"Come on! Aren't you also a Blood Realm master? Let's have a friendly match!" Felix grinned, finding this old man more interesting than the previous ones sent after him. To his surprise, the old man frantically waved his hands after regaining consciousness. He rambled, "No, no. I won't fight you! Everyone knows you can fight above your level. Even though we're in the same realm, if we fight, I'm dead for sure."Felix scoffed. "As if not fighting would mean you're leaving here alive!"Suddenly, the old man stood straight and raised his right hand to the sky with a solemn expression. "I, Selmer Zink, swear to heaven that from this moment on, I quit Elders' Council and will follow Felix Zeller's lead. May lightning strike me if I break this oath!"What the hell? Felix was dumbfounded, wondering if things could really be this simple.He blurted out, "Are you pulling my leg?"Seeing Felix's irritation, Selmer spoke faster, "Sir, trust me. I've truly left Elders' Council. The Council
Felix looked up and squinted at the strange sight above. It really did seem like the moon had fallen from the sky. At first, it drifted slowly, but its speed had suddenly multiplied several times over."Interesting technique. Is that a sword move?"As Felix quipped, Selmer thrust out his palm, sending a silver light that dispersed into nothingness.Felix lightly stepped back several dozen yards. Almost instantly, a cold light swept through where he had been standing, completely enveloping Selmer. "Not a sword strike—it's an energy blade, and a skilled one at that," Felix noted. This attack targeting Selmer was far more powerful than Micah from the Starfires. Felix could hear an unfamiliar language roaring from the attacker's direction, distinctively Astorian, though he had no idea what they were saying. Then, another voice rang out—this one comprehensible. It confirmed something else. There was not just one attacker. There were two."Dragonians sure are bold! How dare you cau
Felix wanted to slap himself for being so cautious since arriving in Astoria, only to discover this was the level of the Shadowstalker Emperor. He finally understood that while warriors needed to be careful within Dragonian borders due to hidden masters, they could dominate freely once abroad."So, you're the damn Shadowstalker Emperor?" Felix could not help but laugh as he slapped Reagan across the face. Reagan dared not show any anger and just pleaded, "Please calm down, sir!"Within moments, Felix used the Soul Sealing Needle again, and both Reagan and his partner became as docile as kittens. "Listen well! From now on, if I hear about any families causing trouble in Dragonia, not only will they die, but you'll also suffer the same fate."Reagan gulped hard, terrified to his core. Though he had never heard of the Soul Sealing Needle, he felt its soul-crushing pain firsthand. He knew his life was at stake and quickly exclaimed, "I guarantee this will never happen again, sir!"
Felix was surprised that the Steele family was making the first move. He asked, "I thought the Starfires ranked above the Steele family. How dare they show up like this?"Micah explained, "That's what confuses us, too. It's just Mr. Ollie Steele from the Steele family. He's not even anyone important, yet he's acting so arrogantly. We've never seen anything like this."Felix headed inside without further questions, finally about to meet Ollie, who had been in charge of Gray City in Dragonia. Inside, he found Luna facing off against a sleazy-looking young man. "Ollie, you're being ridiculous!" Luna snapped.Ollie sneered, "Ridiculous? Luna, you used to have the right to say that, but now your family's fate is in our hands. Why act so pure in front of me?"He reached out his hand and added, "Spend one night with me, and I'll make sure your family is treated well." Luna slapped his hand away and stood up, her presence still commanding. "I'd like to see what gives the Steele family
"Mr. Steele!" The six Steele family guards tried to rush forward, but Selmer stopped them.He flashed a sinister smile and clicked his tongue. "My, my! Still trying to make a move on us?"With several sharp cracks, all six collapsed with broken necks, shocking both Luna and Micah."H-How dare you kill my men and humiliate me! Felix, Luna, you're both going to pay for this!" Ollie shouted.Luna panicked. "Dr. Zeller, you've gone too far! There's no fixing this now!"Felix remained unfazed. He asked, "What's wrong? Are you afraid of the Shadowstalker Emperor's decree?" Luna thought Felix was out of his mind for stating the obvious. If it were not for the decree, she would have already taken things into her own hands.Felix called out, "Selmer, contact him."Selmer immediately initiated a video call, which was quickly answered by the other party."Selmer, is there anything I can help with?" came a familiar voice. Ollie, Luna, and Micah all recognized it immediately. Felix as
Felix felt a chill down his spine at the news about a simple brush coming to life. Nala explained, "As soon as we entered Astoria's airspace, the brush started trembling like it wanted to write. When I gave it paper, it wrote 'alive.' The writing was messy but readable." It was the first time Felix had heard such a thing. He asked, "Are you arriving soon?"Nala replied, "Yes. I know you're in a hurry, so I chartered a private plane.""Alright. Let's discuss this further when we meet. I'll arrange for your pickup."Soon, a helicopter from the Starfire residence was headed to the airport. Shortly after, Nala arrived with Alfie, who had accompanied her for security. Felix asked, "Is it still shaking?"Nala nodded and retrieved the box, from which faint thuds could be heard. When she opened it, the trembling brush was inside, its movements wild and erratic.Even more bizarre, when the box was removed, the brush floated midair, refusing to fall. Alfie slid a piece of paper benea
