At present, Yue San had already been taken into police custody. The reason was simple — the testimonies of Gu Caini and Long Minmin pointed squarely at him. Moreover, he knew that going to the police station was the best way to temporarily avoid retaliation from Liu Tian and Long Haotian, so he cooperated with the police in their "discussions."
However, at this moment, he had no idea that Liu Tian was already dead — not until Meng Yiping informed him of the fact during questioning. For the police, this was further proof of the credibility of Gu Caini and Long Minmin's statements.
Yet when Yue San heard the news of Liu Tian's death, he was not shocked. Instead, he was unnervingly calm, as if everything that had happened was only natural.
Although the police station was indeed safe, the Blacklist assassins sent by Liu Tian would still not let Yue San go. Even though Liu Tian was dead, a task was still a task — once accepted, it had to be completed within the specified time. That was the rule of the Blacklist.
After watching the news report, Shi Aotian went straight to the hotel. This time, he wasn't there to fight in the ring, but to find the "boss" that Xiao Wu had mentioned. He arrived at the entrance to the underground arena on Basement Level 2, but found the small side door shut tight and no one on lookout. He instinctively pushed at the door, but there was no response. Not wanting to draw attention, he could only leave for the time being.
Due to the recent intense scrutiny, and because Yue San was being interrogated by the police, all of Yue San's casinos had temporarily suspended operations to avoid trouble. Shi Aotian, however, knew nothing about this.
At that moment, Shi Aotian recalled Xiao Wu's words — Blacklist assassin. This was definitely an important lead. Back when his entire family had been massacred, it hadn't been the work of ordinary people. And when Xiao Wu saw him, he had immediately assumed that Shi Aotian was a Blacklist assassin. It seemed that it was time to meet the killer who had come for his life today.
Shi Aotian returned to the large tree where he had changed clothes the night before. Looking around to make sure no one was there, he quickly leapt up the tree, retrieved the set of black clothes, and took them home to hide. Shi Aotian decided that rather than blindly searching for Yue San and the assassin, it would be better to let them come to him — responding to change with constancy. So he simply stayed put and waited quietly. At that moment, what he worried about most was that Dongfang Qing might suddenly return at a critical moment.
Night began to fall.
Dongfang Qing, concerned about Gu Caini's situation, had not rested at all. Although today was her birthday, as a teacher she felt duty-bound to care for and protect her students. In fact, the school leaders had convened an emergency meeting over Gu Caini's case, keeping Dongfang Qing so busy she was dizzy with exhaustion.
Police Station.
Yue San remained silent, saying nothing at all. Meng Yiping decided to match his patience and see who would give in first.
"You've been holding out against me for quite a while now. You must be hungry by this point. Want to get something to eat?" Meng Yiping asked, keeping his composure.
Yue San raised his eyebrows with disdain and said, "What, are you afraid you might starve me to death?"
"Our police station has never starved anyone to death, and you won't be the exception," Meng Yiping replied sternly.
"Well then, I'd like to see just how long you can keep me locked up. If you want to charge me, bring out the evidence!" Yue San grew more and more arrogant as he spoke.
"Don't get too smug." Meng Yiping stood up, walked out of the interrogation room, and instructed Xia Ji to order a few takeout meals. After all, the police station was a law enforcement agency — they would not deliberately mistreat criminal suspects.
Xia Ji acknowledged the order and left. Meng Yiping then turned and went back into the interrogation room to continue questioning Yue San.
Half an hour later, a man wearing a blue delivery uniform and a blue cap arrived at the police station carrying a takeout bag.
Xia Ji walked toward the deliveryman and asked, "How much?"
"Thirty."
Xia Ji handed over the money, picked up the takeout, and said, "Thanks."
The deliveryman replied, "You're welcome," before leaving. Xia Ji carried the food straight to the interrogation room. "Captain Meng, the food's here."
"Alright, thanks. Give it to him. Cover for me for a minute — I need to use the restroom." With that, Meng Yiping left.
