At this moment, the atmosphere in the entire villa hall felt somewhat oppressive and eerie.

Zhang Yue sat on the sofa, exuding a cold aura from head to toe, trying hard to keep herself calm. However, her peripheral vision occasionally fell on the phone she placed on the coffee table, as if she were waiting for some important call.

In fact, that was indeed the case. Zhang Yue was waiting for news from Wan Chang’an and Chen Kunchang.

Sending people to kill Qiu Tianrui and kidnap the mother and daughter Qiu Yingrong tonight could indeed be said to be a very risky move, but even with the risk, she had no choice but to do it.

If she wanted Lu Tianxing to die without a place of burial, wanted to kill Lu Tianxing to avenge Sun Yaoyang, she had to kill Qiu Tianrui, kidnap Qiu Yingrong and her daughter, and use them to threaten Qiu Zhengfeng, making Qiu Zhengfeng her pawn and turning against Lu Tianxing.

Only when Qiu Zhengfeng turns against Lu Tianxing could her plan be flawless, leading more family clans to believe Lu Tianxing is an ambitious person attempting to swallow them, to relive the Lu Family’s former glory, and to make the Lu Family the top family in China, which would cause more family clans to unite against Lu Tianxing and suppress the Lu Family.

After all, Lu Tianxing’s achievements recently were indeed formidable, leaving no one in disbelief.

Killing Qiu Tianrui and forcing the Qiu Family to turn against Lu Tianxing was the crux of this plan. But now, since she sent people to assassinate Qiu Tianrui and kidnap Qiu Yingrong, almost an hour had passed.

Based on the timing, Wan Chang’an or Chen Kunchang should have reported back by now. But now, not even the smallest bit of information had returned, causing an uncontrollable ominous premonition to rise in Zhang Yue’s heart. This plan absolutely cannot fail; if it does, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Huff huff..."

At that moment, a sudden sound of hurried breathing came from outside, accompanied by stumbling footsteps approaching from outside.

"Who’s there!"

Zhang Yue suddenly grabbed the mask beside her and put it on her face, her gaze filled with coldness as she looked outside.

Tang Er’s gaze also fell on the doorway at this moment, his eyes as cold as ice, true Qi emanating from him, ready to strike at any moment.

"It’s me, Chen Kunchang."

A hoarse, aged voice came from outside, and with the voice, the blood-soaked figure of Chen Kunchang appeared in the hall.

Chen Kunchang looked utterly battered at the moment, lacking the aura befitting a middle-stage mythical expert; his whole body was covered in blood, his face pale to the extreme, and his breath becoming unstable, making him appear like a flickering candle in the wind, ready to be extinguished at any moment.

Zhang Yue frowned tightly upon seeing Chen Kunchang’s state: "Chen Kunchang, how did you end up like this, where are Qiu Yingrong and her mother!"

To Zhang Yue, she couldn’t care less about Chen Kunchang’s state, as long as Qiu Yingrong was successfully kidnapped, it didn’t matter even if Chen Kunchang died.

Upon hearing Zhang Yue’s words, Chen Kunchang’s face turned somewhat cold, feeling anger at Zhang Yue’s tone but not daring to act on it. He suppressed the fury in his heart and said, "The mission failed, Qiu Yingrong wasn’t successfully kidnapped...."

"That’s impossible."

Before Chen Kunchang could finish his words, Zhang Yue impatiently interrupted, her tone somewhat hysterical: "As far as I know, apart from Qiu Zhengfeng, there is only one middle-stage mythical expert in the Qiu Family. I already sent people to restrain that middle-stage mythical expert, and Qiu Yingrong is only a yellow-level expert, how could it possibly fail...?"

"How could it possibly fail?"

Without waiting for Zhang Yue to finish, Chen Kunchang unceremoniously interrupted, his face slightly gloomy, "You should ask Sima Lingyun why I failed."

Upon hearing Chen Kunchang’s words, Zhang Yue’s expression suddenly changed: "What did you say, Sima Lingyun got involved too?"

"Do you think if Sima Lingyun hadn’t intervened, a mere person from the Qiu family could have troubled me?"

Chen Kunchang sneered and said, "I tell you, not only did Sima Lingyun appear, but Lu Tianxing also did, and Wan Chang’an died at his hands, your plan is a complete failure...."

"Then how did you escape?" Zhang Yue interrupted Chen Kunchang’s words, asking directly.

"Hmph, I’ve been traversing China for decades, do you really think I have no means to preserve my life? A mere Sima Lingyun and Lu Tianxing, two ignorant youngsters, thinking they could kill me, Chen Kunchang is simply wishful thinking."

Chen Kunchang’s tone carried a tinge of arrogance and pride. He indeed couldn’t defeat Sima Lingyun and Lu Tianxing, but his life-preservation technique was unique, and even in front of Ji Xingyun, he had confidence that Ji Xingyun couldn’t tell if he was dead or alive.

Upon hearing Chen Kunchang’s words, Zhang Yue didn’t speak but fell into contemplation. She hadn’t interacted with Lu Tianxing or Sima Lingyun, but for Sima Lingyun to become the leader of the Yanhuang Group, and for Lu Tianxing to survive multiple crises, it couldn’t be solely due to martial prowess.

Even if Chen Kunchang used a secret technique to deceive Lu Tianxing and Sima Lingyun, faking his death to escape, she believed it couldn’t be that simple for Chen Kunchang to escape. There must be more to this, perhaps Chen Kunchang was released by Lu Tianxing and Sima Lingyun as bait, purposefully letting him escape to secretly follow him to find her whereabouts.

After all, for someone severely injured, the first thought would undoubtedly be her, as only her place would be safe, and only she could save him.

Upon thinking of this, Zhang Yue’s expression changed again, and the unease in her heart intensified, becoming more and more pronounced as time passed.

Chen Kunchang, looking at Zhang Yue’s expression, as if knowing her thoughts, spoke coldly, "Rest assured, Lu Tianxing and Sima Lingyun had no idea I faked my death to escape. After Lu Tianxing left the Qiu family with my body, I chose to escape. Also, my Blood Transformation Technique can completely mask my bloody scent, and I left through a bustling area, Lu Tianxing won’t know where I fled to, they won’t find our whereabouts."