Winter had come.

The night wind was icy cold. In the chilly wind, trees swayed and dead leaves fluttered about. The world was desolate, and a deep cold enveloped the land.

Chen Yang smoked his cigarette, the ember flickering as the smoke curled upwards. His thoughts were in unprecedented chaos, like leaves caught in the cold wind, tumbling over and over before finally, and reluctantly, settling on the ground.

Such unprecedented exhaustion!

Taking two deep breaths, Chen Yang forcefully suppressed the unwelcome thoughts and struggled to regain his composure. No matter what, he had to stick to his principles and his bottom line.

Fiercely stubbing out the cigarette, Chen Yang returned to his car.

Just as he started the engine, ready to drive home, his phone rang. It was an unsaved number, but Chen Yang knew who it was.

As soon as he answered, a deep voice came through the speaker. "It's been almost two days. It seems you really have no intention of handing over the formula?"

It was the self-proclaimed protector of the Martial Association, the man who had ordered Chen Yang to hand over the formula within three days.

Chen Yang, already miserable, perversely found this amusing and shot back a crude retort, "Fuck your mother!"

There was a long silence on the other end of the line before a grim voice finally spoke. "You little bastard, do you know what you're saying?"

"Now listen to me. I'm giving you three days," Chen Yang said coldly. "Kneel before me and apologize. Otherwise, I'll take care of your whole family!"

Far away, in an ancient courtyard at the Martial Association Headquarters in Cangyun City, an elder in a black robe held his phone. His face was as dark as still water, and his blazing eyes flickered with a cold light in the night.

Am I being threatened? To kneel and apologize to him within three days?

Heh...

The elder laughed out of pure fury. "Little bastard, do you know who you're talking to? I am Ye Nantian, a protector of the Martial Association! Do you even know what that means?"

"Just a lapdog for the Association President, right? And you're proud of that?" Chen Yang sneered.

Ye Nantian's face darkened further. "Fine," he said ominously. "Just you wait. You will face my wrath!"

"Remember, you only have three days! The day I step foot in Cangyun City will be the day I destroy your entire family."

CLICK.

Chen Yang hung up and tossed the phone aside.

A threat? Threats were the last thing Chen Yang feared. In fact, he disliked threatening others; he preferred to let his actions do the talking.

Listening to the dial tone, Ye Nantian's lips slowly curled into a hideous smile. As he clenched his fist, the expensive phone was instantly crushed into scrap metal, crumbling to dust in his grip. With a casual flick of his right hand, the metal dust drifted to the ground.

This scene made a young man beside him inhale sharply. He then asked in confusion, "Master, what kind of formula could have provoked you to intervene personally?"

"It's a formula for a cancer drug," Ye Nantian said somberly. "And it's the most potent of its kind known today, capable of completely curing cancer! Do you realize what that means?"

The young man was stunned for a long moment before uttering two words in shock. "Revolution. A storm."

Ye Nantian nodded. "The Martial Association has two main sources of income. Besides tuition fees from our students, our largest revenue stream is from the pharmaceutical sector. We hold a monopoly on most of the country's cancer drugs."

His eyes blazed. "Think about it. If this formula isn't controlled by us and is instead released to the market by them, all our hard work in the pharmaceutical field will suffer a devastating blow! How could we possibly allow that to happen? Besides, the profits this drug would generate are simply unimaginable!"

The young man, Han Shaobai, sucked in another sharp breath. Without a doubt, if this medicine were to hit the market, it would become a terrifying money-making machine.

"Master, why waste words on him? Let's just storm Lingjin City and snatch the formula!" Han Shaobai proclaimed arrogantly.

The Martial Association had spent years growing into a superpower capable of rivaling the Martial Department. They wouldn't just dare to grab some measly formula; they would dare to grab a mountain of gold.

"Actually, the formula should have been in our hands by now," Ye Nantian said with a cheerful smile. "But the Association President is in seclusion, and everyone has been on edge waiting, which caused the delay."

"The Association President… he… did he make a breakthrough?"

Ye Nantian nodded. "Thirteenth rank. The Thousand-Faced Yama."

"Haha!" Han Shaobai laughed with excitement. "Incredible! With this, our Martial Association's status in this country will soar to the absolute pinnacle!"

Ye Nantian waved a hand dismissively. "What about your senior brother? Hasn't he returned from his travels?"

"He should be back in a few days," Han Shaobai replied. He knew exactly what Ye Nantian was implying. Patting his chest with a defiant look, he said, "Why would we need my senior brother for such a trivial matter? I alone am more than enough to handle it!"

Ye Nantian studied Han Shaobai for a moment, then nodded. "Take a few men and retrieve the formula. And that boy… I want his head."

"Rest assured, Master. Leave it to me."

「The next day.」

Qin Qiu was still sulking over yesterday's incident. Even as they sat together for breakfast, she refused to look at Chen Yang.

Luo Sulan, sitting beside them, sensed the tense atmosphere. Pleased by the scene, she couldn't help but add insult to injury. "Qiu, with a worthless man like him, the greater your hopes, the greater your disappointment!"

"Listen to your mother and just divorce him."

Qin Qiu remained silent. She put down her tableware, grabbed her bag, and left for work.

Chen Yang didn't chase after her. He knew she was still furious, and anything he said now would only make things worse.

Qin Mo hurried downstairs, dressed in a light pink long dress, her hair pinned up high, and her makeup delicately applied.

"Mo, hurry up and eat," Luo Sulan called out.

"No time!" Qin Mo replied as she ran out the door. "There's a school gala tonight, and I'm in one of the acts. I have to rush to the rehearsal!"

"Then make sure to buy something to eat!" Luo Sulan shouted, getting up. "Rushing around like this… Have you forgotten anything?"

But Qin Mo was already long gone.

After finishing breakfast, Chen Yang drove to the company. In the car, he looked troubled. For some reason, he was starting to dread seeing Zhou Yufei.

Maybe I should ask Qin Qiu to transfer me to another department?

Chen Yang smirked at the thought.

Wouldn't that just be a dead giveaway?

As he was lost in thought, a call came from Yang Hu, who cut straight to the point. "Boss, Zhang Zhi's funeral is today at Anwu Cemetery."

"What? Planning to pay your respects?" Chen Yang teased.

"Zhang Zhi's grandfather is here—the Six-Bags Elder from the Martial Association. Apparently, the first thing he said when he got to Lingjin City was that he was going to take care of our whole family," Yang Hu said casually. "I figure he'll come looking for us after the funeral today."

"Fine. Make the arrangements. We'll go light a stick of incense for him." Chen Yang understood the implication in Yang Hu's words perfectly. Besides, they preferred to take the initiative rather than wait for trouble to find them.

"ROGER THAT!"

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