Chapter 1360: The Arrogant One Counts Me, Xu Gusheng, Lawlessly Revealing the True Self

The atmosphere in the hall instantly became tense.

The assassins who had just happily reported their numbers now wore extremely grim expressions.

"How dare you!" Bai Lang shouted, his voice fierce but his heart trembling.

However, his eyes darted frantically, scanning up and down, left and right, still unable to locate the speaker.

Who was talking?

Where was that "Jin Ren"?

Did he truly have the ability and the courage to kill the more than twenty assassins who had just reported in?

Bai Lang retreated, standing in front of his brothers, feeling as if he had a solid wall at his back. Before one wave subsided, another rose:

"This is San Zhuxiang headquarters!"

"I don't care who you are, but here, even a dragon must coil up, and a tiger must lie low."

"If you dare kill here and break the rules, San Zhuxiang has ways to torture you, Xu Gusheng, to death!"

At this point, the assassins who had reported their numbers felt their tightly wound nerves relax slightly.

San Zhuxiang did have its own rules.

Outside the headquarters, assassins could freely kill each other—after all, some assassins' heads were worth a fortune on wanted lists.

But making a move in the hall? Even gold-tier hunters had to carefully consider whether they were qualified and if they could withstand the subsequent wrath of San Zhuxiang.

"Under scrutiny, passive value: 264."

"Under fear, passive value: 34."

Notifications flashed one after another.

Everyone stared at the sickly young master, yet even Tai Xu couldn't pinpoint Jin Ren's location.

"Slap."

The paper fan suddenly snapped shut.

Everyone's hearts skipped a beat.

They saw the sickly young master's face thaw like melting ice and snow, becoming genial and approachable:

"Just a joke, folks. Do you really need to be this tense?"

"Or do you truly believe that all of you together couldn't beat just one of my guards?"

As soon as he said this, even the San Zhuxiang attendants hovering nearby, who had been hesitating to step in or warn, let out silent sighs of relief.

At least they wouldn't have to face that unknown entity, Xu Gusheng, head-on...

The once deathly silent hall filled with a few awkward laughs, followed by self-mocking sighs, and finally devolved into low murmurs of mockery and reproach directed at those around them.

"Just this?"

"Ha, Bai Lang, you got played hard."

"I couldn't take it if I were you."

"Same here—I'd have to find a way to hit back."

"...Damn, I thought he was serious, turns out he was just bluffing?"

Yeah.

This was San Zhuxiang!

Who would dare cause trouble here?

Bai Lang finally swallowed the heart that had leaped into his throat, forcing a smile as he said with lingering fear:

"Heh, Xu Gusheng, right? You know your limits, at least."

"Today counts as meeting under less than ideal circumstances... Whose man are you? How did you come through the teleportation array? I don't recall seeing you before. Let's be friends?"

Regaining his confidence, Bai Lang laughed and approached with a string of questions, even extending his hand in greeting.

But his gaze kept flickering, inevitably landing on the sickly young master's slender, fair fingers—shock and lust mingled in his eyes, making it quite unsettling.

"Be friends?"

The sickly young master smiled at the corner of his lips but didn't extend his hand.

"Hmm." Bai Lang unconsciously licked his lips, his eyes glancing downward, "As the saying goes, more friends mean more paths... heh heh."

"You? Qualified?"

"Uh."

This abrupt retort left not only the people present stunned but also Bai Lang himself, looking up in bewilderment.

Right then, the void exploded.

A blood hole appeared on Bai Lang's forehead, as if struck by a finger gun.

The words on the tip of his tongue never escaped. Bai Lang felt the world before him dissolving.

Horror lingered in his pupils as his body toppled straight backward.

"Thud."

The throne holder fell!

His corpse hit the floor with a shocking impact.

The hall at San Zhuxiang erupted in uproar. Everyone knew Bai Lang wouldn't have approached without defenses—he must have been on guard.

Yet, even so, he couldn't react...

Not just him; everyone behind, right up until Bai Lang collapsed, still hadn't figured out who had struck.

"You... you killed him?"

This shocked cry came from the so-called "friend" who had egged Bai Lang on several times before.

