"Dr. Zeller, you can decide on how to deal with him. He brought this upon himself!" Wesley didn't even want to know the details of what happened. If he didn't make his stance clear right now, he himself would get in trouble once Gerald turned up. "Confine him for five years and ban him from stepping out into the world!" Felix left after saying that, leaving Jordan with a bitter smile on his face. The same words Felix had spoken earlier in the morning at the Traditional Medicine Association echoed in Jordan's mind. He hadn't expected Felix's words to come true so quickly, nor did he have a chance to resist. "Mr. Cane, I'm sorry," Jordan said. Wesley patiently listened to Jordan's explanation. Then, he sighed and shook his head. "In the end, it's all because of a woman's charms! Luckily, Felix isn't a ruthless man. If he really wanted to kill you, I wouldn't have been able to protect you, either."What else could Jordan do? He felt nothing but a sense of relief. "Mr. Cane, s
The goddess of war, Xena Summers? Kane was even more confused. What did Xena have to do with this? "My nephew will be coming to Avesburgh in a few days. His goal is to marry Xena," Daniel explained. Kane furrowed his brows. This seemed like a personal matter. How did it involve Dragon Alliance?"Mr. Rush, forgive me for speaking frankly, but I still don't understand." Daniel stood up, as if he already expected Kane's reaction. "I came here just to notify you, as you have the most widespread influence in Avesburgh! My nephew also wants to join Dragon Alliance, but he lacks the necessary qualifications. "However, everything will fall into place once he marries Xena. At that point, Dragon Alliance will rise to a new level with the goddess of war on our side. I'm sure you understand the implications."Daniel turned to Kane. "If my nephew needs help, you wouldn't refuse to lend a hand, would you?" Kane smiled and said, "Of course not. This is a small matter." However, he kep
So many benefits? Sasha hesitated for a moment as she thought of Felix's indifference toward her. Ted continued, "Heh! I know you're worried about Lord Kane. I knew about Felix's connection to Lord Kane a long time ago, but so what? I'm still going to teach him a lesson! Why? Because the backing of the Glover family is something even Lord Kane can't compare to." Sasha's doubts dissipated with his assuring words. The frustration of unrequited love would turn into hatred easily. Moreover, she never had much affection for Felix to begin with. Her recent change of heart was purely due to Kane's influence. Now, even that concern was taken care of. Why wouldn't she take advantage of another prospect with a better opportunity? "Mr. Glover, I'll do whatever you say, but I have one condition. You can't let anything like that night happen again. I'm not a promiscuous woman with loose morals," Sasha said. Ted sneered inwardly. The people he hired this time wouldn't spare a glance at a
Honestly, Yvonne was very pretty. Even though she couldn't compare to Xena, she definitely had Wendy beat. Her figure was incredibly striking, especially when she was dressed head to toe in black."I don't think we've met before."Felix didn't recall ever knowing a woman named Yvonne.He glanced back at the gravestone, and Yvonne's voice turned a little wistful. "My entire four years of college were funded by Mr. Zeller Senior. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was like family to me. He was a good man, always humble about what he did. "I only recently found out who he was. But by then, it was already too late."A college student sponsored by his grandfather? Felix's brows relaxed. It made sense. His grandfather, Phillip Zeller, had always been generous, often helping kids from underprivileged areas. Sponsoring a college student wasn't out of character for him. "You seem to be doing pretty well for yourself now. I'm sure my grandpa would be proud."He walked over, pull
Felix couldn't believe it. He knew Jack's parents. Could they have been so influenced by the different cultures overseas after moving abroad that their mindset had changed? It seemed almost heartless."Let's not dwell on it," Jack said with a dismissive wave. "I may be broke now, but I've still got my skills. I passed the final interview for a new job, and I start tomorrow. Wish me luck, friend."They didn't need a lot of words between them. If Jack ever really needed help, Felix knew he'd come to him, and vice versa. That was just how their friendship worked over the years.But this time, Felix decided he would offer help quietly from behind the scenes. He wanted his friend to move on from the sadness his family had caused him as quickly as possible.Since Jack's first day on the job was the next day, and making a good impression was important, their plans to catch up that night were put on hold for another time.As Felix pulled up to his driveway in front of his villa, ready to
Hugo had the confidence to speak that way because he had the power to realize such a threat. The Lambert family was one of the most prominent families in Avesburgh, only a step behind the Kinsley family, the wealthiest in the city. Shutting down a small business like Warren's would be a simple matter for him.The shock on Warren's and Nattie's faces made it clear that they realized Hugo wasn't joking."Mr. Lambert, are you talking about Felix Zeller?" Nattie asked, lost in disbelief."What? Did I mispronounce something?"Nattie became anxious as Hugo confirmed his own statement. "If you've got a grudge against Felix, take it up with him! What does this have to do with us?"Hugo laughed. "What's this? Still trying to play innocent in front of me? I know exactly what your relationship with Felix is. When you want to take someone down, you hit where it hurts most. If I'm going to deal with Felix, of course I'm going to go after his weakest points."Hugo wasn't like the brainle
