63: Chapter 63

63

After sending the message, he looked up and saw Zhao Yawen's face turning slightly pale.

"Madam Su, what's wrong?"

Zhao Yawen regained her senses and hurriedly lowered her voice: "Mr. X, please leave quickly.

Ximen Dapao is on his way."

She had been so focused on tending to Su Baili that she had almost forgotten about Ximen Qing, whom X had stuffed into the trunk.

"He's coming for Ximen Qing, isn't he?"

Jiang Haojie chuckled, his expression remaining unruffled. "No matter, I happen to want to meet him."

Jiang Haojie knew he couldn't leave right now.

If he left, Zhao Yawen and the still-unconscious Su Baili would likely be in danger.

Zhao Yawen opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, Jiang Haojie had already turned to walk toward the door.

"Madam Su, look after Mr. Su for a moment. I'm going out to make a call."

As soon as he finished speaking, he pushed the door open and left. Walking to the end of the corridor, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed a number.

Almost the moment Jiang Haojie's figure disappeared outside, the ward door suddenly let out a loud bang—it wasn't pushed open, but kicked open with brute force.

Zhao Yawen's shoulders jolted in surprise as several dark figures burst in one after another.

She looked up, and when her gaze landed on the face of the middle-aged man leading them, her heart suddenly sank.

"Mr. Ximen,"

She suppressed her panic, her voice laced with coldness. "Isn't it a bit unreasonable to barge in like this?"

The moment Ximen Dapao saw Zhao Yawen, an imperceptible glint flickered in his eyes.

No wonder his worthless son had lost his head; a woman of such beauty and grace was indeed likely to stir up delusions in men.

He sneered inwardly. How could a piece of trash like that be worthy of touching someone like her?

"Where is my son?"

Ximen Dapao's originally gloomy expression softened slightly as he changed his mind on the spot.

He didn't care if the boy had succeeded; in fact, certain thoughts began to quietly surface.

"Mr. Ximen, you must be joking. How would I know your son's whereabouts?"

Though Zhao Yawen knew the Ximen Family was powerful, things had reached this point, and she instead found a bit of desperate courage.

She had made up her mind that the Su Family would bear everything; she absolutely could not drag 'Mr. X' into this.

.

"Madam Su,"

Ximen Dapao's tone turned frigid. "I am asking nicely, so do not be ungrateful. You should have heard of the Ximen Family's way of doing things."

"This is Longcheng, not the provincial capital."

Zhao Yawen met his gaze. "If you don't leave now, I'll call the police immediately."

"Call the police?"

Ximen Dapao looked as if he had heard a joke, his lips curling into a mocking arc. "The Su Family has certainly grown some backbone lately."

He didn't bother saying more and waved his hand behind him.

"Take her away."

"Don't you dare!"

Zhao Yawen's face turned pale, and she stepped back to the hospital bed, spreading her arms to block them. "Can the Ximen Family really cover the sky with one hand?"

"In Jiang Province,"

Ximen Dapao gave a contemptuous smile, "the Ximen Family is the sky."

"Such big words."

A casual voice drifted in from the doorway.

Everyone turned abruptly.

Jiang Haojie was leaning against the doorframe, wearing a half-smile.

In his other hand, hanging by his side, he was dragging a limp human figure—the person's head hung low, their state unknown.

"X!"

Someone whispered.

Ximen Dapao's pupils constricted. Once he clearly saw the person's clothing and build, his entire face instantly flushed red like blood.

"Put my son down!"

He roared hoarsely.

Jiang Haojie acted as if he hadn't heard, simply hoisting the person up slightly and glancing at him as if examining a specimen.

"So this is your son,"

His tone was flat, yet every word was piercing. "I was wondering what kind of father it would take to raise such a beast."

"You're looking for death!"

The lean, capable-looking man standing beside Ximen Dapao suddenly took a step forward, and the others tensed their bodies simultaneously.

Jiang Haojie merely smiled slightly.

"Don't scare me,"

With a flick of his wrist, a long sword of deep crimson appeared in his palm without warning, its edge resting casually against the side of Ximen Qing's neck. "I'm a timid man. If my hand shakes, it won't look pretty."

Ximen Dapao's face was ashen, his chest heaving violently, but he suppressed his rage and squeezed out a question through gritted teeth: "What exactly do you want?"

"A hospital ward is no place for talking."

