The guards stood there, frozen in place. Once their initial shock had passed, they began exchanging uncertain glances. Should they fight or not?
If they fought, they were genuinely afraid. But if they didn’t, their superior had just been beheaded right in front of them…
They looked at one another, yet not a single person dared step forward.
At that moment, the doors to the main hall opened, and a group of people hurried out. At the front was General Director Gu.
Chu Tian and Bai Mingxi followed close behind, both frowning slightly.
However, the moment Chu Tian stepped outside and spotted Quan Xiaoyu, covered in blood, in the distance, his soul nearly left his body. He completely forgot about showing respect to General Director Gu as the host and instantly rushed to Quan Xiaoyu’s side at top speed.
General Director Gu also drew a sharp breath when he saw the corpse on the ground. He shot the butler a furious glare.
Hadn’t he said there was only a minor conflict? How had things turned into a murder scene?!
Who had died?
Looking at the situation before him and the head lying in the distance, its features obscured by blood, General Director Gu had an extremely bad feeling.
When the butler reported that Deputy General Director Qian had gotten into a minor dispute with the guests, Gu had immediately guessed that the shameless lecher must have done something to one of the people Chu Tian had brought with him.
He and Chu Tian had been discussing the crucial details concerning crystal cores and the advancement of supernatural abilities when that idiot’s troublemaking interrupted them.
Once Gu had recognized Chu Tian’s value, he certainly wouldn’t allow any unexpected incidents to occur. Thus, they had temporarily ended their discussion and hurried over.
Who could have expected to arrive at such a gruesome scene?
The butler broke into a cold sweat under his master’s gaze. When he had noticed that something was wrong and gone to report it, Deputy General Director Qian had still been holding that child, while the mutated beasts in the distance were rushing toward him at high speed.
He had immediately realized that something terrible was about to happen. That child was a precious beast tamer!
However, given his position, it wouldn’t have been appropriate for him to intervene personally. So he had immediately gone to inform his master. Unfortunately, by the time he had made the round trip, the situation had already become this disastrous.
Chu Tian rushed forward and immediately wrapped Quan Xiaoyu in his arms. Only after confirming that Quan Xiaoyu had no wounds and that all the blood on him belonged to someone else did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
“What happened?”
Only then did Chu Tian have the presence of mind to ask. The butler had merely said that the guests and the deputy general director had gotten into a dispute. Chu Tian had assumed that, given Quan Xiaoyu’s abilities, he certainly wouldn’t let himself be bullied, so he hadn’t been too worried.
Yet when he arrived, this was what he found.
Still, it looked as though Quan Xiaoyu had indeed come out on top.
Chu Tian’s arrival eased some of the bloodlust and murderous intent in Quan Xiaoyu’s eyes. Nevertheless, his entire body remained tense, and he gritted out just three words.
“He! Xiaonan!”
Those three simple words were enough for Chu Tian to understand what had happened.
Nearby, Li Nan was holding tightly onto Xie Mingxuan, with the two little beasts standing protectively in front of him. A short distance away lay a severed arm.
A trail of blood led from the spot in front of Li Nan to where they were now, ending at the headless corpse and the large pool of splattered blood.
Chu Tian’s expression turned cold as well. He knew exactly where Quan Xiaoyu’s boundaries lay, and Li Nan was one of them.
Instead of stopping Quan Xiaoyu, Chu Tian tilted his head, narrowed his eyes, and addressed the guards surrounding them in a chilly voice.
“Want revenge? Then come at us together.”
His voice was cold and indifferent. The guards felt a chill run through their hearts and immediately understood that Deputy General Director Qian had provoked a group of absolute monsters today—and dragged them into the mess as well.
Bai Mingxi had already reached Li Nan’s side and was crouching down to ask what had happened.
When Chu Tian spoke, Bai Mingxi stood up and prepared for battle. The two little beasts and Xie Mingxuan were also eager for a fight.