"Okay." Xia Ji sat down across from Yue San, pushed the takeout toward him, and said, "Eat. Hopefully, once you're done, you'll tell us the truth."
Yue San looked at the beautiful policewoman with a mocking smile. "Oh, I'm definitely going to eat. As for confessing, I've already told you everything." He then opened the lunch box in front of him, took an exaggerated sniff, and said, "Smells great. Officer, care to join me for lunch?"
Xia Ji frowned in disgust. "You'd better behave yourself. This is a police station."
"Oh," Yue San replied in a teasing tone, feigning regret. "What a pity. Such a fine meal — I guess I'll have to enjoy it alone." With that, he burst into laughter and began eating.
His attitude thoroughly disgusted Xia Ji. If it weren't for her duty, she would have slammed the door and walked out long ago.
"Not bad at all. I didn't think the police had such good food. It's just a shame I won't get to enjoy it for much longer," Yue San said between bites, continuing to taunt her.
At that moment, Meng Yiping returned from the restroom, and Xia Ji quickly stood to let him take her place.
Suddenly, Yue San's eyes bulged, and he clutched his throat with both hands. His face twisted in agony, showing how much pain he was in.
Seeing this, Meng Yiping rushed forward in alarm. "What's going on? What's happening?"
Yue San let out two choking "uh-uh" sounds, then collapsed to the floor, his face contorted, blood seeping from all seven orifices. He was dead.
Xia Ji was so shocked she froze on the spot.
"Call an ambulance! What are you standing there for?" Meng Yiping roared.
Snapped out of it by her superior's shout, Xia Ji quickly took out her phone and dialed emergency services.
The entire police station was thrown into chaos by Meng Yiping's shouts. But before the ambulance could arrive, Yue San was already dead.
One hour later.
Chief Wu Jiangang bellowed at Meng Yiping and the others, "What the hell were you doing? Yue San died in our custody! Do you know how big a mess I'm in now? Do you even know where we are? This is the police station! And yet someone was able to poison him here! What exactly have you been doing?"
Meng Yiping knew he had been negligent. He furrowed his brows tightly and didn't dare to speak.
After venting for a while, Wu Jiangang finally stopped yelling. He let out a long sigh and left the station. The rest of the staff, after being scolded by the chief, all wore bitter expressions.
"Xia Ji, come here." Once the chief was gone, Meng Yiping beckoned her over. "Did you get a good look at the delivery guy?"
Xia Ji shook her head pitifully. "No… I only noticed that he wasn't very tall, and he was wearing his cap really, really low. I didn't pay much attention at the time."
"Where did you order the takeout from?" Meng Yiping continued questioning.
"From our usual place — Lihua Fast Food," Xia Ji replied.
As soon as he heard that, Meng Yiping immediately ran out and rushed to Lihua Fast Food, which was not far from the police station.
"Well, Officer Meng, what a rare guest! What would you like to eat today?" A plump man came forward with a beaming smile.
"Boss, did you get a call from the police station for a delivery today?" Meng Yiping asked urgently.
The fat man smiled. "Yes, I did. I asked Xiao Wang to take it to you."
"Xiao Wang?" Meng Yiping frowned. "Where is he now?"
"Strange… he should have been back a while ago. How come he's still not here?" the fat boss said, puzzled.
Just then, a young man happened to walk in. The fat boss pointed at him in surprise. "There he is! Xiao Wang, why are you only back now?"
Meng Yiping quickly turned to look at Xiao Wang and asked sharply, "Were you the one who delivered the takeout to the police station just now?"
The delivery boy, Xiao Wang, shrank back in fear at Meng Yiping's stern look. "I was supposed to, but not long after I left, I don't know what happened — I just blacked out. When I woke up, the food was gone, so I hurried back, planning to prepare another order and send it over. Officer, I can take it right away if you want!"
Seeing Xiao Wang's frightened expression, Meng Yiping realized he had lost his composure and quickly said in a firm tone, "Both of you, come to the police station with me and make a statement. Right now. Move."
