Chapter 233: Are You Crazy

Yang Chen stepped out of the room and made his way to the underground parking garage of the villa. After switching on the lights, the garage was illuminated as bright as day. Due to regular cleaning and maintenance, all the luxury cars in the garage gleamed with an oily sheen.

Yang Chen didn't linger over these luxury cars that would make ordinary people drool. He walked straight to the corner of the garage and reached out to touch a blue brick on the wall.

Gripping the brick, Yang Chen carefully pulled it, revealing a seemingly intact blue brick that had been detached from the wall. After exposing a dark little cavity, Yang Chen reached in and pulled out a palm-sized black box. The black box, with its peculiar patterns shining under the light, seemed to be made of an unknown material.

This was the box Yang Chen had taken out of the wall and brought here when he moved out of his rented shabby apartment.

Yang Chen scrutinized the box in his hand and shook his head with a wry smile. "You, this thing, always manage to stir up trouble."

Shaking his head, Yang Chen cautiously opened the box, revealing its contents—a piece of black fabric with a small thumb-sized transparent crystalline object at its center. The object resembled a diamond but emitted black light patterns.

After taking out the crystal, Yang Chen put it into his pocket and threw the box back into the small cavity, covering it with the blue brick.

Half an hour later, Yang Chen drove to the southern outskirts botanical garden. Since it was early in the morning, most people had just started work. Being the most remote wild botanical garden, it was deserted with no sign of any human presence.

Yang Chen had never been here before. As it was autumn and winter, even the personnel at the entrance were not arranged. Yang Chen drove directly into the forest area.

Following the deserted cobblestone path, Yang Chen gradually walked into the depths of the apricot forest.

The ginkgo trees, known as living fossils, appeared particularly dense in this area, with large swathes of fan-shaped leaves falling to the ground and turning into soil.

When he reached a clearing of about ten square meters, Yang Chen stopped and looked up.

At the tops of two ginkgo trees ahead, two men dressed in tight black ninja suits stood as light as feathers—one tall and muscular, the other slender and agile. They were none other than the three ninjas of the Yaksha Clan, Tengu and Tanuki, who Yang Chen hadn't seen for a long time.

And behind Yang Chen, like a fairy playing with iridescent nails, appeared Rāhula. With long flowing hair and a mask covering her face with red-black patterns, her autumn-water-like eyes sparkled with various expressions.

"Where are the hostages?" Yang Chen asked directly.

Tengu chuckled roughly, "Lord Hades, there's no need to rush. If you want to see the hostages, we need to see the God Stone first."

"The God Stone is in my pants pocket, but I need to confirm the safety of the hostages," Yang Chen replied.

"Hehe," Tanuki chuckled, "Who would have thought that Hades, the 'Slayer of Ten Thousand,' the bloodthirsty god of death, would actually bring the God Stone here for the sake of an ordinary woman."

Rāhula's seductive gaze turned to Yang Chen's pants pocket. "Lord Hades, as a woman, I'm somewhat jealous."

Yang Chen furrowed his brows. "It's not just one woman; you've kidnapped two."

Tengu snorted, "Don't worry, as long as you give us the God Stone, we will return your elderly relatives to you first. If you let us run a kilometer without pursuit, we will inform you of where your wife is. Of course, if you try anything or deceive us, your wife, who is as beautiful as a goddess, will become a crimson skeleton."

"Are you threatening me?" Yang Chen asked with a cold expression.

Tengu grinned, "We know, Lord Hades, that you detest being threatened, but please think carefully. Your woman, your family, are in our hands. As long as we have a mishap, they will become our companions in death."

Yang Chen clenched his fists tightly, but ultimately, he slowly relaxed them.

With a long sigh, Yang Chen reached into his pants pocket and took out the small black crystalline object.

As soon as the crystal appeared in the sight of the three ninjas, they all showed fanatical looks.

"It really is in your hands!" Tengu laughed heartily.

Rāhula also showed a glint in her eyes, staring at the crystal in Yang Chen's hand with full concentration.

"Lord Hades, hand it over to us!" Tanuki grinned.

"Let me confirm the safety of the hostages first!" Yang Chen withdrew the crystal back into his palm.

"We can swear by the honor of the Great Sakura Empire's warriors that if you give us the God Stone, we will definitely return your two hostages safely to you!" Tengu said sternly.

"Your honor is worthless," Yang Chen shook his head.

"You're slandering us!" Tengu exclaimed angrily. "Regardless of what you think, if you don't hand over the God Stone, we won't let you find the hostages! If you dare to make a move, they won't receive timely rescue, and they will die!"

Yang Chen looked up, closed his eyes, seemingly contemplating his next move.

Just then, Tengu and Tanuki jumped down from the treetops!

"Swoosh!"

Two cold lights flew past where they had been standing!

"Who's there?!"

Suddenly attacked by hidden weapons, the two couldn't contain their anger, looking towards the direction the weapons came from.

A tall and graceful woman emerged from the forest, wearing a white linen shirt, light-colored jeans, with peachy cheeks and eyebrows like crescent moons. Despite her somewhat aloof demeanor, it was evident she was Cai Yan's sister, Cai Ning, also known as Hua Yu, one of the Eight Members.

