Before Ye Chen could speak, another extremely majestic voice rang out.
At the sound, the crowd looked over to see a tall, burly middle-of-the-road man in military uniform, three stars on his shoulders, walking step by step right up to Ye Chen.
Then, saluting smartly, he said, "Greetings, Mr. Ye! I am Lei Chong, General of the Northern Territory. I have come to Jinling on the orders of the Old Marshal of the Yandu War Department to cooperate fully with your operation!"
The Yandu War Department? The Old Marshal?
Hearing those seven words, Lin Yuanhong felt as though a thunderclap had exploded inside his head, leaving it completely blank!
Yandu...
That was the capital of the Great Xia Country!!
An order issued by the Yandu War Department was a military command of the highest order, one that every single official in Jinling had to obey without question!
"Th-This... how is this possible?!"
Lin Yuanhong’s face turned ashen. Before he even had time to voice his disbelief, he saw the high-ranking generals of the Jinling Ministry of War, War Department, and Public Security Bureau already dropping to their knees before Ye Chen!
They had followed Lei Chong in.
By this time, Lei Chong had already handed the secret military decree from the Old Marshal with both hands to Chen Junlin.
Chen Junlin nodded, unrolled the decree, and read aloud in a booming voice: "Today, Northern Territory General Lei Chong is specially ordered to lead thirty thousand elite troops to Jinling immediately to assist Mr. Ye!"
"Furthermore, notice is hereby served to the local Ministry of War, War Department, and Public Security Bureau... Not one of you is permitted to obstruct Mr. Ye in the slightest! On the contrary, you must give your utmost cooperation to any and all decisions made by Mr. Ye!"
"Anyone who disobeys this order will be executed without mercy!"
This was a military order issued by the Old Marshal of the Yandu War Department!
To this day, there were only four marshals in the entire Great Xia Country.
Though they did not know which Old Marshal had issued this specific decree... none of that mattered.
What mattered was that right here and now, they finally understood who Ye Chen’s ultimate backing was! — The Yandu War Department!!!
Upon kneeling, the officials immediately cried out in unison: "This subordinate obeys the military command! We will certainly assist Mr. Ye in accomplishing whatever needs to be done. Please reassure the Old Marshal that all will be well!"
With that, their gazes snapped in unison toward Ye Chen.
And behind Ye Chen, to those world-renowned disciples of his...
*Gasp! What on earth is this young man's background?*
*The Old Marshal of the Yandu War Department... Chen Junlin, the Five-Star God of War of the Great Xia Country... Northern Territory General Lei Chong... Ma Huayun of the Tengli Group...*
*Every single one of these internationally renowned titans is standing behind this young man, bowing their heads in submission!*
*Such an overwhelming display of power—even the president of a foreign nation wouldn't be qualified to command this level of respect!!*
"Just who... who on earth is this young man?!"
Kneeling on the ground, their hearts churned frantically as they desperately tried to guess Ye Chen's true identity.
Yet not a single one of them dared to ask out loud!
"The Old Marshal is too kind."
Ye Chen, on the other hand, merely gave a slight nod after listening to Chen Junlin finish reading. His attitude was as casual as if he were simply expressing gratitude to a longtime friend!
His tone was neither humble nor arrogant, as though his status was in no way inferior to that of the Old Marshal himself!
"Gasp!"
Witnessing this, the crowd sucked in another sharp breath. *Damn it, just what is this young man's identity?!*
While the crowd murmured and guessed among themselves, Ye Chen had already walked step by step up to Lin Yuanhong.
"Mr. Ye, why don't you let us take care of him!"
At that moment, Lei Chong drew his pistol with an expression of fury and aimed it straight at Lin Yuanhong's head.
Lei Chong had already seen the photographs sent to the Yandu War Department... These brute beasts had actually drained the blood and carved out the heart of a four-year-old little girl!
It was utterly unforgivable!!!
The other officials of Jinling City also stood up, one after another, their faces burning with righteous indignation as they shouted angrily, "Mr. Ye, it was our negligence that allowed your daughter to suffer such torment... We never imagined that in broad daylight, anyone could commit such a beastly act!"
"That's right, Mr. Ye, just let me finish him off!"
"We are willing to personally rid you of these filthy scumbags!"
"Please give the order, Mr. Ye!"
Having said this, the officials dropped back to their knees in unison before Ye Chen, quietly awaiting his reply.
As for Lin Yuanhong, despair had completely consumed him.
To the events unfolding before his eyes, Lin Yuanhong was utterly indifferent; he only prayed that Ye Chen would grant him a quick death!
"No need."
Faced with their requests, Ye Chen merely replied in a flat tone, "Some debts must be paid with one's own hands."
