Chapter 165: The Women Behind Likang Lee

The internal power struggle within the Saints had reached a boiling point.

Stel, a rising star who relied on the trump card of the Messiah, had rapidly seized the high ground of authority while wantonly suppressing dissidents and eroding the power of others, causing deep-seated conflicts.

Among them, Central Bishop Gardner and the younger Mendes—the adopted son of the late Mendes—were the most prominent figures, both standing as resolute opponents of Stel.

However, given that Stel wielded divine authority, even an alliance between the two could not shake his position. Thus, they harbored their ambitions and bided their time until one day, the truth about the Messiah became clear!

In short: whoever controlled the Messiah commanded divine authority.

Therefore, as long as they eliminated Stel and his close cronies who controlled the Messiah, the Messiah would naturally fall into their hands. This meant holding the Holy Son in their grasp and issuing commands that none in the world could dare disobey!

They regarded this as their only chance to turn the tables.

Time waited for no one. If Stel were allowed to consolidate every leverage of power, their own ends would certainly be grim—an inevitability of power struggles.

Gardner and the younger Mendes decided to make a desperate gamble. Gathering a tiny circle of trusted confidants under the banner of "preserving the purity of the Holy Son," they began to plot in secret.

The two individuals inextricably linked to the Messiah—Stel and Luke Lee—had to be eliminated!

The younger Mendes analyzed the situation: "Stel is a cunning old fox with protection everywhere, and women are of no use against him. We must mentally prepare ourselves for a frontal assault and heavy casualties."

He then looked toward the other name: "Luke Lee is hardly worth fearing by comparison. He is merely a magician playing divine tricks. His lifestyle is dissolute and flamboyant, showing off everywhere. It will be easy to find an opportunity to launch a surprise attack and finish him off."

Gardner's gaze lingered on a photograph of Luke Lee: "We shouldn't underestimate anyone. Some instinct always tells me that he isn't as simple as he appears on the surface!"

Hearing this, the younger Mendes laughed: "Oh, come on, do you actually believe the outside nonsense? Is he a wizard? Does he possess an immortal body? If he is so formidable, why hasn't he gone and replaced the President?"

Gardner thought about it and found no reason to argue, ultimately nodding: "In any case, do not hold back. This is our most crucial strike. Make it swift and decisive, and we must not use our own people. The more people involved, the easier it is to leak secrets!"

The younger Mendes said, "Don't worry, I've had my most trusted men hire elite mercenaries from the outside. They have no ties to the Saints and will fly far away once the job is done. Whether the secret leaks out by then won't matter at all!"

Gardner said, "If necessary, afterward we can deploy the Saints' armed forces to eliminate them under the guise of avenging two fellow believers, cutting off any future trouble!"

The younger Mendes grinned broadly: "Brutal!"

...

And so, the hit squad targeting Luke Lee was secretly assembled.

They were a group of mercenaries composed of veterans and assassins, usually operating overseas, collecting US dollars while spreading the beacon of American freedom across the globe.

For this rare return to their homeland for a hit, they disguised themselves as paparazzi, blending in to monitor Luke Lee's outings, figure out his daily routines and social circles, while also wiretapping and surveilling every intimate detail of his life.

Because this was a high-paying job, their plan was correspondingly extravagant: ground-based sweeping fire, an aerial firepower assault, and they had even procured rocket launchers, determined to leave no loose ends.

Finally, on a certain day, they received word from their scouts that Luke Lee would be going out to sea on a yacht with his lover—a golden opportunity for the assassins!

The open sea was sparsely populated, allowing a helicopter ambush to strike by surprise!

Once it was over, they wouldn't need to worry about police entanglements; they could simply fly away at low altitude, take a speedboat to slip into Mexico, transit to South America, melt into the world like fish returning to the sea, and live out the rest of their lives under assumed names with ample compensation.

"It's just a pity about those top-tier babes around him!"

"Don't let beauty cloud your primitive, foolish brain! Those women are black widows—hardcore pieces of work who could blow your privates off without a second thought!"

"I know, I know! I'm just sighing. Once the job is done and the money is in hand, I'm going to get myself a harem of beautiful bodyguards like that and spend every day playing with guns while they pamper me in shifts!"

"Hehehe, look at you!"

Inside a secret safe house, these burly men gathered together, surrounded by swirling cigarette smoke, passing crude remarks back and forth as they critiqued Luke Lee's entourage of nuns.

The walls were plastered with intelligence clues, detailing every minor facet of Luke Lee's life, with a massive red cross drawn over his head. Luke Lee had to die.

Injuries or maiming meant nothing; only his death would allow their behind-the-scenes boss to control the divine authority—though they knew nothing of this, only that the payout for this job was enough to keep them wealthy for a long time, or even a lifetime if they budgeted wisely.