Jiang Haojie glanced at the weakly breathing Ximen Qing and turned to walk out the door.

"Follow me."

Ximen Dapao gave A-Wen a look and followed closely with his men.

A-Wen walked up to Zhao Yawen, his voice flat and emotionless: "Madam Su, please."

Zhao Yawen silently lowered her eyelashes and didn't resist, quietly following at the end of the group.

The group moved silently through the corridor, took the elevator down, and finally stopped in the vast, cold underground parking lot.

"Release my son."

Ximen Dapao's voice was like tempered ice. As his gaze swept over the pale-faced Ximen Qing held by Jiang Haojie, murderous intent grew like rampant vines in his heart.

This reckless X actually dared to push a member of the Ximen Family to such a state.

"Simple."

Jiang Haojie shrugged noncommittally. "Let Madam Su come over, and your son will naturally be safe."

Ximen Dapao nodded slightly to A-Wen.

A-Wen understood and was about to push Zhao Yawen forward when Jiang Haojie raised a hand to stop him.

"Wait."

Jiang Haojie's gaze landed on A-Wen with obvious wariness. "I can't sleep soundly if a Fifth-Order Awakened gets too close. Send someone else."

A-Wen stopped and turned back to look at Ximen Dapao for instruction.

After receiving a silent nod, he stepped back without a word.

Zhao Yawen seized this brief gap and quickly moved to Jiang Haojie's side.

"The person has been given to you."

Ximen Dapao's patience was on the verge of running out. "Release him."

A faint arc curled at the corner of Jiang Haojie's mouth: "What's the rush? I will release him, of course—but not right now."

He knew very well that releasing Ximen Qing now would mean sentencing himself and Zhao Yawen to death.

The card in his hand was his only protective talisman at the moment.

"X, you are playing with fire."

Ximen Dapao's tone was bone-chillingly cold.

Jiang Haojie stopped responding and simply shielded Zhao Yawen, cautiously backing away step by step.

"Think clearly about the consequences of making an enemy of my Ximen Family."

Ximen Dapao's warning echoed in the empty space.

Just then, a playful voice abruptly cut in, breaking the tense standoff: "Oh? Has the Ximen Family's prestige blown all the way to Longcheng? Do you think we have no one left here?"

Ximen Dapao turned sharply to see a steady-looking middle-aged man leading two others, walking unhurriedly out of the shadows.

"Liu Jinglong?"

Ximen Dapao's pupils slightly constricted.

Beside him, A-Wen's body tensed almost imperceptibly.

As a fellow Fifth-Order, he felt an invisible pressure facing the President of the Longcheng Awakened Guild.

Seeing the newcomer, Jiang Haojie breathed a secret sigh of relief.

The phone call he had made earlier under the pretext of leaving the ward was indeed to Liu Jinglong.

Now that reinforcements had arrived, half of the weight on his heart finally lifted.

Liu Jinglong had a cold smile on his face, his gaze scraping over Ximen Dapao like a blade: "Don't, I can't afford you calling me 'President'. Looking at this display, it seems Mr. Ximen doesn't hold the territory of Longcheng in any regard."

Ximen Dapao's face was covered in a layer of frost: "President Liu, there's no need to beat around the bush with me. X injured my son; this matter will absolutely not be settled easily."

With the Ximen Family's deep-rooted influence in the provincial capital, while he didn't dare claim he could cover the sky, his words carried considerable weight both inside and outside the Bounty Guild.

Therefore, he didn't take Liu Jinglong's attitude too much to heart.

"Refuse to let it go? Fine, then I'd like to see how you intend to not let it go."

With a faint smile on his lips, Jiang Haojie casually tossed the limp Ximen Qing onto the ground like a piece of useless trash.

Ximen Qing let out a muffled groan of pain.

Jiang Haojie didn't look down at him, but simply raised his foot and stepped on him with moderate force.

The long sword named 'crimson flame sword',

was now glowing faintly, its tip hovering over the side of Ximen Qing's neck.

"X, don't push people too far!"

Ximen Dapao practically squeezed these words through his teeth.

Liu Jinglong's heart jumped, and he hurriedly stepped forward, whispering to Jiang Haojie: "X, leave a way out in all things!"

He didn't fear Ximen Dapao himself, but the Ximen Family entrenched in the provincial capital behind him was indeed unfathomably powerful.

