After over an hour of fierce fighting, half of the killers from Black Owl were either dead or wounded, with only three or four left putting up stubborn resistance.
It had to be said, Li Rufeng and his disciples were formidable fighters as well. Despite sustaining injuries themselves, they had managed to fend off all these Black Owl assassins.
Especially Li Rufeng himself - it was no wonder the Suzhou Ancient Martial Arts Circle dared not provoke him. His skills were on a completely different level compared to those ancient martial artists of the Xiao Family.
Seeing that the remaining three or four Black Owl killers could no longer make any waves, Gu Chenan stood up, stretched lazily, and entered the Xiao Family compound.
Upon entering the main hall, the Xiao father and daughter hurriedly came forward to greet him.
"Young Master Gu, thank you for your aid. If not for you, those Black Owl assassins would have barged into the Xiao Family!" Xiao Jian said gratefully, tears in his eyes.
Gu Chenan waved his hand dismissively. "The head of the Gu Family is too kind. I merely defeated one man. Look at Chief Instructor Li - he has wiped out the entire group of Black Owl killers!"
Xiao Jian smiled wryly. "Chief Instructor Li has indeed done the Xiao Family a great service, but..."
Hesitating for a moment, Xiao Jian continued, "...if Young Master Gu had not killed their leader, Chief Instructor Li could not have succeeded so easily..."
Gu Chenan smiled. "Master Xiao, do not mention today's events to anyone outside."
[Dang it, don't elevate me so high. I don't want Black Owl endlessly hunting me down right now.]
[I helped the Xiao Family, so don't betray my kindness!]
"Young Master, but why..." Before Xiao Jian could finish his puzzled question, Xiao Yajie tugged at his sleeve and said, "I understand. Young Master Gu, my father will instruct everyone accordingly."
"Yes, be sure to remember. This concerns the very survival of the Xiao Family."
With those words of caution, Gu Chenan asked where Hoshino Kannon was, then strode quickly into the guest room.
Xiao Jian looked at Xiao Yajie with some puzzlement. "Yajie, why did Young Master Gu not want us to mention today's events?"
"If we spread word of how formidable Young Master Gu is, Black Owl might become wary of him, right?"
Xiao Yajie had just heard Gu Chenan's thoughts, and she knew that doing so would bring him endless trouble.
So after a moment's contemplation, she explained, "Father, those Black Owl people are relentless until they achieve their goals. If you don't mention this, they may wonder what happened to the people who came today and mysteriously disappeared."
"But if we let it be known, they will definitely come seeking revenge."
Hearing this, Xiao Jian blinked. "Indeed, that makes sense."
Entering the bedroom, Gu Chenan saw those ancient martial arts masters treating Hoshino Kannon, who was unconscious and covered in blood.
Upon seeing Gu Chenan enter, they cupped their fists in a traditional salute. "Young Master, you're back."
"Yes." Gu Chenan nodded. "How is she?"
"Young Master, this young lady has lost too much blood, but we have staunched the bleeding. Now she only needs to rest and recover."
"That's good." Gu Chenan nodded with relief. "Take a break for now. Let me treat her."
The others promptly stepped aside.
They had witnessed Gu Chenan's skills firsthand. In ancient martial arts, medicine and combat were considered one. With such formidable abilities, his medical skills must be impressive as well.
Since Gu Chenan had spoken, they saw no need to further expose their shallow medical knowledge before him.
"Young Master, we are in awe of your incredible skills!"
"Indeed, Young Master's abilities far exceed what we imagined, yet you have kept them deeply hidden. We have been exchanging greetings with you as fellow ancient martial artists all this time, which seems so humiliating in hindsight!"
"Young Master's martial prowess has truly opened our eyes. If not for you today, those Black Owl people would have breached the Xiao Family gates long ago!"
And so began the standard session of flattery.
In the past, Gu Chenan hated hearing people praise him the most.
Not because he was indifferent or disdained fame and wealth.
But because those people were so bad at sucking up that it didn't resonate at all!
Similar to calling Gu Chenan a business genius or other such exaggerated drivel.
Not to mention others, even Gu Chenan himself found it cringeworthy to listen to.
But these ancient martial artists did a rather apt job at flattering - neither excessive nor unreasonable in their words.
