“Why?” Xu Bin felt his father was being overly stubborn; the current situation had reached a point of absolute necessity.

Xu Ling paced back and forth a few times, his expression troubled. The deep seriousness in his demeanor suggested that the matter was far more complicated than it appeared.

“Father!”

“This isn’t that simple!” Xu Ling felt an increasing sense of unease. He glanced at the middle-aged man and asked, “Is the Dragon Lord of the Black God Gang’s objective truly just the betrayal of the Lese family?”

“Huh?” The middle-aged man froze, seemingly unsure what Xu Ling was implying.

“Haven’t they made any other moves? Such as attacking us here!” Xu Ling looked at the middle-aged man with a grim expression and pressed.

“No!” The middle-aged man flinched from Xu Ling’s dark gaze, trembling inwardly.

Xu Ling was, after all, a leading figure in the world of assassins. Though his cultivation level was only that of a Yellow Rank Grandmaster, the oppressive aura he exuded made the middle-aged man feel intensely stifled. Regardless of Xu Ling's background as an assassin, his years spent in a position of authority undeniably stripped the middle-aged man of any thought of resistance.

“Father, are you implying that the Black God Gang’s Dragon Lord coming to Britain this time might not just be about the Lese family, but that we are his actual target?” Xu Bin’s face shifted as he asked.

“I’m afraid it’s even worse than that.” Xu Ling took a deep breath and continued, “It’s possible we are being used by others.”

“Used by others?” Xu Bin frowned, looking utterly perplexed.

“It seems the mysterious person who offered that sky-high price must be from the Mafia. I harbored suspicions before, but everything that has happened now forces me to believe we are truly being manipulated. If things go badly, our Weeping Blood Assassin Guild might vanish from the world rankings.”

Just as Xu Ling finished speaking, a young man dressed in black entered from the doorway. With an icy expression, he approached Xu Ling and quickly reported, “Master, something terrible has happened.”

“What is it?” Xu Ling was already burning with anxiety, and this sudden news of disaster sent his heart into utter turmoil.

“A large group of people seems to have suddenly appeared outside our base. And according to the scouts outside, they are all armed Chinese men in black.” The youth stated.

“What?” This time, it wasn't Xu Ling who exclaimed loudly, but Xu Bin beside him. “Roughly how many?”

“Around three thousand.”

“It’s over, it’s over…” Hearing that number, Xu Ling’s heart jolted. He seemed to know exactly who those people outside were, as the Mafia had no Chinese members.

“Father, the people outside must really be from the Black God Gang!” Xu Bin felt a pang of regret. When he first learned Yang Yi was involved in the underworld, he knew a day like this might come, as dabbling in the assassin world was a completely different concept from the dark streets.

“We’re actually lucky this time. If the Mafia forces came over, I suspect…” Xu Ling seemed to have already prepared for the worst-case scenario.

He realized that once he considered the high bidder was Mafia, if his side failed the mission, they would inevitably come to settle the score. The current strength of the Weeping Blood Assassin Guild was no match for the Mafia. They would surely fall into the Mafia’s hands, and then the Mafia would probably offer them some ridiculous condition—like attacking the Lese family to kill the Black God Gang’s Dragon Lord.

In that event, it was certain the Weeping Blood Assassin Guild would be wiped from the global rankings. Furthermore, the Mafia could use them as a pawn to stall the Black God Gang and the Lese family, allowing the Mafia to reap the benefits—a consequence too dreadful to contemplate. Because of this, Xu Ling let out a sigh from the bottom of his heart. Since he knew the people outside were Chinese, it meant the Black God Gang had moved before the Mafia.

This realization gave him a sliver of hope for survival. If they had been entirely used by the Mafia, it meant his people were essentially marching toward a baptism of death. Xu Bin, observing his father’s rapidly changing expression, watched as his usual frivolous demeanor vanished. He hurriedly asked, “Father, what do we do now?”

“It’s still manageable for now, alas—!” Xu Ling sighed mournfully.

“Manageable?”

Seeing his son’s confused look, Xu Ling explained, “Those people outside probably won’t harm us!”

