Chase expressed his preference to handle this on his own. After some polite chit-chat, Harold expressed once more that he would give full support to Chase if he needed it, but Chase rejected this offer again.This matter involved the secret of the divine crystal, after all. It was best that he did not get Harold involved.After he left the city lord's manor, Chase put on a disguise. He made sure that no one could recognize him before making the decision to investigate the hidden location on his own.He headed straight to the location. It was a dirty and messy store. At least, it looked that way from the outside.A middle-aged man walked into the store. That man was Chase in disguise. He had originally wanted to disguise himself as an old man, but on second thought, he felt that he could not pull off the demeanor of a man in his twilight years. He decided it was safer to pretend to be a middle-aged man.That was how this wrinkled middle-aged man appeared inside the store.Chase wa
"Is there an issue, sir?"The store assistant thought there might be something difficult to convey that Chase might be concerned about by the look on Chase's face. However, he did not leave Chase alone like a short-sighted salesman. Instead, he gave a sneaky look left and right before whispering in Chase's ear."Do you have something difficult to convey? If so, I have a proposition that you might be interested in.""Oh? Let's have a listen." Chase pretended to look extremely interested.The store assistant got more confident in his own judgment when Chase said that. This customer indeed had something too troubling to voice out. He felt quite sure of what he should do next."I believe you might not know this, but our store provides mercenary services. You look like someone with a high cultivation. Would you be interested in accepting mercenary work?" The store assistant paused at this point."Continue." Chase pretended to look drawn in.He was glad to be in the right place."The
"For someone like you, the job can be divided into two parts. Find the man in the picture and your mission is considered complete. You'll receive a hundred gold coins as a reward. If you manage to kill this man and bring his corpse back, then I'll have to congratulate you as the reward will be 10,000 gold coins," Toledo explained the reward in one go.To be honest, Chase would have been interested if the target was not him. He had killed three men a few days ago at the city gates and only got a few dozen gold coins for it.Chase pretended to look excited to make his act more convincing.He said, "Is that true? All I need to do is find this man and I'll earn a hundred gold coins? If this is true, I'll have to thank you properly, Toledo.""Don't be too happy yet. Now that you've accepted this job, I'll need to give you more information. There is one other person other than you who has taken on this mission. He's also an early-stage marquis of martial arts. His name is Hal Chadman, an
"Is that so? Hal, your information is always so reliable. I'm really benefiting from it," Chase said."Not at all, but I do hope you'll share any news about the person in the portrait with me as well," Hal replied. Although his words sounded casual, his expression clearly conveyed that he expected some valuable information in return for what he had provided.Hearing that, Chase responded, "Of course, of course."Their conversation was pleasant overall, and when Chase took his leave, Hal even walked him downstairs.After leaving Hal's inn, Chase went to the tavern he frequented. He looked for a secluded spot, removed his disguise, and reverted to his true self before heading back home.On his way back to the small house, Chase continued to ponder how he could fake his own death to infiltrate Shadow Pavilion. Upon seeing Chase's dilemma, Lucas offered a suggestion, "Find a corpse and destroy the face. That should do the trick.""But will the fake really pass as me?" Chase was int
"Yes, sir. Please go ahead and absorb it," Chase said. He then sat down cross-legged, patiently waiting for Lucas to provide feedback.Within half an hour, Chase suddenly felt a surge of heat within his body. He remained calm, knowing that this was the result of Lucas digesting the divine crystal.He guided the heat flow to circulate through his body once. As he began the second circulation, the heat flow diminished until it completely disappeared. It was now fully absorbed by Chase.However, when Chase checked internally, he found that his cultivation level hadn't increased at all. He released his aura entirely in disbelief, confirming that there was indeed no change. Puzzled by this, he retracted his aura again.In that brief moment, many people in the city sensed his aura. Several individuals rushed out of their rooms, but as the aura quickly vanished, they could only look around in confusion and give up.Among those who noticed were Hal from the inn, Toledo from the shop, an
After breakfast, Harold and his wife felt that Chase seemed more genuine. Previously, he had been so calm and composed, almost unnaturally so for someone his age.Once Wanda led Rania away from the table, Chase returned to his usual demeanor. It was not that Chase had feelings for Rania or anything, but he naturally had a soft spot for gentle and fragile women."Chase, my young friend, why don't you settle down in Eagle City instead of wandering around? We have everything you could need here," Harold suggested with a hint of meaning in his tone."A man's ambition should know no bounds, Lord Scanlon. Please don't make light of such things," Chase understood immediately and changed the subject.Reluctantly, Chase asked, "Lord Scanlon, do you have any prisoners on death row?""What do you mean by 'death row'?" Harold was puzzled.Oops, they did not understand what 'death row' meant here."I mean people who have committed serious crimes and are awaiting execution," Chase explained.
