Chapter 104: Imperfect Victory
During the day, two Hyacinth Knights, who had reached half-step Baronet status after their outburst, took less than ten minutes to cleanly and swiftly eliminate two Blood Clan Knights and two attendants, expending only a bit of ammunition.
Meanwhile, Su Xiaomeng collaborated in all the behind-the-scenes arrangements, allowing Jiang Yan to witness the Wang family’s substantial foundation and extremely high execution efficiency.
In less than two days, Su Xiaomeng directly bought the small inn and the restaurant downstairs, while the other party was still in the dark. The several million spent on these arrangements seemed trivial in Su Xiaomeng’s eyes.
The Jiang sisters, Su Xiaomeng, plus the two taciturn attendants from the Wang family, took several hours to clean up the scene, but everything was sorted out before 7 PM.
They practically scoured the entire inn, finding over 800,000 in cash, especially in the security box of the game room, which contained three boxes of six external hormone inhibitors and a box with two internal hormone inhibitors—this was their most valuable haul. Additionally, half a bottle of warming medicine was considered a bonus.
However, when Su Xiaomeng pulled out several boxes of Fu Zhi Lan from the four Blood Clan corpses, everyone’s expression became serious.
Coupled with Big Brother Cao mentioned by the previous Blood Clan upper-tier Knight, they had essentially cornered the Black Dragon Society, a significant faction of the Blood Clan.
For the Hyacinth, although they had clung to the Wang family through Wan Yue and Lao Jin, the Black Dragon Society was still a formidable and crazed adversary.
From what Su Xiaomeng had heard, the Black Dragon Society spanned S Province and Y Province, boasting at least five or six high-ranking Blood Clan members above Baronet rank, among whom was the elusive leader, Old Qian, who was rumored to be close to advancing to Count.
Wan Yue had resolutely chosen to be tied to the Wang family, fully aware of the survival foundation that the Hyacinth needed, deeming it worthwhile even to provoke the Black Dragon Society.
“Hey, sister, look at this!”
Jiang Yao extracted an account book from a room on the third floor, detailing the operational accounts of nearby bathing centers and underground casinos. The latter aside, the former was rife with uncomfortable profiting activities.
Miss Su should find a way to notify the police; such a tumor would just harm the common people if it stayed one more day.
Jiang Yan simply turned back and muttered something casually, then focused on searching through the several Blood Clan smartphones she had confiscated, seemingly wanting to find some useful information, but the password locks posed a short-term challenge.
“Give me the phones; the Wang family needs these more. Although they are your spoils, I can represent grandpa and buy them based on the value of critical information, 150,000 for each phone.”
Su Xiaomeng approached, smiling as she handed over a note: “As agreed, all spoils belong to you. This is the organized list; please verify it. I’m also representing grandpa for the four Blood Clan corpses—though they’re quite damaged, they’re fresh enough. How about four million?”
“Alright, please have Miss Su take the spoils and money to the Golden River Club and hand them over to Uncle Liang. Yao and I still need to rush to District X to meet Brother Zhao Peng and deal with the next stronghold.”
Jiang Yan waved her hand, indicating her absolute trust in the other party and showing no intention of bargaining. This open attitude made Su Xiaomeng squint her eyes in a smile and nod subtly.
“I never expected the daytime operation to go so smoothly. Once this is dealt with, you can rush to District X and participate in the midnight action, hitting each target one by one.”
From start to finish, it was clean and efficient. Looking at the darkening sky, Su Xiaomeng still marveled.
“There’s no other way; the Hyacinth has only a few knights, so they can only take risks.”
Jiang Yan smiled, running her fingers through her hair.
…
Meanwhile, another team led by Zhao Peng had already begun the covert infiltration of the Black Clan’s stronghold in District X earlier in the afternoon. Zhao Peng and three other knights, along with eighteen attendants, had stationed themselves early at the edge of a city village, just hundreds of meters away from the building materials market.
Currently, the Black Dragon Society stronghold that had been shattered in P District did not appear to have any significant secret ties to that in District X. The Black Dragon Society seemed to be divided into different operational sectors.
