Because of her severe injuries, Xiao Ningning lifted her hand with immense difficulty!
Yet, she still persisted, using her tiny hand to wipe away the tear stains on Xia Qingyue’s face, and said weakly, "Mommy, don't cry! Mommy, please don't cry!"
"Mommy's not crying, Mommy's not crying!"
Xia Qingyue quickly wiped away her own tears with the back of her hand, pretending to be strong.
Then, Xiao Ningning suddenly said, "Mommy... Ningning dreamed of Daddy."
"Ningning dreamed that Daddy beat up the bad guys... He looked like a heavenly deity, jumping down from an airplane and beating up the bad guys!"
"Ningning also dreamed that Daddy hugged Ningning..."
"But, Ningning can't open her eyes, no matter how hard I try, I just can't open them... Ningning can only hear Daddy's voice, but I can't see what Daddy looks like!"
"Mommy... Is Ningning dreaming? I, I... I want so much to see Daddy, I want so much to see what Daddy looks like!"
"Even if it's just for a glance..."
As she spoke, tears began to stream continuously from Xiao Ningning's eyes.
Nearby, Hua Yuntian clenched his fists so tightly that the veins on his forehead bulged out one by one from sheer anger!
Even though he was the Valley Master of the Medicine God Valley and a generation's Medical Saint... having clearly witnessed countless scenes of life and death, hearing Xiao Ningning's words still brought tears to his eyes.
*These beasts of the Gu Family, my master will surely reduce them to ashes and chop them into a thousand pieces!* Hua Yuntian thought angrily, gritting his teeth in his heart.
"Ningning, don't cry, you..."
Xia Qingyue hesitated. She desperately wanted to say, *"You will definitely see Daddy!"* But would Ye Chen still return?
That was the Jinling Gu Family, along with the Lin Family!
The two top-tier families of Jinling City possessed formidable power and had connections in both the underworld and the upper echelons.
Just relying on Ye Chen, how could he possibly fight against the Gu Family and the Lin Family?
In Xia Qingyue's heart, Ye Chen was facing nine chances of death and barely one of survival this time, or perhaps... not even a single chance of survival at all!!
"Mommy, why aren't you saying anything... Is Ningning dreaming?"
"Ningning doesn't have a daddy at all, does she?"
"Sob, sob, sob!!"
By the last sentence, Xiao Ningning was already sobbing uncontrollably.
Looking at her daughter's aggrieved and helpless expression, those sparkling eyes filled with nothing but disappointment and despair, Xia Qingyue's heart instantly twisted into knots. She pulled her daughter tightly into her arms, repeating over and over again, "Ningning, don't cry. You have a daddy, you do have a daddy... Your daddy's name is Ye Chen, and he's fighting the bad guys right now."
After a long while, Xiao Ningning finally stopped crying and asked with soaks and sniffling, "Then, when is Daddy coming back?"
"Daddy will be back soon, Ningning, don't cry!"
Xia Qingyue gently stroked Xiao Ningning's face and said word by word, "Mommy promises you, Daddy, he will definitely come back!"
"Really?" Xiao Ningning asked tearfully.
"Really... definitely!" Xia Qingyue answered with a trembling heart.
Nearby, Hua Yuntian couldn't help chiming in, "Mistress, little junior sister, don't you worry. Master will definitely return safely."
Xia Qingyue looked at Hua Yuntian, then recalled the situation at the time, and couldn't help saying in despair, "I know you people are very powerful, but there are only dozens of you. You are simply no match for the Gu Family and the Lin Family!"
Hua Yuntian wanted to explain, but suddenly remembering the sect rules, he had to shut his mouth.
On the very first day of apprenticeship, Ye Chen had told every disciple that no one was allowed to reveal his name to outsiders.
Even the Grand Marshal of the Daxia Country War Department respectfully addressed Ye Chen as "That person in Kunlun..."!
Therefore, without Ye Chen's permission, Hua Yuntian did not dare to disclose anything concerning the peak of Kunlun Mountain, even though the woman before him was his master's beloved.
"Mistress, you just need to believe that Master will definitely return, that is enough!" In the end, Hua Yuntian could only say this.
But these words fell on deaf ears as far as Xia Qingyue was concerned, sounding utterly groundless. Because Hua Yuntian couldn't give any solid reason, only telling her to just believe that Ye Chen could return safely... It was simply a fairy tale!
Rumble!!
Right at that moment, in the sky outside the hotel, countless fighter jets tore through the clouds and charged toward the same direction!
Down below, an endless sea of countless tanks, armored vehicles, and fully armed soldiers marched forward in unison, producing an earth-shaking momentum!!
"This is already the third batch of troops. I wonder what kind of... earth-shattering event has happened in Jinling City?" Xia Qingyue muttered to herself.
