Chapter 338: The Assassin's Suspicion! A Thousand Draws and a New Hunt!
"Heh, don't forget, I'm Blood Shadow Rose, a gold-medal assassin, extremely sensitive to life auras. How could I not detect someone in the room?"
On Ye Liyou's cold and beautiful face, a smile flickered. With curiosity, she gazed towards the bathroom.
Who was Fifth Junior Sister Zhong Lingyin's boyfriend? Hiding him and not letting her see, there must be something fishy!
Inside the luxurious hotel suite, the air was thick with a tension that felt almost solid. Ye Liyou, the renowned Blood Shadow Rose, narrowed her sharp eyes. Her nose twitched slightly, picking up the faint, lingering scent of musk and masculine pheromones that hung in the air, distinct from the sweet floral fragrance of her junior sister. It was the smell of the aftermath—of intense passion and entangled bodies. Her assassin's instincts, honed over countless life-and-death encounters, were screaming that a predator had been here just moments ago. She took a slow, deliberate step towards the bathroom door, her movements silent like a hunting cat.
"No…"
When Zhong Lingyin saw this, her face instantly lost color, her mind went blank, and she was completely stunned.
A cold sweat broke out on her forehead, dampening the fine hairs at her temples. In Zhong Lingyin's heart, a storm of terror raged. Although Fourth Senior Sister Ye Liyou didn't yet know that Shen Anyu was Second Senior Sister Liu Ruyan's man, the truth would eventually come out, like fire wrapped in paper. Secrets in their world were fragile things, and this one was particularly explosive.
Zhong Lingyin's pupils dilated as she imagined the horrific scenario. If Ye Liyou opened that door and found Shen Anyu—the Young Master of the Shen Family and the current lover of their Second Senior Sister—the reaction would be catastrophic. Ye Liyou was possessive, fierce, and strictly adhered to a code of loyalty. How could she tolerate Shen Anyu dating both her and Second Senior Sister? The image of Ye Liyou drawing her daggers, the flash of cold steel, and blood splattering across the pristine hotel carpet played vividly in Zhong Lingyin's mind. She would likely directly kill him or fight fiercely. Zhong Lingyin didn't want to see anyone get hurt, especially not the man who had just conquered her heart and body so completely.
"Stop! Don't go in!" Zhong Lingyin wanted to scream, but her throat felt constricted, as if an invisible hand were choking her. She could only watch in paralyzed horror as Ye Liyou's hand reached for the handle.
Click. The door handle turned.
Ye Liyou pushed the door open with a sudden force, ready to confront the mysterious man. Her eyes scanned the interior instantly, checking the shower stall, behind the door, even the ceiling corners.
"Huh? Huh? Where is he?"
At this moment, Ye Liyou's surprised voice came.
Zhong Lingyin looked up, also in disbelief, her breath hitching in her throat. Inside the bathroom, it was empty; Shen Anyu was nowhere to be found. The tiled walls gleamed under the warm light, and the bathtub was dry. It was as if the man who had just been holding her, whose warmth still lingered on her skin, had evaporated into thin air.
How was that possible?
She had personally pushed Shen Anyu in and closed the door just seconds before Ye Liyou entered. There was no window large enough for a man to escape through, and the ventilation vent was bolted shut. How could he be gone now??
Unknown to them, in the corner of the room, a distortion in the air shimmered briefly before settling.
At this moment, Shen Anyu, who had used the [Divine Invisibility Technique] to hide his figure and aura, smiled slightly and swaggered away from Ye Liyou and Zhong Lingyin.
He walked right past Ye Liyou, close enough that he could count the eyelashes on her confused face. The thrill of the [Divine Invisibility Technique] was exhilarating. It didn't just bend light; it suppressed his heartbeat, his body heat, and even the flow of air around him, making him a true ghost in the mortal world. He paused for a split second to appreciate the flustered look on Zhong Lingyin's face—she looked incredibly cute when she was worried about him—before silently slipping out of the suite door as it closed.
'Don't worry, my little songbird. I wouldn't let myself be caught that easily,' Shen Anyu thought with a confident smirk.
Afterward, Zhong Lingyin would naturally cover for Ye Liyou's questioning. She would have to invent a story, perhaps claiming it was a delivery man or a misunderstanding, which would only deepen their shared secret.
Shen Anyu didn't plan to reveal everything yet. The web of relationships between the Seven Senior Sisters was complex and volatile. At least, he needed to increase their favorability even more, making their sunk costs higher. He needed them to be so deeply in love, so dependent on him, that when the truth was finally revealed, they would choose to accept the "harem" rather than leave him. Otherwise, it would be easy to mess up, and the difficulty of the Strategy would skyrocket.
