The most important part of the event was starting soon, and several important figures were already seated at the round table. This included Stefan, Frederick, and many other powerful leaders of the industry.The rest of the participants could only observe their meeting from a large meeting room outside the hall. Even the biggest sponsor of the event, Seraphina, was not allowed to attend the conference.To start the conference, the eight industry leaders would have to press the activation button, located in the middle of the conference table, simultaneously. This activation button was shaped like the Earth and divided into eight pieces, representing the eight regions that contributed most to the technology industry. The conference was scheduled to start soon. Some people had even brought automated translators, and they counted down excitedly."Five, four, three, two…"There was a long silence. Nothing had happened, and the attendees were visibly confused. The activation button sho
Next to him was Akio Higashino, a legend of Aeos who specialized in artificial intelligence. The man was the third most influential individual in the room, after Stefan and the new KCL chairman.Akio was very ambitious, and wanted to diversify his business to different technological domains. Not only did his company excel in artificial intelligence, they were also researching electronic chips as well. However, they were unable to make a breakthrough in their research, resulting in their inability to produce the electronics they wanted. Hence, they were stuck in third place.For over a decade, the man had been trying to destroy the partnership between Hunt Enterprise and KCL Holdings, in hopes of replacing Hunt Enterprise as KCL's business partner. If his company, Higashino Corp, could sign a contract to work with KCL, he was confident that they would surely surpass KCL in the future."Mr. Hunt, you're so calm! Could it be that you've already signed a contract with KCL in private? If
Everyone immediately turned to Seraphina."Huh? Is… Is it really up to me?" The woman was stunned. Although the Murphys were the biggest sponsor of the event, the family was actually not familiar with the electronics industry. Seraphina had only been acknowledged because of all the money her family had spent, so she felt a bit insecure attending such an event. However, hearing that she would be the sole reason behind the success of this event, she felt pride bloom in her."Yes, Ms. Murphy, the newest chairman of KCL, requested you, specifically, to cooperate with them…""I'll do anything for them! It's an honor for me to be of assistance!" Seraphina was even more excited after hearing that the new chairman had personally requested her. After all, if she managed to befriend this new director, she would become a renowned figure within the technology industry as well. Powerful and rich businessmen would have to put effort into getting on her good side if they wished to work with KCL.
"What a coincidence, Mr. Hunt… we meet again." Renee nodded at Stefan, a prideful smile on her face."Indeed. You've been planning this for a very long time, haven't you? What a great performance!" Stefan said, raising an eyebrow.'Tsk tsk, it really was her!' Stefan didn't seem shocked in the slightest. Instead, he felt strangely content. 'Oh, Renee Everheart, of course it's you. You took quite a huge risk this time, huh? I have to admit that I'm impressed.'The woman's status left him feeling much more relieved than before. At the very least, as the 'new chairman of KCL', he wouldn't have to worry about her being taken advantage of. Moreover, her wealth was now enough to give four generations of her family a life of luxury."Frederick, what is the meaning of this? Why is this woman here?! Don't tell me she really is the new chairman of KCL?""Exactly, Frederick, you have to give us a reasonable explanation. Is KCL Holdings toying with us elders?!" The attendees immediately voi
Everyone turned to look at Stefan, falling silent right away. They didn't dare to utter a single sound.Renee stared at the man as well, her beautiful eyes clouded with confusion. The man's support was understandable but also extremely unexpected."Our industry doesn't solely rely on experience—skill is a very important trait as well. Since the attendees of this event are all top contributors, I'm sure you've seen her capabilities from four years ago…" Stefan's indifferent gaze traveled over the crowd as he spoke calmly."She managed to pass every test and earned her position as the president of the Electronics Technology Association, which proves that she is more than capable. Now that she has invented the G6 chip, I think she definitely has the right to be a conference member.""I think Ms. Everheart is quite admirable too!" Akio bowed deeply and smiled at Renee. "Welcome, Ms. Everheart! New talents are always welcome. Let's get to know each other better!"Frederick sighed, turn
"So here's another question... Since the G6 chip is about to be publicly listed on the market, can you perhaps reveal which company KCL Holdings will choose to work with? This will decide who's the leader of our industry for the next decade, after all!" Frederick asked yet another question that piqued everyone's interest."Ms. Everheart, don't think about it too much, just partner up with Higashino Corp! Nearly seventy percent of the artificial intelligence technology in our industry was created by us, and our yearly profit is basically immeasurable! If KCL chooses to work with us, I'll give you twenty percent of our shares!" Akio said eagerly to Renee.Twenty percent of shares sounded quite generous, but a partnership with KCL would certainly bring Akio much more profit."Ms. Everheart, you should work with DR Group! We are currently earning a lot of profit too, and I'll be willing to offer up to fifty percent of our shares to you…"The other members couldn't stand by and watch an
