Somewhere beyond that ocean was Brooklyn Heights.He had no idea how far away it was, how long he had remained unconscious in the water, or how many days had passed.He had missed the anniversary of his Langston family, the very date he had worked towards for a decade.What had Richard done since then?Elijah could not begin to guess.If Richard had spoken truthfully, Serena would remember nothing of what happened on the mountain. She might wake up believing he had disappeared without explanation, or she might be given an entirely different version of events.But after watching Richard use his own daughter as the vessel of a netherworld spirit, Elijah could no longer trust a single promise that left the man’s mouth.Then there was Mia.George Foster possessed wealth, influence, and people capable of protecting her from ordinary threats. But if Richard and his mercenaries personally decided to make a move, n

The two groups would have attacked each other in the next second if Iris had not hurried out from behind the women.“Please, everyone, calm down,” she urged, moving into the open space between them. “There might still be a peaceful way to resolve this.”No one even looked in her direction.The men of the Dreadwolf Sect remained focused on the women before them, while the disciples of the Zenith Sisterhood held their swords firmly in place, their expressions showing no willingness to compromise.“Iris, stay out of this and keep your mouth shut,” one of the women barked.“But if both sides would only—”Evelyn turned her head and directed a single glare at her.Iris immediately stopped speaking.She lowered her eyes and retreated behind the others, although the concern on her face remained clear.Felix stomped one foot heavily against the ground.“You’re truly bold,” he said, looking across the eleven

“You!”Evelyn spat out a mouthful of blood and planted the tip of her sword against the ground, trying to use it to force herself upright. Her arms trembled beneath the effort, and she managed to rise only halfway before the pain spreading through her chest drove her back onto one knee.“How dare you?” she hissed. “Don’t you have any principles?”In a fair contest of swordsmanship, neither side was supposed to suddenly release spiritual energy without warning. Once practitioners crossed blades to test their techniques, using overwhelming spiritual energy to crush an opponent who had committed to a physical strike was widely considered shameless.It was common knowledge throughout the martial arts world.Felix laughed even more wildly.“Principles? What kind of nonsense is that?” He rested his broad sword across one shoulder and looked down at the injured women. “Even your Zenith Sisterhood doesn’t follow its useless pri

The men halted immediately. None of them looked pleased, but they slowly retreated several steps.Only then did Elijah reduce the pressure.Felix released a broken breath. When he spoke again, his earlier arrogance had vanished, replaced by the trembling voice of a bullied child.“Big Brother, there’s no need for us to go this far. Let’s talk about this like real men.”“Real men?” Elijah almost laughed. “You didn’t have the courage to fight a group of women fairly, yet you call yourself a real man?”Felix remained silent.Elijah pressed the staff down slightly.The man’s head shook at once. “No! No, Big Brother. I’m not a real man. We can talk about this peacefully.”Elijah removed the staff and stepped away. “Leave.”Huh?Felix looked up in disbelief.Even the women of the Zenith Sisterhood appeared surprised. None of them expected Elijah to release him so easily.Felix did

Some believed Alaric Voss had taken his own life.Perhaps he had discovered something beyond the Grandmaster realm that convinced him no second person should ever possess such power. Perhaps his announced death had not been a prediction at all, but a decision he had already made.Others believed the secrecy surrounding his burial had nothing to do with the treasures.The corpse of an Ultimate Grandmaster itself would have been something countless practitioners were willing to kill for.There were arts capable of extracting memories from remnants of spiritual consciousness, dark-path methods that could desecrate the dead in search of cultivation secrets, and techniques that attempted to refine the remains of powerful practitioners into things no righteous martial artist would willingly speak about.If Alaric’s body had been found, there was no telling what someone desperate enough might have attempted.Another belief was even dark