From the way Hugo spoke, it was clear that Kane's influence didn't carry much weight here. It seemed unlikely that Felix had any other tricks up his sleeve.…Meanwhile, Felix was standing in the front yard of his villa in Tabiner Bay, his face dark. He was staring at the group of a dozen people gathered just outside the gate."Felix! Pay up!""You finally showed your face! Time to settle your father's debts. It's only right for the son to pay what the father owes.""Damn! You disappeared for three years. Why didn't you just vanish forever?""Enough talking! Pay up already. I'm owed 600 grand. Start with mine!"These people had shown up out of nowhere, flooding in all at once, and not even the security guards could stop them."What gives you the right to come and harass me?" Felix asked, his eyes narrowing in anger.Back when his parents ran their business, they never had significant debts. In fact, they gave money to charity every year. How could they possibly owe money to th
In that moment, the responses came quickly."Ken Zeller""Carson Zeller""Bryan Zeller"Each name that was called out made Felix's disappointment deepen. They were all his father's siblings—his own relatives.Years ago, Matthew had handed the company over to them. And now, they were pulling this kind of stunt on their nephew? It was revolting beyond words."Are these debts something my father owed?" Felix asked coldly.No one dared to lie anymore."No, Mr. Zeller. The debts are from the current Zeller Group. They've been stalling on payments, and just yesterday, they told us to collect it from you. They said if we harass you for three days straight, they'll pay us back.""That's right. That's what happened!""Same for me."Felix waved them off dismissively. "Get lost."The group scrambled to leave, practically falling over themselves in their haste. Once they were gone, Felix turned to Stinger."Stinger, what did you find out?"Stinger, ever respectful, replied, "Zeller G
The existence of crossbreeds was classified as top secret by headquarters. If word got out, even if the general public remained unaware, just the knowledge reaching certain members within headquarters would cause mass panic.Would you dare to question whether your partner might be a Malevolent Phantom? Would you risk wondering if your child inherited some of its traits and became a crossbreed? No one wanted to shoulder that responsibility.Take Johann and his team, for example. They had absolutely no knowledge of crossbreeds, and their resistance right now stemmed entirely from their own moral convictions."Sir!"Johann didn't dare stop Felix outright, but he raised his voice to make his stance clear. The others followed suit, not to mention Lina, who was still sobbing uncontrollably, and Steve, whose eyes were red with fury as he glared at Felix without a hint of fear."Mr. Zeller! If you're really going to take my grandson, you'll have to step over my dead body first!"Tears st
"So what?" Lina asked. "Even if I lied, what does that person's death have to do with my son?"Felix suddenly roared, "Are you telling me that when you opened the door, your son never left your sight for even a second?""I—"Lina opened her mouth but suddenly found herself at a loss for words. That instinctive hesitation was the most telling of all."Get the car ready. Take her with us. We're going to Lina's house.""Yes, sir!"The convoy arrived at a luxurious mansion in Zuera. The moment Felix and his team rushed inside, they saw Steve sitting in the living room, holding a three-year-old boy in his arms."Mr. Zeller, why are all of you here?"Lina, restrained by Felix's men, screamed in a frenzy, "Dad! Save Leonardo! They're trying to take him away!"Then, she turned to Felix, shouting in fury, "You monsters! He's just three years old, and you suspect him of murder? I'll expose you! I'll take you to court!"By the time she finished, she was sobbing uncontrollably."Mr. Zel
Even though Lina knew Felix held an unimaginably high status—so high that even Steve feared him—his continued questioning and the direction of his suspicions pushed her to the edge. The mere idea that her son might be involved sent her into a silent rage.She was a mother, and when it came to her child, she did not care who the hell the other person was."I'm just asking questions," Felix said flatly. "Just answer them. Don't make me start quoting laws and rights to get you to cooperate."His voice was so calm. For a moment, Lina wondered if she had overreacted, so she took a breath and continued.She explained, "He wasn't in the stall. It's way too small in there. I left the door cracked open so he could see me, and since I had the tether on, plus the nanny and driver waiting outside, I wasn't worried about him wandering off."Felix did not say anything right away. He stood there, clearly deep in thought.Silvercrest Restaurant might have been an upscale dining place, but it was
