119: Night Owl: Am I just working illegally? Being taken advantage of?

Night Owl froze in place, her eyes revealing a flash of terror.

Fast!

Too fast!

So fast that her nerves didn't even have time to transmit a danger signal before her weapon had changed hands!

This kind of speed... made her realize that in a direct confrontation with Ye Chen, she was absolutely no match!

Her ability to escape last time was likely because the other party intentionally went easy on her, or didn't pursue her with full strength... Cold sweat silently soaked her back.

She couldn't win.

Escape?

Even if she could escape this time, what about that damn "problem" on her body?

Was she going to be controlled by someone for the rest of her life, losing her mind like a female cat in heat every so often, with her head full of this bastard's face?!

Night Owl gritted her teeth, her full chest heaving violently.

Finally.

She took a deep breath, and the ferocity in her eyes gradually subsided.

"Fine."

She spat out the word, walked to the single-seater sofa opposite Ye Chen, and sat down.

"Let's talk."

"What do you want to talk about?"

Ye Chen smiled, leaning back into the soft sofa with his fingers interlaced over his knees. "That's more like it."

Night Owl clenched her molars, squeezing words out from between her teeth.

"Stop the nonsense, get to the point."

"It's simple."

Ye Chen shrugged. "You help me do a few things, and once they're done, I'll help you completely solve that 'problem'."

That's right... Ever since the people from the Hidden Sect started making moves, Ye Chen had been considering whether to pull in a few helpers.

Otherwise, two fists can't fight four hands.

Once someone targeted the people around him and he couldn't make it in time, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Night Owl's skills were eerie, she excelled at stealth and intelligence, and she was a gold-medal assassin of the Black Prison; her abilities and mindset had been tempered.

More importantly, he now held "leverage" over her, making her the perfect candidate for some off-the-books labor.

This... it would be a waste not to use her!

Hearing this, fire instantly erupted in Night Owl's eyes. "You want me to work for you? Don't even think about it!"

She stood up abruptly, trembling all over with rage.

"I, Night Owl, only kill people; I will not become anyone's dog!"

"Even the Black Prison couldn't make me bow my head, what makes you think you can???"

"Because I can make you feel better," Ye Chen spread his hands. "Or, you can go back and keep enduring it alone. Anyway, it's not me who's suffering; instead, someone's head is full of me... feels good!"

"You—!"

Night Owl was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her fur bristling.

"I'll kill you!"

Ye Chen gave a disdainful smile.

"Kill me? Try it."

"Before you make a move, I guarantee..."

"You'll go into 'heat' first."

Well... of course, he was lying again.

After all.

He had no control over the timing and intensity of the side effects.

But in this situation, it wasn't the time to be conscientious... bluff her first!

Night Owl froze, her face turning from red to white, then white to green, and finally settling on a dark, iron-grey.

After a long while.

Night Owl seemed to have all her strength drained, her shoulders slumping.

She lowered her head, a few strands of hair falling to hide her current expression.

"What... do you want me to do for you?"

Ye Chen knew she had compromised.

"First thing."

He held up his index finger. "Protect the people here. When I need it, don't let anyone... touch a single hair on their heads."

Night Owl looked up sharply, her eyes full of humiliated rage. "You want me to be a Bodyguard?!"

"What else?" Ye Chen raised an eyebrow. "An assassin's transition, the first step to going straight."

Night Owl's chest heaved violently. After a long moment, she squeezed a word out from between her teeth: "...Fine."

Ye Chen smiled.

He knew this nail was temporarily driven in.

Ye Chen smiled, knowing the female assassin was still defiant in her heart, but at least she had submitted on the surface.

He continued.

"By the way, that feeling might pop up from time to time in the future, but don't panic. I'll write you a prescription. You go brew it and roll it into pills. Take one when you feel it coming on, it should suppress it."

Night Owl's expression softened slightly, but her tone remained stiff. "I hope so. If you dare lie to me, I guarantee..."

"You'll kill them, right?"

Ye Chen interrupted flatly, glancing at her. "Don't threaten me. If you threaten me, I can make you 'experience heaven and death' right now, believe it or not?"

Night Owl's face darkened, the remaining words choking in her throat.

Fuck!

Such double standards!

He could threaten her, but she couldn't threaten him?

So infuriating!!!

Then, something even more infuriating happened... Ye Chen raised an eyebrow and said, "Apologize."

Night Owl's face grew even darker. "For what?"

"Don't ask why!"

Ye Chen pointed calmly at the door. "If you don't apologize, get out now. Forget about the antidote."

Night Owl's chest heaved several times, her fists clenched so hard her nails almost dug into her palms.