Nala felt helpless, knowing she had many resources back in Dragonia but none here. Felix held onto the brush, refusing to let Alfie take it. "I'm the strongest here—you'd likely die facing them," he explained.He refused to hand the brush over to Alfie, and the latter's expression tightened. It was not a matter of pride—this was a task that could very well cost him his life."No!" Nala grabbed Felix's arm, unwilling to let the man she had grown to love risk his life. Even Selmer stepped forward, saying, "Sir, let me have a go. My life is yours to risk."Luna suddenly spoke up, "Why don't we just leave the brush somewhere? If they're after it, we don't need to sacrifice anyone."An awkward silence fell as they realized the simple logic of her suggestion.After that, they placed the floating, trembling brush in their previous battleground. Then, Felix, Nala, Alfie, and Selmer hid nearby to observe. About ten minutes later, a massive explosion announced the arrival of a mysteriou
With that roar, Felix finally understood that the monster's target was Nala. He knew he could survive if he abandoned her right now, but how could he do that when she only came to Astoria because of him?As the distance between them and the creature grew shorter, Nala shouted desperately, "Let me go, or we'll both die!"Being only at Pulse Realm, she would have been caught immediately if she ran alone. It was also why Felix had been carrying her all this time."Shut up!" Felix shouted, his heart racing as he realized they had less than five seconds before the creature would catch up to them.In a split-second decision, Felix roughly pushed Nala forward and turned to face the charging monster. He commanded, "Run!"Nala fled with tears streaming down her face, not daring to look back. She knew Felix was buying her time with his life.The ground shook violently as the surrounding rocks crumbled to dust and trees were ripped from their roots. At that moment, Felix unleashed several p
The bodies and limbs of the mall staff were trembling violently on the floor. When the two of them looked over again, the staff had all regrouped, rushing over once again.Were they indestructible like cockroaches? Felix and Esme began punching and kicking helplessly. Fortunately, they were both on solid ground. Otherwise, they would've tripped and fallen to their deaths.It took a bit of effort to finally disperse them all again. Having learned their lessons, they didn't dare to hesitate anymore and rushed up the stairs madly. Sure enough, the mall staff collected themselves and started moving much faster!It was coincidentally similar to the characteristics of Malevolent Phantoms. Was it just a coincidence or intentional? Felix pondered in his mind as they rushed through the emergency exit to the second floor with Esme. Finally, they reached the second floor of Orchard Square. The door behind them slammed shut—and there was pure silence. It was as if they were completely isolate
After closing the emergency door, the two finally stopped. "Are we safe?" Esme panted.After a moment of thought, Felix replied, "I think so. Then, I'll head back to grab our clothes."Esme immediately grabbed his arm. "Hey! You said you would listen to me. If you go back, can you guarantee to come back? I'm a woman, and even I don't care yet you're the one who can't let it go?"Anyone who saw them would've thought they were having an intense argument. But in fact, they were simply left with no choice."Besides, the second floor sells clothes. Why should we risk going back?"Felix rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "You're right. Okay, let's go." All of a sudden, the emergency door slammed open with a bang. A dozen of the mall staff rushed in. "Intruders! Intruders!"Without hesitation, the two of them ran upstairs. Esme stopped again after a few steps, confusion spread across her face."Do… Do they think they can catch us at that speed? I wonder what the guy controllin
Felix knew these were all illusions, but he still reacted because it looked too real. After speaking, the middle-aged man went downstairs. Esme glanced at Felix and motioned to follow him. She didn't want to alert the enemy and wanted to see what was happening first. They followed the middle-aged man down to the basement and pushed open the emergency door. They entered the basement of Orchard Square. It was a standard mall layout, after all. Felix saw two queues not too far away, but he didn't know what they were lining up for."Get in line. It'll be your turn soon." With that, the middle-aged man left. He clearly wasn't worried about Felix and Esme running away. The two of them looked at each other and Esme gave him a slight nod, intending to stay put. Felix immediately understood that there were too many people around.If a slight expression crossed his face, everyone would stare at him and he would be regarded as a foreign entity, let alone if he ran. Besides, if he moved, w
