Chapter 222
Chapter 222
When Liu Ye returned with the medicine, he found Xiaoqian facing off against a Fiend.
The Fiend looked almost entirely human. The only difference was that a pair of copper coins sat where his eyes should have been.
This was a kind of Fiend born in the new century: a Money Fiend.
Anyone who died because of money could potentially give rise to one.
Because of their unique nature, they produced and managed all Yin Coins. As a result, they were an enormous power in the inner-layer world.
The Driver’s expression changed drastically at the sight of the Money Fiend, and he hurried over.
“Hey, little lady, don’t be so hostile. It’s an honor that I’ve taken an interest in you. What’s so good about following a human? Why not come with me instead?”
“Chairman Han!”
The Driver rushed forward and grabbed the other man’s hand.
“Chairman Han, it’s been far too long!”
The Money Fiend glanced at him, then pulled his hand away in disgust.
“So it’s you, Lü Mao. Your car loan has been overdue for quite some time. If you don’t pay soon, our debt collectors will come looking for you.”
“Oh, listen to you. Of course I’ll pay! Money has simply been a little tight lately. Give me two more days. I promise I’ll make the payment this month.”
“That can be arranged. But I’m taking this lovely young woman and everyone else here with me.”
“Hey! What gives you the right?”
Liu Ye strode over angrily.
“In broad daylight, you dare abduct an innocent woman…”
Then he glanced at Xiaoshuai and the others.
“And innocent men!”
Xiaoshuai and the others fell silent.
They were all deeply nervous. The Money Fiend himself was not particularly strong-he did not possess even one-tenth of Xiaoqian’s power. The problem was that every Fiend standing beside him was roughly as powerful as Xiaoqian, and one of them was even stronger than she was.
The Driver hurriedly blocked Liu Ye’s path.
“Liu Ye, this one is different. His family is enormously influential.”
The Money Fiends wielded immense power in the inner-layer world. Liu Ye might survive offending them, but the Driver certainly would not.
Because of the Money Fiends’ unique nature, anyone who spent Yin Coins would be marked by them.
No matter where the Driver fled, they could find him. Furthermore, the moment anyone laid a hand on a Money Fiend, a bounty would immediately be placed on the attacker. That was almost the same as making an enemy of the entire inner-layer world.
The Driver knew the Fiends behind Liu Ye were probably extremely powerful, but this involved the whole inner-layer world. Uncle Bai might be strong, but the opposing force was essentially an entire world.
“So what if his family is powerful? Does that give him the right to ignore the law?”
“Heh. You guessed it. I can do whatever I please. That’s what money buys me. Get them!”
At the Money Fiend’s command, his subordinates immediately moved toward Xiaoqian.
Xiaoqian was about to resist when Liu Ye stepped forward and swung his palm.
The bodyguard watched the slap approach and sneered disdainfully.
A mere human…
Smack!
Black pus and blood splattered across the Money Fiend and the Driver.
The Money Fiend looked down at the filth covering him, then roared in fury, “Kill him!”
The remaining bodyguards stared at Liu Ye in terror. What he had just done filled them with dread.
Only the lead bodyguard studied Liu Ye gravely.
“Young Master, this man will not be easy to handle. We should retreat for now.”
Smack!
The Money Fiend slapped him across the face. Although the bodyguard was far stronger than his employer, he did not dare show the slightest anger.
“Retreat? I’ve already made my declaration, and now you want me to leave? What would that do to my reputation? I pay you a fortune in Yin Coins every day, and your answer is to retreat? Is your head full of shit? Get over there and kill him!”
The bodyguards had no choice but to advance. Several timid members of the Zhao family collapsed to the ground in terror. It was not that they did not want to flee. They simply lacked the strength, and escape would have been impossible anyway.
The bodyguards revealed their Fiendish Forms, and yin energy surged from their bodies. Cold sweat streamed down the faces of Xiaoshuai and John. The Fiends here usually concealed themselves so completely that they seemed no different from ordinary humans. But once they revealed their Fiendish Forms, they were far more terrifying than their counterparts in the real world.
“I wonder if Brother Liu can handle them…”
Ding!
At the crisp sound, the tall, imposing Fiends lowered their heads and discovered an adorable little object shaped like a sweet potato.
The Fiends fell silent.
Boom!
Another shower of blood swept across the group. By now, the Driver felt as though he could bathe in it.
The only bodyguard left was the leader from before. Even he was covered in wounds, lying on the ground with more air leaving his body than entering it.
His face was filled with panic, but it was not Liu Ye he feared. The grenade from a moment ago had stirred a familiar memory.
Several years earlier, he had traveled to the real world, only to be beaten back by a human.
That human had not been powerful. The problem was the exceptionally fearsome Peachwood Sword in his hands. Though crudely made, that single sword had forcibly driven the bodyguard back.
The light radiating from that Peachwood Sword had been identical to the light from the grenade just now.
He wanted to tell the Money Fiend what he had discovered, but the other man stomped his head apart before he could speak.
“Useless! Every one of you is useless! I would have been better off raising a few humans!”
Then he pointed at Liu Ye.
“Just you wait!”
He turned to leave, only for Liu Ye to grab him.
“What else do you want?”
The Money Fiend turned around and saw a fist the size of a sandbag.
Bang!
The world spun around him, and he collapsed to the ground.
The Driver and Xiaoqian stared in shock.
“It’s over! This is a disaster!” The Driver closed his eyes in anguish.
Sure enough, the instant the Money Fiend was knocked down, the Yin Coins in the Driver’s and Xiaoqian’s pockets began trembling. The Money Fiends were locking onto their locations.
The Zhao family members might be able to escape involvement, but those two certainly could not.
“What are you afraid of? If worst comes to worst, all of you can come home with me. Village Chief Grandpa knows plenty of people. Once we get back, we definitely won’t have to fear them.”
Liu Ye himself was not afraid. Those scrawny fellows could each be dealt with using a single slap. But seeing how frightened the Driver and Xiaoqian looked, he felt he ought to comfort them.
He took the phone from the Driver and made a call.
“Hello, is this Village Chief Grandpa? It’s Little Ye!”
“Ah, Little Ye! What is it? Do you miss your parents again? I’ll call them over right now!”
“No, Village Chief Grandpa. I got into trouble outside, so I want to come home and hide for a while.”
Silence.
The village chief turned to stone. Then he asked in disbelief, “What did you just say? You want to come back?”
“That’s right. I offended a fellow called Money-Gui. He says his family is very powerful, and he wants to make trouble for my friends. I don’t have any other choice, so I have to come home. Grandpa, I’ll start heading back today. Please meet me at the village entrance when I arrive.”
The village chief silently lowered the phone. By now, the area around him was packed with Fiends.
Every one of them looked as though a close family member had died.
“He means those Money Fiends, right?”
Guiwa took out a Yin Coin. Everyone stared at it in silence for an entire minute. Then…
“KILL THEM ALL!”