Chapter 1 The Affair

"Yaozi might be in trouble. I've been trying to call him for three hours without any luck," Nie Yan said, his voice laced with anxiety. He slammed the accelerator, the speedometer instantly leaping past 500 as he weaved through the traffic.

"Who would want to hurt Yaozi?" Xie Yao was stunned for a moment, but she knew this wasn't the time for questions. "I'll have my father track Yaozi's phone signal to its last known location and send people over."

"Okay." Nie Yan nodded. This was no time for formalities. He was worried sick about Tang Yao's safety. In his past life, the bar fight didn't happen until July 8th, three years from now. The timeline was all wrong! Tang Yao shouldn't be in danger today!

But fate was unpredictable. Nie Yan had specifically told Tang Yao to stay away from bars. He was terrified of history repeating itself. He thought that because of his rebirth, a series of butterfly effects had altered history, and Tang Yao's destiny had been changed. But when Guo Huai mentioned that Tang Yao had gone to a bar, Nie Yan's mind went blank, as if struck by lightning.

The wind howled past his ears as the trees blurred into streaks of green. Nie Yan drove and prayed. Yaozi, please be okay. Otherwise, I'll feel guilty for the rest of my life!

Sensing Nie Yan's anxiety, Xie Yao immediately called Xie Jun and asked him to mobilize the Xie family's resources to locate Tang Yao.

Ever since Nie Yan's close relationship with General Mo Yuntian became known, Xie Jun's status in the Xie family had risen dramatically, and his voice carried more weight. This little matter was nothing to him.

Twenty minutes later, Xie Jun called back with news: Tang Yao's phone signal had last been detected at the Tiangong Bar.

Hearing the name Tiangong Bar, Nie Yan froze. That wasn't where Tang Yao got into trouble in his past life. Could this be a false alarm?

"My father also found that one of the registered shareholders of the Tiangong Bar is a man named Liu Tianshi," Xie Yao said, reading from the information Xie Jun had sent her.

Even though it wasn't the same bar, the name Liu Tianshi sent a chill down Nie Yan's spine. That was the guy! Nie Yan remembered his past life. That guy killed Tang Yao and still left with a smile on his face, completely at ease because he knew the police wouldn't dare touch him! What if this guy was still after Tang Yao... Nie Yan didn't dare to imagine it. Was everything going back to the way it was in his previous life?

No, he couldn't let that happen. Yaozi, hang in there. I'll be there in two hours! Nie Yan prayed silently. In his past life, Tang Yao was already a cold corpse when he arrived at the bar. If this life was the same... Nie Yan's face was like ice as his hands gripped the steering wheel. If this life mirrored the last, he would never let that bastard get away with it!

"Ci Dao, head to Tiangong Bar in Huahai immediately," Nie Yan said, dialing Ci Dao's number.

"What's going on?"

"I'll explain when you get there. Have you found anything while you were tracking Liu Tianshi?"

"That guy's pretty low-key. He lives in a rented apartment. But I did pick up some interesting things while listening to his phone calls. His old man's some kind of secretary, a pretty big shot," Ci Dao replied.

Liu Tianshi's father was a big shot. Nie Yan could have guessed as much. And they definitely had a vast network of connections behind them. People you couldn't afford to mess with! If he couldn't get to him openly, he'd do it in the dark. Nie Yan didn't believe Ci Dao and he couldn't take out Liu Tianshi!

Guo Huai also sent word that they had dispatched people to the Tiangong Bar, but the bar had too much backing, so they had to tread carefully.

"Did you find Yaozi in the bar?" Nie Yan asked, anxious to know Tang Yao's condition.

"Not yet."

About two hours later, Nie Yan's Solon screeched to a halt outside the Tiangong Bar.

"Stay here. I can go in alone," Nie Yan said, turning to Xie Yao.

"Nie Yan, let me go in with you. I don't feel good about you going in by yourself," Xie Yao said, her voice laced with worry.

"Don't worry. Ci Dao will be here soon. He'll make sure I'm alright," Nie Yan reassured her.

Xie Yao thought for a moment. It was true that with Ci Dao around, Nie Yan's safety shouldn't be a problem.

"Alright, but call me immediately if anything happens," Xie Yao said. She might get in Nie Yan's way if she went inside, but she could support him from the outside. If Nie Yan ran into trouble, she could find a way to help.

Nie Yan jumped out of the Solon and ran towards the bar. It was a dazzling, neon-lit establishment, and the interior was extremely luxurious. The main hall was packed with people, and there were many private rooms on the second floor. Anything could happen inside those sealed rooms, and no one on the outside would know.