"I'm going to kill you, Renee Everheart!" Seraphina howled like a banshee, and lunged at Renee again. "Who do you think you are?! I'm telling you, I have something that could ruin your reputation! It might even cost you your life, so don't you dare provoke me, or else…""Enough!" Stefan growled harshly, grabbing her and holding her firmly. His gaze was icy as he warned her, "You've been enough of an embarrassment today, so don't make things worse. If you keep this up, not even your entire family's wealth would be enough to pay for the consequences."After hearing this, Seraphina immediately fell silent.Renee quickly took the opportunity to provoke Seraphina into giving her more information. "Oh? Ruin my reputation, you say? Tell me your plan then, my good daughter, Daddy won't get mad at you. Unless… you're bluffing!"Seraphina hid behind Stefan, her mouth shut but her glare piercing. It was obvious that suppressing her rage was absolute torture for her."You should stop messing
"Whoa!" Everyone there gasped in awe, unable to hide their envy at how Stefan was being fought over.Akio instinctively brought out his pocket mirror to tidy up his hair, then turned back to the two women and said smoothly, "You know, ladies, if you two want a pretty boy, I can arrange for a plastic surgeon to operate on me now! Would that work for you?" Anyone would dream of being completely provided for, especially when a life of luxury was promised. Moreover, Renee and Seraphina were quite the lookers, which made the offer even more tempting.'Stefan Hunt is so lucky! Not only is he a genius, but he's been blessed with the perfect face as well!''His looks alone were able to make these two beauties give up everything for him! Isn't God clearly playing favorites here?!' With that, everyone eagerly awaited Stefan's answer, especially the men. All of them rubbed their hands eagerly, wishing they could be in his shoes instead.Stefan, however, was expressionless. "My answer has
Stefan remained quiet as he calmly watched Renee. He extended his hand to touch her face but retrieved it before he could.She used to be the woman he was familiar with and the one he had hugged and kissed countless times, but now, he didn't even dare to touch her. "I think she doesn't even want you here. She must hate you so much and is disappointed in you. She'll be even more pressured if you stay here, and it'll push her further from this world. So please, get the hell out of here if you want the best for her!"Justin could not hold himself back from scolding Stefan. If Jovan was telling the truth, Stefan must be aware of the fact that Jovan was holding Renee hostage. Yet, he remained indifferent and feigned ignorance. He didn't even care if Renee was fine. What a cruel bastard! Justin was disappointed in Stefan. He wanted nothing more than to see what was really on Stefan's mind."Take good care of her." Stefan did not want to defend himself. He glanced at Renee, relucta
"What did you do to her?!" Stefan interrogated Jovan coldly, his eyes teary. "She isn't the kind to kill herself! What the hell did you do to her?" "Try to wake her up if you want to know." Jovan was pale. His previous sickness, coupled with his recent blood donation to Renee, made him very weak. Despite that, he refused to stop infuriating others. "Do you think I can't do anything to you? Do you really think that?" Stefan could no longer hold himself back and strangled Jovan. "I'm going to kill you! Repent for the terrible things you've done!"He couldn't imagine the kind of thing that could force the strong and stubborn Renee to resist by using such a desperate means. "You obviously won't go easy on me! I'm sure of that!" Jovan sneered. His pale face turned flushed as he suffocated from Stefan's powerful grip. "But you'd better kill yourself first if you want to avenge her! She ended up like this because of you." "What?" Stefan's face was frosty. He strengthened his grip a
Jovan slowly got up from the ground, looking incredibly weak. He whispered, "She lost too much blood. The doctor claimed she's out of danger, but…she hasn't woken up.""What did you say?" Stefan and Justin were bewildered. They couldn't process his words."So, she was the female college student who tried to kill herself?" Stefan said. He staggered after linking the information he had heard from a nurse with the things that Jovan had said."Stop acting dumb! You're so smart, how could you have missed that?" Jovan glared coldly stared at Stefan, scrutinizing him in disdain. "You were just too scared to face the truth and your woman! You're such a coward! You're an embarrassment to your family!""Agreed!" Justin added; he suddenly found Jovan useful, especially when the latter started insulting Stefan. It felt just right."Although I'm a fallback guy, I'm braver than you. I accept that she doesn't love me, and I'm willing to give it a try with her. And although this guy's a vill