Suddenly, she thought of what Hua Yuntian had just said... Though she felt it was impossible, she still couldn't help asking, "Could these people have shown up because of Ye Chen...?"
Hua Yuntian glanced outside and hesitated, saying, "This... doesn't seem like it!"
"Not them?"
Xia Qingyue smiled bitterly. As expected, she was just overthinking it!
This batch of troops was indeed not Ye Chen's disciples.
They were sent by the Daxia Country War Department to support Ye Chen, and the person in charge was Northern Frontier General Lei Chong!!
Although Lei Chong was not a God of War, this time he brought the Old Marshal's military tally!
With the support of the War Department, no one in the entire Jinling City would dare to make an enemy of Ye Chen anymore!!
Meanwhile, outside the mountainside villa, Ye Chen was staring coldly at Gu Tianhao and Lin Yuanhong.
Gu Tianhao and Lin Yuanhong's legs had already turned to jelly. These figures who usually looked down upon everyone from on high were now trembling as wildly as plucked lute strings!!
Looking at this mountain-shivering expanse of military forces and the sternly arrayed, pitch-black sea of people, the two of them were already scared as pale as sheets of paper!!
They couldn't even speak coherently, staring in terror at Ye Chen as they tremblingly asked, "Who... who, who, who on earth are you?"
Ye Chen calmly repeated the question... By the time he read it a second time, his eyes were already brimming with killing intent!!
"Who am I!!"
"I am Xia Qingyue's husband, the biological father of Ye Yuning!!"
"The Gu Family and the Lin Family, what immense audacity you have, actually draining my daughter's blood and gouging out her heart!!"
"And... violating my wife?!"
With every word Ye Chen spoke, a layer of despair was added to the hearts of Gu Tianhao and Lin Yuanhong!
With such a deep and irreconcilable blood feud, today's matter could likely only be resolved with blood and lives...
Gu Nanfei, who was hanging upside down, also felt incomparable despair in his heart at this moment. No matter how powerful his Gu Family was, they had no ability to fight against hundreds of thousands of heavily armed soldiers with nuclear capabilities!!
Gu Nanfei's complexion grew paler and paler, half due to his severe injuries and excessive blood loss, and half due to terror!
"Dad, save me, think of a way to save me, I, I don't want to die, I don't want to die!" Gu Nanfei shouted in despair.
Yet, how could Gu Tianhao dare to respond?!
Not only was Gu Tianhao scared out of his wits, but even Lin Yuanhong was filled with despair. Never had they imagined that Xia Qingyue's backer would be this terrifying!!
However, things having reached this point, Gu Tianhao couldn't bear to watch his own son get killed like this.
After all, he only had this one son, Gu Nanfei!
Gu Tianhao was getting old, and his grandson Gu Tian'er was already dead. If Gu Nanfei were killed too... wouldn't his Gu Family lineage be completely cut off?!
At this thought, Gu Tianhao dropped straight to his knees with a heavy thump. He was terrified—truly terrified—and dared not gamble any longer!
No matter how powerful the Gu Family was, they couldn't possibly summon hundreds of thousands of soldiers armed to the teeth with nuclear weapons, could they?
Besides, those fighter jets in the sky, along with the armored vehicles and tanks behind them, could blast him into ashes in a matter of seconds!!
Gu Tianhao kowtowed frantically, begging in utter despair, "We, we, we truly didn't know you were Ms. Xia's husband, nor did we know that little girl was your daughter!! Otherwise, even if you gave me a hundred guts, I wouldn't dare touch your wife and daughter!!"
"Please give us a chance, no matter how much money you want, it's yours... I, I, I will split half of the Gu Family's assets with you, okay!!"
"No, not half, all of the assets!!"
"As long as you spare our father and son, I can offer up all the foundations and properties of the Gu Family with both hands!!"
At this moment, facing hundreds of thousands of pitch-black gun barrels, along with airplanes, tanks, and artillery... Gu Tianhao was entirely in despair. He only wanted to use the Gu Family's foundation to trade for the lives of himself and Gu Nanfei.
"Money?"
Before Ye Chen could speak, Ma Huayun, the chairman of Tengli Group, already burst into laughter and said, "Heh, with just that tiny bit of property from your Gu Family, you dare try to bribe my Teacher!?"
"You... it's you... Pre-, President Ma!!"
Gu Tianhao looked up and saw that face of Ma Huayun's, which couldn't be more familiar to him.
This Ma Huayun was the richest man in Daxia Country, having appeared on the Forbes billionaire list for several consecutive years and repeatedly claimed the title of the world's richest man!
Eight or nine out of ten young people in Daxia Country referred to him as Papa Ma!!
That showed just how mesmerizing his wealth was!
