Only I am Venerable

Chapter 488: A Duel Between Assassins

It wasn’t until a moment later, when the killing intent swept in from afar and enveloped Cao Hong’s entire courtyard, that his admiration for Qin Li had reached the point of utter prostration.

The anxiety that had filled his heart now vanished completely. To be able to detect the enemy from so far away, while the enemy couldn’t detect them, meant that the Young Master’s strength was immeasurably greater than Tianya’s! If Cao Hong still felt scared and lacked confidence even with this advantage, then he was fundamentally unsuited to be an elite assassin. He might as well take his savings, find a pretty wife, and retire to some secluded place.

Cao Hong straightened his chest. Facing the undisguised killing intent that now blanketed the courtyard, he said coolly, "Tianya, you’re here. Don’t plan on leaving."

A soft, cold laugh echoed through the air. The voice was extremely sharp, enough to make one’s skin crawl. Even Qin Li couldn’t tell if the speaker was male or female.

"Cao Hong, seventh on the assassin’s ranking. I’ve always thought that list was a load of nonsense. But even if it is, the fact that I’m ranked higher than you is indisputable! So... don’t you feel a little ashamed saying something like that?"

"Ashamed? No. Tianya, I’ve long heard you were some androgynous thing. I never thought the rumors were actually true, hehe!" Cao Hong’s laugh was so sleazy that Qin Li had the urge to kick him out of the courtyard.

"Are you trying to provoke me? Don’t worry. A dying man always has the right to curse a few times to vent!" The androgynous, sinister voice drew nearer, finally appearing in the sky above the small courtyard.

Clearly, when the killing intent had first enveloped the courtyard, Tianya had still been miles away!

This just went to show that Tianya was no weakling! If not for Qin Li, Cao Hong’s fate... would have been hard to say.

However, from start to finish, Tianya had somehow failed to notice the presence of a second person in the courtyard. This made Cao Hong’s confidence swell to the bursting point!

Just then, a figure appeared with a WHOOSH in the sky above the courtyard. It was a gaudily dressed... man. Yes, a gaudily dressed man—and the kind you could tell was a man at a single glance!

Who has ever seen a man with a full beard, his face caked in rouge, his lips painted scarlet, his hair full of all sorts of trinkets, and his body clad in a bright red dress?

Surely, very few people have. The getup was so nauseating it made you want to skip vomiting and just pass out directly.

It was utterly disgusting!

And yet, the killing intent radiating from this person was so tangible it was like a physical thing pointed straight at Cao Hong. It was also at this exact moment, as Tianya hovered over the courtyard, that he suddenly let out an irrepressible gasp of shock.

Because he had seen Qin Li!

Did he recognize Qin Li? No, not at all. The portrait of Qin Li he had seen was of a handsome, tall young man. The person before him now was a youth with dark skin, thick eyebrows, and large eyes. The two were fundamentally different. An assassin’s eyes were, after all, quite sharp!

The main reason for Tianya’s shock was that this man had apparently been standing here the whole time, yet his own Spiritual Power had never once sensed a second person’s presence!

’Doesn’t that mean this dark-skinned youth is a Martial Artist of immense power?’

Fortunately, as the third-ranked expert on the assassin’s list, Tianya’s mental fortitude was exceptional. He was stunned for only a moment before chuckling lightly. "Well now, Cao Hong, you’ve really outdone yourself, haven’t you? Even found yourself a helper. And this helper seems quite strong!"

Cao Hong sneered, "Stronger than you, in any case! Do you really think you have any chance of leaving here alive today?"

"And why not? I came to kill you, not him. Since I can’t kill you, I’ll just go back and cancel the mission. Why must we fight to the death?"

Tianya batted his eyes, feigning an innocent look. The expression was so lifelike that on a pretty girl’s face, it would have been utterly captivating. But on Tianya’s face, it only made one’s stomach churn.

"Cao Hong, you go fight him!" Qin Li said, looking up at Tianya. "I’ll give you two a chance for a fair fight!"

"Huh? Young Master, aren’t you just sending me to my death?" Cao Hong looked at Qin Li, his face twisted in a bitter expression. He thought to himself, ’People who aren’t from the Land of the Far West will never understand just how strong Tianya is. Even a super-expert at the Thunder Tribulation Realm has to be wary of his assassinations!’

Qin Li smiled faintly and said, "If you’ve never truly experienced a life-and-death crisis, how can you learn to look upon life and death with indifference?"

Qin Li’s words actually made Tianya, who was hovering in the sky, agree profoundly. He said with newfound respect, "I never imagined this young master could utter such thought-provoking words. Truly extraordinary! Cao Hong, I’ll give you a chance. I will limit my power to the Shattered Void Realm and fight you. How about it?"

Cao Hong was taken aback and asked, "Are you serious?"

"Hmph, since my debut, I, Tianya, have never gone back on my word!" Tianya tilted his head up and said proudly, looking for all the world like a prideful woman.

