Desperadoes

With a rustling swoosh, the long red drapery hanging from the partition wall at the back of the hall suddenly dropped down. The sound was not particularly loud, but falling into the dead silence that followed Han Qingyu's self-introduction, it was startlingly clear. "Shall we go catch Han Qingyu?" "Azure, Han Qingyu. A pleasure." The entire turnaround had taken barely three seconds. Some of the people present had only just snapped back to their senses. Right now, their Mr. Stan... was being held at knifepoint. As for the man holding the blade— First time meeting him. ...So this was Azure's Han Qingyu. Finally recovering from the initial mental shock, they spoke up once more. "Let Mr. Stan go." "If you dare harm a single hair on Mr. Stan's head, don't even dream of walking out of here alive today!" "Do you really think you can fight your way out of here..." The hall erupted into a chaotic clamor. Wu Xu remained very quiet, standing there with his spear held horizontally, watching them. Han Qingyu did not speak again either. After seven or eight seconds, realizing how empty and pointless their bluster was, the shouting gradually died down. Stan, on the other hand, looked calmly at Han Qingyu. "Speaking personally, I am very surprised, and deeply impressed. But how did you get here?" Stan realized he had been careless. The reason for his oversight was that nearly everyone from the clan forces they had mobilized this time had grown up within their respective clans since childhood... The probability of any of them being an undercover agent was infinitely close to zero. It had been a very, very long time since Snow Lotus had mounted any large-scale operation in Huaxia. This time, seizing the opportunity to absorb the secluded clan factions, they had committed extensive resources, determined to succeed. Han Qingyu did not answer Stan's question. He was contemplating how to break the deadlock. Faint footsteps approached. His mouth still hanging open unconsciously and his mind somewhat numb, Pang Jinghe slowly walked in from outside the partition wall. He stopped, shook his head, glanced at Han Qingyu... In an instant, he snapped completely awake. A flash of inspiration struck his mind: he decided to slip back outside, find a chance to butcher He Hongda, and then pretend nothing had happened and that he had only just arrived. "Brother Pang," a voice called from behind him. Pang Jinghe: "..." Brother Pang, my foot! Pang Jinghe was now intimately familiar with this voice. His heart skipped a violent beat. He decided to pretend he had not heard, hunching over as he kept walking. "Brother Pang... Pang Jinghe, Brother Pang." Instantly, dozens of gazes landed on him. "Aiya... What are you doing?!" Pang Jinghe cried out, his voice tinged with a frantic, tearful whine. Resigned, he straightened his hunched posture, turned around, and voiced a loud complaint. "Thank you," Han Qingyu said. "Come over here. I'm worried they'll hurt you." "I..." *Should I go over or not?* Pang Jinghe looked left and right. *If I go over, I'm a traitor. But if I don't, they look ready to hack me to death.* He stood there, agonizing over the dilemma. "Pang Jinghe!" a roar erupted, and a blade swung to point at him. "So it was you who betrayed us and Mr. Stan!" "I didn't!" Pang Jinghe pleaded with a mournful face, making an instinctive excuse. Seeing the blade point at him, he reflexively took several quick steps toward the space behind Wu Xu. Of course, he did not dare get too close. This war slave of the Yu clan looked like he could kill someone at any moment. *Wait, right, he's clearly from the Yu clan! How could this be happening?* "It's him! He's the one who betrayed you... all of us!" Pointing at Wu Xu, Pang Jinghe shouted loudly, "He's from the Yu clan!" The gazes shifted to Wu Xu. Wu Xu did not make a sound. "But we never notified the Yu clan at all," someone in the crowd remarked. "How did someone from the Yu clan find this place?" Wu Xu, very honestly, glanced at Pang Jinghe. Pang Jinghe tried to look away, but failed. Everyone understood. However, the matter regarding Pang Jinghe did not escalate further, because someone in the room suddenly slapped their thigh and shouted, "Oh no, damn it!" "Wait, if that's the case, could there already be an ambush at the medical station?! The people from our families who went there—my dad, my brother... No, I have to hurry and tell them to run!" Chaos erupted in the hall instantly. Han Qingyu still did not say a word. This was precisely the outcome he had intended to provoke by greeting Pang Jinghe. "Quiet!" an abrupt voice rang out. Waiting until the hall settled down, the speaker explained, "Don't panic! This is exactly the reaction he wants right now. Pang Jinghe didn't know the operation's target. An hour ago, aside from Mr. Stan, all of us from the seven clans still thought the target was Reserve Station 69 or whatever. Therefore, there's no way they could know over there, and there's no way there's an ambush! He didn't come here because he got word in advance either; otherwise, we'd definitely be surrounded right now. But there's no sign of Azure personnel outside, is there?" Once these words were spoken, the scene immediately calmed down. Expressionless, Han Qingyu forced down a surge of blood that had risen to his chest. He cast a glance at the speaker—a refined, scholarly-looking man of about thirty. "What's your name?" "Tian Yingguang. Pleased to meet you." "Unfortunate. You're dead." "..." Tian Yingguang's expression flickered nervously. Regaining his composure, he wanted to say something more, but did not dare press further, quietly shuffling backward to hide behind several people. Since this gambit had fallen through, Han Qingyu could only be direct. Pushing his blade forward a fraction, he looked at Stan and said, "Lift the signal jamming. Send word that the mission is canceled." The room went dead silent. Cancel the mission? And then what? Get hunted down by Azure? Or did Snow Lotus have a way to get them out? That seemed very unlikely. But if they did not comply, what would happen to Mr. Stan's life? Facing the blade, Stan shook his head. He spoke in slightly stilted Mandarin: "You are very strong, and very clever. But you underestimate our Snow Lotus too much. This operation will proceed regardless, and I... will happily die here." "Unfortunately, I am the only person here capable of disabling the jamming and communicating with the outside. So even if I die, the operation will still continue as planned." "You won't make it back in time, genius of Azure. Even if you manage to rush back, there are three hundred men there." He spoke with utter calm. Han Qingyu looked at him. "Ne is eternal; Snow Lotus is immortal," Stan said, meeting his gaze. With those words finished— *Boom.* Explosives detonated from his body. *Hum.* The source energy apparatus surged to maximum power in an instant—a liquid source energy surge. The power of the explosives was not exceptionally strong. The instant the blast went off, Han Qingyu pierced Stan's throat and simultaneously vaulted backward to create distance. In his strongest defensive stance, minimizing his surface area of impact, he flew back through the air. Stan's body collapsed in the explosion. *Pfft.* Han Qingyu coughed up a mouthful of blood as he flew backward. His body tumbled toward the crowd. Several people brandished their weapons and lunged forward. *Thwack!* Tian Yingguang had not joined the rush, yet his head fell to the ground. As for the others, not a single blade could reach Han Qingyu; instead, two of their own dropped dead. For Wu Xu stood transverse with Binggu, the spearhead dripping blood. "Tian Yingguang is dead!" "He..." Amid terrified cries and stunned gazes, Han Qingyu slowly rose to his feet and glanced back at them. Then he walked over, picking up his blades from the ground—one, then the other. "Let's go," he said to Wu Xu as he walked toward the door. "We're going to kill three hundred people."