"W-What do you want?!"Lambert panicked, as he did not know he had upsetted such a powerful man!Frank ignored him and slapped him across the face. "Remember—your mom is the one who cares for you the most in the whole wide world! Only she would bother to lecture you, so you'd better listen, or you'll get beaten up outside!""I don't need you to tell me!" Lambert bellowed as he struggled, only to get more slaps because he could not do anything against Frank.His cheeks were now swollen, and several of his teeth shattered as blood welled up in his mouth!"Sorry, kid. I apologize on my son's behalf… Please stop hitting him!"After all, he was her son—no matter how cross she was with him, she would still plead for him.Frank turned toward her. "Don't you understand why he refused to listen? You should beat him within an inch of his life when he should be disciplined—give both the carrot and stick, as they would say, or he would never change his ways!" As he finished, he held Lam
Hana laughed. "Damn straight. Others aside, this pretty boy is very lucky with women, so you might not get a chance here."Rina shrugged nonchalantly. "Who cares? Let's just enjoy ourselves!"Seeing that she was interested in Frank, the bar owner chuckled. "I'll let you have the day off. Do whatever you like. I don't care.""You're the best!"Rina hugged Frank's arm right then. "Come, handsome. I'll buy you dinner!"Frank chuckled, shaking his head. "Not turning you down, but I'm waiting here for business.""Alright, then I'll stay here with you!" Rina chirped and promptly sat beside him.The bar owner generously brought a carton of alcohol right over. "Well, I have to clean up the mess, so I won't be joining. You can have more if you finish the carton—don't worry about it!""We won't!"Rina giggled, already opening a bottle and pouring a glass for Frank. "This one's expensive. You've gotta try it!"Frank took a sip, and seeing that Rina was staring at him enthusiastically, h
Hana rolled her eyes. "What are you talking about? The spiritron vein gave you an address, and it's a sign that something unusual must be here. And that snake is freaky, so it's not surprising if one would think it's connected."Frank, however, could not agree—the snake might be weird, but it probably would not impress the spiritron vein.Still, he had no reason to worry about his safety and decided he could keep it.That was when the box shook before the snake shot out of the box like a bullet straight at Rina!Rina gasped—unlike Hana, she had no experience with such things and was terrified.She closed her eyes, but nothing happened, as Frank had already reached out and caught it."Aggressive, aren't we?" He chuckled as he flung it on the floor.It gaped its jaw, baring two rows of sharp teeth and hissing like a cat at Rina."It actually has so many teeth?" Hana was perplexed.That was when an unexpected guest arrived, dressed in rags and staring coolly at the snake.The ba
Frank nodded. "That's fine. I can see that you mean no harm, but tell me, why are you so concerned with that snake?"The freak explained, "It's a thorn viper, and even its scales are poisonous. I noticed it while I was passing by and was going to kill it. I didn't expect the misunderstanding.""You're quite knowledgeable!" Frank smiled.The freak threw his hands up. "That's pointless, as you've defeated me so soundly, but I don't understand. Why stay in a place like this when you're that strong?"Hana laughed before Frank could answer. "You've misunderstood—he's not staying here. In fact, he's showing off and basically doing the same thing you are.""The same thing I am?"Hana nodded. "You're a hero of justice, no? That's what he is too!""You have my respect, sir!" The freak bowed his head at Frank."You're exaggerating. So, do you have a name?""I'm Zark Chomsky of Spiritron School!"Frank had no idea what that was and turned toward Hana.Hana smiled. "Right, it's probably
Hana shrugged and acted as if she was worried for Frank. "I don't like to show off either, but Mystic Sky Guild is really a small guild. Don't you think you should seize the chance to recruit a batch of fresh recruits?"Frank read her mind away. "You just want everyone to know that Zephyr Hall is friends with me, huh? I can help you, but that's really not the best way to do it. There are much better ideas, y'know!""Such as?" Hana asked, bemused."Take your time to think about it. We have all the time we need." Frank chuckled.Hana rolled her eyes. "Could you martial elites quit with your guessing games?"Frank ignored her and raised his glass at Rina. "Come on. Drink up!""Cheers!" Rina smiled.She was tipsy thirty minutes later.They only had four bottles, but it was strong alcohol, and she was intoxicated with a certain handsome face too.Unfortunately for her, she was too drowsy to stay up despite her plans to play drunk and molest Frank, and she fell asleep on the table.