"Oh? I killed you, actually?"

The sickly young master amusingly fanned his paper fan and turned his gaze. "Any problem?"

"You, you..."

"You're thinking, 'San Zhuxiang rules apply here, how dare you kill?'"

"You..."

"You also want to say, didn't I just say it was a joke?"

These words drew gasps throughout the hall.

Everyone could see that this Xu Gusheng wasn't mad—he was ice-cold calm!

But that very calm made him all the more deadly.

He truly disregarded San Zhuxiang's rules!

Did he believe his joke overrode everyone, everything, and all rules here?

"Stop!"

At last, the attendants circling nearby, trembling yet forced to act, shouted this.

The sickly young master tilted his head back, fanning vigorously, his lips curling into a wide, mocking grin:

"Stop what?"

"I said it was a joke to let you off, to give you a laugh before you die—live as a joker, die as a laughing ghost."

"You're all assassins—surely you're not naive enough to believe that?"

Seeing the sickly young master's state, everyone felt like they were looking at a madman.

But he wasn't done!

He turned, pointing his paper fan at the two women behind him in disbelief:

"People I brought—are they something you lowlifes can touch?"

He paused, stepped forward, and stomped heavily on Bai Lang's unseeing corpse, then pointed the fan at himself in shock:

"And what is my status? How dare you lot profane me?"

The fan flipped down.

The sickly young master coldly eyed those before him, his lips twitching with disdain:

"Not one left alive."

With a boom, dozens of Ling Yuan fluctuations erupted in the hall—Daojing, Zhan Dao, even Tai Xu levels.

These assassins who had reported their numbers and wanted to join the sickly young master's game now felt that the mad one wasn't just Xu Gusheng—it was themselves, or the world before them.

How could such a lawless young man suddenly appear in San Zhuxiang?

Did he really think he could cover the sky with one hand, above the laws of the dark world?

But regardless of how San Zhuxiang would pursue him later, for now, that Jin Ren's strength seemed formidable—they had to be on high alert...

"Bang bang bang bang bang!"

A series of dull blasts echoed throughout the hall, and in an instant, seventeen Daojing experts fell.

These were no ordinary foes—some wore red hunter badges, others were renowned in the dark world, feared even without badges in this mixed crowd.

Yet in the blink of an eye, they couldn't even activate their protective spirit techniques before collapsing together.

Their deaths were as straightforward as Bai Lang's.

Holes in their foreheads, instant demise.

"Pfft!" The sickly young master seemed truly insane, clutching his paper fan and laughing hysterically. As his guard continued pointing out kills, he kept mocking:

"How dare you?"

"So weak, how dare you flirt recklessly?"

"After years in the game, barely keeping your lives—why throw them away now, blind to the obvious?"

The assassins who hadn't reported their numbers had already silently retreated to the farthest corners, deploying every defense they had against this somewhat deranged madman.

"This guy's a lunatic!"

Experts aren't scary.

In a place like this, who wasn't a master of assassination and outsmarting the strong?

What was scary was an expert who could casually kick off his shoes and kill barefoot, without a care for consequences.

This was the type all assassins least wanted to face.

Xu Gusheng had terrified these killers, who thrived in a well-established dark system.

He appeared out of nowhere, shredding the rules, arrogant as if he were the king of the world, with no one second to him.

"Kill them all!"

Xu Xiaoshou was oblivious to what the group was thinking; he was genuinely fed up.

He looked down on these assassins.

If possible, he'd have Jin Ren wipe out everyone here, not just those who reported.

From the unjoined Tian Sang Ling Gong's Feng Kong, to Dong Tian Wang City's Hong Gou, then the deep sea's Jin Zu and Xiao Ren, Void Island's Shuang Dai, Xie Lao, Gui Po, and now everyone in this hall...

Xu Xiaoshou felt no pity for assassins whatsoever!

These annoying flies, lured by the scent of cake, would bite and even suck you dry if you weren't careful—they had no principles.

If you were at full strength, you could crush them backhanded.

But if weak, you might get a fatal stab from one and lose something precious.

Xu Xiaoshou swore he wasn't here to cause trouble.

