The Seed's Seizure

Du Chen's sudden shift in demeanor baffled Angie, yet the glint of killing intent in his pale blue eyes was undeniably clear. She vaguely felt she had just awakened a devil!

For three years since his reincarnation, Du Chen had rarely lost his temper, save for that one thunderous fury he unleashed upon Arges. Even then, he had exercised some restraint, wary of being branded a 'parricide.' But today... every being possesses an inverse scale. Angie was both unlucky and, in a twisted way, fortunate – she had become the first unfortunate soul to prod Du Chen’s most sensitive nerve, and this time, Du Chen had absolutely no reservations!

Angie panicked. People often commit foolish acts in their terror, and Violet-Bloods were no exception. She raised the Precious Lotus Scripture in her hand, shrieking with all her might, “Alex, your wife is still with me!”

“What? My wife is with you?” Du Chen feigned “shock,” then casually patted Thirteen on Steve’s shoulder. “Then I’ll return this person to you in exchange for my wife’s safe release, how about that?”

Angie was momentarily stunned. She had never anticipated Du Chen would utter such words. She blurted out, “Fine, but you must come with me to the bunker. We’ll make the exchange there! Otherwise...”

“Otherwise what?” Du Chen’s smile twisted into a malicious grin.

Angie grew increasingly terrified, clutching the Precious Lotus Scripture tightly. But how could that sacred little artifact be swayed by her will? With a mere struggle, the Precious Lotus Scripture flew from Angie’s palm. Only then did she comprehend: how could she possibly hope to contend with a Titled Battle God’s sacred artifact!?

Du Chen sauntered over to the distraught Angie, raising a fist, encrusted with ice. “Do you grasp the magnitude of this power?”

A chilling premonition crept into her heart. Angie stumbled backward, step by agonizing step. “A… Titled Battle God!”

“Since you already know… then why the hell did you dare provoke me!?” Du Chen delivered a vicious uppercut, slamming into Angie’s chin. The Cheeky Wench flew backward, spitting blood, crashing into the unyielding corner of the tunnel wall. The Precious Lotus Scripture, too, slipped from her grasp, falling into Du Chen’s hand.

Angie felt the world spin. Wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth, she was just about to rise when Du Chen’s long boot planted itself firmly on her cheek.

“You, you brute, you villain!”

Hearing Angie’s curses, Du Chen sneered, adding more pressure with his foot. He leaned in, chuckling wickedly, “My dear Little Sister, a long, long time ago, many people described me just like you are now. It actually sounds quite nostalgic! But…” He hooked his foot, sending Angie flying. As she hung suspended in mid-air, he delivered a swift straight punch. “But they all met a rather miserable end!”

Angie crashed against the wall again, clutching her stomach, twitching uncontrollably and unable to get up.

Steve frowned deeply. “Show some tenderness, Little Brother, show some tenderness!”

Du Chen lifted Angie by her collar like a Little Chick, then ran his thumb across his nose, snorting, “Tenderness? Old One, when have you ever seen a gangster or a villain show tenderness after being thoroughly enraged?”

Gangster, ruffian, villain, thief, scoundrel… *these* were the true Du Chen! Saint John’s Virtue, Savior of Newin River, the most popular local lord for three consecutive years from 1278 to 1280, during the Fallen Gods era? This was merely a requirement for doing good deeds, you see...

Steve shrugged, then looked at Angie with a sympathetic sigh. “Alas, foolish girl, of all the people to provoke? You had to provoke my sister-in-law. My Third Sister has only ever had Xue Ji as her inverse scale throughout her entire life, and you just ripped it out… Tsk tsk, even this Eldest Brother can’t help you now!”

After two successive heavy blows, Angie couldn’t even speak. But Du Chen grabbed her by the collar once more, pulling her close, staring into her eyes, and raising an eyebrow with a chilling grin. “Little Wench, guess how I’m going to deal with you next?”

Angie pouted, her mouth full of shattered teeth, rendering her speechless. Just then, a few of Angie’s Third Generation followers, recognizing the dire turn of events, turned to flee. Du Chen cackled, calling out, “Run fast! Anyone who lags behind might just get a gentle kick on the backside from my Frost Aura!”

All of them blanched. Frost Aura? That thing was far swifter than their two legs! Who dared to continue fleeing!? They all stood still, utterly obedient.

“Hmm, now *those* are good children!”

Du Chen shook Angie, who remained in his grasp. “Speak! Tell me everything you planned to do!”

Thirteen suddenly lifted her head. “Hongluan, don’t speak… *mmph!*” Steve covered her mouth—with his own mouth. This particular state is generally referred to as… a forced kiss.

*Pop!* Steve pulled away, deliberately making a loud, exaggerated sound, then licked his lips with a look of lingering desire. “My beautiful lady, can you truly bear to watch such a captivating Angie suffer inhuman torture simply for refusing to cooperate with us?” Thirteen’s eyes were filled with venom. Steve rubbed his nose again. “Don’t blame me; if you must blame someone, blame my nose!”

Thirteen’s plan had been utterly flawless, but her misfortune was entirely due to Steve’s nose. The moment Thirteen, disguised as third grand-uncle, entered the room, Steve’s extraordinary talent of “knowing a woman by her scent” instantly revealed her true identity. That’s why he was so surprised to hear about Heidi’s incident—if he hadn’t known Thirteen was there, why would the cold-blooded Flaying have been surprised about Heidi? She was merely a woman unrelated to him!