Tiangong Bar was one of the most famous entertainment venues in Huahai, and it attracted a mixed crowd, many of whom had powerful backgrounds. Rushing into each and every room would only cause more trouble and alert the enemy. If they got spooked and killed Tang Yao, he would regret it for the rest of his life. Nie Yan forced himself to calm down. What should he do?

"Can I help you, sir?" A uniformed waiter approached Nie Yan in the dim light.

Nie Yan glanced at the waiter and immediately had an idea.

"Ci Dao, get two waiter uniforms over here," Nie Yan said into his phone.

Just three minutes later, Ci Dao and Nie Yan met up. He was wearing a waiter uniform, looking quite convincing.

"I knocked out two waiters and left them in the bathroom. This one's for you," Ci Dao said, tossing Nie Yan a bag.

"Check if Tang Yao is in any of those rooms. I'm going to change," Nie Yan said, rushing towards the restroom with the uniform.

Soon, Ci Dao began his reconnaissance, knocking on the doors of the rooms one by one. If that didn't work, he would force his way in, and retreat if he didn't find anything.

Ci Dao approached a room and found the door tightly shut. He pulled out a wire, fiddled with the lock, and with a click, the door opened. He peeked inside. The room was in chaos, and several couples were embracing each other naked.

"What the hell! Get out of here! Who told you to come in?" A barrage of curses came from inside.

"Sorry, you forgot to close the door," Ci Dao said calmly as he backed out and slammed the door shut.

Nie Yan, like Ci Dao, searched the rooms one by one. Although his lock-picking skills weren't as refined as Ci Dao's, they were good enough for this situation.

Nie Yan searched sixteen rooms and then met up with Ci Dao.

"Did you find Tang Yao?" Nie Yan asked.

"No," Ci Dao shook his head. "But I found a luxury suite with five guys guarding the door. I couldn't get close. We'll probably have to fight our way in."

A luxury suite? Nie Yan pondered for a moment and looked at Ci Dao. "Let's disguise ourselves and barge in!"

Even at this point, Nie Yan remained cautious. He pulled out some mud-like substance and smeared it casually on his face. He glanced at himself in a nearby mirror. His nose looked higher and his eyes had changed. Ordinary makeup could turn an ugly duckling into a beauty, so disguise was not a difficult task.

Ci Dao also altered his appearance. The two of them walked down the hallway until they reached the luxury suite Ci Dao had mentioned. Five men in black suits and sunglasses stood guard at the door. From their demeanor, it was clear that they were well-trained bodyguards.

Nie Yan and Ci Dao exchanged glances and walked towards the men.

"The gentleman in Room 866 asked us to deliver two bottles of Lafite," Nie Yan said.

"We didn't order anything. Get out of here," one of the taller men said, blocking Nie Yan's path.

"Sir, the order did come from Room 866. A man claiming to be Liu Tianshi called the front desk and asked for two bottles of Lafite," Nie Yan said calmly, while observing the men's expressions.

Hearing this, they looked at each other, confused.

"Did the young master order them?"

"I'll go ask."

"You wait here," one of the bodyguards said, reaching out to block Nie Yan's path.

Hearing the bodyguards' conversation, a glint of murderous intent flashed in Nie Yan's eyes. Liu Tianshi was indeed in the room. He looked at Ci Dao and nodded.

At the instant he received Nie Yan's order, Ci Dao moved. His right hand struck out like lightning, chopping down on the neck of one of the bodyguards. With a thud, the bodyguard grunted, his eyes glazed over, and he collapsed to the ground.

Before the others could react, Ci Dao suddenly darted forward and appeared beside another bodyguard. Before he could react, Ci Dao's hand turned into a blade, stabbing at the bodyguard's throat like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, his fingers piercing his larynx.

A sharp pain shot through him, as if his neck was about to break. The bodyguard's face twisted in pain as he clutched his throat. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. His voice was gone.

Nie Yan moved almost simultaneously with Ci Dao, delivering a vicious elbow strike to the abdomen of the bodyguard beside him. The bodyguard immediately doubled over like a shrimp, collapsing heavily to the ground with a thud. The intense pain caused him to pass out.

Nie Yan immediately pounced on the remaining bodyguard.

The events unfolded too quickly. Three of the five bodyguards had been taken down before they could even react. Although they were well-trained, they were fragile in the face of Ci Dao and Nie Yan's terrifying speed.