But General Director Gu had no intention of allowing a confrontation with Chu Tian at a time like this. He immediately stepped forward to stop the fight that could erupt at any moment.
“Little Friend Chu! Little Friend Chu! Today’s incident is just a misunderstanding.”
As General Director Gu hurried over, even the refined, scholarly expression he usually wore had lost its composure. His face betrayed his anxiety. He quickly waved at the guards, terrified that one of them might do something foolish and actually launch an attack.
In truth, the guards all reacted in much the same way when they saw General Director Gu come out to intervene: they breathed a sigh of relief.
They were afraid too!
Never mind the young man who looked like an Asura. Even the two mutated beasts were terrifying. Their supernatural attacks had landed on the beasts as harmlessly as a tickle, and the beasts hadn’t even bothered to dodge.
They weren’t stupid. They knew that the two beasts had clearly been holding back and had no intention of hurting them. Otherwise, they would already have ended up decapitated just like Deputy General Director Qian.
When Chu Tian told them to attack together, they had been terrified. They had inexplicably felt that the moment they made a move, they would die.
Hearing General Director Gu’s shout, Chu Tian gave a faint smile and withdrew the supernatural ability he had been preparing to unleash.
“General Director Gu thinks this is merely a misunderstanding? Someone has died here, after all.”
The dead man belonged to the other side. It wasn’t one of their own people who had suffered a loss.
Chu Tian had challenged them to fight because, judging by their attitude, he had guessed that the dead man was probably someone important. The other side certainly wouldn’t let the matter rest easily. But Chu Tian and his companions weren’t afraid of them either. If they wanted to fight, then so be it.
General Director Gu’s hurried attempt to smooth things over had surprised Chu Tian somewhat.
“Well…” Gu also realized the problem. The man lying on the ground was the fourth-highest-ranking figure in the entire base!
Although, truthfully, he was secretly delighted.
Deputy General Director Qian’s political views differed from his own. On the surface, one was the director and the other his deputy, but in reality, Qian was a serious threat to Gu’s position.
The two had been locked in a struggle for power for a long time, constantly undermining each other without either managing to get the upper hand.
Today, Gu had organized an outdoor party but hadn’t actually invited Qian. Qian was simply incapable of restraining his lust and had wanted to come over to make trouble for Gu, so he had shown up anyway.
Who could have imagined that…
Qian’s death was actually a good thing. The only problem was that he absolutely should not have died on Gu’s property.
Worse still, the incident involved this mysterious group of ability users, whose origins were unknown and whose value was immense.
A headache! An endless headache!
After thinking for a moment, Gu continued, “Little Friend Chu, here’s the situation. I’m holding a party here today, and our esteemed…”
He glanced at Deputy General Director Qian’s headless corpse. The sight made him feel sick, and he instinctively took several steps back.
“He probably mistook your young friend for one of the service staff here, which is why he…”
“How about this? Why don’t you young friends rest here for a while and leave the aftermath to me? What do you say?”
In that short time, General Director Gu had already figured out several things.
He absolutely could not fall out with Chu Tian. The other side was clearly powerful, and although Gu had more people, it wasn’t worth sacrificing his own men over that idiot Qian.
If word spread that Qian had died here, the faction supporting him would certainly refuse to let the matter go. But what if Gu negotiated with them after obtaining the secret of crystal cores?
Would they really care about the death of a deputy general director when faced with the secret of crystal cores?
Besides, even within Qian’s own faction, there were people coveting his position.
Everything depended on obtaining the secret of crystal cores. That was why Chu Tian was especially important at this moment.
At the same time, this incident offered Gu the perfect opportunity to keep Chu Tian and his companions at his residence. If Chu Tian really possessed the secret of crystal cores, Gu would have the advantage of dealing with him at close quarters and could also use this incident as leverage in their negotiations.
If the so-called secret didn’t exist at all, then keeping the group in his hands would at least give him an explanation to offer Qian’s faction.
