"No way!" Jean exclaimed, turning her cap as she walked up and studied the pendant.Her family was not rich, but she knew her precious stones—the pendant was obviously no dollar store goods, but Jean was no appraiser who could identify precious stones.Nonetheless, Blondie appeared dead serious as he snorted. "I'm telling the truth. My family are jewelers—I should know."Zeb immediately laughed out loud beside him, clutching his belly. "You're such a joker, Frank! Come on, don't put on airs just because you can't afford something nice! We won't mock you for it… but you just had to say your dollar store pendant is worth twenty million!"Even Aria frowned at that.She really thought Frank would bring something impressive, but it was just a dollar store item.Frank simply smiled as he stood nearby.Talk about ignorant children—those kids were staring directly at a twenty million dollar gem, and they just could not recognize it."That's enough. Cut it out," Winter snapped just then
Zeb finally smiled at Blondie's words—he was happy with anything, as long as Frank embarrassed himself in front of Winter!Blondie hurried up to Frank right then, exclaiming, "Yo, Mr. Lawrence! Why are you drinking juice alone there? Us dudes should be drinking liquor!"Frank shook his head. "I'll pass. I'm supposed to be driving."Zeb guessed Blondie's plan just then and quickly joined them. "Hey, I'm driving too, and I'm drinking. We could just call for a designated driver if we have to—it's disrespectful to Winter if you don't drink on her birthday, right?"Frank studied the two boys who were suddenly so enthusiastic.It would be strange if they were not up to something bad.As for Winter, she did not drink, but her brother Fred often did—she was convinced that men liked to drink.Moreover, she did not want to see Frank sitting there alone and reasoned, "Why don't you have a drink too, Mr. Lawrence? I'd think you're being abused sitting here by yourself. Don't worry—I'll get
Aria hurried to join them, never one to miss out on the fun. "Come on, Blondie. Chug!" She cheered and joined the others as they roared, "Chug! Chug! Chug!" She was now prejudiced against Frank for bringing a dollar store gift, not to mention that she was not going to get humiliated anyway. What was the harm in fanning the flames when she was not getting burned?"Go on, Blondie!" Zeb joined in while leveling a glare at Blondie, while the latter was staring at Frank in turn.The man was simply lounging in his seat, no blush on his face and his breathing perfectly normal, as if the twentyish bottles of lager had no effect on him.In fact, he was even smiling. "You can stop if you can't keep up."If anything, the boy was impressive enough to chug twentyish bottles in under half an hour. It was just a pity his opponent had to be Frank, who simply directed his vigor to secrete the alcohol in his bloodstream along with his sweat.Blondie was left gritting his teeth. "This is nothing
Even as Aria wiped herself, she kept ranting. "Honestly, what's Frank Lawrence's deal? He had to do that stupid drinking game with Blondie… The way I see it, he did it on purpose!"Jean, who was helping her clean herself, was left speechless. "Mr. Lawrence didn't start it. If there's anyone to blame, it won't be him.""Bullshit. He's totally one of them," Aria huffed.Jean shook her head but decided not to argue. "Just wear my jacket for now," Jean said, taking it off.Aria wore it after wiping herself, since her white dress was totally ruined.Thankfully, she wore leggings as well, so she would not be exposing herself too much.On the other hand, Jean had been wearing a black camisole under her jacket, which bared her perfect figure utterly.Blondie was waiting outside the ladies' room, standing by the shared sinks.He had certainly humiliated himself completely today.Naturally, he was also curious as to how huge a stomach Frank had, holding in all that beer.If anything,
Aria rolled her eyes. "I'm fine. You managed to make it in time, but you're still paying for my dress.""Don't worry, I'll definitely pay," Blondie chirped fawningly.When they returned to their private room, Winter went up and asked, "What took you guys so long, Jean?"Blondie appeared exceedingly smug as he proclaimed, "There was this bastard messing with Aria. I had to straighten him out."Jean sighed but nodded."What? You were in a fight?" Winter asked in concern."Don't worry, Winter—it's no big deal." Blondie patted his chest confidently. "It's just some thug. I'll deal with him if he comes again."Winter did not pry since Blondie sounded confident enough, though Jean remained a little on edge.Still, after the mess before, the friends played around for a while before preparing to leave.That was when someone kicked open the door, and Crew Cut strode in.Everyone was immediately left dumbstruck, the music in the private karaoke room suddenly stopping, leaving it eerily
Kait chuckled coolly. "You're apologizing? Who needs cops if apologies mean a thing?""S-So, what you're saying is…" Aria murmured tentatively. Kait rubbed his chin, studying Aria as he said, "Well, how about this? Hang out with me and my friends over some drinks, and we can put the past behind us.""What?" Aria was shocked—it went without saying what drinking with those men meant!Blondie cried, "No—"Crew Cut smashed his head with his baseball bat right then. "Shut up! The adults are talking!"Blondie was bleeding from the head and dropped to the floor, clutching his head."Stop!" Winter snapped, getting to her feet.It was her birthday party, and her classmates came to celebrate it with her.She must stand up for them when they were getting hurt!"Winter." Jean promptly tugged at her—those gangsters were clearly no pushovers, and Winter's tough attitude would only make things worse.Crew Cut's eyes lit up as soon as he saw her—as the room was dark, he did not notice the
Zeb nodded. "Mr. Wooper, I see. Pleasure."The other students were breathing a sigh of relief as they watched Zeb stand up for them. He was a real rich kid who has experience with such occasions, after all—with him around, this matter might just be resolved.Nonetheless, Kait was glaring coldly at Zeb. "Who the fuck are you?""I'm Zeb Larkin," Zeb introduced himself confidently. "My friend here drew first blood, but it's all just a misunderstanding. How about this? I'll foot your friend's medical bill and add another 10 grand on top of that as a bonus. That's a good deal, right?"The other students nodded repeatedly.Just look at the man's generosity—if it were them, they would be taking the deal in a heartbeat!However, Kait was never interested in money...Smack!He abruptly raised his hand, slapping Zeb across the face viciously and resoundingly!Zeb was stunned that he was suddenly hit—Kait would hit him even after he revealed himself?!Naturally, the other students were
Winter's eyes welled up with tears of grief. However, there was nothing she or her friends could do with Kait threatening them and beating them up.As they looked on, he even started to reach for Winter's clothes, and Winter had to hold on to her jacket with her only free hand. "Stop!"Her classmates were all silent, staying well away… Suddenly, Jean picked up a bottle from the table and threw it at Kait!Clang!The bottle shattered on Kait's head, leaving him bleeding all over."Fuck! I've been too nice!" Kait was incensed when he felt the blood streaming down his scalp and pointed at Jean. "You boys can have her!"His goons were at once thrilled and started to charge at Jean."That's enough," Frank bellowed, his voice resounding across the room as he rose to his feet.As everyone turned toward him at once, Frank glared sharply at Kait and growled, "Let her go, and get out if you want to live.""Shit, another fucker trying to mess with me?" Kait gritted his teeth in rage.
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