"As long as you like it, no price is too high."
"Is there anything else you like? Just pick whatever you want, money is no object."
Ye Chen gently stroked Ruoyi's head.
*If I can casually buy a hundred-million-yuan villa and give it to you,* he thought to himself, *how could I possibly not afford a three-thousand-yuan dress?*
"Miss, your boyfriend is so good to you!"
The sales assistant standing nearby beamed with admiration.
"Alright, I'll listen to you..."
Lin Ruoyi said shyly.
She did not deny that he was her boyfriend.
"My woman, of course I should treat her well."
Ye Chen smiled calmly, not denying their relationship either.
Not only did he give her head pats, but he also pulled her directly into his arms.
Leaning against his warm, solid chest, Lin Ruoyi's mind went completely blank in an instant.
Her little heart was hammering wildly against her ribs.
This kind of overbearing affection was simply more than she could handle!
The sales assistant nearby was so envious her eyes practically popped out of her head.
If she had such a handsome man giving her head pats like that, she might just faint from sheer happiness!
Ye Chen accompanied Ruoyi as she picked out a few more pretty dresses.
They weren't cheap, all costing several thousand or even tens of thousands of yuan.
The travel money Ye Chen had pocketed when he left the mountain was basically gone.
However, he had gotten another bank card from Gao Lan at the company.
He wasn't sure exactly how much money was on it, but it was definitely more than enough.
The two of them left the clothing store.
Down below in the mall, the crowd was buzzing, everyone gathered around to gawk at two corpses.
"What's going on down there? It's so lively."
Curious, Lin Ruoyi wanted to go over and take a look.
"Just some acrobatic performance, nothing to see."
"Did you buy enough clothes, or is there anything else you need?"
Ye Chen caught Ruoyi's little hand.
He couldn't let this innocent and kind-hearted girl see corpses and risk leaving her with psychological trauma.
"Oh, they actually have acrobatics inside a mall?"
"Um... I still need to buy some undergarments."
Lin Ruoyi said in a low voice.
She had bought enough clothes for the outside, but she hadn't bought the inner layers yet.
The ones Ye Chen bought her last time were a bit small and dug into her skin.
"Then let's go buy them. Don't be shy."
Ye Chen smiled.
Holding Ruoyi's little hand, he chose a high-end, elegant specialty shop.
As soon as they stepped inside, women's intimate apparel was on display everywhere in dazzling array.
All sorts of styles and colors made Ye Chen's head spin a little.
Lin Ruoyi felt terribly embarrassed.
Coming to a shop like this with a grown man was just too mortifying!
An enthusiastic sales assistant stepped forward to wait on them.
"Miss, let me recommend this hollowed-out lace set."
"It hugs your figure, breathes well, and looks gorgeous."
"Your boyfriend will definitely love it."
The sales assistant recommended with a beaming smile.
"Mm, it really does look nice."
Ye Chen nodded calmly, expressing his approval.
"Huh?"
Lin Ruoyi started, then immediately reached out and poked Ye Chen!
She shot him a look of shy indignation.
You brat, what are you nodding for!
It's not like I'm wearing it for you to see!
Besides, she had never worn anything so bold and sexy before.
How could she possibly have the nerve to wear it!
A few minutes later.
Lin Ruoyi still ended up choosing the exact set the assistant had just recommended.
For no other reason than because Ye Chen had said it looked nice.
They shopped all the way until evening, buying plenty of things.
Back at the villa, Ye Chen set about making dinner.
Having spent three years in the mountains, he had cooked for his master Xue Ji every single day.
His culinary skills had reached a point where even the ultra-picky Xue Ji was thoroughly satisfied.
So with just a couple of simple dishes he whipped up, Ruoyi was left praising him endlessly!
After dinner, Ruoyi took the initiative to wash the dishes and clean up the place.
She truly was a diligent and homemaking little wife!
That evening, Ye Chen changed Ruoyi's dressing.
