Chapter 823

The terrifying strength, scheming, and courage displayed by Qin Bore far exceeded everyone's expectations, leaving them restless night after night.

In just a few short years, the Divine Phoenix Group rose to dominance, crushing countless small and medium forces with ruthless methods and meticulous planning.

All the senior leaders of the New Faction know well…… Qin Bore repays grudges with vengeance, kills without mercy, and never shows leniency to any opponent.

And just a few days ago, they secretly assisted the Shangqing Group in sending assassins to strike, having already completely torn apart relations and forged a deadly enmity.

Deep down, the magnates are crystal clear…… if they do not thoroughly eliminate Qin Bore, the only ones to face ruin will be themselves.

Their fate will only be the collapse of their forces, the utter loss of their foundations, and even ending up dead and their Dao extinguished.

Rather than wait to be destroyed, it is better to strike first, stake all their resources, and fight to the death to eradicate this greatest hidden danger.

Coincidentally…… Du Jie, who had fortuitously escaped to Hu Hai earlier, made contact with all the New Faction forces from hiding at the first opportunity.

Du Jie and his father secretly transmitted messages, promising that the Hu Hai Shangqing Group would provide massive funds, top-tier assassins, and weapons support.

All the support resources of the Hu Hai Shangqing Group…… are entirely used to help the New Faction set a trap, thoroughly eliminate Qin Bore, and crush the Divine Phoenix Group.

The sole condition of this collaboration is that, after success, the entire Jiangnan New Faction will submit to the Hu Hai Shangqing Group.

From then on, the Jiangnan forces……% will be completely merged into the Shangqing domain, join hands to oppose the Divine Phoenix, and completely put an end to the chaos of Jiangnan's power struggles.

At this moment, inside the conference room, the senior figures were seated.

Those gathered here tonight are precisely the core leaders of the Jiangnan New Faction, each holding real power and possessing deep foundations.

K Group Chairman Hong Bai Tian and Bai Jinhao Director Bai Guiyuan took the primary seats on the left, their eyes gloomy and icy.

The chairman of the Chi Dao Group, who controls Nine Creeks Mountain Villa and commands a large force of underground elites…… You Kaixuan, tapped his fingertips lightly on the table, full of hostility.

Ju Lu Group Chairman Lu Yuanshan and Lan Huan Group Chairman Lan Sheng Qiang sat with straight backs, their faces solemn and still as water.

All the top magnates of Jiangnan gathered together, each harboring killing intent, quietly discussing the meticulous plan to assassinate Qin Bore tomorrow.

The first to speak…… was the most impatient Hong Bai Tian, his brows and eyes surging with hostility, his tone harsh.

"Qin Bore, this woman is too monstrous; at her young age she suppresses all our forces so we can't lift our heads—tonight we must finish her!"

"Le Zong, since the arrangement at the Yun Ding Hotel tomorrow has been settled, there's no need to leave any leeway."

Bai Guiyuan beside him slowly lifted his gaze, his eyes full of the gloom of deep scheming, his voice low and steady.

"We cannot be careless; Qin Bore's thoughts are unfathomable, and though she proactively agreed to talks tonight, I always sense something hidden."

Lu Yuanshan of the Ju Lu Group echoed in a low voice, his tone filled with deep apprehension and resolve.

"She never fights unprepared; our deployment tomorrow must be layered with defenses, leaving no room for mishaps. In our previous skirmishes we always came out worse—if we give her more time to grow, we will surely die."

Lan Sheng Qiang clenched his pen tightly, the barrel warming slightly from his grip, his voice icy and piercing.

"Exactly, this woman is terrifying—patient, decisive, ruthless in killing, and her trump cards keep appearing."

"Du Jie sent word from Hu Hai that the Shangqing Group's top assassin squad will secretly infiltrate the Yun Ding Hotel ahead of time tomorrow."

You Kaixuan, who commands the underground elite forces, spoke in a low voice, his eyes sharp as blades, full of killing intent.

"As long as Qin Bore steps into the banquet hall, inner and outer forces will encircle, instantly sealing all her escape routes. The front lobby will be disguised as service staff, corridors will hide elite strikers, the roof will set sniper positions—all-around deployment."

Le Xiao chen, seated at the head, listened silently to everyone's deployment, a flash of ruthless coldness flickering in his eyes.

"My death warriors have already taken up positions around the hotel tonight, laying both open and covert killing traps. Once I give the order, even if Qin Bore brings reinforcements, she will absolutely not be able to leave the Yun Ding Hotel alive."

He raised his hand and gently pressed the table; the vast conference room fell silent at once, so quiet that a falling pin could be heard.

"Tomorrow, after she arrives at the hotel, after she lets down her guard…… once she is seated, we will immediately close the net, execute her on the spot, leaving no chance of survival. As soon as Qin Bore dies, the leaderless Divine Phoenix Group will instantly collapse."

