Chapter Two: The Ambush of Companions

The celestial wolf opened its eyes, and this time, there was a significant change in its distinctly black and white tiger-like pupils, which turned a deep blood red. Simultaneously, the aura surrounding it suddenly surged, subtly forming a dense red energy around its body.

The elite members of the Eagle Group held gleaming weapons that shone brightly in the dark of the desert night, yet there was a conspicuous absence of the intense killing intent that should have been present in the eyes of these top assassins. Li Qianhu covered his left hand, which had lost a finger, and retreated behind the backs of the Eagle Group assassins

The wolf's tiger-like eyes scanned the surroundings: "This truly aligns with his style. Perhaps he wants to test the extent of my current martial arts progress through these hundred elite warriors."

Li Qianhu just rolled on the spot, narrowly avoiding this burst of rage. With a sudden leap, he sprang up, stamped his foot fiercely, and shouted: "We all know the methods of the Commandant. If we don't capture him today, none of us will survive. Let's go all out!"

Li Qianhu let out a silent exclamation: "It's now or never!" Instinctively, he summoned the power from his dantian, and his internal energy surged, filling his arms in an instant. His complexion suddenly turned as red as fresh blood, reaching the seventh level of the Hongyun Heart Method he had cultivated. With a mighty roar, he pushed his palms outward, executing the move "Clouds Rolling Across the World." A powerful surge of internal energy erupted from the palms of his hands, causing blood to spurt from the two severed fingers that had already stopped bleeding.

The sword-like eyebrows of the celestial wolf arched slightly, and a glimmer of murderous intent suddenly flashed in his eyes, his voice turning cold: "Otherwise, how?"

The man who called himself "Tianlang" coldly watched his subordinates descend into the pit, while he remained motionless, arms crossed, standing firm in the swirling yellow sand of the fierce wind, his figure erect like a spear

The Celestial Wolf looked up to the sky and laughed heartily, his voice booming like a great bell, causing every assassin's eardrum to tingle and leaving them pale with fear. After his laughter subsided, his gaze swept over the faces of the Eagle Group assassins, each one filled with terror. His voice was not loud, yet it carried a resolute confidence and authority: "The Celestial Wolf is here, who wishes to be the first to die"

The entrance to the secret passage was opened, and one by one, men in black jumped into the dark hole, while the ten heavy iron boxes were also lowered down.

Li Qianhu shook his head helplessly, tears glistening in his eyes: "Sir, I know you mean well and do not wish to make things difficult for Brother Xiong and the *Tu* Shu brothers, but you are most familiar with the temperament of the Commander. If we return empty-handed like this, he will definitely not let us off the hook."

With a sudden "ding," it was unclear what technique the Tianlang used from a distance of at least five steps away from Li Qianhu, but the bull-eared dagger unexpectedly appeared in his hand. He toyed with the glimmering dagger, praising it: "Crafted from high-quality tungsten steel, a fine knife, but it would be a pity to use it for self-destruction"

Only the subordinate who set off the firecrackers remained by his side, while the others had already descended into the tunnel. The subordinate stepped forward and said softly: "Sir, you go back first; I will handle things here."

Li Qianhu, how could you, after following me for so long and participating in so many operations, still say that I have a good heart? When has Tianlang ever been a good person?" Tianlang's eyes held a hint of mockery, yet his tone remained exceptionally cold

Before Li Qianhu could finish his words, he felt a surge of energy rushing towards him like a furious tide. He inwardly cursed his misfortune, realizing that he had forgotten he had rolled too close just moments ago. Now, he found himself at the forefront, surrounded by the Eagle Group assassins on his left, right, and behind, leaving him unable to maneuver or escape. There was simply no way to retreat.

Tianlang put on the mask again just now, he patted the man's shoulder, and a flash of divine light appeared in his tiger-like eyes: "Li Qianhu, you have worked hard all the way this time, the task of escorting the gold back is entrusted to you!"

Li Qianhu gritted his teeth, inserted two fingers from his right hand into his mouth, and let out a sharp whistle. Amidst the mournful sound of the desert wind, this whistle remained exceptionally loud

Li Qianhu gritted his teeth and replied, "Sir, please do not make things difficult for your subordinate. I know that we, combined, are no match for you, but with our lives at stake, we have no choice! If you truly refuse to return, we can only take our own lives before you!"

Suddenly, a large group of masked assassins emerged from the surrounding yellow earth, clad in yellow attire from head to toe, with even their eyebrows adorned with golden sand, leaving only their eyes exposed.

Li Qianhu's mask had already been blown away by the wind, and he gritted his teeth in agony from the pain of his severed finger. He quickly pressed on two acupoints on his left hand to stop the bleeding that continued to flow out

A strong gust of wind swept through, and the assassins of the Eagle Group, standing more than ten paces away, all felt the force surge towards them like waves. They swiftly employed their lightness skills, such as the Cloud Ladder, White Crane Technique, and Floating Duckweed Method. One by one, they either soared into the sky, flew backward, rolled like a lazy donkey, or stepped back in a nine-palace eight-trigram maneuver, quickly retreating to a distance of six or seven zhang.

A cold gleam flashed in the eyes of the wolf, and with a raised hand, the blade light flashed by. Li Qianhu's left hand lost both the ring finger and the little finger at the root, and immediately, blood spurted out along with Li Qianhu's scream.

After hearing these words, Li Qianhu's face, which was somewhat twisted in pain, changed expression. He was so shocked that his eyes widened and his mouth gaped open, choking on a mouthful of sand. He coughed several times before spitting out the sand, and his hand, pointing at Tianlang, trembled with fear: "How did you know there was an ambush here?"

After the merchant caravan of the Huangmei people vanished into the swirling sands and was no longer in sight, the Han leader waved his hand, and his subordinates understood immediately. Twenty men carried ten boxes filled with gold, while the others held their weapons at the ready, fully alert. After a short while, the group arrived at the secret passage near the sea buckthorn.

Li Qianhu gritted his teeth and said: "Tianlang, you might as well kill me, after all, the commander won't let us off when we return."

Li Qianhu trembled upon hearing this and hurriedly said: "Sir, this is not acceptable. The commander at https://mhetushu.com has instructed that you must return. Otherwise..."

At this point, Li Qianhu flicked his wrist, and a cow-ear dagger suddenly appeared in his right hand. With a twist of the blade and a closing of his eyes, he thrust it towards his own heart. In this moment, he employed the technique of the Qin family from Hedong, known for its lightning-fast consecutive stabs. The movements of drawing the knife, reversing it, and stabbing the heart were executed in one fluid motion, as swift as lightning

More than a hundred assassins, seemingly casual in their movements, suddenly formed into over a dozen small groups, surrounding Tianlang and Li Qianhu in the center, their agility and well-trained skills evident.

Tianlang stood proudly with his arms crossed, slightly closing his eyes. Unbeknownst to him, a powerful current of energy had already begun to rise around him. The more than one hundred members of the Eagle Group were all skilled assassins, and upon sensing this strong energy, their expressions changed dramatically, with sweat forming in their palms. A few individuals who had previously worked with Tianlang instinctively took a step back, their hands holding weapons beginning to tremble slightly.

Tianlang shook his head: "Then it depends on your luck. I have cut off two of your fingers, which indicates that you have also put in some effort. If you wish to try again, you might as well let the more than one hundred brothers from the Eagle Team hidden around come out; perhaps they have a way to help me meet that person"