After peeling off the gauze, Lin Ruoyi first washed her face.
She could clearly see that the ugly scar on her face had already faded by more than half!
In just a single night, the results were simply too potent!
"The medicine worked even better than I expected."
"Looks like those hundred million plus yuan worth of herbs weren't bought in vain."
Ye Chen smiled.
Without paying attention, he let it slip, revealing the price of the medicine.
"Over a hundred million?!"
Lin Ruoyi was instantly startled.
The herbs for the scar-removal ointment had actually cost over one hundred million!
"Don't worry about it, just pocket change."
"As long as your face can be healed, I don't care how much it costs."
Ye Chen brushed it off entirely.
Of course he didn't care, since it wasn't his money he was spending.
"Brother Ye Chen, you are so, so good to me!"
With a trace of a sob in her voice, Lin Ruoyi threw herself into Ye Chen's arms.
Her heart was filled with boundless emotion.
It wasn't because Ye Chen had spent a fortune on her, but because he truly spared no expense to treat her well!
"Of course I have to treat you well, because without you, there wouldn't be the me of today."
Ye Chen gently patted Ruoyi's back to comfort her.
If Ruoyi hadn't stepped forward to protect him back then, he certainly wouldn't have had the chance to be rescued by his master, and he wouldn't be where he was today.
Yet because she saved him, Ruoyi had ended up with her family destroyed and ruined...
A short while later, Ye Chen applied the ointment for Ruoyi.
Right at that moment, his ears twitched slightly.
He keenly sensed unusual movement outside the villa!
Danger was closing in!
"Ruoyi, be a good girl and wait for me at home."
"I'll be stepping outside for a few minutes, I'll be right back."
Ye Chen stood up and left the villa.
He was ready to go take care of some small fry!
Chapter 21: Your Life Ends Here
Outside the villa.
Thirty dark figures closed in from all directions.
They were still fifty or sixty meters away from the villa.
"Stay sharp, don't let that kid slip away!"
"My lord gave orders to capture him alive."
"So as long as he's breathing, it doesn't matter if he's crippled or maimed!"
A man with a scar across his temple gave a low command.
The man was Zhou Wu, a field officer under the King of Jiangnan.
He possessed the strength of the late Martial King Realm.
Among the thirty men who came, there were a total of five field officers at the Martial King Realm.
The remaining twenty-five were all company commanders at the Grandmaster Realm.
The kind of manpower the King of Jiangnan could dispatch so casually was combat strength that local families couldn't even dare to imagine.
His governing deterrence over the entire Jiang Province was evident for all to see.
No wonder those two dogs, the Sun and Zhao families, didn't dare reveal the mastermind behind the scenes even if it killed them.
"Halt."
"Not another half step forward."
In the darkness, Ye Chen's figure suddenly materialized.
It gave the group of experts ahead a nasty start.
They were still far from the villa, yet this kid had somehow detected them!
"Brat, your ears are quite sharp."
"It's a pity your brain isn't as good, daring to offend people you shouldn't!"
Zhou Wu sneered contemptuously.
His eyes were filled with utter disdain.
Such a mere kid dared to openly challenge the King of Jiangnan!
Tonight, he was going to cripple this punk for good!
"Everyone concentrate on me!"
Zhou Wu immediately barked the order.
All the men in black instantly converged, surrounding Ye Chen.
"You're sent by the King of Jiangnan, right?"
"Is that old bastard already losing his composure?"
Ye Chen replied apathetically.
He swept a cold gaze over the group before him.
*It seems that King of Jiangnan really does have some muscle, being able to send so many 'experts',* he thought to himself.
"..."
The opposite side fell completely silent, no one answering.
During the execution of a mission, they were not allowed to leak their identities.
"No answer, then silence means consent."
"If you want to keep your lives, scram right now. I'll only say this once!"
Ye Chen warned coldly.
