Zhao Yunhai could live his life without any worries, but the powerful figures in Qianzhou were unable to sleep that night.
Their second tactic, hiring assassins with money, had resulted in complete silence after the orders were accepted. All of them showed as failed missions, their names turning black, indicating they had been killed.
"Not even able to enter Jiuzhou, the Zhao family's power has expanded to this extent. It's laughable that some people still want to compromise."
"If those people hadn't compromised and instead chose to oppose the Zhao family with us, the Zhao family would have collapsed long ago."
One man, frustrated by the lack of progress, slammed the table, venting his powerlessness.
"Heh... hoping for them is as good as hoping for ourselves."
"Their courage has been shattered by the Zhao family. They are now nothing more than dogs kept by the Zhao family."
"Forget it, the assassins outside Jiuzhou are completely blocked by the Zhao family. We can only find someone from within Jiuzhou."
"I know of one assassin within Jiuzhou, known as: Lone Wolf."
"Lone Wolf? Is he very powerful?"
"The highest-level assassin, starting at tens of millions per job. He never accepts ordinary assassination orders and has never failed."
"However, due to the low probability of accepting jobs and the price, I didn't think of him immediately."
"Money is not a problem. Offer him two billion, and I want Zhao Yunhai dead. I believe that with Zhao Yunhai's status as the heir of the Zhao family patriarch, Lone Wolf will definitely be interested."
Gu Xiaolai lacked nothing more than money. Being the richest man in Qianzhou was not just a title; his net worth was in the billions.
However, two billion in cash was not something Gu Xiaolai could produce immediately. He would need to sell some of his assets to convert it.
Some wealthy individuals actually have very little disposable cash. Most of it is reinvested or turned into tangible assets.
"Let's end the meeting for tonight. You can't bear the two billion alone. We will all contribute a bit. How about this, I'll contribute five million."
The man sitting at the head of the table said sanctimoniously.
The others also "generously donated," some hundreds of thousands, some millions.
Gu Xiaolai watched, inwardly sneering. While these people were less wealthy than him, their fortunes were definitely not in the single-digit millions.
The "pleasant" evening gathering dispersed.
...
The next day.
Upon receiving news from his family, Ah Da immediately reported to Young Master Yun.
"Young Master Yun, this Lone Wolf appears out of nowhere and disappears without a trace. Even our Zhao family sometimes cannot ascertain his whereabouts."
"We must be vigilant. According to the intelligence department's assessment, this Lone Wolf has likely reached the Peak Realm."
Ah Da worried that if the elusive Lone Wolf were to harm Young Master Yun, he would have no choice but to atone with his life.
Zhao Yunhai was very interested in this Lone Wolf. So what if the opponent was at the Peak Realm? Not a few Peak Realm experts had died at the hands of the Zhao family.
"I suspect this Lone Wolf has another identity, otherwise, he absolutely wouldn't be so untraceable."
"Have the people in Liutan pay close attention to any new faces appearing in Qianzhou's East Capital, especially within a ten-kilometer radius centered around this hotel."
Zhao Yunhai saw the elders of the clan looking somewhat nervous and couldn't help but smile, "Why so tense?"
"Little Hai, you cannot joke about your own life, it's not a matter to be taken lightly,"
One elder, knowing Little Hai's youthful impetuosity, said earnestly.
One elder, who seemed hesitant, suddenly spoke.
"That's right, the Peak Realm is no small matter. Should we have one of the family's Peak Realm ancestors come out of seclusion to deal with this Lone Wolf?"
Zhao Yunhai smiled without answering. This Lone Wolf sounded somewhat like a protagonist, but he couldn't be sure. He couldn't place his hopes on the opponent being the protagonist.
The other two elders agreed with this elder's suggestion. Having a Peak Realm ancestor protect Little Hai was the most prudent decision.
Little did they know that Zhao Hongwen, the patriarch of the Zhao family, personally invited a fierce ancestor from their family to emerge from seclusion to protect his child upon hearing that Lone Wolf might be a Peak Realm expert.
This Peak Realm ancestor, in his youth, had killed countless family enemies, his hands stained with blood, like a god of slaughter on earth.
Finally, with the birth of his grandson, he curbed his nature and began to care for his grandson at home. Later, his Grandmaster level advanced directly to Peak Realm.
After advancing to the Peak Realm, he emerged and killed five Grandmaster experts and three Peak Realm experts in succession.
This was decades ago. After ten years of seclusion, this Peak Realm ancestor had not appeared before his clan members for ten years.
This Peak Realm ancestor already had great-grandchildren, a complete family, enjoying the joys of family life.
"How much longer until we reach Qianzhou? This Lone Wolf fellow is probably not old. Why didn't anyone in the family eliminate him when he was weak?"
"This is not how our Zhao family operates."
This Peak Realm ancestor was currently on a plane flying to Qianzhou, speaking with great dissatisfaction to the person beside him.
This Peak Realm ancestor had white hair but a full of spirit face.
Zhao Lesheng chuckled helplessly and explained in a low voice, "Great-Grandfather, you can't take your anger out on me just because you're unhappy."
"Instead of getting angry at me, when you get to Qianzhou, you can get angry at Brother Yun."
Zhao Han Jin pouted and earnestly instructed his great-grandson.
"He is the Young Clan Leader, the future patriarch. What right do I have to get angry? You can't just vent your anger, understand?"
"My going to protect Little Hai this time is also for you juniors, so that you can get more attention from Little Hai in the future."
"Otherwise, do you think I would have come out of seclusion after such a long period? The patriarch personally came to find me."
"Although protecting the future patriarch is my duty, the patriarch should at least remember this favor."
"So that's how it is." Zhao Lesheng truly didn't understand these complexities.
This time, he was instructed by his father to escort his great-grandfather to Qianzhou to protect Brother Yun. Brother Yun was currently very popular, and he hoped to gain some prestige by going along.
"You are still young, and you will understand in the future. However, the sooner you understand this principle, the less you will stray from the path."
Zhao Han Jin sighed. When he was young, he was just like this kid, knowing nothing.
He had suffered so many losses before he learned his lesson.
But he couldn't bear to see his descendants suffer the same losses he had.
As for his previous complaints about the family's inaction, they were genuine. If the family had paid more attention to Lone Wolf's early potential, they wouldn't have had to take him seriously only when he reached the Peak Realm.
Actually, it wasn't entirely the Zhao family's fault for not paying attention. It was just that this Lone Wolf fellow had never appeared in such a way. By the time he appeared in people's sight, he was already a Peak Realm expert.
"This is East Capital of Qianzhou. I'll take the job that no one dares to accept."
A man of ordinary appearance, twenty-five or twenty-six years old, stepped out of the high-speed train station. He looked at Zhao Yunhai's photo on his phone and sneered with pursed lips.