“—tell him to bring as many of his men as possible. We have many golden bricks that require moving.”Bridget’s eyes lit up once she heard the words “golden bricks,” but it quickly turned into a frown, and she quietly asked, “Why Pierce? We haven’t even tested him yet.”Edward glanced at Darius for a split second before lowering his head and murmuring, “Mr. Reid specifically asked for him.”Silence ensued between the two. It took a few seconds before Edward heard some beeps, signaling the call had ended. He then put away his phone and looked at Darius, stating, “Sir, everything’s ready.”Darius nodded and simultaneously waved. “You may leave for now.”Nodding, Edward took a few steps backward but did not leave.As Darius heard the former’s feet shuffling only for a short while against the ground, he frowned. His gaze shot toward Edward, who instinctively recoiled and paid him the utmost attention. “Sir, is there anything else you need?”“No, nothing.” Darius sighed while shaking his he
Darius felt his breathing ease now that his golden dome separated him from the dark, sinister aura. There was a steady but grave look in his eyes, as he could already tell how ominous the aura behind the wall was through a crack. His heart beat faster, feeling unsure about what he would see. While Darius thought about those things, the wall kept fracturing and eventually broke down. All at once, Darius lost his vision; it was as though a black fog had covered his eyes. Even his ears, nose, and mouth felt blocked off by something. That was the first time he had lost his senses after becoming an enlightened martial artist, so it set off a wave of dread in his heart. Nevertheless, his warm, buzzing life force soon pulsated throughout his body, allowing him to pull himself together quickly. His life force seemed to fight hard to escape Darius’ body and battle against the dark aura, but it first needed to recover all of Darius’ five senses. His heart pounded beneath his chest, feeling
Darius bore a pale complexion as he desperately needed the two domes to stop colliding with each other. Only then could he turn the black dome fully gold. Each time a collision occurred, various colored gasses would burst out. Some struck Darius’ body, while others crashed into the barrier. Meanwhile, the second black dome conjured by the figure kept attacking the barrier so much that several loud thumps sounded. It did not help that the barrier also tremored after each impact. The blows would slam into the barrier, bounce off, then crash into the ground with a thunderous thud. All those noises set off a continual vibration in Darius’ ears, causing him to frown and call upon some life force to form blocks around his ears. Then, he let out a long exhale, relaxing slightly now that his ears did not hurt. That was when his hands extended sideways, turning his dome into a golden net and making it engulf the first black dome. Immediately after, a violent boom came from inside. Although
Held captive by the dark figure’s enlarged hand, Darius tried to move his arms but realized there was not enough room to move, so his arms stuck close to his body. Sighing deeply, he summoned his gaseous, warm, buzzing life force and sank it deep into his pores. He figured that, since the black gases and his golden gases affected one another earlier, he could apply that theory to his current situation. It seemed like a terrific opportunity to weaken his opponent.He narrowed his eyes at the man behind the black fog, wondering how the latter did not even budge despite his many attacks earlier. Everything seemed abnormal to Darius, who felt the only reason the dark figure could stay unharmed was that he had not found the dark figure’s Achilles heel. “But what would the Achilles heel of a man strong enough to hold me captive be?” Darius wondered, but it was to no avail as the dark figure had grown impatient.The figure tightened his grip around Darius again, letting out a monstrous but
However, Darius could vaguely sense movement from the figure hiding behind the black fog. The latter appeared to struggle, which meant things were looking up for Darius, who could finally fight the man on a level playing field. “Here’s your last chance to fight me fairly. Otherwise, I’ll kill you.”“No one can have my life.” The man finally spoke, but his voice still sounded like a series of grumbles. “As a child, I was ordered to kill a hundred thousand people. Only then could I end mine. However, I’m content with my current life and don’t feel the need to end my life yet.” A scowl crept up his face as he stared at Darius and added, “I will say this—you’re the chattiest person I’ve ever met.”That was when his black gaseous life force began to fluctuate rapidly. Watching from afar, Darius noticed little ripples forming in the air and gradually returning to the black fog surrounding the man. He narrowed his eyes as he knew the battle was about to start. He extended his arms, loosen
Even the black gas that fought against the golden net’s ensnarement froze. That gave the golden net a chance to attack. Hence, the net quickly and securely wrapped around the black gas. Likewise, the two domes that battled one another from the beginning finally stopped. The black dome gradually shrunk to barely the size of Darius’ nails, which meant Darius was victorious. Turning to look at the man, Darius continued, “But I’m unwilling to do so because I value all relationships in my life.”His gaze bore into the man. He was unwilling to blink, focusing all his attention on the man behind the black fog. Despite his calm demeanor, Darius placed both hands behind his back and balled his fists, concealing how emotionally turmoiled he felt at that instant. As he said those words, the black fog around the man began to dissipate.That went on until the man’s face became clear. It was as Darius pictured earlier—the face from his memories. The only difference was, now, the man’s eyes were
