Temple battle commenced head-on. If one Yang Ying could defeat Talin, let alone add the Blade Emperor—the Blade Emperor’s combat instincts surpassed Yang Ying’s human form by far. A few moves were all it took to send Talin reeling, taking repeated strikes.

Talin tried to flee, but the millions of tons of seawater pressing down from above shackled everyone’s movement. Simply resisting the boundless pressure demanded a massive expenditure of psychic energy; he couldn't escape far even if he wanted to. Even utilizing Suodi (Ground Shrinkage), his speed had slowed to an unbearable degree.

Yang Ying’s psychic power was deeper than Talin’s, as was the Blade Emperor’s. In the deep sea, these advantages magnified greatly, allowing Yang Ying to maneuver with far greater ease than Talin.

Unable to fight effectively and incapable of escaping, after dozens of exchanges, Talin’s defenses were breached by Yang Ying and the Blade Emperor; his limbs were severed, reducing him to a human stump!

Yang Ying and the two Blade Emperors immediately advanced. First, they used the Great Vortex Technique to immobilize him, followed by an imposition of mental control. Yang Ying mused internally, "Now, let's see if I can control you too. If so, you know, you’ll be worth far more than those four Level Threes."

Yang Ying and the Blade Emperors shared a psychic bond; the three streams of power originated from one source, coordinating seamlessly. They quickly shattered Talin’s mental defenses and surged toward his core.

"To dare use such a method to control me, it's utterly despicable! Don't even dream of succeeding." Though Talin could not move, his core ideology remained stubbornly fixed; under the force of the mental control, he showed no sign of surrender.

"You, a killer who has murdered countless souls, utilizing every conceivable foul tactic, dare lecture me on baseness!" Yang Ying directed the three streams of psychic power to continue their penetration.

"Stop! If you persist in trying to control me, I will ignite my soul and render all your efforts void!" Talin’s enraged voice echoed in Yang Ying’s mind.

But Yang Ying deemed the man worthless of life and responded without hesitation, "Void it is, then. Killing you achieves the same result. You dare use your own life to threaten me? Do you truly believe I value your paltry existence?"

At this moment, the other four Blade Emperors had finished their tasks. Three of the four Level Three killers had been successfully controlled, but the last one had employed a secret technique, annihilating his own soul and leaving behind only an empty shell, thus frustrating the control attempt.

The four Blade Emperors, now free, also drove their mental control deep into Talin’s mind to assist. The combined power of seven streams of psychic energy instantly multiplied the force of the infiltration, shaking Talin's will.

Talin watched as the seven streams eroded his mind, his soul defenses collapsing in rapid succession. Knowing escape was impossible, he said no more. A silver-white flame erupted from his mind, rapidly burning outward, quickly engulfing his entire body and turning him into a silver torch.

Yang Ying felt the silver flame scorch his own psychic energy—a searing sensation like Talin’s dying resentment, filled with hatred and vengeance. He immediately retracted the psychic energy used for control, but the silver flame clung like toffee, seemingly attempting to follow the receding energy back into his body, shadowing him closely. Yang Ying frowned, instantly severing the connection before feeling some relief. The six Blade Emperors experienced the same sensation.

"Burning the soul, indeed, the resentment runs deep."

This immolation cost Yang Ying and the six Blade Emperors half their psychic strength, though the core foundation remained unharmed. A few days of deep meditation would restore them. Furthermore, Yang Ying’s psychic reserves could be redistributed between his main body and his avatars. After recalling the six Blade Emperors, Yang Ying willed it, drawing in an equivalent amount of power, restoring his own strength to the peak of Level Three.

Thus, the great battle concluded with a decisive victory for Yang Ying’s side. Not only was the enemy entirely wiped out, but they had also gained three new Level Three killer subordinates, with an entire killer organization now within their grasp—a substantial harvest.

"Woringas, let's go," Yang Ying told Woringas, and began ascending.

"Yes," Woringas immediately followed.

During the ascent, a scene flashed through Yang Ying's mind—it had been released when the seven streams of psychic power agitated Talin’s psyche, and Yang Ying had glimpsed it.

The scene took place in a sterile chamber. Talin lay in a medical pod, his body surrounded by nutrient fluid filled with medication, as he guided the medicinal properties with his own psychic energy to repair his damaged fingers and liver.

This scene clearly took place on Vida Star, following their first confrontation.

After a long while, all injuries were fully mended. The fingers and liver had regrown perfectly, and even the skin was flawlessly repaired, leaving not a single scar.