Upon seeing this face, Gu Tianhao instantly fell into absolute despair. The Gu Family was very wealthy, but compared to Ma Huayun, the Gu Family's wealth was merely a drop in the ocean!
And Ma Huayun actually called this young man "Teacher"!?
Good heavens, what on earth was this young man's identity?!
Not only Gu Tianhao, but even Lin Yuanhong was scared out of his wits at this moment. Earlier, neither of them had noticed Ma Huayun, but seeing him step forward now, they couldn't help observing Ye Chen's other disciples.
It was fine not looking, but with this observation, Gu Tianhao and Lin Yuanhong's souls were about to fly right out of their bodies.
Although they didn't recognize the god of slaughter from Yama Palace, nor the medical kings and poison kings of the Medicine God Valley...
A portion of the disciples standing behind Ye Chen had actually made appearances on certain international channels!
Some of the disciples' names were even household words to everyone!
*Th... This one isn't this a financial tycoon of a certain country? He's even been on the cover of international news, why is he here too?!*
"And this person... isn't this person known as the number one bodyguard of Daxia Country? He was once ordered to protect countless visiting presidents, heads of state, and so on!!"
"And the founder of the Microsoft system! His net worth is already incalculable, and he has also topped the Forbes billionaire list. His wealth was already comparable to a nation's over a dozen years ago!!"
"And this one, Daxia's gold medal lawyer, known as the Litigation King who has never lost a single lawsuit!!!"
"And... and this one, a renowned Grandmaster of Daxia, who once founded a sect with countless disciples... Whether domestic or foreign disciples, the number of them is terrifyingly huge!!"
Seeing these familiar faces one after another, Gu Tianhao and Lin Yuanhong were scared out of their wits, wishing they were dead right then and there!!!
What on earth was going on here??
Wasn't it just about digging out the heart of a little girl??
How did the other party pull off such a massive scale of troops all of a sudden!!
Gu Tianhao was already in total despair; he didn't even have the heart to kneel and beg anymore!!
He could only kneel before Ye Chen, kowtowing incessantly, hoping just to trade for the tiniest sliver of a chance to survive...
"Knowing regret now is already too late."
Ye Chen stared at Gu Tianhao and said coldly, "Your son and grandson's lives are lives, but my daughter's life is not?!"
"They're lives, all lives. It was my heartless and cold-blooded self, please spare us this once." Gu Tianhao continued to kowtow, his pleas echoing endlessly.
"Ha!"
Ye Chen let out a cold laugh, a laugh carrying a chill straight from hell. "Sparing you is fine too. You go and dig out Gu Nanfei's heart with your own hands, and I will spare your Gu Family once!"
"I..."
Instantly, the expression on Gu Tianhao's face froze.
After a few seconds of silence, a sinister glint suddenly flashed across his eyes, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "Fine, I, I'll kill him then!! Please... please give me a knife!!"
Clatter!
The moment Gu Tianhao finished speaking, Nie Wuji had already tossed a dagger over.
*Fine, I'll kill, I'll kill, I'll kill!*
With blood-red eyes and seemingly having made up his mind, Gu Tianhao walked step by step toward Gu Nanfei.
"Don't, no Dad, don't kill me... Quickly save me, save me, I don't want to die, I don't want to die!"
Gu Nanfei panicked instantly, struggling frantically. But he was hung up in the air; no matter how he struggled, it was useless.
Yet Gu Tianhao, as if possessed by a madness, continued walking toward Gu Nanfei step by step.
"Don't kill me, Dad, I don't want to die..."
Gu Nanfei was still howling, terror written all over his face, but the expression on Gu Tianhao's face grew increasingly sinister and vicious!!!
Just as he was about three meters away from Gu Nanfei, he suddenly raised the dagger in his hand and said through gritted teeth, "When you reach hell, do not blame me!!!"
With those words, Gu Tianhao's body suddenly surged forward with a fierce lunge, charging straight at Ye Chen.
And the sharp tip of the dagger was aimed precisely at Ye Chen's heart.
"Courting death!"
Before Gu Tianhao could charge over, Nie Wuji's figure flashed, and he grabbed Gu Tianhao by the neck in one fluid motion.
"Ugh... cough, cough, cough!! Sa... save me!!"
Nie Wuji's grip was immensely powerful, instantly cutting off Gu Tianhao's oxygen and leaving him coughing and gasping desperately. In less than half a minute, his old face turned the color of a pig's liver.
"Heh."
Ye Chen let out another cold laugh. The moment Gu Tianhao asked for a knife, he had already anticipated that Gu Tianhao would pull a stunt like this.
Without hesitation, he walked over slowly and picked up the dagger from the ground.
Then, right in front of Gu Tianhao, he mercilessly sliced and carved the dagger in his hand directly into Gu Nanfei's heart!
"Ah!!!"
