Unparalleled medical and martial arts skills, saving the CEO's fiancée at the start.

Wen Jiuhong disembarked from the ship, walking unhurriedly, as if he had come to the island to discuss a very ordinary business deal.

His speedboat was moored on the shallows, the engine running, with the stern facing the river, ready to leave at any time.

Jiang Ruoxi stood in front of the stilted house, watching him from afar, neither moving forward nor backward.

Aygul stood half a step to her side, her whole body like a fully drawn string, yet with a perfectly professional smile on her face.

"President Jiang, we meet again." Wen Jiuhong stopped five or six steps away from her, took off his fisherman's hat, revealing his refined and calm face.

Sunlight shone through the thin mist, casting his silhouette in half-light and half-shadow, like a person stepping out of an old painting.

He glanced around, his gaze quickly sweeping across the faces of the project team members before finally settling on Jiang Ruoxi: "You're bolder than I thought. Knowing I was coming, you still dared to bring so many people to the island. Are you truly fearless, or do you trust your Minister Ye too much?"

"Whether he comes or not, you're afraid." Jiang Ruoxi said casually, as if she were chatting with a client she hadn't seen in a long time.

"If you were really not afraid, you wouldn't have stopped the boat in a position where you could turn around at any time. Wen Jiuhong, you actually value your life more than Qin Wuyi. You Blackwater people may look like desperate criminals, but you are actually more afraid of death than anyone else."

Wen Jiuhong smiled and did not deny it.

He put his hands behind his back, like an old man taking a walk.

But in that instant, Ye Chen saw clearly from behind the ruins: Wen Jiuhong's right hand, which was behind his back, made a very subtle gesture, pinching his thumb and forefinger together twice. This was a signal to the person in the shadows.

Just as Ye Chen was about to remind Jiang Ruoxi, Ayiguli had already moved.

As if pushed from behind, she darted to the left, a short knife being drawn from under her skirt, its blade flashing like a fan as it swept towards a clump of waist-high weeds three steps behind Jiang Ruoxi.

Grass blades flew, and a grayish-white figure sprang out of the grass, moving as fast as a ghost.

The man was thin and small, wearing a faded gray bodysuit, and his face was covered with a gray cloth, revealing only a pair of narrow, cold eyes.

He wasn't carrying any weapons, but his hands were thin and long, with blackened fingertips as if they had been soaked in ink.

Five shadows.

Aygul chased after him with her knife, each strike aimed at his death.

But the gray shadow was faster than a human, its movements extremely strange, like a wisp of smoke blown away by the wind, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, sometimes in front, sometimes behind, always circling around Jiang Ruoxi.

Jiang Ruoxi stood motionless, her eyes fixed on the gray shadow.

She knew that if she lost her composure, she would give the other side an opportunity. Ye Chen's heart tightened as he watched the ruins, and he could no longer hold back. He drew his Ku Zhao sword and leaped out like a hawk, his sword aimed straight for the back of the Five Shadows.

Wen Jiuhong also moved.

He swayed and stood between Ye Chen and Wu Ying, striking out with his right palm. The palm wind was soft yet solid, like a silent undercurrent.

Ye Chen parried with his sword, the blade striking Wen Jiuhong's palm wind, but it felt as if he had cut into a clump of glue, causing his sword strike to halt. The two separated immediately after the initial contact; Ye Chen took half a step back, and Wen Jiuhong also took a step back.

In that instant, the gray shadow had already circled behind Jiang Ruoxi, its five black fingers piercing straight into the back of her neck.

"Ruoxi!" Ye Chen roared, ignoring Wen Jiuhong's restraint, and rushed desperately towards Jiang Ruoxi, stepping on the rocks.

He was incredibly fast, but the five figures were much closer. Aygul pounced from the side, her dagger flying from her hand and striking the back of one of the five figures' heads.

Wu Ying didn't turn his head, but dodged to the side, though he had no choice but to withdraw his hand.

Taking advantage of the opening, Jiang Ruoxi lunged forward and fell into the hay, narrowly avoiding the blow.

