Looking at the woman in his arms, whose face was slightly pale and tired, Ye Ming felt a pang of heartache while also feeling happy for her.
From this moment on, a star-studded path would be completely open to her.
"Get some good rest!"
Ye Ming gently picked her up, his movements so soft as if he were afraid of waking the sleeping girl.
Then, his gaze fell upon Peterson and the others, who were currently in a state of daze.
It seemed the impact of the previous scene was still too much for them to process in a short time.
Even Ye Ming himself still felt a sense of unreality.
However, this farce should now come to an end.
"You are very fortunate, and I am in a good mood right now. So..." Ye Ming smiled at Peterson and said, "You've saved your lives!"
As he spoke, Ye Ming deliberately added a hint of pressure to his tone. This pressure was precisely what jolted Peterson and the others back to their senses.
"This..."
Peterson looked at the man and woman before him, shock still lingering on his face. He opened his mouth, but found himself unable to speak due to fear.
Wolf, who was the first to sense Nan Gong Qianyu's awakened power, was even more so.
The sense of deep-seated dread continued to tug at his nerves, causing his body to tremble slightly from time to time.
This was fear originating from instinct.
Especially when he recalled the rift that had released the power of devouring earlier, he felt as though his soul was being scrutinized.
It was as if the other party intended to erase his soul along with it.
This was truly terrifying.
"Mr. Ye... Mr. Ye! We were rude this time!"
Calming his inner unease, Peterson bowed deeply to Ye Ming with extremely complex emotions, "Thank you for your mercy!"
Even though they knew things wouldn't be simple when they decided to get involved in this mess, they had prepared themselves mentally. Yet, facing the world-shattering scene at the end still filled him with regret.
If he could choose again, he swore that no matter how tempting the reward, he would never have participated.
However, it was all too late now.
People are often like this; only when they truly understand the grave consequences do they confront their initial choices. But by then, they discover there is no turning back.
Fortunately, as Ye Ming had said earlier, Peterson was lucky, and he was in a good mood, allowing them to leave.
Otherwise, whether they could leave here alive would be uncertain.
Of course!
Whether Ye Ming letting them go was purely due to his good mood or if he had other plans was unknown.
In any case, this was good news for Peterson and the others.
"Let's go!"
Ye Ming waved his hand, signaling them to leave.
Peterson didn't hesitate. With heavy hearts, he led everyone away from Hope House.
The only ones left behind, besides Shirley and the members of the First Female Group, were Li Hongzhi, who had been crippled, and Wu You, one of the chief executives of the Tianzi Consortium.
However, this Chief Wu now wore an expression of despair, slumping to the ground weakly, his clothes soaked with cold sweat triggered by fear.
Previously, Peterson and the others were his reliance and confidence, allowing him to maintain a degree of composure. But now, the people he depended on had left in disgrace, so his fate might not be so pleasant.
"Mr. Ye... Mr. Ye! Please... don't kill me! I..."
At this point, he could only hope that Ye Ming would spare him as he had spared Peterson and the others.
Otherwise, he had no hope of survival.
But would Ye Ming do that?
"Chief Wu! Go back and give a message to the other four chiefs. Before my livestream tonight, all of them must appear at Hope House. Otherwise..." Ye Ming turned around, leaving his chilling words hanging in the air:
"The Tianzi Consortium will cease to exist!"
*Clang!*
Upon hearing this, Wu You's face turned ashen. His heart lurched, and he almost fainted on the spot.
Fortunately, he managed to drag his exhausted body away in the end.
...
"Teacher Ye! Is Miss Qianyu alright!"
Shirley and the others did not leave immediately but followed Ye Ming out.
"She's alright! Just a bit tired!" Ye Ming explained.
Shirley looked at Ye Ming, who was gazing tenderly at the woman in his arms, and her heart suddenly felt complicated.
Among these complex emotions, a hint of unknown... envy stood out.
"That's good! In that case, we'll take our leave!"
Finally, Shirley concealed her complicated emotions and bid farewell.
"Alright!"
Ye Ming looked up at the eight women, with whom he had nearly had a dangerous encounter, and showed a hint of an unreadable expression.
"Goodbye, Teacher Ye!"
After the eight women said their goodbyes one by one, they turned and drew a close to this wondrous encounter of fate.
Watching their receding figures, Ye Ming let out a long sigh. After a moment of contemplation, he seemed to have made a decision.
"Last time, Loria and the others caused quite a stir with their selection of consorts. I wonder how those who remained are doing."
Ye Ming extended a finger and flicked it gently, releasing a stream of white energy that coalesced into eight tiny energy spheres.
Within these spheres, something seemed to be contained.
"Go! If we are destined to meet again, we will."
He waved his hand, and the eight energy spheres flew in the direction Shirley and the others had departed.
It seemed Ye Ming was still concerned about Shirley and the others leaving.
After all, they were key figures in this incident. If anything were to happen to them after he left, it would be beyond his control.
Therefore, to prevent such a situation, Ye Ming decided to pave a path for them.
As to whether they could reach the end of that path would depend on their fortune.
...
At this moment, Shirley and the others, having just left Hope House, seemed somewhat dejected. No one spoke.
The twists and turns, the dreamlike quality of this brief experience, had left an indelible mark on their hearts. It would be incredibly difficult for them to forget it all and return to ordinary life.
"Sister Shirley! What about us from now on..."
Just as one of the members was about to break the heavy atmosphere, a ball of light suddenly flew from behind and, without any warning, merged into her forehead.
Following that, the other seven women experienced the same thing.
They then all stood frozen in place.
After a minute, they slowly opened their eyes.
"Cultivation techniques! Western Underground Realm! Temple of Destiny!"
"Teacher Ye! We will definitely meet again!"