It was clear that Lucas was more invested in this matter than he had been in any other before, likely due to the divine crystal.Hearing Lucas' reassurance, Chase no longer hesitated. With a single thought, a foreign consciousness appeared in his mind. Chase sensed it and confirmed that he could indeed expel this consciousness at any time and force Lucas back into the Dragon Vein Secret Realm.As Lucas took control of his body, Chase retreated into his mind. He felt a strange sensation. He was able to perceive and see what his body was doing without actually controlling it. It was a peculiar feeling.Though Lucas' control over Chase's body wasn't as fluid as Chase's own, it was adequate."Who are you? What do you want?" the prisoner asked nervously after seeing Eddard bring a stranger over and then leave. While controlling Chase's body, Lucas instantly moved into the cell without a word. He struck the prisoner unconscious with a single palm strike.Chase then witnessed something
Chase found it amusing to see the prisoner so wary. He was just a late-stage true master of martial arts. Chase had killed several marquises of martial arts, so this guy was nothing to him."So, what does my benefactor want from me? As long as it's something I can do, I'll do it," the prisoner said quickly, assuming Chase had freed him to do some task. He was eager to save his own life."I don't need you to do anything. You're safe now, so you can leave," Chase replied, not wanting to waste more time talking to a doomed man."Can I really go?" The prisoner still could not believe it. After all, he was a notorious criminal and had long since stopped believing in others' goodwill.Chase did not say anything more. He just pointed to the door, indicating that the prisoner was free to leave.Hence, the prisoner did not hesitate and walked out the door, soon disappearing into the night. Was Chase really going to let him go? Of course not. Chase had already placed a trace of his consciou
A cynical smile appeared on Chase's face. He waved his hand, and two silver flashes shot out.Silver needles pierced into the men in black's hearts and through the middle of their eyes. They did not even make a sound as they died on the spot."What…"All the Webers watching took a sharp breath and stumbled back a few steps. There was wariness in their expressions as they were filled with fear. Those men were powerful martial artists, but they were killed without even being able to retaliate."Who is this man? How dare he slaughter the guards of the Secret Sect's headquarters?!"Everyone began whispering among themselves."My gosh! That man must be a god to be so powerful. He killed all the guards from the Secret Sect's headquarters! How many people have he killed?""I heard that a powerful man emerged in Capital City who destroyed the Starks. Could it be him?""Impossible! Your news is outdated. I heard that this man's name is Chase Collins. He was born in a village at the bord
Chase would rather exhaust his vital energy than use precious ingredients. After all, he aimed to be at the peak of martial arts.If he relied on precious ingredients to help achieve peak stage momentarily, it would easily leave unwanted side effects or even cause his power to spiral. His cultivation would be forever stalled if that happened.There was a reason why some things were too good to be true.The cultivator's path meant that the more powerful the skill, the more difficulties one had to endure. It was the same with saint-level skills."If I accumulate enough experience, I can still formulate a plan to scale to greater heights even if I'm unable to achieve a breakthrough within a short time."There was a glint deep inside Chase's eye.All the old and weak, women and children of the Webers were just ants to Chase. He could destroy them with just a flip of the hand. They were not worth mentioning at all.However, if they gathered, they would be able to produce great power
"Kill him!"These martial artists were all powerful fighters. Even the weakest among them was a peak eighth-tier semi-saint. They sensed with their consciousness that Halver had been defeated.All of the Webers' powerhouses were filled with hate and anger. They took out their weapons and lunged toward Chase in an attack.The look in Chase's eye became even colder when the Webers retaliated. "I'll destroy the Webers today and get those two medicinal herbs after."A huge sword shadow formed behind Chase. The sword flash swept in all directions, destroying all of the weapons in the attack against Chase.Chase took another step forward. The sword in hand dazzled so brightly that it hurt the eyes. The light covered every corner as if about to destroy everything.It took only a short time for the Webers' powerhouses to be slaughtered. They did not even have the chance to retaliate. They were as weak as sick chickens.Cletus was shocked, feeling his hair stand on end. It felt like deat
