Heroine, don't turn back, I'm just a farmer.

"Red Sheath's favorability +5."

The options are fixed and are just for reference. You can play freely. Seeing the hint, Lu Guo smiled.

Red Sheath hadn't expected the other party to ask her such a simple question.

Her code name was "Seventeen," the seventeenth in the Tianluoxiang series. Everyone—including her master—called her Seventeen. Gradually, she herself almost forgot that she had a name.

"I……"

She opened her mouth, then hesitated for a moment.

"Su... Wan Cheng, codename... Red Sheath."

She spoke slowly, as if she herself was also wondering if the name really existed.

Lu Guo nodded.

"Su Wancheng".

"Springtime on the Su Causeway passes by in the darkness, and evening mist hangs low over the horizon."

"Willow catkins drift like snow, the moon shines bright; who stands by the painted bridge on the west bank, amidst the green peaks?"

"Clouds stretch far across the Milky Way, the wind whispers with the flute. A wisp of flower shadow and the sound of falling petals fill the air, then suddenly a warbling oriole flies by, two or three miles away."

He repeated the name in a calm, even tone, as if he were reciting an ordinary name.

Of course, he also recited a poem in a very ordinary tone.

Su Wancheng's shoulders suddenly trembled.

For the first time in ten years, someone called her name.

It is neither "Seventeen" nor the code name "Red Sheath".

It is Su Wancheng.

He even wrote a poem for her.

"Su Wancheng's favorability +10."

"?" Lu Guo.

This is an unusually large number.

That being the case...

"Next, I'll go to Jinling. You can continue killing me then."

Lu Guo thought for a moment and then spoke.

He wanted the assassin to continue being his sparring partner.

Such a rare practical subject cannot be wasted. My next step is to go to Jinling and have her come with me to see if Tianluoxiang has any other plans.

"Will you continue to be killed?"

Su Wancheng fell silent.

Her sword lay across her lap, unsure of what to say, yet she knew this was the excuse the man before her was giving her to continue existing.

But she didn't say anything.

Lu Guo didn't urge her and just waited. However, after the favorability rating increased by another 10 points, it increased very slowly, and there were no new prompts.

After reaching 27, it seems to have reached a certain point, requiring a special opportunity to grow further.

However, this slowness is normal. The jump from negative 20 to positive was because he happened to hit the deepest thorn in her heart. Now the thorn has been pulled out and the bleeding has stopped. What remains is a slow healing process, which cannot be rushed.

The sound of the night watchman's clapper came from outside the courtyard wall.

It's past midnight.

Su Wancheng suddenly stopped talking, turned her head to look in the direction of the courtyard wall, and very quietly placed her fingers on the hilt of the sword.

"There's someone there," she said.

His voice was very soft, and his demeanor instantly transformed back into that of the Heavenly Assassin from Tianluoxiang.

Lu Guo didn't move, not because he didn't want to, but because he couldn't show weakness at this moment, so he nodded slightly.

"I know."

Su Wancheng glanced at him, her gaze holding something indescribable. Since this person knew everything, she didn't need to explain who the newcomer was.

When this thought popped into her head, she was startled. Why was she feeling worried?

She was an assassin; such emotions implied subordination, trust, and—

She didn't continue thinking about it.

Because there was an extra person on the courtyard wall.

The newcomer wore a dark blue robe, with a narrow-bladed straight sword hanging at his waist, and a bronze mask with a crying face on his face.

The mask had only two eye openings, revealing a pair of indifferent eyes. She stood on the courtyard wall, looking down at the two people in the courtyard.

Su Wancheng's pupils suddenly contracted.

"It's you."

"Who is it?"

Although Lu Guo was puzzled, he couldn't see the person's details because he had his back to him.

But Su Wancheng recognized the person.

Chang Le Gang Tian Luo Xiang Tang, number three in the Tian category.

The "sorrowful face" in "joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, and hatred".

No one knows her real name, no one has ever seen her face behind the mask. Among the five top-tier assassins of Tianluoxiang, Ai Mian ranks third, but this ranking does not reflect her strength.

She was ranked third because she joined the Heavenly Incense Sect later. In terms of killing efficiency, she was more efficient than the second-ranked Numian, second only to the number one Heavenly Rank Ximian who rarely showed his face.

More importantly, she was the leader's person.

The leader of Tianluoxiang never takes action personally, but there is always a mournful face by her side. There is a saying in the martial arts world: seeing a mournful face is like seeing the leader of the incense. Wherever a mournful face appears, it means that the leader of the incense's will extends there.

Su Wancheng's hand was already gripping the sword hilt tightly.

But Ai Mian didn't look at her.

Her gaze passed over Su Wancheng and landed on the figure inside the room whose back was to her.

"Successor of the Heavenly Blade." The voice from beneath the bronze mask was deep and calm, devoid of any emotional fluctuation. "The Sect Leader invites you."