But it seemed he was fated to clash with "assassins."

Back when he was weak, he couldn't fight back and nearly fell to Hong Gou...

Now, what time was this?

And they still dared act up?

"Kill them all!"

The pressure in the hall dropped so low it could freeze, and the two women, Yingying and Que'er, gazed at the sickly young master's back with growing fear.

They had thought Xu Gongzi was a San Zhuxiang client, here to issue a task and bounty someone.

But now... there was bad blood between him and San Zhuxiang's assassins!

Otherwise, why would a perfectly fine, amiable person like him blow up over such a trivial matter?

"Stop!"

The masked San Zhuxiang attendants, their panic barely hidden, shouted, "Xu Gongzi, stop!"

But they were mere service staff, not even Daojing level. They could pour drinks or endure a grope, but how could they halt the sickly young master's rampage?

"Shut up. Speak again, and die."

The fan inscribed with "Inferior to Xu Gusheng" swept in a circle, silencing not just the attendants but even the assassins watching from the back, who stealthily tried to slip away.

"Bang bang bang..."

The dull void blasts continued relentlessly.

The Daojing throne holders were killed first, and the remaining Zhan Dao were trickier since they'd reacted.

But that overbearing "Pointing Finger" pierced through their defenses every time.

One strike.

One life.

The bodies in the hall piled up.

Even Zhan Dao who survived nine deaths by thunder tribulation were targeted by the reaper.

"Xu Gongzi, I was wrong—spare me!"

Finally, someone couldn't bear the terror and cried out.

It seemed to work; the sickly young master glanced back and nodded. "To know error and correct it is the greatest good."

"Thank you..."

"Did I say you could thank me?"

Another Zhan Dao fell.

"Apologies are useful? Then I'd just be a pushover."

Killing like slaughtering dogs, pointing to claim lives.

Reaching the throne was no simple feat, especially for assassins skilled in survival.

But in the sickly young master's eyes, throne holders were worthless, Zhan Dao were worthless, even those who survived nine thunder tribulations were worthless!

With a wave of his hand, over twenty souls were sacrificed in San Zhuxiang's own furnace, as casually as stepping on a line of ants.

In just a few breaths, of those who reported, only two Tai Xu remained, barely clinging to life.

The bangs persisted, but they still couldn't catch Jin Ren's timing, relying on their honed instincts to dodge fatal blows.

Even so, their bodies were riddled with blood holes—sometimes, living was worse than dying.

"Xu Gongzi, this old one admits his fault. You've killed twenty-five already—let us go."

"Yes, Xu Gongzi, I was blind... uh!"

A wave rippled through the void as the pointing force shattered his throat, sealing his words.

The Tai Xu collapsed with a bang, triggering an uproar in the hall.

"Pointing Dao!"

"That's an ancient sword technique from Dongyu, one of the three thousand sword paths—I've seen it!"

"We didn't see that Jin Ren, but his strike used two fingers—I caught a glimpse, just the speed..."

The speed was insane!

If not for a flash in peripheral vision, those two fingers wouldn't even register in anyone's spiritual senses; they'd be forgotten.

As the murmurs of shock rose, some assassins in the hall seemed to recognize the sickly young master's identity.

"You're that successor from Dongyu's Zang Jian Tomb, the one who clashed with Ghost God's Gui Mian?"

Xu Xiaoshou turned in surprise.

These assassins had such wide networks— he'd only been in Zhongyu for two days, and someone already knew about him?

But...

"Did I say you could speak?"

This finger was dodged in advance.

A purple hunter badge assassin couldn't match Jin Ren's speed, but their sensitivity to life and death far outstripped ordinary Tai Xu—this was prediction-based evasion.

"Sorry..." The man hastily apologized.

"Did I say you could apologize?"

Another finger struck, and the speaker dropped dead.

Xu Xiaoshou chuckled coldly, treating life like grass: "A mere Tai Xu without a gold hunter badge—how dare you bark?"

The hall fell into dead silence.

Achieving a gold hunter badge was no easy task.

Even the last remaining elder among those who reported, masked and clearly bitter, was only purple badge.

