Chapter 1 The Legendary “Xinghe”
Xinghe, was a legend.
This name only popped up a few months ago, but in just a few months of time, it quickly went viral. With the use of his extraordinary skills and expertise, this name rose to legendary heights!
Surrounding the name of “Xinghe,” a lot of hot topics quickly popped up around the world.
On the Internet, as soon as the name “Xinghe” appeared, it immediately occupied the top spot of the search list on Baidu [1]. In the daily search metrics, this name had maintained its top position, and was way popular than the name on the second place.
At the same time, the name Xinghe was also on the watch list of many countries around the world. A few countries even directly listed “Xinghe” into their blacklist, treating him as a highly dangerous character.
The same name, in just a period of six months, had also readily become the hottest topic among the underworld billboards. Countless large and small underground organizations have placed bounties in the thousands on the name of “Xinghe.”
For a time, this name had become associated with a huge amount of cash. It had become many assassins’ plan on making it big, but the bounty pages being picked up by the hopeful criminals one by one, were also returned one by one...
Not surprisingly, these people had failed.
No matter who took down the bounty pages, those who attempted to kill Xinghe only faced two outcomes.
The first result was the less fortunate: they found Xinghe but not one of them could return in one piece.
The other result was even funnier: they could not even track down the whereabouts of Xinghe, but ironically, this incompetence was rather lucky compared to the first result!
Constantly met with continued failures, it shocked the entire underground world and finally piqued the interest of the number one underground organization that dominated the underworld—Blood Rose. This organization was, without a doubt, No. 1 among the world’s underworld organizations. They were famous for accepting only the most expensive single-kill missions that were worth five billion dollars!
In the hundreds of years of history of the Blood Rose, they had hunter and killed more than a hundred thousand people. Moreover, in the past, the only people who have managed to escape their clutches only amounted to three!
Such a nearly miraculous success rate gave their clients the confidence to believe that this would be the end of the story. Although giving away five billion US dollars was very painful, but to finally be able to put this “Xinghe” maggot away into the historical books was worth it.
Blood Rose had set Wu Xinghe’s assassination as their top priority as they were attracted by the largest reward in history. They sent seven of their top agents. These seven masters, without exception, were all from the organization’s “top ten ace killer team.”
This mission was also ranked at the SSS level, which was equivalent to a super-level task in the underworld.
Seven aces, each of them had their own specialty such as sniping, stealth, disguises, close combat...
Overall, all of them had unique skills compared to other killers. In the field of assassination, they reigned supreme, and their existence was like the existence of a bug. This joint attack by the seven masters showed how much significance Blood Rose had placed on this bounty.
This unprecedented value of the bounty that swept away the previous most expensive bounty in history set off a great uproar in the entire underworld; its shocking strength was equivalent to a nuclear bomb’s detonation!
W University’s campus appeared romantic, especially in the early spring.
In a quiet corner of the campus, a twenty-five-year-old youth, Wu XingHe, who was a second-year Masters student at W Graduate School, sat alone on a small slope. He was enjoying the wonderful morning as he leisurely watched a group of pigeons playing on the grass. His facial expression was peaceful but serious.
It was as if all the hustle and bustle of the world had nothing to do with him, it seemed as if the moment had stopped, and fixed itself into a timeless and peaceful scene.
Suddenly, Wu Xinghe’s face changed. The smile that was hanging on his face suddenly disappeared.
Instead, he became serious. Originally, he only seemed to be an ordinary person. Then, he stood up like a javelin, giving off an enormously steadfast aura, like a mountain with networks of rivers flowing down its slope.
“The moment has finally come.”
Then, the pigeons were abruptly alarmed as they flapped their wings. They were startled and wanted to fly, but they were trapped by an invisible boundary. As soon as these pigeons rushed past a certain point, they fell onto the grass as if shocked by electricity.
Sou, Sou, Sou!
Six shadows shot from different corners and surrounded Wu Xinghe. Each of them had peculiar appearances. Three of them were obviously caucasian, and as for the remaining two, one of them had an asian face dressed in a ninja outfit; and the other one wore a black cloak that covered his entire body, exposing only a pair of eagle-like eyes and giving off an atmosphere of mysteriousness.
“Mr. Xinghe, we’ve finally found you,” the black cloaked person spoke in a hoarse voice.
Wu Xinghe’s eyes immediately noticed a flirtatious flower in the appearance of a rose soaked in blood, painted on the chest of the black cloaked person.
“You are?” Wu Xinghe restored his previous leisurely attitude, as if the five dangerous characters before him were just five wooden dummies.
“We wanted to finish some unfinished business with you,” The black-caped old man said lightly.
“Oh?”