By around 9 PM, Jiang Yan and Jiang Yao had just arrived at the location, reuniting with Zhao Peng and the others. In a small inn, the participating Hyacinth Knights once again gathered. Zhao Peng praised the Jiang sisters for their victory in P District, and even the usually conservative Zheng Shaolin had a bright expression, regaining his cheerful demeanor.
“They are very cautious and deployed three knights and eight or nine attendants at once, indicating that this warehouse is extremely important to the Black Dragon Society.”
Jiang Yan studied the layout map of the building materials market on the bed with a serious expression: “According to the intel from Big Brother Huang a few days ago, they maintain high alert 24/7… Here, here, and here should all have lookout posts.”
As she said this, Jiang Yan pointed to three inconspicuous points on the map.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Peng, who had not spoken until then, immediately stood up, went to the window, and raised a night vision binocular. A few minutes later, he turned back and nodded gently toward the puzzled faces: “These are all key high points or good positions for monitoring multiple adjacent intersections.”
“We’ll split into two small groups and enter from these two intersections. Zhao Peng, I, and Yao will be responsible for taking out these three lookouts.”
“Unfortunately, the intel is still too sparse. I estimate that at least one of these three lookouts is responsible for guarding a secret escape route, so we must occupy all three of us to block their escape.”
Jiang Yan bit her lip, marking and circling on the map, entering a state of readiness. At this moment, Zheng Shaolin was already astounded, seemingly unable to reconcile Jiang Yan’s appearance with her charming demeanor, creating a cognitive dissonance.
He had long received hints from Wan Yue and knew that the Jiang sisters were members of the former Shadow Arrow team, but this sharp and seasoned judgment in actual combat clearly exceeded his expectations.
“Xiao Yan, you’re amazing…”
The so-called chief surgeon of the Hyacinth, Xiao Dong, looked at her with admiration. Though she had achieved commendable status, reaching lower-tier knight in just over ten years, to be honest, if it weren’t for the need to fight for survival, this timid woman wouldn’t be cut out for the front lines.
The usually taciturn Xiao Ai also smiled at Jiang Yan at this moment, understanding the significance of Wan Yue’s delegation of power.
“Hehe, sister was once…”
Before she could finish, Zhao Peng suddenly coughed heavily, his expression stern, causing Jiang Yao to realize her breach of conduct. Her face flushed as she clamped her mouth shut, and others chuckled kindly.
After exchanging a smile with Jiang Yao, Jiang Yan pointed to the map again.
Brother Zheng, with rich combat experience, teamed up with Sister Xiao Dong and the previous year’s attendants to form the strike group, rushing to block the warehouse door immediately. No need to enter; they only needed to deploy smoke bombs to create confusion, forcing them to escape through secret passages.
“Only by forcing them to leave the warehouse do we have a chance. The rest can all belong to the support group, and I can let Sister Xiao Ai handle that, and we won’t approach the warehouse but rather ambush at this designated location to simultaneously observe two routes and provide long-range fire support.”
“Brother Zhao Peng, deploy the drone once more to re-verify the aforementioned intersections and lookout points. The key of this operation is to avoid entering the warehouse without any intel support, scare them out, and then annihilate them at the two intersections of the building materials market!”
Though the Blood Clan might seem like a pack of madmen, they were actually cowards, quick to flee at the slightest change in the wind. Forcing them from the unknown into known places was Jiang Yan’s most pragmatic tactical approach for this operation.
Having finally finished speaking, Jiang Yan stood up and surveyed the room. Apart from Jiang Yao, who appeared normal, the others either exchanged confused glances or dawned upon the realization that combat could be executed this way.
…
The Hyacinth that Jiang Yan understood was always filled with elegance and grace, as if being part of an endless golden ball.
Romantic, elegant, with slow melodies, and a life of wealth and beauty. The main dancer was Wan Yue, while she was merely an inconspicuous accompaniment or musician within it.
The greatest illusion was perhaps this calm amidst chaos; such a slow-paced life might continue endlessly, extending until the world’s end. It felt reminiscent of a military camp life filled with stark seriousness and tension, almost like the rhythm of the entire world.
Today was perhaps the first time since Jiang Yan joined the Hyacinth that she felt transported back to the starting point before the Shadow Arrow team departed for operations. Every piece of information she saw and heard was tied to life and death, devoid of warmth.
