Watching the massive iron seal draw ever nearer, the cornered assassin let out a cold snort, driving his Innate True Qi into a frenzy. A curved saber materialized in his hand, and powered by the Innate True Qi, it radiated sharp streams of saber energy as he cleaved with full force at the black iron seal descending from above...

"Sssshhh..." The piercing saber energy struck the black iron seal but failed to scratch it in the slightest; instead, it only accelerated its downward momentum...

"Clang..." Assassin A's curved saber slammed hard into the iron seal. Instantly, the saber shattered inch by inch, and the immense recoil violently fractured the entire gripping hand of Assassin A, tearing his Tiger's Mouth wide open...

Before Assassin A could utter a scream, the Earth-Shaking Seal, now mere yards away, descended upon his head...

With a soft thud, his entire head exploded, spraying white brain matter everywhere...

But the Earth-Shaking Seal did not stop there; it continued to press down fiercely, flattening him completely beneath it. All that could be heard were sickening crunching sounds—the relentless breaking of bone...

In the dead silence of that black night, such sounds were terrifyingly stark, unbearably jarring...

Ye Jingyu, meanwhile, had already reached the other assassin. Without a word, he abruptly extended two fingers, and a stream of pure energy shot through the air, piercing directly through the man's Innate Protective Aura and sinking into his back...

It was the Spiritual Resonance Sword Finger, taught to him by the little figure...

The last remaining man, having watched Ye Jingyu instantly dispatch his two companions, was utterly terrified, his soul scattered. The intelligence report claimed this Ye Jingyu was, at most, a slightly troublesome Innate Master—how could he possess the ability to kill Innate Masters in an instant?

Furthermore, the Soul Artifact he had just deployed had profoundly shaken this assassin...

Soul Masters were rare enough; Soul Masters possessing a Soul Artifact were rarer still. And this was a Profound-Tier Soul Artifact; these assassins might never have even heard of such a thing, much less witnessed one. Now, however, the terrifying pressure of the artifact had stripped him of any will to resist...

All that remained in his mind was the desperate need to flee—to get as far away as possible...

Seeing the man speed away, a cold smirk touched the corner of Ye Jingyu's lips. He moved his feet, and his figure blurred as he swept toward the fugitive. The last one could not be killed entirely; a living witness had to be kept, after all?

Therefore, he did not summon the Earth-Shaking Seal again, nor did he employ the Spiritual Resonance Sword Finger. He simply pursued at full speed. His cultivation had already reached the fifth level; he required no True Qi to activate his movement. Each stride covered more than ten meters—a speed no slower than the fleeing assassin at his maximum lightness skill...

Watching Ye Jingyu eliminate three Innate Masters with casual ease, Qin Yuting was completely stunned. Although she had always known Ye Jingyu had become a paramount figure among the younger generation, no longer the spoiled fop of the past, she had never imagined his power had reached such a terrifying height?

Innate Martial Masters were not common cabbage to be plucked at will. Even she, after so many years, had failed to breach the Innate Realm. Yet, in just one year, he had grown to this extent. How could Qin Yuting not be deeply alarmed?

Gazing at Ye Jingyu chasing the assassin, Qin Yuting suddenly felt the distance between them growing impossibly vast, feeling that they were becoming strangers to one another...

Or perhaps, they had always been strangers?

With a soft sigh, she turned to leave, only to find a figure standing before her, seemingly appearing from nowhere...

Meanwhile, Ye Jingyu relentlessly pursued the fleeing assassin, sprinting wildly through the black night. With his current skill, unless he encountered those ancient, monstrous powerhouses, he had nothing to worry about. Even if he were outmatched, possessing the Profound-Tier Soul Artifact, the "Earth-Shaking Seal," was more than enough to ensure his escape...

Thus, he harbored no concern about being lured into an ambush...

The assassin ahead was named Feiyu. Now in his forties, he had entered the Innate Realm a decade ago, possessing vast reserves of True Qi. He had always considered himself among the top tier of Innate Masters. But after witnessing Ye Jingyu casually eliminate three of his comrades in quick succession, a deep sense of dread had taken root. He initially hoped to rely on his rich supply of True Qi to outlast the pursuer, but as his Qi depleted, he dimly realized that his opponent seemed utterly untiring, his speed actually increasing...

Knowing that continuing this way meant he would inevitably be overtaken—at which point Ye Jingyu could likely kill him with a mere finger—he concluded it was better to stop and fight one last, desperate battle...

With that thought, Feiyu spun around and aimed the opening of his sleeve directly at Ye Jingyu, who was charging toward him. The repeating crossbow hidden within the sleeve immediately fired...

A blue light emanated from the arrowhead; it was coated in a deadly poison. Feiyu didn't seek to kill his opponent outright, only to wound him—even a slight scratch would suffice, as the toxin would surely claim his life...

Under such high-speed pursuit, Feiyu was certain his adversary could not possibly intercept the bolt with merely two fingers, as he had done moments before...

Ye Jingyu had not expected his opponent to suddenly halt and launch such a hidden attack. However, his expression remained unchanged; he didn't even attempt to dodge. A silver glint flashed in his eyes, and a golden ripple instantly materialized, slamming violently into the incoming crossbow bolt, knocking it aside. The terrifying, overbearing Battle Mark then struck Feiyu mercilessly, blasting his frame—which looked frail but was actually filled with coiled strength—away...

Feiyu had felt a surge of secret joy when he saw Ye Jingyu make no move to evade, but he never anticipated his opponent was a powerful Soul Master who had reached the Soul Condensation Realm. Before he could react, he was thrown backward by that powerful concentration attack...

Blood sprayed freely from his mouth. He knew, at this moment, that he had absolutely no chance of victory left...

His body slammed heavily onto the ground, the massive impact jolting him further internally. Just then, he saw the handsome young man standing beside him, his bright eyes shining like the moon in the sky—so strikingly beautiful...

"Will you tell me, or shall I?" Ye Jingyu asked calmly, though his own eyes were glacial cold...

Feiyu suddenly remembered: High-ranking Soul Masters possessed cruel techniques to directly extract memories, a process rumored to leave the victim in a state worse than death...

The mere thought of that agonizing torment turned Feiyu's face ashen. If the truth would be known anyway, why endure such pain? He opened his mouth, about to speak, but then noticed Ye Jingyu's gaze fixed ahead. Feiyu froze in confusion, forcing his neck to turn, and saw a dark silhouette, at least two meters tall, appearing at the alley entrance, its emotionless eyes fixed directly upon them...