"Can you cooperate now?" Felix asked calmly.Lina snapped back to her senses, her face burning with embarrassment. "I'm sorry," she said quickly. "I'll fully cooperate from now on."Sure enough, seeing the richest man's daughter completely fold made the rest of the group abandon any rebellious thoughts. Whatever frustration they had been feeling vanished instantly.Once they were settled, Felix began examining them closely. This was not just a casual observation. He activated his Spirit Eye, a skill from the Phaeron Codex that allowed him to see into a person's soul.After reaching Higher Spirit Realm, Felix had gained access to this ability, but he had never actually used it to inspect a Malevolent Phantom before. Still, he was sure of one thing—their souls would look nothing like normal humans'.So, checking with Spirit Sight was a far more reliable method than looking at whether someone's wounds were healing.When Felix finished scanning all nine people, he froze, completely s
A few minutes later, Felix stepped into the restroom that had been sealed off. It was a fully enclosed space, with no windows—just a single ventilation fan. That meant there was only one entrance and exit.He examined the body sitting upright on the toilet in one of the stalls. The man's head was resting gently against the tiled wall. His pants were already pulled back up and fastened, clearly indicating he had finished using the restroom. More importantly, it was obvious no one had touched or tampered with the body.Felix commented, "No need to call in forensics. There are no external wounds, and his internal organs are completely intact. We can also rule out heart failure or brain hemorrhages. This wasn't caused by any natural condition."With his medical background, it only took Felix a glance to determine the truth.Johann replied, "Yes, sir. But then… what now? Should we interrogate those nine people?"The closer they got to confirming Malevolent Phantoms were involved, the
Felix said, "Go ahead, Delilah. Zara's in your hands now—take care of her on the road.""Don't worry," Delilah replied.Once Zara was gone, Felix stood there for a moment, feeling a weight settle over his chest. She had already been through so much just surviving the ordeal of Twinshade Body, and he had promised himself—without saying a word—that he would make sure she never suffered like that again.However, no one could have predicted the sudden arrival of the Malevolent Phantoms. That was a nightmare nobody could escape, and only by ending it would they have the right to even dream of a peaceful life.…That evening, as the sun dipped low on the horizon, Felix was having dinner with Luna at a quiet restaurant, and Paul had joined them, too."Thank you, Mr. Zeller. Holden is awake and doing surprisingly well," Paul said, raising his glass.He was genuinely grateful. Even the doctors had called it a miracle. Holden had a severed artery and was transported across a long distance
"Mr. Hoffman?" Felix muttered. No wonder Delilah had shown up in person."Why didn't Mr. Hoffman just call me?" he asked.Delilah shrugged, raising both hands. "Because it's not convenient. If you make one choice, I can report back and be done with it, saving everyone the time."Felix nodded, finally curious about this big choice. Then, Delilah asked, "Zara, the one with Twinshade Body, came to see you, didn't she?"That caught Felix off guard. "How do you know about that?"Delilah rolled her eyes with a little smirk. If one of her fans saw her like this, they would probably faint from the shock.She explained, "It's not like I'm psychic. Mr. Hoffman told me. Ever since you left Martial City and came back, he's had Ophelia keeping an eye on Zara the whole time, so of course he knows."Ophelia? That explained why he had not seen her around since coming back. "So, what's the choice Mr. Hoffman wants me to make? Is it really about Zara?"Delilah nodded firmly. "Exactly. Mr. Hoff
Donna said, "Felix, Specter's the kind of guy who'll stop at nothing. I'll hold back and observe for now, but if you really prove you've got what it takes, I'll act like I never even saw that woman."…Later, Zara was resting her chin in both palms with a sweet, innocent smile on her face. She hummed, "Mhm!"Felix let out a groan and rubbed his face. "Don't just say 'mhm'! Did you even understand what I just told you?"After piecing together everything Donna had said, Felix laid it all out for Zara. Since Specter could strike at any time and Zara still did not know what Malevolent Phantoms even were, he figured she needed to hear it all."Of course I understood. Relax, honey. I'm not stupid," Zara replied casually. Since she got it, Felix finally let himself relax, too. A weight lifted off his chest, and for the first time in a while, he really looked at Zara's flawless face. He thought, "Yeah—there's no way I can hold back anymore."He said, "Let's take care of something… imp
Felix finally snapped out of it. Just moments ago, Donna had looked so grim, claiming something big was about to happen. Yet now, after her whole speech, it was all about the benefits of Zara being a Hollow Soul.Donna said, "Hollow Soul has a unique trait. If consumed, it can greatly boost your chances of success.""Consumed?" That one word made Felix's face darken instantly. "Success in what exactly?"Donna had tried to be vague, but there was no way Felix did not get the implication. To put it bluntly, she was talking about eating Zara's soul."Whether you're stuck at a plateau in your cultivation, your soul is mutating, or you're trying to master powerful soul-based techniques—offensive or defensive—if it's soul-related, Hollow Soul can drastically increase your chances of success."Felix's expression shifted as something came rushing back to him. Billy had once told him that when the Mystical Explosive Orb absorbed enough soul essence to reach capacity, it could be used to re