What kind of person was Chu Tian? He didn’t even need to use his mental powers. A quick turn of thought was enough for him to roughly guess General Director Gu’s intentions.
So he smiled.
“Since General Director Gu has put it that way, we’re your guests, and we’d be happy to accept your hospitality. However, my younger brothers are quite curious about the things in the city. We were planning to look around…”
This was merely the polite explanation on the surface. What he really meant was: We don’t mind staying here if that will put your mind at ease and demonstrate our sincerity. But don’t try to restrict our freedom. Otherwise, there’ll be nothing left to negotiate.
Someone at General Director Gu’s level naturally understood the implications. He was quite satisfied that Chu Tian was willing to stay. He also understood the principle of returning a foot of respect for every foot of respect received, so he smiled and replied, “Quite right. I haven’t considered things carefully enough. You’ve only just arrived in Liming, and you haven’t had the chance to enjoy yourselves. How about this? Rest for a while, and then I’ll have my butler take you on a tour of the entire city. With him accompanying you, you’ll find it convenient to go wherever you wish.”
In other words, Gu wouldn’t prevent Chu Tian and the others from moving around freely, but the butler would have to accompany them. Since the butler wasn’t an ability user, assigning an ordinary person to accompany the group was already the greatest respect and concession Gu was willing to offer.
Chu Tian readily accepted.
Thus, this farce came to a temporary end, at the cost of one man’s life.
At General Director Gu’s signal, the guards began cleaning up the bloody mess on the ground. Even now, however, they still didn’t dare raise their eyes to look at the young man who resembled a god of slaughter.
Everyone else gradually relaxed. Even Li Nan slowly regained his composure.
Only Quan Xiaoyu remained rooted to the spot, motionless.
His heart was a tangled mess of emotions. He couldn’t put them into words, nor could he find a way to release them. The feeling was unbearable.
After finishing the negotiations, Chu Tian turned around and gently took the bloodstained samurai sword from Quan Xiaoyu’s hand, passing it to Bai Mingxi. Only then did he step forward and pull Quan Xiaoyu into his arms.
He held him until Quan Xiaoyu’s rigid body gradually softened in the warmth of his embrace. Then Chu Tian cupped Quan Xiaoyu’s face in both hands and tenderly wiped away the blood splattered across it, little by little, with his fingers.
He knew that Quan Xiaoyu had a mild case of mysophobia.
Only after Quan Xiaoyu’s face gradually lost its murderous expression under his gentle touch did Chu Tian lower his head and kiss him on the lips.
“It wasn’t your fault,” Chu Tian whispered softly as his lips moved to the base of Quan Xiaoyu’s ear and he placed a kiss there.
There were people everywhere.
General Director Gu and the butler, who hadn’t left yet; the guards busily cleaning up the scene; the people who had come out of the main hall to watch the commotion; and a girl staring at the two kissing through a window.
They… actually… If only back then…
The girl stared fixedly at the two of them through the window, clenching the hem of her clothes in her fists.
General Director Gu and the butler were both utterly astonished. They had never imagined that the two men had this kind of relationship.
If Quan Xiaoyu had been an ordinary person, they might have been able to understand it. These days, which powerful ability user didn’t keep a few pets around?
But after witnessing Quan Xiaoyu’s god-of-slaughter performance just now, it was obvious that he was a powerful ability user himself…
So they couldn’t make sense of it.
In their minds, something like love simply didn’t exist. There were only the strong and the weak, and the law of the jungle.
The guards who had witnessed everything, including the three ability users brought by Deputy General Director Qian and now held under guard, were equally astonished.
In their eyes, only the playthings at the Healing Center would willingly place themselves beneath someone else. How could it be that…
Of course, no one dared say anything. After their initial astonishment, they pretended they hadn’t seen a thing and went back to whatever they had been doing.