Steve then left a mark and exited the room. Du Chen, upon seeing the nose graffiti, easily deduced what had transpired, so he also found an excuse to sneak out. Once outside, he immediately shrank the Lotus Pedestal he had lent to Xue Ji for healing, then quietly followed Steve. Just as Thirteen believed her scheme had succeeded and was preparing to act against the isolated Steve, the two brothers joined forces to capture Thirteen, then returned to corner Angie.

Xue Ji was indeed safely nestled within the Lotus Pedestal, and she had now returned to Du Chen’s side.

Angie, however, lacked Thirteen’s soldier-like fortitude. Seeing that Du Chen genuinely intended to brutally torture and kill her, she frantically shook her head, spitting out several shattered teeth. “No, I… I can’t speak properly now, please, allow me to speak slowly…”

Du Chen patted her cheek. “Good children always live long lives… Thirteen called you what? Hongluan? Do you even deserve that name!?” Du Chen’s anger intensified. Hongluan—that was a title reserved for Grand Matriarchs who had fought and died on the Battlefield for humanity before the age of twenty, faithfully guarding ancient castles for a thousand years!

Angie painstakingly explained their entire plan and all the secrets she knew in the most concise language possible. Du Chen stroked his nose, smiling mischievously as he stared at her. “So, Fourteen, still injured and only at the initial stage of Tenth-rank, is waiting in the bunker with the Life Shortcut to rendezvous with you and leave the City of Penance… Heh heh, Eldest Brother, it seems not finding the last Alchemical goods, ‘Azure Iron,’ isn’t so important after all.”

Steve chuckled. “We’ll use the Life Shortcut to get out!”

Du Chen asked again, “Duding, how strong is your brother?”

Little Pudding spoke disdainfully from inside the Precious Lotus Scripture, “Trash, not just ordinary trash! My brothers and sisters can only be used for healing and teleportation before they grow into full trees, but I’m an exception. That bastard Philip developed my powers prematurely… Is it easy for me? Being poked in the ass by an Undead every day…”

The Little Chick started complaining again, but Du Chen had no time to listen. He casually tossed Angie to Steve. “I’ll go deal with Fourteen and seize his Life Shortcut. You keep an eye on Angie, Cheeky Wench. If I find you’ve lied even once when I get back…”

Steve chimed in, “I’m proficient in one hundred and seventy-three vicious tortures from the Fallen Gods era. Don’t believe me? You can try it right now!”

Angie’s face turned ashen, watching Du Chen disappear into the Precious Lotus Scripture. Inside the Precious Lotus Scripture, Du Chen glanced at Xue Ji, still sound asleep, and gently patted her serene cheek. “Foolish girl, I promised I’d get you out of this cursed place. Just wait a few more minutes for your husband…”

The Precious Lotus Scripture shot forth like lightning, instantly reaching the bunker connected to the life-wall. The guards here had already been dismissed by Angie beforehand, leaving only Fourteen hidden in a corner, waiting to receive Thirteen and Hongluan!

Both had been injured recently. Fourteen was recovering using the Life Shortcut, while Du Chen recovered his inner strength by doing good deeds. In the past few days, Du Chen had helped the Violet-Bloods resist the encroaching Huhuhu Beasts, saving countless Violet-Bloods’ lives. Now, one of the Fifth Trigram’s Precious Lotus Scripture had bloomed a bud, and his internal injuries had long since healed, restoring him to the peak of Tenth-rank.

The Precious Lotus Scripture silently infiltrated the cave. Du Chen, sitting upon the Lotus Pedestal, eyed Fourteen in the corner with a cold smile. “Thousand Strands of Benevolent Lock!” Ten thousand hair-thin water threads shot out. Fourteen, despite his exceptional insight and pure battle qi, was greatly startled, barely dodging the sweeping water threads. But immediately, a second wave of water threads attacked again…

After more than a dozen rapid, lightning-fast moves, Fourteen was bound by Du Chen and brought onto the Lotus Pedestal.

But just then, as Du Chen was about to turn back for Steve, Steve and Chek came rushing over. Chek yelled as he ran, “Mr. Alex, quick, hurry! The Huhuhu Beasts have a new leader and are now desperately attacking the bunker! The brothers can’t hold out much longer!”

Du Chen’s expression subtly changed, but he showed no panic. “Chek, immediately organize everyone to evacuate here, but don’t tell the other front-line families yet. Brockman people get priority for evacuation—I’ll get you out right away!” Saying this, Du Chen pressed Fourteen, holding ice blades formed between his fingers against his neck, and said coldly, “Choose: perish in the jaws of the Huhuhu Beasts, or become our captive and live.”

Fourteen sighed dejectedly. What choice did he have now? Under Du Chen’s coercion, he took out the Life Shortcut. Just as Thirteen had opened a passage for Angie a few days prior, he used the tree seed like an engraving knife, gently slicing the inner wall of the Life Tree. The opening, however, was massive, large enough for nearly a hundred people to pass through at once.

Chek excitedly went to gather the family members for evacuation. Du Chen’s words, “Brockman people get priority,” filled his heart with immense satisfaction.

But just then, the “engraving knife” in Fourteen’s hand deeply embedded itself into the life-wall, rapidly carving. Suddenly, it was as if someone on the other side of the inner wall was snatching the “engraving knife.” With a single, gentle tug, the tree seed in Fourteen’s hand was yanked away, vanishing into the inner wall of the Life Tree.

Staring at his empty palm, Fourteen was dumbfounded. *Damn it, who snatched my life-saving tree seed!?*

With the “engraving knife” gone, their escape route naturally vanished…