She stared fixedly at Ye Chen, killing intent churning in her eyes, but finally admitted defeat under Ye Chen's calm yet dangerous gaze.

Couldn't win, couldn't escape, and he held leverage over her... she had never been this humiliated in her life!

"...Sorry."

These words were practically squeezed out from between her teeth, her voice so low it was almost inaudible.

"Not to me," Ye Chen tilted his chin, pointing toward Yi Yue and the other two. "To the three of them."

Night Owl's face darkened further.

Give him an inch and he takes a mile!

This was definitely taking a mile!

But what could she do?

With a dark face, she turned to the three on the sofa and spoke: "...Sorry."

Yi Yue pursed her lips and nodded with a complex expression. "It's... it's okay."

Aunt Zhang waved her hands repeatedly, unable even to speak clearly. "No, it's fine, young lady, don't... don't do this."

Yi Zhengtian sighed and said nothing.

Seeing this, Ye Chen stopped making things difficult for her.

He turned and walked to the coffee table, picked up a pen and paper, and began writing quickly.

Inheritance memories were as vast as the sea, and they did indeed record several ancient prescriptions for harmonizing Yin and Yang and calming dry heat.

For ordinary people, these prescriptions were too potent and practically useless.

It was like... someone drinking milk and ending up with diarrhea because of lactose intolerance.

But as a Martial Artist, Night Owl had vigorous blood and strong meridians, so she could use this to guide the imbalanced dry heat triggered by the Inheritance's side effects.

While it couldn't be eradicated, temporary suppression shouldn't be a problem.

Before long, a prescription was written.

Ye Chen handed her the paper. "Fill the prescription. Boil three bowls of water down to one, filter out the dregs, simmer over a low fire into a paste, roll it into honey pills, and take one when you feel something's wrong."

Night Owl took the prescription and glanced at it. They were all common medicinal materials, nothing extraordinary, but the way they were combined was a bit strange.

But, one must bow their head when under another's roof.

She tucked it away skeptically.

Ye Chen then looked at Yi Yue and the others, his tone softening.

"Uncle, Yueyue, Aunt Zhang, she'll stay here from now on. Just treat her like air and add another pair of chopsticks."

"When I'm not around, she'll be responsible for your safety."

"To save us from any more blind fools coming to look for trouble."

Night Owl was stunned... what did he mean by just adding another pair of chopsticks?

But though she was furious, she didn't dare speak, treating it as if a dog were barking... Yi Zhengtian's brow was furrowed.

Having been a policeman for most of his life, he knew well the dangers of the world and understood that the trouble Ye Chen was attracting now was no ordinary matter.

He looked at Ye Chen and spoke earnestly, "Xiao Chen, you must be careful yourself!"

Ye Chen smiled.

"Don't worry, Uncle Yi, I know what I'm doing."

Pausing, he turned to Night Owl and asked, "By the way, where can I hire Martial Artists?"

Night Owl was still feeling stifled, but she froze at his words, a flash of surprise in her eyes. "What are you going to do?"

"Hire them, naturally."

Ye Chen said it as if it were a matter of course. "I've offended quite a few people lately; I can't just rely on you alone, can I?"

"You!"

Night Owl was so angry she almost couldn't catch her breath. "You want to spend money to hire Martial Artists? Then what about me? Am I just an illegal worker? For free? Being used for free???"

She was going crazy!

She, the dignified gold-medal assassin of the Black Prison, the terrifying "Night Owl," was already humiliated enough by being forced to be a Bodyguard, and now this bastard was turning around to spend money on others?

So she wasn't even as good as those who worked for money?!

Ye Chen looked at her bristling and shrugged helplessly.

"You got what you wanted too. Don't be too greedy, woman."

"An effort for a reward, it's very fair."

"Besides, your current job is mainly to pay off a debt, understand?"

Night Owl: "..."

She was choked for words and could only glare at Ye Chen fiercely.

If looks could kill, Ye Chen would be riddled with holes by now.

After a long while.

She finally said grumpily, "The Ghost Market."

"Ghost Market?" Ye Chen raised an eyebrow. "Where?"

Night Owl took a deep breath, suppressed her anger, and explained.

"The Ghost Market is one of the largest underground trading and information networks in The East."

"The powers behind it are complex and intertwined, said to have a history of over a hundred years."

"At the same time, it has hidden branches in every major city. They'll do anything for the right amount of money—intelligence, antiques, contraband, even... people."

"They have a specialized goods area there that sells slaves and also accepts Martial Artist commissions. As long as you can afford the price, they can even find you a Grandmaster-level thug."