The Villain Slaps The Protagonist’s Halo - Chapter 138

Chapter 138: Hunt the World

Nie Jia didn't spend much time with An Yuan, but An Yuan's distinct personality left a deep impression on him.

When he first left the Hunters organization, An Yuan was still a cocky and proud teenager, wearing his emotions on his sleeve, always following Nie Jia around like a loyal puppy. Now, just a few months later, he stood expressionless behind Ning Lang, his eyes dark and lifeless, like a cunning conspirator who wouldn't easily reveal his intentions, without a trace of his past self, not even a hint of youthful innocence between his brows.

Nie Jia didn't intentionally inquire about the current situation of the Hunters after he left, but he never expected to see An Yuan in the Oasis.

"How come you're here?" Nie Jia furrowed his brows slightly, softly asking An Yuan.

An Yuan just lifted his head, looked at Nie Jia with cold eyes, drained his wine glass in one gulp, and casually tossed the empty glass aside, striding away. As he passed by Ning Lang, he nonchalantly said, "None of your business." 

Nie Jia wasn't upset. He didn't care much about An Yuan. Seeing that An Yuan didn't want to acknowledge him, he didn't say anything more.

Ning Lang chuckled evilly, "Kids, they tend to hold grudges when they're young."

He mocked Nie Jia, who glanced coldly at Ning Lang and said indifferently, "I can hold grudges too."

Ning Lang's expression changed slightly. Nie Jia glanced around and didn't like the atmosphere. He leaned over to Shi Chen's ear and said, "I'll go to the side for some peace and quiet."

Shi Chen comfortingly patted Nie Jia's waist, watching him walk to the nearby terrace to catch some fresh air. Without changing his expression, he turned to Ning Lang and feigned politeness, "It seems that the remaining members of the Hunters organization are also in the Oasis."

"Abandoned people always seek refuge for themselves," Ning Lang smiled.

However, Shi Chen subtly furrowed his brows upon hearing this. Although both the Hunters organization and the Oasis were Shark faction strongholds, originally these two organizations were like water and fire, incompatible. Did Nie Jia's departure somehow seamlessly merge these two diametrically opposed organizations?

Seems unlikely.

On the terrace, Nie Jia leaned on the railing with both hands, looking expressionlessly at the distant forest under the night sky. He felt a bit tired. Thinking about the countless time and effort Shi Chen would have to spend negotiating a peace treaty with Ning Lang next, and the preparations he would have to make for reclaiming the Oasis in the future, Nie Jia felt mentally exhausted.

The foreign Ability Users' base had mostly surrendered to Huaxia in the past month, but these were all achieved at great risk by Shi Chen. And now, here in the Oasis... why bother with the lives of these treacherous subjects?

Nie Jia sighed heavily, closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"So, the person you love is Shi Chen, huh?" A cold voice came from behind.

Nie Jia didn't need to guess to know who it was. He ignored him, opened his eyes, and continued to gaze at the forest ahead.

An Yuan approached, leaned on the railing, turned his head to look at the side of Nie Jia's face, and coldly chuckled, "I really don't understand. Shi Chen has killed countless of our comrades. Why would you abandon us for him?"

The fiery tone in his voice made Nie Jia glance sideways.

"Before I left, I didn't kill you guys because I didn't think your way of survival and goals were wrong. I let you live because I hoped you would continue to pursue your own goals, not abandon your own will and join the Oasis," Nie Jia said indifferently. "If I had known you would cause trouble for me and Shi Chen here, I wouldn't have let you leave the base alive."

An Yuan's red hair had been cut short. The newly grown hair was jet black and soft. At this moment, it was blown by the wind, revealing naturally obedient clean eyebrows.

He stared blankly at Nie Jia for a long time, suddenly unable to control his laughter, bending over and laughing heartily, tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Right and wrong don't need you to define them. Who do you think you are!" An Yuan straightened up, his expression uncontrollably angry.

"I once said that I would never forgive you, but if you change your mind now and return to me, I can forgive you once," An Yuan said expressionlessly. "As long as you leave Huaxia and join the Oasis, I can let bygones be bygones. Of course, as a sign of your sincerity, you have to personally kill Shi Chen."

"I don't want to hear Shi Chen's name from your mouth again," Nie Jia's expression slightly darkened.

An Yuan sneered mockingly, "I knew it."

Nie Jia sensed something and furrowed his brows. "This meeting was requested by Ning Lang, hoping to negotiate a ceasefire and peace with Huaxia. Now you want to persuade me to join the Oasis. Can you influence Ning Lang?"

"I'm already a fifth-tier Ability User now. You didn't know, did you?" An Yuan said.

