“Thud!”
The heavy sword struck the Black-Clothed Man’s back, sending him crashing to the ground.
“Crack!”
The sound of bones shattering was heard, and at the same time, he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.
“Mercy!”
Watching Qin Xuan rush down, the Black-Clothed Man cried out in terror, now utterly subservient.
“Thud!”
Qin Xuan stepped on his back, looking at him with some surprise.
“Are you really a Tianxuan Realm Cultivator? How are you so weak?”
Hearing this, the Black-Clothed Man felt a bitter taste.
If he could have used his full strength, he naturally wouldn't have had only this much power.
Firstly, he was careless, thinking Qin Xuan was just a useless nobody.
As a result, he was attacked by Qin Xuan's Thunder Mirror.
Secondly, he was, after all, an assassin, and what he was best at was actually sneak attacks.
This time, because he saw how weak Qin Xuan was, he became contemptuous, which allowed Qin Xuan to easily wound him severely.
After the Thunder Mirror severely injured him, his combat power was naturally greatly affected.
And then, Qin Xuan, a Di Xuan Realm Cultivator, had ridiculously high combat power.
Thus, the gap naturally became too wide.
Qin Xuan stepped on his back with another heavy stomp.
“You, an assassin, are best at sneak attacks and assassinations. How dare you brazenly appear before me? Isn't that seeking death? Aren't you begging for mercy? How about this, if you confess honestly, I can give you a chance to live. Then it's up to you if you can seize it.”
Qin Xuan said, then smiled and stomped down again with force.
Qin Xuan's stomp shattered one of the Black-Clothed Man's Meridians. This way, even if the Black-Clothed Man had other ideas, it would be difficult for him to mobilize the Spiritual Qi within his body.
After doing all this, Qin Xuan began to interrogate him.
“Please, whatever you ask, I will certainly tell you everything I know.”
Hearing this, Qin Xuan nodded in satisfaction.
“Good, first tell me who sent you? I've thought about it, and there are only a few people who might make a move against me. If you dare to spout nonsense, I'll kill you immediately.”
Listening to Qin Xuan's words, the Black-Clothed Man hurriedly nodded repeatedly.
“It was someone from Building Outside the Building. They said someone dared to kill their Appraiser, and they needed me to act, so I accepted.”
Hearing this, Qin Xuan nodded in understanding.
He had also suspected Building Outside the Building.
“Since you are an assassin, which Family do you come from? Which Family in Xuanlong City can afford to support assassins? Even if they can afford assassins, why would they let them take on private jobs?”
Generally speaking, assassins raised by these Families are for their own use; they wouldn't easily be used for other things.
But now, this person is working for Building Outside the Building, and from his reply, he is not from Building Outside the Building, so Qin Xuan is very suspicious of his identity.
“I am an outer assassin of Star Plucking Tower, which is why I take on these private jobs.”
“Star Plucking Tower?”
Qin Xuan stroked his chin.
This was the first time he had heard of such a thing.
“What? This is actually someone from Star Plucking Tower, the number one assassin organization on the continent? Are you kidding? Does this trash even qualify to enter Star Plucking Tower?”
Before Qin Xuan could ask, Han Ye spoke in Qin Xuan's Sea of Consciousness with shock.
Hearing this, Qin Xuan was somewhat surprised.
“Senior has heard of Star Plucking Tower?”
“So, what's the deal with this Star Plucking Tower?”
Hearing that Qin Xuan didn't know, Han Ye began to explain to Qin Xuan.
“This Star Plucking Tower is known as the number one assassin organization on the continent. No one knows how long this organization has existed.”
“According to rumors, once an assassin from this organization takes a killing order, they will continuously send assassins to pursue the target until the target finally dies.”
“Since I first heard of this organization, it has failed no more than ten times. How could this kid be a member of such an assassin organization? Wouldn't that be a joke?”
“Star Plucking Tower's assassins are always extremely professional. How could this trash be one? He must be talking nonsense.”
Listening to Han Ye's explanation, Qin Xuan also understood. He coldly glanced at the Black-Clothed Man.
“You're from Star Plucking Tower? With your useless appearance, can you even be from Star Plucking Tower?”
Hearing this, the Black-Clothed Man hurriedly explained.
“I am not yet an official member of Star Plucking Tower. I am currently just an outer Wood Rank Assassin of Star Plucking Tower.”
Wood Rank Assassin?
Qin Xuan was stunned. The Black-Clothed Man hurriedly gestured for Qin Xuan to open his qiankun ring and take out the item inside.
After thinking for a moment, Qin Xuan opened the qiankun ring and took out a Wood Rank. On the front of the Wood Rank was carved a ghost mask.
“This is the Wood Rank I mentioned. I am currently just an outer Wood Rank Assassin of Star Plucking Tower, so I can only be considered half a member of Star Plucking Tower.”
Listening to the Black-Clothed Man's explanation, Qin Xuan nodded slightly, holding the Wood Rank and pointing at the Black-Clothed Man.
“Now, tell me everything you know, including how you were recruited to assassinate me.”
“Also, tell me everything you know about Star Plucking Tower clearly.”
Hearing this, the Black-Clothed Man hurriedly nodded and began to explain.
