Chapter 36: Boiling Blood

Indeed, Tian She laughed. He sat firmly, relaxed and open, spreading his arms wide, exposing his entire chest without any protection.

“Shoot, shoot! Best to kill me! If you kill me, your little ones will have a blast!”

Yu Yingnan’s lower lip was bitten white, her fingers hovering in mid-air, unable to pull the trigger. After the searing rage subsided, she clearly realized that pulling the trigger would have severe consequences, and that mere gunpowder weapons were no match for Tian She.

A hand reached over, firmly pressing down on Yu Yingnan’s gun.

Qian Ye seemed oblivious to the skilled hands of the Tian She Gang brandishing their blades and firearms, his gaze fixed solely on Tian She. “Since you’ve staked your name on your word, surely you won’t stop us from leaving now, will you?”

Tian She narrowed his eyes, meeting Qian Ye’s gaze, then burst into laughter. “Why would I? I’m the most hospitable here. You’re free to come and go as you please! Always welcome back anytime!”

Qian Ye nodded, turning to Yu Yingnan, “Let’s go, we need to leave.”

“But…” Yu Yingnan tried to say more, but Qian Ye gently yet firmly held her right arm with the gun, leading her out.

Yu Yingnan felt an irresistible force gripping her right arm, all her struggles futile. She could only follow Qian Ye, unaware of why a level three warrior like Qian Ye had such overpowering strength.

To the members of the Tian She Gang, it looked as if Yu Yingnan was willingly being led away by Qian Ye. They felt an inexplicable strangeness, having never heard of anyone who could persuade this fiery-tempered huntress.

“Hold on,” Tian She called out to them.

Yu Yingnan suddenly turned, her eyes burning with fury. Qian Ye half-turned, his expression questioning, as if nothing had happened.

Tian She gazed thoughtfully at Qian Ye, then said after a moment, “Alright, I’ll give Er Ye some face. I’ll waive the interest on her debt and extend the repayment period by two months. She just needs to repay the principal within two months.”

“You!…” Yu Yingnan was furious, but Qian Ye nodded at Tian She and pulled her out.

Once they left the headquarters of the Tian She Gang and hit the street, Yu Yingnan let out a roar of frustration, punching a tree by the roadside with all her might!

“Why did you stop me?” Yu Yingnan shouted at Qian Ye.

“Because you didn’t have the resolve to fight to the death, and we couldn’t win anyway,” Qian Ye said calmly.

“How do you know I didn’t have the resolve?”

Qian Ye didn’t answer, simply looking at her. Under his gaze, Yu Yingnan’s spirit fell, and she punched the tree again, saying, “If I were alone…”

“Perhaps we should find a place to sit and you can tell me your story.”

Soon, the two returned to Yu Yingnan’s home.

She pulled out a few bottles of strong liquor, drinking straight from the bottle without using a glass. After two bottles were empty, her agitated emotions gradually calmed.

Yu Yingnan stared at the bottle swinging between her fingers, saying, “You must be wondering how I ended up with so much debt…”

It was not a complicated story.

In a mission a year ago, she suffered a significant defeat, and her entire squad was wiped out, with only her surviving. Believing it was her fault, she spent the next six months finding the families of her fallen comrades, sending them to safer cities, and giving them enough money to get by.

Some of the children of these fallen comrades, along with Yu Yingnan’s younger brother, lived in Dark Blood City, undergoing basic combat training.

This way, Yu Yingnan not only exhausted her savings from years of risking her life but also owed Tian She a large sum. If she completely turned against Tian She, she feared he might harm the families of her former comrades, possibly even targeting the children.

If the Tian She Gang forced her into a corner, she wouldn’t hesitate to fight to the death. But this was ultimately about money, and she lacked the courage to start a fight with Tian She over it, only enduring it.

This amount of money was insignificant to the aristocratic families, but in Dark Blood City, it was almost driving a four-star hunter to despair.

At this point, she buried her head in her hands, sobbing, “I’m sorry, I’ve implicated you. Don’t worry, I’ll find a way to repay you for the gun!”

“That’s not important. Why don’t you want Er Ye to know about this?”

“Er Ye has helped me many times. In fact, I owe him a lot… If he knew about this, he’d repay the debt for me. Er Ye has already used most of his savings on us…” Yu Yingnan couldn’t continue, clutching her hair tightly.