If they completely burned their bridges here and drew pressure from the provincial capital, the subsequent trouble would not be small.

"Don't worry,"

Jiang Haojie's smile didn't fade, "I won't take his life."

These words made both Liu Jinglong and the high-strung Ximen Dapao breathe a secret sigh of relief.

As long as the person was alive, there was always room for maneuver.

However, Jiang Haojie's next words caused their expressions to change abruptly.

"However, this young master's conduct is lacking, and his mind is always set on improper places. To prevent him from continuing to harm others in the future, I'll remove the 'root' of his troublemaking for him. I don't think that's asking too much."

Before his voice had even faded, the crimson flame sword flashed suddenly.

"AH—!"

An agonizingly shrill scream instantly pierced the silence of the underground parking lot, as if a sharp blade had sliced through the frozen air.

Below Ximen Qing's abdomen, the area was quickly soaked in a jarring bright red.

Liu Jinglong's expression shifted, eventually turning into a helpless, bitter smile.

He had never expected X to strike so decisively, directly severing Ximen Qing's lifeblood.

Standing a bit further away, Zhao Yawen witnessed this scene, and the pent-up frustration in her chest was finally vented.

Thinking about how she had nearly fallen victim to this man, seeing him now unable to harm anyone else in that way was naturally satisfying.

But at the thought of the storm X would have to face because of this act, that bit of pleasure was replaced by deep worry.

She understood that X was standing up for her, but it also meant he had pushed himself into direct opposition with the Ximen Family.

"X—!"

Ximen Dapao let out a beast-like roar and, no longer caring about anything else, lunged toward Ximen Qing on the ground.

This was the only male heir of this generation in the Ximen Family; if the line were truly severed here, the family's legacy would be broken.

The follower named A-Wen and the others also hurriedly crowded forward.

Jiang Haojie merely gave a light smile and nodded slightly to Liu Jinglong and Zhao Yawen, signaling them to leave.

"Qing'er!"

Ximen Dapao picked up his unconscious son.

Ximen Qing's face was as pale as paper, his lips dark blue, already senseless.

"X! I will make sure you... die without a whole corpse!"

Holding his son, Ximen Dapao's roar echoed in the empty parking lot.

A-Wen said urgently: "Family Head, the priority is to get the Young Master to medical treatment immediately!"

"Quick, take the Young Master up to find a doctor!"

Ximen Dapao suddenly snapped back to his senses and hurriedly waved for the bodyguards to lift Ximen Qing.

By this time, Jiang Haojie and his group had already stepped out of the underground space.

Liu Jinglong's brow was tightly furrowed as he said in a heavy voice: "X, you went too far this time.

Ximen Qing is the only son of this generation in the Ximen Family; even if you had broken both his legs, there would still be some room for maneuver. But you just had to destroy his ability to carry on the family line—the Ximen Family will never let this go easily."

He rubbed his temples, sighing inwardly.

While this X indeed had amazing talent and extraordinary strength, his ability to attract trouble was equally amazing.

The turmoil in Longcheng hadn't even settled yet, and now he had provoked a power from the provincial capital.

"No matter, let them come at me."

Jiang Haojie waved his hand nonchalantly, then turned to Zhao Yawen, "Madam Su, you should contact the Guard Department immediately.

With official personnel present, the Ximen Family won't dare to move openly. In addition, arrange for some trustworthy guards in secret to prevent them from using underhanded tactics."

Zhao Yawen nodded; she had already considered these things and was preparing to make arrangements.

After talking for a while longer, Jiang Haojie left with Liu Jinglong.

After walking a short distance, Jiang Haojie stopped: "President Liu, I owe you another favor today. If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave."

"Wait."

Liu Jinglong raised a hand to stop him, his expression solemn. "The Vice President of the Longcheng Bounty Guild is about to retire. I want to nominate you to take over this position. What do you think?"

"This..."

Jiang Haojie frowned at the words.

He was good at executing missions and handling emergencies, but managing guild affairs was definitely not his forte.

"Don't worry, it's just a title."

Liu Jinglong saw his concern and explained, "You won't need to worry about the daily management. We'll only trouble you when your presence is needed on important occasions. The rest of the time, you're free to act as you wish. Not only will the guild provide corresponding cultivation resources every month, but we'll also issue a fixed salary."

"In that case... alright."