No one will die.

Since Bai Ye said he brought me onto this path, he would have to lead me out.

That single sentence warmed my heart. This aloof and cold man could always inadvertently touch some soft spot in your heart, making you sometimes want to become friends with him even on the premise of knowing he was a madman.

However, Old Hei was not the kind of cowardly person easily bluffed. In the intelligence files from Huang Quan's phone, Old Hei was specifically emphasized as a true combat expert. He belonged to the type who looked low-key yet possessed off-the-charts self-confidence and an exceptionally strong mentality. He simply would not tolerate anyone insulting his strength, and Bai Ye's behavior was undoubtedly a bit of a provocation to him.

Thus, Old Hei violently stomped his feet on the ground and leaped upward. As he jumped high into the air, I actually sensed the fierce murderous intent that usually only appeared in movies.

Giving no one the slightest time to react, Old Hei's heavy and powerful kick went straight for Bai Ye's chest.

Bai Ye did not dodge; instead, he raised his right arm to block.

Accompanied by a loud bang, Old Hei's foot struck Bai Ye's arm. Although Bai Ye forced Old Hei to spring back and even took a step back himself to steady his stance, Bai Ye was shaken just the same and retreated another two steps.

From this, it was evident that Bai Ye had truly met his match this time. Still, it was understandable—this was an expert who had trained someone as formidable as Huang Quan.

Failing to subdue Bai Ye with a single kick, a flash of shock crossed Old Hei's face. However, he quickly closed in again, first throwing a punch at Bai Ye. When Bai Ye raised his palm to block, Old Hei executed a sharp pivot, spinning around to deliver a direct kick to Bai Ye. Bai Ye ducked away, but unexpectedly, defying human biomechanics, Old Hei pulled off a swallow-style spin. Resembling a genuine martial arts technique, it was a rapid combo kick heading straight for the crown of Bai Ye's head.

Yet Bai Ye was no ordinary man either. His reaction was extremely fast. Just as the tip of Old Hei's foot was about to cleave down onto him, Bai Ye had already raised both hands and brought his palms together, trapping Old Hei's shoe.

Yet tragedy struck at that very moment. When Bai Ye's hands gripped Old Hei's foot, attempting to slam him to the ground, a slit suddenly ripped open on Old Hei's shoe. From the right side of the shoe, a sharp blade abruptly protruded—damn it, there was a hidden mechanism inside the shoe!

The moment the razor-sharp blade emerged from the shoe, Bai Ye released his grip at lightning speed, but the blade still sliced across his palm, instantly leaving a streak of bright red blood on the metal. Had Bai Ye not reacted quickly, his palm probably would have been completely severed by Old Hei!

At that instant, I woke up to the realization of what kind of entity Old Hei truly was: not only skilled in combat, but also treacherous, cunning, and completely unorthodox!

Because of this brief distraction, an opportunity was given to Old Hei. He unleashed a left spinning kick that landed squarely on Bai Ye's lower abdomen—and it was delivered with the blade-equipped shoe.

Bai Ye's clothes were instantly shredded by Old Hei, and blood even welled up from his stomach, staining his white attire red.

Yet Bai Ye's endurance was truly monstrous. Even after sustaining these two injuries in rapid succession, he did not even blink, remaining as aloof and expressionless as ever.

Immediately afterward, Bai Ye made a move bordering on insanity.

Logic dictated that with one's lower abdomen slashed by a blade, anyone would instinctively retreat and dodge. Instead, Bai Ye did the exact opposite: he suddenly thrust his torso forward, forcefully driving the blade on Old Hei's shoe even deeper into his own stomach.

Following that, Bai Ye pressed forward with overwhelming weight, tackling Old Hei and instantly pinning him flat to the ground. However, fresh blood instantly spurted from Bai Ye's lower abdomen, and in quite a significant volume at that.

This was truly trading eight hundred enemy casualties for a thousand of one's own. But I understood Bai Ye's action—he must have realized that after sustaining injuries, his raw strength was no longer enough to take down Old Hei, so he decided to burn his boats and drag Old Hei down with him in mutual destruction.

Old Hei clearly hadn't expected Bai Ye to pull such a stunt, and the momentum shifted drastically. Just as he tried to get up, I heard a series of crisp, cracking sounds: it was Old Hei's leg, being forcefully snapped by Bai Ye right at the thigh joint!

Old Hei's leg was actually bent past a hundred and eighty degrees by Bai Ye's crushing weight, instantly tearing his joints and ligaments.

Giving Old Hei not a fraction of a second to react, Bai Ye's hand clamped onto Old Hei's throat. Simultaneously, a sharp diamond-shaped dagger materialized in his grip, pressed directly against Old Hei's windpipe.

"You can try to kill me, but I'll kill you before you can kill me!" Bai Ye said coldly to Old Hei.

This was simply a madman, utterly fearless of life and death. He had won the best possible outcome through the worst possible method.

I immediately prepared to rush toward Bai Ye. I wanted him to help me cut the ropes binding my body so that I could help him escape this place together.

