Chapter 39: Striking the Heart of the Enemy (Part Two)

From the vulture, Chen Xian learned that the man known as Mr. Ma was named Ma Tian, current head of the Ma family, a martial arts clan whose headquarters lay in the center of M City. The reason Ma Tian had recruited him and two other killers to assassinate Chen Xian was Chen Xian's disruption at the Guangnan casino.

"The Ma family!"

Chen Xian frowned slightly, his gaze sweeping toward M City, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. Yet, he did not set out at once. Instead, he found a room, and with a thought, drew the vulture’s corpse from his storage ring.

Unleashing the Supreme Chaos Technique, he watched as the corpse spun and rapidly dissolved, transforming into wisps of spiritual energy that flowed into his body...

Before long, the vulture’s body had vanished without a trace. Chen Xian sensed that the spiritual energy within his spirit wheel space had grown considerably; refining the corpse yielded far more than refining the flesh of pigs, cattle, sheep, chickens, or ducks. The spiritual energy from a single vulture’s body far surpassed that gained from refining a truckload of poultry and livestock.

"This must be because the vulture was a martial artist of considerable power, whose vital force was strong," Chen Xian mused inwardly.

Even so, he did not allow himself much excitement—after all, killing to refine spiritual energy was against the natural order. If the vulture had not threatened his family, Chen Xian would never have eliminated him.

Moreover, Chen Xian noticed a faint, almost imperceptible energy swirling around him—something he would never have sensed without his heightened perception. He had never detected this peculiar energy when refining ordinary animal flesh. After pondering the matter without result, he set it aside.

Bzzzz...

Just then, his phone began to vibrate. Chen Xian picked up the vulture’s phone to see an unfamiliar number. He answered.

"Vulture, how is the matter of kidnapping Chen Xian’s family progressing?" The voice of a middle-aged man came through the receiver.

Chen Xian already knew this was Ma Tian. The corner of his mouth curled into a cold smile. "Ma Tian, you’ll have to ask the King of Hell yourself!"

"Who are you?!"

"Chen Xian!"

Without waiting for any further questions, Chen Xian hung up.

He sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, circulating his cultivation technique as he calmly awaited dawn.

...

Time passed. The stars and moon faded; the horizon grew pale with the approach of day.

With a flutter of lashes, Chen Xian opened his eyes, glanced at the sky, rose, and strode out of the demolition zone.

As he reached the doorway, a dark shadow streaked toward him, transforming in midair into a tiny black kitten, no larger than a palm, irresistibly cute and innocent.

It was the Enchanting Cat, returned from Chen Xian’s home. Through their mental bond, Chen Xian had learned his family was safe through the night, so he felt at ease summoning the little creature back. He figured that by killing the vulture and intimidating Ma Tian, his foe would not dare to act rashly for the moment.

Cradling the kitten in one arm, Chen Xian raised his other hand to hail a cab at the roadside.

The taxi stopped; Chen Xian slid into the front passenger seat and said, "M City, Ma Group Tower."

Today, the sun was absent, heavy clouds looming overhead—a sure sign that a torrential downpour was soon to come.

...

Several hours later.

A taxi bearing the license plates of H City, capital of H Province, passed through the rain and pulled up before a skyscraper in M City.

From the car emerged a young man with a crew cut, slender of build, cradling in his arms a tiny kitten as black as ink.

Though the rain fell in sheets, strangely, not a drop touched either the young man or the cat, as if the very rain itself deliberately avoided them.

This man and cat were none other than Chen Xian and the Enchanting Cat, freshly arrived from H City.

Chen Xian looked up, his gaze cutting through the rain to the acrylic letters gleaming on the building’s façade—Ma Group Tower.

A cold light flashed in his eyes as he strode forward.

At the entrance, his way was blocked by two security guards.

With a casual wave, Chen Xian unleashed an irresistible force.

Boom!

The two guards were sent flying, crashing into the wall and losing consciousness.

This commotion alerted the other security staff inside, who rushed toward the lobby.

Ignoring them, Chen Xian advanced to the reception desk and addressed the young woman behind it, who trembled violently in her professional attire, "Take me to Ma Tian’s office."

"I... I... can’t..." she stammered.

Chen Xian gave a mental command to the Enchanting Cat.

Meow—

With an eerie cry, the kitten’s voice rang out.

The receptionist’s eyes immediately glazed over.

"Take me to Ma Tian’s office," Chen Xian repeated.

The young woman nodded, moving ahead like a marionette to lead the way.

"Kid, take one more step and we’ll open fire!"

Dozens of security guards, pistols drawn, aimed at the young man with the cat.

They all possessed government-issued gun permits from the Hualong Federation, allowing them to carry firearms legally—even in broad daylight within the city, they had no qualms about using them.

Chen Xian paid no heed to their threats. As if their words were nothing but wind, he followed the entranced receptionist forward.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Without hesitation, the guards squeezed their triggers. The sharp report of gunfire and the acrid tang of gunpowder filled the air as bullets flew at Chen Xian.

He moved slightly, aligning himself with the receptionist to ensure she would not be struck by stray bullets.

Bzzzz...

With a faint hum only Chen Xian could hear, red vortices materialized upon his skin, intercepting every bullet before it could touch him.

Chen Xian clearly felt subtle waves of warmth flow into his body and finally converge upon the mysterious tree in his mind.

The guards were stunned to see the crew-cut youth withstand a hail of bullets, their terror mounting as they continued to fire relentlessly, bullets pouring at him like rain.

Meanwhile, the security chief reported anxiously to the executive office, "A powerful intruder is here—protect President Ma at once!"

Bullets clung to Chen Xian’s back like a swarm of metallic wasps, enough to make anyone’s scalp tingle. Yet he remained unperturbed, striding step by step, following the receptionist toward the elevator.

...

At that moment, in the luxurious office atop Ma Group Tower, Ma Tian’s expression was darker than the stormy sky outside.

The failure of the assassination plot against Chen Xian gnawed at him, filling him with anxiety and dread.

He had yet to inform the Old Patriarch of this disaster, nor had he devised any new plan to deal with Chen Xian.

Ding-ling-ling!

The phone rang.

Ma Tian answered, and upon hearing his subordinate’s report, his face changed dramatically.

"Chen Xian is here?"

"He... he’s not afraid of bullets?!"

"Could it be—he’s a martial artist at the threshold of grandmastery?"

"No, only the Old Patriarch can handle such a man. I must report to him at once—otherwise, I will surely die at Chen Xian’s hands today!"

Face shifting through a spectrum of emotions, Ma Tian finally dialed the Old Patriarch’s number.