King of Tomb Raiders

Chapter 102

Five long swords hung from the woman's belt, all with black scabbards and fiery red hilts. The swords were so long that they almost reached her ankles, which were covered by her snow-white kimono. The movement of drawing the sword to kill her was so fast that Wang Jiangnan didn't even have time to prepare to raise his hand to shoot.

Her pure white kimono was covered with countless fiery red cherry blossom patterns, piled up haphazardly, sparse in some places like blood flowers, and dense in others like clumps of dripping blood. Her hair was long, jet black, and flowed smoothly down to her chest.

She took a step forward, holding the box in her hand even higher, and looked up at Wang Jiangnan.

Part 3: Ghostly Villa

— Chapter 8 — Hashizu Ninja —

I heard Xiao Keleng hissing as she gasped for breath. In the values of the underworld, human life was no more valuable than the chickens, ducks, cattle, and sheep in a restaurant.

“I’m here to deliver a gift to Mr. Feng,” she said in broken Mandarin, a blank smile on her face. The wind whipped her long hair and robe sleeves, making them flutter as if about to take flight.

The box is fifty centimeters long, and its width and height are no more than thirty centimeters, but the way the red box is wrapped with a black ribbon is a genuine offering to the dead.

Wang Jiangnan quickly calmed down: "Are you here to deliver gifts? Or to kill? You should know that if you kill one of my Sharpshooter Brothers, you will not be able to leave this manor alive!"

Indeed, at this moment, at least twenty long and short guns were aimed at her from the shadows.

This girl who suddenly appeared was dressed strangely and acted fiercely. She killed four members of the Divine Gun Society in one fell swoop. She was definitely not a simple character. Wang Jiangnan's words probably wouldn't have any deterrent effect.

As I descended the stairs and headed outside, Xiao Keleng suddenly reached out and grabbed me, whispering, "Don't go out yet! Those are ninjas from the Hashizu family, they're incredibly strange, don't be careless!" She gripped my arm tightly and took a few steps to the side, hiding behind the wall to the right of the door. She could hear the conversations outside, but she could avoid the girls' gaze.

“I know, of course I know,” the girl’s voice was clear and strong.

"Put down the gift, and you can die—" Before Wang Jiangnan could finish speaking, a scream suddenly came from the top of the main building. A person fell down with a heavy "thud" and crashed onto the steps by the door.

"You killed one of our brothers again..." The Three Heroes of the Fire Elephant finally lost their temper.

Xiao Ke chuckled bitterly in a low voice: "The Hashizu ninjas kill with clean and efficient methods, leaving no trace. It is said that the masters of this school killed a hundred people in just eleven seconds during the Emperor's 'Hundred-Man Killing Contest' back in the day. I wonder what kind of gift she wants to give you. I hope it's not some poisonous insect monster!"

We were so close, her warm breath hit my face, carrying the fresh scent of Wrigley's gum. Her hand remained firmly on my right wrist, showing no sign of letting go.

I know that the Hashizu ninja clan is known in the martial arts world as the "killing machine".

"Do you know which faction this group currently serves in Japan?" I took a deep breath, trying to calm my chaotic thoughts. Yelan had just disappeared, and now a mysterious female ninja assassin had inexplicably appeared. Was there any necessary connection between the two?

Xiao Ke blinked, and replied with some confusion, "It's strange—the Pentagon has definite intelligence that the Hashizu ninjas once appeared in Saddam Hussein's personal guard in Iraq... In other words, they were employed by the Iraqi government..." She raised her hand and tugged at her short hair, showing a "completely puzzled" expression.

The Middle East battlefield and Japan, one in the far southwest of Asia and the other in the far northeast of Asia, seem too far apart to have any connection.

"What does it matter if one or two people die? These kinds of trash are nothing more than garbage-producing machines living on Earth, especially you Chinese..."

Xiao Keleng and I both jolted, almost jumping out of our skin. Every time I heard foreigners speak to Chinese people with such contempt, it felt like someone was slapping me hard across the face.

"Alright, I told you, put down the gift, and you can die." Wang Jiangnan's tone grew increasingly calm, a quality I genuinely admired. To lead a massive martial arts sect like the Divine Gun Society, one must possess the composure to remain unmoved even in the face of a collapsing mountain.

"My master instructed me to personally present this to Mr. Feng and retrieve his reply." The girl's voice was flat and monotonous, as if the killing of the five members of the Divine Gun Society was completely unrelated to her.

I didn't even notice when Zhang Baisen appeared.

He floated out of the bathroom, lightly leaping around the living room, his movements a display of lightness and agility. He even twice jumped onto the crystal chandelier on the ceiling, his expression unusually serious and tense. I understood he was setting up a complex Five Elements formation, because he held a brass compass in his left palm, which constantly flashed and reflected light.