"We've made contact with the other team. We can move at any time!"

The scar-faced leader stepped forward: "Alright, listen up, boys. The primary plan relies on the air: a helicopter assault to strafe the target, with speedboats on the sea serving as backup, carrying heavy firepower to board and destroy!"

"But I hope we won't need the backup plan. Slinking away in defeat is not our style, and I don't want a single brother left behind. So secure the kill directly from the air and finish the job cleanly. Understand?"

"Hoorah!"

The men responded in unison and began preparing for action.

Two teams, Plans A and B, deploying across air and ground!

...

Meanwhile, Luke Lee drove to the pier.

It wasn't the weekend, so there weren't many people around. The sea breeze whipped up the hem of his girl's dress. Amidst her giggles as she hid behind Luke Lee to shield herself from the breeze, Olivia quickly caught up.

"Let me help you!"

Olivia, who hadn't intended to board the yacht, now proactively took Luke Lee's luggage. He was slightly curious but didn't ask; having spent this long together, he knew their actions always had a reason.

He just chatted casually: "Is everything okay?"

"You can rest easy!"

Olivia nodded. She rarely smiled in front of outsiders, maintaining a consistently stern demeanor.

Kendall wasn't particularly fond of this female bodyguard. From a woman's perspective, having a cool, Angelina Jolie-lookalike standing by her man every single day was bound to feel a bit unsettling!

So, as a declaration of territory, she slipped her arm through Luke Lee's and pulled him forward: "We should get on the boat, darling!"

Luke Lee turned his head, shrugged with a smile at Olivia, who remained completely indifferent to the others' attitudes and followed a step behind, her eyes fixed solely on her master.

The party venue was a large yacht, estimated to be sixty or seventy meters long—an absolute behemoth. It couldn't dock at the pier, so it was anchored a kilometer or two out in the coastal waters, requiring a smaller speedboat to reach first.

Luke Lee's party boarded a speedboat and headed toward the massive yacht.

With a gentle breeze and small waves on the sea, they quickly arrived at the stern of the large yacht.

Disembarking from the stern platform, Luke Lee began his social rounds.

Behind him, his women occupied an unobserved corner, quietly safeguarding his peace and revelry.

Once aboard, Olivia didn't mingle. She first walked the yacht to master its layout, then consulted the captain regarding today's sailing route, confirming it would remain strictly within coastal waters.

Meanwhile, back on shore, Christine drove the car to a scenic seaside park overlooking the cliffs, while Bianca bought coffee. The two sat on a bench disguised as tourists, eating and observing through binoculars.

"The tracking results from Team Two are in. The matched facial data isn't in the system, but they used California driver's licenses. It's highly likely that wet-work operatives have slipped in!"

In short, they were a bunch of money-hungry daredevils who would cause chaos for cash. Such mercenaries were relatively rare inside the United States since most were trained and exported to cause destruction abroad.

Yet raising venomous insects inevitably brought the risk of a backlash. This dark history of the American empire was nothing new, and its traditional antics need not be rehashed. The key point was that various indicators showed these people were plotting something!

Coupled with the recent white-hot power struggles among the upper echelons of the Saints, desperate times called for guarded measures. Preferring to kill by mistake rather than let anyone slip through, the team decided to act with extreme caution.

"There's a helicopter heading out to sea, flying straight toward the yacht! Highly suspicious!"

"Copy that!"

Receiving the message, Bianca ran to the trunk of the car, retrieved a long case, opened it, and skillfully assembled a TAC-50 sniper rifle, attaching a dedicated silencer.

This was a renowned, high-precision anti-materiel weapon that once set a sniper hit record of 2,430 meters in the Middle East, with later rumors claiming combat missions had pushed that record to 3,540 meters.

Its barrel was engraved with strange patterns that extended from the body to the grip. Through the 16x optical scope, objects over a thousand meters away remained crystal clear.

The helicopter flying out to sea was sharply reflected in her lens. Bianca opened the trunk door, folded down the rear seats, and lay down to maintain a stable firing posture, aiming her sights at the helicopter in the sky.

"Let's see what you're up to, darling!"

She muttered to herself.

At this moment, her heart rate and breathing were maintained at an extraordinarily steady state.

The 12.7mm large-caliber bullet, coupled with rune-enhanced lethal precision, gave her absolute confidence to hit her target from this vast distance, even with the interference of the offshore breeze.

A bullet of this caliber treated a headshot and a body shot the exact same way—leaving absolute devastation! The steel plating of a civilian aircraft stood zero chance of resisting its piercing power!

The people on the helicopter were completely unaware that they had been exposed to the muzzle of the Grim Reaper. The moment it was confirmed they harbored malicious intent, nothing awaited them but tragedy!