Everyone was garbed in black tactical outfits and armed, the Hyacinth that Wan Yue had crafted resembled an alternative among all Blood Clan factions, more like a quasi-militarized organization.
Zhao Peng, as the top person under Wan Yue, announced the entire operation plan, while Jiang Yan silently stood in a corner, checking all her equipment once more.
Jiang Yao moved closer to Jiang Yan and whispered, “Sister, why don’t you lead the team? I paired up with Brother Liu last time, and I discovered he was likely not from the assault or support team before…”
“Brother Zhao Peng and Brother Zheng have been with Sister Wan the longest. We’re newcomers, and we can stand out, but let’s not infringe upon others’ authority… Brother Zheng is quite decent, reputable, and suited for frontline command.”
Jiang Yan patted Jiang Yao on the shoulder, unconcerned that the authority of today’s mission was still in Zhao Peng and Zheng Shaolin’s hands.
“I hate when you all prioritize seniority like this… There are only a few dozen of us in the Hyacinth; sister, why make it so complicated? Just give everyone a military rank…”
Jiang Yao mumbled her dissatisfaction, then retreated to her corner, making Jiang Yan smile wryly in response.
In the corner, Zhou Ping was the last to finish preparing her weapon and seemed a bit lost, as if her mind was occupied with something else.
Under Zhao Peng’s arrangement, Zhou Ping and her few close attendants were assigned to the strike group blocking the warehouse under Zheng Shaolin’s command.
“Xiao Ping, you forgot your pistol.”
Jiang Yao stepped over, holding out a silenced pistol toward Zhou Ping.
“Ah… oh, right, thanks for the reminder.”
Zhou Ping came back to herself, receiving it somewhat awkwardly and forcing a smile: “Xiao Yao, I didn’t expect that a few months later, you and Xiao Yan would already be the backbone of the Hyacinth.”
“Hehe, just a bit.”
Jiang Yao smiled happily, fiddling with her ponytail.
…
Time hit 1 AM. With a command from Zhao Peng, the operation commenced.
With the latest intel verification, the surprise attack on the three lookout points faced no difficulty in front of three half-step Barron knights.
Just as Jiang Yan had predicted before the operation, one of the lookout points even had a lower-tier knight on guard; however, this unlucky Blood Clan knight encountered the more cautious Zhao Peng and was immediately struck down by several rounds from a silenced pistol.
The remaining two points were also easily handled; among the three Blood Clan knights listed in the information, now only one upper-tier and one lower-tier remained, most likely huddled inside the warehouse. Once forced out, surviving under the siege of three half-step Barons was virtually impossible.
From Jiang Yan’s perspective, as long as they dealt with all the Blood Clan knights, even if they stopped and pulled back afterward, it would count as a sufficient explanation to the Wang family. After all, what was inside the warehouse was a complete unknown to Jiang Yan; she wouldn’t take unnecessary risks, especially when the opponent was the unpredictable Black Dragon Society.
This was the experience accumulated through past encounters of the Xuanyuan team with the Black Dragon Society, as well as countless casualties from decades of assaults against the Blood Clan executed by the Shadow Arrow squad.
The strike group commanded by Zheng Shaolin took the initiative, launching several smoke bombs into the warehouse through various vents and windows. The silent threat of soft kills seemed to stir a hornet’s nest, and the pitch-black interior of the warehouse surprisingly lit up with one or two lights.
The show of force took effect within minutes. Several shadowy figures leaped from the other side of the warehouse’s building materials store, frantically escaping onto nearby roofs.
From a dark corner over a hundred meters away, Xiao Ai and her nine attendants swiftly spotted the targets, and several VSSM silenced sniper rifles began to lock on.
In the darkness, the Black Clan member who had jumped onto the roof was still regaining his balance when he stumbled and fell, followed by another unlucky one revealing himself, only to be shot down by concentrated fire from the support group as he jumped in the air.
The subsonic heavy rounds of the VSS rifles proved incredibly effective at this distance, effortlessly turning the fleeing Blood Clan members into charred remains.
Soon, a second escape route appeared, two figures with significantly higher ranks dashed out onto the street. This time, they skipped the rooftops and were running for their lives down the road.
