Zhang Xinlan's words revealed an unconditional trust, a trust so blind that it deeply moved Ye Chen's heart.

"Thank you!" Ye Chen tightly hugged the beauty in his arms.

Zhang Xinlan was an extremely charming woman, her abilities outstanding, and she had a remarkable reputation in the entertainment industry. Countless influential figures longed for her favor but had no opportunity; for Ye Chen to have such a stunning beauty truly was a fortune of a lifetime!

"I'm all yours now, there's no need for courtesy between us!" Zhang Xinlan said, her everything now belonged to this man.

Despite what she said, her heart was full of joy, because her efforts were seen by this man, he acknowledged her contributions, and all her sacrifices were worthwhile!

"Zhang Xinlan, I love you," Ye Chen whispered softly, feeling a sense of bliss but also a tinge of guilt when he thought of Su Binglan.

"Where's Liu Shihua?" Ye Chen suddenly asked.

Without Liu Shihua's loud and frequent outbursts, he really wasn't used to it.

"I also don't know, earlier she was being secretive and took off in your A6, saying she wanted to go to the supermarket to buy some snacks!" Zhang Xinlan said. "But her recent behavior has been so strange, usually she'd have me buy whatever she wants to eat!"

"Normally, she wouldn't dare go out to buy snacks herself, if she were surrounded by paparazzi and fans, wouldn't that lead to a bloodbath?!" Zhang Xinlan grew more and more suspicious of Liu Shihua's motives. "Ye Chen, don't you think she wouldn't be having a secret love affair, or found herself a boyfriend, right?!"

"..."

Ye Chen felt a bitter taste in his mouth, women's intuition was always so sharp.

"Hmm?"

Zhang Xinlan's brows suddenly furrowed, her phone in her pocket started ringing.

"Answer it, our matter can wait," Ye Chen chuckled.

"You're terrible!" Zhang Xinlan reprimanded playfully, then took out her phone. "It's Shihua calling, I wonder what's happened to her, she hasn't been caught for running red lights by the police, has she?"

Liu Shihua was always unreliable, except for singing, acting, and showing off, the national goddess was basically helpless in life, always needing Zhang Xinlan's support.

"Hello, Shihua?" Zhang Xinlan put the phone to her ear.

"Xinlan, get Ye Chen to come save me!" Liu Shihua's panicked cries came through the phone.

"What!" Zhang Xinlan exclaimed in shock.

"I've been kidnapped by a woman, she's covered in poisonous spiders, venomous snakes, venomous toads, it's terrifying, you must get Ye Chen to save me!" Liu Shihua nearly cried from the other end of the line.

"Where are you?" Ye Chen took the phone, asking Liu Shihua for her location.

"Just around the corner from our complex, to the right, that secluded spot without CCTV coverage!"

"Thud... Thud..."

After saying this, Liu Shihua's line went dead, leaving a busy tone on the phone.

"Ye Chen, Shihua, she..." Zhang Xinlan was visibly shaken, sensing that this might have been targeted at Ye Chen!

"It's okay, the target should be me; Liu Shihua is just bait..."

Ye Chen's expression darkened, some people really couldn't stay patient anymore.

"Beautiful sister, do you want to lure Ye Chen here? Don't worry, he'll be here soon!"

Liu Shihua looked at the ethereal woman in front of her, gently batting her beautiful eyes, acting coyly and innocently.

"You did well, but don't call me sister, call me grandma!" The cold beauty revealed a trace of a smile, as if she found the girl in front of her amusing.

"How could you be my grandma when you're so young and pretty, sister!" Liu Shihua laughed.

Even though the woman before her was terrifying, Liu Shihua did not want to give her the advantage; she had only one grandma, who was still playing mahjong in the eighteenth level of hell.

"You're quite an interesting little girl. I wonder if you'd like to learn to play with spiders and toads with grandma?" Although the woman was aloof, she took a liking to Liu Shihua's quirky energy, her words carrying an undertone of wanting to take her as an apprentice.

"I'm allergic to those things, so I'll pass!" Liu Shihua gave a shiver after glancing at the poisonous snakes and spiders on the woman's body.

"Then that's a pity indeed!"

The woman smiled gracefully, her beauty was stunning, yet it made Liu Shihua shudder.

However, just then, a whistling sound of something slicing through the air followed by a heavy thud echoed, as if something had fallen from the sky and crashed to the ground.

"That was quick!" The woman in front of Liu Shihua suddenly sneered.

"Ye Chen, come and save me, this bad woman is scaring me, drive her away quickly!" Liu Shihua called for help as soon as she saw the newcomer.

"Liu Shihua, shut up or I'll turn around and leave," Ye Chen said.

Liu Shihua: "..."

The aloof woman who had captured Liu Shihua walked towards Ye Chen, scrutinizing him carefully, and seemed surprised at Ye Chen's youth!

While Grandmasters could maintain their youthful appearance, they still carried the essence of time with them, but Ye Chen lacked that decayed aura. His was a pure breath of life, a youthful essence!

