Time passed in a flash; two days went by.
Early morning, before the sun had risen, beside a small path outside Saint Spirit Village, under a large tree, stood a boy who appeared to be eleven or twelve years old.
His appearance was ordinary, the only distinctive features being his pair of ice-cold eyes without any emotion, and those long, powerful fingers.
At this moment, he was holding a document in his hands, with some information written on it:
Jiang Chen, six years old, just awakened his martial soul, martial soul: Zombie, innate full soul power, regarded by everyone in Saint Spirit Village as a jinx, born with divine strength, hobby: going into the water to catch fish every morning...
The information on the document was extremely detailed, and there was even a portrait of Jiang Chen, with a similarity of eight or nine points.
This document was compiled by their organization after a day of investigation, combined with the information provided by Matthew Nuo.
The assassin organization had professional intelligence investigators; it wasn't difficult for them to subtly extract information about Jiang Chen from the villagers of Saint Spirit Village without raising suspicion.
Matthew Nuo had given them three days. Now one day had passed, and the boy was ready to begin his operation.
"Zombie martial soul? What kind of martial soul is that?" The boy was somewhat puzzled. As assassins, they frequently killed all kinds of targets and had their own research on martial souls, but he had never heard of something called a "Zombie" martial soul.
When he saw the words "born with divine strength", a trace of disdain appeared on his usually wooden face. He thought the investigators were being overly cautious, even including such useless information.
A six-year-old child, so what if he was born with divine strength? Could he possibly escape from a nineteenth-ranked soul master like himself?
In his view, so-called "divine strength" was probably just a hundred jin at most, and very likely exaggerated by the villagers of Saint Spirit Village.
Unfortunately, that investigator had never witnessed the scene of Jiang Chen running while carrying a stone mill; otherwise, he would surely have circled the four words "born with divine strength" in red and added a detailed explanation.
Actually, at the time, that investigator had the same thought as the boy now, that the villagers' claim of "divine strength" was probably an exaggeration, but in the end, he still recorded the information.
"Hobby: going into the river to catch fish every morning." A cold glint flashed in the boy's dead-still eyes. He folded the document and tucked it into his clothes.
"Shadow!" he shouted lowly. Suddenly, a yellow soul ring appeared on his body. The soul ring lit up, and his whole person seemed to melt like liquid, pouring down and merging into the shadow of the large tree, leaving no trace at all.
His goal was to create an "accidental" death for Jiang Chen. If Jiang Chen went into the river to catch fish, that would be perfect.
But if Jiang Chen didn't come out all day, then he would have to sneak into Saint Spirit Village at night.
He was proficient in countless assassination techniques, enough to make Jiang Chen die "accidentally", such as fire, venomous snakes, falling into a well...
The boy just waited there like a patient hunter, calm and undisturbed.
Killing was something he had begun doing at six years old. After so many years, his heart had long become as hard as iron. Even killing a six-year-old child did not make him feel the slightest guilt.
He only felt a little pity in his heart: innate full soul power, an absolute genius, the hope of the entire village... what a shame...
Not long after, a small figure walked out from the village entrance of Saint Spirit Village, heading quickly in the direction of this large tree.
It was none other than Tang San, who went up the mountain to cultivate every single morning without fail. His steps were light, each stride covering three meters, and the distance between every step was the same.
After leaving Saint Spirit Village a certain distance, Tang San unleashed his full speed, passing by the large tree like a gust of wind.
The hidden assassin boy recognized that this was not his target, but Tang San's terrifying performance still made his heart secretly tremble. This skinny boy, who looked only five or six years old, actually possessed such incredible speed. He was practically a monster.
That speed was almost no different from his own nineteenth-ranked level.
If the assassin boy hadn't been concealed, one would surely have noticed that his usually calm eyes were filled with shock at this moment.
But his assassin training kept him from showing any fluctuation in aura. Restraining one's presence was a necessary skill for every assassin.
Tang San flashed past the large tree without noticing anything unusual and, under the boy's cold gaze, headed toward the distant mountain.
The boy continued to wait patiently, like a cold, venomous snake hidden in the darkness, ready to deliver a fatal strike at any moment.
Finally, another small figure emerged from Saint Spirit Village; it was Jiang Chen, who came out every morning to find food.
Having just finished a whole night of cultivation, Jiang Chen wasn't as impatient as Tang San. He walked leisurely toward the river.
Although cultivation brought him comfort, he still needed proper relaxation. In the early morning when everything was awakening, with birds singing and flowers fragrant, it was the moment that made one's mood most pleasant.
"The Great King told me to patrol the mountain, catch a Tang San for breakfast..."
Jiang Chen hummed a song while slowly walking past the large tree with small, leisurely steps.
Suddenly, the singing stopped. He paused, his face showing some confusion.
His nostrils gently flared; he sensed the presence of a living person, not far from him.
But after looking around, he found no one else besides himself.
Jiang Chen slowly walked into the tree's shadow and paced back and forth several times within the shade.
"Strange, could my perception be wrong?" Jiang Chen muttered.
In the end, he helplessly shook his head, full of confusion, and left. Whether his perception was wrong or not, catching fish was more important. He still had to go back to train afterward.
After Jiang Chen's figure disappeared, a black shadow suddenly emerged from the tree's shade. Gradually, the black shadow took shape, forming the figure of the boy.
His expression was filled with surprise and uncertainty. Jiang Chen's earlier behavior had truly given him a scare. Jiang Chen had actually sensed his presence!
But because he couldn't find exactly where he was, Jiang Chen had left in confusion.
"Perhaps that's an ability of the Zombie martial soul," the boy thought to himself, and then followed in the direction Jiang Chen had gone.
The target had appeared. It was time for him to make his move.
A six-year-old boy drowning in the river, this was the most ordinary thing in the world. No one would suspect murder.
At this moment, Jiang Chen had already stripped naked and submerged himself at the bottom of the river. The river was very deep and full of fish; catching fish was very easy for him.
Just then, he vaguely heard footsteps approaching, accompanied by a very clear scent of a living person.
This presence was much more obvious than before. Jiang Chen knew someone was walking toward the riverbank.
The assassin boy reached the riverbank and stopped beside the clothes Jiang Chen had left on the shore, his gaze sweeping across the surrounding water.
Jiang Chen looked up at the figure standing motionless on the water's surface for a long time, feeling puzzled. Eventually, he poked his head out of the water.
He looked at the boy in confusion and found the other party staring at him with a very strange gaze.
"Are you Jiang Chen?" The boy's voice was somewhat cold.