“Mr. Xinghe, on May 25th, 2012, a museum abroad was robbed and hundreds of pieces of cultural relics were stolen. You are the culprit, correct?” the black-caped old man asked.
Wu Xinghe smiled faintly: “That’s right, out on the street, sooner or later you must pay for it. That batch of cultural relics were originally stolen from my country’s Royal palace by those thieves, I merely went to get them back, fair and square, what was wrong with that?”
The black-caped old man nodded. However, he did not relent as he asked: “Then you are also responsible for turning the elite singer, Malchea’s body black, right?”
Wu Xinghe did not deny the accusation; he just spoke with a smile: “That guy should feel ashamed. He said that non-white people are a second-class race. He thinks he is a higher-class just because he was born with white skin? To rectify that, I simply painted him in a layer of black paint. The thing is, it was a special paint, so he can never wash it away.”
“Well, it seems that you did not intend to deny the events. Clearly, you are the one that secretly filmed the love affair between M country’s female politician and her subordinate, right?”
“Do you think it has anything to do with me when that slutty woman seduced that man? But how could she disregard basic human morals and take bribes instead of building better quality school buildings? As a result, many students died in an accident when a disaster occurred in that school. According to my character, I should have killed her. However, since we are peace lovers, if violence can be avoided, then the less action the better, is it not?
Each time he admitted something, the more dignified the expression of those five people became. Indeed, they could see that this young man would be their greatest threat they’d ever faced from his ability to maintain such a relaxed state of mind in front of them.
The black-cloaked old man took a deep breath and said: “One last question. R country’s military leader had committed suicide by hanging from a ceiling beam. The police also concluded that it was murder and not a suicide. Just a guess, this matter is probably not unrelated to you, right?”
Wu Xinghe laughed. “You mean that military general who was fatter than a pig? That’s right, I killed him. That guy had a pig’s face, and each day, he never stopped talking nonsense. It hasn’t been one or two days since I’ve not seen him eye to eye. This time, he dared to speak about conquering my country’s territory by using methods of violence, how can he not die?”
Suddenly, Wu Xinghe stared closely at the blood rose on the old man’s chest and laughed. “I say, when did the Blood Rose organization start doing the dirty work for the World Police? Could it be that you had enough of acting in notoriety and you now want to fight for justice?”
The old man squinted and revealed a gloomy smile. “Justice, that kind of thing is worth nothing in the underworld. I’m not afraid to tell you that someone offered five billion dollars for your life. In our eyes, what you did is not important; what’s important is that retrieving your head will earn us five billion dollars.”
“Five billion dollars?” Wu Xinghe did not expect that his current worth had risen to such a level. However, the more he thought about it, the more reasonable the idea became.
Each of the acts he had previously committed were influential enough to have attracted the attention of politicians. Thus, it was not surprising that the birth of an international decree was driving force behind the huge amount of money.
Since an international decree had emerged, then the high remuneration would not be difficult to understand.
The fact was exactly like this: the party behind such a high remuneration was in fact beyond what individuals and even consortiums could bear!
Wu Xinghe glanced at the dead pigeons on the lawn and sighed: “These pigeons, if they had not tried to find food on this grass, they wouldn’t have died in this catastrophe. China has an old saying that humans die for money, and birds die for food. Do you people not feel anything with the scene right in front of you?”
“Of course we have feelings. We knew Mr. Xinghe is a very powerful guy, therefore, we deliberately sent one of our comrade to greet your sister. If Mr. Xinghe collaborates and comes with us, we will not harm your sister. Or else, she will meet a fate that is tragic beyond your expectations.”
Although the black-caped old man had provoked Wu Xinghe, he did not dare to relax. Instead, he became even more cautious. He knew that if a strong opponent like Wu Xinghe ever became outraged, he would become a killing machine beyond human understanding. Therefore, he should be treated with caution.
Blood Rose had immediately sent out seven of their ace killers. This fact showed how much they wanted to succeed in this mission! But these seven aces did not dare to be careless or overconfident. They had conducted a full investigation, obtained evidence, mastered, and analyzed that Wu Xinghe’s only weakness was his sister.
This was the only place in which they could get to him. To secure their victory; they must seize upon this only weakness.
Although Wu Xinghe’s face was expressionless, inside, he was filled with killing intent. Even though his sister was not related to him by blood, she was all he had throughout his childhood; she was the one that took care of him until he grew up. Thus, he shared a deep affection to her.
“The Blood Rose organization is acting sneaky? I’m guessing you guys are afraid of me?” Wu Xinghe proudly asked.
“Humph! In our occupation, we seek success by any means. If Mr. Xinghe is saying that we fear you, it is not entirely true. But because you have caused a lot of turnover, it is always good to be prepared.”
