Loren

In the pitch-black alleyway, Luo Lun nonchalantly stripped off all her clothes, revealing her near-perfect curves.

She had worn a black skintight suit for her previous assassination mission. Naturally, Luo Lun couldn't walk out onto the streets dressed like that; it would be far too conspicuous.

A moment later, Luo Lun had changed into a long black dress paired with a chic little black bowler hat and high heels. Her already tall and slender figure now exuded an irresistible, captivating charm.

No matter how one looked at her, she appeared to be nothing more than a mature, gorgeous woman. No one could possibly associate her with an assassin from the Blood Alliance.

Humming a little tune that no one else could understand, Luo Lun turned and strolled out of the alley.

Since she had temporarily lost her assassination target, she decided not to worry about it for now.

The tracking mark wasn't something easily erased; she had specially asked a witch she knew to cast it. Since the mark's aura had vanished, the guy was probably already dead.

Work was work, and life was life. People lived to enjoy themselves. This was Luo Lun's first time visiting the Elven Forest, so naturally, she intended to properly experience the local customs and scenery.

Likely no one could ever imagine that the terrifying leader of the Blood Alliance, whose very name struck fear into the hearts of men, was no different from an ordinary woman in her private life.

The nightscape of the Elven domain was truly capable of leaving first-time visitors in absolute awe. Multicolored bioluminescent plants transformed the area into a fantastical wonderland straight out of a fairy tale. The breathtaking scenery was so beautiful that it almost felt unreal.

Luo Lun marveled at the sight, momentarily struggling to distinguish whether she was in a dream or reality.

People were approaching.

This was a public street, so it was perfectly normal for people to pass by. However, on a wide street where foot traffic was clearly sparse, having people suddenly encircle her from all directions was undeniably abnormal.

Furthermore, these individuals were all humans, not elves. Although it wasn't uncommon to see humans here, the fact that the dozen or so people surrounding her were exclusively human made the idea of a mere coincidence far too much of a stretch.

"What a hassle," Luo Lun clicked her tongue. She then abruptly kicked up her long, slender leg, sending one of her high heels flying straight at one of the approaching men.

The man drew his sword and cleanly sliced the flying shoe in half.

"Those shoes were expensive!" Before the man could even register what had happened, Luo Lun closed the distance. Even barefoot, the explosive speed she displayed was absolutely astonishing.

The man hastily raised his arms to block.

Crack!

With unstoppable force and the sickening crunch of fracturing bone, the man was sent flying like a ragdoll, instantly vanishing into the darkness of the night.

No one could have ever guessed that the leader of the assassin organization known as the Blood Alliance, Luo Lun, was neither a stealthy rogue nor a traditional assassin, but a martial artist.

Ever since she was a child, Luo Lun possessed an extraordinary talent for combat. Both of her parents had been distinguished adventurers. From the moment she could remember, she had grown up under her father's strict tutelage, endlessly honing her martial skills.

Her unparalleled talent, combined with her blood, sweat, and tears, as well as the vast resources her parents poured into her training, allowed her to become a top-tier powerhouse at such a young age.

Through a stroke of fate, Luo Lun ended up joining the Blood Alliance. Relying on her formidable strength and flawless track record, she eventually rose to become its leader.

The purpose of an assassin was, naturally, to kill. Whether that meant eliminating a target from the shadows or simply beating them to death in a head-on confrontation, the end result was exactly the same.

Luo Lun was precisely this kind of unconventional assassin. Every time she had a mission, she would march right up to the front door and achieve her goals through sheer, brutal force.

Of course, she would still wear a mask to conceal her identity during missions. It was a vicious-looking skull mask that had become the ultimate nightmare for countless wicked and treacherous scum.

Her motivation for doing all of this was quite simple.

Her parents had been very blunt with her: the reason they pushed her through such grueling training from a young age was to ensure she became strong. In this world, only the strong could live free from the constraints of others.

Luo Lun felt that she was no longer bound by anyone's rules, which meant she could finally start doing whatever she pleased to her heart's content.

Luo Lun loved beautiful things, the smiles of others, and their heartfelt gratitude. She genuinely hoped that everyone could live a happy life.

Conversely, she despised the bastards who exploited the commoners, oppressed the weak, and destroyed the beautiful lives of others just for their own selfish gain.

Loving the good and hating the bad—this was simply how any normal person functioned.

Therefore, this incredibly simple reasoning became the sole motivation behind Luo Lun's battles.

Luo Lun was merely doing what she loved.

And fighting just so happened to be one of the things she loved.

Luo Lun shattered another enemy's head with a devastating kick. To allow for better mobility, she had torn two high slits up the sides of her long dress. Her pale, flawless thighs were now completely drenched in blood, making it look as though she was wearing a pair of crimson leather pants.

The surrounding assailants witnessed this gruesome display of brutality. Exchanging nervous glances, none of them dared to step forward anymore.

The street was already littered with several mangled, unnaturally contorted corpses. Quite a few men had even been kicked straight off the branches of the colossal tree, plummeting to the ground below and splattering into piles of mush.

"Come out, Ned. Stop hiding in the shadows. I know you're here."

Luo Lun stood expressionlessly amidst the pools of blood. She didn't actually enjoy slaughter. It wasn't for any profound philosophical reason; she simply hated how she would end up covered in blood—dirty, sticky, and foul-smelling—after dealing with her enemies.

Right now, all she wanted was to find a place to take a nice, long bath.

Suddenly, a cold gleam of steel flashed from behind Luo Lun.

Luo Lun's pupils shrank. She instantly launched a spinning backhouse kick, forcing the sneak attacker behind her to retreat.

This guy's ability to conceal his presence had improved once again.

Ned's figure materialized from the shadows, not uttering a single word.

Compared to Luo Lun, he was the quintessential assassin. He was a man of few words, and his attacks were completely devoid of any flashy flair. Regardless of whether his strike succeeded or failed, he never lingered in combat, always retreating immediately after a single blow.

Luo Lun glanced down at her arm, where a tiny cut from the dagger had already begun to turn black. A deadly toxin was rapidly spreading through her system.

Without hesitation, Luo Lun raised her arm, opened her mouth, and violently bit off a large chunk of flesh directly over the wound, spitting the poisoned meat onto the ground.

"Your skills have gotten rusty, Ned," Luo Lun grinned, her mouth dripping with fresh blood, making her look like a terrifying demon.

Ned remained completely silent. During a previous mission, he had crossed paths with an incredibly powerful Elven swordsman, and his injuries from that encounter still hadn't fully healed.

Had he been at full strength, his blade definitely would have carved a much deeper wound.

Without a word, Ned melted back into the shadows.

Luo Lun grimaced in annoyance. She truly had no reliable way to counter this particular trick of Ned's. Until he voluntarily revealed himself from the shadows, physical attacks couldn't harm him in the slightest.

Luo Lun detested this kind of fighting style, one where she was at an absolute disadvantage no matter how she approached it.

And if she didn't like doing something, she simply wouldn't do it.

Luo Lun slowly crouched down, the muscles in her thighs suddenly bulging. Like a coiled spring, she launched herself into the air, leaping clear over the buildings lining the street and plunging straight down into the abyss below.

"That crazy woman... does she have a death wish?!"

"Did she seriously just jump off the giant tree?"

"That's a drop of hundreds of meters! How the hell could she just jump?!"

The surviving assassins who had come to ambush her could only stare at the darkness where Luo Lun had vanished, exchanging looks of absolute bewilderment.