Chapter 028: One Slash
Logistics Department! That was considered an idle position in the slaughterhouse—few tasks, high pay. With Tang Mubai’s promotion, he immediately enjoyed such generous treatment that even the security captain couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy.
“Thank you, boss! Thank you!” Tang Mubai’s face was filled with joy and gratitude.
“No need to thank me. It’s what you deserve. Our slaughterhouse may deal with livestock, but as long as you perform well, you’ll never be treated unfairly,” Xie Hongyun replied warmly, encouraging him with a gentle smile.
“Rest assured, boss. I’ll work hard!” Tang Mubai was moved, almost pounding his chest in promise.
“Very good, go on now.” Xie Hongyun lifted his teacup.
“Goodbye, boss.” Sensing the cue, Tang Mubai politely retreated and left the office.
“Xiaobai, right? Keep in touch from now on!” The security captain, walking out alongside him, clapped Tang Mubai’s shoulder affectionately, extending goodwill.
“Absolutely, brother.” Tang Mubai, a little excited, offered, “Tomorrow’s Sunday, right? Do you have time? If so, I’d like to treat you to a drink in the city.”
“Of course I have time. But it’s not enough for you to invite just me—invite the others too, alright?” The captain smiled broadly.
“No problem.” Tang Mubai patted his chest, energized. “I might not be rich, but I can certainly afford a meal for a few friends!”
“Haha…” The captain laughed aloud at this. “Then it’s settled!”
“Naturally.” Tang Mubai replied seriously. “Tomorrow I’ll pick a good hotel and call you.”
“Good!”
...
Chatting and laughing, the two gradually moved out of sight.
Inside the office, Xie Hongyun listened as the voices of Tang Mubai and the security captain faded away. The gentle expression on his face suddenly changed, replaced by a stormy gloom.
“These beasts! I told them to behave, to stay calm, but they never listen! Sneaking into the warehouse to steal food—have I not given them enough to eat?” He gritted his teeth, furious. “Damn things, beasts are beasts! No matter what they become, they’ll always be animals!”
His face clouded over, rage burning in his eyes. After a moment, he exhaled sharply, leaned back in his chair, and pulled out his phone, dialing a number.
“Black Knife, bring two ‘elite-level’ beasts and kill the kid who just came to my office!” Xie Hongyun ordered coldly.
“Understood, boss,” came a calm voice through the receiver.
...
Loading zone.
After returning, Tang Mubai resumed his work. The young man surnamed Feng glimpsed him from afar, curled his lip, and turned away, pretending not to notice. Tang Mubai paid no mind.
Compared to that, Xie Hongyun’s demeanor was far more inscrutable. The owner of Hongyun Slaughterhouse appeared elegant and gentle, nothing like a butcher—on the contrary, he gave the impression of a spring breeze.
Yet Tang Mubai’s level 5 perception sensed a repressed, chilling aura emanating from him. This suggested his true nature was vastly different from his outward appearance. The harmless, approachable persona was no more than a facade for others…
Buzz!
Suddenly, his heart gave a jolt—a formless sense of danger appeared out of nowhere, lingering at the edge of his consciousness.
“Someone wants to kill me!”
Tang Mubai was shocked and angry, his face darkening briefly, though he quickly masked it. Still, the threat did not fade, hovering persistently.
“Who wants me dead?” His mind raced through possible enemies, but after much consideration, he found no clear suspect—except for Xie Hongyun.
It wasn’t paranoia; Xie Hongyun was the most likely candidate. If it had been small sects, mercenary groups, or freelance martial artists coveting the Miracle Mercenary Corps’ assets, they would have acted long ago, not suddenly developed murderous intent now.
Only Xie Hongyun, upon discovering Tang Mubai had disrupted his “business,” would be likely to harbor such thoughts. And that “business” was colluding with beastmen!
The beastmen found in the warehouse—it was too much of a coincidence. Hongyun Slaughterhouse wasn’t that large, with security constantly patrolling. Any beastman sneaking in would have a high chance of being noticed. Yet the beastmen in the warehouse had gone undetected, hiding deep inside and stealing blood-soaked fresh meat.
No matter how you looked at it, it was suspicious. If Xie Hongyun knew and deliberately cooperated with the beastmen, there could be no doubt.
Moreover, when Tang Mubai killed the middle-aged man in the warehouse before he could fully transform, the few words that man uttered as he attacked hinted that he hadn’t just arrived—he’d been at Hongyun Slaughterhouse for quite some time.
All these suspicions combined meant the odds of Xie Hongyun colluding with beastmen were at least seventy percent.
And seventy percent was enough.
“So, just because I happened to stumble upon beastmen in the warehouse, he wants to silence me?”
With the target identified, Tang Mubai’s face showed no change, but inwardly he was sneering coldly.
Just an accidental discovery of beastmen, and he was marked for death.
What a fine boss, Xie Hongyun!
...
His mind agitated but expression calm, Tang Mubai waited until the end of his shift. He greeted the patrolling security captain and a few other guards, then drove off.
Halfway down the road, Tang Mubai deliberately slowed his car and checked behind. Sure enough, there was a vehicle tailing him closely.
The invisible threat lingered, never dissipating.
Tang Mubai acted decisively, parking his car at the foot of a small hill beside the highway. Pretending to answer nature’s call, he grabbed the alloy combat blade he’d brought from home that morning—left in the trunk—and quickly scaled the hill.
He vaulted over the slope, then sprang onto the lush top of a tall tree, hiding among the leaves.
Holding his breath, he waited silently.
Less than a minute passed—
Rustling noises grew from distant to near as something moved through the grass.
Peering through the gaps in the leaves, Tang Mubai saw a sturdy man with an honest face and a middle-aged woman with an expressionless demeanor quickly approach the tree where he was concealed.
“He’s gone?”
The sturdy man glanced around, frowning slightly.
“The mountain isn’t that big. He can’t have gotten far,” the woman replied coldly. “You search this side, I’ll check the other.”
“Alright.”
The man nodded and began combing through the undergrowth. The woman, with a light step, darted to the other side of the slope.
Once her figure disappeared, Tang Mubai immediately descended silently from the tree, alloy blade in hand, and stealthily approached the sturdy man.
“Watch out!”
A startled cry rang out at just the right moment—it was the woman, returning with fury blazing in her eyes, warning the man to dodge.
But it was already too late.
Swish!
A flash of white steel swept through the air. The sturdy man, just turning around, never even saw Tang Mubai’s face before his head was severed cleanly by a single stroke.