Chapter Eighty-Eight: The Fierce Little Lolita

Human life was at stake, and at a time like this Lin Yang naturally had no mind to waste on the petulant little policewoman who was clinging to him. Taking Leng Nini and Zhang Qiqi by the hand, he strode toward the villa.

Watching the three figures recede, Su Yaxue ground her teeth in fury. For a woman as stubborn as a mule, this was never going to end so easily.

With that thought, she lifted her foot and followed after them. She was a police officer; who was she afraid of? Besides, she was acting within the law. Fearing that the boy might deny everything, she had seized the opportunity to record the moment Lin Yang ran the red light. The evidence was in her hands; she was not afraid of him backing out.

Just as she stepped past the gate, two bodyguards in black suits reached out and stopped her.

"Miss, you cannot go in."

Two thick, powerful arms folded together to block her path completely, leaving not the slightest opening. The one speaking was a rather mature-looking bodyguard, and his tone was unexpectedly courteous.

Well now, an older man really did know how to respect the young and honor the old. Even while blocking her, he still did not forget his manners.

Unfortunately, this lady was not nearly so easy to deal with. Su Yaxue, still in uniform, raised her slender hand and pointed at the police insignia on her chest.

"Do you know what this is?"

"The bodyguard who had spoken remained calm and respectful, neither hurried nor impatient.

"Since you know, then this officer is handling official business and arresting the brat who just went in. Step aside."

Su Yaxue snapped impatiently and reached out to shove their broad arms away.

"Without a search warrant, this is trespassing. Though I am but a humble man, that much I understand very well. If the officer has a warrant, there will be no difficulty," the older bodyguard answered bluntly, spreading both palms toward her in clear meaning.

Bring a search warrant, and Su Yaxue could pass.

She was furious enough that her cheeks puffed round and her chest heaved unevenly. Her eyes were blazing with anger. She had truly been provoked. It was her very first assignment, and she had already run into such an infuriating, unreasonable bastard, one who even dared to lecture her, a police officer, about the law. By the rules and loopholes of the law, who could endure that? She could not.

To ask the bureau for help would only make her look small. Besides, she was proud and headstrong by nature. How could she possibly tolerate such a thing?

Seeing that the two bodyguards had no intention of letting her through, the little woman exploded. The consequences were serious. After all, her black belt in taekwondo was not for show. Since they refused to make way, she would simply fight her way in, then arrest that lawless scoundrel who had openly run a red light and even dared to assault a police officer.

At just over five feet five, with her slim figure, Su Yaxue could hardly compare with the two hulking bodyguards. Yet miracles often happened in such moments.

The taekwondo black belt named Su Yaxue taught them both a lesson in how one could never judge a book by its cover, and how women were no weaker than men.

Taking advantage of their complete lack of preparation, she darted forward, forcing the bodyguard on the right to lurch forward. She then stepped back half a pace, and when his head dipped down, Su Yaxue lifted her leg and delivered a beautiful, merciless high kick straight to his skull.

Thud.

A dull crash rang out as his body hit the ground. The bodyguard, having been struck, did not even have time to cry out before the blow knocked him senseless, and he sprawled on the floor like a dead dog.

The other bodyguard was still stunned by the sight when Su Yaxue's second strike came in immediately after. This time, she drove her knee hard into his stomach. Hard bone met soft flesh, and despite the fact that he considered himself to have a few solid abdominal muscles, the result was still a tragedy.

At least the second bodyguard managed to scream. And scream he did, without pause. Su Yaxue's move was brutal; one knee strike from a trained fighter carried no small force, even though she looked like nothing more than a frail young woman.

The younger bodyguard had tears forced from his eyes. Crouched on the ground, he clutched his stomach and howled in pain, clearly unable to get back up. In truth, he would have preferred to be knocked out like the other one. At least that way, he would not have to feel the pain.

Having dealt with the two roadblocks, the little policewoman Su Yaxue smugly dusted off her hands and continued after the three people, whose figures had already disappeared. They must have gone into that mansion.

Walking ahead without pause and quickening his pace, Lin Yang's spiritual sense was so formidable that although he had not turned to glance back even once, he still noticed the fierce aura of the little policewoman behind him. Yet with Zhang Qiqi nervously holding onto him and Zhang Zifeng's condition weighing on his mind, his feet did not dare slow for a moment.

The bodyguard captain was pacing anxiously in the first-floor hall when he saw Lin Yang hurrying over and immediately stepped forward to greet him.

"Young Master Yang, good day."

Lin Yang simply smiled and nodded. Halfway there, an idea came to him. He stopped, turned his head toward the bodyguard captain, and said with a grin, "Oh, and there is a rather sweet little girl behind us. Stop her for a while. Hold the line until I am done, and I will handle it when I get back."

With that, without waiting to see whether the bodyguard captain understood, he left behind the fading echo of his words and the crisp sound of shoes striking the floor, and led the three women straight toward Zhang Zifeng's bedroom.

Creak.

Zhang Qiqi was sharp-eyed enough to reach out and gently push the door open. The three of them stepped into the room quietly, and the moment they did, a sharp stench of sour vomit rushed at them. The nauseating odor was enough to turn the stomach.

Seeing the three of them covering their noses and mouths in such awkward distress, and the twisted expressions on their faces, Su Qin, who had already been through her share of hardships, did not care about the smell. She stood up and anxiously called to Lin Yang, "Xiaoyang, you finally came. Look at your Uncle Feng. What is going on with him? Why did he suddenly start vomiting like that? He has thrown up more than half his stomach contents, and his face is even worse than before. It is already turning a little blue."