Listening to them, Gu Chenan couldn't help but feel a sense of gratification rising within.
[So this is the feeling that important personage so enjoys being flattered!]
"Today's delay was my fault. If not for that... oh, nevermind." Gu Chenan trailed off suggestively.
But just those few words piqued the curiosity of the others.
What exactly had Young Master Gu encountered today that caused his delay?
Seeing their puzzled looks, Gu Chenan smiled faintly.
Good, the foreshadowing was done. Now to wait for Li Rufeng's entrance.
You wanted to assassinate me, didn't you?
Don't actions have consequences?
True, you Li Rufeng command great respect in the Suzhou Ancient Martial Arts Circle. Going against you would be akin to going against the entire circle.
But what if the circle knew that without you obstructing today's events, even more people would have died?
Gu Chenan had a plan in mind, but he calmly said, "It's nothing, it's better if I don't mention it to anyone."
With that, he waved his hand. "Alright, you all can go rest now."
"Thank you for your hard work, Young Master."
After they left, Gu Chenan immediately examined Hoshino Kannon's injuries.
His assessment was largely in line with what those ancient martial artists had said.
Although Hoshino Kannon had lost a lot of blood, she had not reached the point of needing a transfusion. With some rest, she would recover.
Looking at the various wounds on Hoshino Kannon's body, Gu Chenan couldn't help but feel moved.
Regardless of what Hoshino Kannon had intended to do by coming to Suzhou, for a young lady to keep her promise to this extent, even a heart of iron like Gu Chenan's couldn't remain unmoved.
Gu Chenan sat on a stool beside her, holding Hoshino Kannon's slender hands in his.
At that moment, Hoshino Kannon slowly opened her eyes.
She looked around at her surroundings, then turned her head slightly to see Gu Chenan beside her.
"You're awake?" Gu Chenan asked with a faint smile.
"Mmm." Hoshino Kannon nodded, then turned to look out the window. "Gong... Gong Fei and the others..."
"Don't worry, Gong Fei is dead," said Gu Chenan.
Hoshino Kannon nodded, closing her eyes again.
But suddenly, she opened them once more and looked at Gu Chenan. "Does our agreement still hold?"
Gu Chenan reached out and patted Hoshino Kannon's head. "Of course."
Hearing this, Hoshino Kannon's lips curved into a small smile. "This time, you still have to accompany me to the amusement park and share a cotton candy with me."
Gu Chenan smiled. "Sure, whatever you want."
his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…
ave】 Shen Qingling was a man with peerless looks, a cunning mind, and the ability to play both the aloof noble and the innocent sweetheart—a master of seduction who could outplay any player. But after an untimely death, he found himself bound to a system and transmigrated into the tragic "true young master" of a melodramatic novel. In the original story, his childhood sweetheart treated him as a backup plan, his fiancée swore to break off their engagement for the sake of the "fake young master," and his own sister saw him as the family's disgrace. He was nothing more than a rat everyone wanted to stomp on. System 077: "Your mission is to change the original fate and conquer the goddesses." Shen Qingling: "Thanks for the invite. If seduction had tiers, I’d be max level." His childhood sweetheart knelt, begging for forgiveness: "Qingling, I was wrong. Please give me another chance." His ex-fiancée refused to marry anyone else: "Shen Qingling, I was blind before. In this life, I’ll marry no one but you." A yandere CEO went mad for love: "Shen Qingling, you can only like me. I’ll stop at nothing to make you mine!" His green-tea sister clung to him daily: "Brother, look at me, won’t you? I’m more obedient than them—I love you the most~" At first, they scorned and trampled on him. Later, they burned themselves like moths to a flame, all for his sake. His looks were his weapon, his sweet words the bait—heroines obsessed over him, villains turned to madness for him. Shen Qingling became a true male siren, igniting battlefield after battlefield of women fighting for his affection. Years later, when System 077—now one of the elites—was asked how to become as outstanding as it, it lazily exhaled a smoke ring and replied: "Just know how to cheer ‘666’ at the right time."
world slacker. But a genius female disciple just had to get clingy, insisting that he take her as a disciple. Not only that, she was always making advances on him, thoroughly disrupting his peaceful slacker life...
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
