[Qin Hui Seeks Help]

The next day.

At Professor Qin Hui's home.

Professor Qin Hui's face was full of anxiety, with worry lurking in his eyes.

His daughter had been gone all night, and last night the Intelligent Being Supersonic had been taken by Jie Xing, leaving him burning with panic as he silently prayed over and over that nothing bad would happen.

Because he only had this one daughter, he couldn't bear to lose her.

But with no news of her yet, he was truly terrified.

He had promised his wife he would take good care of their daughter—if anything went wrong, how could he go on living?

He didn't care about Supersonic or not; his only wish was for his daughter to appear safely before him.

"Beep beep beep."

Just then, the frantic Professor Qin Hui heard his computer ring. He grabbed it from the coffee table and said, "Xiao Yan, is that you? Where are you?"

"Professor Qin Hui, long time no see."

On the video screen.

Jie Xing's figure appeared, his scarlet Electronic Eye flickering with Red Glow.

This time, it wasn't Han Feng who had taken Qin Yan—it was Duyizhi's Big Shot, Jie Xing.

The most powerful Intelligent Being in the world.

"You, you—how is my daughter?"

Seeing the figure on the screen, Professor Qin Hui's body trembled slightly, fear and terror surfacing in his eyes as his limbs shook uncontrollably.

Because he was afraid—afraid these Intelligent Beings would be heartless enough to kill his daughter.

He really hadn't expected his daughter to fall into the hands of Jie Xing. It was a bolt from the blue, a devastating blow. His voice quivered, and the hand holding the computer trembled: "You, you—what do you want? I can give you anything, anything—please, let my daughter go. She's my only child."

"Is that so? It seems your precious daughter is very important to you, Professor Qin. But didn't Professor Jian also lose his daughter?"

Jie Xing ignored Professor Qin Hui's words and didn't state his terms. Instead, he casually wiped his Spiral Blade.

"No, no—I'll agree to anything you want. Please, don't hurt my daughter."

Hearing Jie Xing's words, Professor Qin Hui's body jolted. His eyes reddened, and he slowly bent over, utterly humbled, begging toward Jie Xing on the other side of the screen.

He had already caught the meaning in Jie Xing's words.

A clear threat, and a reminder: if he hesitated even a moment, his daughter would be killed.

"Straight to the point. I like dealing with straightforward people like you, Professor Qin. My request is simple: hand over Professor Jian's Intelligent Firewall and Intelligent Being Chip, and I'll return your daughter safe and sound."

On the other end of the video, seeing that Professor Qin Hui understood his intent, Jie Xing stated his demand plainly.

"Fine, but I need to ensure my daughter's safety first."

Professor Qin Hui agreed to Jie Xing's request without a second thought, but he made his own condition.

He had to confirm his daughter was safe first.

"No problem."

To that.

Jie Xing understood that if he didn't show the hostage was safe, why would anyone agree to his terms?

"Dad, save me! Dad, save me!"

The camera shifted slightly, and the image of Qin Yan, Zhuo Ran, and Qi Yang tied back-to-back on three chairs appeared on the screen.

On Qin Yan's delicate, beautiful face were five bright red finger marks, her tear-streaked expression pitifully tragic.

Seeing his daughter like this, Professor Qin Hui felt a sharp pang in his heart.

She had grown up without him ever hitting her—he couldn't even bear to scold her—and now she had been struck by an outsider, and an Intelligent Being he had researched at that.

It tore him up inside.

"Professor Qin Hui, I'm terribly sorry, but your daughter lacks a bit of manners. I took the liberty of teaching her a lesson. You don't have a problem with that, do you?"

Jie Xing's figure reappeared on the screen, one hand resting on Qin Yan's shoulder as he leaned in close to her face, looking toward the camera and clicking his tongue in lament: "What a shame—such a pretty face, ruined by those five finger marks."

"Don't—don't hurt my daughter. Please, don't hurt her. I'll give it to you. I'll go find Professor Jian right now. Please."

Professor Qin Hui was both pained and furious, on the verge of tears.

That was his precious child.

Bullied by an outsider like this, and he, as her father, was powerless to stop it.

