Villain? No, I'll catch up with the protagonist after passing the civil service exam.

Faced with this sudden turn of events, the legendary Asura Palace Master, whose "three-year term has expired," showed no sign of panic. Instead, a distinctive smile slowly curved his face.

The corner of the mouth is crooked.

Three parts mockery, three parts indifference, and four parts haughty nonchalance.

"Young policeman, you've got guts."

Ye Chen brushed off non-existent dust from his black trench coat, looking at Lu Jingyan with an expression of utter contempt. "Do you know that what you just tore up was enough to buy half of Jinghai City's wealth?"

He took a step forward, his leather shoes making a dull thud on the wooden stage.

"You dare to ruin my Asura Palace's plans? Believe me, with just a snap of my fingers, you'll be completely stripped bare by tomorrow morning!"

Lu Jingyan tilted his head slightly.

He pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, looked at the man in front of him whose features were almost distorted, and let out a heartfelt sigh.

"Do you have a problem with your facial nerves? Should I call an ambulance for you?"

This statement, while not particularly hurtful, is extremely insulting.

Ye Chen's crooked smile froze abruptly, and the killing intent in his eyes surged instantly.

"Ignorance is bliss!"

He suddenly waved his hand and roared, trying to crush the other party's will with the heavy pressure of capital.

"My Shura Hall has three thousand mercenaries overseas! My anonymous Swiss bank accounts hold hundreds of billions of dollars in cash flow! A single word from me can shake the Wall Street stock market! A single finger from me can set back the economy of Jinghai City by ten years!"

Ye Chen pointed at Lu Jingyan as if he were looking at a corpse, "What do you think you can fight me with? Your meager monthly salary of a few thousand yuan?!"

The wealthy businessmen squatting on the ground listened to these shocking figures, and their eyes began to light up again.

That's right! This is the Lord of the Asura Palace! A living god of wealth with hundreds of billions of dollars! So what if he's a policeman? In the face of absolute capital, even the law has to bow down and give way!

However, Lu Jingyan completely ignored the terrified looks. He didn't even bother to draw his gun.

Using guns to deal with such ignorant people who are immersed in fantasy is an insult to modern civilization.

"Hundreds of billions of US dollars?"

Lu Jingyan slowly pulled a thick stack of documents from his briefcase and slammed them onto the table in front of Ye Chen.

A crisp "snap" interrupted Ye Chen's frenzied output.

"Ye Chen, male, 26 years old, no fixed occupation. He has been working as a housekeeper and cleaner for the Su family for the past three years and has not paid a single penny of personal income tax."

Lu Jingyan's voice was calm and cold, like reading an irrefutable indictment in court.

"Two weeks ago, you registered and established the so-called 'Shura Investment Group'."

"Without the approval of the People's Bank of China and relevant financial regulatory authorities, they raise funds from the general public and promise to repay the principal and interest within a certain period. They even use money from later investors to pay the principal and interest of earlier investors, creating the illusion of profitability."

With each sentence Lu Jingyan spoke, he took a step closer. The immense pressure was almost tangible, forcing Ye Chen to take a half-step back.

"This is not called the Divine Punishment Fund. It has a very clear definition in Article 176 of my country's Criminal Law."

"Suspected of illegally absorbing public deposits and fundraising fraud."

"The amount involved was exceptionally large, and the circumstances were particularly egregious."

Ye Chen stared intently at the case filing and investigation notice bearing the official red seal on the table, and cold sweat finally broke out on his forehead.

No! The script shouldn't be like this!

He is the God of War returned! He is the Lord of the Asura Palace! How could these worldly rules possibly restrain him?

"You're talking nonsense! That's normal operation of overseas funds!"

Ye Chen was still making a last-ditch effort, "All my money is overseas! Chinese law has no jurisdiction over it! With just one phone call, those funds can crush you instantly!"

He frantically pulled out his phone, trying to contact his deputy temple master who was overseas.

"No need to fight anymore."

Lu Jingyan put his hands in his pockets, looked at his pathetic appearance, and a cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Do you really think that in this era of big data, the National Anti-Money Laundering Center would be completely unaware of the cross-border flow of hundreds of billions of yuan?"

Lu Jingyan snapped his fingers.

Captain Chen of the Economic Crime Investigation Division immediately stepped forward and loudly reported, "Just five minutes ago, our police, in conjunction with Interpol, urgently froze 73 anonymous overseas accounts related to the 'Shura Investment Group'!"

"All illicit funds have been seized, and your overseas financial network has been completely severed!"

boom!

These words were like a bombshell, exploding in the banquet hall.

The wealthy businessmen squatting on the ground were completely dumbfounded.

Frozen?! ​​Hundreds of billions in overseas accounts, frozen so easily by Interpol?!

Didn't all the money they were rushing to put in just now almost go down the drain?

"Liar! He's a liar!"