"Little bastard, you certainly are arrogant!"
"However, your life ends right here!"
"Attack!"
Officer Zhou Wu commanded with a sinister grin.
A pack of men in black immediately sprang into action upon the order.
With so many experts on their side, dealing with a kid who was merely at the Martial King Realm should be a piece of cake!
"Seeking your own death!"
"Then don't blame me! It's your lives that end here!"
A cold glint flashed in Ye Chen's eyes.
Without the slightest hesitation, he struck at the company commander who had taken the first step forward.
He flashed forward and grabbed the commander by the throat.
Then, hoisting the man's body aloft, he leaped away into the distance.
"Little bastard, thinking of running away?"
"After him! Don't let him get away!"
Zhou Wu said disdainfully.
Seeing Ye Chen run outward, he naively assumed this kid was scared shitless!
The pack of men in black immediately set off in pursuit.
Ye Chen moved at extreme speed.
A trace of a cold sneer hung on the corner of his lips.
He lured these people away simply because he didn't want to fight near the villa.
Lest these people's blood pollute the land around the house.
Bad juju!
After sprinting a kilometer, he reached a small grove of trees.
Ye Chen came to a halt.
He casually tossed aside the company commander in his hand, who was already a corpse.
And quietly waited for the pursuers to catch up.
"Kid, can't run anymore, can you?"
"You picked a great spot for yourself, this will be your burial ground!"
Zhou Wu caught up with his men.
He was already panting heavily as he spoke.
He himself was nearly out of breath from running.
As for those company commanders at the Grandmaster Realm, every single one of them was gasping for air.
It had only been a single kilometer, yet they were already this exhausted!
"Motherfucking brat, let's see where else you can run!"
"Surrender obediently, or we'll tear you limb from limb!"
"If you know what's good for you, get down on your knees and beg for mercy right now!"
The other few Martial King Realm field officers threatened him with arrogant expressions.
Everyone else glared at him with hostile eyes.
They felt invincible in numbers!
"Noisy!"
"Let me quiet you down right now!"
Before Ye Chen's voice had even faded, he had already struck.
To catch the bandits, catch their leader first—he threw a punch straight at the ringleader, Zhou Wu.
The powerful murderous intent startled the birds throughout the entire grove.
"Attack!"
Zhou Wu instantly gave the order.
He drew the saber from his waist and charged confidently to engage Ye Chen.
The rest of them also brandished their weapons and joined the fray.
Ye Chen's expression didn't change in the slightest.
What did the Martial King Realm amount to in his eyes anyway?
They could be wiped out with a flick of a finger!
He threw a single punch.
Zhou Wu and the other four Martial King Realm powerhouses joined forces to parry it.
Yet, they were no match!
All five of them were sent flying backward simultaneously.
They knocked down a whole patch of men behind them.
As the five tumbled miserably to the ground, their expressions changed drastically in an instant!
The look of smug triumph vanished from their faces.
The power of that single punch was truly terrifying!
If the five of them hadn't joined forces to block it, they surely would have been blasted to smithereens by that one blow!
Yet, little did they know that Ye Chen hadn't used his full strength at all with that punch.
As for how much of his true power he had actually used, only he himself knew.
"Tch, you can't even take a normal punch?"
Ye Chen shook his head in disappointment.
Utterly mocking them.
"Damn it all, what are you acting so arrogant for, you little brat!"
"Charge with me, slaughter him!"
Zhou Wu leaped up in rage, brandishing his saber as he charged forward once more.
Ye Chen stood right where he was, lashing out with a palm strike through the empty air.
Zhou Wu, who hadn't even managed to close the distance, was directly blasted away by the gale-force palm wind.
The saber in his hand shattered into pieces, all of which embedded themselves deep into Zhou Wu's body.
"Aaargh!!"
Zhou Wu let out a miserable scream.
Blade shards pierced his torso, his limbs, and even blinded one of his eyes.
