This guy is too stubborn.

"Are you sure she can take care of me?"

Lin Chen asked An Yi with a calm tone.

An Yi cleared his throat lightly. "You're already recovered, aren't you?"

"Where's A-Chen?"

Su Xue'er rubbed the fluffy head of the dog but gradually sensed something amiss. She looked around in confusion.

"Put your glasses on."

Lin Chen took a pair of glasses from her pocket and handed them to her.

Su Xue'er put on the black-framed glasses and murmured shyly, "Do I look silly like this?"

"You look sillier without them!"

Lin Chen lied smoothly, "No, you look beautiful like this."

"R-Really?"

A blissful smile spread across Su Xue'er's lips as she declared earnestly, "Don’t worry, I’ll definitely protect you! I even brought my sniper!"

With that, she slung the oversized guitar case off her back, opened it, and pulled out… half of a mop.

"I must’ve grabbed the wrong thing while packing." Su Xue'er scratched her head sheepishly.

Lin Chen: "..."

"Promise me you’ll never take those glasses off. You’re stunning like this."

Lin Chen ruffled her hair, his expression serious.

Su Xue'er’s face flushed crimson.

"Ugh, so cheesy. I’m heading to the Enforcement Bureau. You two eat first."

An Yi grimaced, snatched a sandwich, and strode out the door.

---

Downtown Imperial City, a bustling commercial street.

"Hey, Chen Bing! What kind of love potion did you feed my sister?"

Tang Qingqing stared in disbelief at her older sister, Tang Xiaoya, who was clinging to Chen Bing’s arm with an uncharacteristically tender expression.

She knew her sister was anything but docile.

Though famously beautiful, Tang Xiaoya’s fiery, domineering personality had scared off most men. Her 22 years of singlehood spoke volumes—she was practically untamable.

Yet, after just one month of dating, this bespectacled guy had somehow tamed her?

Tang Xiaoya shot her sister a glare. "What love potion? We’re genuinely in love."

Chen Bing wasn’t classically handsome, but there was an effortless charm to him—every little mannerism inexplicably drew her in.

A faint smirk curled Chen Bing’s lips.

As if.

He’d spent ten years in a thousand-year timeline just studying how to win Tang Xiaoya over.

And his conclusion?

If not for him, this woman would’ve died single.

Tang Qingqing rolled her eyes. "Fine, I won’t third-wheel. You two keep drowning in your lovey-dovey bubble. I’m heading to the Bai family."

Bai Xiu was a block of wood—his brain only knew sleep, and his emotional IQ was painfully low.

So, she had to take the initiative, starting with winning over Granny Bai. Her frequent visits had paid off—Granny Bai already called her "granddaughter-in-law" in private.

"Why go to the Bai family?" Tang Xiaoya frowned, then warned, "That Bai Xiu is off-limits. Grandpa would never accept a drug addict."

"He’s not a drug addict! Bye!"

Tang Qingqing waved playfully and skipped away.

"She’s grown up so fast," Tang Xiaoya murmured, a soft smile on her lips.

"Bai Xiu isn’t a bad guy," Chen Bing adjusted his black-framed glasses casually.

"But he’s not you." Tang Xiaoya hugged his arm and pouted. "Chen Bing, will you always love me? I’m hot-tempered, stubborn, not gentle at all, and sometimes downright dumb—"

"At least you’re self-aware."

Chen Bing chuckled fondly. "I will."

"Then swear it! Love me for a thousand years without changing!" Tang Xiaoya teased.

Chen Bing shook his head. "A thousand years is too short. Make it ten thousand. I’ve already loved you for a thousand."

"You—!"

Tang Xiaoya’s ears turned pink.

This man always knew how to make her heart skip a beat.

Bang!

A silenced gunshot rang out, the bullet cutting through the air of the crowded street.

But an invisible thread intercepted it mid-flight, splitting the bullet and dissipating its force.

The pedestrians remained oblivious.

"What the—? Where’d the bullet go?!"

The sniper scowled, scanning the street through his scope. Nothing had changed.

Did I miss?

Chen Bing gripped Tang Xiaoya’s shoulders. "Close your eyes."

"What trick are you pulling now?"

Tang Xiaoya’s bright eyes sparkled with curiosity, but she obediently shut them.

Chen Bing’s gaze turned icy as he locked onto the sniper’s position.

Sang Jie.

A legendary assassin from the Monro Sect in India—success rate nearing 100%, a killer who could rival even the Void Realm warriors of Great Xia.

But his legend ended here.

A streak of light flashed.

Sang Jie sensed danger and bolted—

Too late.

A thread slit his throat.

Blood gushed from his severed windpipe.

The entire kill took less than two seconds.

As Sang Jie’s eyes dimmed, his body crumpled to the ground.

India’s most feared assassin was no more.

Back on the street, Tang Xiaoya counted softly, "One, two, three… eyes open!"

Before she could react, warmth pressed against her lips. A jolt ran through her as she opened her eyes to see Chen Bing, then slowly closed them again.

Her slender arms wrapped around his neck as they kissed amidst the bustling crowd.

---

Enforcement Bureau, Interrogation Room

"Wait, is this what he’s supposed to look like?"

An Yi winced at the sight of the bearded man before him—his face was so battered it was unrecognizable.

Jiang Cheng smiled cheerfully. "Mr. Ito here was being stubborn, so we had to… persuade him. But he still won’t talk."

"Hey, beardy, who sent you?" An Yi demanded, staring him down.

The bearded man grinned, revealing missing teeth. "You think I’d tell you? Beat me to death—I won’t say a word!"

"Oh really?"

Jiang Cheng slid on a pair of silver knuckle dusters with a smile.

Thud!

"Talk!"

"Never! Kill me!"

Thud!

"Still playing tough? Talk!"

"No!"

Thud—

The bearded man collapsed, bloodied but unbroken.

An Yi was moved.

Now this was a real man!

Jiang Cheng wiped the blood off his knuckles and sighed. "His lips are sealed. Won’t even admit he’s from Paradise."

The bearded man: "..."