Hana understood too and snapped angrily, "How far gone are you? Tricking a civilian? If we didn't catch you, who knows many would've fallen victim to your devices in this quiet corner."One of the men with slick hair and dressed in a suit was smirking at Hana. "That's not quite right, girl. We're just doing our jobs—and we didn't force her to take a loan, did we? Pay us if you can afford it, or hand her over to us!"Hana smiled in wry amusement, as Slick Hair was clearly threatening them. "Do you even know who you're dealing with?"Slick Hair snorted. "Who cares? I'm warning you—in this place, I—"Frank seized him by the neck before he could finish and flung him down the stairs!The other men were shocked—who was that kid? He looked weak but could pick up a two-hundred-pound man without much effort. He was clearly more than what he seemed!"You want a piece of this?!""There's many of us, and one of you! We're not scared!"At the call of a man in shades, the other men all charg
Nodding, Frank said, "Would you mind if I bring someone else here?"Rina shook her head. "Of course not—as long as you don't!""Okay."Frank whipped out his phone and called Jouri Yelin, who arrived with a laptop in thirty minutes, laughing. "Did you have to call me personally for this, Mr. Frankton? You could've just emailed me."Frank smiled and held out a hand at Rina. "Your phone, please.""Okay!"Rina was all about the looks, passing him her phone mindlessly right then.Frank then passed it to Jouri, who quickly worked on it while asking, "Have you scanned any strange QR codes, ma'am? The type where they give you a free plush?"Jouri had encountered other cases resembling Rina's, and it was clear she was a victim of deliberate exploitation.However, phone security is currently at its best. Unless Rina had scanned some mysterious QR code or had their phone used by a third party, no one could impersonate her to take out a loan—not even sketchy financing platforms."No. I k
Frank had no intention to continue playing around with those fools and cut to the chase. "You have one minute. Tell me who's your leader, and you just might live… or else!"Slick Hair did a double take but soon laughed. "Could you stop, kid? Someone like you, yapping in my face?"Frank glowered. "Guess the discussion is over!""What, are you going to kill me?"Slick Hair did not even have time to understand what he had just said as a shockwave knocked down his twentyish men, while Frank seized him by the neck once more, lifting him to the air!Slick Hair was left dumbstruck—was that magic?! Frank did not even move! "Calm down, bro! If you upset my boss, everyone will suffer!" he cried.Frank chuckled coolly. "That's why I'm not killing you yet. Now tell me the name of that rat and where he lives!""Or what, you're going to kill him?" Slick Hair chuckled. "Come on! You're good, but not that good!"Frank slammed him on the floor right then and grabbed his cheek before tearing o
Frank snorted. "Alright, I'm hanging up. I'm getting started over here soon.""Yeah. Good luck," Jouri replied.Hanging up, Frank looked up at the waterfall overhead, and then at Skyler, who was standing beside him. "So? Is it time yet?""Almost… Now!" Skyler's eyes were glowing even as she stared at her watch."Alright."Frank looked up just as the skies abruptly darkened. "Ah, there it is—the eclipse."The sun seemed to disappear, and the world was suddenly shrouded in darknesses.And beside him, a stone door imbued with the power of the spiritron vein also rumbled as it parted."Got it!" Frank rushed inside without another word as soon as he saw it."Hmph. I'm surprised that you could reach this place." A cold, wrathful voice resounded inside even before Frank got a hold of his surroundings.Looking up, Frank found a youth in a black cossack and sporting grey-white hair, standing upon a cliff as he looked down on him.Frank chuckled. "Hehe. Like I said, I've come to kill
Frank narrowed his eyes. "Is that so?'Crane shrugged. "I don't mind giving it to you straight—members of Torrent are actually… Ahem. A part of Torrent himself."Frank paused. "What's that supposed to mean?""You don't get it, do you?" Crane grinned. "Then let me put it to you this way—every member is a clone of Torrent.""A clone?" Frank gasped in realization."Yes," Crane nodded. "That's why I believe that challenging Crane is just suicide. You have no idea how powerful he is—only death awaits you down that path."Frank smirked. "Oh, but I don't think so."Crane rolled his eyes. "Fine, whatever—now listen closely. You will find Torrent in the Mystic Trail, but you would only find that place when the sun and moon coincide, and the entrance is beneath the waterfall south of Horton."As he finished, he snorted coldly. "I have no idea if you can actually do it, but I'm hoping you do kill him… Heh. I'm getting tired of being stuck under his control for so long."Then, waving off
Frank abruptly turned, immediately noticing one of the Cranes crouching, ready to spring forward and blindside him."Got you!" He laughed."Hah! You fell for it!"Just as Frank swung a punch to pulverize that Crane, he suddenly burst into pus that splashed at Frank's face."Damn it!" Frank took a step back, surprised that the clone's presence was identical to the real Crane, and a trap on top of that!"Die!"The Cranes around him each whipped out a dagger, all of them stabbing at Frank at the same time."Get off!" Frank bellowed, unleashing a shockwave that sent all the Cranes flying across all directions."Frank! Above you!" Skyler suddenly shrieked."Yes! I'm right here!" A strange laughter sounded above Frank just as he wiped the pus off his face.Crane was suddenly directly above him, launching an aerial kick straight at Frank's head, and Frank had no time to dodge!"Die!" Crane's smile curled into a twisted angle as he saw that too.He was very confident with this kick