He crashed heavily to the ground, vomiting a mouthful of blood.
The rest of the men, especially those Grandmaster Realm commanders, all sucked in a sharp breath of cold air at this sight.
Wh-What kind of terrifying power was this!
To be able to strike down a Martial King with a single palm through empty space!
The other four Martial King Realm field officers also grew extremely tense.
A wave of terror welled up from the depths of their souls.
"Don't let your guard down!"
"All together now!"
One of the field officers barked orders.
"Come on then, a bunch of running dogs!"
The murderous intent radiating from Ye Chen intensified a notch.
The hunting time had begun!
Wasn't beating these people just a matter of one punch per person?
No, it was a punch per group!
Two and a half minutes later.
The only things still standing in the grove were Ye Chen and the trees.
The thirty men who had swarmed him lay dead in heaps all over the ground.
Their states of death grew more wretched one after another.
Judging by how well-nourished the soil here would be from all the blood, the plants and trees would surely grow exceptionally lush before long.
That was about the extent of the utility these people could provide.
Ye Chen patted his sleeves, not a single drop of blood staining his clothes.
He raised his foot, preparing to leave.
"Ye... save..."
Zhou Wu, who had been lying on the ground for a while, was still clinging to a final breath.
His mouth full of blood, he wanted to speak but couldn't get the words out.
"You've got a tough hide, still not dead yet."
Ye Chen snorted coldly and stepped forward.
Then, without the slightest hesitation, he brought his foot down.
Zhou Wu's chest instantly burst apart, as dead as dead could be.
Ye Chen bent down and began searching the man's body.
However, he couldn't find anything that would prove the man's identity.
Still, there was no need for proof anymore; Ye Chen was already certain that these were definitely men of the King of Jiangnan.
That King of Jiangnan was growing anxious!
Anxious to silence him by killing him!
Ye Chen didn't need to investigate any further to be certain that the mastermind behind the Sun and Zhao families was none other than the King of Jiangnan!
At this thought, murderous intent blazed fiercely across Ye Chen.
The King of Jiangnan's time was up!
Three minutes later, Ye Chen returned to the villa.
"Brother Ye Chen, what on earth were you doing out there just now?"
Lin Ruoyi asked with burning curiosity.
Chapter 22: If You Want It, I Can Give It to You
The fact that Ye Chen had suddenly stood up and gone outside just now had left her very puzzled.
What was he going out to do in the middle of the night?
"Some stray dogs outside were barking so loudly it was getting on my nerves."
"I went out to make those stray dogs shut up."
Ye Chen smiled calmly, coming up with a plausible excuse.
How could he possibly tell Ruoyi that he had just given thirty people a physical passage to the afterlife?
That would scare the poor girl half to death.
"Dog barking?"
Lin Ruoyi was somewhat baffled. Why hadn't she heard anything?
Ah, it must be because Ye Chen practiced martial arts, so his hearing was much sharper than hers!
Ye Chen immediately headed to the bathroom.
He washed his hands first before continuing to apply the ointment for Ruoyi.
After finishing the ointment, he wrapped the gauze properly as usual.
Then, he performed acupuncture to treat Ruoyi's feet.
Ruoyi could already walk normally now, and a few more treatments would let her recover even better.
Just like that other night, he executed the needle techniques of the Taixuan Nine Needles.
Once the needles were set, he channeled true qi into his hands and gave Ruoyi's feet a thorough, soothing massage.
Those tender, white little feet were roughly the size of Ye Chen's palm.
He couldn't tell whether Ruoyi's feet were just too small, or if his hands were simply too big.
Ye Chen wasn't a foot fetishist.
But those little feet really were pretty!
After massaging them for over ten minutes, Ye Chen finally stopped.
Subconsciously, he raised his hand and brought it up to his nose to sniff.
Then his brows furrowed.
This entire scene was caught by Lin Ruoyi.
"Well..."