Darius’ eyes widened. Even his bones trembled deep beneath his skin due to the rage brewing in his chest. Despite that, he did not do anything and merely smiled at Shelvin.Even so, Shelvin could tell the former was pretending. He curled one side of his lips upward, sneering, “You keep pretending like you’re keen on working with me, but deep down, all you want is to hit the pause button on our battle today—”His voice remained monotonous the entire time.“From what I recall, I’ve always viewed you as somewhat of a decent human. Granted, you can be arrogant and lack the potential for much character development, but I can understand why.Shelvin nodded understandingly, but it only left a bitter taste in Darius’ mouth. Although Darius frowned, Shelvin ignored the former and resumed his speech.“That’s normal. You used to be very poor, after all.” He shot a sympathetic look at Darius but then smirked while shrugging. “So, even after you inherited your newfound wealth and martial arts skil
That was because Darius sensed a familiar aura within Shelvin’s eyes as soon as the latter looked at him. However, that only lasted a brief moment. Still, Darius could not suppress the joy in his heart upon realizing Shelvin’s presence.Contrarily, Shelvin’s face darkened. He hoarsely voiced while releasing another plume of black gas, “Don’t get all happy now, brat.” Despite his eyes narrowing to slits, Darius maintained a neutral expression while facing the storm that suddenly formed in the room. The black gas had somehow caused the air to spin faster by the second, sweeping the furniture along with it.Darius’ already torn clothes began to flutter in the air. It got to the point where it could not cover his body anymore. Yet, the two still stood opposite each other without paying it much mind. As they stared at each other more intensely, more and more things got swept into the center of the storm. The atmospheric pressure kept growing until one of the desk lamps broke the window a
"If you hadn't picked on me, I wouldn't have ended up like this. No matter how wealthy I've become, I'll never be able to take these black robes off!" The mysterious man's voice was shaky. He was extremely agitated.James frowned at that. He said curiously, "You keep saying I've done you wrong, but everything I did to you was what you did to others. I only gave you a taste of your own medicine."The mysterious man's breathing sped up when he heard that. He barked out a laugh and sneered, "I'll be honest with you. I never thought I'd have the chance to meet someone as dumb as you again."He shook his head. "I find it hard to imagine what your grandson will do when he sees you like this." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the door was kicked open with a loud bang. The man was caught off guard. He looked at Darius as his body trembled violently.Darius frowned when he saw this. It was completely different from what he'd imagined. He narrowed his eyes at the mysterious man, his
Gabriel smiled and nodded. "Alright, then. I'll return to my workstation and prepare a proposal on what to do with Noah."Darius nodded and smiled. "Good. That's all I ever wanted." He turned to leave. "You need to get to work, and I need to return to my hotel to get some rest."Gabriel stopped. Darius' words made him hesitate. "I'm sorry to be asking this because I don't think it's my place, but it's probably better for me to ask anyway. I don't remember there being any hotels nearby."You should head home if you wanna get some rest. I don't understand why you're heading to a hotel to rest."Darius raised an eyebrow, looking surprised. He turned with his hands behind his back to look at Gabriel helplessly. "I don't know how to feel about what you've just said. You're making me think you're a little silly. Wouldn't I know how to search for a hotel?"It won't take you long to prepare a proposal, but it'll take me ages to get home from here." Darius turned and left.Gabriel's lips twitc
"Because you realized the risk was far greater than what you were comfortable with," Darius said calmly.But Noah started trembling. He looked at Darius in terror. He didn't expect Darius to see right through him after some simple back-and-forth. His eyes widened in fear.Everything that was happening now made him feel like he was dreaming. Noah had only been a step away from success, yet Darius had ruined everything.Tears filled his eyes as he gazed at Darius. "I've said everything there is to say. I'm the lowest rung on this ladder, and I only have one purpose for being here. It's to make you come under the authorities' control. Once you're here, my mission's accomplished."Someone else from the authorities will be here to deal with you, but that has nothing to do with me. They wouldn't have told me about it, anyway."Darius put his hands behind his back without saying anything. He turned to leave. Noah's eyes widened as he stared in fear at Darius' back.Darius didn't see this, bu