Compared to Master Xianyun and the eminent monks of Fengge Temple, Zhang Baisen might have to admit defeat. However, considering his history of fame in the Chinese martial arts world, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to praise him with numerous "master-level" or "grandmaster-level" accolades. Scholars have already compiled a monumental work of five million words titled "Invincible Under Heaven" based on Zhang Baisen's experiences in the martial arts world, which continues to be a bestseller in China.

With a "whoosh," Zhang Baisen landed beside me and Xiao Keleng and said softly, "All done."

On the surface, the living room appeared unchanged after the formation was set up, but I felt as if a fishing net had been added in front of me, hanging in mid-air. Once the mechanism was triggered, the net would fall, and no one could escape.

"Can you feel it?" Zhang Baisen stared at my face.

I didn't answer, but pointed to the compass in his hand: "Mr. Zhang, I have a question I'd like to ask you..."

He smiled and said, "Of course, but for now we should—"

Wang Jiangnan's cold, stern voice rang out from outside the door: "Alright, Mr. Feng is in the living room, please come in."

Zhang Baisen then said in a low voice, "Let's capture the enemy first, then discuss things, how about that?"

He's a senior figure in the martial arts world, and his politeness towards me is naturally out of respect for Master Xianyun. I smoothed my hair and put on a magnanimous smile—even if you're covered in bronze armor, you might not be able to defend against the cunning assassins of the Qiaojin Sect.

The wooden clogs tapped crisply on the steps, and then, surrounded by Wang Jiangnan and the others, the girl walked in proudly.

I've always suspected that since she was holding the box with both hands, where did the third hand come from to pull out the knife and kill someone? Xiao Ke's hands were both in her pockets, and the safety of her pistol had been quietly released. If necessary, she could even fire a bullet through her pockets.

Despite the presence of so many guns looming overhead, the girl's face remained expressionless, showing no fear whatsoever.

I took a few steps to the left, almost standing directly under the crystal chandelier. This was the center of the fishing net, and if I could lure the enemy to this position, Zhang Baisen's attack would be more successful.

In my opinion, if we were to set up an array, wouldn't it be even cleaner and more efficient to set up a "closing the door to beat the dog" array in the living room to eliminate any future troubles? Moreover, the room layout of this kind of old-fashioned villa makes it the easiest place to set up such an array. I really don't know how an old hand like Zhang Baisen could not have considered this point.

The closer the girl got, the more I could feel the immense murderous aura emanating from her.

Her face was very pale, covered with tiny gray freckles from her forehead to the sides of her nose. She had long, narrow eyebrows and eyes, very thin lips, and half of her uneven, slightly yellow teeth were exposed.

I couldn't help but laugh, because from a distance, with her disheveled hair and white dress with red flowers, I thought she must be incredibly beautiful. But now that I got closer, I realized she was utterly ugly, a typical, disgusting image of a low-class prostitute from a Japanese red-light district.

She paused, seemingly not understanding the meaning behind my laughter.

When enemies and allies are locked in a standoff, they may be indifferent or furious, but there will never be a third expression. And I am precisely outside of these two scenarios.

Wang Jiangnan, Zhang Baisen, and Xiao Keleng were also stunned, staring blankly at my face.

This was a golden opportunity. I took a sudden step forward, twisted my arms, and snatched the box with lightning speed. At the same time, a flash of cold light appeared before my eyes, and she had already swung her sword with overwhelming force. Unfortunately, I had already quickly retreated three steps, exceeding the limit of the longsword's attack, and subtly lured her forward a step, placing her directly under the chandelier.

"I've accepted the gift, now you should pay for the five lives you just took, right?" On one hand, I felt extreme disgust for her because of the insulting words she had just uttered about Chinese people, and on the other hand, because of her terrifying appearance.

The box wasn't too heavy, and there were no words on the lid.

"My master instructed that Mr. Feng must reply after seeing the gift before I can leave." Her teeth protruded fiercely from her lips, like a mad dog in a fit of rage.

I stared at her still-raised hands and sneered, "You ninjas of the Hashizu school, do you only rely on these boring prosthetics and deceptions to carry out assassinations? It's a disgrace that your ancestors were listed among the 'Ten Greatest Ninjas' of Japan."

The strike she just delivered didn't utilize either of her hands, nor did she attempt to draw the five strangely colored Japanese swords hanging from her belt. Everything was accomplished beneath the wide sleeves of her robe, and I suspect that beneath her kimono, there might be more than just long swords concealed—other advanced weapons might also be at play.

During the Edo period, the Hashizu school produced a ninja named Hashizu Mino, renowned for her swordsmanship and concealed weapons on Kyushu Island, and was named one of the "Ten Great Ninjas" by the Emperor. The female ninja before them, capable of infiltrating Xunfuyuan alone, must have left behind a hidden ambush.