Walking down the plush corridor of the hotel, Shen Anyu adjusted his suit collar, his demeanor shifting back to that of the arrogant, noble Young Master.
One day, there would be a moment when all seven senior and Junior Sisters would gather happily, serving him together. That was the ultimate goal—the Grand Slam of the Martial God Hall's disciples.
Shen Anyu smiled, dismissing the stealth technique as he entered the safety of his own vehicle. He leaned back against the leather seat and summoned the system interface, reviewing the records of the Destiny Plunder System.
[Ding! Detected destined heroine Zhong Lingyin's favorability +1, plundering +3000 Destiny Value!]
[Ding! Detected destined heroine Zhong Lingyin's total favorability 90, extra plundering +50000 Destiny Value!]
A satisfying string of notifications. After last night's dedicated effort—hours of "cultivation" that involved sweat, passion, and whispering sweet nothings—he finally reached a total favorability of ninety. It was the threshold of true devotion. At this level, a woman would betray her sect, her family, and her principles for him.
Shen Anyu also felt that it wasn't easy. As favorability increased, raising it by one point later was more difficult than raising it by ten points earlier. It required genuine emotional investment, or at least a very convincing performance of it. Fortunately, after total favorability reached ninety, he could use the [Supernatural Infinite Teleportation] feature related to her, allowing him to appear by her side instantly if needed—a useful tool for both protection and surprise "visits."
"Achieving a double kill achievement in one day, my luck is not bad. Perhaps I can draw a prize!"
Shen Anyu rubbed his chin, looking at his massive accumulation of Destiny Points. He felt like a whale in a gacha game, ready to spend without looking at the price tag.
"System, initiate a Thousand Consecutive Draws. Let's see what good things this world has to offer."
[Ding! Thousand consecutive draws, activate.]
In an instant, a thousand rays of various colors bloomed before Shen Anyu's eyes, like blooming, colorful fireworks exploding in the void of his consciousness. It was a dazzling display of wealth and probability.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Most were white lights (trash items like cash or common skills), a few purple lights (rare items), dozens of dazzling golden lights (legendary items), and one profound, seven-colored glow that anchored the center of the explosion.
Shen Anyu no longer paid attention to white and purple rewards; they were beneath his notice now. He directly scanned past them to look at the golden rewards. Among the golden rewards, there were still many worth noting.
Especially since many rewards could not be purchased in the System store and could only be obtained through draws. These were the exclusive "Limited Banner" items that gave him his edge.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a golden reward: one bottle of Essence Nourishing Pill!]
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a golden reward: one bottle of Dingyan Pill (Eternal Youth Pill)!]
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a golden reward: one bottle of Qi Nourishing Pill!]
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a golden reward: one bottle of Qi Nourishing Pill!]
The notifications scrolled rapidly.
"Good heavens, is this a nest of pills?"
Shen Anyu raised an eyebrow, but he was quite satisfied. He visualized the inventory filling up with these exquisite jade bottles. The [Essence Nourishing Pill] was excellent for consolidating foundations, the [Qi Nourishing Pill] for boosting raw power, and the [Dingyan Pill]... well, that was the ultimate weapon against women. No woman, whether a CEO or an assassin, could resist the temptation of eternal youth.
Pills had many uses: for himself to speed up his cultivation towards the Foundation Establishment realm, for his women to keep them young and strong, for his family elders to extend their lives, and for his subordinates to buy their undying loyalty. In any case, they were not a loss and could always be consumed. In the world of cultivation, resources were king.
Then, a specific golden notification caught his eye.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a golden reward: one Destined Child Positioning Card!]
"Good stuff, it's finally here!"
Shen Anyu's face broke into a smile, a predatory glint appearing in his eyes. The [Destined Child Positioning Card] could locate an unfamiliar Child of Destiny. It was a random positioning, unlike the [Divine Heavenly Mandate Child Positioning Card], which couldn't specify or locate a high-level Child of Destiny specifically but worked on a broader range.
But with a Destined Child Positioning Card, he could uncover a gold mine of Destiny Value, starting at least in the hundreds of thousands.
He tapped his finger against the armrest, considering his current "farm."
Currently, Shen Anyu was focused on three Sons of Destiny.
The first was Ye Linyuan, the Child of Destiny connected to the seven goddess Senior Sisters. This poor bastard. Shen Anyu almost pitied him. He had already been crippled by the [Divine Curse Talisman], his cultivation completely lost, his meridians shattered, and his body reverted to that of a youth. He was living a life worse than a dog. However, he had a trump card—a remnant soul imprint from a previous life within him: Sword Palace Master Lin Xuanyan.