When Darius straightened up, his face became devoid of emotion. He said calmly, "I've wasted too much time on you. Now, I only want frank answers. Otherwise, I'll punish you for every lie that you tell me. I don't see any hope in your eyes, but let's see whether you prove me wrong."Darius paused, then continued, "I've already said something similar once. That was a chance I gave you. From this moment onward, I want you to know that I won't repeat myself because I believe you've had enough time to prepare yourself."Gabriel stood beside him and put his hands behind his back as his lips twitched. He'd thought about the various reasons for Darius repeating himself. But the one thing that hadn't occurred to him was that Darius had done it to give Noah time to prepare.Gabriel felt like applauding Darius, but the rational side of him stopped him from doing so. His rationality told him he'd be in for trouble if he were to do that, so he only looked at Darius with a smile.Darius sensed Ga
Darius raised an eyebrow and smiled. Then, he said, "You're too nervous, Gabriel. It makes it seem like you don't trust me. In truth, there's nothing for you to worry about."He stretched his neck and continued, "I know very well how bad the consequences of destroying this building will be. Aside from those silly regulations, I'll also need to pay for it. I might be wealthy, but that doesn't mean I'll enjoy forking out a huge sum of money as compensation."Darius spread his hands and shrugged. At the same time, he pointed at the window and turned to look at Gabriel. Then, he said, "Look. The windows are perfectly fine. They're not even scratched. That shows my life force is non-destructive."That's why you have nothing to worry about. You can put your heart back into your chest."Gabriel straightened up and sighed in relief. Then, he gave Darius an embarrassed smile.Darius grinned but didn't say anything in response. He put his hands behind his back and turned to look at Noah. He sai
"We're classmates from the same major, too! We were interns at Dream Investment Group, remember? And we got kicked out on our first day. You broke my legs because of a tiny argument we had outside the building! The surveillance cameras captured all of this!" Noah cried.Darius tucked his hands into his pockets and rolled his eyes. Then, he said mockingly, "You're the biggest fool I've ever met. Do you think you're the only one who can tamper with the surveillance footage? Any footage that can be tampered with can also be restored."Noah's eyes widened in shock. He gulped and tried to think of a way to explain away the injuries Darius had inflicted on him. Still, he couldn't think of anything. Before he had the chance to think any further, Darius spoke.He said, "There's one thing you got right, though. Gabriel is on my side, so he'll stand up for me no matter what you say."Gabriel's lips twitched at that. He subconsciously opened his mouth to say something in return, but Darius bea
"And I don't think it's my job to make you see sense," Gabriel continued. He put his hands behind his back. He gave Noah a look that was an odd mixture of gentle iciness. "I've given you more than enough time and chances."Gabriel sighed. "It's obvious that you don't care for that, though. And so I think it's time for me to treat you as an officer should." He sat down on the other side of the desk again.Noah's face was white with fear. Gabriel acted like he didn't see this, though. He smiled. "As I mentioned, I gave you plenty of time and chances, but you didn't appreciate them."His gaze turned frosty. "If that's the case, I'm sure you won't object to me doing this per our guidelines."Noah cried, "No, wait! I don't know what Darius has promised you to make you side with him unconditionally, but there's no way I'll let you two get away with this. You have to make sure you do everything by the book. It's a reasonable request, and you have no right to turn me down!"He trembled viole
Gabriel put his hands behind his back as he looked at Noah with a smile. "Now, you've piqued my interest."Noah looked up at Gabriel. His voice was deep and hoarse as he said, "If you help me, I'll give you half of the Reid Consortium's assets once I get my hands on them. You should know that without me, there's no way you'll get a dime from the Reid Consortium."Gabriel snorted with laughter when he heard that. He straightened up and slowly circled Noah. He sounded mocking as he said, "You've lost me there. I tried to puzzle it out, but it doesn't make sense at all."Why would I want to get my hands on the Reid Consortium's fortune? Even without it, I'm perfectly independent. I don't need it to survive."Gabriel crossed his arms and looked at Noah mockingly. "Or maybe you're different from the rest of us. Maybe you'll die without the Reid Consortium's wealth." He smirked and gave Noah a sharp gaze.Noah raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You're the one making me laugh now. I don't know
Gabriel sounded gentle, but everyone knew that was far from the truth. This was especially true for Noah, who sat across from him. He felt incredibly nervous. He shut his eyes and breathed rapidly.Noah never would've expected to still be in danger after being taken in by the authorities. He frowned and looked up at Gabriel. "So, are you determined to help Darius now?" His voice was shaky, and his eyes were wide because of his nerves.His emotions were clear as he looked at Gabriel. Gabriel bit his lip, feeling like he was about to laugh. To stop Noah from noticing, he quickly exhaled and sat down with one leg over the other. At the same time, he leaned forward to place his hands on the desk.He tapped his fingers on the desk quickly but rhythmically. Gabriel's eyes were devoid of emotion as he looked at Noah. "Tell me, Noah. What happened between you and Darius? Earlier, you said he was the one who injured you. Do you have any proof?"Because we checked the surveillance footage, a