“Why?” Xu Bin certainly didn't think so. In his mind, underworld figures either sought revenge for every slight or enjoyed playing dangerous games. He couldn't believe his father’s words.

“Heh heh.” Xu Ling gave a somewhat desolate laugh, his figure suddenly becoming elusive. “This time, we’ve played a trick on the Mafia. They wanted my Weeping Blood Assassin Guild to be their tools? Hmph, those foreign devils wish!”

#########################################

Just as the Weeping Blood Assassin Guild base was bracing for an imminent confrontation, elsewhere, a seductive and alluring woman’s eyes released a potent, mesmerizing charm. Her hands continuously kneaded the chest of a nearly bald, dark-skinned man who sat with his eyes lightly closed. Although something substantial was pressing against her lower body, she seemed utterly unconcerned.

She lowered her head, a subtle shadow lingering on her lips. With slightly parted crimson lips, she kissed the bald black man’s neck. This man, named Harley, was exceedingly corpulent and completely bald. He kept gyrating his hips, seemingly reveling in the intense pleasure.

Perhaps because of this, he failed to notice the small shard of a razor blade that suddenly appeared between his lips and hers. His eyes sharpened, and he gritted his teeth. As her kiss reached his Adam's apple, she suddenly spat out the blade and pulled it across in one swift motion—shhhk! A crimson line sprayed forth.

“Ah!” Harley cried out in alarm, shaking violently as he shoved the woman away. He clutched his neck, staring at the woman with disbelief, but the warmth of the blood welling up around his Adam's apple told him that death was fast approaching to claim him.

The woman showed no hesitation. As soon as Harley pushed her to the ground, she instantly snatched the fruit knife that had scattered nearby and lunged forward, stabbing him.

Thwack! Harley’s plump body spewed another jet of crimson, and he crumpled to the floor.

Meanwhile, something similar was happening on the other side, though Harley seemed less foolish than an individual named Hard. Hard had only sustained minor injuries; his Adam's apple had been nicked slightly, but not as severely as Harley’s. This indicated that Hard indeed possessed a greater tolerance for pain.

“Damn bitch, who the hell are you, trying to assassinate me?” Hard roared, immediately reaching for a nearby chair to smash down on the woman.

However, the assassins dispatched under Yang Yi’s orders and recommended by Simark were hardly commoners. This woman’s eyes flashed with a chilling light. She dodged Hard’s attack, snatching a shard from the shattered fruit plate lying on the ground, and immediately thrust forward. How sharp were those fragments of porcelain! She slashed Hard across the stomach.

Hiss! Blood suddenly erupted. Though not a major wound, it was enough to elicit a howl of agony from Hard.

“Bitch, I’m going to kill you!” Ignoring his bleeding, Hard lunged forward to grab the woman, his hands clamping around her throat and squeezing instantly.

“Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough, cough!” The woman gasped desperately for air, finding her breath momentarily choked off. Yet, her limbs did not flail wildly; instead, she maintained a firm grip on the shard and slashed it across Hard’s neck.

“You…” Hard couldn’t believe that this seductive and voluptuous woman could remain so composed under threat. And that he, himself, had been so careless. His death was unfolding with unnerving tranquility.

Cough, cough, cough. After Hard released her, the woman coughed for a moment. Once she confirmed Hard was dead, she immediately ran to the window and raised three fingers, waving them toward the distance.

“It seems they have all succeeded. Launch the offensive immediately. We need to secure all the territories originally belonging to the Lese family before nightfall,” Simark commanded loudly to the several Lese family elders after lowering his binoculars and seeing the hands raised by the two women.

“Yes!” The elders responded, their faces alight with excitement as they rushed toward their designated targets.

Simark, however, felt a deep admiration for Yang Yi in his heart. With Hard and Harley neutralized, those rebellious factions were like scattered sand. Although there would be casualties, the matter of quelling the Lese family’s rebellion could be settled quickly.

“Young Master, the Black God Gang’s Dragon Lord is truly formidable. With this move, we…” The bald man, Rn, did not finish his sentence, for he noticed Simark’s smile, which seemed to convey the entire answer. Rn merely offered a faint grin in return.