"Brother Ye Chen, I'm starting to think you might be a little bit of a pervert."
She bared her teeth in a playful grimace.
An expression of utter disdain.
"I'm not, I didn't, stop talking nonsense."
Ye Chen immediately issued a triple denial.
Taking a sniff—wasn't that just a subconscious action every man would do?
How could that possibly make him a pervert?
The villa was huge.
With only two people living there, it inevitably felt a bit too spacious.
Yet, as long as Ye Chen was around, Lin Ruoyi felt that this house was full of warmth.
As the night grew late, it was time for bed.
After taking a shower, Ye Chen walked into the bedroom.
He couldn't quite understand why Ruoyi was such a timid scaredy-cat that she couldn't sleep alone.
Wanting him to accompany her to sleep every single night was an immense test of endurance for him.
The moment he lay down, Ruoyi instinctively snuggled into his arms.
This instantly sent his blood pressure soaring.
His body grew warm and feverish by degrees.
"Brother Ye Chen, why is your body so hot?"
Lin Ruoyi asked with concern.
She only felt as though she were holding onto a blazing stove.
"With weather this hot, and you still insisting on hugging me to sleep, of course my body's hot."
Ye Chen said with a wry smile.
This little girl was asking obvious questions on purpose.
"Brother Ye Chen, if you want to..."
"I... I can give it to you."
Lin Ruoyi said shyly, her voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
She didn't want to make Ye Chen suffer through such agonizing restraint.
"Uh..."
Hearing these words, Ye Chen felt his vital energies surge even more violently.
His eyes bloodshot and densely veined, they gradually began to turn crimson.
It wasn't that he didn't want to; it was that he worried once he let go, he would turn back into a berserk beast.
And Ruoyi was just an ordinary person, lacking the profound cultivation of his master Xue Ji, so how could she possibly withstand him!
Therefore, for Ruoyi's safety, he couldn't indulge himself right now.
"It's too hot, I'm going to take a cold shower."
Feeling that the Dragon Blood Poison was getting harder to suppress, Ye Chen hurriedly got up, rushed into the bathroom, and let the cold water blast straight over him.
He circulated his true qi to force his body to cool down.
Thankfully, he could still keep it under control.
However, Ye Chen could already sense that the Dragon Blood Poison was growing increasingly fierce.
He had to hurry and find his senior sisters to detoxify soon.
Back in the bedroom, Lin Ruoyi lay alone.
She knew that Ye Chen's body had heated up because he was feeling aroused.
Yet why was he exercising such restraint, not daring to touch her?
Could it be he had some unspeakable hidden trouble?
Half an hour later, the now-cooled-down Ye Chen didn't return to the bedroom where Ruoyi was, but instead headed to another guest room.
Worried that the Dragon Blood Poison might flare up again, he needed to keep his distance from Ruoyi when sleeping tonight.
...
The mansion of the King of Jiangnan.
The King of Jiangnan had a blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty in each arm, indulging to his heart's content in wine and women.
The two foreign women had skin that glowed white, and their body proportions were exaggerated to a terrifying degree.
Though they didn't share a common language, they still managed to keep the King of Jiangnan thoroughly pleased.
"My lord, are you satisfied with these two foreign chicks?"
His confidant said with a flattering, fawning expression.
"They're quite well-chosen. Next time, find them according to this standard."
"By the way, is there still no news from Jiangbei?"
The King of Jiangnan leaned back comfortably, asking with his eyes closed.
"My lord, no news yet."
"Rest assured, come morning they will surely drag that kid right to you."
His confidant swore with absolute certainty.
*After all, the ones dispatched were absolute elites; closing your eyes and you'd still succeed at the mission,* he thought to himself.
"Good then."
"Dismissed, this king is going to rest."
The King of Jiangnan said coldly.
Holding the two foreign women close, his hands were already wandering restlessly.
The confidant wisely took his leave without delay.