Drax looked down at Emily one last time. Her betrayal had nearly cost him his life, yet in the end, she had given hers to save the people she once helped put in danger. He acknowledged her sacrifice silently. Perhaps if she had realized her mistake sooner, things could have ended differently, but there was no point dwelling on what could no longer be changed. Drax had already lost too many people, and right now, there were still dozens of lives depending on him. “Let’s go,” he said. Desmond nodded, and the two hurried through the hallway. The ship’s alarm continued screaming as they reached the final exit leading toward the deck. A large group of girls was already gathered there, including Charlotte. Their faces were filled with fear as they stood behind a lone guard who blocked the passage with a gun raised toward them. “Stay back!” the guard shouted. “Nobody leaves this ship!” The girls immediately began begging him to let them go, but the guard refused to move. He had apparent

Ragnar wiped the blood from his ruined nose and glared at Drax. The ringing in his ears was still affecting his balance, but his anger was quickly overpowering the pain.“Mortal God Technique?” Ragnar scoffed. “What a load of crap! You think that’s enough to defeat me?”Drax’s smile disappeared. Mortal God was a fighting pattern Jaden Rift had created by forcing the muscles, bones, nervous system, heart, and senses to operate beyond their natural limits at the same time. Instead of simply making the user stronger, it turned the entire body into one explosive weapon, allowing all five senses to work together so precisely that an opponent’s movements could be detected and countered almost before the attack was completed. But the human body wasn’t built to withstand that kind of power, meaning every second the technique remained active slowly destroyed the user from within. Jaden could withstand it because his physique was virtually perfect. Drax’s body was abnormally durable, but even h

“I’ll beat the shit out of you!”The man whose head had been split open by Desmond’s stone charged toward him, blood running down the side of his face. Desmond’s heart pounded as he watched the man approach, but he refused to step back. His body was already exhausted, his ribs were screaming with pain, and blood was still dripping from his nose, yet he raised his little fists anyway.He thought he could stand a chance.The moment Desmond threw his punch, the man easily caught his fist.“That’s all you’ve got?”The man’s other hand crashed into Desmond’s face.BAM!Desmond staggered sideways, but the man grabbed his shirt and pulled him back before he could fall. Another punch slammed into his stomach, forcing the air from his lungs. Desmond coughed violently, his legs giving way beneath him, but the man refused to let him fall.He hit him again.And again.Each blow was far too powerful for a thirteen-year-old body to endure. Desmond’s face became swollen and blood covered his lips, b

“Then you have to save Drax! He’s still in danger. He’s still inside that ship!”Desmond’s voice trembled as he looked toward the burning ship in the distance. His face was swollen and covered in blood, but the pain no longer mattered to him. All he could think about was the man who had stayed behind so he and the girls could escape.Jaden looked toward the ocean, his expression calm despite the flames rising in the distance. “I know. Rescuers have already been dispatched to find him.”Just then, the sound of an approaching vehicle caught their attention. A large van bearing the Karetwyn Special Force emblem stopped near them, and several soldiers immediately stepped out. They moved toward the rescued girls and Desmond, preparing to escort them away from the dangerous shoreline.Jaden turned toward them. “Take the girls and the boy to Ironvale. They all need medical examinations immediately. Make sure every one of them is checked properly.”The soldiers nodded and began guiding the gi

Three weeks had passed since Drax’s battle against Ragnar Eon, yet the consequences of that encounter had not ended. Deep beneath Black Covenant headquarters, in a restricted medical laboratory, Victor Halberg stood before a massive liquid-filled tube, watching the figure suspended inside. The man had suffered catastrophic injuries during the explosion that destroyed the ship, and his body had sunk deep into the ocean. Fortunately for Black Covenant, a recovery team had located him before it was too late. Now, their scientists were working around the clock to bring him back to full strength.The figure inside the tube was Ragnar Eon, the Living Timebomb.Victor adjusted the cuff of his tailored suit and studied the medical readings displayed beside the chamber. Ragnar’s body had endured damage that would have killed an ordinary human several times over, but the Omega V7 serum had transformed him into something far beyond ordinary biology. Even after the explosion and prolonged submers