The yellow-haired man's footsteps came to a halt, and Julian Bai's face, devoid of any luster, appeared particularly eerie in the dark corner, as if he had emerged from hell at midnight to prey on humans.
Realizing that the newcomer was not someone to be trifled with, the yellow-haired man felt a twinge of fear. "I didn't mean to do anything to her," he stammered.
Hearing his cowardly words, Julian Bai let out a cold snort and quickly pressed down on the accelerator. The car shot forward rapidly. By the time the yellow-haired man sensed danger and started running backward, it was too late; no one could outrun a car.
With a loud crash, Grace Gu saw the yellow-haired man get knocked several meters away while Julian Bai executed a sharp turn and brought the car right in front of her.
"Are you trying to escape?"
A slight smirk curled at the corners of his mouth; his questioning tone was both mercilessly mocking and almost contemplative. After all, this direction was completely opposite to where Ziyuan Villa lay. He wasn't foolish; he could analyze the underlying issues here.
Grace Gu didn't know how to respond. If she said she wasn't trying to escape, how could she explain why she ended up here?
Should she mention being threatened by that yellow-haired man? She neither wanted nor wished for that.
"Have you grown wings and want to fly away?"
Just as he seemed poised to ask something else, lights flickered on along the roadside. As they became slightly blinding, two large vehicles pulled over. A burly man stepped out and respectfully addressed Julian Bai: "Young Master."
At this moment, Julian Bai finally exited his vehicle with his long legs and glanced at the unconscious figure lying there before slowly exhaling: "Bring him over."
Grace Gu recognized these men; they were usually holed up in their villa looking ordinary but today felt different—she sensed an air of violence emanating from them for some reason.
She wasn't naive or inexperienced; such feelings were hard-earned through years spent in chaotic environments. She had never intentionally sought information about Julian Bai before.
But now she found herself reassessing her earlier impulsive actions—were they right or wrong? The ruthlessness in this man's eyes was something she had never encountered before.
"Young Master, it seems he's passed out?"
"Wake him up."
He approached the yellow-haired man disdainfully and stepped on his hand with the heel of his shoe.
His nonchalant demeanor resembled playfulness yet everyone felt that there was considerable force behind it. Once he lifted his foot away, others gently raised the yellow-haired man's hand while another person produced something from their vehicle and casually remarked: "Hold tight."
Grace Gu then heard agonizing screams as if he were undergoing some form of torture. She slightly raised her gaze only to see a sweaty hand gripping a nail of moderate length.
Her heart raced with shock as their actions continued without hesitation—a scream echoed again as her complexion paled further when they began pulling out all ten of that thug's nails.
Julian Bai seemed oblivious to her astonishment as he calmly stated: "Pull them all out; I want to see if he can endure such pain connected through every fingertip."
The yellow-haired man appeared utterly terrified as he begged for mercy: "No! Please! I won't dare again!"
Such pain was beyond what an average person could withstand; he'd rather have them chop off his arm than endure their treatment like this.
Seeing two fingers stripped bare sent waves of terror coursing through him—at that moment he'd wish for death under those earlier circumstances instead.
But whether it was fate playing tricks or Julian Bai's exceptional skills at work—the wheels had crushed his legs without putting him in any real danger aside from pain and broken bones.
"Dare you still think you'll walk out alive today?" Julian Bai scoffed lightly at him; did this fool really believe he'd survive?
"Remove them."
Even just looking at him felt like receiving a favor from him; thus he spoke blandly before walking toward Grace Gu and tossing his suit jacket onto her.
She stared at the suit falling before her unsure how to react. Perhaps sensing her hesitation, he said flatly: "Who do you think you're trying to seduce like this?"
Grace Gu bit her lip—the cracked skin tasted faintly bitter—but there was no softness in Julian Bai's gaze; instead it focused dangerously on areas where she exposed herself too much skin.
As if recalling something important, he shouted back at those behind him: "Don't kill him! Otherwise it'll truly be letting him off easy. Send word over there—he needs to live well."
Surprise flickered across several faces but they nodded slightly nonetheless; those who entered that place were notorious criminals while this small fry hadn't expected such treatment from Young Master—was it luck or misfortune?
Noticing Grace Gu's slow response made Julian Bai step closer suddenly wrapping an arm around her waist leading towards his car with an unusually dark expression—as if lost deep in thought.
Ignoring those men entirely after tossing Grace inside the vehicle, he drove toward Ziyuan Villa while glancing sideways at her: "Do you know where I'm taking him?"
Grace Gu shook her head feeling their astonished gazes upon them but remained clueless about where exactly they were headed—it certainly didn't seem like anywhere good based on intuition alone.
He leaned closer inspecting her face then returned attention back outside watching dim streetlights pass by: "That place gathers some of this world's most terrifying individuals—they thrive on conflict and adore beautiful women."
"Grace," He continued calmly but ominously "If you ever make me angry again next time it won't be someone else going there—it'll be you."
Upon hearing those words made Grace Gu feel slightly fearful—the look on this man's face indicated no jesting whatsoever.
Turning towards him revealed a faint smile curling upon lips which cast shadows reminiscent of demons straight from hell itself—she understood how ruthless he could be yet failed grasping just how cruel Julian Bai's heart might also become.
Seeing fear flash within her eyes softened Julian Bai's expression considerably—a genuine smile replaced previous mockery: "Good girl—you won't provoke me again so I won't treat you harshly."
After pausing briefly added: "After all these years you've yet given me cause for weariness."
His words carried shamelessness yet Grace Gu lacked leverage against such claims realizing fully well that merely existing meant nothing more than being treated like an object.
In ancient times she'd been pawns amidst power struggles—but even then had purpose unlike now where reduced merely into playthings devoid any value beyond entertainment.
"Is there an expiration date?" After what felt like eternity passing wherein Julian Bai assumed she'd comprehended reality unexpectedly prompted forth such question caught off guard entirely