A coal mine owner who had almost signed a check for fifty million suddenly jumped up, pointing at Ye Chen and cursing, "Divine Punishment Fund! Divine Punishment my ass! You almost swindled me out of everything!"

"Arrest him! Officer, arrest him now!"

The wall fell and everyone pushed.

The wealthy and influential figures who had just been treating Ye Chen like a living god now wished they could rush onto the stage and tear him apart. If it weren't for the fully armed special police officers blocking their way, these businessmen whose core interests had been threatened would have torn Ye Chen to pieces.

The phone slipped from Ye Chen's fingers, smashed on the floor, and the screen shattered.

His mind went blank.

It’s over.

His mercenary empire, painstakingly built overseas over three years, and the endless wealth he used to show off and humiliate others, collapsed like a bubble under this suffocatingly strict modern national financial regulatory system.

Lu Jingyan walked up to him and pulled out a pair of familiar silver handcuffs from his lower back.

The cold metal reflected a dazzling light under the crystal chandelier.

"What Asura War God? What overseas conglomerate?"

Lu Jingyan grabbed his wrist and locked it tightly with a "snap".

"Strip away all the fancy packaging, and you're just a fraudster running a Ponzi scheme."

"Take him away. Let the guys from the Economic Crime Investigation Division give him a good talking-to when we get back."

Two fierce-looking special police officers immediately stepped forward and grabbed Ye Chen's arms from both sides.

Only when the cold iron handcuffs dug into his flesh, sending a chill down his spine, did Ye Chen's brain, poisoned by the logic of wish-fulfillment novels, finally clear up a little.

He can't just be taken away like this!

If he gets in, what about the humiliation he endured during his three years of hiding? What about his meticulously planned triumphant return?

Are those relatives who used to hog him going to keep mocking him for being a good-for-nothing?

He turned his head sharply, as if grasping at the last straw, and looked at the Su family members who were trembling under the main table.

The mother-in-law, Liu Cuihua, was tightly covering her brother-in-law's mouth, afraid of attracting the attention of the police.

The Su family's relatives all turned ashen-faced, their previous fawning expressions completely gone, wishing they could disappear into the ground.

But in Ye Chen's eyes, the Su family was his only "bond" in Jinghai City.

He served the Su family like a slave for three years; even if he didn't achieve anything, he certainly put in the hard work.

Moreover, the Su family is considered a second-tier wealthy family in this city, with considerable connections.

As long as his mother-in-law is willing to vouch for him, and as long as the Su family is willing to use their connections to help him out, saying it's just internal family funds.

Perhaps he can still get a chance to be released on bail!

"Mom! Help me, Mom!"

Ignoring the SWAT officers' attempts to drag him, Ye Chen held firmly to the edge of the stage and shouted at Liu Cuihua with all his might.

His voice was filled with grievance and urgency.

"I am the son-in-law of the Su family!"

"Please explain to the police officer that this is all our own business! I didn't commit fraud! I really didn't commit fraud!"

"Please help me out of the three years I've toiled like a slave! Once I get out, I'll definitely share half of the Asura Palace's resources with the Su family!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Jingyan raised an eyebrow.

He followed Ye Chen's gaze and looked at the middle-aged woman who was adorned with jewels but whose face was now filled with terror.

The Su family? Mother-in-law?

A smile of interest appeared on Lu Jingyan's lips.

Is the classic "family rescue" trope from the male lead's family story finally about to unfold?

He was quite curious to see whether, at this critical moment, the materialistic mother-in-law of the Su family would put on a deeply moving show of mother-in-law and daughter-in-law affection for this son-in-law who had just revealed his astonishing wealth.

Or will she reveal another side of herself that is unexpected?

Lu Jingyan raised his hand, signaling the special police to temporarily stop their actions.

"What? Do we need family members to vouch for us?"

He looked into Ye Chen's hopeful eyes and spoke with great tolerance.

"Okay, the law upholds human rights."

"Since you, the son-in-law of the Su family, think your mother-in-law can save you, then I'll give you a chance to hear what this family member has to say."

All eyes in the room instantly turned to Liu Cuihua as Lu Jingyan spoke.

The wealthy businessmen who had been scammed held their breath, wanting to see what the Su family's attitude would be.

Liu Cuihua felt the searchlight-like gazes around her and suddenly shuddered.

She looked at Ye Chen, who was handcuffed, and then at the fully armed special police officers beside her, and swallowed hard.

That once well-maintained face of a wealthy woman was now a mixture of pale and bluish-white, her expression shifting unpredictably.

Then, she braced herself on the edge of the table with both hands and shakily got up from the ground.

Under Ye Chen's expectant gaze, believing he was about to be rescued.

Liu Cuihua straightened her disheveled evening gown and took a deep breath.

Trembling, it opened its mouth in the direction of Lu Jingyan.