Setting Out for the Return

Watching Jiang Nannan, Le Zhengyue's mouth twitched. "Ah, don't worry about that. Where I'm from, being involved with underage girls is illegal."

"I'm a law-abiding citizen. I don't do that kind of thing."

Le Zhengyue spoke very quickly, as if he were going through a prepared script.

Hearing him, Jiang Nannan froze for a moment, then raised her eyes and looked at him, not quite understanding.

But Le Zhengyue didn't pay her any attention. He stood up, turned, and walked outside.

"Wait here for about two minutes. Someone will come help you pack your things. Of course, you can bring whatever you want, or leave it all behind."

"Once you come back to my family with me, I'll arrange a room for you and give you money for your expenses."

Le Zhengyue spoke casually. When he finished, he turned and walked out. The two guards gave him a respectful nod, then followed.

Whether Jiang Nannan was Le Zhengyue's woman, his wife, or merely a canary he kept in a gilded cage made no difference to them.

No matter what her status was, they had to treat her with the utmost respect.

Watching them leave, Jiang Nannan let out a soft breath. Her gaze fell on the doorway, filled with shame.

She knew her mother had heard what she'd said—or rather, Le Zhengyue hadn't bothered to hide his words.

She slowly pushed the door open and saw her mother sitting there, looking at her with sorrow on her face, as if she wanted to say something.

But Jiang Nannan hurried over and clasped her mother's hand tightly.

"Mom, this isn't your fault. It's something I chose to do. It has nothing to do with you."

"Becoming his woman won't hurt me. If anything, it'll do me good."

Jiang Nannan paused. She didn't know how to tell her mother about Xu Sanshi, or how to explain it to her.

She didn't want to see her mother's sad face. She still remembered coming back after giving herself to Xu Sanshi that time. When her mother saw the Mysterious Underworld Pill and learned what Jiang Nannan had done, she had nearly cried herself blind.

"Mom, I'm doing this of my own free will. He may be young, but he's far more shrewd than ordinary people, and he's handsome, too."

"Even if I can't become his wife, he won't mistreat me."

Jiang Nannan fell silent for a moment, but her mother said nothing, only holding her hand tightly.

In truth, her mother understood. Even without knowing her daughter had any strength, she had already guessed the situation.

Neither of them had any other choice, so she didn't blame her daughter.

Just as when Jiang Nannan had secretly gone to the Mysterious Underworld Sect, how could a mother resent her daughter—especially when her daughter had sacrificed her innocence for her sake?

Yet when she thought of what her daughter might have to endure in the future, tears still filled the mother's eyes.

But she forced herself not to speak and only shook her head gently.

"It's all right, Nannan. It's Mom's fault. If I didn't have this illness, you wouldn't have had to go beg for medicine for me."

"Nannan, promise me that if things go badly in the future, you'll leave. I will never let myself become a burden to you."

The woman's voice was soft. As she spoke, she gently stroked her daughter's long golden hair, pain in her eyes.

Hearing her words, Jiang Nannan only shook her head. Tears filled her eyes, and she looked utterly at a loss.

Le Zhengyue didn't hear the moving conversation between the two, and he didn't particularly care about it either.

He had been sitting by the entrance for less than ten minutes when the two elders arrived.

Looking at Xu Sanshi, who was imprisoned and unconscious, curiosity flickered in Le Zhengyue's eyes.

"So he really did withstand Great-Grandpa's attack. That's interesting."

As he spoke, he slowly approached, his golden eyes fixed on the unconscious Xu Sanshi within.

The elder on the left looked somewhat embarrassed.

"This kid really is strange. He has the aura of a Super Douluo, and it's no weaker than mine."

"His strength may even surpass that of most Super Douluo. If he didn't lack Battle Armor, the two of us might not have been able to stop him from escaping."

The old man spoke in a low voice, but Le Zhengyue's expression didn't change. He had guessed as much long ago.

Anyone who could become one of the Shrek Seven Devils couldn't possibly lack talent, even if he'd benefited from Huo Yuhao's brilliance.

"Mm, it doesn't matter. Great-Grandpa, as long as we take him back to our family, even if he's a Limit Douluo, he won't be able to make waves."

Le Zhengyue looked at Xu Sanshi, his tone calm.

With Yue Zhengen at the helm of the Yue Family, even a Limit Douluo couldn't stir up much trouble. Naturally, he wasn't concerned.

Hearing Le Zhengyue's words, the two old men exchanged a glance and nodded. They said nothing more, returning to their Red Mechas.

Le Zhengyue went to the rear and looked toward the Angel Guards. More than twenty of them had followed him.

This time, aside from the Angel Guard Squad captain, who had been badly injured, the others were in decent shape.

Looking at the captain's pale face, Le Zhengyue raised a hand. A red pill appeared in his palm, and he gently placed it in the man's mouth.

The red pill dissolved quickly, and the man's aura gradually recovered—or rather, began to improve.

"Thank you, young master. Giving a pill like this to someone like me..."

The Angel Guard Squad captain hesitated. He knew about these red pills. They were reserved for saving the lives of the Yue Family's core descendants.

They were highly effective against life-threatening injuries. They couldn't restore severed limbs, but they could ease any other injury, internal or external. The pills were extremely precious.

Even the Yue Family's collateral branches couldn't get them. As for the Angel Guard Squad, they were little more than death warriors raised by the Yue Family.

Now that Le Zhengyue had given one to him, hesitation showed in the captain's eyes. Le Zhengyue, however, didn't care in the slightest.

"Get some rest."

"Everyone else, go inside and bring the mother and daughter out. Then help them pack their things."

"Put the two of them in your mechas. We're setting out for the port now."

After Le Zhengyue gave his orders, the others immediately sprang into action.

The two Angel Guards who had accompanied Le Zhengyue went inside first. In less than five minutes, Jiang Nannan and her mother were brought out.

The woman looked somewhat worn down, but her injuries weren't serious. It was more a case of years of overwork catching up with her.

In her condition, Le Zhengyue honestly couldn't see how that kind of pill would help, but it didn't matter if she took one.

The mecha squad set off. Because of the distance, apart from the appearance of the Angel Phantom, they encountered nothing else along the way.

News that the Mysterious Underworld Sect had been completely destroyed began spreading after they left, but only throughout the Dou Ling Empire.

The thing was, this Dou Ling Empire was even less impressive than the one in later generations.

The Dou Ling Empire of later generations was at least one of the only three remaining empires. But the Dou Ling Empire at this time was merely a tiny kingdom.