The boss and Xiao Wang exchanged puzzled glances. "Huh?" they muttered. Could being late with a food delivery really require making a police statement?
The real culprit who had poisoned Yue San was the killer sent by Liu Tian. Even though Yue San was in the police station, as a professional assassin, he had to complete the mission. He had long known the police station's habit of ordering takeout — especially when interrogations yielded no results, they were even more likely to order food. Seizing on this, he had planted a listening device on Lihua Fast Food's phone. The moment he heard an order from the police station, he acted. His plan was to poison the food and take out the police along with the target, but unexpectedly, the officers had been so irritated by Yue San that they lost their appetite and didn't eat. As a result, only Yue San was poisoned, neatly fulfilling the mission.
Meanwhile, Shi Aotian was still waiting for the Blacklist assassin to appear.
Aka, the assassin, wasn't stupid. He brought his guitar to the university and chose a concealed spot at the top of a teaching building. From there, he had a full view of the area around the school. Every assassin would study the client's provided information and the organization's intelligence in detail before making a move to understand the target's habits and routines. Aka was no exception, so knowing Shi Aotian's residence was nothing unusual. Choosing the optimal sniping location was only natural.
Aka gently put down the guitar case, quickly assembled the parts of his sniper rifle, and adjusted the scope. Through the sight, he could see Shi Aotian's residence — unfortunately, Shi Aotian was already on guard and had drawn the curtains. If Shi Aotian didn't go out or come in, there was no clear shot.
After scanning the surroundings, Aka settled in with his rifle and began waiting. He was confident that the target would eventually open the door, and in that instant — however brief — he could take his life.
As night gradually fell, Shi Aotian still hadn't left, and Aka kept his eyes fixed on the residence, looking for a chance. Time ticked by, and when Aka checked his watch, two hours had already passed. If he didn't complete the mission soon, the organization would deem it a failure, and his Blacklist No. 7 ranking would be in jeopardy.
Finally unable to hold back any longer, Aka quickly packed the sniper rifle into its case, glanced around to check the surroundings, and hurried downstairs. After hiding the sniper rifle, he made his way toward the target's residence. This time, he decided to use a handgun for close-range assassination.
Inside the house, Shi Aotian heard faint footsteps approaching. Though soft, they carried an unmistakable killing intent. The footsteps came closer and closer—then suddenly stopped.
Shi Aotian quietly moved to the door, focusing intently on the assassin's movements outside. With only a door between them, the two could clearly sense each other's presence. A silenced mini revolver slid out from Aka's sleeve and into his palm.
At that moment, the Scorpion King pendant on Shi Aotian's neck began to react, vibrating against his skin. He knew very well—this only happened when his life was in grave danger, when the Scorpion King's spirit resonated with its master.
Sensing the growing danger, Shi Aotian instinctively leapt to the window, quickly opening it and slipping outside.
Aka heard the noise from inside and was startled. Not good—he's been alerted! He immediately kicked the door open, only to find the room empty. Rushing to the open window, he caught a fleeting glimpse of a shadow disappearing.
Aka vaulted out of the window and gave chase. But he was no match for Shi Aotian's speed, and within moments, the figure had vanished into the crowd. Looking around at the passersby, Aka realized the target was gone. Little did he know, Shi Aotian—hidden nearby—was watching his every move.
Killing intent… Aka's heart tightened. Such strong killing intent. Who is this man? Is he my target, or another assassin? Even as a top-ten ranked killer on the Blacklist, Aka felt danger emanating from this presence.
Shi Aotian had deliberately released his killing intent to lure Aka to a secluded place for a "chat." But at the same time, he sensed a small but sharp wave of killing intent drifting past him. This wasn't Aka's—it belonged to someone else. The presence was well-hidden, but not enough to escape Shi Aotian's keen senses.
Looks like more people are joining the party, Shi Aotian thought, following the new killing intent. Aka, sensing Shi Aotian's movement, followed as well—curious to see who could give off such an intense murderous aura.