Soon, Qin Xuan understood the situation clearly.
This Black-Clothed Man was indeed from Star Plucking Tower, but he was only an outer Star Plucking Tower assassin, not yet an official Star Plucking Tower member.
According to Star Plucking Tower's regulations, all assassins who wish to become official assassins must first pass through numerous trials to become outer Wood Rank Assassins. After successfully completing five assassination missions, they can become official Iron Rank Assassins.
As for this Black-Clothed Assassin, his name is Luo Fei, and his codename in Star Plucking Tower is Ghost Face.
This assassination of Qin Xuan was not an official mission he accepted, but a private job he took on himself.
Under normal circumstances, the cost of killing for Star Plucking Tower is considerable. To save money, the chief steward secretly found a Wood Rank Assassin to eliminate Qin Xuan.
Hearing that it was just a Di Xuan Realm Cultivator, Ghost Face didn't take it seriously and actually wanted to openly abuse and kill Qin Xuan, which is why he was killed by Qin Xuan.
“How are your Star Plucking Tower's rewards calculated?”
Qin Xuan stroked his chin, looking at the Black-Clothed Man curiously.
“Star Plucking Tower is a loose organization. They only take a ten percent fee each time, and the rest goes to the assassin. Generally, they are responsible for receiving missions, and then we choose based on the reward.”
“Strictly speaking, Star Plucking Tower is just a platform; their restrictions on us are not strong.”
It's an organization that collects intermediary fees.
Qin Xuan nodded.
Generally speaking, for such organizations, unless they have reached a certain level, joining and leaving are not strictly regulated.
However, easy joining and leaving do not mean that Star Plucking Tower's vetting process is not strict.
The vetting process before joining Star Plucking Tower is very rigorous, but once it's confirmed that one can join and the corresponding Wood Rank is issued, then one is free to come and go.
“Ghost Face, when you enter Star Plucking Tower, will someone check your identity? Or is this Wood Rank enough?”
Hearing Qin Xuan say this, Ghost Face hurriedly looked up at Qin Xuan.
“Young Master, although Star Plucking Tower seems free to enter and leave, in reality, it's outwardly loose but inwardly strict. This is an organization spread across the continent. If Young Master makes a move inside, you will be hunted down by all of Star Plucking Tower!”
“Calm down, I'm not going to cause trouble!”
Qin Xuan smiled and shook his head.
“I mean, I usually don't have enough money, so can you recommend me to join so I can also make a living?”
The remuneration from an assassin organization, that's a good income.
“Yes, as long as Young Master is willing, I can recommend you, but I cannot guarantee that you will definitely be able to join.”
Qin Xuan nodded, then looked at the Black-Clothed Man again.
“Will they check appearances, for example, use my appearance to find my true identity?”
After all, he's going to be an assassin, and this is his other identity, so it's best not to mix it with his current identity.
Otherwise, it would be troublesome if someone took an interest in him.
“Hmm, there will be checks during the entry review, but that's done by people from the headquarters. Others have no right to check…”
“In other words, no one will check your identity every time you enter Star Plucking Tower, as long as your token is correct, and also your ghost mask?”
Qin Xuan said, then pulled out a ghost mask from the Black-Clothed Man's qiankun ring.
“This is why you're called Ghost Face, right? In Star Plucking Tower, you all use codenames and cover your faces with masks. Except for the people at the headquarters, no one else knows your true identities.”
Qin Xuan said meaningfully.
Hearing this, Ghost Face nodded.
“That's right, we don't know each other's true identities. We always use masks to distinguish ourselves, take missions in Star Plucking Tower, and then leave Star Plucking Tower.”
“So, this face isn't your original appearance either, is it?”
“Rip!”
Qin Xuan said, and with a strong pull, he tore off the Black-Clothed Man's face.
“This!”
Seeing his original face exposed, the Black-Clothed Man hurriedly tried to cover it.
“Cover what? If you keep being annoying, I'll kill you with one slash, let's see if you still pretend!”
Qin Xuan said coldly, picking up the item in his hand and looking at it.
“This is a human skin mask?”
By this point, the Black-Clothed Man had become honest and hurriedly nodded.
“This is a human skin mask, but it's an heirloom from my Family, much stronger than ordinary human skin masks.”
“I was able to enter Star Plucking Tower thanks to my ancestors.”
Thanks to his ancestors?
Qin Xuan was somewhat surprised.
He picked up the human skin mask in his hand and examined it for a moment. A moment later, Qin Xuan was startled.
“Why does this human skin mask have no facial features?”
Ghost Face sighed and explained.
“This is not an ordinary human skin mask. This item is called Thousand Transformations Spirit.”
Thousand Transformations Spirit?
Qin Xuan was stunned.
This was the first time he had heard of such a thing.
“The facial features of this item are not fixed; they can be generated at will according to the user's wishes. For example, if you think of a certain person, you can control the mask to transform into that person's appearance.”
“Because this item has no fixed facial features, it is called Thousand Transformations Spirit. This item is extremely rare and hard to find. If my ancestor had not once been a Heavenly King Killer of Star Plucking Tower, this item would not have fallen into my hands.”
