Total Annihilation

"You damn monster, drop dead!" Enraged, Jilini finally activated the biochemical agent within his body.

In an instant, he seemed like a completely different person. His body brimmed with strength, and he drove punch after punch into the monster with overwhelming force.

He was fully confident he could take the monster down, but he was destined to be disappointed.

The Stone Monster sent him flying with a single punch, then grabbed him and hurled him into the air, repeating the process over and over.

Only then did Jilini realize the gap between himself and the monster. His men had been right.

All this time, the monster had merely been toying with him. It was over. Every person he had brought along had been beaten to death by it.

After several exchanges, Jilini fell from the sky again—and this time, he could no longer get back up.

Not a single part of his body remained intact. Blood kept pouring out, and, wracked with pain, he glared at the Stone Monster with a hideous expression.

Steward Qin and the others only realized they had been tricked after returning to Qin Manor.

They immediately turned back. When they reached the entrance of Ling Yun's villa again, nothing had happened.

Before they could even react, they heard fighting from this side. They assumed the National Security Bureau and the Dragon Group had stopped the Bloody Mercenaries, so they hurried over to help.

But when they arrived, they saw a Stone Monster repeatedly stomping on someone. Several corpses lay scattered around it, and the air reeked of blood.

When the National Security Bureau members saw Steward Qin and the others arrive, they came out. The Dragon Group followed suit, and the group gathered together, intending to go forward and take a look.

"Everyone, be careful. We still can't tell whether it's friend or foe. Don't provoke it!" Zhou Jie warned them.

"We know." Everyone answered in unison.

"Where did this monster come from? And it killed all the Bloody Mercenaries?" Steward Qin asked.

"No idea. It just appeared out of nowhere."

"Look, it's looking at us!" the young man from the Dragon Group said in a panic.

The National Security Bureau members readied themselves to attack at any moment, prepared to strike immediately if anything went wrong.

"Hold on. Don't panic, and don't attack it. Are you all tired of living?" Zhou Jie knew that this monster was in the Tianren Realm. A single breath from it could injure everyone present.

The Stone Monster simply stared at them without moving. Being watched like that made them uneasy.

The standoff lasted for several minutes. The stones atop the Stone Monster's head slowly fell away, one piece at a time. From top to bottom, they all detached, until it finally became a heap of rubble.

Their hearts pounded at the sight. They only relaxed when the stones crumbled into fine fragments.

What was going on? How had the monster broken apart? It must have exhausted all its strength fighting Jilini just now. It no longer had the power to fight them.

"Zhou Jie, you're being way too cautious," someone from the National Security Bureau said with a yawn.

"If the captain hadn't stopped you, you'd probably be dead by now," a young man from the Dragon Group said indignantly on behalf of his captain.

"Haha, ridiculous. That monster was strong, but there are five of us." Several National Security Bureau members paid no heed.

"I won't say anything more. This is a strength detector. Take it and have a look. Remember to return it to me—I spent a year's worth of mission points on this thing."

The leader of the National Security Bureau took it and glanced at the display. His expression changed. "How is that possible? How could it possibly have that level of strength?"

"What level was it? Was it 2S, as expected?"

"No, it... it was 5S." His scalp went numb as he spoke, and the hand gripping the detector trembled.

"What?"

Only sects and the Dragon Group elders possessed such strength.

The others who knew nothing of the situation were shocked. Thinking back on it, they were seized by lingering fear, as if they had wandered along the edge of death.

With so many people dead, the aftermath was naturally handed over to the Dragon Group. In less than half an hour, the scene had been cleared.

After the meal, Ling Yun brought out a pile of fruit from the kitchen. This was no ordinary fruit—it had all grown for years in a space rich with spiritual energy, and it was unbelievably delicious.

"Son, where did you buy such delicious fruit? Remember to buy more next time."

"Stinky cousin, I agree. Where did you buy it? Hurry and stock up tomorrow."

"Daddy, I can't eat any more."

"Ling Yun, this fruit is a business opportunity." Chen Li's eyes shone. Once the hotel opened, they could take the high-end route with fruit like this.

"Don't think about it. I bought all of this from a classmate from the countryside for us to eat. How could there be enough to supply anyone else?"

"Big Sister Beibei, are you going home?" The Little one had finally found a companion, so of course she didn't want Beibei to leave so soon.

"Mm, I have to go back. Mom will worry." Beibei felt the same way. She had somehow hit it off with Qianqian, and they got along wonderfully.

"Remember to come play with me tomorrow." The Little one was still reluctant to part.

Chen Li was leaving as well. Ling Yun told her not to try to save money and to follow the design plans carefully during the renovations. If she ran into trouble, she was to call him.

He also gave her three or four jin of fruit. She initially refused.

But Ling Yun said it was for the employees and reminded her to visit her parents that evening. The fruit was especially good for the elderly. Chen Li truly hadn't visited her parents in a long time, even though they were both in Jiangbei.

Chen Li drove away. It was her first time driving a four-wheeled vehicle, and she went straight to her parents' home. Ling Yun reminded her to be careful on the road.

Steward Qin came to pick up Qin Lan. It was a turbulent time, and who knew whether any Bloody Mercenaries were still around?

"Little Sister Qianqian, I'm heading home. Tomorrow, I'll come visit you with Mom."

"Mm, I can come find you too."

"Godmother, Daddy said this fruit is for you." Ling Yun had been betrayed by his own daughter. He had intended for Qin Lan to take some fruit home, but not this much—it was only supposed to be a portion of it!

Ling Yun rubbed his nose. "Yes, take it all. I imagine your family has quite a few people."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony." With that, she packed everything up and carried it away. Steward Qin watched the whole thing, thinking, Second Young Miss, is this really necessary? It's not as if there's no fruit at home.

At Jiangbei City's Happiness Residential Community, Chen Li parked the Audi downstairs. Many acquaintances looked on with envy, secretly sighing that the Chen family had finally made it through their hardships.

"Dad, Mom, I'm home." Chen Li's nose stung. Ever since she had gone out to work, she had barely had a chance to repay her parents.

"Lili, why are you back? Did something happen? Tell Mom."

When Mom Chen saw Chen Li's reddened eyes, she immediately assumed that things had gone badly at work.

"That's right, Lili. If work is too difficult, quit. Your mom and I still have some money. We can help you start a small business." Dad Chen also assumed that his daughter had been mistreated.

"No, Dad, Mom. My job is going very well, and my boss treats me wonderfully. He even gave me a car today. You don't need to worry." As she spoke, she placed all the fruit on the coffee table.

"Girl, you can't be lying to us." Dad Chen didn't quite believe her. What boss would provide an employee with an electric car? In his eyes, that was what "car" meant!

"It's true, Dad. I'm not lying. The car is downstairs. My boss was my university classmate, and he plans to open a hotel. He invited me to be the manager. Before long, we won't have to live here anymore." Chen Li told them everything honestly.

Seeing that her parents still didn't fully believe her, Chen Li immediately recounted her chance encounter with Ling Yun and all the things he had done. Only then did Mom Chen and Dad Chen finally put their minds at ease, having feared that their daughter had been deceived.

(My dear readers, I'm sorry. I'm in an extremely terrible mood today. Can I update just one more chapter? I can only look at the stats. I'm truly sorry—I'm not in the right state of mind. Please understand!)

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