Another one.

Moreover, it seems to have quite a powerful background; indeed, I've been under Tianluoxiang's surveillance all along.

If we don't know the other party's specific information, then we can only continue with the talk therapy and see if any dialogue options appear.

"Did the temple master invite me?"

Lu Guo spoke very softly, as if he were talking about something trivial:

"This is not the attitude you should have when asking someone for help."

Seemingly surprised to be rejected, a change appeared in his sorrowful eyes.

She re-examined the figure with his back to her. He was dressed in plain clothes, calm and composed, sitting there neither arrogant nor humble, and showed no intention of standing up. Next to him sat Seventeen, who had accepted the assassination mission. Seventeen had a sword across his lap, like a loyal guard.

Overnight, Number Seventeen of the Heavenly Ranks was transformed into this state.

Ai Mian wasn't the type to scare herself unnecessarily, nor would she be easily distracted by a few words, but her caution was second to none—a top-ranking assassin who could survive to the third rank never relied on recklessness.

So she didn't come down from the courtyard wall, but kept a safe distance.

"The leader said, if you don't want to go, we can talk here," said the mournful face.

Lu Guo narrowed his eyes slightly.

Here are the options.

Please select your response.

[1. "What are you talking about? Relics? Heavenly Demon scriptures? Or your Lady Snow?"]

2. "The head of Tianluo Incense has quite the airs. I told her to come see me herself."

[3. "You're number three in the top tier, and she's number seventeen. Why do you think I've been able to sit in front of her for so long?"]

[4. (Turning to Su Wancheng, he gestured with his eyes for her not to act rashly. He instructed her to remain silent.)]

Option one: His knowledge of these keywords is limited to names. If the other man presses for details, he won't be able to answer, and the intimidation will turn into a joke.

Option two is too tough. With his current strength, to have the leader of an assassin organization that could potentially kill him come to see him in person is not showing off, it's courting death.

The premise of showing off is that the other party cannot figure out your strength. Although you can reload after you die, there is no need to do so now because you don't have enough information.

If you overdo it, the other person will be tempted to test your limits, and the persona you've built in front of Su Wancheng will crumble.

Option four: Remain silent.

Silence is sometimes golden, but now Su Wancheng was sitting right next to him, her fingers already on the hilt of the sword. If he didn't speak, she might think she was being given permission to attack, and then she would die.

Ai Mian ranked third, and Su Wancheng ranked seventeenth. What does this ranking difference mean? It's obvious without much thought.

"Are you number three in the Heavenly Order?"

Lu Guo finally turned around, his tone still indifferent.

"She is number seventeen in the Heavenly Order."

After he finished speaking, he turned his head and glanced at Su Wancheng. His gaze was brief, but Su Wancheng understood what he meant.

"This person really does know everything."

So she loosened the hilt of the sword.

"What do you think—"

"Why have I been able to sit in front of her for so long?"

This sentence caused Ai Mian's gaze to shift from him to Su Wancheng.

Number 17 of the Tianzi series.

The successor of Youquan Yin.

Tianluoxiang, a veteran assassin of ten years, has carried out 147 missions without ever failing—until last night.

Su Wancheng's mission was to assassinate the successor of the Heavenly Blade and confirm the whereabouts of the relic and the Heavenly Demon Scripture. She was the one who originally issued this mission, but after a night, the 17th had not returned to report. She reported this to the sect leader, who said that there was no need to wait and that she should go there herself.

She had thought she would see either a dead Seventeen or a Seventeen who had escaped, both of which were easy to handle.

If someone dies, collect their body; if they escape, cover it up; if the mission fails, just kill the swordsman yourself—simple and direct.

But when she arrived, she saw a man named Seventeen sitting quietly beside the successor of the Heavenly Blade, his face mask removed, his sword across his knees.

She sat to the right of the other person, less than three feet away—a distance from which she could draw her sword and protect him at any moment, a distance from which she could be protected at any time. Her choice to sit there indicated that she trusted this person, and the fact that he allowed her to sit there indicated that he accepted that trust.

Ai Mian didn't continue to think about the reasons behind it.

It's not that I can't figure it out, it's that I don't need to figure it out anymore.

The facts are right in front of us.

"You turned her to the other side," said the sorrowful face.

Lu Guo neither admitted nor denied it.

"The word 'turn' sounds bad," he said. "I just chatted with her."

Sorrowful face remained silent for a moment.

Chatted.

Overnight, Tianluoxiang turned a killer she had trained for ten years into her own person after just a "chat".

If this were to get out, no one in the martial arts world would believe it.

But the sorrowful face believed!

Because Number Seventeen was sitting there, his face mask off, his sword across his knees, looking quiet and obedient beyond belief.

Rather than saying they had a chat, she believed more that the swordsman in the intelligence report had used some kind of magical power to control her mind.