Chapter 420: An Zijin: It Seems My Home Has Been Stolen

“Swish!”

“Swish!”

“Swish!”

At that moment, a series of whooshing sounds suddenly approached.

“Be careful!”

Xu Qianqian was the first to react. Setting aside her bold declaration from moments ago, she drew her dagger and positioned herself protectively in front of the Su couple.

Lei Hao and Ye Bai also immediately went on alert, causing everyone present to tense up.

Only Su Ming remained calm, even letting out a sigh of relief instead of growing wary.

“Don’t worry,” Su Ming said. “They’re my people.”

No sooner had he spoken than the figures creating the whooshing sounds descended from mid-air one by one, revealing themselves.

Everyone present stared in astonishment at the newcomers.

The reason was simple.

The arrivals were all women.

Not just any women, but a group each with her own distinct charm, all exceptionally beautiful and adorable without exception.

They were the young ladies of ‘Azure Mercury.’

“Commander!”

“Brother Su Ming!”

“Senior Su Ming!”

“Lord Commander!”

Amidst the chorus of greetings, the girls hurried over to Su Ming’s side.

“Senior Xu?”

An Zijin, who had just been set down by Jiang Wanyu and Yao Beibei, immediately noticed Xu Qianqian protecting the Su couple. Her first thought was that it seemed her home had been stolen.

“Senior Lei Hao!”

“Senior Ye Bai!”

Jiang Wanyu and Yao Beibei spotted Lei Hao and Ye Bai, calling out to them with delighted surprise.

“Junior Jiang? Junior Yao?”

“Junior An! You… you’re all safe! That’s wonderful!”

Lei Hao and Ye Bai also showed expressions of pleasant surprise the moment they saw Jiang Wanyu and Yao Beibei.

Ye Bai in particular was nearly overjoyed when he saw An Zijin.

Unfortunately, An Zijin’s attention was solely fixed on Xu Qianqian guarding the Su couple, and she kept muttering under her breath, sending an inexplicable chill down people’s spines.

The appearance of this group of young ladies made the civilians present, who were trapped in dire circumstances, feel their eyes light up in astonishment.

Especially some young men and middle-aged men with youthful hearts despite their age, whose eyes began to gleam.

“S-son? Who are they…?”

Even Su Changhe and Su Lili were stunned, stammering as they watched the flock of charming young women gathering around Su Ming.

Xu Qianqian remained silent, only gazing at Su Ming with a profound look that made him feel the guilt of someone caught cheating by his lawful wife.

“Ahem…”

Su Ming cleared his throat awkwardly and offered an explanation.

“Dad, Mom, they’re all members of my team. The kind who travel north and south together in the Professional circle.”

Unlike Tianfeng City, Longyao City didn’t have the concept of Professional teams.

However, forming parties to undertake missions together was still very common in Longyao City.

Although not as conceptually distinct, regulated, or mature in welfare systems and operational models as in Tianfeng City—being more about adventuring together casually—if people got along well and cooperated smoothly, they could form fixed teams to continue venturing together.

Thus, Su Ming didn’t hide this fact and directly informed everyone.

Only…

“Team members? Traveling north and south together?””Are all the members of your team such beautiful women? Even An and the others have joined you? Damn! Are you sure you’re traveling the world and not living in a debauched paradise?”

Lei Hao and Ye Bai loudly complained while turning green with envy.

Not just Lei Hao and Ye Bai, even Su Ming’s parents fell silent, looking at their son with the strangest expressions imaginable.

As for the others, their gazes were far from friendly.

For instance, the onlookers stared at Su Ming as if he were a decadent ruler indulging in the pleasures of women, while some young men burned with jealousy.

Then there was Xu Qianqian, who had remained silent all this time, staring fixedly at Su Ming as if she might pounce and stab him at any moment.

Finally, it was An Zijin who jumped in just in time to save Su Ming.

“Uncle Su, Auntie Su, do you still remember me?”

The girl next door finally began playing her cards, ready to reclaim what had been stolen from her home.

Su Changhe and Su Lili were momentarily stunned before recognizing something familiar in An Zijin’s doll-like face, their expressions turning delighted.

“Is that you, Zijin?”

“The little darling from the An family?”

The way Su Changhe and Su Lili looked at An Zijin instantly transformed, becoming as affectionate and joyful as if she were their own daughter.

“It’s me! Uncle! Auntie!An Zijin immediately beamed, shooting a provocative look at Xu Qianqian.

Xu Qianqian remained expressionless, though her grip on the dagger tightened slightly.

Chi Qian, Mu Yan, Feng Qing’er, Tong Xinyao and the others had been observing from the sidelines all along, neither speaking nor intervening in this reunion atmosphere.

After all, they had no connection whatsoever to Longyao City. If not for Su Ming, they would be complete strangers to everyone present.

The girls merely studied Su Changhe and Su Lili with mild curiosity, showing some interest in the parents of their prodigy Commander, and cast a few extra glances at the strikingly beautiful Xu Qianqian who also possessed considerable aura. Beyond that, they did nothing else.