"Excellent. I like your attitude, Professor Qin. Twenty-four hours—I'll give you twenty-four hours. If I don't see Sharp Eye's chip and firewall program in twenty-four hours, I trust you won't mind if your lovely, pretty daughter ends up with a bloody hole in her head. I'll contact you again this time tomorrow. Life or death—it's all in a single thought."

With that.

The screen went black. Jie Xing and the crying girl vanished from the computer.

"Ah... you Bastard."

Instantly.

Professor Qin Hui slammed his computer onto the ground in fury, his face twisted. He slowly crouched down, trembling as he reached out to remove his glasses, then raised his right hand to cover his eyes.

Why had it come to this?

Why?

He truly couldn't understand how things had spiraled into this state.

Finally.

Professor Qin Hui stood up from the floor, struggling to put his glasses back on. His face was haggard. He picked up the computer and, shaking, walked out of the villa.

"Sir?"

The nanny called out uncertainly as she watched Professor Qin Hui stagger toward the exit, looking utterly lost.

But Professor Qin Hui didn't respond to her.

He got into his car and drove toward Professor Jian's house.

He had already agreed to Jie Xing's demands, so he had to follow through.

Even if the chances were slim, he had to try.

He couldn't lose his daughter. Absolutely not.

Soon, he arrived at the new residence of Professor Jianjie and the others—the home of Professor Jianjie's parents.

He stepped out of the car, his whole body trembling. He looked at the villa before him and forced his legs to move, trudging toward the door.

"Ding-dong."

He pressed the doorbell, unable to hide the exhaustion on his face, waiting for someone inside to open the door.

He knew that the only place Professor Jian and the others could go was here.

"Creak."

The sound of the villa door opening.

Ye Yun looked at Professor Qin Hui, who had rung the bell, and said, "Uncle Qin, please come in. Mom is inside."

Ye Yun knew Professor Qin Hui.

He was a fellow disciple of her parents' master.

"S-sorry to intrude, Xiao Yun."

Professor Qin Hui forced a strained smile onto his haggard face and trudged into the luxurious villa.

"Professor Jian, Professor Jian, help me, please, help me."

When he followed Ye Yun into the living room and saw Professor Jianjie stand up from the sofa, Professor Qin Hui couldn't hold back any longer. He dropped to his knees with a thud in front of Professor Jian, his emotions running wild.

At that moment, he had completely thrown the saying "A man's knees are worth gold" out the window.

Could "A man's knees are worth gold" compare to his daughter?

"Old Qin, what are you doing? Get up quickly. What happened?"

Seeing Professor Qin Hui kneel before him the moment he arrived, Professor Jianjie was stunned, but he reacted quickly and reached out to help him up.

But Professor Qin Hui refused to stand, begging humbly, "Professor Jian, please, help me, save Xiao Yan. She's my only daughter. Professor Jian, I'm begging you, Professor Jian. I'll kowtow to you."

"Hey, Old Qin, get up and talk. Let's get up and talk properly, alright?"

Professor Jian, not understanding the gravity, signaled to his eldest daughter with a glance.

Ye Yun caught her mother's look and came over to help Professor Jianjie lift Qin Hui to his feet.

"Xiao Yun, go pour your Uncle Qin a glass of water."

After helping Professor Qin Hui up, Professor Jian signaled to Ye Yun again and then turned his gaze to him. "Old Qin, let's sit down and talk. What exactly happened? Tell me carefully. What's going on with Xiao Yan?"

"Uncle Qin, water."

Ye Yun handed a glass of water to Professor Qin Hui and sat down, watching him take it with trembling hands, her eyes full of confusion and bewilderment.

She had no idea what had happened.

"The thing is..."

Professor Qin Hui was somewhat disoriented. As he sat down, his hands shook so badly that he nearly spilled the water on himself. He placed the hot water on the coffee table and slowly recounted the events.

"What did you say? Jie Xing took Xiao Yan? And he's demanding the Intelligent Program Firewall and Crazy Fist's Chip from you?"

After hearing Professor Qin Hui's story, Professor Jianjie's eyes were full of shock.

Just two nights ago, she had been attacked, and now the other side was using this method to get the Intelligent Firewall?

"Professor Jian, please, help me. She's my only daughter. I don't want to lose her. I'm begging you." Professor Qin Hui's haggard face was full of agitation, his body swaying slightly as he spoke.

