From Joy of Life, the Tian Gang is reversed

Chapter 495: Prelude to Annihilation

“…That’s the situation, Madam.” Pierre lowered his head and recounted the assassination as objectively as possible, focusing on Li Chengqian’s incredible slash. “The target’s actual combat strength far exceeded expectations. His perception of danger and swordsmanship skills suggest he has mastered some kind of extremely advanced secret technique. My initial assessment is that his true combat strength may be close to that of a mid-level general, or even higher. Furthermore, I suspect he has awakened his psychic powers and become a psychic master. He is only requesting updated intelligence and an assessment of the risks of subsequent actions.”

Vinina listened quietly, her fingers, painted with bright red nail polish, lightly tapping the expensive ebony tabletop. Her expression was grim; Li Chengqian's behavior confirmed her suspicions and intensified her murderous intent.

"Combat strength approaching or even reaching that of a mid-level warrior? And he also possesses a profound secret technique similar to the Nine-Fold Thunder Blade?" Vinina's azure eyes flashed with a cold light. "He might even be a mentalist. That good-for-nothing Li Tianhao has certainly fathered a fine son! The effects of the Purple Gold Star Grass Spirit are truly surprising!"

She glanced at Pierre: "Your judgment is crucial. The mission is temporarily suspended, pending new instructions. The Alliance will reassess the target's value and the potential hidden strength of Li Tianhao. Go back and continue your undercover work; do not make any moves without orders."

“Yes, Madam,” Pierre replied, bowing his head, a slight sense of relief washing over him. The mission being aborted meant he wouldn't have to face that strange young man for the time being.

After leaving the HR Alliance branch, Pierre didn't go straight back to the coffee shop. Instead, he deliberately took several detours, changed public transportation twice, and wandered through alleys for a long time. Only after confirming that no one was following him did he return to the back door of "Provence" when it was completely dark.

The familiar aroma of coffee seemed unable to dispel the gloom in his heart. He wearily opened the door, only to find the room completely dark. He instinctively reached for the light switch on the wall.

"Snapped."

The soft, warm yellow light turned on, dispelling the darkness at the entrance and illuminating the living room.

Then, Pierre Lafargue's body stiffened instantly, as if his blood had frozen in an instant.

A man was lounging comfortably on his French-style sofa.

The man was dressed in simple casual clothes, and even held a cup of still-steaming coffee in his hand—the very same pot he had brewed and kept warm in the kettle when he left that morning. The young man gently sniffed the aroma of the coffee, then looked up at him with a half-smile on his face.

“Mr. Lafargue… I’ve missed you dearly since we parted ways in the wilderness!” Li Chengqian’s voice was eerily calm. “I really didn’t expect that you, a Frenchman, running a French coffee shop, would sell fake Blue Mountain coffee. Isn’t that a huge lack of business ethics?”

……

silence.

A deathly silence permeated the small living room.

Pierre felt as if his heart was being gripped tightly by an icy hand, and his breath caught in his throat. Every muscle in his body was tense to the limit, and every nerve was screaming for danger!

Why is he here? !

How could he possibly be here?!

He was an undercover agent left in Yangzhou by the HR Alliance, a long-term mole. Seven years had passed before he was finally awakened, and after only one mission, he was exposed... How could the target find him so easily and enter so leisurely?!

After the initial shock, Pierre's assassin instincts kicked in. His gaze swept across the room's pre-arranged escape routes and hidden weapon positions, his genetic energy surging silently within him as he focused intently.

However, when he met Li Chengqian's calm, unwavering eyes, which seemed to devour all light like an abyss, a deeper chill ran up his spine, instantly extinguishing all his thoughts of resistance or escape.

It's a feeling of absolute control.

The other person sat there casually, yet seemed to be the master of the entire space. Any rash move would bring devastating consequences.

Pierre's throat was dry, and he tried to make his voice sound normal, but it still had an undeniable hoarseness: "Who...who are you? What are you doing here? What does this mean?" He was trying to make a last-ditch effort, at least on the surface.

Li Chengqian gently blew on the steam rising from his coffee cup, took a sip, put the cup down, and leaned forward slightly, the light casting a soft shadow on his face.

"What I mean is, you gave me a toothpick in the wilderness, and I felt it was impolite, so I came all the way here..." He paused, a mocking smile playing on his lips, "to return the favor."

As soon as he finished speaking, Pierre Lafargue's pupils suddenly contracted to the size of pinpoints.

Without warning, without further words, the instant Li Chengqian uttered "Return the greeting," the instinct for survival and the assassin's ruthlessness overwhelmed all terror. At that moment, any hesitation would be fatal!
"Whoosh whoosh-!"

