Chapter 126

"Who is John Nessel?" It was Ding Huan's voice that shattered the dreadful silence.

John Nessel had frozen in place.

He had assumed that even if Ding Huan was powerful, he was merely another Zhong Chi.

The reason was that Zhong Chi was considered the ceiling of martial cultivation—could martial cultivation even break through a ceiling?

How could so many people here still fear a single Ding Huan?

As for the idea that Ding Huan was the one who destroyed the alien force—ha, Zhong Chi was fooling ghosts.

If Ding Huan were truly that powerful, he wouldn't have been wanted by the Gene Alliance. Besides, how old is Ding Huan?

But the scene before him dragged him abruptly back to reality: Hou Hou Hezhong's agonized screams faded gradually, yet the charred lump before them sent a chill down their spines.

"Ding Huan, as a teacher, how could you be so unjust…"

John Nessel's voice was fierce but his spirit was weak—he was terrified.

"So it's you? Did you capture Seeing Qu Yi?" Ding Huan asked.

When he first entered, it was this man who declared they would seize all of them.

"So what if I did? We didn't harm Seeing Qu Yi—we merely kept her in such a critical…"

Ding Huan didn't wait for John to finish—he sent a wind blade slicing through.

"Puff!" Another arm hit the ground.

Ding Huan didn't kill John outright; after severing one arm, he sent another wind blade, slicing off John's legs.

"Teacher Ding, this matter…"

John, fallen to the ground, wanted to beg for mercy, but the pain left him unable to speak.

When another wind blade landed on his neck and his throat turned cold, boundless terror surged within him.

John's strength was nearly equal to heavier than Gu Zhong—he had never imagined that against Ding Huan's attack, he couldn't even resist.

He saw the wind blade aimed at his neck, yet he couldn't dodge—it simply sliced across his throat before his eyes.

In the instant his head fell, he regretted it: the Radiant Spirit Crystals weren't meant for him alone—why had he volunteered to be the first to die?

But his thoughts ended there.

No one dared beg for mercy anymore; everyone now understood how polite Zhong Chi had been.

"Bring Seeing Qu Yi here. You have three minutes. If Seeing Qu Yi loses a single hair, you all know the consequences."

As Ding Huan spoke, his demeanor was calm—not the fury he'd shown when kicking down the door.

Even Zhu Qinjiang, who had sent Liu Aimei to fetch Ding Huan, felt a cold shiver run down his back.

He had encountered Ding Huan before and always assumed Ding Huan was merely young and impulsive, hence why he'd killed twice in the Gene Alliance's stronghold.

Now he realized he had never truly understood Ding Huan.

Shi Changyi's face was pale—if he could leave, he would have fled long ago.

He only hoped Ding Huan would treat him like air—but in fact, Ding Huan had already looked toward this "air":

"Shi Changyi?"

Shi Changyi knew that no matter how righteous he pretended to be, no one would come to his aid today.

Now that Ding Huan had spoken, he quickly bowed:

"Teacher Ding, I was indeed biased before. We all seek Earth's future, and my methods were too extreme."

At this moment, who cared if others looked down on him?

If you're dead, who cares whether anyone respects you?

"First, you once sent men to hunt me down—I've always wanted to settle scores with you, but I never found you.

Second, you sent men to capture Seeing Qu Yi for gene experiments, leaving her critically wounded and barely alive. Had I not been lucky enough to have some ability, she'd be dead.

If you offend me, I merely teach you a lesson. But if you offend Seeing Qu Yi… I can only say I'm sorry…"

Hearing Ding Huan's last three words, Shi Changyi immediately bolted for the exit.

But the next moment he sensed something wrong—several icy energies locked his path.

Shi Changyi no longer cared about dignity—he rolled sideways like a donkey kicking.

Barely dodging Ding Huan's wind blades, he staggered to his feet and lunged again toward the exit—when a blade's glow suddenly appeared at his neck.

"Puff!" Like cutting tofu, Shi Changyi's head was severed.

"Old Zhong, you don't seem to be doing well—this is an internal injury, isn't it? Who gave it to you?"

Ding Huan's gaze settled on Zhong Chi, who was supporting heavier than Gu Zhong.

"I, Nong Yizhen, did it." Nong Yizhen suddenly stood up.

He did have selfish motives, but his main goal in keeping the Radiant Spirit Crystals was to cultivate powerful martial cultivators.

Seeing Qu Yi had good fortune, but she was still just a woman.

Zhong Chi hurried to explain:

"Young Brother Ding, though my relationship with Nong Yizhen is mediocre, he didn't truly intend to harm me—please, on my behalf…"

"Stop…" Ding Huan cut him off.

"Old Zhong, injuring you and injuring Seeing Qu Yi are two different things. Had he injured Seeing Qu Yi, I'd have killed him already.

You were injured, and you don't even care—so I have no intention of stepping in for you." Ding Huan halted Zhong Chi's words.

This Zhong Chi never listened to him, and now he was pleading for his enemy—Ding Huan looked down on him.

Zhong Chi smiled bitterly: "I regret now that I didn't listen to you back then—I finally see you were right.

Young brother, I'm asking you to plead for one thing: let General Gu seek treatment. If his arm isn't reattached, it'll be ruined."

Zhu Qinjiang quickly chimed in:

"Teacher Ding, General Gu must be treated immediately—this matter was truly collateral damage."

"Big Brother Ding…" Qu Yi had already arrived in the meeting room; the moment she saw Ding Huan, her voice trembled with emotion.