"By then we will submit to Shangqing, fully dominate Jiangnan's underground landscape, and from now on no one will be able to check us!"

The cold words echoed in the sealed conference room, thick killing intent completely enveloping the entire hall.

A plot to assassinate Qin Bore had been thoroughly brewed in the midnight skyscraper.

The New Faction magnates exchanged glances, all nodding, their eyes filled with the madness and ruthlessness of going all-in.

……

One night's time…… passed in an instant,

……

Dawn broke, the morning sunlight^ pouring through the gaps between buildings, bathing the whole Jiangnan city.

The night's turbulent undercurrents having faded, the city returned to its usual bustle, appearing as if all was calm and peaceful.

Lin Yuan arrived early and on time at the Su Group headquarters, clocked in as usual, and entered the familiar office area.

He sat upright at his workstation, appearing to handle his tasks as normal, yet his mind could not settle.

Over the course of the day, his nerves remained taut, his eyes holding a lingering vigilance and unease.

Lin Yuan's mind kept replaying…… last night's phone call between Qin Bore and Le Xiao chen, as well as that feigned peace talk—a Hongmen banquet.

Whenever he thought of Qin Bore going alone to the Yun Ding Hotel for the banquet that evening, his inner unease grew stronger.

Even knowing that Qin Bore always plans before acting, and having already seen through the opponent's trap, he still felt the hidden dangers were manifold.

The New Faction has lain low for many years, employing vicious and deceitful tactics, never observing the righteousness of the martial world, and will never sincerely seek peace easily.

In order to prevent any mishap, Lin Yuan took out his phone, opened the chat interface with Qin Bore, and repeatedly weighed his words.

He sent several WeChat messages in succession, each word earnest, doing his utmost to persuade Qin Bore to give up attending this banquet.

In the message, he... repeatedly reminded Qin Bore that the members of the New Faction harbor deep schemes and are sinister and deceitful, and this banquet is absolutely a deadly Hongmen feast.

Countless cases lie before our eyes; the other side, in order to protect itself, will stop at nothing and surely hides lethal moves—we must absolutely not rush recklessly.

After sending the message, Lin Yuan stared fixedly at the phone screen, anxiously awaiting a reply.

Moments later, the phone screen lit up, and Qin Bore's WeChat message gradually appeared, her tone calm and steady.

She gently comforted Lin Yuan on WeChat, informing him that she had already made thorough preparations and there was no need for excessive worry.

She explicitly told Lin Yuan that Lin Yun'er had personally led a team, commanding a large number of elite Death Warriors stationed outside the hotel, ready to respond at any moment.

Layers of defenses inside and out, with no blind spots; should any sudden situation arise, they can rush to assist immediately.

Qin Bore's superficial soothing, composed and steady, alleviated most of Lin Yuan's anxiety and panic.

But Qin Bore, in private, did not reveal all of her trump cards… nor the full contingency plan to Lin Yuan.

She knew Lin Yuan was eager and keen to protect himself, fearing that if he learned the full deployment he would become overly impatient.

If his emotions ran loose and he acted impulsively, striking early would surely disrupt her meticulously laid-out overall plan.

To ensure tonight's plan would succeed and ensnare everyone in one sweep, she deliberately concealed the core deployment.

……

Daylight hours…… slipped away quietly.

Beneath the seemingly calm daytime, an extremely dangerous ambush…… was quietly taking shape.

The bigwigs of the New Faction Group wasted not a minute, spending the whole day…… hastily setting up the killing trap at the Cloudtop Hotel.

From the hotel's top-floor exclusive negotiation private room, to the neighboring idle private rooms, the entire corridor, and the fire escape, everything was completely under their control.

Even the interconnected underground parking lot, elevator blind spots, and floor corridors were densely filled with their personnel.

Du Jie, transferred from the Shangqing Group in Huhai…… brought ten top Death Warriors, all hidden in the hotel's various secret spots.

These Death Warriors were each formidable in skill, killing with ease, experts in assassination, lurking, and close combat, their combat power extremely terrifying.

Together with all the remaining elite fighters gathered by the New Faction Group, they set up overt and covert ambushes, forming an inescapable encirclement killing formation.

They spent heavily, secretly bribing all on-duty hotel security staff, and took control of the hotel's entire security system.

All emergency exits, safety exits, and fire stairwells inside the hotel were secretly blocked and sealed shut.

All surveillance blind spots…… were exploited, every escape route was completely cut off, leaving no room to flee.

Besides that, they had long prepared special liquor, each cup laced with colorless, tasteless bone-softening powder.

This secret medicine is extremely potent; it dissolves upon entering the throat, colorless and tasteless, hard to detect, and can make a person's limbs weak and limp within a short time.

Once affected, even a top-tier expert would instantly lose all combat ability, left at the mercy of others.

Their plan was meticulous and wicked to the extreme: first, under the guise of negotiation, they pretended to be courteous and offered drinks, luring Qin Bore to consume the drugged wine.