Thus, when the atmosphere finally eased somewhat, Su Ming turned to Xu Qianqian.

“What exactly is the current situation?”

Su Ming was naturally asking about Longyao City’s circumstances.

To this, Xu Qianqian remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.

“As you can see, Longyao City has completely fallen.” Xu Qianqian sighed. “Although the various families and external stationed personnel are resisting desperately, still battling Sin’s underground Professionals, the enemies have fully breached Longyao City’s urban areas and are slaughtering indiscriminately.”

“The two Seven-Star Professionals responsible for defending Longyao City were defeated by Sin’s two Commanders. Their current status, whether alive or dead, remains unknown.”

“The other high-level combatants have been pinned down by Sin’s Ten Demons. We don’t yet know how that’s progressing or who’s winning.”

“When the Six Great Families, including the Xu Family, saw the situation turning dire, they only kept a portion of the younger generation as seeds, sending them away under escort. Everyone else has organized resistance.”

Xu Qianqian didn’t tell Su Ming that she herself was one of those preserved seeds, originally meant to be evacuated to safety.Yet Xu Qianqian disregarded her family’s attempts to stop her, resolutely rushing to the battlefield. She arrived at the Key Protected Area, found the Su couple, and reunited with Lei Hao, Ye Bai, and other students from the Demon Hunter Academy to escape together.

Xu Qianqian chose not to tell Su Ming about these events, only mentioning the overall situation in Longyao City.

“Before I came here, I heard from my family that most of the Underground Professionals remained in the city district, continuing to fight. Only the Commander and Vice Captain of 『Sin』, along with a young girl, entered the Underground Ruins beneath the Wang Family Tomb.”

At this point, Xu Qianqian bit her lip and looked at Su Ming.

“That girl is terrifying. She wields a fearsome weapon capable of destroying Longyao City’s walls in a single strike. It’s said that even Six-Star Professionals are no match for her, easily slain by her hand.”

“We never expected that 『Sin』 would harbor such a dreadful existence.”

“Some say she appears somewhat insane, yet she keeps searching for someone, or perhaps waiting for someone.”

As these words were spoken, Xu Qianqian noticed the beautiful young women whom Su Ming referred to as his team members—companions who had traveled north and south with him—all turning their gaze toward Su Ming.

Their eyes held both concern and unease.

This confirmed Xu Qianqian’s suspicion: the terrifying girl was searching for, waiting for, Su Ming.

The members of 『Sin』 wanted to capture Su Ming’s parents and friends, showing clear targeting toward him.

Combined with Xu Qianqian’s knowledge that Su Ming was Ming Wang and possessed a Divine Artifact, she had long suspected that the girl—who also seemed to wield a Divine Artifact—might have Su Ming as her target.

Now, this suspicion was confirmed.

“Son,” Su Changhe couldn’t help but ask, “what exactly have you done? Why are those Underground Professionals so afraid of you? Why are they so determined to target you?”

This was something everyone besides the members of 『Azure Mercury』 wanted to know.

But Su Ming had no intention of explaining.

“I’ve obstructed their plans and become their greatest threat. Of course they want to eliminate me as soon as possible.”

Su Ming merely sneered coldly before turning to his parents.

“Dad, Mom, please take my classmates and all the townspeople to seek refuge.” Su Ming said this calmly. “Longyao City is no longer safe. There’s something truly terrifying sealed underground here, and given the current situation, it could break free at any moment. You can’t stay here any longer.”

“What about you?” Su Lili immediately grew anxious. “You’re not planning to come with us?”

“I won’t be going.” Su Ming shook his head calmly. “It’s time to settle accounts with them once and for all.”

It was indeed time to settle accounts.

Whether it was the conflict that occurred in the Underground Ruins or the grudges formed in the Midnight Labyrinth, everything needed to be properly reckoned with.

Moreover, they had destroyed Longyao City and targeted his loved ones in their efforts against him, nearly causing his family and friends to become casualties.

All of this fueled a burning fire in Su Ming’s heart, growing ever stronger.

Such conflicts, such grudges—only blood could settle them.”Chi Qian, Yanyan, you and the others will be responsible for escorting my parents and the people here.” Su Ming addressed the group of young women. “Younger Sister Xiao Jin and the two junior schoolmates should go as well, along with Young Miss Xu. You must leave Longyao City as quickly as possible—there’s no more time to delay.”

“But…” the women immediately began to protest.

“Enough, it’s decided,” Su Ming declared in an uncompromising tone. “I’m going to the Yun Family Estate, then preparing to enter the Underground Ruins. If ‘that existence’ breaks free from its seal, none of you will survive if you remain here.”

“I’m different—I have complete confidence in ensuring my own safety.”

“Go, leave this place quickly.”

Faced with Su Ming’s unwavering stance, everyone fell silent.

Even Mr. and Mrs. Su were stunned as they watched their son calmly release an astonishing Aura.

Xu Qianqian gazed steadily at Su Ming and spoke only one sentence.

“Be careful in all matters.”

Hearing this, Su Ming smiled faintly and nodded.

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(End of Chapter)