Chapter 952: Chapter 952

Ye Qing furrowed his brows. He had no idea how strong Chen Yongchang was. However, Wang Tian'an had faced him before and should have a good understanding of his strength. Since Wang Tian'an had sent these five men, it clearly indicated that their skills weren't weak—at least, they were more than capable of dealing with him.

Holding the Seven-Star Ancient Sword, Ye Qing still had a slim chance of escaping on his own. But with Huangfu Ziyu still unconscious in the car, completely defenseless, fleeing was out of the question. There was no way Ye Qing would abandon Huangfu Ziyu and leave alone.

Seeing Ye Qing's silence, Chen Yongchang sneered repeatedly and spoke leisurely, "Mr. Ye, do you really need this long to think it over? It's just a simple yes-or-no question. Does it take that long to answer? My patience has its limits. If you don't respond, we'll just take Miss Huangfu away first!"

"Don't you dare!" Ye Qing raised the Seven-Star Ancient Sword in his hand, pointing it at Chen Yongchang, and said in a deep voice, "If any of you dare lay a finger on her, I'll kill him first!"

Chen Yongchang let out a cold laugh and said, "Ye Qing, this isn't up to you. We're not like those useless guys from before—you can't scare us. Let me tell you, either you come with us now, or we'll take this little beauty back first. After all, Miss Huangfu is quite stunning. Even if we sell her abroad, she'd fetch a hefty price. It's a guaranteed profit!"

"If we're taking her back anyway, shouldn't we let our guys have a little fun first before selling her?" A man beside Chen Yongchang laughed loudly.

"Exactly! Why let outsiders benefit? Take her back, and we'll let the brothers enjoy her first!" These men burst into unrestrained laughter, their words dripping with vile desecration toward Huangfu Ziyu.

Ye Qing's expression turned icy, and a cold gleam flashed in his eyes. He had already decided to kill these men. However, he knew full well that he couldn't afford to act impulsively. He was outnumbered, and recklessly attacking would only lead to his own downfall. If Huangfu Ziyu came to harm as a result, he could never forgive himself!

But what could Ye Qing do at this moment? Chen Yongchang wasn't a fool. He had him surrounded, and there wasn't even a single passing vehicle nearby. Escape was simply impossible.

"Alright, everyone, let's stop fighting. No matter what, capturing the target is the priority!" Chen Yongchang said with a loud laugh. "Come on, all of you, let's take down this man named Ye first. Remember, if he tries to run, just grab Huangfu Ziyu instead. Worst case, we'll take her back and have some fun with her first."

The four men beside him erupted into laughter and, following Chen Yongchang, slowly moved in to encircle Ye Qing. Although they regarded Ye Qing as a lamb trapped in a cage, they were still cautious. After all, the Seven-Star Ancient Sword in Ye Qing's hand was no ordinary weapon—one strike was enough to take a life.

As the five men moved to surround him, Ye Qing knew he couldn't let them proceed any further. If they surrounded him completely, attacking from all sides, the fight would become even more difficult.

"Chen Yongchang, I'll kill you!" Ye Qing roared furiously, like an enraged lion. Gripping the Seven-Star Ancient Sword tightly, he lunged at Chen Yongchang with the intent to kill, putting everything on the line.

Chen Yongchang had no intention of facing Ye Qing head-on. Seeing Ye Qing charging at him, he quickly stepped back a few paces to dodge the strike. At the same time, two of the other men lunged at Ye Qing from the sides, launching attacks aimed at him.

The two attackers moved swiftly. Although Ye Qing desperately wanted to kill Chen Yongchang, he couldn't ignore their side attacks and was forced to turn back and defend. As he countered their strikes, two more men rushed at him from behind, aiming their attacks at him as well. Meanwhile, Chen Yongchang seized the moment and launched an attack on Ye Qing from the front.

In an instant, the five men had Ye Qing completely surrounded. Although the Seven-Star Ancient Sword in Ye Qing's hand was incredibly powerful, every time he swung at one of them, they would retreat and dodge, avoiding a direct confrontation. Meanwhile, the other four would relentlessly press their attacks, leaving Ye Qing with no choice but to pull back and defend.

Despite Ye Qing's significantly increased strength, the five men were no slouches either. Trapped in the middle, Ye Qing found it hard to land a single hit with his deadly sword. Instead, under the constant barrage of attacks from all sides, Ye Qing soon grew overwhelmed and began struggling to keep up.

The fierce battle continued for about two minutes when Ye Qing suddenly took a heavy kick to his back—this one, unavoidable. The impact made him grunt in pain. These men were strong, their blows and kicks packing serious power that could inflict severe injuries.