Cai Ning's expression was extremely serious as she fixed her sharp gaze on Yang Chen. "Yang Chen, the General has ordered not to hand over the God Stone!"

After the incident in the Zang area, Yang Chen naturally knew who the "General" was, Lin Zhiguo, whom Lin Ruoxi refused to acknowledge as her grandfather.

"I believe it's my prerogative," Yang Chen shrugged. "The God Stone is in my hands, not his."

"That's right, Miss Hua Yu, if you think you can stop us from trading with Lord Hades alone, you better think again," Tanuki smirked.

Cai Ning glanced coldly at them. "Don't forget where we are. Just because we're not attacking you doesn't mean we don't have the capability to eliminate you!"

"Hmph, then see if Lord Hades will disregard the lives of his wife and family," Rāhula said with a smirk. Ignoring them, Cai Ning turned to Yang Chen. "Yang Chen, I know you possess the God Stone. We, the Flame Yellow Iron Brigade, have always known, but we don't demand it from you, trusting you won't consort with those evil forces. We have a friendly relationship with you now, and we won't forcibly take the God Stone from you, but you cannot give it to the Yaksha Clan. Do you know what consequences it will bring to Yan Xia, even to the whole world? They will pose a significant threat!"

Yang Chen pondered for a moment before saying, "You know Ruoxi's identity, and you know the relationship between your so-called General and her."

Cai Ning hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "I know, which is why I admire the General's impartiality."

"You know?" Yang Chen couldn't help but laugh. "What do you know? You know he keeps insisting Ruoxi call him grandfather, asking her not to ignore him, but at a time like this, he's willing to let others not rescue his own granddaughter for a stone he doesn't even possess?!"

"Can't you differentiate between righteousness and personal emotions?! How can you even compare the two?! The General sacrifices his own family for the sake of millions of ordinary people. Is there anything shameful about that?! Isn't it worthy of our respect?!" Cai Ning exclaimed loudly.

"I'm sorry, I don't have such noble sentiments. I only know that my own family, my own woman, even if it means exchanging them for the whole world, I wouldn't do it. If your Flame Yellow Iron Brigade relies on selling family members to defend this country, I really doubt whether your own family members are enough?"

"You," Cai Ning's voice quivered with suppressed anger, her teeth clenched, "You are truly being unreasonable!"

"I'm being unreasonable?!" Yang Chen sneered. "According to your logic, aren't the soldiers on the border, the helpless commanders, aren't they defending the country? Aren't they protecting their beloved families first before defending Yan Xia? If there are no people, where is the family? Without a family, where is the country? Where is the defense of the homeland? Sacrificing family members is the behavior of the weak. To knowingly let someone die without rescuing them, that's the madness of a lunatic! I couldn't understand Abbess Yunmiao's feelings before, but now I understand. What kind of feelings would Abbess Yunmiao have when General Lin Zhiguo sent his son and daughter-in-law to their deaths on the front lines? If you're not capable, then don't show off. I've never heard of any secret organization in other countries gaining respect by sacrificing family members."

Cai Ning's face darkened. "Regardless of what you say, the General ordered me to stop you from handing over the God Stone to them. Our reinforcements will arrive soon, and by then, these three won't be able to escape! Before that, we absolutely cannot agree to their demands. Even if Lin Ruoxi dies, it's a sacrifice for the country!"

"An alive entrepreneur is far more useful to the country than a dead person," Yang Chen said as he took out the crystal. "I can't joke about Ruoxi's life. This worthless stone, I'd trade it for my wife's life any day."

With that, Yang Chen flung the crystal directly towards Tengu!

Tengu caught it with delight, his fingers touching the ice-cold crystal. He laughed heartily, "Lord Hades, you truly understand reason!"

Rāhula and Tanuki were also ecstatic to see Tengu receive the crystal.

"Release them," Yang Chen said expressionlessly.

Cai Ning watched as the God Stone fell into Tengu's hands, her expression changing drastically. She glared at Yang Chen with fury. "Are you crazy?! You actually gave them the God Stone?!"

"It's you who's crazy! Do I need you to manage me when I'm using this worthless stone to save my wife?!" Yang Chen roared.

"Is Lin Ruoxi really worth you doing this?!" Cai Ning questioned.

"She is! Every woman by my side is worth more than this stone!" Yang Chen's deafening words stunned Cai Ning on the spot, tears shimmering in her eyes.

"Haha, Lord Hades, you are truly a devoted man. The person you're looking for is on this paper. Don't be late, or you'll run out of time." Rāhula's eyes flashed with excitement as she suddenly produced a thin piece of paper, kissed it lightly, and flew it into Yang Chen's hand.

Then, Rāhula, Tengu, and Tanuki disappeared into the forest without a trace.

For a skilled ninja, disappearing into the woods was too easy. Even if Yang Chen wanted to pursue, it wouldn't be that easy, especially since he wouldn't dare to leave the hostages behind and chase after them.

Cai Ning came back to her senses, wanting to pursue, but it was already too late. Turning around, she glared angrily at Yang Chen. "You've done a great deed! The General won't let you off! You've challenged our Flame Yellow Iron Brigade!"