My gorgeous wife
Chapter 980 - 952: Protecting Them

Chapter 980: Chapter 952: Protecting Them

Li Chen gazed quietly out of the window through the glass.

Although he never admitted it openly, everyone in the Nether Army knew that Li Chen was actually someone who valued emotional bonds deeply.

Yet valuing emotions, at certain times, often became the greatest weakness. If one wasn’t careful, the enemy could relentlessly exploit this weakness, using methods that would make you wish for death, and ultimately, kill you.

Watching the three girls sitting cross-legged in the courtyard, diligently practicing, a hint of warmth appeared in Li Chen’s eyes.

Li Chen had always tried to make himself colder, and at certain times, he indeed succeeded. So much so that he reached a level of coldness that even made his own blood freeze.

But occasionally, there would always be someone to bring him warmth.

Family, brothers. Without them, Li Chen didn’t even dare to imagine what he might have become.

Humans cannot live in solitary existence.

No one is an exception.

Jiang Bingyu and Yao Chou came today too. While the three girls practiced in the courtyard, Jiang Bingyu found herself a room and began studying the medicinal stash that Li Chen had brought back from Third Grandpa.

Since they were allies, Li Chen naturally couldn’t let them do everything for him.

"What are you looking at?"

Yao Chou woke up from his training, wiped the sweat off his forehead, and smiled as he looked at Li Chen.

"Nothing. Just admiring my women." Li Chen replied with a grin.

"Damn it!" Yao Chou growled in dissatisfaction, glaring at Li Chen with a sour expression. "Trying to stir up resentment, huh?"

"Indeed." Li Chen nodded matter-of-factly.

Yao Chou froze for a moment, completely tongue-tied by Li Chen’s unabashed response.

After a long pause, Yao Chou rolled his eyes and said, "Sometimes, I really envy you, brat. Why is it that women find you so irresistible? I’ve been chasing Bingyu for years and still haven’t gotten a response!"

"Because I’m better-looking than you." Li Chen said without a trace of modesty.

"Get lost!"

Yao Chou nearly threw a slipper at him, gritting his teeth as he said, "If I were you..."

Before Yao Chou could finish his sentence, a voice tinged with faint killing intent rang out from the doorway.

"If he were Li Chen, what would you do?"

At the sound of the voice, Yao Chou shivered all over, shot up like an arrow, and dashed instantly to Jiang Bingyu’s side. "Of course, I’d focus all my attention and dedicate myself entirely to loving you, Bingyu! Don’t you see? My heart has only ever been yours in this lifetime!"

Jiang Bingyu waved him off, casually pushing Yao Chou aside. "Now that’s slightly better!"

Yao Chou breathed a long sigh of relief and slinked to the corner.

"Here!" Jiang Bingyu pulled out a box and tossed it to Li Chen. "This is the pill you needed. Treat it as repayment for letting me use your pill formula."

"Thanks!" Li Chen grinned as he nodded.

Seeing Li Chen’s smile, Yao Chou quickly stepped between the two, glaring at him. "Li Chen, I’m warning you—don’t even think about making a move on Bingyu! If you try anything, I’ll fight you to the death! Even if I can’t beat you, I’ll make sure to bite off a piece of you!"

"You lunatic." Jiang Bingyu’s face flushed slightly at his words. She spat lightly, turned on her heel, and left the room.

After Jiang Bingyu was gone, Li Chen and Yao Chou exchanged a glance before bursting into hearty laughter.

"Relax, I won’t go after your woman. But you’d better help me keep an eye on mine." Li Chen suddenly said.

Hearing Li Chen’s words, Yao Chou’s grin gradually faded. "Have you decided?"

"I’ve decided." Li Chen nodded. "The enemies are growing stronger, becoming increasingly troublesome. If I don’t become stronger, I won’t be able to protect them."

He glanced at the three girls in the courtyard, his gaze filled with emotion.

With the Lucid Body constitution, as long as the three girls committed themselves wholeheartedly to cultivation, they’d become Super Experts within just a few years.

However, the thing Li Chen lacked the most right now was time.

Setting aside the impending two-month contract expiration, the most urgent problem was the arrival of people from the Holy Mountain.

The so-called contract only served as a binding force for Earth-level Experts ranked Black Rope or higher. Yu Manfang was not a Black Rope Expert, which was how he managed to move around so freely.

Last time, Elder Ji had scared Yu Manfang away under the guise of a personal intervention. This time, Li Chen didn’t think the Holy Mountain would retreat so easily.

Instead of relying on Elder Ji’s help again, it was better to rely on strength earned through his own efforts.

"This time, I must reach Earth Level!"

Without a word, Li Chen walked to the courtyard entrance, where he noticed Lin Xiaoxiao had already woken up at some point.

"Brother-in-law..."

"Shh!" Li Chen raised a finger to his lips, signaling silence.

Lin Xiaoxiao glanced behind her, then nodded and followed Li Chen to the car.

"You’re heading to school, right? I’ll drive you." Li Chen offered.

Lin Xiaoxiao studied Li Chen briefly. "Brother-in-law, are you hiding something from me?"

Li Chen shook his head. "It’s nothing major. I’m just preparing to go into closed-door cultivation and break through."

Li Chen’s words were lighthearted, but Lin Xiaoxiao could hear the subtle strain in his tone.

"Brother-in-law, you..."

"It’s fine." Li Chen chuckled. "Breaking through to Earth Level isn’t a big deal. Tell me, has anything ever managed to stump your brother-in-law?"

"Hmm~~" Lin Xiaoxiao let out a long hum, then dropped the topic.

Smart as she was, Lin Xiaoxiao knew when not to press. Since Li Chen had made his decision, she wouldn’t add more weight to his burden.

When the car pulled up at the school gate, Lin Xiaoxiao seemed to think of something. Leaning over unexpectedly, she kissed Li Chen lightly on the cheek before he could react.

"Come back soon," she said.

Standing at the car door, Lin Xiaoxiao beamed sweetly, like a wife bidding farewell to a husband about to depart.

"Hmm, I will." Li Chen nodded.

Driving away from the school, a strange feeling suddenly crept into Li Chen’s heart.

"Don’t overthink it!"

Clearing his mind of stray thoughts, Li Chen drove directly to the cliffside.

Following the cliff path, he arrived smoothly at the Cold Pool.

The Netherworld beast scurried energetically to the Cold Pool, waving its scythe as it played with the fish in the water.

Clearly, it was quite fond of the little fish in the Cold Pool.

"It’s time." Taking a deep breath, Li Chen stepped toward the Cold Pool.

But before he could get far, his still-active phone suddenly rang.

"Catherine, what’s the matter?"

Seeing Catherine’s name on the screen, Li Chen felt curious. He had made it clear earlier that he shouldn’t be disturbed at this time—so why was she calling?

"What?"

"Clatter!" The phone fell from Li Chen’s grip and hit the ground.

His gaze lifted, already filled with keen, murderous intent.

"Holy Mountain!!!"