Cao Hong fought the urge to look away from Tianya’s expression, afraid that he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from throwing up.

Meanwhile, Tianya was sneering inwardly: ’So ignorant. If you tell a Celestial Venerable Realm expert that you’ll suppress your power to their level to fight them, could they ever be your opponent? Even if I suppress my power, my fundamental realm won’t change! With a realm a full level higher than yours, how could you possibly be a match for me?’

If it weren’t for this dark-skinned youth who gave him a feeling of being completely unfathomable, Tianya would have already struck and finished Cao Hong off!

Cao Hong took a deep breath and glanced back at Qin Li, then suddenly gave a relaxed smile. "Young Master, if I die, remember to collect my corpse. Just put up an unmarked tombstone for me!"

"How self-aware of you. You know that if your name were carved on it, countless people would dig up your grave," Tianya said sarcastically.

Cao Hong let out a few cold laughs. "The same goes for you!"

"We fight here?" Tianya glanced around. It seemed few people were paying attention to this area. This part of Tongtian City was where ordinary people lived; there weren’t many powerful Martial Artists, and they rarely meddled in other people’s affairs anyway.

Cao Hong said, "There’s an open field thirty li south of the city."

Tianya nodded. "Then I’ll be waiting for you there!" With that, he took one last deep look at Qin Li, then his figure flickered and vanished into thin air.

After Tianya left, Cao Hong wiped his hands on his clothes. His palms were slick with sweat. The pressure Tianya put on him was far greater than he had let on.

But Cao Hong didn’t ask Qin Li anything else. If he did, he wouldn’t be Cao Hong, and he certainly wouldn’t be an elite assassin. At this moment, Cao Hong’s mind became incomparably calm.

「Thirty li south of Tongtian City.」

It was a vast, empty wilderness, a place seldom visited. Cao Hong and Qin Li arrived shortly after.

Tianya glanced at Cao Hong and said, "Go ahead and make your move. I’ll give you a three-move head start."

Without a word, Cao Hong drew his short blade. His body blurred into a wisp of green smoke, leaving a trail of afterimages as he shot directly toward Tianya. He swung his arm, and the blade cut three sharp arcs of Sword Qi through the air!

"That’s three moves. Make your move!" Cao Hong shouted.

Tianya was briefly stunned. The cynical look on his face vanished, replaced by a hint of seriousness. Regardless of anything else, an opponent like Cao Hong was worthy of being taken seriously.

"Watch closely. I am only using the power of the Shattered Void!" Tianya’s voice was full of confidence, as if speaking to Qin Li, but also telling Cao Hong: ’Even if I only use the power of the Shattered Void, you are no match for me!’

DING!

A single, crisp sound rang out. There wasn’t the powerful shockwave typical of battles between Martial Artists, but the speed of the two combatants was dazzlingly fast!

In Qin Li’s eyes, however, everything was perfectly clear. He could see every single move and technique from both of them, and he could predict their next actions with extreme accuracy.

Qin Li couldn’t help but feel a little impressed by Tianya’s skill. The man had indeed suppressed his power to the Shattered Void Realm, but his awareness was still far superior to Cao Hong’s.

It was like a fight between an adult and a teenager. Even if the adult suppressed their strength to the same level as the teen’s, their experience and worldly wisdom were still immeasurably greater. Therefore, it would be incredibly difficult for Cao Hong to win.

An assassin’s movements are concise, focused on lethality rather than style. As a result, the battle between the two wasn’t particularly spectacular to watch.

But Qin Li still watched with great interest. In the blink of an eye, Cao Hong and Tianya had exchanged over thirty moves, and Cao Hong... was gradually showing signs of being defeated.

To be honest, if an unfathomable person like Qin Li weren’t standing by, Tianya would have killed Cao Hong with a single strike long ago. But Qin Li’s very presence made Tianya deeply wary. He was afraid that if he lost control and used his full power to kill Cao Hong, Qin Li would immediately intervene.

DING! DING! DING!

Another few short, clear clangs rang out, not overly loud. Their movements were too fast. If one move failed, the next immediately followed, and they hardly used any powerful force for direct clashes.

Suddenly, Tianya thrust his blade toward Cao Hong’s heart, while Cao Hong stabbed toward Tianya’s Dantian. Neither of them... pulled back!

It seemed they intended to decide the victor with this single exchange!

A cold glint flashed in Tianya’s eyes. Gritting his teeth, he released just a tiny bit more of his power—in other words, he had tapped into the power of the Pill Nascent Soul Transformation Realm!

It was just this tiny bit, but it instantly boosted his speed by a notch, making him faster than Cao Hong!

’Before Cao Hong’s blade can even reach my Dantian, he will be dead! And since I only used a little extra power, that dark-skinned youth watching from the side definitely won’t notice!’

As Tianya thought this, a savage look appeared in his eyes. He roared, "Die!"