Now that he had shaken off Madam Kaori,

Zhou Huai was not in a hurry to leave.

He silently retreated to an inconspicuous corner, like a ghost melting into the shadows, quietly observing the luxurious scene of bustling crowds before him.

Waiters holding silver trays shuttled among the guests like butterflies flitting through flowers.

Every guest was brightly dressed, elegantly behaved, and wore a just-right smile.

Yet from beneath this peaceful surface, Zhou Huai caught a whiff of something unusual.

The guards here were simply too strict.

Almost every ten meters, there was a guard with a steady aura.

Even among those seemingly ordinary guests and waiters, quite a few high-Level Classer were hidden.

Today's high-level banquet of the Kujo Family did not seem simple at all.

Zhou Huai even had a bold idea.

Since so many high-ranking members of the Kujo Family gathered here,

should he let his Zerg army come out and launch a wave of suicide attacks?

Wipe out this group of Kujo upper echelons in one pot, once and for all.

Once this thought popped up, it was like wildly growing weeds, unable to be contained ever again.

The benefits of doing this were obvious.

It could directly cripple the Kujo Family and plunge the entire Sakura Country into internal strife.

By then, it would be much easier for him to fish in troubled waters and seize the Pendulum of Life.

But the risks were equally huge.

Once exposed, he would become the number one public enemy of the entire Sakura Country.

By then, let alone seizing the Divine Artifact, even leaving alive would probably become an extravagant hope.

Just as Zhou Huai was weighing the pros and cons and thinking about the feasibility of this crazy plan,

a cold, dangerous aura, as if being stared at by a poisonous snake, struck from behind without warning.

He instinctively turned his head to look.

He saw that the entrance of the hotel had somehow become dead silent.

The guests who were still talking in low voices just now all stopped their actions at this moment.

They turned around simultaneously and bowed respectfully toward the direction of the door.

The crowd parted to both sides like a tide, making way for a wide passage.

An old man dressed in a black kimono was walking leisurely and gracefully step by step.

His footsteps were very steady, and every step he took seemed to step on a certain special rhythm.

Zhou Huai's eyes instantly narrowed into a dangerous slit.

This old man, he knew him.

He was precisely that SS-Rank Expert who led the Sakura Country team to participate in the exploration of the Kaslandis Ruins back then.

Wada Hirayama.

The old man's gaze swept calmly across the surroundings, turning a blind eye to the bowing and saluting of the surrounding people.

He just nodded expressionlessly, with the posture of a monarch inspecting his own territory.

Behind him, there were also several guards with equally powerful auras following.

They surrounded the old man like stars around the moon, passed through the crowd, and walked straight into the depths of the banquet hall.

Until the old man's back completely disappeared from sight,

did that oppressive atmosphere around quietly dissipate.

The guests straightened up again and resumed their conversations, as if nothing had happened.

Yet Zhou Huai's heart could no longer calm down.

He looked deeply in the direction where the old fellow disappeared, with undisguised, chilling killing intent deep in his eyes.

Enemies meeting face to face made their eyes extra red with hatred.

As early as in the Daxia Imperial Capital, Zhao Qingcang had briefly analyzed it with him.

Principal Lin Zhu's death was very likely related to this Wada Hirayama.

Back then, among the two SS-Rank Experts who went to pursue Principal Lin Zhu's team, one of them was him.

Combined with the fact that the Pendulum of Life eventually appeared in Sakura Country,

Zhou Huai had sufficient reason to suspect.

Principal Lin Zhu and other members of the exploration team were very likely killed jointly by him and that SS-Rank Expert from Kimchi Country.

However, now was not the time to alert the enemy.

There would be plenty of time in the future to settle accounts with him properly.

Zhou Huai suppressed his churning killing intent, his fingertips moving slightly.

Several imperceptible Information Bugs quietly flew out from his wide cuffs.

They melted into the shadows of the floor and corners, avoiding the sight of all patrolling guards, and crept toward the core area of the banquet hall.

With so many high-ranking members of the Kujo Family here, it was just the right opportunity.

Perhaps he could find out the true location of the Pendulum of Life.

Zhou Huai closed his eyes, and his consciousness instantly connected with the swarm of bugs.

One of the Information Bugs silently attached itself to the bracket of a crystal chandelier, taking in the entire scene of the banquet hall.

Soon, he locked onto his target.

Wada Hirayama was talking with a middle-aged man.

That man was around fifty years old, with a straight figure and wearing a well-tailored black suit.

He wore a warm smile on his face, with a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose, looking gentle and refined like a university professor.

But Zhou Huai had seen this person's file.

The current head of the Kujo Family, Kujo Koji.

A ruthless character hiding a knife in his smile.

Soon, the conversation between the two clearly passed over.

"Mr. Wada, I really didn't expect you to come personally."

Kujo Koji held a wine glass, his tone carrying a touch of just-right surprise.

Wada Hirayama twitched the corners of his mouth, but the smile did not reach the bottom of his eyes.

"Since the Family Head has done such a big thing, how could an old fellow like me continue to stay at home?"

Kujo Koji chuckled, shaking the amber-colored liquid in his glass.

"It seems Mr. Wada is indeed well-informed."

Wada Hirayama picked up a glass of wine from the waiter's tray, his voice cold.

"It's not that I am well-informed; this matter could not be concealed to begin with."

"Not just me, I'm afraid the Omiya Family should have received the news as well."

He raised his eyes, his gaze like a knife, staring directly at Kujo Koji.

"Aren't you afraid of completely breaking ties with them?"

Hearing this, Kujo Koji actually laughed out loud.

His hearty laughter drew curious glances from many guests around.

"Breaking ties?"

He took a step closer, lowered his voice, with undisguised confidence and fanaticism on his face.

"I have been looking forward to that day for a long time."

After saying that, he took half a step back and resumed his gentle and refined appearance.

He glanced at the entrance of the banquet hall and raised his glass toward Wada Hirayama.

"Since Mr. Wada, you have already arrived,"

"why don't we welcome the next distinguished guest together?"

Zhou Huai's brows furrowed slightly.

At this moment, his mind was full of question marks.

What was the big event they were talking about?

Judging from Wada Hirayama's meaning, even the Omiya Family knew about this, so why didn't his side hear any wind of it?

And who was that distinguished guest they were talking about?

Just at this moment, Zhou Huai suddenly noticed that the White Butterfly mark on his cuff was emitting a flickering faint light.

This was the ace agent codenamed White Butterfly trying to get in touch with him.

There was probably something urgent.

But Zhou Huai didn't want to pay attention to it right now.

He still wanted to continue probing these two men for more information about the Pendulum of Life.

However, the very next second after he made his decision,

another Information Bug hidden in the shadows of the tableware cart synchronized a piece of information over.

He saw a waiter in the banquet hall standing in a shadowy corner.

With his back to the crowd, his fingers pressed against the miniature earpiece hidden under his collar, his lips moving slightly.

His voice was lowered very low, like a poisonous snake spitting its tongue.

"Confirming target Kujo Koji has entered the venue."

A faint crackle of current came from the earpiece, followed by an equally cold voice.

"Understood, everyone pay attention, listen to my command! Get ready to carry out a decapitation strike at any time!"