However, both of us had miscalculated one detail. The moment I started moving, I instinctively sensed a surge of danger from behind. As I subconsciously prepared to evade, my legs were hooked by a sweeping low kick. Because I was already tied up with ropes, I stumbled and crashed heavily to the ground.

By the time I fully recovered my senses, a dagger was already held horizontally across my throat.

It was Huang Ju! This seemingly intellectual woman was actually also skilled in martial arts! But thinking about it, it made sense—she was the founder of Dawn's assistant, after all. It was impossible for her to lack some tricks up her sleeve.

"Stop right there, or I'll make him die immediately." Huang Ju quickly spoke up, addressing Bai Ye.

Clearly, Huang Ju had grasped the dynamics of the scene, knowing that Bai Ye had come for my sake. As long as she held my throat, she held the initiative in the arena.

The dagger in Bai Ye's hand halted at Old Hei's neck, ultimately failing to pierce through.

"Bai Ye, don't worry about me, just finish him off!" I couldn't help shouting to Bai Ye, because I sensed that Huang Ju wouldn't dare to kill me right here and now, whereas once Bai Ye let Old Hei go, we would undoubtedly still die anyway.

Therefore, the current situation was like a life-or-death trial—a psychological game of wits.

Bai Ye naturally understood this logic as well, so he did not let Old Hei go. Instead, his peach-blossom eyes narrowed slightly as he gazed coldly at Huang Ju.

And Huang Ju was truly a person who had weathered great storms; she had endured for so many years precisely because she possessed extraordinary fortitude.

Unmoved, she suddenly raised her knife and plunged it directly into my shoulder. Piercing pain wracked my body, and I couldn't help letting out a soft grunt.

Bai Ye's pupils instantly turned bloodshot. Yet, a moment later, he pulled the dagger away from Old Hei's neck.

Old Hei shoved Bai Ye away, braced his hands on the ground, and stood up on one leg.

*Thud.*

Old Hei smashed a fist into Bai Ye's back. He had tucked razor blades between his knuckles, and blood instantly seeped through the fabric of Bai Ye's back.

Yet Bai Ye quietly walked toward Huang Ju and me. Soon, he was standing right beside us, simply uttering three quiet words: "Let him go."

At that moment, Old Hei hopped over on his one good leg, having already drawn a short blade, and stabbed it straight into Bai Ye's thigh.

Bai Ye's body instantly shuddered, staggering as he dropped to one knee right beside me.

Old Hei then let out an angry taunt: "Playing the hero when death is at your doorstep? I'll finish you off today, bastard."

I couldn't bear to watch any longer. The usually aloof Bai Ye had actually been reduced to such a miserable state, and all because of me. I couldn't let him suffer such a tragic end, so I hurriedly urged Bai Ye: "Forget about me! Take down at least one of them with you!"

Yet Bai Ye unexpectedly flashed me a gentle smile—as warm and gentle as Jin Ze's.

He said, "I told you I would take you out, and I will definitely do it."

Old Hei jeered once more: "How exactly do you plan to pull that off? Since you're at death's door, I'll send you on your way first!"

With that, Old Hei raised his knife to stab at the back of Bai Ye's neck.

Suddenly, Bai Ye jerked his head to the side, dodging the stab. Following that, he abruptly ripped off his blood-stained upper garment, exposing his flawless physique once again.

With his shirt removed, I noticed for the first time that a ring of bizarre objects was strapped around Bai Ye's waist—some looked like electronic devices, while others resembled liquid test tubes.

The moment these items were revealed, both Old Hei and Huang Ju froze in shock.

Bai Ye then fished a remote control out of his pocket and stated, "Either we all die together, or you let him go."

I understood instantly: this was likely some kind of high-lethal bomb.

Though Huang Ju and the others hesitated slightly at first, Bai Ye suddenly smiled wickedly at me, saying, "A-Mu, let's get blown to pieces together right here today."

I couldn't help uttering a single word: "Okay."

It wasn't that I actually wanted to die, but I said it for Huang Ju and Old Hei to hear. I wanted to show them that I had already prepared myself for certain death today.

Sure enough, Old Hei soon spoke up: "Fine, let him out first."

At that, the evil, charming smile at the corners of Bai Ye's lips grew even more eerie. Although Huang Ju had released me, I remained rooted to the spot, refusing to move.

"Get lost."

This was the first time I had ever heard Bai Ye curse. I could see that having lost so much blood, he was reaching his absolute limit.

Not wanting to make things harder for Bai Ye, I reluctantly took two steps back. Yet, a part of me didn't want to leave at all; I even caught myself thinking that if we were just blown up right here like this, it might actually be nice—letting everything end right now.

It was as if Bai Ye could see right through my thoughts, for he commanded directly, "Chen Mu, get the hell out of here! You are not A-Mu, you don't deserve to die with me. If you don't leave right now, I'll start killing more people."

Though I acted as if I didn't understand Bai Ye's words, I deeply grasped their underlying meaning.

"Then I'm leaving. Don't you die."

Leaving those words behind, I slowly walked toward the tunnel. The moment my voice trailed off, another gentle voice suddenly resonated from the tunnel entrance: "None of you are going to die."

It was Jin Ze's voice, shining like a ray of light piercing straight into my heart.