"It's getting dark, and there's no one around. I thought one of my enemies had come looking for me, but it turned out to be a beautiful woman I've never met. May I ask, what brings you here to invite me into this game?" Ye Chen said, eyeing the cold woman.

Liu Shihua had been kidnapped again, and Ye Chen thought it was the crocodiles making a comeback, but it turned out to be a stranger.

This woman was clad in a black robe and possessed an otherworldly quality. Her beauty was ethereal, reminiscent of a celestial being not of this world. Yet her aloofness made her seem unapproachable, and her body was entwined with toxic tongues and spiders crawling on it, causing one's skin to crawl in fear.

Her demeanor exuded terror; her silent gaze seemed to look down on all life. Such was the bearing of a superior. This woman's identity was surely not simple!

"It seems you have quite a few enemies!" the aloof woman said with a smile. "I come from the exotic lands of Miaojiang, my surname is Fang, and my name is Ruolan!"

"Fang Ruolan?"

When Ye Chen heard she came from the exotic lands of Miaojiang, he knew why she had come. All Gu Masters under heaven come from the lands of Miaojiang, and this Fang Ruolan was probably a skilled Gu practitioner. Perhaps the ferocious Gu King he was suppressing inside him belonged to her!

"My surname is Ye, and my name is Chen, Ye Chen!" He introduced himself. "I'm not sure why Miss Fang is looking for me, and why involve my friend as a threat?"

Although Ye Chen had guessed Fang Ruolan's intent, he pretended to be oblivious. The Gu King inside him was crucial for his advancement into the later stages of being a Grandmaster and could not simply be returned to her.

"The little girl and I got along very well, and we just chatted a bit. I had no intention of threatening you!" Fang Ruolan said with a soft smile, her voice growing colder. "You have my Golden Silkworm Gu King suppressed within you. Return it to me now!"

"What Golden Silkworm Gu King?" Ye Chen feigned surprise, hoping to deny it outright.

"Hmph!" Fang Ruolan huffed, and then she shook a string of tiny bells on her wrist.

"Dingling-a-ling, dingling-a-ling, dingling-a-ling!"

As the bells rang, the Gu King inside Ye Chen suddenly struggled violently, causing his face to pale.

Still, the Gu King was at the end of its force and was about to be refined by him completely; after a few moments of struggle, it quieted down again. But the instance of struggle revealed the fact that Ye Chen was indeed suppressing a Gu King inside him.

"Return my Golden Silkworm Gu King that's inside you!" Fang Ruolan demanded coldly, reaching out to Ye Chen.

At this point, there was no need for superfluous words between Fang Ruolan and Ye Chen. She demanded the return of her lifebound Gu, and nothing else mattered.

"This Gu has already merged with me; I can't return it to you!" Ye Chen shook his head; under no circumstances could he return the Gu.

Ye Chen, being in the Mid Grandmaster Stage and just a step away from reaching the next phase, had a premonition that the Gu King he was suppressing inside would be the key to breaking through to the latter stages. Additionally, once he refined the Gu King, he might even receive some unforeseen benefits.

"If you do not return my Golden Silkworm Gu King, you will make a mortal enemy out of me!" Fang Ruolan said coldly.

"By implanting this Gu King inside me, we have already become enemies!" Ye Chen replied indifferently. He wasn't very afraid of the woman before him because he knew Gu Masters' true strength wasn't in combat but in their ability to control Gu.

"Do you know who I am? I am the Saint Heir of Miaojiang, and becoming my enemy means opposing the entire Miaojiang!" Fang Ruolan declared.

"Saint Heir!" Ye Chen was startled. When he first saw Fang Ruolan, he suspected that she was of no ordinary status, but he had not anticipated that she would be the Saint Heir of Miaojiang!

Miaojiang was the hub for Gu Masters, where practitioners from all over tended to converge, and legend had it that in the exotic land of Miaojiang, there was a supreme Gu Saint with two disciples under him: a Saint Heir and a Saint Heiress!

The Gu Saint looked down upon the world from the clouds, commanding all Gu Masters, while his two disciples managed the entire Miaojiang Gu practitioners in his stead!

The Saint Heir and Saint Heiress of Miaojiang were akin to King Yan's envoys of life and death!

"Return my Gu King, or I will kill to retrieve it!" Fang Ruolan said in a chilling tone.

"Then I have no choice but to experience your Gu skills firsthand!" Ye Chen said.

The Gu King was too important for him to relinquish, even if the Saint Heiress of Miaojiang herself came for it. If she wished to kill to take the Gu, then he would have to fight with all he had!

"Hahaha~!"

Fang Ruolan laughed uproariously, looking up to the sky. As the Saint Heiress of Miaojiang, she was accustomed to being held in high esteem wherever she went; no one dared to go against her wishes.

But now, Ye Chen had defied her, which sent her into a fit of rage filled with laughter.

Originally, Fang Ruolan had not wanted to clash with Ye Chen, as Gu Masters were generally not strong in combat, and her true terror lay in her control over Gu!

However, one must battle to truly understand strength and weakness!

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