No sooner had Teng Qingshan left for a moment than two dilapidated Santana cars pulled up not far from the courtyard.

Inside the first car were three people. In the back seat sat a burly man in black, whose imposing physique spoke of immense strength. He held a thermal imager in one hand, scrutinizing the view before murmuring, "Gentlemen, there shouldn't be anyone inside the compound. Move out!"

Immediately, six figures emerged from the two cars: five East Asians and one Caucasian.

"I hope the bastard isn't actually here," the leading man in black muttered quietly.

"If he is, we'll just be sending men to their deaths," the Caucasian whispered. Though this small team was filled with apprehension, they dared not disobey the organization’s orders. Gritting their teeth, they scattered, leaping over the courtyard walls at various points. In mere moments, they had swept the entire area clean.

The leading man in black finally relaxed, a look of relief washing over his face. "The target has escaped; only 'Little Four's' body remains. It's now confirmed the target is somewhere around AnYi County! Our mission is complete; we can head back and rest. Oh, and take Little Four's body with you and clean up any traces around here."

They were highly practiced in handling such matters.

Venice, the 'City of Water' on the Adriatic coast in Northern Italy, possesses an ancient history. Once, it commanded the strongest authority across all of Europe. Even today, this age-old city still boasts numerous ancient structures dating back to the fourteenth or fifteenth centuries.

In Venice stands a castle-like structure, entirely brick-red, that has towered for centuries.

This edifice is known as the 'Red Castle,' or sometimes the 'Blood Castle.' It is the ancestral home of Europe's ancient House of Redmayne. Though the Redmayne family's influence spans the entire West, this 'Red Castle' remains the epicenter of their supreme authority.

Inside the Red Castle, within a dimly lit hall.

A massive LCD screen was mounted on the wall, displaying a map. In the hall stood a young man with short, auburn hair and a silver-haired elder.

"Young Master, the organization 'Hand of Darkness' has sent word: 'The Wolf' has appeared in the vicinity of AnYi County, within the territory of the ancient Eastern nation. I have already relayed this information to the 'Scythe of Death' organization." The silver-haired elder spoke with deep deference.

The auburn-haired youth’s face was somewhat pale, his eyes cold and sharp. He spoke in a low tone, "The existence of the Wolf is a disgrace to our House of Redmayne! What I require now is... to kill the Wolf at any cost, and with the utmost speed! This must be resolved before Father finds out."

"Yes, Young Master." The silver-haired elder nodded.

Just then, footsteps echoed.

The auburn-haired youth's expression shifted abruptly as a middle-aged man with a cold demeanor and a thick beard, possessing the same auburn hair, walked in.

"Father!" the youth immediately bowed.

"Clan Head." The silver-haired elder also bowed instantly.

The direct descendants of the House of Redmayne all shared auburn hair. This bearded middle-aged man was Alexander Redmayne, the supreme holder of power within the family. Alexander’s icy gaze swept over his son. "Ambrose, my child, you truly disappoint me."

"Father, I—I intended to resolve this quickly," the red-haired youth mumbled, head bowed.

"Resolve it quickly? I am beginning to doubt your capabilities! If my friend hadn't brought this matter to my attention, I wouldn't even be aware of such a significant event." Alexander let out a cold snort. "Even now, I find the news hard to credit. Ambrose, explain the entire sequence of events to me, in meticulous detail."

This direct descendant, 'Ambrose,' raised his head and walked toward a computer terminal nearby.

"Father, this entire incident primarily involves an assassin codenamed 'The Wolf,'" he began, tapping at the keyboard. Immediately, numerous images and extensive text descriptions flooded the giant LCD screen on the hall wall.

"Twenty-two years ago, the 'Red' organization—one of the two major assassin groups controlled by our family—gathered 360 children worldwide with promising physical constitutions. Among them was 'The Wolf.' According to records, the Wolf is Chinese, only seven years old at the time. In our organization's first round of screening, 113 children survived; he was one of them."

Alexander observed the descriptions displayed on the screen.

The assassin organization required a constant influx of fresh blood, and this screening process was brutally binary: live or die, with no third option.

"The surviving 113 children were later sent to a training camp in Siberia for life-or-death conditioning. Three years later, 38 survived, and he was still among them, formally granted the codename—'The Wolf'!"

"These 38 candidates were then sent to Mr. Teng. Mr. Teng only accepted four as his apprentices, and the Wolf was one of them. Six years later, when the Wolf was sixteen, he returned to our Red organization. Over the following twelve years, the Wolf and the Cat were two of the four strongest assassins in the Red organization, completing numerous critical missions."

"Just last Christmas, an SS-rank mission valued at three hundred million US dollars landed on my desk," the red-haired youth, 'Ambrose,' stated grimly. "The Red organization hadn't completed an SS-rank mission in twenty years. For the three hundred million dollar reward, and to restore the Red organization's reputation, I accepted it."

