Chapter 226: Changes of Plans

Following a path through the fields, the group arrived in the woods. With the crisp chirping of birds, it was hard to imagine that a fierce battle was about to unfold in such a peaceful environment.
At this moment, Rod no longer wore a smile of revenge. Instead, hesitation appeared on his face. Was it because the serene surroundings diminished his desire to kill, or because seeing those innocent children made him unwilling to disrupt their peaceful lives? At this instant, his resolve began to waver slightly.
“Silverwing, long time no see!” As they reached an open area in the forest, they hadn’t seen anyone yet when they heard Hori’s greeting first.
Soon, four dark figures appeared before them out of nowhere, as if out of thin air. This showed just how skilled Hori and his men were in hiding and concealing their presence, leaving no trace at all.
“Hori, it’s you!” Upon seeing the person and hearing the familiar voice, Silverwing’s expression changed drastically. With a look of disbelief, he exclaimed at the people before him.
Meanwhile, Nightingale and the others beside Silverwing also changed color, as if they had witnessed something terrifying.
“Hori, we have no grudges between us. Why did you join this operation? Did Knight Rod pay you? It seems you haven’t taken on any missions for years. Are you trying to use this opportunity to stir up trouble?”
With a darkened expression, Viper asked coldly. They knew very well who Hori was. Especially in the world of dark mercenaries, his team had been famous years ago, gaining widespread recognition across the industry. But it was said that he had withdrawn from this field due to organizational reasons a few years back. Yet who would have thought they would see him here today?
Considering what Rod had said earlier, it was clear that both Hori and these men in black were helpers hired by Rod. Looking at them, Viper felt a chill run down his spine. There was no need to explain Hori further—he had started his career at just eighteen, reached the Saint level by twenty-three, and completed 237 missions over the eight years from eighteen to twenty-six, leading his death squad to every corner of the continent without a single failure. He also had experience assassinating Saint-level strongmen. It was said that by the time he left the assassin world at twenty-six, he had already reached the later stages of the Imperial level. Now, nearly three years later, he must have made even greater progress—perhaps even reached the Saint level.

As for the few people around him, since they were sent by that organization, they must be quite capable—at the very least, they had imperial-level strength; otherwise, they wouldn’t have been sent here! Everything made Silver Wing and the others feel a sense of despair approaching.

“Those with different paths cannot work together. You should know the rules of this world—survival of the fittest! There are no eternal laws; everything is changing. Anything can happen in the face of interests and money, right?” With a faint sigh, Horri spoke to Silver Wing and the others with a hint of emotion.

Watching what was happening, Rod was secretly puzzled and surprised. It seemed obvious that Horri and Silver Wing were old acquaintances, something he had never expected. Deeper down, he felt a hint of concern. Horri had said that Silver Wing’s group were members of the Dark, and the members of this assassin world were generally the most mysterious. Even among peers, it was unlikely to know each other so well. There was only one possibility: Horri was also a member of the Dark!

At this thought, Rod broke out in a cold sweat, his expression turning serious.

“It’s been three years, right? I remember when I left, you were just newcomers starting out. Three years later, you’ve become quite famous, and your strength has improved greatly. Everyone except Crow has reached imperial level. It seems the Dark has put a lot of effort into training you!” As Rod pondered, Horri took a deep breath and continued.

“The Dark? Heh, maybe everyone thinks so, but you should know that our relationship with the Dark is purely based on interests. If it weren’t for… well, you know. There’s no need to say more. It seems you’ve come here today to take our lives, right? Heh, Knight Rod, you’re quite skilled—enough to get members of the Death Assassins Team to help you!” With a look of helplessness and sorrow, Silver Wing said bitterly, his voice filled with endless grief and resentment.

Looking at those people, he knew that his group had no chance of escaping today. With their attacks, he had no ability to resist.

“Stop talking nonsense! If you’re going to kill us, just do it! We’re ready!” Nightingale shouted at them in a chilling tone, then pulled out the bone whip in his hand. The bone whip, tinged with a hint of blood, twisted and spiraled in the air, looking eerily sinister.

