The Beautiful Boss's Personal Bodyguard
Chapter 554 - 553

Chapter 554: 553

Ye Tian glanced at the remaining rice in the food container, just enough for one more bowl.

"If there’s only one bowl left, I’ll let you have it all, and just watch from the side. If there are two bowls, I’ll only eat half a bowl and give the rest to you. I’m afraid if I starve to death, you’d feel heartbroken."

Ye Tian bowed his head and ate, not knowing if this was considered romantic at all.

The person who was meant to come would eventually arrive, except the one who did wasn’t quite as amiable.

"Hello, I am Zhang Liang."

A military officer, immaculate in uniform, stood in front of Ye Tian, saluting him with such precision that his shoes echoed loudly on the floor. Monk Kurong, standing aside, looked at the stone floor with pity, as the monastery was already impoverished; if yet another stone slab were broken, they would have to steal a couple of bricks from outside to replace it.

The already cramped room became more so, and Ye Tian coughed, "Let’s talk outside."

The two followed Ye Tian out into the courtyard.

The little monk squatted in the corner, drying beans and picking out impurities, the good ones were kept in a jar for himself, the bad in another for feeding chickens and ducks, and the rest in the winnowing basket to be sold down the mountain for cash. Zhang Ling’er and her daughter had gone down the mountain, as there was said to be a special sale today.

A stone table and three stone stools sat in the yard, and the little monk, oblivious to the situation, brought over the bean-filled winnowing basket and casually sat on the stone table, continuing to pick beans.

With the sun blazing, Ye Tian squinted for a while before asking, "I wonder, Mr. Zhang, what brings you here?"

"I am here to request Mr. Ye to return with me. We’ve heard that Mr. Ye has acquired Buddha Beads and a Shariputra abroad, so we would like to invite Mr. Ye back."

Ye Tian was shaking his head, intending to be polite, but unexpectedly, the young man was quite blunt.

"You’re quite direct. I thought you’d beat around the bush."

"If there were to be any beating around, it wouldn’t be here."

Ye Tian frowned, a bit concerned about the true nature of this man and the ’Sixth Group’ he mentioned earlier.

Monk Kurong, sensing the shift in the atmosphere around them, frowned and then led the little monk to the front temple, leaving the beans unattended. Now only the two men remained in the courtyard, the air turning awkward.

The first to sit on the stone stool wasn’t Ye Tian but the military officer who had arrived later, "Mr. Ye, may we sit and talk?"

"I am accustomed to talking while standing."

"Don’t trust me?"

Ye Tian nodded, "A little."

Zhang Liang nodded and said nothing, instead picking up a bean from the winnowing basket and rolling it between his fingers. In moments, the golden bean turned black, as if burnt.

"With such powerful people in this country, why would you need me to help you find items of Spiritual Power? Do you really think I have nothing better to do?"

Ye Tian stared, his eyes hollow as he looked at the man and the bean in his hand. He rubbed it, and the burnt bean turned to powder on the table.

"In the past, I felt the same as you do now, but later..."

Ye Tian waved his hand, cutting him off, "Hold on! Are you about to tell me a story now? I’m not interested in hearing it. If you don’t explain everything clearly, I won’t go with you. Do you understand? I’ll give you ten minutes, no more. I don’t have the time, and you probably don’t have the patience either."

Zhang Liang blew away the black powder on the stone table with ease, appearing unconcerned about Ye Tian’s words.

The wind whispered through the dense bamboo forests on the surrounding mountain, the friction of the bamboo leaves adding a chorus to nature’s symphony.

"There is an organization in Beiping City called the Sixth Group, formally the Sanitation Bureau’s Sixth Cleanup Squad, but really it oversees the nation’s Supernatural Forces. These include people with special abilities, Monks, Taoists, zombie ghosts, and so on. Of course, these are just minor tasks. The greater responsibility lies in the struggle between nations. Wars that surpass conventional abilities are becoming the main force on future battlefields. What we can do now is recruit more talents to serve us, and as for those special abilities that can alter the human body, there will be experts to handle them. Do you get my drift?"

"Not quite."

"You may ask me about anything you don’t understand."

"Is your visit about getting me to surrender?"

"Partly yes, and partly no."

"How so?"

"You are a key figure for us, so ’surrender’ isn’t quite the term we use."

"That’s good to hear. However, I still won’t go."

As soon as Ye Tian finished speaking, over a dozen figures in black tight-fitting clothes burst through the bamboo forest, landing swiftly on the ground, their bodies covered save for their eyes, which showed unmistakable killing intent.

"Are you moving to action now?" Ye Tian’s lips quirked.

His injuries had mostly healed; though not completely, yet he felt an eager fighting spirit inside, yearning for a chance to experiment with the profound understanding of his Spiritual Power gained during his brush with death. It was like a knife yearning for a good whetstone.

The black-clad individuals stood in a line in front of Zhang Liang, completely shielding him.

"Mr. Ye, I mean no harm. I merely want you to reconsider," said Zhang Liang.

A trace of Clear Wind Gang Qi peeked between Ye Tian’s fingers as he spoke calmly, "Are you suggesting I choose between going back to risk my life or staying here to kill?"

Displeased by his insolence, the twelve black-clad individuals drew slightly curved blades from behind, uniform in their darkness, probably crafted from a special steel to emanate such a strong killing aura.

"Twelve Earthly Branches?"

"That’s right."

"Then there should also be the Heavenly Stems."

"They will be there."

Since there was nothing left to discuss, Ye Tian didn’t hold back. The elders sitting in the court had deceived him more than once, and factoring in this incident, he’d nearly lost his life. Someone had to pay for this deceit, even if it meant taking out a few of their subordinates.

"Attack!"

At Zhang Liang’s command, the Twelve Earthly Branches instantly formed a formation: one at the top, four in the middle, seven at the bottom – the Futu Tower formation, with Ye Tian at the center.