Shrek Doesn't Buy That

"Hey, Mom, calm down, let's talk this out..."

"Yun Jingheng! You've gotten too bold, haven't you?! You dare to venture into the Abyss yourself?! Do you think you're a god? Do you think your father and I are dead?"

Yun Jingheng ducked to avoid the flying slipper.

"Mom! Mom! I have my reasons! I—"

Yun Jingheng quickly turned his head to dodge another slipper.

Ya Li didn't give him a chance to finish speaking.

"Difficulties? When don't you have difficulties? I don't care how crazy you are outside, but you're running into the Abyss by yourself. What do you call that? That's suicide!"

Yun Jingheng shrank behind the round table, only half of his face showing. "I didn't go to my death, I'm back safe and sound."

Ya Li grabbed a roll of bandages from the table and threw it at them.

Yun Jingheng tilted his head, and the bandage flew past his ear and hit the wall behind him.

He swallowed hard and dared not argue back.

Outside the door, several people were peering through the doorway, listening to what was happening inside.

"Heavens..." Tang Wulin looked at Zhuo Shi, "Grandmaster, would you like to break up this fight?"

Zhuo Shi Shiqi's beard bristled. "What are you up to, kid? You want me to go in and die, and you'll come and inherit my debts?"

Xu Xiaoyan whispered, "Won't Jing Heng really get beaten to death?"

"... Are we just going to stay here and do nothing?" Xie Xie looked at Yun Ming.

Yun Ming's lips twitched.

What are you looking at me for? Do you think I'd dare go in?

I was the first one to get beaten up when I went in!

Inside the house, Ya Li was exhausted from chasing after them.

She leaned against the table, panting, her eyes red-rimmed, still muttering, "Do you know that after you left, I couldn't even eat a hot meal?"

"Your dad stands at the door every day without saying a word, but you, on the other hand, run in by yourself and come out smiling."

Yun Jingheng slowly stood up from behind the table.

He stopped dodging and walked up to Ya Li, showing her the bandaged spot on his forehead. "Mom, look, it's really nothing. I'm recovering very quickly."

As he spoke, he raised his right hand and gently touched a wound on his left arm that hadn't fully healed.

Just as Ya Li was about to stop her, she saw the flesh around the wound begin to move.

Extremely light and slow, as if being gently pushed to one place from the inside.

A few breaths later, the wound actually closed up. Although a faint red mark remained, the previously bluish wound no longer showed any signs of reopening.

Ya Li froze, reaching out to touch it, then hesitating.

Yun Jingheng said, "The first ability of my Head Soul Bone is regeneration, immortality. As long as my head isn't lost, all these injuries on my body can heal."

"I keep my injuries for outsiders to see."

He spoke of it casually, as if it were just a matter of adding a layer of skin.

After hearing this, Ya Li was not calmed down; instead, tears started flowing again.

She raised her hand and slapped Yun Jingheng's uninjured shoulder hard. "With your abilities, you're even more reckless, aren't you? Since you can heal yourself, you're even more willing to charge in alone, aren't you?"

Yun Jingheng opened his mouth, but this time he was truly speechless.

The wrong person was hired.

Ya Li doesn't eat this; what she cares about is whether he'll be seriously injured.

Will he go? Will he leave her alone again in the night waiting for news?

He lowered his head, offering no further explanation, but took a step forward and gently embraced Ya Li.

Ya Li didn't push him away; she cried in his arms, her shoulders shaking, her hands still clutching the back of his shirt.

"I won't do it again..."

There was a knock on the door.

Yun Ming's voice came from outside, "Ahem, well... Ya Li, Jing Heng, the Federation people are here."

There was a moment of silence in the room.

Ya Li was still leaning against Yun Jingheng's chest, her shoulders still trembling slightly. Yun Jingheng didn't move, but tightened his grip on her.

He felt Ya Li take a deep breath, as if she were suppressing all the tears that hadn't yet flowed.

A moment later, she slowly released him, took a half step back, and wiped her face with her sleeve.

Ya Li turned her face away, not looking at him, and only gave a soft "hmm".

She bent down to pick up the slippers from the floor, placed them back on the bedside, then grabbed a clean outer robe, walked over to Yun Jingheng, and draped it over his shoulders.

His movements were slow, even a bit rambling, just like when he was a child and about to leave the house.

Yun Jingheng stood still, letting her straighten his collar.

Ya Li stepped back and looked up at him. "Go ahead, don't let the Federation think that Shrek has no one left."

Yun Jingheng smiled and said, "Your son is a person, standing there."

Ya Li patted him lightly. "Stop being silly."

Yun Jingheng turned around and opened the door.

Yun Ming stood outside the door.

He glanced at Ya Li first, and seeing that Yun Jingheng was dressed neatly, he nodded. "Let's go."

Yun Jingheng followed.

A few people from this Zhuo Shi also followed from under the corridor.

"How many people from the Federation came this time?"

"Thirteen. They say it's a special envoy delegation, led by the Speaker's special envoy, and Chen Zeng is also there."

Tang Wulin frowned. "Does this person have ill intentions?"

Yun Ming said, "They've come to probe the situation."

"How do we do it?" Xie Xie, eager to try.

Yun Jingheng removed the bandage from his shoulder and tossed it into the trash can. "Negotiations have to start with talking. We have to show the Shrek's style."

