Chapter 12-Li Yao’s Oppressive Aura, His First Kill！

"Young Master Li, you really made us search high and low!"

Three men in black emerged from different directions, encircling Li Yao.

A mage, an archer, and a knight with a sword and shield strapped to his back.

Li Yao frowned deeply.

As expected, his Appraisal skill couldn't determine their levels.

For them to track him so effortlessly while disregarding the presence of monsters, they had to be at least level 20.

Li Yao quickly analyzed the situation.

Aside from Jiang Ningyu, he hadn't offended anyone.

But Jiang Ningyu's background wasn't powerful enough to send assassins of this caliber after him.

"Whoosh!"

An arrow shot out from the darkness.

Li Yao didn't dodge, yet the arrow halted mere inches from his chest.

"Oh?"

The black-clad archer raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued by how Li Yao had somehow neutralized the attack.

"As expected of a genius bold enough to train alone at the borderlands."

The next moment—

The arrow that had stopped midair suddenly exploded into a streak of light, striking Li Yao directly.

Above his head, a glowing symbol appeared, shining brightly in the darkness.

"A Marking Skill?"

Li Yao instantly recognized it—it was a universal level-25 Archer skill.

It marked the target, allowing them to be tracked and preventing them from entering stealth.

Once marked, escaping would be nearly impossible without the right countermeasures.

Yet, Li Yao remained unbothered.

Or rather… he had never planned on running in the first place.

"Don't worry, I won't run."

Li Yao smiled faintly while secretly issuing a command to the Void Mantis.

"If it's not too much trouble, may I ask why you're after me?"

"You're not refusing to run. You simply can't escape, can you?"

The black-clad mage snorted.

All three of them were level 25, well-trained, and had been hunting together for years.

Against a level 5 rookie like him, there was no way he could fight back…

Wait.

The mage's pupils suddenly contracted in shock.

"Level 9!?"

The knight frowned. "What do you mean?"

The mage didn't answer, his expression turning ice-cold.

Level 9… on the first day after awakening his class?

That leveling speed was simply absurd!

Someone like this was an absolute prodigy—if they didn't eliminate him today…

"Enough talking. Kill him!"

Without hesitation, the mage raised his staff.

A dazzling light burst forth as a massive orb of light ascended into the sky, illuminating the entire area like daylight.

Illumination Spell!

They weren't fools.

As a Summoner, Li Yao's summon was nowhere to be seen.

That meant it had some kind of invisibility ability.

However,even with the Illumination Spell, they still couldn't spot Li Yao's summoned beast.

The other two assassins also realized something was off.

The archer leapt onto a nearby ruined building, drawing his bowstring taut.

The mage started charging up his next spell.

The knight activated a charge skill, rushing straight toward Li Yao.

Yet—

Li Yao's expression remained calm and unshaken.

If they couldn't detect the Void Mantis, and he had the Chessmaster Talent…

Then he was already in an unbeatable position!

Seeing Li Yao unmoved, the mage snarled coldly.

"Die! Fireball!"

A massive one-meter-wide fireball shot toward Li Yao, engulfed in blazing flames!

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

At the same time, three arrows tore through the air like lightning!

The knight appeared in front of Li Yao, sword raised high.

"BOOM!"

Three powerful attacks collided at the same time, shrouding the area in a cloud of dust and debris.

Seeing this, the mage lowered his staff and sneered.

"Tch. And here I thought he was some kind of genius. Turns out he's just another overrated weakling."

However,a calm, unhurried voice echoed from within the smoke.

"If you won't tell me, then allow me to guess."

Li Yao stepped out from the dust, completely unharmed.

"Impossible!?"

The three assassins' eyes widened in disbelief.

They were certain their attacks had landed directly on him.

Even if he somehow survived, how had he taken no damage at all!?

But Li Yao ignored their shock.

He continued speaking, as if analyzing a puzzle.

"You called me 'Young Master Li,' which means you know I'm the son of the Silver Wolf Guild's leader."

"That means you also understand the consequences of killing me. You wouldn't risk your lives for a mere silver treasure chest."

"And since I haven't offended anyone… that only leaves one possibility."

"The talent I revealed… has threatened someone's interests."

"And in Jiangzhou, there are only three forces capable of challenging the Silver Wolf Guild."

"The City Lord's Mansion, the Yuwen Clan, and the Qin Family."

At that moment, the assassins' pupils shrank violently.

Li Yao caught the reaction, a cold smirk forming at the corner of his lips.

He looked like he was smiling—

But his eyes were completely devoid of warmth.

"Kill one."

The moment those words fell—

The Void Mantis, hidden in the shadows, suddenly materialized behind the archer.

Its razor-sharp claws crossed—

And slashed down.

[-5943]

The archer didn't even have time to scream.

His body was instantly sliced into four separate pieces.

The remaining two assassins felt their blood run cold.

Their minds went completely blank.

"Now then, are you ready to talk?"

Li Yao slowly stepped forward, each step crushing down on their chests like a suffocating weight.

"Which faction sent you?"

"N-No… I can't… If I say it, they'll kill me!"

The knight was the first to break.

His sword clattered to the ground as he collapsed, trembling.

The mage beside him was also shaking, his mind a chaotic mess.

Li Yao could tell immediately—the mage had a much stronger mental fortitude than the knight.

In that case—

"Void Mantis."

"Shlick!"

Blood splattered.

The knight felt hot liquid splash onto his face.

Half of it belonged to him.

The other half belonged to the mage, who had just been executed right in front of him.

Watching his ally die so suddenly, his pupils lost focus.

He was too terrified to even speak.

"I'll ask one last time. Which faction?"

Li Yao's voice was cold as ice.

He had no intention of sparing anyone who tried to kill him—

No matter their reasons.

The knight snapped.

He activated his charge skill over and over, desperately trying to flee.

But moments later—

A dark purple figure appeared before him, blocking his path.

The Void Mantis raised a claw, bringing it down slowly.

As the freezing blade neared his throat, the knight collapsed to his knees.

"I'll talk! I'll talk!"

"It was the Yuwen Clan's leader!"

"He found out you went to the borderlands alone and paid us a fortune to kill you!"

"Then he planned to smuggle us into another city!"