"Disgusting…" Skyler murmured through her hand.Despite being skinned and scalped, the women were all still alive and singing to the music that was playing despite their anguish."Talk about a terrible fetish."Frank was scowling too—why were all the members of Torrent such sick deviants? It seemed like his plan to wipe them out was absolutely correct!"So, you killed my clone?"The lanky man on the couch slowly turned to level his bloodshot eyes at Frank.His lips were wet with bed as they curled upward into an eerie smile."Clone?" Frank narrowed his eyes."Hehe. It's a sage art."Crane shrugged as he stood up and wiped the blood off his lips. "It's only natural that you don't understand… Still, you deserve praise. If you can kill my clone, that means you're not just slightly stronger than Ghost."Naturally, the man was none other than the real Crane.Still, as Skyler studied him from a corner, even she could notice the strange twitch of his fingers, and his veins were pro
Even as Crane ran, he was looking over his shoulder, his heart pounding. "No… I won't win in a one-on-one!"No, as long as I get back to my real body… we can do this together!" He frowned, having seen how Frank sliced off the pinkies of those hood rats. It hence quickly dawned on him that Frank was not just slightly stronger than Ghost, as Torrent had put it!"Almost there!" He gasped when he saw the signboard of Pegasus Showtown in the distance. "As long as I get there and rendezvous with my real body, that brat will lose—"That was when he turned and saw that a shadow had caught up with impossible speed."What?!" Crane's eyes almost popped out in bewilderment. "What speed is that?! Are you kidding—"Even as he spotted the shadow, the shadow turned into a youth with an impassive visage.His fist outstretched, he was clearly punching toward Crane's forehead!"Argh…"Even as Crane looked on, the youth's punch slowed down by tenfold, but his fist kept closing in.Then, whe
Seeing Skyler sigh, the tattooed thug presumed that his extortion worked.He strode up, grabbing Frank's shoulder. "No one's gonna help you, boy. Pay up, or you're not leaving.""Exactly! You're not getting away!" the crowd of hood rats hollered. "Last chance."Frank's eyes were cold and fixed on Dani, however. "Are you going to intervene? If you do, you can keep that check. If you don't…""Ugh. Fuck off! I don't care!" Dani spat, her expression smug as she folded her arms before her chest. "Who do you think you are to threaten me?!""Exactly! Pay up, and you can leave!""Yeah! Ten grand, at least!""You probably don't know my boss Wyvern, but when he's here, you won't get away with just ten grand!"Even as the crowd closed in, Frank shook his head. "Well, you had your chance. Don't blame me for what happens next.""You're giving us a chance?! Hah! Who—argh!"Even before Dani could finish gloating, Frank was suddenly in front of her, grabbing her viciously by the wrist."Arg
"Five grand?! Did you hear that?! He just threw five grand!""Must be a rich kid coming here for a secret rendezvous, out of prying eyes? Those types are the easiest mark!""Fuck! And Dani got one of us… It hurts me more than losing at the races!"Frank could hear the buzz around him but ignored it as he strode past the men flanking him and headed toward the street that stank of blood."Stop!" A big tattooed man grinned sinisterly as he intercepted Frank.As his buddies encircled Frank as well, Frank snorted—it seemed that they took his reaction for a sign of weakness and thought that he could be cowed.The tattooed man rubbed his chin as he leered at Skyler's voluptuous figure, chuckling. "Look, boy. I'm short on cash, so let me take a loan. I'll pay you back some other day, how about that?"His friend laughed. "Exactly! You just gave Dani five grand, and we won't ask for more… just four, how about that?"Skyler scowled in turn and glanced worriedly at Frank beside her—was he
Frank himself had just stepped out of the nightclub when his eyes narrowed."Blood," he murmured, his nostrils twitching."Blood?"Skyler sniffed the air, puzzled. "I can't smell it.""It's from the opposite street… I smell the blood of over a dozen people.""A dozen?!" Skyler did a double take.He could identify the number of people who were killed?! That was just ridiculous!"Come on, let's take a look."Just as Frank led the way toward the source of the stench, a woman suddenly came up, catching Frank off guard and throwing herself into his arms."Hmmm?" He looked down to see that she had thick makeup, average looks, and a rather pudgy belly."Argh! He touched me!" she pointed at Frank and shrieked even before he realized what was happening."What?!" Skyler was staring at the woman too, mystified."Oh, sister! You just didn't see it!"The woman kept hollering, pointing at Frank's face. "Your boyfriend grabbed my ass! Is that how you teach him manners?!""Teach him ma
Wyvern screamed even as he clutched the stump that was his hand, screaming so shrilly one might mistake his voice as inhuman."Oh, just shut up." The lanky man glowered and launched a kick, reducing Wyvern into puddles of blood and pieces of innards, splattering all around the lobby. "Argh!!!" the devilish lady screamed as she watched the carnage unfolded."Another sound, and you'd end up just like him." The lanky man turned and frowned at her impatiently."Hngh…" The devilish lady promptly clasped a hand over her mouth, tears welling up in her eyes as she trembled."What the hell?!"Outside, Wyvern's lackeys heard the screams and ran inside, looking for him. "Hey, where's Wyvern?!"However, the lobby was too dimly lit for them to notice the blood and guts scattered around the walls, and they only sensed that terrible stench."Hngh…" The devilish lady was too scared to speak, and tears trickled out of her eyes."Fuck!"One of the lackeys strode up and seized the lanky man