Su Qin, a beautiful woman who had endured years of suffering, wore an expression of deep concern. Anyone who saw her would not be able to resist the urge to comfort her. Lin Yang was no exception. Besides, a woman needed reassurance most at a time like this. He patted Su Qin on the shoulder and comforted her, saying, "Aunt Qin, do not worry. It will be all right. If I am not mistaken, Uncle Feng may be having an allergic reaction."

After repeatedly considering the matter along the way, this was the only explanation he could come up with.

He gave Leng Nini a look, and she was clever enough to understand at once. Cooperating readily, she went over to support her mother, whose strength had been drained.

With his hands free, Lin Yang moved around Su Qin and to the bedside. First he examined Zhang Zifeng's bluish face, then checked the whitened eyes, felt his heartbeat, took his pulse, and used every method available to him. Only after that did he begin the most complicated part: testing and nourishing him with internal energy.

After about five minutes, Lin Yang finally straightened up and said gravely, "There are two reasons. First, the lotus seed soup did indeed trigger a rejection with the toxins in Uncle Feng's body. Second, the toxins are spreading faster."

His expression was truly ugly. And for good reason: the second explanation was no good news at all. Faster toxin spread meant that Zhang Zifeng's march toward death had only accelerated.

Hearing this terrible news, even a strong woman like Su Qin felt as though a heavy hammer had struck her head. Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted. Fortunately, Lin Yang reacted quickly; otherwise, with Zhang Qiqi's frail strength, Su Qin would have fallen to the floor.

"Brother Xiaoyang, is there really no other way? We cannot just stand here and watch Father wait for death!" Zhang Qiqi said through tears, looking at Lin Yang with blurred, weeping eyes.

They said women were made of water, and there was no lie in that. Just a moment ago she had merely been misty-eyed, and in the blink of an eye tears were pouring down like rain. Large drops rolled from Zhang Qiqi's beautiful face, leaving two tracks as though wheels had passed over them, slipping from her cheeks to her chin and then dripping onto the cold floor tiles.

Even Leng Nini, who was usually carefree and acted without a shred of caution, was infected by the sorrow in the room. She too choked back tears beside Zhang Qiqi, and before long she was sobbing out loud. Her crying was even louder than Zhang Qiqi's, making it sound as though the one who was ill was her own father.

Whether in the bond of family from years ago or in the present, Lin Yang would never abandon Zhang Zifeng in his hour of danger. But he was not a god. With his current level of cultivation, he truly could not eradicate the poison completely. He could only rely on his internal energy to slow its spread. But that meant he would have to remain constantly by Zhang Zifeng's side. If the man suffered any sudden discomfort, he would need to treat it at once. Yet lately, he had far too many troublesome matters to deal with; there was simply no way he could stay in the villa all the time.

Ha. What a headache.

Still, for now, the only option was to hold back the poison in Zhang Zifeng's body. Otherwise, before his cultivation could rise enough to improve, the man might not survive many more days before bidding farewell to the world and reporting to the Lord of the Underworld.

He extended his hand and rapidly pressed a series of points across Zhang Zifeng's body. The motions looked chaotic and without pattern, but every finger strike landed precisely on a vital acupoint to prevent the poison from spreading further.

Once the toxin's advance had been controlled, Lin Yang wasted no time infusing the man's body with internal energy, using it to nourish the cells and tissues that had been damaged. Dealing with this terrifying poison was no easy matter. Even he was overwhelmed. It was, by far, the most troublesome and difficult poison he had encountered to date. HSV really was a horrifying compound toxin.

Thinking of that virus's code name and origin, Lin Yang could not help but break out in a cold sweat. If Zhang Zifeng's words were true and the schemers from the Island Nation were really planning to unleash such poison upon Huaxia, then the country would surely be plunged into endless terror and disaster. In that case, the Island Nation would be able to take advantage of the chaos. This also led him to think that the researchers in the Island Nation must at least possess an antidote; otherwise, with such a lethal toxin in their hands, they themselves would surely live in fear.

Using internal energy to nourish another person's body was indeed an exhausting and thankless task. If Zhang Zifeng were not the old patriarch's sworn son, if his wife were not Lin Yang's wet nurse, and if Zhang Qiqi were not his childhood playmate, Lin Yang would never have done such a troublesome thing for no reward.

With Lin Yang's internal energy supporting him, Zhang Zifeng, who had moments ago looked ashen and haggard, now appeared somewhat rosier. Still, he remained pale, clearly because he had vomited too much and was losing the nutrients he had barely managed to absorb.

Withdrawing his right hand from the flow of internal energy, Lin Yang looked at Su Qin, whose gaze had remained fixed on her husband the entire time, and shook his head helplessly. This woman had paid too much. He forced a faint smile and reassured her, saying, "Aunt Qin, do not worry. Uncle Feng's body is fine. But next time, be careful not to let him touch lotus seeds again. He is allergic to them."

"It was all my fault, all my fault for not paying attention. I nearly harmed Brother Feng," Su Qin said with a choked sob, taking the blame for the accident onto herself.

Seeing how stubborn she was, Lin Yang did not say any more. Let her cry. After crying for a while, perhaps she would feel better.

Just as Lin Yang rose and was about to leave the room, an intense argument sounded from outside.

"I already said it. If you do not get out of the way, I do not mind teaching you what it feels like to have both arms dislocated."