That kick threw Ye Qing off balance even more, and soon after, he received several more hits in succession. Now thoroughly disoriented, Ye Qing was completely on the defensive, barely managing to fend off the relentless assaults from the five men. He was clearly outmatched, reduced to a punching bag for their coordinated attacks.

"Hahaha…" Seeing this, Chen Yongchang laughed triumphantly and mocked, "Ye, it seems Third Senior Brother overestimated you. This is your so-called strength? With this laughable skill, how dare you challenge my Third Senior Brother? You really don't know your place!"

Ye Qing clenched his teeth, ignoring Chen Yongchang's taunts, and focused solely on evading the attacks. But by now, he was completely out of energy, and his attempts to avoid and block their strikes were proving increasingly ineffective. Before long, he was struck several more times, coughing up blood as his steps became unsteady—signs that he had suffered internal injuries.

Seeing Ye Qing in such a pitiful state, Chen Yongchang grew even more smug. He hadn't expected capturing Ye Qing to go so smoothly. Wang Tian'an had warned him that Ye Qing was formidable, which had made him somewhat apprehensive. But now it appeared that Wang Tian'an had overestimated Ye Qing—he wasn't nearly as strong as Wang Tian'an had claimed!

Noticing Ye Qing staggering and failing to dodge effectively, Chen Yongchang seized an opening and struck Ye Qing squarely on the back with a palm strike.

Ye Qing let out a muffled grunt and fell forward onto the ground. The other men immediately surged forward, raining down blows and kicks on Ye Qing, leaving him with no strength to fight back. Gasping for breath, he lay motionless on the ground, unable to get up.

"Hmph, Ye, so this is all you've got?" Chen Yongchang sneered as he looked down at Ye Qing. "Had I known, I would've come alone to deal with you. Why bother bringing so many people?"

Ye Qing clenched his teeth and glared at Chen Yongchang with cold, piercing eyes, struggling to get up but failing each time. Seeing Ye Qing's futile efforts, Chen Yongchang laughed even harder and mocked, "Ye, you'd better save your strength. By the time we reach Western Province tomorrow, my Third Senior Brother will make you wish for death!"

Sneering, Chen Yongchang raised his foot and stomped hard on Ye Qing's right shoulder. With a sharp crack, Ye Qing's right arm was dislocated, rendering it useless.

"I'm a cautious man. Even though you can't move, I'll feel safer if your arms are crippled." Chen Yongchang laughed coldly, stepping on Ye Qing's left shoulder and dislocating his other arm before nodding in satisfaction.

"Young Master, we've got him. What's next?" A man beside Chen Yongchang asked eagerly, "How about we start with Huangfu Ziyu? They say this girl is one of the top beauties in the Southern Six Provinces. Shouldn't we let the brothers have a taste first?"

"Don't worry, you'll all get your turn—but not here!" Chen Yongchang instructed. "So many people have died here, the police will show up soon. We don't need the trouble. You two, bring the car over and load up both Ye and Huangfu Ziyu. Once we're out of here, you can have all the fun you want!"

Chen Yongchang's words excited the men. Two of them ran off to fetch a car, while the other two headed toward Ye Qing's car.

"Where are you going?" Chen Yongchang called out to them. "Ye is the priority. Load him up first, then deal with the woman!"

Though reluctant, the two men obeyed Chen Yongchang's orders, casting eager glances at the unconscious Huangfu Ziyu in the car. Their eyes burned with fanaticism, and they swallowed nervously before turning back toward Ye Qing. Just as the other two pulled up with a car and stopped near Ye Qing, the pair lowered themselves to pick him up.

But at that moment, a sharp glint flashed in Ye Qing's eyes. Before the men could react, Ye Qing let out a sudden roar and slammed his shoulders forcefully against the ground. With two distinct cracking sounds, Ye Qing's dislocated arms snapped back into place.

During his time as a soldier, Ye Qing frequently dealt with fractures and dislocations—they were almost routine injuries. He had studied treating such injuries extensively and was well-versed in the Acupoint Seeking Technique, which included methods for addressing dislocations. Calculating the force and angle precisely, he slammed his arms back into place with remarkable efficiency.

The nearby men were stunned. They hadn't expected Ye Qing, who had seemed completely incapacitated moments before, to suddenly regain such strength. Even more shocking, despite both his arms being dislocated, Ye Qing had managed to reset them himself. Before they could even think of dodging, they saw Ye Qing wielding the Seven-Star Ancient Sword and swinging it straight toward them.