This Lin Xuanyan was a genuine [Land Immortal] level expert, a powerhouse who stood at the absolute peak of the Martial Dao. He would burst out in power when Ye Linyuan faced a life-or-death crisis. He was a bit difficult to deal with, a tough nut to crack, so Shen Anyu needed to take his time and not rush.
Currently, Shen Anyu kept him under his watchful eye, planning to first conquer Ye Linyuan's seven goddess Senior Sisters one by one. He would turn Ye Linyuan's support system into his own harem, weaken his Child of Destiny aura to its lowest point by severing his karmic connections, and then completely resolve Ye Linyuan. It would be a slow, agonizing despair.
The second was Xu Ping'an, the Child of Destiny of the "True and False Young Master" trope. This guy had a [Damage Reflection Aura]—a hedgehog-like ability that returned damage to the attacker. He was also difficult to kill directly without suffering backlash. However, Shen Anyu had played him like a fiddle.
He had tricked him with the transvestite Feng Kelei, making Xu Ping'an believe he had met his destined maiden, his true love. Xu Ping'an had joined the Shadow Alliance and was now happily working for Shen Anyu, believing he was fighting for a righteous cause and for his "goddess."
Leaving aside other things, although Xu Ping'an was a weakling in combat, his Damage Reflection Aura was quite useful and had contributed a lot, making him a small leader in the Shadow Alliance. He was the perfect meat shield.
If Xu Ping'an knew that Feng Kelei, the goddess of his heart's desire, was actually a man in a dress, and that he was also working for Shen Anyu—the very scoundrel who stole his sister Xu Ruoshui—he wondered if he would be dumbfounded.
Presumably, his expression at that moment would be very amusing. It would be a face filled with the collapse of his entire worldview.
Shen Anyu's smile was playful and cruel.
The last one was Long Hao, Su Hongmian's fiancé by arranged marriage. Based on the intelligence reports, he was suspected to be a "Trashy Fiancé/Divorce Flow" Child of Destiny. The type who pretends to be a pig to eat the tiger, hiding his strength while being ridiculed, only to slap faces later.
'Unfortunately for you, I am the tiger,' Shen Anyu mused.
After a while, Shen Anyu would accompany Su Hongmian to the Long Family of Sichuan to break off the engagement and then test him. If he resisted, he would be crushed.
These three Sons of Destiny were all quite difficult to deal with, requiring distinct strategies of suppression, manipulation, and humiliation. But fortunately, Shen Anyu was very patient.
For an excellent hunter, patience was an essential quality. The joy was in the hunt, not just the kill.
Next.
Shen Anyu didn't immediately use the positioning card. Instead, he first focused on this time's divine reward—the item that had glowed with the seven-colored light.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a divine reward: God-level Blood Curse Technique!]
"God-level Blood Curse Technique?"
Shen Anyu looked at the detailed introduction with curiosity and doubt. As he read the description, the air in the car seemed to drop a few degrees. A thoughtful expression appeared on his face, and he chuckled, a low sound that vibrated with malicious intent:
"It's a divine skill for cutting grass by the roots and destroying corpses, perfect for bullying weaker opponents!"
The [God-level Blood Curse Technique] was terrifying. As long as one person from a family could be captured, Shen Anyu could use their blood as a medium to curse and kill all those related by blood. It attacked through the bloodline and the karmic connections in the ethereal realm, ignoring distance and physical defenses.
Currently, it was limited to five generations and cultivators not exceeding the [Grandmaster] level.
But this was merely the starting point. As Shen Anyu's strength increased, the range and upper limit of the God-level Blood Curse Technique would also become higher.
Imagine the future: If Shen Anyu reached the [Land Immortal] level or even [Foundation Establishment], then by catching a small junior from an enemy clan, he could remotely curse and kill the old [Heavenly Human] level fellows hiding in their ancestral grounds.
They would die screaming, their blood boiling, without ever seeing their killer.
There would be no situation where a junior was dealt with only to have an elder appear to seek revenge. The classic "打了小的来了老的" (Beat the young, the old comes) trope would be extinguished forever.
Although it was a divine skill for bullying weaker opponents, it was very effective for cutting grass by the roots, destroying corpses, and annihilating entire families. It was the ultimate cleaner.
As the Destined Villain, Shen Anyu was very satisfied. This fit his aesthetic perfectly.
"Now that I have some free time, I'll find a Child of Destiny to play with."
He looked out the window at the passing neon lights of the city. He was currently in the capital of Sakura Country (Tokyo). The night here was vibrant, hiding many sins and secrets.
"Speaking of which, this is Sakura Country, there should be a Child of Destiny here too, right? The soil here is fertile for strange protagonists."
Shen Anyu pondered for a moment and said:
"Let's try."
"System, use the destined child positioning card…"
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