Just as Felix felt lost, a woman smiling at him from a jewelry shop nearby caught his eye. Her smile was faint, but in such an odd mall, it stood out even more. Otherwise, why would it catch Felix's eye?Her smile was fleeting, disappearing in mere seconds. If it lasted any longer, the people in the mall would probably turn to glare at him again. After seeing the woman turn around and walk away almost robotically, Felix quickly followed her at the same mechanical pace.She led him to an emergency stairwell and as Felix pushed through the door, she stood there waiting for him. "You've got the guts! Most people would've freaked out when they walked into this mall, but you seem quite calm," she said.Felix didn't know what the Black Soul Scout wanted with such an illusion, however, he didn't dare to act rashly. He was afraid of scaring them away. Besides, he could guess that the scout wasn't in the mall, otherwise, Donna would've sensed it."Who are you? What happened to Orchard Squ
According to Donna, there were three soul barriers in Orchard Square.The first one was a detection barrier, likely set up by the Black Soul Scout to avoid unnecessary trouble. It ensured that only ordinary people or martial artists could enter. Anyone who had cultivated their soul would disrupt the rules of this private paradise.The second barrier was an illusion-based one, directly affecting a person's soul to blur the line between reality and illusion.The third barrier was the most intriguing. It gathered some kind of energy from souls. Donna wasn't sure what exactly it was. The only way to find out was to step into the mall and investigate.Based on Felix's assessment, the third soul barrier was likely the true objective of Black Soul Scout. To uncover the truth and find the scout, he had no choice but to put himself at risk. There was no alternative.He was well aware that Hall of Souls knew everything about him. Even the lowest-ranked Blue Soul Envoys recognized his name.
"The soul barrier is in place. Let's get this over with. If you two see me, it'll just make things even more awkward, so it's better to start right away," Billy muttered.Inside the villa, an invisible force swept over them. Felix felt something new within his soul. It was something subtle yet impossible to pinpoint. It stirred a strange restlessness deep inside him.Just as he was about to focus on figuring out what was happening, his body reacted. Before he could process it, Xena had already thrown herself into his arms."What's going on? I suddenly feel like I need to be close to you."She clung tightly to him, yet neither of them moved beyond that embrace. Under normal circumstances, things between a man and a woman wouldn't stop here. They would probably undo their clothes."Damn it! That bastard tricked me," Felix muttered.The moment Xena got close, Felix's restless energy reached its peak, making it clear that this was definitely Billy's doing.Time passed. He had no ide
The moment the topic came up, Felix's gaze flickered, avoiding direct eye contact. No matter how you put it, even though Xena would also benefit from it, it still felt somewhat unfair. It felt that way, especially since they weren't in a relationship. If they were married or at least dating, it wouldn't be an issue at all."I'm exhausted. I need another two days to rest," he said.Billy scoffed. "I know your soul energy is depleted, but trust me. Your fatigue will disappear instantly once your souls merge. The feeling is beyond words. I'm sure you've heard from the Malevolent Phantom how irresistible Soul Binding is, even for those who've already experienced love and passion."Wait, what? Felix was speechless. It seemed that there was really no way out of it."Oh, one last thing. After you and Xena… you know, your soul energy will be completely absorbed and stored away. That means you won't have any left to wield a soul-bound weapon or use any soul attacks. Are you sure you still
There was only one explanation—Felix really could heal soul damage."Of course, I healed him. Let me rest for a bit. Wake me up when the sun comes up."Felix was utterly exhausted. Even if an S-tier Malevolent Phantom appeared beside him, he couldn't be bothered to care. If Donna had truly wanted to kill him, she would have done it long ago. There was no reason for her to wait until now.As Donna watched Felix slip into a deep sleep almost instantly, her expression grew more complex.What kind of ridiculous joke was that? Even though Leonardo was a crossbreed, his soul had already inherited the traits of a Malevolent Phantom. While it wasn't exactly the same as a true Malevolent Phantom, the essence of his soul had changed.And yet, Felix had still managed to heal him. If word of this got out, it would shake the entire Malevolent Phantom world to its core.It was like finding out that some miracle doctor could cure any disease in the human world. People would go absolutely crazy.
Leonardo's body suddenly started convulsing, and with foam spilling from his mouth, even a fool could tell something had gone wrong.Damage to the soul was entirely different from physical injuries. If one got a cut, even without treatment, their body would eventually heal on its own. However, the soul wasn't like that. Any damage was permanent and had widespread consequences. Even if just a fraction of an inch of the soul was harmed, the physical reaction could be extreme.Felix let out a long breath. "Finally got it out. It sounds easy, but doing it was incredibly difficult. Even with my soul energy, I nearly couldn't hold on."The level of precision required to make such an impossibly fine cut was beyond imagination. To do it without causing any collateral damage would require soul energy beyond comprehension.Of course, Leonardo's soul had been damaged. There was no avoiding it."At least he's alive. You've done all you could," Donna said.However, Felix just smiled. "That'