"Ninjas never hesitate to use any means necessary to fulfill their master's mission. Whether it's boring or not is a private matter for the Hashizu faction. Please, Mr. Kaze, open the gift."

Without Wang Jiangnan's order, the Sharpshooter Society would never act rashly. Unfortunately, the female ninja's arrival was too sudden; in their haste, everyone overlooked the fact that Guan Baoling was still sitting alone in the pavilion outside. If enemy reinforcements appeared, she would be the first victim.

In the grand scheme of things, a leader with a commanding perspective is indeed needed to direct everything from a strategic vantage point. Undoubtedly, Wang Jiangnan lacks the talent to command a vast army. Therefore, he can only serve as the head of the Japanese branch, and cannot, like the young Sun Long, wield global power over the Divine Gun Society.

The box is in my hands. What will be inside after I open the lid? A ferocious and deadly venomous snake, a deadly trap, or a powerful bomb... Given its size, it can hold any extremely dangerous element. If the person giving this gift intends to take my life, Yang Feng, there are a million different terrifying possibilities.

Everyone was looking at me, but the most glaring thing was the extremely contemptuous look in the female ninja's eyes.

The gift was for me. If I don't even have the courage to open the box and only care about saving my life, then I will soon lose the respect of everyone present.

Xiao Keleng didn't make any move, and her gaze towards me was very complicated, with expectation but even more worry.

"If Suren were here, what would she do? She would definitely use gentle words to defuse the current predicament and then take a safer approach to opening the box... Only she is wholeheartedly thinking of me, no matter what..."

"Please!" My silence only fueled the female ninja's arrogance.

"You still haven't told me who your master is?" I smiled, staring at her shoulders. Even the most skilled and unassuming swordsman always makes a slight twisting motion of his shoulder before drawing his sword. I hoped to cripple her arm before she drew her sword again, to prevent these Japanese from becoming too presumptuous.

"The owner's signature is in the box. If Mr. Feng doesn't have the guts, he doesn't have to look at it." She sneered, the muscles at the corners of her mouth twitching and spasming.

I burst out laughing and suddenly tossed the box into the air. The instant it left my fingertips, I twirled my fingers, making it spin rapidly horizontally in mid-air, like a target in a high-speed UFO shooting game. The ribbon snapped with a "snap," and the lid floated away lightly. My laughter only subsided after the box landed again.

This skillful internal force is a lost art that has long been passed down in the martial arts world. Even a senior like Zhang Baisen probably only knows how to do it but not why.

The inside of the box was lined with black velvet, and under a snow-white handkerchief in the middle was a raised object, like an elongated, oversized carrot.

The handkerchief had writing on it in very traditional Chinese regular script: "Mr. Feng, your friend Yelan is in my hands. If you want him back, bring the villa in exchange. If you don't believe me, here's an arm as proof. I look forward to your reply!" The signature below was "Watanabe Castle".

A chill ran down my spine, accompanied by an immense, indescribable rage, but I managed to control my fury. I reached out my fingertips and peeled back the handkerchief. Beneath it was indeed a man's forearm, the severed bone cut clean and neat, like a pig's leg that had been cleanly dismembered.

In fact, there's no need to investigate whether this is Yelan's arm or not; the conclusion is already clear—Yelan has fallen into Watanabe Castle's hands.

"Mr. Feng, the master instructed that if you agree, please nod, and we can meet and discuss it tomorrow..."

I don't know how I kicked out, but the female ninja screamed and bent over on the ground, curling up in pain. Wang Jiangnan moved with lightning speed, extending his iron hand and tearing open the female ninja's kimono with a "ripping" sound. At the same time, a short sword popped out of his other hand and was pressed against her neck.

As I expected, the female ninja was wearing a snow-white bodysuit, with extremely wide weapon belts tied around her waist, under her armpits, and on her thighs, with three pistols, two shotguns, and two American melon-shaped grenades stuck in them.

Wang Jiangnan breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank goodness, thank goodness, she wasn't strapped with explosives..."

This statement struck a nerve with me, because the female ninja's "suicide-style" deep penetration into enemy territory was very similar to the "suicide" car bomb attacks that kept erupting in post-war Iraq.

In the history of modern warfare, the practicality of "explosives and bombs" has been increasingly valued by both sides. In fact, I suspected from the beginning that she might be carrying a bomb as a talisman to ensure her escape after committing murder. Now, the fact that no bomb has been found has only made me more horrified: "It doesn't make sense. Watanabe Castle would never send just one foolish person to barge in. Could it be that she deliberately sent someone for us to slaughter and amuse ourselves?"