"Bang--!"

Yun Jingheng slammed his hand on the conference table.

The entire long table sank down, and the files, teacups, and pen holders on the table jumped up at the same time, making a clattering sound.

Of the thirteen members of the Federation envoy delegation, four jumped up from their chairs.

Chen Zeng sat at the last seat, his head bowed even lower.

"Trying to fool me with a preliminary negotiation? Do you think I'm young and easy to bully?!"

He leaned on the table and said, word by word, "Thirteen people came from Ming Capital, carrying a document that had been prepared long ago, and came to Shrek to talk to me about 'preliminary negotiations'?"

"The withdrawal from the Far North won't be until next month? Reconstruction supplies have to be reported to District One first? Do you think this is your council's back door? You think Shrek will be moved by just sending some people over to go through the motions?"

Yun Ming covered his face so his expression couldn't be seen, while the expressions on the faces of the others were all increasingly strange.

He suddenly regretted letting Yun Jingheng preside over the meeting; if he continued, the thirteen special envoys from the Federation might not even be able to step out.

"So what the hell do you mean?" Yun Jingheng interrupted him.

He stood up straight, raised his chin to look at people, and although he didn't use any Soul Power, it was as if the whole room was shrunk by his presence.

"I sent you here because I believe there are still people in the Federation who understand the situation, not so you can fool me with a bunch of 'passed through three readings' and 'joint authorization'!"

"Your parliament's third reading and approval is your internal matter; no one at Shrek will accept your procedures."

"If you are truly sincere, you should bring an official order personally signed by the Speaker, a convoy of supplies that has already been mobilized, and the first batch of orders for the withdrawal of troops from the Far North."

"And the result? They brought a list, a 'preliminary confirmation form,' and three Soul Engineer to 'inventory the supplies.'"

"Count what? Are you counting how many of us are left?" He looked at the three Soul Engineer.

The three men were deathly pale, and none of them dared to meet his gaze.

"And you." Yun Jingheng suddenly turned to Chen Zeng.

Chen Zeng quickly stood up, bending very low.

Yun Jingheng said, "You waited seven days in the Far North. I didn't make things difficult for you, and now you've come again. Do you think I've been too easy to talk to?"

"How about I activate my Martial Soul and fight my way to Ming Capital to show you?"

Zhuo Shi took a deep breath and exchanged a glance with Cai Yue'er.

Zhuo Shi: Is this correct?

Cai Yue'er: This isn't right, but it feels great.

Chen Zeng's forehead was beaded with sweat as he said in a low voice, "Pavilion Master, this council meeting was indeed..."

"Indeed what?" Yun Jingheng didn't give him a chance to swallow his words.

He stared intently at Chen Zeng, then suddenly smiled—a smile so cold it sent chills down the spines of everyone in the room.

"You're still watching the wind direction? The Star Luo Empire army has already reached the East Sea, and you're still watching the wind direction?"

"How many years has the Abyss Rift been open in the Far North? How many times have you cut off your supplies? Now that I'm going in, do you even know what stage the things inside have reached?"

"Those Emperor below the tenth floor are all climbing up. The one sitting on the first floor could shove Chen Xinjie's brain into ice with just one look."

"And what have you been doing? Fighting Star Luo Empire for ports! Cutting off the arms supply in the Far North! And what you're doing is stealing the Blood God Legion's weapons for fighting the Abyss!"

He got angrier and angrier as he spoke, and slammed his hand on the table again.

All the teacups on the table tipped over, spilling tea that dripped down the edge of the table and onto the floor.

Nobody bothered to clean it.

"Star Luo Empire too."

Yun Jingheng suddenly turned his head, as if he could really see through the wall towards the Star Luo Empire, "Weren't you going to bite the Federation? Weren't you going to take advantage of the chaos to seize the East Sea? After fighting for so long, how many have you taken?"

"So what if that old codger is in charge? You send him to the Far North, I'll make him stand deep inside the tunnel all night! Let's see if he still dares to say 'this is the border of humanity'!"

He took a deep breath, as if he was having a headache from being angered by these two fools. "The entire Douluo Plane is almost being pried open from below, and you two, one heading north and the other south, are just making room for the Abyss."

"The Blood God Legion is risking their lives to plug the rift in the Far North, and the Blue Light Tower I built is almost burned to ashes. You people sitting in Ming Capital and Star Luo City can't even reach a peace agreement."

"Preliminary negotiations? What you should be negotiating most is how to push the Abyss back underground, not how to divide Shrek's land!"

After he finished speaking, the conference room became so quiet that you could hear the tea dropper hit the floor.

Tang Wulin even softened his breathing.

Yun Ming slowly lowered his hands from his face.

He gazed at his son with a deep look in his eyes.

Envoy Meng opened and closed his mouth several times, finally managing to utter only three words: "Pavilion Master... we..."

"We don't need you anymore," Yun Jingheng waved his hand.

He said coldly, "Go back to Ming Capital. Tell your chairman that if he still considers himself on humanity's side, he should first reopen the supply line to the Far North, and then send someone to the Star Luo Empire to negotiate a settlement."

"If you can't reach an agreement, you don't need to come back. Shrek will close its doors and guard its own territory. You can fight however you want, but don't come begging us when we're swallowed up by the Abyss and other planes one day."