Chapter 150 I Am Here

The air was thick with a suffocating tension as Hua Rong found herself cornered against the wall.

Watching her pursuers lunge toward her, she suddenly dropped to a squat. One of the men collided heavily with the brick wall, which instantly triggered his fury. "You crafty little woman! Just you wait, I'm going to teach you a proper lesson today!"

With that, he barked at his accomplices, "What are you waiting for? Grab this woman's arms so she can't wriggle away!"

The men swarmed forward, seizing Hua Rong's arms just as the lecherous leader prepared to violate her.

At that split second, however, the wretched-looking man suddenly froze as if he had swallowed something foul. His expression twisted in agony, and he let out a spine-chilling shriek, "Ah! Which bastard ambushed me?"

Clutching his lower back, a trace of blood seeped through his garments. A jagged stone lying on the ground was the culprit behind the sneak attack!

Before the others could react, they looked up toward the mouth of the alley and saw a tall figure standing there. Framed by the flickering firelight behind him, his towering shadow cast an oppressive shroud over them all.

Though he remained completely silent, the chilling aura radiating from him carried an invisible, overwhelming weight.

It was a presence as crushing as a collapsing mountain, striking involuntary dread into their hearts.

"W-Who are you?!"

Having roamed these lawless streets for so long, they possessed at least some basic instincts for who could and could not be crossed.

The fellow before them was utterly unruffled and dead calm, his gaze laced with a chilling intent to kill. One glance was enough to tell he was someone they could not afford to provoke!

"Since you're all dead men walking anyway, why bother knowing so much? Planning to file a complaint with the King of Hell?"

The man casually twirled a dagger in his hand, making no immediate move to strike. Instead, he used his psychological dominance to chill them to the bone.

A mere few sentences from him felt like a definitive sentence of life or death.

"Hold on, do you even know the consequences of committing murder here?!"

One of the men gritted his teeth, trembling as he made a desperate final struggle.

Yet, murders in the black market traded in secrets that could never see the light of day. Who would dare easily expose such a thing unless they truly had a death wish?

He was banking on the powerful backers pulling strings behind the scenes.

However, he was facing Jun Ye Li, the absolute sovereign of the realm. Was there anyone in this world capable of striking fear into his heart? Such petty forces would be crushed in their infancy!

"Heh, you lot are truly amusing. You bully my wife and then try to threaten me? Isn't that a bit too naive?"

With that final, razor-sharp remark, Jun Ye Li abruptly tightened his grip on the dagger and slashed it directly across the leader's face.

Before the pain could even register, two of his companions were struck in quick succession.

In the blink of an eye, though the three men were unremarkable to begin with, their previously unblemished faces now bore prominent, gruesome blade scars.

"Consider this a lesson to jog your memories. Apologize to my wife, and get lost at once."

Jun Ye Li's movements were exceptionally swift and clean. He stowed the dagger back into its sheath with effortless precision.

The men finally registered the blinding pain, but like swallows tasting bitter herbs, they swallowed their agony and dared not raise their voices in protest.

Instead, they caught sight of Hua Rong—who had been terrified into collapsing onto the ground and sat there in a daze—and immediately scrambled forward on their knees. "My Lady! We were blind dogs who failed to recognize Mount Tai and offended you with our words and actions. We beg your magnanimity to spare us, just treat us like a passing fart and let us go!"

As these words echoed, Hua Rong had yet to recover from her shock, the lingering terror still gripping her heart, leaving her mind blank.

Observing this, the anger that Jun Ye Li had just managed to suppress instantly flared back up.

His deep, fathomless eyes now roiled with tempestuous fury, resembling the prelude to a violent storm. "It seems... my wife does not intend to forgive you."

"No, no! We haven't done anything yet! My Lady, please show mercy! Causing a huge scene here won't end well for anyone!"

The men were close to tears. Their facial wounds were still untreated, and judging by the depth and bleeding, their faces would likely be ruined for life.

While they were the ones suffering grievance, Hua Rong had lost nothing, yet she sat there acting delicate and frail. The thugs were burning with frantic anxiety.

Hearing this, Hua Rong no longer wished to engage with them and hurriedly waved a dismissive hand. "Just let them scram! I don't want to see them ever again!"

"Did you hear that? Get lost!" Jun Ye Li had come incognito and had no intention of making a massive scene.

The men scrambled away with remarkable agility, vanishing into the shadows in the blink of an eye.

Seeing Hua Rong curled up against the base of the wall and shivering uncontrollably, Jun Ye Li felt a heavy ache in his chest. He stepped forward, crouched down, and gently touched a stray lock of her hair.

This subtle gesture instantly provoked a fresh wave of panic in her. "What are you doing?!"

"Still haven't snapped out of it? I told you not to follow me, but you stubbornly refused to listen. Regretting it now, are you?"

Had he not arrived in the nick of time, he shuddered to think what consequences might have followed. That was something he would have regretted for the rest of his life.

At this, Hua Rong sniffled, slowly raised her head, and looked at Jun Ye Li with tear-filled eyes. Driven by a sudden, overwhelming emotion, she lunged forward, threw her arms around his neck, and buried herself in a tight embrace.

"W-What is it?"

Jun Ye Li was momentarily bewildered, genuinely afraid she might have been frightened out of her wits. He hurriedly patted her back to soothe her. "I told you I was here. It's over now, don't be scared anymore."

"I was terrified... But... for my sake, you actually risked your life in a place like this. And with your noble status..."

If her identity had been exposed, could they have possibly walked out of this place alive?

In a den of vipers like this, what if something had gone terribly wrong? What would she have done then?

Yet, solely for her sake, Jun Ye Li had thrown all caution to the wind. How could she not be deeply moved?

Thinking it was something grave, Jun Ye Li let out a soft chuckle, gently stroking her raven-black, silky hair, which paradoxically brought a sense of calm to his own mind.

Though he had originally intended to lecture her for disobeying, the words melted away, replaced entirely by tender consolation. "Alright, since you're already here and those scoundrels have been punished, don't dwell on the sadness. Let's go find that old ghost together."

Having been through this ordeal, Hua Rong became much more obedient, tightly gripping Jun Ye Li's arm the entire way.

They did encounter a few oblivious punks attempting to harass them along the path, but all were swiftly and utterly suppressed by Jun Ye Li.