Wu Xinghe nodded and slowly bent down.
This simple action immediately surprised the black-cloaked old man. He shouted: “Don’t move if you don’t want to see your sister’s corpse lying in front of you. You’d better give in!”
“What is the panic? I am just tying my shoelace.” Wu Xinghe smiled coldly as he squatted down without a care.
The expression on the faces of all five of them changed as they involuntarily took a step back.
Wu Xinghe’s mouth suddenly let loose a trace of a strange smile, and he shouted in a low voice, “Three o’clock position, eight hundred meters away, there is still one more person. Why not come out altogether? Planning to attack me?”
Suddenly, Wu Xinghe’s body tensed up and he did not wait for his words to finish. He pressed his palm on the grass, and his body was positioned in a way as if a giant bird was about to glide into the sky.
In the sky, the shadows of palms were flying, bringing along the violent, hot, sunny air. He had continuously sent out five palm strikes and attacked five people separately!
These five people felt as if they were thrown into a fireplace as their whole body was smothered in a wave of unbearable heat. Their skin felt waves of acute pain and burning sensation, as if oil was splashed onto their skin.
“Oh no!” Although the black-cloaked old man had been extremely cautious, they had still underestimated Wu Xinghe’s actual combat ability. These palm strikes’ immense power were beyond their imaginations when they struck them.
They were completely overwhelmed by Wu Xinghe’s palm power and they didn’t even have the chance to use their firearms. Eventually, they could only rely on footwork to dodge again and again.
“Expand the circle! Hurry, expand the circle!” That Fuso ninja knew very well the magic of the ancient asian martial arts. Under such attacks, they could only expand the circle to ensure that their entire group was not destroyed.
As for who could avoid this attack, it all depended on luck.
“Want to escape?” Wu Xinghe was furious since the beginning when he saw the Fuso ninja. His palm force reflected the ninja’s throwing blade. The blade flew back toward the ninja, slicing across his throat, and causing a thin bloody line to appear.
One down.
Wu Xinghe did not stop his footsteps. He awakened his inner qi with the combination of a set of <Nine-Suns Palms>, and <Yan Yang Zhen Jing>’s [2] inner force, he shot out one palm strike after another like a lion striking the rabbit, constantly pummeling the force into their chests.
<Yan Yang Zhen Jing> was the most ancient Chinese martial art that exhibited the most masculine interior strength. If one were hit by this attack, it would feel as if they were being burnt by fire and baked by the sun. Its power was indeed formidable.
Wu Xinghe jumped like a rabbit and dropped like a falcon. Countless mirage flickered across the grass and flashed through like a butterfly. In the end, four of the five enemies had already fallen.
The black-cloaked old man was the only one left, and Wu Xinghe grabbed him by the throat.
Wu Xinghe suddenly glared. “Whoever is hiding, just come out!”
The old man’s face darkened as he muttered: “Are you even human?”
“Cut the crap, do you want five billion dollars or your life?” Wu Xinghe suddenly changed back to his previous appearance of a weak student. He spoke in a low voice, “I will use your life to trade for my sister’s.”
“Mission failed, only death... Your sister? My comrades will take her to see you. Ha ha, he will complete what we did not finish.”
As soon as he finished talking, black blood spilled from his mouth. This man, whose was wearing a strange and satisfied smile on his face, had actually committed suicide by using poison!
“Woosh!”
Wu Xinghe threw the body forward, then leaped forward continuously.
Bang!
In the place where he had previously stood, a trunk that was thick as a human’s wrist suddenly fell after being shot by a bullet.
Wu Xinghe’s speed was very fast, even faster than the bullets. After a few quick leaps, he had already traveled about four or five hundred meters closer to the sniper. Then, he suddenly shouted and a gush of violent air rushed out.
Buddhist technique - Lion’s Roar!
The sniper had maintained his position for a very long time. He did not shoot even when all of his comrades had died. It was all to give himself the chance to execute that previously fatal shot. However, he did not expect that Wu Xinghe’s sense of crisis detection was sharper than a wolf’s.
After he missed the target in his first shot, Wu Xinghe had already started running towards him. He quickly peered through the scope, looking for another shot, when suddenly, a sharp tingling flew past his ear. It was then immediately followed by the sound of cracking; his scope was broken!
Wu Xinghe’s roaring power had directly shattered the sniper’s eardrums and the scope!
A sniper rifle without its scope was like a fangless tiger. In addition, his eardrums were ruptured, who else could prevent Wu Xinghe from getting closer?
Ka!
Wu Xinghe’s hands squeezed the sniper’s forehead. With a crisp sound, his skull was crushed, and blood flowed from his eyes, nostrils and mouth. He had instantly died.
