In one corner of the city, there was a silence far more terrifying than the battlefield itself.
To the west stood an old, rundown tavern that seemed forgotten by the entire city.
A weathered wooden sign hung crookedly outside. The scent of stale wine and damp wood lingered heavily in the air as the wooden door slowly creaked open.
A young man stepped inside with an easy, unhurried manner, as if he had not heard the explosions echoing throughout the city. He wore a simple robe, yet it was far too clean for someone who had wandered in by chance.
A gentle smile rested on his face.
The old man behind the counter lifted his head. He sat as if perpetually drowsy, his eyes half-lidded as though he were always on the verge of sleep, yet his voice was polite and formal.
"Welcome. However, I must apologize. If you have come to use our services, the tavern is currently closed. Please return another time… Young Master Wang Qiang."
Wang Qiang smiled faintly, clearly pleased to be addressed by name.
"You know me?"
The old man smiled back without the slightest trace of unease.
"Of course."
Wang Qiang took another step forward, his shadow stretching across the worn wooden floor.
"Then you won't mind letting me stay, will you? I'd like room number 777."
The words room number 777 left his lips slowly, as if they were some kind of code.
The old man paused for a moment before smiling again.
"My apologies. The tavern is temporarily closed. Please visit another time, and we will be sure to provide you with satisfactory service."
Wang Qiang's smile remained, but his eyes grew slightly colder.
In the next instant, an immense aura burst from his body.
The pressure of a Ninth Level Saint crushed down on the entire tavern. The old wood groaned, walls trembled, glass shattered into fragments, and the lantern flickered as if the flame might go out at any moment.
The old man who had seemed half asleep opened his eyes fully at once.
His face remained calm, but inside he felt as if he were being burned alive.
What kind of madness is this… Who said this brat was cast out of the Wang family for being useless…
He's already at Saint Ninth Level…
Wang Qiang was not even a hundred years old. From what he knew, the young man was likely not even twenty-five.
A Ninth Level Saint at this age… that was talent worthy of the era itself.
Cold sweat began to trickle down the old man's temple. Though he tried to maintain his expression, the muscles beneath his skin tightened enough to notice.
Wang Qiang leaned slightly, as if chatting casually.
"Let's get straight to the point. How much is the Rat Pipe Association charging for information about me right now?"
The words Rat Pipe Association made the old man feel as though the blood in his body had stopped flowing.
He was only at the peak of the Heavenly Cavern realm. In front of a Saint, he was nothing more than an ant beneath a foot.
This young man… knew exactly what this place was connected to and how it operated. And he could immediately guess Wang Qiang's purpose.
He was here to erase everything.
Silence swallowed the tavern.
The sound of a drop of sweat hitting the floor rang out with unnatural clarity.
The old man swallowed hard, forcing a smile, though his voice trembled slightly.
"My apologies… please allow me to consult the branch overseer first…"
Wang Qiang nodded as if acknowledging it. He fell silent for a moment before speaking in an icy tone.
"Then I suppose I'll have to make all of you disappear along with this secret."
The pressure surged instantly like a mountain crashing down. The old man felt as if his bones were about to shatter. Even the slightest movement felt as though he would be crushed into dust.
Just as death was about to seal his lips,
A sweet, clear voice of a young woman sounded from inside.
"My apologies for my staff's lack of manners. Young Master, please calm yourself."
Soft footsteps echoed from the staircase leading to the second floor.
A young woman stepped gracefully out of the shadows. Her long black hair shone like silk. Her face was calm, yet her eyes were sharp. She wore simple black clothing, and the aura of an Eighth Level Saint flared gently around her.
She lowered herself slightly in a polite gesture, as if welcoming an honored guest.
Wang Qiang stood in the middle of the hall, completely at ease, as though he were not standing in a place thick with tension. He smiled faintly before speaking in a calm voice.
"Who are you?"
The young woman stood straight, composed despite the overwhelming pressure before her.
"My name is Gui Ying. I am the leader of the Rat Pipe Association's Heavenly Sword City branch."
Her gaze was steady and deep, showing no visible fear even though she stood before someone whose cultivation surpassed her own.
Wang Qiang chuckled softly, clearly pleased with the answer. He lifted his hand slightly and tossed a large pile of top-grade spirit stones onto the floor in front of her.
Clatter…
The sound of stones striking the ground echoed loudly.
Ten thousand top-grade spirit stones formed a small mound, emitting a soft glow that faintly illuminated the entire room.
The pure energy radiating from them made even the old man unconsciously swallow.
Wang Qiang spoke casually.
"I don't want anyone to know about this anymore. What do you think?"