“Fight!” Horri shouted in response.

In an instant, at his command, the three people beside him also began to act. As for Rod, at this moment he became like a bystander, realizing that while he stood there without taking action, the others had already started fighting. Truly, they were all the finest assassins and the strongest fighters—every move they made carried a fierce killing intent. Even the simplest techniques were executed with maximum power by them. Without any unnecessary fancy moves, they attacked their opponents’ vital points with direct, deadly strikes.

Rod was even more surprised to find that even the weakest among Horie’s group had reached the late Imperial level, with two of them already at the early Saint level. The pale purple combat energy clearly demonstrated this.

Under their combined attacks, the Silver Wings side quickly fell at a disadvantage. Wounds multiplied, and the smell of blood spread rapidly, becoming quite pungent soon after.

Standing still in place, Rod didn’t know what to do for a moment. Moreover, as the fight continued, he realized that the small space around him was no longer sufficient for him to intervene—there was no room to get involved. Acting rashly might only cause trouble for Horie and the others.

The aura of sword energy was intense; even Rod standing nearby could feel it clearly. A sharp sword strike came, and with a dull tearing sound, his clothes were split open.

“Ah…” A scream echoed as a figure flew backward at high speed before crashing heavily into the large tree beside Rod, hitting the ground with a dull thud.

Immediately afterward, another figure flashed over quickly and arrived in front of Rod in the blink of an eye. With a deadly intent, they thrust a sword at the figure on the ground.

“Ding…” A clear sound was heard. There was no bloodshed or screams as expected; instead, that clear sound replaced all noise.

The person on the ground was stunned, as was the attacker, and those watching from afar were also shocked.

This situation was completely beyond their expectations. The long sword in one of Horie’s assassins was blocked mid-air—a dark sword stopped Death from claiming the life of the figure on the ground.

It was Knight Rod. At the most critical moment, he stepped in to block the attack, saving the man who was about to die. It was he who had been knocked away and crashed onto the ground just now.

“You… Knightrod… what do you want to do?” He stared at Knightrod with wide eyes, filled with confusion. He didn’t understand why Knightrod would save his life at this moment—wasn’t it this guy who wanted his death?
“Let me handle it myself. You shouldn’t get involved!” Taking a deep breath, Rod looked at Hori and spoke in a low voice. Yet there was a hint of hesitation in his tone; it was he who had brought them here, and now saying such things felt somewhat embarrassing.
Hearing Rod’s words, Hori hesitated for a moment, sighed, gave a signal, and immediately three men in black retreated to his side. The four of them stood at the edge of the forest, watching Silverwing and the others in a sorry state, waiting quietly for Rod to make a decision.
“Actually, I should kill you all!” Rod said, sighing as he stepped forward and looked at the covered-in-injuries Silverwing.
“Hmph, stop talking nonsense. If you want to kill us, just do it!” With a cold snort, how could the enraged Silverwing listen to Rod’s words?
“No, don’t kill us! Knightrod, killing us won’t benefit you at all. It’s better to let us go. Consider it a debt we owe you; we’ll repay it when we get the chance. Besides, we can offer you a lot of help—like finding out who hired someone to hunt you. Oh, and we can provide you with the most comprehensive and up-to-date information so you can always know what you want to know!” An anxious voice came through, causing Rod to pause slightly. Turning around, he saw Crow pleading at him urgently, having chosen to back down in the face of death.
“Crow, you!” Silverwing and the others’ expressions changed drastically as they shouted loudly at Crow.
“I don’t want to die, Silverwing! Don’t forget—we still have many things to do. We can’t die now. What about this village? What about those children? Have you forgotten how much effort it took us to achieve what we have today? Have you never thought about what would happen if we died here? No, I refuse to see such an outcome!” With a nearly frenzied expression, Crow shouted at Silverwing and the others, his fierce face looking terrifying.
After hearing this, Silverwing and the others didn’t know how to respond. They stood there frozen, as if their deepest fears had been spoken aloud. Their eyes lost their luster, and they stood there hesitantly, looking at the people around them in silence.