Chapter 52: Defying Heaven

Zhou Tianhao anxiously stood guard beside Nian Nian. He regarded her as his sole talisman of protection. With his phone’s flashlight firmly aimed at the door, he silently prayed that nothing unexpected would happen.

Suddenly, he felt a chill at the back of his neck. Instinctively, he reached back and touched something sticky. Bringing it to his nose, he detected a strong scent of alcohol.

Alcohol? How could there be alcohol here?

He sharply looked up, shining the flashlight toward the ceiling. Hanging upside down from the steel beam overhead was a water bottle, its cap punctured with several small holes. Liquid dripped steadily from it, falling precisely onto his position.

A trap?!

No sooner had the thought crossed his mind—

“Ah—!”

“Help—!”

From the direction of the door came two harrowing screams from the blond-haired thugs.

Zhou Tianhao was terrified out of his wits and swung the light beam toward them.

The two blond men writhed on the ground, clawing frantically at their faces and bodies, as if stung by something, writhing in unbearable agony.

Around them on the floor lay a scattering of white powder.

Salt!

Zhou Tianhao’s mind reeled.

Suddenly, he understood!

The assailants first dripped strong liquor on him to lure his gaze upward. Then, at the door, they scattered a large amount of salt and, as the two blond thugs passed, attacked their eyes from the shadows with some unknown substance.

Salt in the eyes causes excruciating pain, enough to incapacitate anyone instantly.

What a cruel scheme!

Zhou Tianhao’s soul trembled with fear. He realized the threat was not the police, but something far worse.

Chen Yu had arrived.

“Chen Yu! You bastard, come out right now!”

Zhou Tianhao shouted fiercely, though trembling inside. Drawing a dagger he had prepared in advance, he wildly waved it through the air. “If you don’t come out, I’ll kill your daughter right now!”

He grabbed the bound Nian Nian and pressed the cold blade against her delicate neck.

Frozen with terror, Nian Nian was so frightened she forgot to cry, her wide eyes filled with sheer dread.

“No! No! Don’t!”

“You beast! Zhou Tianhao, you beast! Let go of Nian Nian!”

“Chen Yu! Come out quickly! Nian Nian’s in danger!”

“Damn it! I want to hack this scum to pieces through the livestream!”

Everyone watching the livestream and at the command center held their breath. Jiang Zhiyun’s vision darkened; she nearly fainted.

In the darkness, a cold voice laced with unhidden murderous intent spoke.

“Try moving a single hair on her.”

Before the words had even finished—

“Whoosh!”

A shadow fell rapidly from the steel beam above Zhou Tianhao, too fast for the naked eye to follow.

Zhou Tianhao felt a gust of wind before a searing pain exploded in his wrist.

“Crack!”

The crisp sound of a bone breaking rang out.

“Ah!!!”

Zhou Tianhao let out a monstrous scream as the dagger clattered to the ground.

His wrist bent backward at an unnatural angle; the pale bone shards pierced the skin, exposed to the air.

Chen Yu appeared before him.

Facing those eyes, Zhou Tianhao’s legs gave way, and he collapsed to the floor, forgetting even the pain. His pants were soaked, emitting a foul stench.

He was terrified.

Truly terrified.

He regretted everything.

He should never have provoked this man—this was no ordinary man but a devil incarnate.

Without glancing at the crumpled Zhou Tianhao, Chen Yu rushed to Nian Nian’s side and swiftly cut through her bindings and gag with a Swiss Army knife.

“Nian Nian!”

He embraced his daughter tightly, feeling her small trembling body. Only then did his heart finally settle.

His muscles trembled slightly from the lingering fear.

The price.

This was the price.

To quickly subdue the two thugs, he had climbed the steel beam in the dark using ropes and launched a surprise attack from above. The impact upon landing had strained his ankles and knees, causing agonizing pain.

A sharp, piercing ache radiated from his feet.

But at this moment, none of that mattered.

“Wah—Daddy!”

Surviving the ordeal, Nian Nian finally burst into tears.

“It’s alright, it’s alright, sweetheart.”

Chen Yu gently patted her back, soothing her frightened spirit with his warmth. “Daddy’s here. No one will ever hurt you again.”

Holding his daughter, he slowly rose and turned to the man sprawled on the ground.

Chen Yu’s gaze sent Zhou Tianhao, who had just caught his breath, plunging back into an icy abyss.

Chen Yu said nothing.

He simply held his daughter and took measured steps toward Zhou Tianhao.

“Don’t… don’t come closer…”

Zhou Tianhao crawled backward, his voice trembling with desperation and terror.

“I was wrong… I really was wrong… I don’t want the money… please spare me… I beg you…”

Chen Yu stopped in front of him, looking down as if gazing upon a piece of trash.

Then, he raised his injured foot.

With brutal force, he delivered a powerful kick to Zhou Tianhao’s face.

“Bang!”

A muffled thud echoed as Zhou Tianhao flew like a broken sack, slamming into distant machinery. Bloodied teeth scattered through the air.

He didn’t even scream before losing consciousness.

Chen Yu held Nian Nian close, his chest heaving violently.

He glanced at the two blond thugs still writhing on the ground nearby, then at Zhou Tianhao, unconscious.

The coldness in his eyes slowly faded.

He took out his phone and dialed a number he had memorized.

“Hello, 110? There are three kidnappers at the abandoned steel factory in the east district. My name is Chen Yu.”

After speaking, he hung up.

Silence enveloped the warehouse once more.

Only Nian Nian’s muffled sobs and the faint groans of the two thugs remained.

[...]

In the livestream chat, a stunned silence blanketed the screen for over ten seconds.

All viewers were dumbfounded by the breathtaking scene they had just witnessed.

From infiltrating and sowing chaos, swiftly incapacitating two henchmen, descending from above, taking down the ringleader in one move, to that cold, ruthless kick—

The entire sequence was fluid and precise, clean and efficient, imbued with a savage aesthetic!

Was this really the work of a full-time stay-at-home dad?!

If you told me this was Jason Bourne, I’d believe it!

“Holy shit!!!!!!!!!!”

“What the hell did I just see?! A flying assassin?! Precision strikes?! One kick KO?!”

“That physique… that explosive power… that strategy… is he even human?!”

“I’m on my knees! Truly on my knees! Yu God! From today on, you are my one and only male idol!”

“Anyone who says he’s a kept man, I’m coming for you! This is the Dragon King, alright! The Dragon King has returned! One command, and ten thousand… no, the Dragon King himself fights!”

“President Jiang must have saved the galaxy in a past life to have found such a man!”