He was on his last legs.

"With all this chaos, how can San Zhuxiang's council still hold back?" the old assassin, now a bloodied mess full of holes, despaired.

They'd kicked an iron plate.

Everyone's mind flashed the same thought: This Xu Gusheng was ridiculously tough!

"Xu Gongzi, please stop..."

Finally, a stout, bearded elder hurried down from the second-floor stairs. Seeing the sickly young master's cold glance, he jumped in fright:

"Wait! Don't kill me!"

"I'm a San Zhuxiang council member. You're causing such a stir—surely it's because of me..."

The sickly young master smirked at the words: "I'm causing a stir?"

Slap! The council member slapped himself. "Just a minor disturbance! All minor! Can Xu Gongzi pause and talk it over?"

The words hung in the air.

The old assassin, who had been darting through the void and even forced to use blood escape, suddenly got a blood hole in his forehead. His mask shattered, revealing eyes full of regret and malice.

But it was too late...

His body slid down due to gravity, knocking wanted posters off the task board, and thudded to the ground.

The top black gold bounty fell too, flipping in the air before landing on his unseeing face.

"Now it's quiet."

Xu Xiaoshou flicked his fan, fanning "Inferior to Xu Gusheng" as he stepped forward. Under everyone's gaze, he bent down and picked up the black gold bounty from the unknown Tai Xu's face.

"Name: Xu Xiaoshou."

"Age: Nineteen."

"Cultivation: Wangzuo Daojing (suspected), Wangzuo Body (suspected), Quasi Seven Sword Immortal."

"Background: Tian Sang Ling Gong, Saint Slave, Heaven's First Tower."

"Combat Strength: Semi-Sage."

"Bounty Level: Despairing Corpse (Saint level)."

"Bounty Amount: Ten thousand Ling Que, entry to Cleansing Heart Pool, one Rebirth Lotus Seed, one Sacred Relic Fruit, specified Saint Martial Art (attribute optional), specified Relic Inscription Divine Artifact (all San Zhuxiang holdings), Semi-Sage status..."

Xu Xiaoshou glanced once and calmly withdrew his gaze, gaining a new understanding of why he always encountered assassins.

The black gold bounty had been updated!

The rewards were even richer than what Xie Lao and others had shared.

In simple terms: "Take Xu Xiaoshou's head, and you're guaranteed a Semi-Sage path—secure your future and benefit your descendants and family, like becoming the head of a future Semi-Sage clan."

Xu Xiaoshou was tempted!

Truly, even he felt moved!

"Too bad..."

He rolled up the black gold bounty, his eyes falling on the dead Tai Xu's face below.

Not everyone was as hard to kill as Yi.

Not everyone could survive a headshot.

Some Tai Xu, once their physical body died, had no way back.

"Too bad you died without even knowing who you faced..."

Xu Xiaoshou smiled silently, one hand holding the black gold bounty, the other his paper fan, as he turned to face the council member.

From start to finish, Jin Ren didn't need to show himself—the profaners were all slain by him.

In the dark world's survival rules, Xu Xiaoshou was clearer than any assassin here, having read the memories of more than one gold hunter.

The weak yield, the strong prevail.

He fanned leisurely, the breeze carrying his gaze to the San Zhuxiang council member.

He could tell this was someone worth talking to, and one of his targets—Xie Lao and others had met him.

But Xu Gusheng wouldn't know him, so the sickly young master tilted his head and asked coolly:

"One word: Are you truly in charge, or just pretending?"

"Remember, this isn't a multiple-choice question."

The council member's back was instantly soaked in cold sweat, realizing that one shake of his head would mean his own head with a hole, hitting the ground.

That Jin Ren was probably no less than a peak Tai Xu with Semi-Sage power—who could even touch his shadow?

"I am in charge! Absolutely!"

Never before had the council member needed to show such confidence in front of an outsider.

"Good."

The sickly young master retracted his fan, raising the black gold bounty. "This person—you recognize him, right?"

"Lord Xu?" The council member glanced and nodded vigorously. "Of course, big name!"

"This bounty—I'm taking it. I know where he is."