"A fifth-tier Fire Ability User. It might work against others, but to intimidate me or balance Ning Lang?" Nie Jia raised his eyebrows slightly, unexpectedly cold and ruthless.

An Yuan said lightly, "If it were before, when I became a fifth-tier Ability User, you would definitely praise me and be proud of me."

"Nie Jia!!!" A voice of excitement came from below. Nie Jia lowered his head and saw Song Nuanyang and He Qingtang walking side by side. Seeing Nie Jia on the terrace upstairs, Song Nuanyang couldn't help but wave his hands at him, seemingly excited about something.

Nie Jia waved his hand casually at An Yuan, who suddenly turned pale when he saw Song Nuanyang downstairs.

"You're not coming back, are you?" An Yuan asked for the last time, his eyes devoid of any hope.

Nie Jia looked at him indifferently, and An Yuan suddenly smiled, his gaze becoming somewhat ferocious. "To be honest, I didn't expect to see you in the Oasis. After all, with Ning Lang's crazy actions before, whoever comes to the Oasis this time must be prepared to sacrifice, right?" He turned his head to glance at Shi Chen in the crowd, then looked back at Nie Jia, smiling. "You're willing to accompany him to death but refuse to come back. You've really broken my heart."

Nie Jia didn't know how to respond to this child, and was speechless.

"Let me tell you one last truth. Ning Lang isn't crazy, he's just a fool." With that, An Yuan snorted coldly and walked away from the venue.

A few minutes later, Song Nuanyang and He Qingtang came up to the terrace, looking for Nie Jia.

Song Nuanyang held a small bucket in his hand, containing several brightly colored fish swimming inside. He ran over and looked around, asking, "Wasn't there someone here just now? They left, who was it?"

"An Yuan," Nie Jia said.

Song Nuanyang raised his eyebrows. "Oh! That's Nie Jia's former little follower. Tsk tsk, he must hate you a lot. Did you have a fight?"

He Qingtang listened on the side, feeling puzzled. What did it mean by "Nie Jia's former little follower"?

Nie Jia didn't bother with their banter and said seriously, "An Yuan seems a bit off. Keep an eye on him."

Song Nuanyang made an OK gesture. "Next time I see him, I'll see what's going on in his head."

"You guys went to gather information, so what are you doing now, fishing?" Nie Jia kicked the bucket.

The fish in the bucket were startled and scattered. Song Nuanyang kicked him back. "We'll talk about it later when we get back tonight."

Tonight was Ning Lang's banquet, and the formal negotiations were scheduled for tomorrow. Nie Jia felt a bit strange, but didn't pay much attention to it. Song Nuanyang forgot about it after chatting with him for a while.

After the banquet ended, He Qingtang knocked on the door to report to Shi Chen about today's situation. Finally, she concluded, "Because of time constraints, we only visited several nearby islands. The ordinary people below the power center of the Oasis are also frightened by Ning Lang's attack this time. Tomorrow, I will send more people to investigate a few islands, but it can almost be concluded that the Oasis is not united."

Shi Chen nodded. "Go repeat this to the president."

"Yes," He Qingtang responded.

Nie Jia lay on the bed, supporting his head with his hand. "The Oasis is a Shark faction stronghold. Why are they frightened by Ning Lang's attack? Shouldn't they be happy about it, considering their hatred for ordinary people and the Porpoise faction?"

Shi Chen rubbed his hair gently. "Warmongers are always in the minority. Most people just want to live a good life."

Nie Jia obediently fell silent for a moment. "If we successfully sign a peace treaty with Ning Lang tomorrow, will the Oasis become an independent country?"

"It remains to be discussed, but if this is Ning Lang's highest demand, it's also beneficial for us," Shi Chen smiled gently, soothingly caressing Nie Jia's cheek. "You're tired today. Go to sleep early."

Alright then. Nie Jia obediently climbed into bed. The Oasis being independent was still better than killing Ning Lang. Otherwise, if they ended up fighting with Ning Lang, leaving behind the mess of the Oasis for Shi Chen to clean up, that wouldn't be good. Besides outsiders, the various Shark faction members in the Oasis harbored deep hatred for Shi Chen. Who knew how big of a hidden danger lurked there?

After Shi Chen coaxed Nie Jia to sleep, He Qingtang said, "Then I'll go out first."

She was about to leave, hadn't even stepped out of the room, when suddenly there was a deafening explosion from the neighboring room, like a blast or a roar of a giant beast, shaking the ground violently, and outside the window, a large fire and thick smoke rose up.

He Qingtang almost fell over in shock. She leaned against the wall in surprise, turned her head, and saw that Shi Chen had hurriedly pulled Nie Jia, along with the blanket, off the bed, and only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.

But soon, the hearts of the three were raised again.

Next door was Song Nuanyang and Shen Su's room!

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