Gu Nanfei let out a miserable scream as blood poured out, and he died instantly.
"You, you... You bastard, you dare kill my son! Even if I go to hell, as a ghost... as a ghost I won't let you go."
Seeing his only son die a tragic death, Gu Tianhao collapsed completely!
Ye Chen cast a cold glance at Gu Tianhao and ordered, "Since you want to be a ghost, I'll grant your wish."
Hearing this, Nie Wuji exerted a slight force with his right hand and gave a twist!
With a snap! Gu Tianhao's neck was snapped directly by Nie Wuji.
Then, his body went limp and collapsed onto the ground—he hadn't even managed to let out a scream before he died!
Watching Gu Tianhao's body fall, the servants and retainers of the Gu Family were so terrified that their hearts trembled; they knelt on the ground, not daring to utter even half a word, breathing with extreme caution!!
"Now, it's your turn."
Ye Chen didn't pay any attention to those lackeys of the Gu Family at all. Instead, his gaze swept over Lin Yuanhong, and he asked in a voice as cold as a netherworld Asura: "I heard your daughter, Lin Wanwan, is Gu Nanfei's wife!"
"...Was digging out my daughter's heart her idea?"
"No, no!!"
Lin Yuanhong immediately kowtowed unceasingly, shouting loudly while banging his head, "Those were just dirty ideas hatched by those beasts of the Gu Family! My daughter is not that cold-blooded... You also know that when that beast Gu Nanfei harmed your daughter, my daughter Wanwan wasn't even at the Gu Family!!"
"We of the Lin Family entirely disagreed with such beastly methods like digging out a heart! That's why Gu Nanfei took advantage of the opportunity when my daughter was visiting her maiden home to harm your daughter..."
Lin Yuanhong hurriedly severed any ties the Lin Family had to the matter, continuing to kowtow frantically. "Every single word I said is the absolute truth. I beg you... I beg you to show mercy, our Lin Family is truly innocent!!"
"Is that so?"
Ye Chen sneered coldly and clapped his hands lightly.
Instantly, a heavily makeup-adorned and garishly dressed woman was brought over by two men in black.
These two men in black were both top experts of the Slaughter God Palace. When hurrying over to rendezvous with Nie Wuji, they had received a secret mission—to kidnap Lin Wanwan, the young lady of the Lin Family!
At this moment, Lin Wanwan bore no physical injuries on her surface.
However, Lin Wanwan was trembling nonstop... because half an hour prior, a top-tier hypnosis master had made Lin Wanwan spit out every single detail.
Regarding the conspiracy to persecute Xiao Ningning and swap her heart, it was actually a plot jointly devised by Lin Wanwan and Gu Nanfei!
But Lin Yuanhong knew nothing of this. Seeing Lin Wanwan appear, his body stiffened, and he quickly shouted out a warning, "The heart-digging matter really has nothing to do with my daughter! It was all, it was all the Gu Family's idea!"
"Dad... I, I've already confessed!" Lin Wanwan said weakly.
"What?"
Hearing this, Lin Yuanhong's face instantly turned as pale as dead paper. He had already witnessed the fate of Gu Tianhao and his son.
For Lin Wanwan to choose to confess at a time like this, wasn't she driving the Lin Family onto a path of no return?!
Just as Lin Yuanhong was completely panicked and didn't know what to do, a Dragon Cavalry soldier dressed in camouflage stepped over in neat, rhythmic strides and ran up to Chen Junlin.
"General Chen, people from the Jinling Ministry of Defense, War Department, and police station have arrived! And they have all brought many of their subordinates with them."
"Oh?"
Chen Junlin's gaze darkened. Were these fellows from Jinling trying to stir up trouble?
However, Chen Junlin was a Five-Star God of War of Daxia Country, and he wasn't afraid even if they caused trouble. He immediately let out a cold snort, "My Teacher is handling matters and does not wish to be disturbed. Block them outside!!"
"Yes!"
Receiving the order, the Dragon Cavalry soldier gave Chen Junlin a standard military salute, then immediately turned around to execute the command.
Upon hearing this news, Lin Yuanhong was overjoyed and shouted, "Hahaha! Do you know? General Zhang of the Jinling Ministry of Defense is my brother-in-law... and I have connections in the War Department too! Furthermore, the Chief Inspector of the police station is my sworn brother, Lin Yuanhong!!"
At this point, a swaggering arrogance had already appeared on Lin Yuanhong's face.
"I don't care how awesome you guys think you are!! What Tengli Group Chairman?! What Microsoft founder... What gold medal lawyer!"
"In Jinling, you are nothing at all!! I am not like Gu Tianhao; if you dare touch me, I guarantee you won't walk out of Jinling alive!"
Lin Yuanhong said with an unbridled, arrogant expression.
"Is that so?"