Huo Sining’s breath hitched, and she was completely stunned. Her heartbeat spiked in an instant, and her entire heart seemed to lodge in her throat.
She had not anticipated that these people would be so bold as to shoot and kill someone in broad daylight!
The female assistant withdrew her handgun expressionlessly, as if nothing had happened.
But her shot had struck the old man squarely in the heart; blood gushed from the wound. The old man’s face twisted in agony, and as he struggled, it seemed he wanted to say something. His mouth moved in vain before he fell backward onto the sandy ground. His eyes remained wide open, unblinking, and in just a moment, he was breathless.
Fujiwara Seiho glanced at the old man’s body lying on the ground with disgust, turned away without a hint of pity or compassion, and walked toward the beach.
The bodyguards, emotionless as if they were machines, lifted the old man’s limbs and walked straight to the edge of the sea. Without hesitation, they tossed the body into the ocean.
The waves churned, and in a blink, the old man’s body was swallowed by the sea and disappeared from sight.
As the body was carried away, Huo Sining almost subconsciously held her breath, standing motionless by the stream, her eyes vigilantly fixed on these people.
These people killed without batting an eye, obviously not to be trifled with.
Especially this Fujiwara Seiho. At Qingping Mountain, he seemed amiable with a smile on his face, but Huo Sining always felt an oppressive and sinister aura in his eyes, which didn’t sit right with her, although at the time she couldn’t pinpoint why. Now, seeing him so calm while ordering a killing, Huo Sining understood.
Little wonder she felt uncomfortable in the presence of Fujiwara Seiho, for he had blood on his hands.
Seeing Fujiwara Seiho’s nonchalant demeanor, Huo Sining was sure that this was not his first time doing this, and she could only guess how many lives had been claimed by him.
At the same time, Huo Sining silently rejoiced that she had the Invisibility Skill. Otherwise, if these people saw her alone on this beach, they would definitely suspect that she had stolen the Golden Lotus and, without doubt, would eliminate her to hide their crime.
Thinking of this possibility, Huo Sining’s complexion turned deathly pale, her heart tightened, and she couldn’t help but shudder with fear.
After dealing with the old man’s body, the group prepared to leave, with Fujiwara Seiho in the lead. Somehow, after walking a distance, his gaze fell on a footprint on the beach. His expression tightened abruptly, and when he turned back, his sharp eyes were fixed on the assistant behind him.
"Mieko, lift your foot and show it to me!"
Fujiwara Seiho’s sudden reprimand startled the female assistant. Once she realized what Fujiwara Seiho meant, she quickly lifted her foot.
Etsuko Misaki was wearing hiking boots this time. Seeing the soles of her boots, Fujiwara Seiho’s gaze darkened as he gestured to Mieko, "Step on the ground!"
Mieko, looking puzzled, complied with Fujiwara Seiho’s command nonetheless.
A clear footprint on the ground, the sandy beach was soft, yet this footprint was deeply imprinted upon it.
Fujiwara Seiho looked at the footprint then turned his gaze to another nearby, his face ashen, "This footprint isn’t made by one of ours!"
Startled, Mieko exclaimed, "My lord?"
Taking a deep breath, Fujiwara Seiho raised his head, his eyes like those of a hawk scanning the surroundings of the island, before speaking,
"Judging by this footprint, the person should be no taller than one meter sixty-five, weighing no more than fifty kilograms. With the tides coming in and out daily, this clear footprint hasn’t been affected by the tide, proving it must have been made within the last three hours. However, we didn’t see any boats when we arrived, which means this person is still on the island!"
Now, not only Mieko, but the four bodyguards also tensed up, instinctively straightening their stances, warily watching their surroundings, ready to fight at any moment.
However, Fujiwara Seiho seemed unfazed, his attention fixed solely on searching the beach’s footprints, and before long, he found another set near the stream.
This made Fujiwara Seiho even more certain, "When we landed on the island, this person must have been nearby, and got startled by us, thus hiding. Search everywhere, we must find this person! They have something we want; eliminate them as soon as you find them and try to avoid making too much noise!"
The bodyguards, hearing the orders, quickly got into action and started searching the vicinity.
But Huo Sining was terrified, hidden behind a rock, and had been planning to follow these people to catch a ride back to the dock. She never expected that Fujiwara Seiho would be so perceptive to be alerted by a single footprint.
In fact, since Huo Sining had arrived on the island early that morning, the footprints she left during high tide had already been washed away by the seawater.
It was just that after emerging from the cave and replenishing her energy with a meal on the sands near the stream, she had indeed left several footprints on the nearby beach.
The Dongyang people arrived so unexpectedly and caught her off guard. Huo Sining was only focused on using her Invisibility to hide herself but forgot to erase her footprints on the beach, consequently leaving behind this slight oversight which exposed her.
She could not let these people find her! Otherwise, not only the Golden Lotus, but even the secret of her Invisibility might be discovered by this Dongyang man!
Anxious in her heart, even with her Invisibility Skill, Huo Sining did not dare take the risk.
With Fujiwara Seiho’s intelligence, he might deduce from her footprints that she was hiding near these rocks!
Moreover, these men were armed, and on the open sandy beach, she would undoubtedly have nowhere to hide. Even with invisibility, if they were to shoot randomly into the void, she couldn’t be sure she wouldn’t get hit.
Her gaze swept over the jungle behind her, then she looked at the cliff not far from her. Below the cliff roared the turbulent tide, and a glint flashed in Huo Sining’s eyes.
She planned to remain still to control the situation, using misdirection to achieve her escape.
Seeing the bodyguards searching the rocks near the beach and about to come in her direction, Huo Sining crouched down, picked up a not-so-large stone from the ground, then retreated a few steps, slowly backing towards the cliff.