Unfortunately, at the intersection, Zhao Peng, Jiang Yan, and Jiang Yao were already waiting.
The narrow encounter erupted with five forces, propelled by the frenzied energy of boiling blood, as if an invisible pressure cooker had suddenly exploded, sweeping across much of the building market. Among them, three instances were half-step Barons.
Especially Jiang Yan and Jiang Yao, whose formidable presences almost falsely mimicked those of Barons, left the distant Hyacinth attendants dizzy and trembling.
The upper-tier Blood Clan knight, whose body surpassed the boiling blood threshold, hadn’t fully mutated when Jiang Yao dashed in with a Tang knife, sweeping off one of his legs. In a comically absurd pose, he hopped away on one leg, evoking laughter in the midst of slaughter.
Two seconds later, this upper-tier Blood Clan knight was pursued by Zhao Peng, who fired his silenced pistol multiple times from just a few meters away, almost all shots hitting the target.
The one-legged knight had his head blown off by bullets, collapsing to the ground with his body following through. The remaining half of his head was ignited by silver ions, emitting a sooty smoke, resembling a comical human torch.
The final lower-tier Blood Clan knight didn’t survive even ten seconds. Despite his quick speed, indicating he was likely a Caucasian Blood Clan member, Jiang Yan was even faster. A silver dagger stabbed directly through his heart from behind, and he curled up on the ground like wilted straw, soon ignited from within by the extreme heat of his blood, dying in a painfully grotesque manner.
In mere minutes, over ten Blood Clan members fleeing through the warehouse’s exit were shot dead, with the remaining few retreating, likely only one or two left.
“Brother Zhao Peng, immediately have Brother Zheng create distance; don’t block the entrance anymore—let them out; we can accept their surrender.”
Observing Xiao Ai and the others swiftly gathering the piles of severed limbs and bodies, Jiang Yan approached Zhao Peng from behind.
Zhao Peng felt this was the most satisfying battle he’d fought, resolving what had seemed a headache just days prior in a single day, and this victory was accomplished without Wan Yue’s appearance. Even the ammo expenditure was over half less than similar operations.
Currently, Zhao Peng held absolute trust in Jiang Yan’s suggestions, directly issuing instructions over the communicator.
“Old Zheng, those knights and attendants have been dealt with; don’t block anymore, pull back, and let them out. There are only one or two left, we can call for their surrender.”
“Received. I see two stunned Blood attendants who just shrank back… Wait? Xiao Ping, what are you doing? Don’t go in!”
In the communicator, Zheng Shaolin went from calm to stunned in just two seconds.
Clearly, Zhou Ping had seemingly taken reckless action at a critical moment, catching Zheng Shaolin off guard.
“Hey, Old Zheng! Old Zheng!”
The communicator cut off, and looking at the warehouse over two hundred meters away, Zhao Peng was bewildered, and Jiang Yan’s heart fluttered with an ominous premonition.
In less than ten seconds, a massive explosion followed by a huge cloud of smoke rose fiercely from the warehouse, soon after followed by a deafening blast, with a shockwave sweeping across. The ground trembled, and Jiang Yan and the others, over two hundred meters away, were caught off-guard, losing their physical balance and staggering.
It was conservatively estimated that at least two hundred kilograms of explosives had been detonated. The madness within this Blood Clan warehouse once again reshaped Jiang Yan’s understanding.
“Old… Old Zheng! Zhou Ping! Xiao Dong!”
Zhao Peng’s face changed from fury to pale fear, his whole body starting to tremble, and he even knelt down to the ground, his legs turning weak.
After the shockwave, Jiang Yan sprinted toward the warehouse that had turned into a pile of burning ruins, with Jiang Yao closely following…
The heavy winter night was abruptly awakened by a sudden explosion, followed by a fire rampaging through the building materials market at the edge of a city village in District X.
Countless villagers roused by the detonation shockwave fled their doors in horror, escaping onto the street, most barely clothed.
Behind them, the extensive area of old, fragile dwellings awaiting demolition lay largely devastated, with not a single window remaining intact after the blast’s impact.
Over twenty minutes later, the howls of fire trucks, police cars, and ambulances echoed outside a city village in District X.