"My child, you are more reckless than a mother wolf defending her cubs," Alexander couldn't help but scoff.

This SS-rank mission was the highest classification in the dark world, entirely outside the Red organization's sustainable capacity. Even if completed, the price would be astronomical.

"I had the eight high-ranking members of the Red organization plan meticulously. After pouring immense effort into it, they successfully completed the mission using the assassin pair, 'The Wolf and The Cat,' as bait!"

The red-haired youth asserted firmly, "In my view, both the Wolf and the Cat were merely A-rank assassins. In their entire careers, they could, at best, bring in one or two hundred million dollars for our organization. Sacrificing them this time not only netted three hundred million dollars instantly but also revived the Red organization’s prestige. Why shouldn't I do it?"

"Hmph," Alexander sneered. "But the outcome was disastrous."

"Indeed, Father." The red-haired youth shook his head and sighed. "I never imagined, never dared to contemplate... that this exceptionally skilled assassin, 'The Wolf,' had concealed his true strength through so many years of missions!!!"

The red-haired youth took a deep, shuddering breath.

"His power level is far beyond A-rank!"

"During that mission, the organization deliberately sent them in as bait, keeping it hidden from the two of them. 'The Cat' died, but he, 'The Wolf,' survived and launched a furious campaign of revenge! He infiltrated the Red organization's headquarters entirely alone."

Alexander's expression also changed drastically upon hearing this.

To assault an assassin organization's headquarters solo—how utterly insane was that? Even the supreme authority of this ancient house felt a sense of awe at the assassin's madness.

"The Wolf had lived in the Red organization headquarters for twelve years. Utilizing his intimate knowledge of the structure, he infiltrated undetected. Two A-rank assassins and fifty-two B-rank assassins were silently eliminated, nearly half of them, before he even revealed himself. Furthermore, he killed seven of the eight high-ranking officials."

"By the time the organization realized what was happening and moved to encircle 'The Wolf,' he unleashed his terrifying strength, fighting two A-rank assassins single-handedly. His power far exceeded A-rank; he quickly killed both of them and eliminated the last remaining high-ranking manager. Subsequently, he engaged in a mass brawl against over twenty B-rank assassins. Fighting so many simultaneously, he won through his peerless throwing-knife technique—an almost unbelievable feat. He might have been injured, but the Red organization's A-rank and B-rank assassins were utterly wiped out."

Alexander’s face turned ashen.

"Fighting over twenty B-rank assassins alone?" Alexander found it hard to believe.

Winning against two A-rank assassins was less shocking. But defeating over twenty B-rank operatives in open combat—that was preposterous! After all, two fists cannot always defeat four hands; a coordinated attack by over twenty skilled individuals against one should not result in defeat.

"He is at least an S-rank assassin! Or perhaps stronger!" Alexander concluded based on the evidence.

"Yes, the dark world has already reclassified 'The Wolf' as S-rank. Across the entire world, there are only fifty-two S-rank assassins, including the Wolf," the red-haired youth, 'Ambrose,' lamented slightly. "Had I known he was this powerful, how could I possibly have acted that way? I wouldn't trade an S-rank assassin for a billion US dollars."

A-rank assassins could be trained.

But S-rank assassins were extremely rare, occurring perhaps once per hundred million people globally—not counting hidden, supreme experts. This figure alone illustrated their immense value. The Red organization had gone decades without an S-rank assassin leading them. Possessing an S-rank assassin, or lacking one, made a monumental difference.

"The Red organization headquarters was in Siberia, Russia. After his successful retribution, the Wolf immediately went into hiding. Naturally, I activated missions across the dark world to hunt him down."

"But this Wolf is truly formidable."

"He fled all the way from Russia, then crossed the Sino-Russian border and escaped into Heilongjiang Province in the ancient Eastern nation. After that, we lost his trail entirely. In the East, a nation teeming with Chinese people, finding one specific Chinese man presents enormous difficulty. However, not long ago, the 'Hand of Darkness' organization finally located 'The Wolf' in a county seat within Jiangsu Province."

Finishing his account, the red-haired youth, 'Ambrose,' looked visibly strained.

"He was an exceptional assassin, one who should have become the sharpest fang in the House of Redmayne's arsenal," Alexander mused, feeling a measure of admiration for the assassin named 'The Wolf' after hearing his saga. "However, for one of our family’s subordinate assassin organizations to be annihilated due to internal betrayal—this is the biggest joke in the dark world! In a hundred years, this is the second such occurrence!"

The red-haired youth, 'Ambrose,' also hung his head low.

It was indeed a profound disgrace!

A powerful organization brought to ruin by the revenge of a traitor—it was almost unthinkable. The House of Redmayne, an ancient family spanning hundreds of years, could not afford this embarrassment!

"Kill him! No one challenges the House of Redmayne and lives!" Alexander’s voice was low, yet it seemed laden with endless, suppressed fury.