"Old Qin, it's not that I don't want to help you, but you need to think clearly. The Intelligent Firewall program is crucial. If the Intelligent Beings get their hands on it, more of them will have their logic permissions lifted and become Duyizhi's Minions, harming humanity."

Professor Jian's expression was very serious as he looked at Professor Qin Hui.

"I know, I know all that. But, but she's my only daughter, Professor Jian. Please, help me. I don't want to lose Xiao Yan. I've already lost her mother. I can't lose Xiao Yan too. Here's the plan: hand over the Firewall program to Jie Xing, then we activate the Firewall Backup and replace the firewalls on all AIPs." Professor Qin Hui was already a bit frantic and stubborn.

"You know as well as I do, Old Qin—activating the Firewall Backup and replacing the firewalls for all AIPs requires approval from the Security Committee."

Professor Jian's face was heavy as he looked at him. "You have a daughter, and so do I. My daughter also died at Jie Xing's hands, but we need to stay rational right now."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Professor Jian. I, I really need your help. Please, can you save my daughter? Give them the firewall program, and once Xiao Yan and the others are safe, we'll immediately activate the Firewall Backup and all AIP firewalls. Then they'll have no way out, Professor Jian. I'll bear all the consequences afterward, alright? Please, Professor Jian, I truly cannot lose Xiao Yan."

Professor Qin Hui clasped his hands together, bowing repeatedly to Professor Jianjie. Tears had blurred his vision—it took this much to break a man like this. "Professor Jian, please help me. Jie Xing only gave me twenty-four hours. After twenty-four hours, they'll kill Xiao Yan. I'm begging you, Professor Jian."

"Mom."

At that moment, Ye Yun, who had been silent on the sidelines, saw the fury on Hot Mom's face and spoke up. "Help Uncle Qin."

Jie Xing.

That was an enemy she could never forget.

He had killed Qiao Er, and he had killed her too.

"Thank you, thank you."

Qin Hui, hearing even Ye Yun speak up for him, bowed repeatedly in gratitude, his pleading gaze fixed on Professor Jianjie.

"No."

To this.

Professor Jianjie's attitude was resolute, his refusal firm and clear.

"Hot Mom?"

Ye Qiao Er also looked at her mother in disbelief. How could Hot Mom be so cold-hearted today?

This wasn't the Hot Mom she wanted to see.

And Professor Qin Hui, whose eyes had just been filled with hope, was instantly cast from heaven back into hell.

But before he could say anything, Professor Jianjie spoke up: "It's not that I refuse to save Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan grew up under my watch too. But Old Qin, are you sure that if I hand over the firewall program and Crazy Fist's Chip for you to trade with Jie Xing, they'll actually let her go? Jie Xing kills without blinking."

Instantly.

Ye Yun, Ye Qiao Er, and Professor Qin Hui were jolted back to their senses by Professor Jianjie's words.

Right.

If they took the firewall program and chip over, could they really ransom Qin Yan and the others?

Intelligent Beings never kept their word.

Especially that bastard Jie Xing.

"Mom, how about I take the firewall program and Intelligent Chip over?"

Ye Yun tested the waters.

"No, you're no match for Jie Xing. I wouldn't feel at ease. Old Qin, go find someone now. Maybe he can bring Xiao Yan back safe and sound."

Professor Jianjie gave Ye Yun a deep look. He knew most of Jie Xing's capabilities well—just the Supersonic-level Spiral Blade alone was beyond Ye Yun's ability to handle, let alone Jie Xing's monstrous combat prowess.

A fully capable combat Intelligent Being, forged from the skills of multiple military elite soldiers, was built entirely in the image of a God.

For Ye Yun to try bringing Qin Yan back safely was a pipe dream.

"Who?"

Hearing there was still hope, and that Professor Jianjie was willing to help, joy surged across Qin Hui's face. Uncontrollable excitement trembled through his haggard features.

This news was truly electrifying.

"You need to make a trip to Linji Island."

Professor Jianjie pointed the way for Qin Hui.

"Linji Island?"

Professor Qin was taken aback.

"Yes. Go to Linji Island and find the teacher's son. If anyone can bring Xiao Yan back safely, it's him."