National Guardian's Gone and We're Done

"Mr. Chu, I am well aware that you are the strongest person on Blue Star."

"Your power is extraordinary. Seeing you in person today, I can say you absolutely live up to your reputation."

The palm-headed man’s voice trembled slightly.

A hint of awe flickered in his eyes, but he forced himself to remain calm as he said, "However, compared to the mysterious and powerful Bright Holy See..."

"I don’t believe you have a one hundred percent chance of victory."

As he spoke, he slowly wiggled his five thick, deformed fingers,

as if to emphasize the vast gap between the two. "I have no intention of provoking you; I am merely stating a fact."

Chu He narrowed his eyes slightly,

gazing at the reckless fool before him.

A faint, cold smile played on his lips. "Not bad. You’ve actually managed to pique my interest."

"Enough to make me consider giving you a chance to live."

With that, he pursed his lips lightly,

and without any warning, his leg shot out like a bolt of lightning.

He kicked the tip of his shoe precisely and powerfully into the palm-headed man’s stomach.

In an instant,

an immense power, like a raging flood,

surged through the palm-headed man’s body like a tidal wave.

Wherever this power went,

it was a destructive storm, causing the skin all over his body to nearly rot away.

The Mysterious Power that had been running rampant inside him was also struck by this overwhelming force,

and like snow under a blazing sun, it dissipated until it was nearly undetectable.

The palm-headed man’s body twitched violently and uncontrollably a few times.

Then, his eyes slowly lost focus and his consciousness faded, leaving him in a half-comatose state.

"Now, you can call the Defense Team."

Chu He slowly turned around, his gaze sweeping over the young, terrified faces as he spoke calmly.

Only then

did the group of young people seem to jolt awake from a long and terrible nightmare.

They all scrambled to pull out their phones, their fingers trembling as they dialed the Defense Team’s number.

Their eyes were a mixture of terror and anticipation,

and each one of them prayed silently, hoping the call would go through this time.

Finally, after an agonizing wait,

the call connected.

This time, a normal human voice came from the receiver,

not the cold, mechanical, repetitive voice from before.

This brought them a small measure of relief.

In less than an hour, the local Haitong City Defense Team arrived, mobilized as if for a major battle.

Army-green vehicles sped to the scene, kicking up clouds of dust.

All the Defense Team members were dressed in heavy protective gear,

wearing steel helmets and carrying advanced weaponry.

Their grim and tense expressions made it seem like they were facing a life-or-death struggle.

Helicopters even circled overhead, their massive engines deafening,

their powerful spotlights sweeping across the sky above the forest like searchlights,

illuminating the once dark and mysterious woods as if it were day.

"Mr. Chu."

The man in the suit who had delivered a car to Chu He before also hurried over.

He jogged up to Chu He,

a respectful smile on his face. He bowed slightly and said, "Thank goodness you were here for this incident."

"Otherwise, the local Defense Team would have suffered devastating losses."

"The severity of this incident was far beyond what we imagined. If you hadn’t intervened in time, the consequences would have been unthinkable."

The Defense Team moved quickly, methodically beginning to take statements from everyone.

They selected a few of the young people who seemed to be in a relatively stable state of mind

and had them recount the entire course of events in detail.

The statement-taking process was extremely rigorous,

requiring video, audio, and detailed written records.

The man in the suit had already reviewed the relevant records beforehand and was secretly astonished.

He never would have imagined that this remote mountain village in Haitong City

had been secretly infiltrated by Evil Spirits and members of a sinister organization for so long,

while the local Defense Team remained completely oblivious.

If this group of young people, who had just finished their Martial Arts exam, had all met their demise here,

and considering that many of them were the children of wealthy local families, along with well-connected youths like Lai Yu Yao,

then the pressure from all sides would have undoubtedly come crashing down like a tidal wave.

The Haitong City Defense Team would have certainly seen significant personnel cuts,

and might have even faced a major restructuring and overhaul.

Chu He just grunted softly in acknowledgment and didn’t elaborate on the matter.

Thinking back on the entire series of events,

Chu He’s patience with organizations like the Defense Team had worn completely thin.

Perhaps these years had been too peaceful,

causing the Defense Team to grow complacent. Or perhaps it was because after Chu He arrived in the Great Xia Empire,

he had cleaned up most of the difficult problems,

to the point that their performance in the face of this incident was deeply unsatisfying.

"Mr. Chu, you took care of all the men from Xia Shui Village. Will that cause you any trouble?"

Lai Yu Yao walked over gracefully, her eyes full of worry as she asked in a low voice.

"It’s fine."

Chu He waved his hand dismissively and said nonchalantly, "Those villagers from Xia Shui Village,"

"basically got what they deserved."

"From their own perspective, perhaps they were just trying to survive,"

"bewitched by the Xia Shui Village chief, Chang Bailin."

"But in my eyes, they’ve harmed far too many innocent, pitiful people over the years,"