Stefan frowned, doubtful. He looked vigilantly at Jovan, who had collapsed on the ground. "What do you mean by this?"Jovan kept coughing and said nothing. His lips grew pale as he sneered.Justin's eyes were cold, and he held back his urge to beat up Jovan. "Hmph! Obviously, this is a scam!"He demanded condescendingly, "How dare you barge into my territory and take away my woman! Don't you fear my family and me at all?"Jovan, filled with disdain, looked at Justin as if he was a fool. "Stop talking. You don't even have the right to join this battle."To Jovan, only Stefan was qualified and powerful enough to be his enemy."How dare you say that!" Justin was infuriated. He got down on one knee and grabbed Jovan. "Your family always says nasty things! You two are the same. If we start fighting, I'll make sure to cut your tongue first!""Did I say something wrong?" Jovan sized Justin up, ridiculing Justin with mock compassion. "Don't you have any self-awareness? You're just a fal
Stefan frowned and asked solemnly, "Aren't you a top hacker? Hack into this hospital's inpatient system. Then, we'll know where she is.""Yes, you're right." Still, Justin wanted to challenge Stefan. He said indifferently, "But you're Jovan's cousin. It's more convenient for you to make a call instead of me hacking into their system."Yes, Justin could hack into their system, but calling Jovan would be quicker. And what they needed the most was time."He and I…" Stefan sneered, flexing his fingers. "The fact we didn't kill each other is considered peaceful. He's not as obedient as you think.""You'll know by calling him."Justin had heard about the complicated internal fights of the Hunt family, but he felt that Stefan was exaggerating."Jovan is a Hunt no matter what. Plus, he's still working at Hunt Enterprise. Just call him," Justin said. "Fine." Stefan found Justin logical. His private grudges with Jovan were not important because finding Renee immediately was the most impo
Both Stefan and Justin arrived at Grace Hospital quickly. However, Stefan suddenly stopped before he entered the hospital. He looked at Justin curiously."Let's go! It's urgent. Stop standing here!"Justin hurriedly ran. When he turned around, he found that Stefan had not caught up with him. Confused, he asked Stefan, "Something is puzzling me. Don't you want me to stop seeing her? Why did you let me come with you?" Stefan narrowed his eyes and interrogated Justin suspiciously, "Did you lie to me? Or are you plotting something?" "That's nonsense! Don't take me as you. I'm not full of schemes like you!" Justin sounded disdainful. In comparison to Stefan, Justin was not full of schemes. He also looked down upon Stefan since the latter was always vigilant.Justin answered honestly, "Yeah, I don't want you to meet her ever, but I'm sure she wants to see you if she's in danger. Yes, I hate you—but I want her to be happy." He guessed that Renee must be in a serious state since Jov
"Uh…" After some contemplation, Elijah nodded. "I know what to do, Mr. Hunt. It looks like you can see far beyond the current situation. Just leave this to me.""Of course, the most important thing is to have fun."Stefan remained calm; he didn't feel like he had stepped over the line. He merely wanted Justin to learn about the cruelty of the world since Justin was always being protected so well. Whenever he did something wrong, he had to pay a price for it.Besides, Stefan merely did it for his aunt, who had taken the gunshot for nothing. When they reached a consensus, Justin came to meet Stefan. "Hey…" After a pause, he said with dissatisfaction and helplessness, "Would you like to go with me?"Stefan raised his brows in confusion."I mean, do you want to visit Phoenix with me?" Justin sighed. He looked naive, like a college student, as he confessed, "I found Jovan. I don't know why he's so good at countersurveillance. After exiting the emergency room, he transferred her to
"So, what do you want to do?" Stefan asked emotionlessly. He kept watching Nora, who was lying unconscious in the ward."At the very least, we have to teach the Baldwin family a lesson and make the public aware of your family's power as the head of The Great Eight of Beach City. It's not just about venting anger, but more about which side the various great families will take. It concerns the future of your family, too. We can't take it lightly!"Elijah could not hide his indignation. As Stefan's assistant, he was no longer merely an ordinary employee. He was loyal to Stefan and the Hunt family. He couldn't bear to see Stefan suffer any injustice or watch the Hunt family get humiliated. If Stefan hadn't stopped him, he would have gathered all the manpower to fight the Baldwins. Although he had fought Cadmus and Tiger, he had yet to defeat them. He tried to figure out a way to make a counterattack, his face shadowed in gloom.Stefan turned and calmly looked at Elijah. "How shoul
When Justin was willing to send them on an errand again, Cadmus was eager to express his loyalty."No, you don't have to risk your lives for me. That's bloody and horrible. All you need to do is find someone for me." After a pause, Justin added, "Jovan Hunt, Stefan's younger cousin." Cadmus clenched his fists and said fiercely, "It's another Hunt! Old Master Baldwin is right. The Hunt family is full of bad people. If we knew, we shouldn't have dismantled the bombs in Hunt Enterprise. The Hunt family has strengthened their security system now. It's hard to set up bombs there if we want to." Justin felt a headache when he heard Cadmus babbling. He rubbed his temples, and said tiredly, "Stop. We don't have to blow up Hunt Enterprise. I just want to find him. Do you get me? Find him. That's enough!"He stressed his intention of locating Jovan as if he were giving a simple and clear order to robots. Most of the time, Cadmus and Tiger were like AI. Real robots were probably more obedie