Finally, the three presences converged outside an abandoned, remote house in the suburbs.
"Why have you been following me?" a crisp female voice asked from beneath her hat. Though her face was hidden, her voice and figure made it clear she was a woman.
Shi Aotian said coldly, "Who are you? And what's your connection to the man behind me?"
"I don't know him," the crisp voice replied again.
"Then who are you both?" Aka asked, feeling the unusual aura from the two of them. Though he recognized Shi Aotian as his target, he still couldn't help asking—breaking one of the cardinal rules of being an assassin.
The three stood in a tense standoff, their different killing intents clashing and filling the air with a suffocating pressure.
Time's almost up, Aka reminded himself. If he didn't complete the mission now, the consequences would be severe. He could no longer hesitate.
In a flash, Aka raised his gun and fired—a single bullet whistling through the air toward Shi Aotian's forehead. Shi Aotian barely had time to react; Aka's draw was incredibly fast. With no way to dodge, Shi Aotian could only bring up his hand blade to block the shot.
Aka's style was to kill with a single bullet—he had never missed, and so he only loaded one round at a time. That alone spoke to his confidence and skill.
In that split second, Shi Aotian clearly saw the bullet's trajectory. Though unable to avoid it completely, he swung his blade and sliced the bullet cleanly in half, sending the pieces clattering to the ground, avoiding a fatal hit.
Even so, a wave of sharp pain spread through his ring and little finger, quickly intensifying. The rest of his fingers were also jarred numb from the impact. After all, this was a bullet, and flesh and bone could not easily withstand it. Blood dripped from Shi Aotian's little finger, and the hand that blocked the bullet was now completely numb.
Inwardly, Shi Aotian cursed, Damn…
Aka and another man were stunned by what they had just witnessed—no one had ever survived Aka's gun before. Stone Aotian was the first. From that moment on, the legend of the "Gun God" was shattered.
"You're Aka!" a crisp voice exclaimed. "The Gun God from the Black List."
Aka looked surprised. "Who are you, and what does the Black List have to do with you?"
Wounded, Stone Aotian thought to himself: The Black List again… looks like they're in the same group.
"I don't need to tell you," the woman replied sternly. "Even though you're ranked seventh on the Black List, what happens today will be enough to ruin your reputation. Don't look at me—just start your fight. Pretend I'm just a passerby." With that, she agilely leapt up into a tree to watch.
In the Black List organization, there were many killers who went by the name "Li," and Aka was one of them. Seeing the woman's mocking attitude, he had already made up his mind—no matter the cost, Stone Aotian had to die tonight. Otherwise, he wouldn't have the face to return to the organization.
By now, the numbness in Stone Aotian's hands had begun to fade. This was thanks to his master's "secret medicinal formula," which had altered his body—his wounds had already stopped bleeding and were healing rapidly.
Seeing this miraculous recovery, both Aka and the woman felt a chill of fear toward him. But Aka could waste no more time. With a flick of his right wrist, the cylinder of his miniature revolver swung open. Three bullets appeared between the fingers of his left hand; with a quick, smooth motion, he slid them neatly into the chamber. The skill of his reload made both Stone Aotian and the woman in the tree click their tongues in astonishment. Ranked seventh on the Black List, Aka truly had the strength to back up his reputation—it wasn't just empty talk. This was the first time he had ever needed more than a single bullet to kill someone, showing that he regarded Stone Aotian as a true rival.
Having suffered before, Stone Aotian was already on high alert. Though Aka's hands were fast, his body speed was no match for Stone Aotian's. The mysterious woman in the tree, meanwhile, was eager to watch the show unfold.
As soon as the bullets were loaded, Aka fired twice in quick succession, so fast it was like lightning. Even Stone Aotian couldn't outrun bullets, so the moment Aka pulled the trigger, he used his "Shifting Shadow" footwork to dart forward six meters, aiming to close in for hand-to-hand combat—where Aka's gun would be useless.