Outside Yangcheng in Zhongzhou.

It rained heavily.

Amidst the rain, a strange vacuum appeared.

Several cold-faced assassins had already gathered in this area, seemingly waiting for their companions to arrive.

The bald man among them had his legs shaking impatiently, his brows furrowed, and his face etched with irritation, as if he were desperately suppressing the emotions about to erupt within him.

"So slow! I told you I'd be here soon, but you're all just talking nonsense."

Meanwhile, the silver-haired assassin, Ice Rose, leaned silently against a crystal-clear block of ice, her eyes indifferent, seemingly unconcerned about everything around her.

However, she didn't understand why they would gather in such an open place, without even needing to hide.

Upon seeing the group of people gathered together, the passing refugees all felt a chill and wisely kept their distance and went around them.

They are all people struggling to survive in hardship, and anyone can tell that these people are not to be trifled with; you can sense their danger from afar.

In the procession of refugees, a thin child, watching everyone walk in a large circle, couldn't help but plead with an old man beside him:

"Grandma, I'm hungry. I don't want to take a detour."

The child's voice was choked with sobs, and his tender face was full of exhaustion and grievance.

Grandma patted the child's head gently, encouraging him:

"Child, listen to me, just hang in there a little longer and we'll be in Yangcheng. There will surely be kind people there who will give us food."

Any refugee could intuitively tell that the people in front of them were awakened.

They'll die if they dare take the shortcut!

Therefore, this large group of refugees, despite their weakness and hunger, insisted on going around them.

The assassins watched from afar as this large group of refugees struggled to make their way towards Yangcheng.

After a while, Xiao Qi, one of the assassins, finally couldn't stand the silence any longer and asked curiously:

"Sister Bing, do you think those refugees will be able to get food if they go to Yangcheng?"

Ice Rose shook her head silently after hearing this.

A complex emotion flashed in her eyes, and she said with the certainty of someone who had experienced it herself:

"The people of Yangcheng will not give food to the refugees."

Although she didn't understand why the people in the city wouldn't even give algae sticks, such a basic food, to the refugees, she just knew it.

It was as if it were an unwritten rule, like a law, that no one would give food to the refugees.

Ice Rose's thoughts drifted back to the past.

Back then, she also struggled on the edge of life and death. When she was about to starve to death, she happened to meet a passing assassin. For some reason, the assassin took her in, and she was lucky enough to save her life.

It was precisely because of this experience that she eventually joined the Assassin's Guild by chance.

"I see." Xiao Qi looked at the emaciated children among the refugees, her curiosity growing stronger, and continued to ask:

"Adults are starving, why have children? Won't the children starve to death?"

The assassins' gazes followed Xiao Qi's question, turning to the group of refugees, but no one answered his question.

Ice Rose sighed softly and slowly replied:

"Perhaps, it's just for survival..."

Ice Rose guessed that perhaps for refugees who had nothing, the greatest value was being able to have a child.

This may be one of the few ways that refugees can think of to survive in dire circumstances.

Firstly, the child can gain people's sympathy, increasing the chances of getting food.

Secondly, it can provide a safety net for oneself, so that even if one is sick, one's children can go out begging and one will not starve to death.

With this thought in mind, Ice Rose couldn't help but look at the refugee children with pity. Perhaps this was why she was born...

Xiao Qi watched the refugees gradually disappear into the distance, all heading towards Yangcheng. Suddenly, as if remembering something, she spoke again with extreme excitement:

"Oh right, that's Yangcheng!"

"Sister Bing, we're already here, why don't we try to fight for the Dragon Vein?"

The assassins reacted differently upon hearing this. Some had hope in their eyes, while others curled their lips in disdain, seemingly thinking that Xiao Qi's idea was too naive.

Xiaoqi looked down at her fairly well-developed muscles, and then thought about her decent talent, and couldn't help but start daydreaming:

"I think I should give it a shot. Maybe the dragon vein has been waiting for me to rise up!"

Xiao Qi raised her head, looking at Bing Qiangwei with hopeful eyes, her tone full of expectation:

"Sister Bing, what do you think..."

"Shut up!" The bald man suddenly shouted, interrupting Xiao Qi in extreme annoyance.

His voice boomed like thunder in everyone's ears, causing the others to frown uncomfortably.

Seeing Xiao Qi's terrified expression, the bald man restrained his temper and said in a deep voice:

"I'm so annoyed, Xiaoqi, can you please shut up!"

"Oh..." Xiao Qi obediently lowered her head and stopped talking.

A few moments later, the other assassins arrived one after another.

When the man wearing the white mask finally arrived, he immediately noticed that one person was missing.

That person was a human-shaped mural. Even if there were no walls for him to pass through, he shouldn't be here yet, given his abilities.

"Where's Ying Tong?" the white-masked man asked the group that had arrived earlier.

The bald man replied impatiently, "He went to assassinate Li Yu."

"Fool!" the masked man cursed immediately, clearly extremely angry.

If Li Yu could be easily assassinated by himself, he would have done it himself long ago. Why would he need to gather so many people?

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