This Counts as an Assassination

"Colluding with demonic cultivators? Trafficking women and children? These scum deserve death!"

Zhong Yi's eyes turned icy as he read the mission details.

Such heartless villains weren't even fit to live.

He itched to unleash the Great Dao True Words Art, summoning a gale to shred the barriers around the manor and slaughter those beasts with his own hands.

Alas, Lu Ze's illusion realm, as always, restricted his cultivation.

Here, he was Li Ang from the story—a cultivator at the peak of the Qi Refining stage.

Such strength wouldn't even qualify him for the inner sect in Lingxiao Sect.

But in the mortal world? He was a rare, top-tier assassin.

Still…

Facing layers of guards and defensive formations made things slightly tricky.

"Oh? Combining combat with the illusion realm? Interesting."

A spark of curiosity flickered in Zhong Yi's mind.

He first attempted a brute-force breakthrough—the barrier was shoddy, something a peak Qi Refining cultivator could easily break.

But the commotion drew immediate attention from the guards.

Though each was only at the early Qi Refining stage, their numbers and weapons overwhelmed him.

Zhong Yi died swiftly.

Only then did he understand why the second mission requirement emphasized minimizing disturbances.

Make too much noise, and you’re truly outmatched…

So he changed tactics, locating the barrier’s weakest point and using Li Ang’s skills to infiltrate silently.

The manor’s interior was a maze, guarded even more heavily than the perimeter.

Zhang San’s room was at the top floor, dead center.

Assassinating him was daunting enough—doing it quietly seemed impossible.

After multiple failed attempts, Zhong Yi frowned in frustration.

"Strange. Why is this so difficult?"

Lu Ze’s illusion realms were notoriously challenging, but he knew they were never unsolvable.

Closing his eyes, Zhong Yi retraced every detail since entering the realm and muttered,

"I must have missed something crucial…"

……

……

Lingxiao Sect, Danqing Peak.

Upon hearing that Zhong Yi’s confinement was temporarily lifted and that he was testing Lu Ze’s new illusion realm, Zhou Yue’s mood brightened. He, too, entered the realm of This Demonic Cultivator Isn’t So Cold.

Currently, he was tackling the first main mission.

Influenced by Zhong Yi, Zhou Yue had also grown accustomed to streaming his illusion realm adventures.

With his dual reputation as a "skill god" and "unluckiest man alive," his streams drew sizable crowds the moment he went live.

[Yo! Streamer’s face looks even darker after days off!]

[Prisoner Zhou, I couldn’t sleep without your gacha pulls.]

[New illusion realm? Looks fun!]

[You didn’t hear? This is Lu the Demon’s new realm! The first assassination mission stumped me—here to learn.]

[So hard. Kill one guy, and the sentries start yelling…]

[Damn, Elder Zhou’s a beast! Tanked all that damage and barged in!]

[If it were Elder Zhong, he’d lose a 1v1…]

[Miss Prisoner Zhong…]

……

As a technical mastermind, Zhou Yue ignored restrictions and bulldozed through the guards, storming into Zhang San’s quarters to claim his head.

[Mission Complete!]

[Calculating…]

[Assassinate Zhang San: +30]

[Time Spent: +10]

[Combat Score: +10]

[Stealth Kill: +0]

[Locate "Black Snake Gang Ledger": +0]

[Final Rating: Good]

[Reward: +100 Copper Coins]

Zhou Yue scowled at the "Good" rating.

How could a technical prodigy like him receive such a mediocre score in a combat mission?

Refusing to accept it, he selected [Restart Mission], returning to the pre-manor infiltration point.

"Dammit, killing anyone alerts the others. How do you keep it quiet…"

He clicked his tongue, replaying the fight in his mind.

Li Ang’s skill set included many stealth assassination abilities, but they relied heavily on timing and conditions.

Zhou Yue could opt for a sneaky approach—but it clashed with his brawler playstyle.

Yet every kill triggered nearby guards or sentries to shout "Assassin!" or "Intruder!"

A red "Witnessed" status would pop up, tanking his mission rating.

"So… don’t let them enter the ‘Witnessed’ state?"

The realization hit him like lightning.

Guards took a few seconds to react before calling for backup.

A bold idea formed.

Without hesitation, he infiltrated the manor again.

Spotting the first guard, he drove a dagger into the man’s chest without pause.

The stream chat erupted.

[The mission wants stealth to maintain Li Ang’s assassin identity! Why’s streamer brawling again?]

[Isn’t this repeating past mistakes?]

[The key is avoiding detection by other guards!]

[RIP, streamer’s getting mobbed again…]

[Stealth! Stealth! The point is stealth!]

……

Yet the moment Zhou Yue killed the guard, he seamlessly switched weapons—a throwing knife "whooshed" into a sentry’s throat on the second-floor railing.

Before a third guard could react, a fireball talisman incinerated him…

……

In mere breaths, guards fell one after another.

His combat score skyrocketed—not a single "Witnessed" alert appeared!

The chat lost its mind.

[Holy shit! That works?!]

[If you kill fast enough, detection can’t catch up!]

[Is this even stealth…?]

[Well, were you spotted? No? Then it counts.]

[Big-brain play, but execution’s tight.]

[If Elder Zhong were here, he’d get bullied to tears.]

[Sigh… miss Prisoner Zhong…]

……

Reading the chat, Zhou Yue sighed too.

"Fellow cultivators, I swear on my life… Brother Zhong isn’t someone who confuses right and wrong! He’ll return soon!"

Secretly, he wondered how many times the clumsy Zhong Yi would die on this mission…

Just then, a notification popped up in the illusion realm’s corner.

[The user "Genius Cultivator" has started streaming!]

……

……

Lingxiao Sect, Reflection Valley.

Zhong Yi decided to stream after all.

For one, he trusted Lu Ze’s illusion realm to shift public opinion about that demonic youth—he wanted fellow cultivators to witness it together.

On the other hand, he had discovered an entirely new way to clear the level and simply couldn’t suppress his urge to show off (or, more accurately, flex).

Zhong Yi’s fame in the streaming world far surpassed his status as a true disciple of the Lingxiao Sect.

Add to that the fact that he was currently the center of public attention.

So the moment he went live, countless viewers flooded in.

[Prisoner Zhong! Missed you!]

[Hahaha, knew the noob streamer would be stuck on the first level!]

[Just take it slow and stealth your way through, it’s not that hard.]

[Lu, that damned demon, has no conscience—torturing his own senior brother right from the first trial!]

...

At the moment, Zhong Yi stood at the entrance of the mountain villa, where the mission had yet to begin.

Seeing the barrage of comments, he pulled out a blowgun and a small pouch of powder from his bag, then said mysteriously to the audience:

"Patience, everyone..."

"Let me show you all the wonders of Junior Brother Lu’s illusionary realm!"

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