The three Fire Elephant heroes hated the female ninja to the extreme. They rushed over and kicked her several times. Judging from the looks of it, the female ninja was sure to suffer the cruel torture of being sliced to pieces in a short while.

"Huh? Everyone wait...wait a minute!" Xiao Ke shouted, rushing to the female ninja's side. Suddenly, she yelled in a fit of rage, "Everyone be careful! It's the 'Twin Killers'! There's one, and there's another one...people outside, be careful..."

The three fire-element heroes reacted quickly, rushing out without hesitation, while putting their fingers in their mouths and whistling rapidly more than a dozen times.

Wang Jiangnan's expression changed drastically. He lightly kicked the female ninja in the back of the neck with his left foot. The movement was small, but enough to knock her unconscious.

I still held the brocade box in my hand. The arm was covered in blood, the skin was dark and rough, and the back of the hand and fingers were cracked and rough with countless cuts. It was clear that its owner was someone who worked in the field for many years. If this really was Yelan's hand, then it must have been the "big secret" worth twenty million US dollars that killed him.

In recent years, the Japanese underworld

The trend of "wild killings" is getting worse. The Asahi Shimbun once reported that a petty thug killed someone with a knife for ten game coins or a boxed lunch. The violence of the underworld has reached a point of lawlessness.

All I could do was pray that Yeran was still alive and that I could rush out to save him.

The "Gemini Killers" rose to fame during the Iraq War, having infiltrated US-led coalition bases four times and successfully assassinated more than seven high-ranking officials (division level and above), infuriating the Americans. After each successful kill, they would inscribe the name "Hashizu Mino" on the chest of the corpse, commemorating the famous ninja who had brought glory to the Hashizu school of ninjas. Gradually, their real names were forgotten, and they became known in the underworld as the "Gemini Killers."

The three heroes of the Fire Elephant leaped out of the doorway, but immediately fell backward, letting out a half-scream of "Ah—", with a bright red seven-star dart embedded in each of their throats.

Wang Jiangnan turned halfway to look outside, his facial muscles twitching rapidly. He had managed to remain calm when the female ninja killed five people, but the deaths of the three Fire Elephant heroes had dealt him a devastating blow.

In an instant, another assassin, who had not yet shown himself, took the initiative and killed three people in a row, firmly controlling the situation outside the main hall of Xunfuyuan.

I placed the box on the coffee table. Since the other party was Watanabe Castle's men, they probably wouldn't harm me easily before Xunfu Garden changed hands. Divine Spear would act rashly and blindly invite disaster. With the skills of the Three Heroes of the Fire Elephant, if they could calm their minds and act cautiously, they wouldn't give the other party a chance to kill them in one blow.

Xiao Keleng suddenly whispered, "Mr. Feng, outside... I'm afraid Miss Guan might be in danger..."

I am well aware of this, but I simply choose not to say it outright. The deaths of the three Fire Sign heroes serve as the best example; anyone who dares to rush out the door now will surely meet a terrible end.

Wang Jiangnan gritted his teeth, but there was nothing he could do. His eyes scanned the surroundings blankly.

The courtyard was deathly silent, with only the Toyota sports car quietly parked in front of the steps, and the five people who had just died, their wounds already congealed, and a faint smell of blood lingering in the air.

Guan Baoling had been sitting in the pavilion for far too long, maintaining an upright posture with her chest out and back straight, staring towards the main entrance—a tiring posture that even a well-trained high-end model couldn't maintain for long. The area in front of the main entrance was deserted; no one or any cars were coming in, and there was no elegant scenery worth gazing at for an extended period.

“So… the enemy had already arrived…” Xiao Ke sighed, took a few steps back, and hid in the shadows of the stairs.

That's right, the other member of the "Gemini Man" had already infiltrated the Water Pavilion using the Hashizu School's sleight of hand and successfully taken control of Guan Baoling. Ninjas are masters of stealth and assassination, and everyone's attention was drawn to the lone female ninja who had ventured deep into enemy territory, leaving no time to notice the changes inside the Water Pavilion.

Wang Jiangnan's iron hand crackled several times, but he still lacked the courage to rush out. A person's life is only once, and no matter how famous or wealthy he was before, a single bullet or a seven-star dart could easily take it all away.

"Thirteenth Brother, please pass down the order: the brothers upstairs must not move. The 'Gemini Killers' concealed weapons are more accurate than firearms. Don't make unnecessary sacrifices." Xiao Ke frowned, extremely disappointed by Wang Jiangnan's helplessness.

In this situation, the leaderless Sharpshooter gang would only suffer even more brutal slaughter. The "Gemini Killers" could move freely in and out of the heavily guarded desert command post of the US-British coalition, so how could they possibly be outnumbered by these few dozen low-level Sharpshooter henchmen?