Aygul rushed over and shielded her behind her. Ye Chen finally arrived, sweeping his sword and forcing the five figures back three zhang.

The five shadows landed without any pause, drifting behind Wen Jiuhong like gray leaves.

Wen Jiuhong patted the grass clippings off his sleeve and smiled, "You see, I told you, shadows are invisible."

Ye Chen didn't speak, he just stared at him.

Guipu and Han Song had already led their men to flank them from both sides, and several sentries also surrounded them.

But Ye Chen felt that something was wrong.

The Five Shadows appeared too easily, and Wen Jiuhong arrived too decisively.

This didn't seem like an assassination; it was more like a test.

"Wen Jiuhong, you don't have many men left." Ye Chen helped Jiang Ruoxi up, his eyes never leaving the two men.

"I've pretty much taken out all your spies in Jiangcheng. The only reason you're standing here talking to me tonight is because I don't want to kill you here yet. But if you dare touch her again, I don't care if you're from the main branch or a branch, this island will be your grave."

Wen Jiuhong looked at him and slowly made another gesture.

As if disappearing into the light and shadow, the five images turned and ran wildly toward the west of the island.

Just as Ye Chen was about to give chase, Wen Jiuhong suddenly pulled out an extremely thin iron chain from his waist. With a flick of his wrist, the chain lashed out at Jiang Ruoxi like a long sword.

Ye Chen turned around to block, the chain wrapped around the sword, sparks flying everywhere.

By the time he broke the chains, Wen Jiuhong had already retreated towards the speedboat.

Ghost Servant and Han Song attacked from the side, trapping Wen Jiuhong at the edge of the shallows.

Wen Jiuhong fought while retreating, and managed to get closer to the ship despite being surrounded by two top experts.

Ye Chen handed Jiang Ruoxi over to Ayiguli and chased after her with his sword.

The speedboat roared, and the waves churned.

Wen Jiuhong walked on the water like a water hawk skimming the surface of the river, and boarded the boat in just a few steps.

Ye Chen was only a beat too slow; the boat had already turned around and sped off toward the west of the island.

The five shadows vanished into the wild grass and mist of the western island as if they had never existed.

Ye Chen stood in the shallow water, the tip of his sword touching the surface, panting heavily.

Han Song chased after him for a few steps, but was stopped by the ghost servant: "Don't chase him, he deliberately left an escape route, you can't catch up with him."

Ye Chen didn't say anything, just watched the speedboat sail further and further away until it became a tiny black dot on the river.

He turned around and walked up to Jiang Ruoxi.

Her face was pale, her forehead was sweaty, and her hands were still trembling slightly, but her eyes remained clear.

"He will come again," Jiang Ruoxi said.

"I'll take it every time you want," Ye Chen said, taking off his coat and draping it over her shoulders before turning to the ghost servant.

"Uncle Gui, thoroughly search the island again. The Five Shadows may have left something on the island. Han Song, contact Brother Song and have him intercept the boats downstream, but don't confront them directly. Follow them if you can, let them go if you can't. They may escape tonight, but they can't escape every ripple of Jiangcheng."

The ghost servant obeyed the order, and Han Song left immediately.

Ye Chen led Jiang Ruoxi to the stilted house and found a flat stone for her to sit on.

He pulled a piece of chocolate from his pocket, broke it in half, and handed it to her. Jiang Ruoxi took it, ate it in small bites, and after a while said, "Wen Jiuhong didn't come to kill me. He's testing you, and he's testing himself too."

Ye Chen was taken aback: "Test me for what?"

Jiang Ruoxi looked at him: "Test the people around you, see if you panic. Test your protection of me, see if there are any blind spots. Ye Chen, next time, he will bring more people. As for those Five Shadows, they didn't really put in any effort from beginning to end. They still have a backup plan."

Ye Chen didn't speak, but simply held her hand in his palm.

A wind picked up on the island, making the old cloth curtains outside the stilted houses flutter loudly. The sky was overcast, as if it were about to rain.

Ye Chen looked up and saw a darker, heavier cloud slowly pressing down on the river in the distance.

A storm is brewing, but he and she are still here.

Then there's still a way.