Gui Ying fell silent for a moment, glancing briefly at the spirit stones before lifting her head again.
"My apologies. The Rat Pipe Association does not conduct business like that…"
Her answer was clear, without the slightest hesitation.
And in the very next instant—
Thud!!!
The sound of a blade cutting through flesh rang out suddenly.
Gui Ying's head was severed in the blink of an eye. Her body remained standing for a fraction of a second before her head fell and struck the floor with a dull thud.
Blood sprayed into the air in a crimson mist, splattering across the wooden floor and the counter.
Everything happened too fast for anyone to react.
The old man began trembling immediately, his hands gripping the counter so tightly his knuckles turned white. He stared toward the source of the blade, his heart pounding as if it might burst from his chest.
Four men in black stood behind them, no one knowing when they had appeared.
The aura of four Saint Kings spread at once, pressing down on the atmosphere like towering mountains crushing everything beneath them.
The sight before him made the old man realize that all the fear he had felt throughout his life was nothing compared to this moment.
The metallic scent of blood filled the room.
His heart hammered violently.
At that moment, another figure in black stepped forward in complete silence.
His footsteps were so light they were almost inaudible. The old man turned instinctively.
The man was dressed entirely in black, every inch of his body concealed. Unlike the other four, he did not radiate a terrifying presence. Instead, he felt still, quiet, and impossibly deep, like something that could not be read.
But what he did next made the old man feel as though he were witnessing something that should not exist in this world.
The man slowly raised his hand. A clear, translucent sphere of energy formed, enveloping Gui Ying's headless body.
Then he simply moved a finger.
The severed head on the floor slowly floated upward as if pulled by an invisible force before being placed inside the sphere.
The instant the head touched the body,
Flesh and bone began to knit together before their eyes. The bleeding stopped. Veins reconnected. Skin sealed as if it had never been cut.
The old man's mouth fell open.
Such a level of regeneration without the use of pills… he had never seen anything like it in his entire life.
It was as if the laws of life and death themselves were being overturned.
But it was not over.
The man in black immediately placed his hand on Gui Ying's head, beginning to search her memories without the slightest hesitation.
Suddenly—
Bang!!!
Gui Ying's head exploded instantly.
Blood and fragments scattered within the clear sphere, yet not a single drop escaped.
The old man jolted in shock. He immediately understood. This was the restriction implanted by the Rat Pipe Association to prevent secrets from leaking. If anyone tried to forcefully search their memories, the restriction would instantly kill the member.
But what happened next made him feel as if the world itself had begun to distort.
The scattered fragments of flesh rapidly gathered together, reforming into a complete head within only a few breaths. Gui Ying's life force returned once more, yet the restriction no longer activated.
The old man's mouth slowly opened on its own as the man in black continued the memory search with chilling calm.
…
…
…
Before long, everything fell quiet.
The translucent sphere slowly dissipated.
Gui Ying opened her eyes again, like someone who had truly returned from death. Her face was slightly pale, her gaze still clouded with confusion and lingering pain.
She looked toward the five men in black… and Wang Qiang.
Silence pressed down over the entire room.
The man in black flicked his finger lightly.
Tap.
Two clear droplets rose from his fingertip before drifting toward the foreheads of the old man and Gui Ying.
His voice sounded out.
"Do not resist. Otherwise, death will be the only thing you long for from now on."
Neither of them dared to move even the slightest bit. The droplets passed through their skin and slipped silently into their bodies.
The man in black continued.
"The droplets I've planted inside you are meant to prevent betrayal. As for what counts as betrayal, you can figure that out yourselves. But what happened today… remains a secret."
He paused briefly before continuing in a tone as casual as if discussing something ordinary.
"We'll be working together quite a lot from now on. I always reward those who do good work, so do your best."
His words were simple, almost strangely so.
"And if you ever feel like trying to remove my restriction, go ahead. I'd be curious to see if there's a method. It might give me ideas for improving it in the future."
Those words felt like a blade driven deep into Gui Ying's heart.
Moments ago, her consciousness had blacked out without warning. She remembered the sensation of her head striking the ground, then waking to a pain as if her skull were splitting apart, only to lose consciousness again.
Now she understood.
Her life would never be the same after these few seconds.
The man in black tossed a spatial ring toward her. Gui Ying caught it instinctively, though her hand still trembled slightly.
"I'll contact you through that ring. Keep it safe."
He turned slightly, offering a final remark.
"Remember, everything that happened today is a secret. Do not record it with any other Rat Pipe Association branches. And if anyone comes asking to buy this kind of information, contact me first. Until next time."
The moment his words ended,
All six of them vanished at once, like shadows erased from the world.
Only silence remained.