Are You Joking?

Lu Su deeply understood that villains died from talking too much, so Sheng Hanzu’s pleas for mercy did not stir the slightest ripple in his heart.

After all, no one could be sure whether the other party had some hidden trump card. What if his current weakened state was all an act?

Lu Su had no interest in gambling with his life. Besides, he already knew everything he needed to know, and he did not believe Sheng Hanzu could reveal any useful information.

As the Double-headed Lance mercilessly stabbed toward him, a trace of viciousness flashed through the bewitching-faced man’s eyes.

Snap—

The next moment, accompanied by a crisp snap of his fingers, an invisible ripple swept across Nylro. The green-haired Antelope Knight immediately froze in place.

Seeing this, Lu Su remained calm, as if he had expected it all along. "So you really were hiding something."

After all, the other party had defeated Sister Lie in a one-on-one fight. Even if his combat strength was inferior to those four cards, he could not possibly be weak.

Though the cards had now vanished without a trace, Sheng Hanzu himself definitely still possessed combat ability.

Yet when Lu Su saw him freeze Nylro and then flee backward in panic, threads of doubt rose in his heart.

So far, the man opposite him had felt strange in every way, completely unlike the combat level a normal Diamond Grade Card Master should possess.

His cards had not displayed the power they should have, and he himself had been exceedingly arrogant, lacking the caution an assassin ought to possess.

What kind of assassin would waste half the day talking nonsense with their target, even directly exposing the employer behind them?

Although Sheng Hanzu had done so because he believed Lu Su was already as good as dead, and dead men did not talk.

Still, to be honest, Lu Su even felt that Sheng Hanzu’s performance was about the same as his own during his first battle.

At that thought, he froze. "My first battle?"

"No way…"

Combining the Imperial Court’s desire to conceal their identities with the other party’s extremely niche card system, Lu Su felt as though he had grasped the truth.

Unfortunately, there was no point in dwelling on it now.

Watching Sheng Hanzu gradually run farther away, he trailed behind at a measured distance, occasionally having Ulquiorra, Aizen, and the others harass him with long-range attacks.

Although Lu Su felt the truth was most likely what he suspected, he still had to remain cautious. Even a cornered dog would jump over a wall.

At this moment, Sheng Hanzu could only sprint across the scorched black earth. He could not even find any woods in which to hide his tracks.

Excalibur’s Full Restraint Release had shaved off several mountain peaks.

Barely twisting aside to dodge a Spirit Spear, Sheng Hanzu stumbled and fell to the ground.

Ignoring the burning scrapes covering his body, he crawled forward with both hands and feet, muttering, "I don’t want to die. I don’t want to die…"

Just then, he saw the light and shadow before him swallowed by a tall, slender silhouette.

The utterly disheveled man raised his head tremblingly and saw the demon-like card staring at him expressionlessly.

Sheng Hanzu hurriedly raised his hand, wanting to snap his fingers again—

"Aah!!"

A terrified scream suddenly rang out across the scorched earth.

This Diamond Grade Card Master’s right hand had been pierced through by an emerald-green spear and firmly nailed to the ground.

Having always lived a pampered life, when had Sheng Hanzu ever experienced such agony? Before today, he had always played the role of the hunter.

Enduring the pain, he turned around shakily. Yet under the sunlight, he could not make out Lu Su’s face, only feel an icy gaze.

"Spare me."

Tears and snot mixed across Sheng Hanzu’s face as he pleaded incoherently to Lu Su.

"I-I’ll do anything."

"Spare me…"

Watching the assassin in the distance grovel and beg for mercy, Lu Su sighed helplessly. "At a time like this, are you really joking?"

"And in your next life, remember to keep your eyes open."

As he spoke, he waved toward Ulquiorra.

Sshk—

Hearing those somewhat familiar words, Sheng Hanzu lowered his head and stared at the huge hole in his chest. Blood began pouring from his mouth in great gouts. "Ghk… ghk…"

Then he looked at Lu Su, his face filled with venomous hatred.

"Th-they won’t…"

Thud—

Before he could finish, Ulquiorra launched another attack, this time aimed at his head.

Looking at the headless corpse that had completely gone still, Lu Su finally let out a breath of relief. "He really didn’t have any other tricks."

Still, to be safe, he had Yoriichi finely chop Sheng Hanzu’s corpse into minced meat.

After finishing all that, Lu Su rubbed his chin and muttered softly, "After so long, the Association’s people should be arriving soon, right?"

"Should I stay and wait for them?"

After pondering for a moment, he ultimately decided to leave directly.

Although the Imperial Court’s people were unlikely to launch a second assassination attempt, it was better to be cautious. He did not want to be worn down in a series of battles.

Moreover, his cards were not in good condition right now. Unohana Retsu had already entered cooldown, and Altria could not use Liberate Excalibur again anytime soon.