With that, Ye Chen picked up a dagger and walked step by step toward Lin Wanwan, speaking as he went: "Lin Yuanhong, what does it feel like for a father to watch with his own eyes as his daughter's chest is cut open? You surely don't know... do you?!"
"But I know!"
"It was your daughter and your son-in-law who cut open my daughter's chest!!"
"Now, it's your turn to experience this despair!!"
As he spoke, Ye Chen's hand clamped down onto Lin Wanwan's shoulder.
Lin Wanwan felt a sharp pain in her shoulder, as if it had been clamped in a pair of giant iron pliers. No matter how hard she struggled, she could not break free.
"Please let me go! I really didn't know that little girl had such powerful backing..."
"If I had known she was your daughter, even if you gave me a hundred guts, I wouldn't have dared to touch her!"
"Besides, my son is dead and my husband is dead... Please, please spare me!!"
Trembling violently all over, Lin Wanwan's face was already covered in tears as her entire body shook like a leaf in the wind. "Spare my life, spare me... As long as you don't kill me, I'll do anything you want!"
"Of course not."
Ye Chen spat out those four words coldly.
Even now, this woman still did not understand what she had done wrong.
What did she mean by *"I really didn't know that little girl has such powerful backing..."*?
What did she mean by *"If I had known she was your daughter, even if you gave me a hundred guts, I wouldn't have dared to touch her!"*?
If little Ningning had been powerless and without influence?!
If little Ningning had not been Ye Chen's daughter?!
Would that have made it acceptable for her to bully others at will and casually rip out another person's daughter's heart?
Hearing these words, Ye Chen's stomach began to churn. This woman made him feel utterly sick to his stomach!
"Spare me, spare my life! I'll do anything for you... I'll even be your dog!" Lin Wanwan cried out in a complete breakdown. "I really don't want to die!"
Nearby, watching Lin Wanwan beg for her life with such utter humiliation, Lin Yuanhong felt his heart shatter.
This was his daughter, the apple of his eye.
Without hesitation, Lin Yuanhong roared out, "Daughter, don't be afraid... You goddamn bastard, if you have the guts, kill me! What kind of a man are you, bullying a woman?!"
*Slap!*
The moment those words left his mouth, Nie Wuji delivered a backhanded slap. "Impudent! How dare you hurl abuses at my master!"
Had he not considered that Ye Chen wanted to exact his revenge personally, that single slap from Nie Wuji would have ended Lin Yuanhong's life right then and there!
Even so, the force of the blow was more than Lin Yuanhong could handle; Nie Wuji's strike instantly knocked Lin Yuanhong's jaw out of alignment!
"Mm... mmm, you... no... mmm!!"
In an instant, Lin Yuanhong could no longer curse. His mouth could only produce muffled groans and a few indistinct syllables.
"Daddy, save me... I-I don't want to die!"
Lin Wanwan was completely broken as well. She watched with her own eyes as the dagger in Ye Chen's hand slowly drew closer to her chest, right after seeing her usually imposing father get his jaw knocked askew by a single slap!
Instantly... terror and panic overwhelmed Lin Wanwan, and her body began to convulse violently.
Then, a stream of green bile spewed from her mouth... She had literally been scared to death.
"Mmm mmm, mmm, you mmm... you'll come to no good end... mmm!"
Watching Lin Wanwan collapse, Lin Yuanhong suffered a complete mental collapse. He let out a string of weeping, muffled wails and then lunged desperately toward Ye Chen.
*Splat!!*
The moment Lin Yuanhong lunged forward, Ye Chen raised his hand slightly.
The dagger in his hand struck true, plunging directly into the chest of the charging Lin Yuanhong...
"Y-You, you, you...!!" Looking down at the blade embedded in his chest, Lin Yuanhong's face froze in utter shock as his pupils dilated rapidly.
Yet Ye Chen asked with absolute indifference, "Now, can you understand how I felt back then!?"
This single stab plunged straight into Lin Yuanhong's heart on the left side of his chest, proving fatal in an instant!!
Watching Lin Yuanhong collapse to the ground, everyone present shuddered involuntarily... They were thoroughly terrified by Ye Chen's cold-blooded and ruthless methods.
Yet, not a single one of them felt pity for the four individuals from the Gu Family and the Lin Family.
They had brought this entirely upon themselves!!
"Master, what should be done with these people?"
As Lin Yuanhong fell, Nie Wuji pointed toward the thousands of people kneeling on the ground in trembling terror and said coldly, "Shall I handle them and send them all to hell?"
These people were all brought along by Gu Tianhao and Lin Yuanhong.
Hearing Nie Wuji's words, they immediately began kowtowing frantically, begging for mercy: "Don't kill us! We're not part of the Lin or Gu families!!"