Before leaving, General Director Gu cleared his throat, only to discover that nobody paid him any attention. With no other choice, he gave the butler a few instructions and hurried away.
He still had to clean up the mess caused by that damned idiot Qian!
Under Chu Tian’s comforting embrace, Quan Xiaoyu’s emotions gradually settled.
By then, he understood that he had probably caused trouble. His impulsive actions had likely created yet another headache for Chu Tian.
“It wasn’t your fault,” Chu Tian said with a smile, repeating exactly what he had said earlier.
Quan Xiaoyu was still the same as ever, with every emotion written plainly in his eyes. All Chu Tian had to do was look into them to see how his feelings were changing.
“Xiaoyu, things are different now.” Chu Tian rubbed the back of Quan Xiaoyu’s head with his right hand. “In the past, we weren’t strong enough, so we had to keep a low profile. But now…”
A faint smile at the corner of his mouth revealed his inner arrogance.
“We’re strong enough to face anyone head-on.”
“So don’t be afraid, and don’t feel guilty. Do whatever you want.”
Those words were certainly arrogant. Perhaps this was the truest expression of Chu Tian’s nature.
Before Quan Xiaoyu could react, Bai Mingxi had already started scolding him.
“Chu Xiaotian, let me tell you something! Stop going around saying that Xiaoyu has learned bad habits from being with us. You’re obviously the one who spoiled him!”
“Bai Mingxi, shut your mouth! Then get as far away from me as possible!”
“Hmph!”
With a cold snort, Bai Mingxi took the opportunity to scoop up Li Nan, who had been about to walk toward Quan Xiaoyu. He then addressed the butler in an imperious tone.
“We want to take a bath.”
Having witnessed everything, the butler was still deeply unsettled. On the one hand, he was relieved that he had been clever enough to read the situation and avoid offending them. On the other, he couldn’t help feeling a lingering sense of dread.
After witnessing the relationship between Chu Tian and Quan Xiaoyu, he couldn’t help feeling his inner gossip-loving spirit awaken when he looked at Bai Mingxi carrying Li Nan. His mind was filled with all kinds of confused and conflicting thoughts.
Nevertheless, he became even more diligent and respectful than before. He led Bai Mingxi toward the guest rooms without the slightest objection to his attitude.
Bai Mingxi left with Li Nan and the three little ones. Quan Xiaoyu stayed with Chu Tian for a while, their heads close together, before following in the direction the others had gone.
After all, Quan Xiaoyu was still covered in blood. Now that he had come back to his senses, even he found the sight and smell disgusting.
Several hours later, everyone had cleaned up and changed into fresh clothes. They gathered in the guest room’s main lounge, ready to go out and explore the city.
After recovering emotionally, Li Nan remained quiet for a long time. But when he saw Quan Xiaoyu, he ran over, wrapped his arms around Quan Xiaoyu’s waist, and held him for quite some time.
“Were you frightened?” Quan Xiaoyu asked sympathetically, stroking his head.
“No!” Li Nan looked up, his gaze unusually resolute. “I wasn’t frightened! Everyone protects me too much! I’m going to become stronger from now on.”
Quan Xiaoyu was startled by the sheer volume of his voice. Then he froze, unable to find anything to say for a long moment.
Chu Tian, however, smiled. He gently drew Li Nan away from Quan Xiaoyu and brought him in front of himself, crouching down until their eyes were level.
“We were the ones in the wrong. From now on, we’ll let Xiaonan make more decisions for himself and give him more opportunities to face problems on his own. So, Xiaonan, you have to work hard.”
“Mm!” Li Nan nodded vigorously. “I’ll exercise more, too, and learn how to fight!”
Chu Tian rubbed his head and nodded with a broad smile.
“All right. Bring the two little ones. Let’s go explore the city.”
Looking at Li Nan, who seemed the same as before yet somehow a little different, Quan Xiaoyu suddenly felt a mixture of pride and heartache, like a parent watching their child grow up for the first time.