Wu Xinghe did not have the time to deal with the aftermath of the matter after he’d killed the six people non-stop. He only had one thought in his mind; hurry home and save his sister.
Back home, a pungent smell of blood was clearly present in the corridor.
Wu Xinghe was extremely anxious. He pushed the door and went into the room, but was greeted with the sight of his sister’s body lying on the ground, who was at her last breath. Wu Xinghe’s heart instantly sank. Tears immediately streamed down from this man’s face who had never shed tears before.
“Sister....”
As he hugged his sister’s body into his arms, Wu Xinghe’s tears uncontrollably fell, and his heart was going crazy.
Wu Xinghe’s face suddenly changed, and he felt an imminent crisis. Almost subconsciously, Wu Xinghe’s right palm struck downwards.
Bang dang, a sharp dagger crashed down.
The end of the dagger was covered with blue light. It was clearly covered in a highly toxic material.
A sneak attack!
While a shocked expression was still on his face, the sister who was in his arms slid out like a fish.
Wu Xinghe quickly got up and stared hard at the “sister” before his eyes. In addition to the murderous intent, he could not see the slightest flaw!
“Mr. Xinghe, you are really powerful!” When the enemy saw that the sneak attack had failed, with face full of hatred, he spoke furiously. Then, “she” asked with a condescending voice, “So... I guess my companions have been...”
“Are already on the road of the afterlife!” Wu Xinghe spoke with a cold voice.
Then, he asked: “And my sister?”
“Your sister? Haha!” That woman suddenly laughed crazily, “Where my comrades went, that is also where your sister went!”
Wu Xinghe’s pupils suddenly enlarged. “You’ve killed her?”
“You are right, not only have I killed her, but I have also refined her body into a drug, ha ha ha!”
Wu Xinghe’s heart suddenly sank to the bottom. He shouted in a low voice: “That being the case, then you just have to die!”
Wu Xinghe brutally laughed, pushed forward with his whole body’ potential and forcibly sped up his Yin Yang inner force. His palm force flew towards the woman.
The dagger that was on the ground flew backwards and was inhaled into the palm of Wu Xinghe. Next, his Vicious Qi shot out a serious blue light.
Woosh!
No resistance was felt by the knife; a fatal kill.
It directly pierced through the woman’s throat.
Although he had killed all of his opponents, Wu Xinghe did not feel at ease, his heart felt like it was about to burst...
Sister, he would never find someone more dear to him than his sister.
The Yin Yang inner force inside his body was constantly boiling up. Suddenly, Wu Xinghe felt a sharp pain from his chest. With a cry, a spurt of blood spilled from his throat.
Wu Xinghe’s face slightly changed. Then, he felt that his awakening force was boiling like water.
Not good!
It turned out that in recent months, Wu Xinghe tried to use the Vicious Qi to break through a bottleneck in order to reach the innate stage.
Today, he was planning to remove the accumulated vicious qi in his body.
However, it was beyond his expectations that he would be hunted by the Blood Rose’s killers. As a result, he had overused the vicious qi, causing it to worsen.
These were the signs of the Vicious Bite!
This Vicious Bite was the worst sort of affliction to people that excelled in martial arts might experience. The lightest consequence would result in falling into a coma, but the most serious consequence would be immediate death.
Wu Xinghe slumped against the table. His mouth drew in big breaths. Suddenly, his eyes stopped at the table where a note was pressed down.
“Little Wu, sister’s company organized activities to the countryside. I will probably take about a week to come back. During this time, you have to take good care of yourself, XO.”
Wu Xinghe was stunned for a moment, then his thoughts took a sharp turn. These killers had only arrived today, so his sister should have already been out a long time ago. Could it be that his sister was not dead?
As his mood swung up and down, it furthered deteriorated the Vicious Bite.
With a pair of trembling hands, he took out his cellphone and dialed his sister’s number.
“Hey, little Wu, did you see sister’s note?”
When he heard the crisp and familiar voice, Wu Xinghe’s hanging heart suddenly went down.
He gently hung up the phone as a mouthful of blood sprayed out.
He muttered to himself: “Sister, in the future, you have to take care...”
Wu Xinghe’s footsteps gradually weakened; his vision became blurred, and his consciousness slowly became hazy. He murmured: “Sister... from now on, little Wu will no longer be able to take care of you...”
The Vicious Bite had caused his internal qi to attack his organs, Wu Xinghe’s consciousness became even more blurred as his feet became unable to take another step...
A true physical wonder, the most peculiar guy among the ancient martial arts world, and history’s youngest ancient martial art master, Wu Xinghe, had tragically fallen in this room because of the Vicious Bite!
[1] (ED: the top search engine in China)
[2] Some ancient techniques