This was a hunter’s dignity, almost laughable. But she’d rather face a death match than trouble Er Ye again.

Qian Ye poured himself a drink, holding it in his hand, gazing at the amber liquid, and asked, “The Hunter’s Association shouldn’t be afraid of the Tian She Gang. As a four-star hunter, why are you still being bullied openly?”

Yu Yingnan sighed, saying, “Hunters and mercenaries are different. We have more freedom, but in return, the Hunter’s Association remains completely neutral in conflicts. Many hunters actually hope I suffer. Besides, I do owe Tian She money, and I can’t pay it back, so Er Ye can’t use the Hunter’s Association to suppress Tian She. Tian She used to be principled, but I didn’t expect this today…”

Qian Ye smiled, saying, “I’ve figured it out.” It’s simple: when interests and power are out of balance, rules collapse.

Yu Yingnan was startled, “Then… why did you bring out the origin gun?”

“He waived the interest and extended the deadline. The gun is worth about two hundred gold coins, not a total loss,” Qian Ye said.

“Not a total loss?”

Qian Ye waved his finger, stopping her, and said, “With my current background, selling this thing smoothly is difficult. So, let’s end it here.”

“No!” Yu Yingnan slammed the table.

“If I don’t have the strength, I can’t protect the Golden Rose, right? That’s the rule in Dark Blood City,” Qian Ye said calmly. In this aspect, he saw things more clearly than Yu Yingnan. Without the Golden Rose, they wouldn’t have been able to leave Tian She’s territory.

However, his tone changed, indifferent but with a chilling edge, “But I like this rule. When I’m strong enough, I’ll make Tian She vomit out what he’s swallowed, tenfold or a hundredfold!”

Yu Yingnan looked up, staring at Qian Ye, as if seeing him for the first time.

Qian Ye, in his true appearance, had a delicate and almost refined look. His expression, casual yet resolute, exuded a determination and bloodlust that would crush all obstacles.

Yu Yingnan suddenly found this young man very unfamiliar. The naive one-star hunter who wouldn’t even fire at a mob of rioters seemed to have never existed.

“Maybe we should finish that mission first,” Qian Ye suggested, looking at her.

Yu Yingnan rallied her spirits, silently packing her gear, and handed Qian Ye a cartridge. He opened it, seeing three origin bullets, hers. He took them without hesitation, putting them in his bag.

At 3 AM, Yu Yingnan and Qian Ye left Dark Blood City, parting ways, heading toward their designated location via different routes.

Entering the wasteland, Qian Ye took the assault rifle, running steadily toward the destination. He chose the forty-kilometer-per-hour limit, heading northwest.

Several hours later, a few werewolves targeted Qian Ye, but after an hour, they gave up. His speed and endurance amazed the werewolves, as he seemed tireless, crossing the wasteland.

Suddenly, Qian Ye jolted, a warning sense rising.

The terrain was a gentle slope, with thorny vines the main feature. Amidst the undergrowth lay the ruins of what might have been a human town centuries ago, now only a few crumbling walls.

Qian Ye leaped toward the ruins, scanning his surroundings with great caution. Suddenly, he saw a small, dark figure floating in the distance.

He wasn’t tall, wrapped entirely in a black robe, with no discernible shape.

Though several kilometers away, Qian Ye could barely make out the outline, likely a humanoid. But as soon as Qian Ye’s gaze met the mysterious figure, the other sensed it, turning to look at Qian Ye!

Startled, Qian Ye instinctively closed his eyes, curling into a ball, rolling into a natural shallow hole between two stone slabs. Using military techniques, he held his breath, stopping his heart, entering a state of apparent death.

Just as he finished his disguise, a vast, chilling consciousness swept over the area, gliding over him!

The consciousness was unbearably cold, and in an instant, Qian Ye saw a black sun rising in his vision!

He no longer felt fear, only the black sun dragging a darker tail across the world.

Qian Ye desperately pushed his consciousness deep into the dormant nodes, fighting to stay awake, sensing that the slightest relaxation would drag him into eternal darkness.

After an unknown duration, the icy will receded, and the black sun’s tail left Qian Ye’s world. Yet, in that moment, the long-dormant black blood within him stirred, nearly boiling.