Chapter 218: Ma Chen & He Hu
Both of them were wearing dark clothing and had their faces partially covered with scarves.
"Ma Chen, are you sure it's this way?" asked one of the men in a low voice, glancing at his companion. Ma Chen nodded silently, his eyes fixed on the road ahead.
Ma Chen was a 6-foot-tall man with a muscular build, while his companion, He Hu, was slightly shorter but had a more agile frame.
"Yes, he should be arriving at the Whispering Pine Woods soon," Ma Chen replied, his voice filled with confidence.
He Hu nodded, his eyes scanning the surroundings for any signs of movement.
They had been instructed to kill Chen Tian and bring his head back to their client.
"What did this kid do for Hu Jianyu to want him dead?" He Hu asked, his voice laced with curiosity. Ma Chen remained silent for a moment, contemplating his reply. "Sigh, he messed with the wrong people," Ma Chen finally responded.
"From the information that we got, that kid just joined the sect; his cultivation is at the 8th stage of the Qi Refinement Realm," Ma Chen continued, his brows furrowing.
Because Chen Tian was still concealing his cultivation, his true strength for the people in the sect he was still a Qi Refinement Realm cultivator.
"How dare a mere Qi Refinement Realm cultivator provoke someone like Hu Jianyu? It's clear that this kid is way over his head," He Hu said with a shake of his head.
People who don't know their place often end up in dangerous situations. It's evident that this kid lacks the experience and knowledge to comprehend the consequences of his actions.
It wasn't the first time that these two were ordered to kill someone whom Hu Jianyu considered beneath him. In the past, they had effortlessly eliminated countless people who dared to anger Hu Jianyu.
There was even a time when Hu Jianyu laid eyes on a beautiful woman and became infatuated with her. Her stunning features and graceful presence captivated him instantly.
She was a girl from a nearby city. Hu Jianyu tried to pursue her, but she refused his advances. Despite his wealth and power, she saw through his manipulative tactics and knew that he only desired her for his own pleasure.
Hu Jianyu, however, was not accustomed to being rejected and became consumed by anger and frustration. He couldn't fathom how anyone could refuse him, especially someone as irresistible as himself in his own eyes.
The girl had a fiancé, who was also a young cultivator at the Body Refinement Realm. Both the girl and the boy were planning on getting married and living a peaceful life together. They had dreams of building a humble home.
In the end, Hu Jianyu could not accept the fact that the girl was committed to someone else.
His obsession with her grew to the point where he was willing to do anything to break them apart.
The boy and the girl came from a normal background with no powerful connections. They were simply two ordinary individuals who had found love in each other.
They couldn't have anticipated the lengths Hu Jianyu would go.
Hu Jianyu hired both of them and had them wait for the boy to leave the city.
As soon as the boy left the city, they abducted him, leaving the girl desperate and frantic. The innocent boy had become a pawn in Hu Jianyu's twisted game of obsession and control.
He threatened the girl with the boy's life and told her that if she ever wanted to see him again, she would have to do as he said. Terrified for the boy's safety, she reluctantly agreed to Hu Jianyu's demands, unsure of how she would ever escape this nightmare.
She couldn't do anything because of her simple background, and when she told the City Guards about Hu Jianyu, no one believed her.
With no one to turn to, she felt trapped and powerless.
Even if she didn't want it, she let Hu Jianyu play with her body. It was a horrifying realization for the girl, but she knew that it was the only way to protect the boy she cared so deeply about.
Every encounter with Hu Jianyu filled her with disgust and shame, yet she pushed through, hoping that each time would bring her closer to setting them both free. Her body became a battleground between her own dignity and the desperate need to save her loved one.
As days turned into weeks, Hu Jianyu played with the girl's mind; he subjected her to unimaginable horrors, both physically and emotionally, leaving her broken and helpless. The girl's pleas for help went unanswered as Hu Jianyu continued.
The girl even thought of killing herself several times, but could never bring herself to go through with it. She knew that if she gave up, her loved one would be left to suffer.
She could only clench her fists and endure the pain, her hope slowly fading with each passing day. The weight of her loved one's life hanging in the balance became unbearable, but she refused to give up. She knew that if she could just hold on a little longer, she might bring an end to this nightmare.
But as each day passed, the shattered pieces of her heart seemed to multiply. She felt as if she were walking on broken glass; it was only then that Hu Jianyu destroyed any remaining fragments of hope within her.
He took her to her fiancé, who was now a battered corpse. He was beaten to death as his legs were cut, and his rod was shattered. The sight was too much for her to bear, and she collapsed to her knees, overcome by grief and despair.
Seeing her broken, Hu Jianyu wasn't interested in her any longer, so he ordered his men to kill her and destroy any evidence of her existence.
Since they were paid handsomely to carry out his orders, they followed without hesitation.
Before getting rid of her, both Ma Chen and He Hu had fun with her body; they wouldn't miss the chance to exploit a beauty.
After finishing the deed, they dragged her lifeless body to a nearby river, where they mercilessly dumped her, making sure she would never be found.
"This time it's also an easy job killing a mere Qi Refinement Realm cultivator, hehehe," He Hu chuckled darkly.
Ma Chen nodded in agreement, his face expressionless as he glanced forward.
"Yes, both of us are in the Meridian Opening Realm, so dealing with someone in the Qi Refinement Realm is child's play," Ma Chen added coldly.
"But we still have to be careful; we can't kill him like we killed all other targets; if we killed him here, the Immortal Sword Sect would investigate the matter thoroughly. We need to wait till he enters Whispering Pine Woods; even if he dies there, the sect would not suspect anything," replied Ma Chen, his voice filled with caution.
The two men continued walking through the dimly lit forest, their footsteps barely making a sound.