"Gu Tianhao paid me to come here... I'm not part of the Gu Family at all, I've never done anything bad... Please spare my life!"
"I'm not from the Lin Family either! I just took money to show up and make up the numbers! I've never done anything bad in my life!!"
"Please spare me this once, I swear I'll turn over a new leaf!"
Instantly, a chorus of desperate pleas for mercy rang out from all directions.
Ye Chen furrowed his brow.
Then, he cast a light glance over the gathered crowd.
Ye Chen's eyes were utterly devoid of emotion, cold and indifferent like those of a predatory beast... Coupled with the fact that he had just taken lives, the killing intent in his gaze had not yet faded.
In an instant, this crowd was completely cowed by Ye Chen's stare.
It felt as though they were seeing mountains of corpses and seas of blood rising behind Ye Chen... Yet Ye Chen had done nothing more than stand quietly and sweep his gaze across them.
In their minds, however, scenes resembling the pits of purgatory unfolded.
The sheer terror paralyzed them, stripping away any lingering courage to tell lies.
"Mr. Ye, executing these lackeys will only dirty your hands... Why not leave it to me to handle?" Lei Chong suddenly spoke up.
"That's right, right... How could these low-level thugs ever warrant Mr. Ye's personal attention?!"
Seeing Lei Chong speak, the representatives of the Jinling City War Department, Ministry of War, and Public Security Bureau seized the opportunity to chime in: "Leave these thugs to us! We will cooperate fully with General Lei to deal with all of them!"
Ye Chen's daughter had her heart ripped out and blood drained right under their jurisdiction...
Naturally, they were eager to perform some service for Ye Chen now, if only to redeem themselves to some degree!!
Ye Chen raised his eyes and quietly looked over these men.
Instantly, silence fell over the scene once more... Not a single one of them dared to meet Ye Chen's gaze directly!!
"Very well."
Ye Chen let out a soft sigh and said, "Leave them to you then... But aside from these people, I do not wish to ever lay eyes upon any direct or collateral descendants of the Jinling Gu Family and Lin Family ever again!"
"Understood!!"
"We will strictly carry out Mr. Ye's orders and ensure they never appear again!"
The crowd shouted in unison.
When Ye Chen said he 'did not wish to ever lay eyes upon them,' he certainly did not mean merely banishing them from Jinling City.
If they were only driven out of the city, there was still a marginal chance Ye Chen might catch sight of them again one day... though that probability would be minuscule.
Then, how could he guarantee a hundred percent chance of never seeing them again?
Naturally... by making them vanish from this world completely!! — and sending them straight to hell!!
At these words, the powerful figures of Jinling City drew in collective sharp gasps of air, feeling a chill run straight down their spines.
Yet not daring to defy Ye Chen's will, they all answered with resolute certainty: "Rest assured, Mr. Ye, they will never appear before you again."
"Good."
Hearing this, Ye Chen finally nodded, waving his hand as he commanded, "Scatter."
"Understood!"
God of War Chen Junlin was the first to give the order: "Pass down the command! The hundred thousand Dragon Cavalry troops shall withdraw immediately!"
The next second, the hundred thousand Dragon Cavalry marched in perfect unison, their boots thudding — *clop, clop, clop* — as they withdrew from the mid-mountain area...
When these hundred thousand Dragon Cavalry had arrived, their momentum had shaken the heavens!!
And as they retreated, their formation remained just as neat and uniform, without the slightest hint of disorder!
Watching such flawlessly disciplined troops, even Northern Territory General Lei Chong could not help praising them in his heart: *As expected of the army trained by the Great Xia God of War!!*
Following the departure of the Dragon Cavalry, the fighter jets, armored vehicles, and tanks — those roaring iron beasts — also rumbled away one by one.
Immediately afterward, Nie Wuji gave the order: "The Ten Yama Kings of Yama Hall, withdraw your forces at once."
"YES!!!"
Unlike the righteous presence of the Dragon Cavalry, every single member of Nie Wuji's Yama Hall was dressed in black, radiating a monstrous aura of slaughter!
Whether it was the God of Slaughter Nie Wuji himself, or the Ten Yama Kings under his command, alongside countless elite assassins...
The killing intent they exuded truly felt as though it had billowed straight out of the halls of the netherworld, sending an eerie chill through everyone who felt it.
At Nie Wuji's command, these figures vanished *swish, swish, swish* from everyone's field of vision in the blink of an eye!
And then...
The Four Poison Kings of Medicine God Valley, along with tens of thousands of Medicine God Valley disciples...
Multinational corporate magnates leading countless heavily armed mercenaries...
Regional warlords commanding private armies equipped with heavy weaponry...
