Chapter 123: Spared from Death, but Not from Suffering

But the killing blow never came.

"Do you know how heartbroken I was?"

Mu Lin sneered. "Fortunately, I was able to save them. So, for the time being, I'll let you live."

Patriarch Yang let out a long sigh of relief. 'You really know how to leave people hanging.'

SWISH.

A few glints of light shot from between Mu Lin's fingers, vanishing into Patriarch Yang's body in a flash.

Patriarch Yang suddenly felt pain wrack his entire body, as if he were being torn limb from limb.

It felt like axes were hacking away at his body.

The pain was unbearable; Patriarch Yang felt like his body was being torn to shreds.

Mu Lin said slowly, "Chen Zhengyang? He's already dead. Who else do you plan on sending to kill me?"

Patriarch Yang had already suspected as much. He could only sigh in silence.

"That was the last card up my sleeve. Whether you kill me or torture me, do as you please!"

Mu Lin gave a slight smile. "You said it, not me."

With a grasping motion of his hand, the needles inside Patriarch Yang's body began to move again.

Patriarch Yang was immediately wracked with pain. He had only one thought: 'Just let it end.'

He felt his life force rapidly leaving him.

As death approached, intense fear made him cry out, his voice trembling.

"Don't kill me, don't kill me! I'll pay, I'll pay, okay?"

Mu Lin relaxed his hold on the needles, and the pain in Patriarch Yang's body instantly subsided.

"How much are you willing to pay?"

"One billion! That's the fee Chen Zhengyang quoted me. I'll give it all to you, untouched. Also, for every worker killed by Song Qianli, one hundred million in compensation per person! Just like you said!"

Mu Lin smiled. "If you'd said that earlier, not only would these bodyguards not have died, but your son and grandson wouldn't be dead either."

Patriarch Yang was filled with regret. Why did he have to go looking for trouble with Mu Lin when he had nothing better to do?

It was too late for regrets now.

Mu Lin pondered for a moment.

"Alright."

"Th-Then give me your account number, and I'll wire you the money immediately!"

Mu Lin chuckled. "I don't have a bank account. How are you going to wire it to me?"

Patriarch Yang wished he could beat Mu Lin up. 'You demand money but then say you don't have a bank account? Are you just messing with me?'

"Wait a moment, I'll figure something out." Mu Lin turned and walked out of the courtyard. Catching the faint scent of blood, he dialed Zhou Qianfan's number.

Zhou Qianfan was in the middle of something, but seeing Mu Lin was calling, he quickly paused his meeting and stepped out.

"Mr. Mu, what can I do for you?"

Mu Lin said, "Patriarch Yang is willing to pay one billion for his life and also one hundred million per person to compensate all the dead workers. Unfortunately, I don't have a bank account. Does Patriarch Zhou have any ideas?"

Zhou Qianfan's mind was in turmoil. 'This is explosive news,' he thought. 'Mu Lin has Patriarch Yang under his thumb?'

"Mr. Mu, you must be careful. This might be a stalling tactic from Patriarch Yang. The Yang Family has deep reserves of powerful experts. Who knows if there's someone else lurking in the shadows, waiting to kill you?"

Mu Lin said, "No need to worry. I've already killed his last trump card."

"Impossible!" Zhou Qianfan knew the Yang Family too well. "The Yang Family's foundations run deep. Their true masters are all cultivating overseas in seclusion. How could you have killed one?"

"That 'true master,' was his name Chen Zhengyang? I just killed him. He's definitely gone, right?"

Zhou Qianfan's mouth felt dry. With things having reached this point, what else was there to say?

"Ah, yes, he's definitely gone..." Zhou Qianfan blinked, feeling a cramping pain in his stomach.

'Damn, Mu Lin, you're really something else, taking out even Chen Zhengyang.'

'The only one left would be Dong Jia's brother, Dong Wu, but he's a free agent and not considered part of the Yang Family's forces.'

"Alright then, can you help me handle this money? The one billion, I want to donate to impoverished areas. Then there's the one hundred million for each deceased worker. Please help me arrange that as well."

"Thank you, Patriarch Zhou. I'll visit Grandmaster Zhou later."

Zhou Qianfan was stunned. 'He's calling my father Grandmaster Zhou?'

It was just...

It felt a little weird, but it showed that their relationship had indeed grown much closer.

'Does this count as completing the mission the old man gave me to get on good terms with Mu Lin?'

Zhou Qianfan didn't dare to dwell on it. He quickly sent Mu Lin a text with the account number.