The air was torn apart by a sharp whistling sound! Six points of dark light, like venomous snake fangs bursting from the void, formed an exquisitely crafted encircling array at a terrifying speed far exceeding the speed of sound, aiming directly at Li Chengqian's vital points such as his brow, throat, and heart! This was Pierre's trump card, containing the full power of his intermediate-level warrior-level mental master, enough to instantly severely injure or even kill an ordinary advanced warrior!

At such close range and with such a sudden outburst, Pierre was confident that even a war god-level expert would be caught off guard and thrown into disarray!

However, what happened next completely shattered his understanding and plunged him into an icy abyss.

Li Chengqian didn't even move.

Without dodging or blocking, he maintained his slightly forward-leaning posture, the mocking curve on his face remaining unchanged.

Just as the six Kro alloy needles, imbued with terrifying kinetic energy, were about to strike his body—

hum!
A layer of pale golden ripples, barely perceptible to the naked eye yet undeniably real, appeared out of thin air about a foot in front of Li Chengqian, like the most loyal bulwark.

When those six flying needles, powerful enough to pierce through thick alloy steel plates, struck this seemingly thin ripple, it was like a raging bullet suddenly plunging into an incredibly viscous, ultra-high-strength gel!
Speed ​​plummeted! All momentum vanished!
They spun and vibrated wildly, their tips rubbing against the psychic barrier, producing a high-frequency squeaking sound that made your teeth ache, and splashing tiny sparks of energy, but they couldn't advance even an inch further!
In the end, the six flying needles were as if they were precisely pressed down by an invisible hand, completely losing all kinetic energy, and strangely hovering in mid-air. The tips of the needles were only a few centimeters away from Li Chengqian's skin, but it was as if there was an insurmountable chasm between them.

"Your strength is still a bit lacking," Li Chengqian commented casually.

"No...impossible!" Pierre cried out in horror, his scalp tingling, a chill running from the soles of his feet to the top of his head! What level of mental power was this? Such effortless defense?! A high-level War God? Even...surpassing a War God?!
A tremendous fear gripped him! Escape! He had to get out of here immediately!

He could no longer care about anything else. All the genetic energy and mental power within his body erupted, and a faint light appeared on the surface of his body. He was about to crash backward, attempting to break through the wall and escape! At the same time, his strongest mental attack technique—an invisible, sharp mental shockwave—pierced fiercely into Li Chengqian's sea of ​​consciousness like a drill! This was the last and most concealed strike he could unleash!
Just as his mental energy was fully activated and his gaze inevitably met Li Chengqian's again—

He saw it.

Deep within Li Chengqian's calm eyes, they no longer seemed to be human eyes, but rather transformed into two slowly rotating, bottomless blood-red vortexes!
An incomprehensible and irresistible grand will pierced through those eyes, instantly overwhelming his insignificant spirit!

Pierre felt as if his brain had been struck by an invisible giant hammer, or as if he had been thrown into the core of a supernova explosion. All his thoughts, all his ideas, all his consciousness were completely shattered, disintegrated, and reduced to nothingness in a fraction of a second.

His burst of primal energy dissipated instantly, and the condensed mental shockwave vanished without a trace. His forward momentum froze midway, and the light in his eyes dimmed rapidly like a blown-out candle.

"Plop" sound.

Pierre Lafargue, a seasoned assassin meticulously trained by the HR Alliance and a mid-level warrior-level mentalist, collapsed to the ground like a wooden stake that had lost all support, completely losing consciousness.

The room returned to silence, with only the faint glow of the coffee pot's heat lamp and the lingering ripples of energy in the air.

Li Chengqian slowly stood up, walked to Pierre's side, and looked down at the unconscious body.

"Sigh, although I'd like to play with you guys, I really don't have time to waste on this slave planet!"

He crouched down, a barely perceptible dark golden light emanating from his fingertips, and gently touched Pierre's brow.

More complex and subtle mental intentions, like an invisible data stream, quietly flowed into the depths of Pierre's consciousness, which had been temporarily destroyed in his resistance, weaving into a hidden, trigger-based command.

This instruction was perfectly integrated with his original memories and mission system, leaving no trace.

After doing all this, Li Chengqian acted as if nothing had happened, straightened his not-so-disheveled clothes, picked up the half-finished cup of low-quality "Blue Mountain Coffee," and went to the sink to pour it out.

He glanced at the unconscious Pierre, his figure swayed slightly, and with an invisible force, he lifted Pierre's body and carried him to the bed in the bedroom. Li Chengqian even thoughtfully covered him with a blanket, and then, as if blending into the shadows, he left silently.

(End of this chapter)