After the drug took effect and Qin Bore completely lost her ability to resist, they then all moved in and killed her on the spot.

To completely clear their own suspicion, the senior figures of the New Faction Group had already devised a perfect aftermath plan.

After Qin Bore's death.

Afterward…… they would thoroughly clean up the scene, fake a fight, and disguise this assassination as an ordinary jianghu grudge killing.

At the same time, they laid clues and left traces beforehand, pinning all suspicion…… on the neutral old-school factions.

Thus, killing two birds with one stone: they could eliminate Qin Bore, destroy the Divine Phoenix Group, and sow discord between the old factions and the Divine Phoenix.

The entire Cloudtop Hotel, under the bright daylight, was quietly shrouded in a layer of icy, bone-chilling killing intent.

Time flowed slowly, the daytime clamor gradually faded……

In an instant, it entered the dim, dusky evening.

The sunset's afterglow dyed half the sky over Jiangnan City red, warm orange light spilled onto the glass facades of high-rises, scattering into fine, dazzling specks.

Evening.

The city's light gradually softened, yet the hidden killing currents around the Cloudtop Hotel showed no diminution whatsoever.

Qin Bore had already arranged her entourage for the banquet, deliberately trimming her attendants merely to feign weakness and numb the minds of the New Faction crowd.

Her appearance of attending alone, simple and unadorned, seemed to outsiders a complete expression of trust in the New Faction's negotiation sincerity, utterly devoid of caution.

She brought only her close confidante Lin Yun'er throughout, with no other attendants, lowering her external guard to the greatest extent.

Only Qin Bore herself knew this was, in her 'turn the tables' layout, the most crucial step of a feigned weakness gambit.

Lin Yun'er was meticulous in thought and steady in action, having long prepared a thorough covert support plan.

Lin Yun'er, hiding a tiny, exquisite micro wireless communicator on her person, its body concealed inside her collar, leaving no trace whatsoever.

The communication signal was stable and smooth, maintaining real-time contact with the Divine Phoenix Death Warrior squad lying in wait in the hotel's surrounding streets, rooftops, and dark corners.

After all covert deployments were set, Lin Yun'er drove that eye-catching, cool Ferrari supercar smoothly toward the Cloudtop Hotel.

Meanwhile, outside, all members of the Divine Phoenix Group, elite forces fully laid in ambush, awaited Lin Yun'er's signal, ready to instantly encircle and rush into the battle.

……

Half an hour later.

The car steadily stopped in the reception area before the main entrance of the Cloudtop Hotel.

The car came to a steady halt, the engine's low rumble gradually fading, adding a touch of tranquil oppression to this place shrouded in killing intent.

Lin Yun'er was the first to lift her hand and open the driver's door, her posture upright and capable, stepping out immediately to scan the surroundings and check for potential risks.

After confirming there was no sudden abnormality outside, Lin Yun'er stood to the side, respectfully waiting for Qin Bore in the back seat to alight.

The next instant, the passenger door was gently pushed open, and a graceful, beautiful figure slowly stepped out of the car.

The evening breeze lightly stirred her hair ends and hem, lending her a slender, graceful appearance, seeming utterly devoid of any trace of killing intent.

Qin Bore wore a simple yet refined outfit, her long hair smoothly falling over her shoulders, her demeanor cool and noble, her presence naturally perfect.

Yet deep in her clear eyes lay a hint of icy chill, observing everything before her without a change in expression.

At this moment, the main entrance of the Cloudtop Hotel already had neat rows, two lines of dark, crowded figures standing, their aura imposing.

Dozens of burly, sturdy enforcers stood straight, posture upright, stance uniform, all in black clothes and trousers.

Such layered formations, standing ready, looked like a welcome, but in fact every detail revealed deliberate intimidation and vigilance.

The two rows of troops were symmetrically arranged on either side of the hotel gate, extending from the doorway down to the steps below, the formation grand and solemn.

Qin Bore stepped steadily onto the ground, her posture relaxed as she stood, casually lifting her gaze to sweep over the neat formation before her.

Qin Bore's lips curled slightly into a faint arc, her tone carrying a touch of lazy amusement as she spoke softly.

"Hey, the formation is still quite big?"

She let out a light sigh, showing no trace of fear, instead revealing a calm composure and confidence that seemed to see through everything.

She let out a light, airy sigh, without a trace of fear, but instead revealed a tranquil composure and confidence that comes from seeing through everything.

Dozens of figures bent over at the same time, their posture extremely respectful, the uniform salute echoed at the doorway.

"Greetings, Miss Qin!"

"Miss Qin, please go inside."

The shouts were uniform and loud, each word respectful, completely masking the monstrous killing intent lurking in the shadows.

The moment the words fell, the two rows of new faction enforcers at the doorway moved in perfect unison, without the slightest delay.

On the surface they showed utmost reverence, but secretly countless eyes had already locked onto her every move.