Mu Lin gave the account number to Patriarch Yang, who immediately got busy with the transfer.

After receiving the money, Zhou Qianfan called Mu Lin. "Mr. Mu, the money has arrived. I'll proceed according to your instructions now."

Mu Lin put his phone away.

Patriarch Yang heaved a long sigh of relief. He could finally relax a bit from this feeling of life being worse than death.

But unexpectedly, Mu Lin clenched his fist, and Patriarch Yang felt the pain flare up once more.

"AH!"

Patriarch Yang cried out miserably.

"I never said I'd relieve all your pain," Mu Lin said.

"You're going back on your word!"

"I also never claimed to be a gentleman," Mu Lin sneered. "You used so many tricks against me, yet you curse me so desperately for going back on my word."

"Have some shame."

Mu Lin turned to leave but suddenly remembered something. "I remember that Dong Jia has a brother named Dong Wu, right? I hear he's very strong?"

"Tell him I'll be waiting for him!"

With that, Mu Lin vanished on the spot.

No one even knew how he left.

Walking out of the Yang Villa, Mu Lin felt the sun was intense, giving him a headache.

Elder Li's injuries were external, but they were the kind that damaged his very foundation. The Holy Medicine Hall couldn't handle it; he had to go to a hospital.

Mu Lin called Li Xue. "President Li, where are you? I'm done here. How are Grandpa and Mom?"

Li Xue's voice was full of exhaustion. "Grandpa is on the verge of death! Mom is also very weak and looks like she could take a turn for the worse at any moment."

'How can that be?' Mu Lin thought. 'I sealed Elder Li's heart meridian before I left.'

'He should have been fine. Why did things turn out like this?'

"Impossible, I took precautions!" Mu Lin paused, suddenly remembering something. He asked, "Are the needles gone?"

Li Xue said, "Ah, yes!"

She nodded repeatedly. "As soon as we got to the hospital, they criticized me, saying the needles were nonsensical, and took it upon themselves to pull them out."

"Didn't you try to stop them? Aren't you usually pretty fierce?" Mu Lin felt like he was losing his composure, and he snapped at Li Xue angrily.

He was very close to the old man; he didn't want anything to happen to him.

He hoped he would live a long and peaceful life.

Li Xue said aggrievedly, "I couldn't reach you, and you never told me anything! The hospital is full of doctors, and they're the professionals, after all. If I wanted to stop them, I would've needed a reason, right? What was I supposed to say?"

Mu Lin thought about it and realized he was the one who was stumped.

"I was too anxious, I'm sorry. It's not your fault. Go talk to the doctors quickly. Tell them to put the needles back, or use some other method to keep them hanging on until I get there! Ten minutes, max!"

After saying that, Mu Lin stuffed his phone into his pocket and started running like mad.

Although Li Xue felt wronged, her grandfather's and mother's lives were at stake, so she had no choice but to hurry to the office.

"Doctor, my grandfather and mother are in critical condition. Please hurry and put the needles back in!"

Li Xue walked up to the doctor and said.

That doctor gave Li Xue a sideways glance. "You think sticking a few random needles in someone can save their life? Are you crazy?"

"Let me tell you, it's possible those few needles made the patients' injuries worse!"

"When someone is injured, you should send them to the hospital immediately, not waste time at some private clinic!"

"Now that time has been wasted, you turn around and blame me for pulling the needles out. So you tell me, what should be done?"

The doctor was overbearing, browbeating Li Xue until she was at a complete loss.

But she felt that Mu Lin had no reason to lie to her. He had saved many people and was even more skilled than Divine Doctor Zhao.

"He's not a quack!" Li Xue said. "Even Divine Doctor Zhao treats him with respect! His skills are definitely the real deal! Hurry up and put the needles back!"

Unexpectedly, the doctor laughed even harder.

"Divine Doctor Zhao? You believe in him? He just prescribes some overpriced health supplements. Only people with more money than sense treat him like a treasure."

"Miss, you need to trust science! That stuff is fine to play around with, but don't take it seriously."

The doctor flashed her name badge. Her name was Zhu Mingxing, and she was the department head.

"Move aside, I need to do my rounds!"

Dr. Zhu had just reached the door when a nurse rushed over.

"Dr. Zhu, the two patients in the ICU have flatlined!"

Ah!

Li Xue let out a cry and collapsed to the ground.

This was too...

Dr. Zhu paid Li Xue no mind and instead said, "I'm on my way! Get the cardiac stimulants and drugs ready. Prepare for CPR immediately!"