Seeing Qu Yi unharmed, Ding Huan waved his hand at Zhong Chi:

"On account of your and Director Zhu's faces, today I'll kill only one more person and stop."

As he spoke, Ding Huan slashed out a blade of light.

Qin Qiang, still seated, face ashen, felt a chill at her neck, then collapsed.

In the end, she couldn't escape it—spending her whole day resorting to any means to seek cultivation resources, even angering someone as ruthless as Ding Huan.

Was it really worth it, to end up nothing more than a mere Level Three Gene Cultivator? This was Qin Qiang's final thought before death.

The moment Ding Huan said injuring Zhong Chi and injuring Qu Yi were two different things, she knew she was finished.

Zhong Chi hurriedly supported Gu Chong, carrying his severed arm, as they left.

With today's medical technology, taking Gu Chong away for surgery now would allow full recovery.

Ding Huan's gaze fell on Nong Yizhen:

"Dean Nong, I have more Zhan Shen Crystal Stones than I know what to do with—I've got a whole pile left. You can come to me and ask for some."

Dou Qingzhi quickly stepped in to smooth things over:

"Dean Nong didn't mean it that way."

Ding Huan snorted coldly:

"Not meaning it that way? I worked my ass off exterminating alien powerhouses, severely wounding the demon dragon and giant ape along the Human Corridor Defense Line.

And what did I get in return? Even the few Zhan Shen Crystal Stones I left for my friends are being eyed by you—yet I refuse to give them to you. What can you do about it?"

"Big Brother Ding, Director Dou has always helped me," Qu Yi said softly, seeing Ding Huan angry.

"Fine. For your sake, I won't hold a grudge against these people. I'm leaving." Ding Huan turned to go.

Zhu Qinjiang quickly spoke:

"Teacher Ding, that demon dragon isn't dead yet. I beg you to intervene once more—otherwise, the Human Corridor Defense Line will collapse again."

"Helping once isn't a problem. But I need you to do me a favor—I want to forge a weapon, but I can't find good materials…"

Before Ding Huan finished speaking, a woman stood up:

"Teacher Ding, I, Fan Yibing, guarantee I can fulfill your request. My word represents the Federation Military—no falsehoods."

Qi Xinyue looked at Fan Yibing and thought inwardly: This woman is stunning. How could Cang Beichun have mistaken me for her, when I'm so ugly now?

"Fine. But I also need to borrow the Gene Laboratory—do you have one here?" Ding Huan asked.

If that demon dragon was a Foundation Establishment beast, Ding Huan truly doubted he could defeat it—so first crafting specialized gene toxin mist to counter it was necessary.

"We do, we do! I'll take Teacher Ding there right away," Zhu Qinjiang said immediately.

"No need. I'll go myself later." Ding Huan's spiritual sense had already scanned the Gene Laboratory.

The Defense Line's Gene Laboratory sat at the edge of Dakha Defense Line Airport, connected to the Dakha Airport Defense Building.

"Alright. Let's go, Qu Yi, Xinyue." With a ready Gene Laboratory, Ding Huan decided to first seek herbs, then return to brew the gene toxin mist.

Seeing Ding Huan leave, Liu Aimei hurriedly followed him out—this wasn't a place for her.

…

The moment Ding Huan left, Zhu Qinjiang snorted:

"How many times have I told you, Old Zhong and you? Don't provoke Qu Yi. Don't covet what isn't yours. No one listened. Now look—everyone's satisfied?"

Nong Yizhen opened his mouth to speak, but not a single word came out.

Beyond resentment at Ding Huan's tyranny, he felt a deep, crushing despair.

He had reached the Primordial Realm, and was the Dean of Zhenyu Academy, ranked number one among the Ten Great Academies of Blue Star.

He had always believed his strength was no lesser than Zhong Chi's.

Now he finally understood how far he was from true power.

Too bad his relationship with Ding Huan was so poor—if not, he would have sought guidance long ago.

"Director Dou, Dean Nong, the Commanding Officer isn't here. Teacher Ding has agreed to eliminate the demon dragon from the Human Corridor Defense Line—we must now coordinate how to assist him."

Fan Yibing stepped forward and said.

At this moment, perhaps only Fan Yibing—the woman with a single-track mind—still cared about the Human Corridor Defense Line's problems.

Before anyone could speak, Zhong Chi rushed into the meeting hall.

"Everyone, Old Gu has been taken for surgery—he should be fine. He asked me to pass on a message."

At Zhong Chi's words, everyone fell silent—even the soldiers cleaning up the bodies moved with caution.

Zhong Chi shouted:

"Old Gu recommends Fan Yibing to replace him as Commander-in-Chief of the Human Corridor Defense Line."

"That can't be right—I lack seniority!" Fan Yibing immediately stepped forward.

Zhong Chi waved his hand:

"What does seniority matter? Younger than you, Ding Huan is still accomplished. How old is Miss Qu Yi? Isn't she already Director of the Puhai Security Bureau?"

Hearing Zhong Chi call Ding Huan "accomplished," everyone fell silent.

Accomplished? He's heartless and ruthless.

"I support Fan Yibing as Commander-in-Chief and overall leader of the Defense Line," Dou Qingzhi was the first to speak up.

With Dou Qingzhi speaking, the silent Martial Alliance leader, Qu Weimin, also spoke up:

"Indeed, Commander Fan Yibing is the most suitable person for overall leader."

Honestly, he breathed a sigh of relief—Ding Huan hadn't come after him, and he hadn't done anything extreme.

Following the Deans of the Ten Great Academies of Blue Star, all who had come here and still lived quickly voiced their agreement.