didn't expect this kid to be so valuable," Wu Yuan said mildly.

"The minimum reward for a five-star mission is one million silver taels. A reward of five million taels is indeed high," the branch master replied.

"However, your branch is located right here in Cloudhill City. You're rather bold to be posting such a mission. Aren't you afraid the Cloudstride Sect will pay you a visit?" Wu Yuan raised an eyebrow.

"Not at all! It's not just us, the Ninedeaths Circle also has this mission available. Even some second-rate underground organizations are secretly marking Wu Yuan," the branch master laughed, "Great Jin, the Wingborne Sect, and many other factions are all watching him."

"If he dies, the Cloudstride Sect will never be able to figure out who killed him," the branch master said. "In fact, Senior, if you took this assignment and it was completed by another organization, you can still collect the reward from us. After all, we have no means of verifying if you carried it out. As long as Wu Yuan is dead, the mission is deemed complete."

Wu Yuan nodded slightly. This was madness!

His gaze moved down, landing on the second mission.

In the Hillstride Province of Great Jin, near the Cloudhill Province, an elite force of 10,000 known as the Eastward Sixth Division is stationed. The commanding major general is Wang Xiaohe, a Savant expert. Your task is to eliminate him. This mission is rated five stars.

Mission Reward: Six million silver taels or three million merits.

Requirements: The target must be killed before Year 3226 June of the Eastern Martial calendar, by any means necessary.

"This target is interesting," Wu Yuan said quietly.

"Wang Xiaohe has held the rank of major general for some time. He only recently returned from his post at the Holy Capital of the Great Jin Empire this year. As he is not a native expert from the Jiang Continent, he does not appear on the Jiang Continent Human Rankings. His strength is estimated to lie somewhere between 60 and 90 on the ranking," the branch master roughly explained. "But his personal strength is of secondary importance; the key problem lies with the Sixth Division itself."

"It is one of the eight elite field divisions stationed in the Jiang Continent by the Great Jin Empire, composed solely of martial virtuosos and above. All sergeants and above are Adept experts!" the branch master exclaimed.

"Among the thousands of Adept experts are numerous second-rate and first-rate Adepts, and their military formation is tight. In fact, attempting to assassinate Wang Xiaohe within the ranks of this army would prove deadly even for Savant experts," the branch master cautioned.

Wu Yuan nodded slightly. The Sixth Division?

"I'll take the task of assassinating Wang Xiaohe," Wu Yuan calmly stated.

"Are you serious?" The branch master was shocked.

"Do I sound like I'm joking? I'm Thousand Mountains, when have I ever failed to complete an assignment?" Wu Yuan responded indifferently. "What, am I not allowed to take it?"

"Haha, of course you can take it," Branch Master Ma laughed. He then hesitated for a moment before slowly continuing, "However, Senior Thousand Mountains, speaking of missions, the assassination of the Bloodwolf Gang's leader, Blood Wolf Wu Shan, assigned to you over a year ago, seems to be incomplete."

Wu Yuan blinked in surprise. It had completely slipped his mind.

"I'm not blaming you, Senior," the branch master quickly added. "But the fact remains that you failed to complete the assassination mission within the designated time, incurring a deduction of the corresponding star points as per the rules."

"Go ahead and deduct them," Wu Yuan replied nonchalantly.

Star points? Wu Yuan couldn't care less about them. His ambition was not to become a six-star or seven-star assassin of the Pleiades Guild.

The branch master was slightly surprised at his indifference.

"Senior Thousand Mountains, would you like to receive the corresponding information?" Branch Master Ma inquired further. "The reward for this mission exceeds one million silver taels, but only a maximum deduction of 100,000 taels will be made upon completion."

For missions below five stars, the Pleiades Guild's intelligence division deducted one-tenth of the reward in exchange for detailed information. As for missions above five stars, a flat rate of 100,000 taels was deducted.

"Alright, provide me with a copy," Wu Yuan nodded, his tone cool. "However, if I find the information to be unworthy of its price, don't blame me for turning hostile."

"Senior is sure to find the information valuable," the branch master assured, signaling to his subordinates.

Two figures vanished into the building. This time the wait was longer, lasting a full quarter of an hour. Finally, a man emerged, holding a scroll. Wu Yuan accepted it from him.

"Now that we have finalized the mission, let's discuss the reward," Wu Yuan's gaze swept over the branch master, and then the numerous experts in the courtyard. "Is there anything here worth three million merits?"

This was no paltry 100,000 or 200,000 merits. Three million merits! For an underground organization, would they dare to store treasures worth millions of silver taels here? Even if they did, they'd most likely spread them out among various branches, avoiding the risk of putting all their eggs in one basket.

"It depends on what treasure Senior desires." Branch Master Ma said, "Most treasures are usually kept at the headquarters. Only after a mission is completed will we schedule a time for delivery.”

"50 drops of Ancient Immortal Dew," Wu Yuan said softly.

Branch master Ma's pupils contracted slightly.

"Within ten days, I will complete the mission." Wu Yuan said calmly, "Within two months, I shall return to turn in the mission. I hope that by the time I arrive, you will have prepared my reward. Don't disappoint me."

Whoosh!

Like a bolt of lightning, Wu Yuan shot out of the courtyard. In a few flashes, he disappeared without a trace.

All that remained was his parting warning, echoing in the courtyard, "If I am disappointed, the consequences will be severe.”

Even as the voice gradually faded away, the dozen experts in the courtyard looked at each other, none daring to speak first, for fear of angering their branch master.

After a moment of silence, Branch Master Ma slowly announced, "You may all leave for now."

"Understood!" Having received a pardon, the dozen experts of the Pleiades Guild scattered in all directions.

In an instant, Branch Master Ma found himself standing alone in the courtyard, surrounded by an eerie silence.

Soon, a figure emerged from the depths of the shadows. It was an old man, hunched over and clad in tattered garments, appearing no taller than 1.7 meters. His pitiful appearance resembled that of a beggar one might encounter on the streets.

"Senior Uncle." Branch Master Ma greeted him with respect.

"I am no match for him," the old man croaked, his voice hoarse.

Branch Master Ma's eyes widened in disbelief. "How can that be? Senior Uncle, aren't you 16th on the Human Rankings?"

This hunched old man was his main pillar of support at this continent-level branch of the Pleiades Guild. Without his backing, he would never have secured his position as branch master.

In Branch Master Ma's eyes, even the top ten experts on the Human Rankings would struggle to survive against his Senior Uncle. That was because this hunched old man was none other than an infamous assassin, capable of instilling fear in the hearts of countless experts on the Jiang Continent.