Everyone was delighted.Halver Weber, the master of the Weber Secret Sect, was a peak martial arts saint. He was the second most powerful man after the Supreme Elder of the Webers.Two old men in black stood next to him with powerful auras. One of them was the leader of the Webers' Enshrined, Dennis Cloy. The other man was Halver's brother, Cletus."Who are you? How dare you barge into the Weber residence?! Don't you know that the Webers are Capital City's top family?" Halver said with a cold look on his face."Top family?" Chase laughed condescendingly and said with indifference, "I heard that the Webers possess two thousand-year-old spiritual herbs. Bring them out here. Give me those herbs and the Webers will live. Otherwise…"Chase paused at this point. He swept a glance at all the Webers present. A cynical smile appeared on his face. "This isn't much. The Webers are nothing to me!"Halver was enraged and roared, "What arrogance! Don't blame us for retaliating with force now t
Meanwhile, Chase was glowing in gold light, looking like a God of War.He was dressed to hunt, and there was a cold look in his eye. He displayed no emotions, acting like all he had done was kill an ant.Chase pulled out his sword, where blood was dripping down the blade.He turned to leave and headed to look for the Webers. Now that he was done with the Starks, it was time to take care of the Webers.Chase thought about this as he walked there. The Starks were one of the most wealthy families in Capital City. It did not bother him to destroy the Starks, but he had to find a good reason to do so or it might make others suspicious."Forget about it. I'll destroy the Weber Secret Sect first before thinking about this."Not long after, Chase arrived at the door of the Weber Secret Sect. He pushed the door open and strode in.The guards of the Weber Secret Sect saw Chase barge in and shouted, "Who dares come into the Weber Secret Sect?!" Chase kept silent as he continued walking i
"Who exactly is that young man? Why haven't I heard of him? The Starks are finished for making such a powerful enemy."Chase was decisive and resolute. He was ruthless, which frightened many of the Starks' guards.He closed his eyes to rest. Thin, black smoke began wafting out of his body and it eventually covered everything around Chase. No one was able to get near him.This was a lonely mountain peak that was far away from the bustling city.After some time, a car came by and parked near the mountain."Bastard!"Someone roared in misery. Theo Stark jumped out of his car. He was furious and roared with great anger.He looked at the abandoned house in front of him. Sorrow, fear, and revenge consumed him. His roars echoed all around."Chase Collins! Where is my son, Tank?!"He ran toward the ruins crazily.Just as Theo was about to get inside, he suddenly sensed a great danger. The next thing he knew, the mountain began shaking. It felt like the sky was about to fall. Theo was
Something sped by in the air, and several powerful auras were coming in close."Who are you? How dare you slaughter the Starks?"The man in the lead grunted coldly. He had a spear in his hand and came speeding over in a flash to stab Chase in the back.Chase did not look back. He raised his left hand and flicked his finger. There was a loud bang, and the spear broke into pieces. Turning back, he waved his hand. The dagger shot out midair and stabbed right between the man's eyes."H-How is this possible…" The man's eyes widened as he looked at Chase in disbelief. His mouth moved as if trying to say something, but his body gradually turned cold and stiff. This happened in a flash.By the time the other powerful auras appeared, the man with the spear was dead."Who are you?!" The two men were shocked. They were looking at Chase in great astonishment."I should be the one asking who you are," Chase sneered, his eyes narrowing.The two old men stepped forward and said in a deep voic
Chase saw that the entire living room was covered in blood. The walls were filled with various frightening torture tools."Is this how the Starks treat their guests?" Chase's expression was cold. He said this slowly and carefully, making sure every word was heard.The Starks!They were crossing the line!"Who's there?!"An angry voice was heard from deep inside the house. It was followed by violent coughing.A young man with messy hair struggled to stand. He was covered in blood. An arm fell limply below his shoulders. The cut on it was clean, and it was a horrifying sight to see.His eyes were bloodshot as he stared at Chase. "You worthless ant, you—pfft!"He only managed a few words before his throat caught something and he coughed up blood."Who are you? The Starks have never crossed paths with you. Why do you want me dead?!" He was a member of the Starks, and he questioned Chase with clenched teeth.A name immediately appeared in Chase's mind at the sight of this Stark fa
The elder was furious with what the Gold Devouring Voodoo Bug did."Damn it! You destroyed everything I had!"He was filled with anger. His eyes were red as he yelled hysterically. His voice was shrill, and it sounded like the shrill of a banshee."Did you think you were the only one who knew how to use voodoo?" Chase grunted coldly."Impossible! How could you know restricted mystical techniques?" The elder was in disbelief. Only a direct descendent of the clan was qualified to cultivate the Gold Devouring Voodoo Bug."Nothing is impossible in this world," Chase said with conviction.He flicked his fingers after that, and a green talisman appeared. It exploded with a loud bang and formed into a burning ball of flame.Two balls of flame came flying over and sat on each side of Chase's shoulder. The flames burned furiously as they formed into fire armor that covered him. His defense increased."You must die…"The elder laughed crazily.He waved his hand, and two wooden puppets