He expelled the nutrient fluid, opened the medical pod, and donned an outer robe. At that moment, a person dressed entirely in black, who looked utterly insignificant at first glance, approached and said, "Lord Talin, the Employer has sent a communication; they wish to speak with you."

Talin frowned, "Accept it."

The subordinate manipulated a few controls.

A six-sided holographic screen materialized before Talin. On the screen was a Flyn person, poorly dressed, his slender body covered in fine green scales. He appeared young, but his face was exceptionally aloof, as if everyone owed him money.

"I have heard about the matters on Vida Star. Who would have thought? The great Talin, ranked fourth among the Ten Great Assassins of the Orion Arm, couldn't even kill a mere young girl." The young Flyn man made no effort to hide his dissatisfaction with Talin.

"Hmph," a murderous glint flashed in Talin’s eyes. "You wet-behind-the-ears whelp. It's not for you to lecture me, Talin. The target this time was guarded by an unexpectedly powerful expert whom your intelligence completely failed to mention. That’s how she escaped this time. Next time I strike, I will certainly eliminate her."

"Hmph, that expert wasn't with Princess Haffen at all. Of course, that detail wasn't in our intelligence!" the young Flyn stated. "According to our latest intel, this supposed expert is the leader of a newly established mercenary group. The group registered shortly before your assassination attempt. Because the leader was a Peak Level Three expert, they were instantly promoted three levels. Princess Haffen must have sought them out for reinforcements, only for you to run into them coincidentally. I hear negotiations between him and the Princess have broken down, and they have parted ways."

"So, you mean when we next try to assassinate that Princess, it will be effortless, won't it?" Talin snorted. "You fellow, did you initiate this communication just to spout such nonsense? If so, I won't waste any more time with you." With that, he moved to close the communicator.

"Wait!" the young Flyn stopped him. "I didn't contact you just to talk about that. There is a new commission."

"What commission?" Talin paused his hand before the communicator.

"That troublesome mercenary leader who injured you. If I asked you to kill him, could you do it?" the young Flyn asked, his eyes intensely focused. To converse with a Peak Master and killer like this, the young man was clearly no ordinary figure.

"Hmm?" Talin narrowed his eyes. "Although he is a Peak Level Three, if I decide to kill him, I certainly can. Are you serious?"

"Of course, I am serious," the young Flyn replied without hesitation.

"Very well, I accept this commission. I will definitely kill him and bring you his head as proof," Talin declared, slapping the table to finalize the deal.

"Heh heh, I knew Lord Talin wouldn't refuse a chance to regain his honor." The young Flyn smiled, then added, "Lord Talin, don't you find it strange why we want him dead? He has already parted ways with Princess Haffen."

"If I find it strange, will you tell me?" Talin asked coolly.

"Of course, I will!" the young Flyn shrugged. "Protecting the identity of the Employer and respecting the privacy of the commission are rules of the assassination trade. As a King of Assassins, Lord Talin surely knows this perfectly well. It's the very foundation upon which a killer organization survives."

"You don't need to remind me," Talin replied. "Besides adding this commission, is there anything else?"

"Nothing else. I wish Lord Talin a smooth journey and success in obtaining that man's head for me to see," the young Flyn smiled faintly and closed the holographic screen.

"Talin came to kill me not just for personal revenge; there was also a commission from the Flyn people. Why?" Yang Ying pondered as he ascended. "That young Flyn must be from the Flyn Republic. Since he already knew I had separated from Princess Haffen, yet still wants me dead, it strongly suggests it’s not due to the Flyn internal strife. But if not that, what other reason could there be?"

After thinking for a long time without finding an answer, a flash of inspiration struck him just as he neared the surface: "Right, the Flyn Republic is backed by the Kustar. If it's unrelated to the Flyn internal conflict, it's likely connected to the Kustar. The Kustar know the name of the Tran Mercenaries and have been intensely interested in how we killed Hardek. Last time, they sent Longe to the Solar System to probe us to no avail. This time, they use Talin to test the waters. They would absolutely pull a stunt like this!"

Although he lacked concrete proof, Yang Ying believed this possibility was the highest.

"Talin had two qualifications: first, his strength—he was even stronger than Longe. Second, if the matter was exposed, the two layers of insulation provided by the Flyn Republic and the assassin organization would allow the Kustar to hide behind the scenes. If this stroke of luck hadn't occurred, allowing me to directly obtain the truth from Talin’s mind, I might never have known there was an Employer behind his assassination attempt. If I were a Kustar, presented with this opportunity, I would employ this very tactic. These beings, whose very brains are made of rock, I don't provoke them, yet they keep coming to my door. Do they take me for a pushover!"