As for Ulquiorra and the other two cards, they had not suffered much damage, but maintaining so many cards for a long time was still a considerable burden on Lu Su.

With that in mind, he did not hesitate any longer. He immediately put away his cards and left the scene.

Not long after Lu Su departed, several figures arrived one after another before Sheng Hanzu’s corpse.

Among them were people Lu Su knew.

President Qi Ran of the Qilu Card Master Association, as well as her partner, Cui Dazhu.

"Two Diamond Grade Card Masters." Seeing the scene, Qi Ran muttered grimly, "And both are unregistered illegal Card Masters."

Such a terrible incident was the first she had encountered in her long career as President.

However, confusion and astonishment appeared on Cui Dazhu’s face. Then he quietly said to Qi Ran in a strange tone, "President."

"One of the combatants seems to have been Lu Su…"

Qi Ran was stunned upon hearing that, then frowned deeply and asked, "Are you sure?!"

If she remembered correctly, Master Bai’s disciple was only a Jade Grade Card Master, wasn’t he?

Cui Dazhu hesitated, nodding before shaking his head again.

The aura at the scene did indeed feel extremely familiar to him, and the devastated surroundings also looked incomparably familiar.

But he still did not dare say with complete certainty that one of them had been Lu Su.

After all…

Lu Su was Jade Grade, while the combatants here had undoubtedly been two Diamond Grade Card Masters.

Seeing this, Qi Ran took a deep breath. She had already caught a faint scent of something unusual. "Never mind whether the other person was Lu Su. At the very least, this person was not registered."

As she spoke, she pointed at Sheng Hanzu, who had become a pile of minced flesh on the ground.

"And—"

She had just been about to continue when she suddenly realized what was wrong.

If the other person really was Lu Su, then this would be the second assassination attempt he had encountered.

Yet the previous time, there had only been three Jade Grade Card Masters.

Having suffered two assassination attempts in succession, she felt there had to be more to this matter.

"The Guiyi Cult?"

Qi Ran’s gaze flickered. She then instructed the surrounding Card Masters, "Do not speak of what happened here today for now."

"You know what I mean."

Upon hearing this, everyone present lowered their heads and answered in unison, "Yes!"

Qi Ran did not believe this was a simple Guiyi Cult assassination attempt. But if it was not the Guiyi Cult, then who was it?

"The Spirit Summoning Society?"

"Or…"

Just as she was thinking it over carefully, several auras rapidly approached the area.

Yet after sensing those auras, Qi Ran was not alarmed. Instead, she raised her head thoughtfully.

A few breaths later, a stern-faced old man arrived at the scene with several Jade Grade Card Masters.

"President Qi." The man first nodded at Qi Ran, then got straight to the point. "Do you know the identities of the two sides involved?"

Hearing his question, Qi Ran shook her head slightly. "Neither Diamond Grade Card Master was registered."

"Speaking of which, do you have any leads, Lord Sun?"

Since the battle site lay on the border between Qilu and Shuntian Prefecture, it was naturally impossible for only the Qilu Card Master Association to send people to investigate such a major incident.

The old man was Lord Sun, the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture.

At that moment, the old man cast an imperceptible glance at the mashed meat on the ground before giving a bitter smile. "How could we possibly have any intelligence?"

"Still, it was probably those shady creatures from the Spirit Summoning Society and the Guiyi Cult."

Qi Ran nodded slightly, seeming to agree with Lord Sun’s words.

She sighed and rubbed her brow with a headache. "Great Ming’s situation is already bad enough, yet those people from the Spirit Summoning Society are constantly stirring."

"For the cleanup afterward, will you arrange it, Lord Sun, or should I handle it?"

As she spoke, Qi Ran looked at the old man opposite her without betraying any emotion.

Lord Sun answered without the slightest hesitation, "I’ll make the arrangements. There’s no need to trouble President Qi."

"After all, the situation within Qilu is not good either."

The old man’s words were perfectly reasonable, leaving Qi Ran unable to find any grounds to refuse. She chuckled. "Then I’ll have to trouble you, Lord Sun."

"I have other important matters to attend to, so I’ll be taking my leave."

With that, she led the Card Masters of the Qilu Card Master Association and vanished from the spot.

However, Qi Ran had already roughly figured out the identities of both sides in the battle.

One side had naturally been Lu Su. Though she did not know why a Jade Grade Card Master could kill a Diamond Grade Card Master, she was probably right.

The other side had naturally been someone sent by the Imperial Court.

If she had still been somewhat uncertain before, Lord Sun’s behavior had undoubtedly confirmed her suspicions.

The way he had been so eager to pin the blame on the Spirit Summoning Society and the Guiyi Cult was simply too suspicious.

Thinking of Lu Su’s astonishing talent, Qi Ran felt that everything happening now was not entirely incomprehensible.

At that thought, she silently sighed in her heart.

I should still let Master Bai and the others know.