So many factions, responding to a single command from Ye Chen, retreated in an orderly fashion from the mid-mountain area!
"Hah!!"
At this moment, Lei Chong and the heavy hitters of Jinling finally let out long sighs of relief.
Immediately following that, Northern Territory General Lei Chong barked out an order: "Men, arrest all these violent thugs who commit arson and murder without a single shred of conscience, drag them to the execution grounds, and shoot them all!"
Simultaneously, the high-ranking officials of the Jinling Ministry of War, War Department, and Public Security Bureau issued their own commands:
"Men, assist General Lei in rounding up these thugs!"
"And dispatch forces to storm the Gu and Lin residences; arrest everyone you find!"
"If anyone resists arrest... execute them on the spot!"
"Move out!!!"
At the sound of these orders, the Northern Territory soldiers alongside the forces of the Jinling Ministry of War, War Department, and Public Security Bureau sprang into action.
The storm brewed once more, raging fiercely across the city!!!
...
Meanwhile, inside the Green Hotel.
Little Ningning stared at the dazzling array of exquisite dishes spread across the dining table, swallowing her saliva in secret.
"Ningning, let's eat something first, alright... Your body is weak, you can't wait any longer." Xia Qingyue continued to coax her gently.
"I won't."
Little Ningning shook her adorable, round head, her baby voice piping up: "Daddy went to beat up the bad guys; he's definitely going to be very hungry when he gets back... Ningning wants to eat together with Daddy."
"This is the first time I'm eating with Daddy, I want to save the chicken leg for him..."
"One for Daddy, one for Mommy... Ningning... Ningning doesn't have to eat!"
Little Ningning swallowed softly, struggling to put on a convincing performance of someone who simply didn't care for chicken legs.
Watching her sensible daughter, Xia Qingyue's body shuddered violently, and a sharp, burning sensation hit the bridge of her nose.
She quickly clenched her fists so hard that her fingernails dug deep into her flesh.
She needed to use physical pain to numb the tears that threatened to overwhelm her.
Ye Chen, did you hear what our daughter said?!
Ye Chen, you must, absolutely must not let anything happen to you!!
Ye Chen, hurry back... I'm begging you, hurry back!!
Top chefs had prepared dishes specifically for Xia Qingyue and little Ningning.
Then Hua Yuntian and several medicine kings had retreated outside, standing quietly on guard right by the doorway!
Had anyone aware of their true identities witnessed this scene, their jaws would likely have dropped right off their faces...
These were Saint-level and King-level physicians whom tens of millions, or even hundreds of millions of US dollars couldn't hire!! And yet here they were... standing guard at the door for Xia Qingyue and little Ningning!
Yet Hua Yuntian and the medicine kings held not a shred of resentment in their hearts.
In fact, they felt that being able to do anything at all for their teacher, mistress, and little junior sister was the supreme honor of a lifetime.
They were all disciples of Ye Chen, and in their hearts, Ye Chen was an omnipotent god!! ...And they were his most devout believers!!!
Inside the room, Xia Qingyue was still trying to persuade little Ningning to eat: "Ningning, Daddy might be very late coming back. Be a good girl and eat a little something. Then go to sleep; when you wake up, Daddy might already be back. Okay?"
"I want to wait for Daddy." Little Ningning fought back the tears in her voice, her tone trembling. "Ningning is afraid Daddy will leave... so I don't dare sleep!"
"Mommy... earlier it was because Ningning fell asleep that I didn't get to see what Daddy looked like!!"
"Mommy, Ningning's tummy doesn't hurt! I won't sleep! Don't you worry about Ningning!!"
"Ningning just wants to see what Daddy looks like... Mommy, I really, really want to see Daddy!"
As little Ningning spoke, crystal-clear tears the size of soybeans welled up and spilled over her eyelids, rolling continuously down her smooth, suet-jade-like cheeks.
*Pitter-patter! Pitter-patter! Pitter-patter!*
Those falling, scalding tears finally landed one by one onto the back of Xia Qingyue's hand.
Every single sound of those breaking tears felt as though it was shattering Xia Qingyue's heart into pieces.
*Ye Chen... I'm begging you, I'm begging you to hurry back!!*
*I don't care about you getting revenge for us... I just want you to return safe and sound!!*
*Ye Chen, can you hear me? Hurry back!!*
Xia Qingyue pleaded desperately in her heart. In front of her daughter, she didn't dare let her grief burst forth, only daring to secretly wipe away her tears when little Ningning wasn't looking.
Within moments, the eyes of both mother and daughter were red from crying.
"Alright, Mommy... Don't cry, Ningning's tummy doesn't hurt, oh! Ningning isn't going to die!"