323 Absolute Strength

Near the east gate of the Iron City.

Ye Shixiao held Ye Jin’s hand with one hand and reached into his pocket with the other. He seemed to be holding something. “Centurion Chen, aren’t you taking us to the government office? This should be the way out of the city, right?”

“That’s right. It’s the way out of the city.”

Chen Tianqi walked in front and said without looking back, “I just received news that Lin Ran has something to do and left the city, so I brought you to meet him outside the city.”

“Oh?” The vigilance in Ye Shixiao’s eyes intensified. “When did you receive the news? Why didn’t I know?”

“Through a communication method used by the army. Ordinary people naturally don’t know about it.”

Chen Tianqi’s answer was flawless, but to the abnormally sensitive Ye Shixiao, this reason clearly did not convince him.

Seeing that they were getting closer and closer to the city gate, Ye Shixiao remained calm on the surface, but his palm that was holding Ye Jin’s was already sweating.

Ye Jin couldn’t help but look at her father worriedly. She wanted to ask, but Ye Shixiao stopped her with a look.

Ye Shixiao did not explain and only gave Ye Jin a “be careful” look. Then, he let go and pointed at the dark alley at the side. He did not care if Ye Jin understood or not and immediately rushed towards the city gate!

“Murder! Someone, come quickly!”

Ye Shixiao shouted with all his might as he ran. His voice was especially loud in the quiet night. Almost instantly, more than ten men in black rushed out!

At the same time, Ye Jin understood what her father meant. Without hesitation, she turned around and ran towards the dark alley. Although she was also worried about her father’s safety, with the dozen or so men in black around, Chen Tianqi probably wouldn’t dare to do anything.

Just as this thought appeared in her mind, Ye Jin suddenly heard the sound of a sharp blade being unsheathed. Then, a strong gust of wind came from behind her. She didn’t even know what was going on when she felt something tighten around her neck. Then, a saber was pressed against her neck.

Feeling the coldness on the blade, Ye Jin couldn’t help but shiver.

When she came back to her senses, she saw her father standing rooted to the ground in shock. The dozen or so men in black whom she placed her hopes on were already lying in a pool of blood!

“Sigh… Why are you playing little tricks?”

Only then did Ye Jin realize that she was being held in Chen Tianqi’s arms. When she saw the blood flowing freely not far away, she came back to her senses and was immediately filled with fear.

“Father! Save me!”

Ye Jin screamed uncontrollably. Ye Shixiao shuddered and woke up from his daze.

When he turned around and saw that Ye Jin had been caught, Ye Shixiao’s expression instantly darkened. He pulled out a dull saber from his pocket with his right hand. “Let her go!”

“No.”

Chen Tianqi replied calmly with a hint of helplessness in his tone, “It’s all your fault that things turned out like this. If you had followed me out of the city obediently, why would I have to do these things?”

As he spoke, Chen Tianqi’s gaze passed Ye Shixiao and landed on the corpses of the men in black. “These 13 lives are also on you. Is there a problem?”

Ye Shixiao stared at him. “You’re not sent by Lin Ran. Who are you?!”

“You’re right. I’m indeed not sent by Lin Ran. As for my true identity…”

At this point, Chen Tianqi paused for a moment and smiled bitterly. “I’m just a nobody. After so many years, I have even forgotten who I am.”

“You forgot who you are?”

When Ye Shixiao heard this, he frowned slightly, not understanding what the other party meant. However, Ye Jin’s life was in the other party’s hands now, so he was not in the mood to dwell on it.

“I don’t have to ask who you are, but please let go of my daughter.”

Ye Shixiao persuaded again, his tone clearly much gentler than before. “As long as you let go of my daughter, I can agree to anything you want!”

“Actually, I don’t want anything. I just want to bring you out of the city.”

Chen Tianqi replied helplessly. Then, he let go of Ye Jin without hesitation and took a few steps back, as if he wanted to use this opportunity to prove that he really meant no harm.

Ye Jin, who had regained her freedom, was slightly stunned. When she came back to her senses, she hurriedly ran towards Ye Shixiao. Chen Tianqi, who was behind her, had no intention of stopping her.

When the father and daughter reunited, Chen Tianqi sheathed his saber and pointed at the city gate. “I have no ill intentions towards you. Moreover, I was ordered to bring you to a place outside the city alive. However, if you want to escape…”

At this point, Chen Tianqi paused for a moment and placed his hand on the hilt of the saber at his waist. “That’ll be a big mistake.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding temperature seemed to have instantly dropped.

Ye Shixiao couldn’t help but shiver, and his hand that was holding the saber trembled uncontrollably.

However, the fact that the 13 men in black died in front of him in the blink of an eye was enough to prove how ruthless Chen Tianqi was. Even though Ye Shixiao was holding a saber in his hand, he was still not confident that he could keep his daughter safely.

After weighing the pros and cons in his mind, Ye Shixiao finally chose to give up.

As soon as he loosened his grip, the saber fell to the ground with a clang. “We’ll go with you.”

“A wise choice.”

Chen Tianqi nodded expressionlessly. Then, he walked past the father and daughter to open the gate. He did not even look at the two of them the entire time, as if nothing had happened.

…

A moment later, near the east gate of the Iron City.

Lin Ran and Huo Qiyun walked side by side. Both of them didn’t look too good.

“You’re really lucky!”

Huo Qiyun glanced at Lin Ran and was caught between laughter and tears as he mocked, “You chose three of the four city gates wrongly. How unbelievable!”

When Lin Ran heard this, he immediately looked displeased. “Are you done? How can you blame me for this? Who knew they would leave from the east gate. Wait!”

Halfway through, Lin Ran’s expression suddenly changed. Beside him, Huo Qiyun drew his sword and sniffed the air a few times. He said in a low voice with a solemn expression, “It’s the smell of blood. It’s very fresh.”

Lin Ran nodded. With a flash of white light, he summoned the Yin-Yang Sword. “It’s in the direction of the city gate!”

The two of them turned into phantoms and flashed to the city gate. When they saw the open city gate and the dozen or so men in black lying in a pool of blood, their expressions clearly turned solemn.

“The body is still warm. The murderer must have left not long ago.”

Huo Qiyun touched the corpse and said softly, “Is it your friend who did it?”

“I don’t think so.”

Lin Ran shook his head slightly and fixed his gaze on the wound on the corpse’s throat. “These people were all killed with one strike. Moreover, the corpses are so densely packed. They must have been killed at the same time. Our enemy is a master.”