Sure enough, as soon as Ye Fan and Mu Wanxin returned, they saw several men staring incessantly at her. It was then they realized the drunkard hadn’t been lying—Mu Wanxin was a true beauty. The men immediately surrounded Ye Fan.

"Kill him! Kill him now!" the drunkard screamed.

"What business is this of yours?" Ye Fan asked, his voice low.

"It’s our business now," one of them sneered. "We’re not just getting involved; we’re going to kill you. Then we’ll let this pretty little thing have some fun with us brothers." The men erupted in laughter.

At that, Ye Fan’s eyes turned icy cold. He hated it most when anyone dared to make a move on his women. His fists clenched tightly. He threw a single punch at the man who had spoken. The man’s head exploded on impact, stunning the others.

"Brothers, get him!" they yelled, charging at Ye Fan.

Their fate, however, was already sealed. It wouldn’t have mattered if there were ten times as many of them. After a brief flurry of punches and kicks, the men all lay on the ground, devoid of life. For them, crossing paths with Ye Fan meant certain death.

The drunkard was petrified. He had never witnessed such a violent and bloody scene, and he wet himself in terror. He scrambled backward on the ground, screaming at Ye Fan, "You... you stay away from me!"

But in the blink of an eye, Ye Fan was standing over him. He pressed his foot onto the drunkard’s stomach, applying just enough force to make the man feel as if his insides were about to burst.

Ye Fan looked down at him. "Tell me the truth if you want to live. If I press down any harder, you’re dead."

Threatened with his own life, the drunkard trembled and confessed, "Yes, it was me! I killed her! She was sick, and we had no money for treatment. I killed her so she wouldn’t drag me down, then lied and said she died suddenly from her illness!"

"You monster!" Mu Wanxin cried out in despair. Hearing the truth, she finally collapsed into tears. She had suspected it all along, but having it confirmed was more than she could bear.

"You’re less than human," Ye Fan stated flatly. "There’s no point in you being alive."

He stomped down. The drunkard’s body exploded. Few could withstand the force of his foot, and the man died without even a chance to scream. A sense of grim satisfaction washed over Ye Fan.

However, just as he killed the man, the police arrived. Someone in the village had called them. When the officers got there, they found a scene straight out of Hell. It was utterly terrifying.

Fighting back their nausea, one of the officers asked Ye Fan, "Did you kill them?"

"I did," Ye Fan replied calmly.

"Take him away!"

Ye Fan considered resisting but decided against it. He had no wish to kill innocents. He restrained himself and turned to Mu Wanxin. "Don’t worry about me, honey," he said gently. "Stay at Uncle Lin’s for a couple of days. I’ll be back soon."

"Husband!" Mu Wanxin cried out with concern.

Ye Fan gave her a reassuring look, and she relaxed slightly. Although she didn’t know the true extent of Ye Fan’s power, she believed he could overcome any danger. Still, her heart ached with worry, knowing he was being taken away because of her. She wanted to save him, but she realized her own power was far too insignificant.

Ye Fan sat in a cell, his trial set for the next day. He was already thinking of a way to resolve the situation. All he needed to do was contact the Shangjing Ye Family. With his power, breaking through the wall would have been simple, but he chose not to. He was tired of getting entangled in worldly affairs.

Meanwhile, two men arrived in the small county town. They had tracked Ye Fan down, only to find he had been imprisoned. They immediately sought out the person in charge of the matter—the top leader and Controller of the small county.

"I never expected visitors from the Shangguan family! Welcome, welcome!" he said with great excitement.

The Shangguan family was one of the most powerful families in the entire southwest; even in this remote place, their name was known. This was a family he could not afford to provoke. In fact, even his superiors couldn’t afford to provoke them.

One of the men said, "You’ve arrested a man. We need you to release him."

"But he’s implicated in multiple homicides! He killed four people! I can’t just let him go!" the county leader protested hastily.

But the other man cut in, "This order comes directly from the family’s young lady. If you don’t release him, we’ll have to report this to our superiors and let them handle it."

The county leader suddenly felt immense pressure. He hadn’t expected the case to be so thorny. He broke out in a cold sweat. If this matter went to the higher-ups, he would certainly lose his post.

"Please, honored guests, wait just a moment," he said quickly. "I’ll make the call to have him released right now!" The two men simply nodded.

Soon after, Ye Fan was released. He was so worried about Mu Wanxin’s safety that he didn’t even ask who had arranged for his release. He immediately headed back toward the mountain village. The two men could only smile bitterly as they watched him go. They hadn’t expected him to just leave like that. Still, they knew where he was going, so they weren’t worried about losing him.

The mountain village was in an uproar when he arrived. The entrance was blocked by a large crowd. The men Ye Fan had killed apparently had many connections, and their friends and relatives had gathered to cause trouble. They were demanding that the villagers hand over Mu Wanxin, threatening to storm the village if they refused. The villagers had gathered at the entrance to block them. They had called the police, but it seemed no one was coming.

"Uncle Lin, I can’t bring this disaster upon the village," Mu Wanxin said, her voice filled with guilt.

"Wanxin," Uncle Lin replied firmly, "your father and I were like brothers. I failed to look after you properly after he passed, but this time, I will protect you! They’re just a bunch of hooligans. The people of our village aren’t cowards!"

"That’s right! We’re not afraid!" a group of villagers shouted in unison.

Mu Wanxin was deeply moved. She thought she had no attachments left to this village, but in that moment, she realized she still had family here.

The villagers stood their ground against the gang of thugs. A fight looked imminent. This particular gang was notorious in the surrounding towns, and their leader swaggered forward, shouting, "If you don’t hand over that woman to pay for my brothers’ lives, then today, we’ll teach you all a harsh lesson!"

Though the villagers were frightened, none of them retreated. With Mu Wanxin’s uncle at the front, they stood firm, ready to fight.

Just then, the wail of sirens cut through the air. Several police cars screeched to a halt. When a team of special police officers got out, the aggressors froze. The gang leader was used to dealing with the local township patrols who often looked the other way, but he didn’t dare cross these special police. If he made a wrong move now, he’d be the one ending up dead.

Then, Ye Fan stepped out of one of the cars. When Mu Wanxin saw him, her face lit up with pure, unadulterated joy.

The special police officers swiftly surrounded the dozen or so hooligans. The thugs were terror-stricken. They never expected Ye Fan to return. Wasn’t he arrested for killing several people? How could he be back already?

"Take them away," the special police captain ordered curtly. His team immediately moved in.

"Officer, wait!" the gang leader cried out. "You’ve got the wrong people! My brothers died in this village! Why are you only arresting us?"

"Are you questioning my investigation?" the captain shot back.

"No, of course not! I wouldn’t dare!" the gang leader stammered.

"They got what they deserved," the captain said coldly. "As for you, you’ve gathered a mob and disturbed the peace. You’re coming with us."

"Officer, you’ve got it all wrong!" the leader wailed.

But it was no use. The officers were determined to take him away, and he didn’t dare resist. This special police team had the authority to use lethal force. Resisting would be suicide. He never imagined Ye Fan’s connections were this powerful. The dozen or so men, who had been so full of bravado just moments ago, were now utterly deflated, their will to fight completely gone.

As the hooligans were led away, a quiet peace finally returned to the village.

Mu Wanxin rushed into Ye Fan’s arms, and they embraced tightly. She never imagined his detainment would be so brief. Given that he had killed four men, his release had seemed impossible. Yet, here he was. For Mu Wanxin, it felt like a miracle.