Darius squeezed his eyes shut, hiding how miserable he felt inside. He could afford to pay the black gas that slipped past him more mind. Instead, the one thing Darius could do was guard the barrier better and prevent any more black gas from escaping. Thoughts burst out from every corner of his mind as he brainstormed a way to be more officiant.That was when Teivel’s voice rang out. “Darius, I need your help like before. If you don’t want us to go back to square one where we kept having to hunt down that old man in black robes, and if you don’t want to get hunted down by the old man, please pull yourself together and clear your mind at once!”It was Darius’ first time hearing such urgency in Teivel’s tone. He frowned and realized he had never experienced such flickering emotions and inner turmoil before; Darius had always been a stern and focused man, regardless of whether he was rich or poor. Similarly, he had never spent more than ten minutes deciding anything. Yet, Darius was no

That was enough to stop Calypso’s breathing permanently. Kate stood beneath the rubble and saw everything happen. She parted her lips but soon clamped them shut again. Kate closed her eyes tightly, unable to stand the gruesome scene but not voicing her discomfort as she had no right to speak up. Placing both hands behind her back, she eventually opened her eyes to look at the ground. Her breathing grew deeper and quieter as the seconds passed.…On the other hand, Darius had finally returned to the hotel. Although it felt like many things had happened, the events only took a little of his time. Still, an immense wave of exhaustion hit him, and he could not bring himself to cultivate his skills after returning to the hotel. All he wanted to do was lie in bed, so he did that. At that moment, he could not care less about dealing with the company’s affairs. Shutting his eyes, Darius took deeper and steadier breaths, allowing himself to relish in the peace. Alas, he only lay down brief

“All right, now. Let’s end this and get back to what we should do.” With that, Darius turned to head toward the Chamberlain family’s villa. Halfway to the estate, he heard a familiar voice cackling—it was one of the Chamberlain family members. His eyes narrowed to slits just then; Darius had expected this, but the fact that it happened caught his interest. He rushed ahead at once.That was when he heard Bridget chasing after him. Even so, he did not stop entirely for her; he only slowed down slightly.When Bridget caught up to him, her breathing became labored as she was worn out. She found it challenging to keep up with Darius’ speed walking now that his skills had grown. Although Bridget knew Darius had slowed down, Bridget still struggled to catch up.Right after she arrived behind Darius, the latter turned on his heel to examine her up close. That made her stiffen up at once. Hesitance and doubt swirled in her eyes as she met Darius’ gaze.“Your speedwalking isn’t up to par becau

Everyone heard the crash, so their attention was on the man. It made the man turn to look at Darius, his chest rising and falling rapidly. There was no change in Darius’ expression, however. He tucked his hands into his pockets, saying, “I never planned to get even with you for your betrayal, but I’m curious—major, elite families have always monopolized all the resources and knowledge on cultivation. Considering that and how you were nothing more than a mere bodyguard before I arrived in Almiron City, why have you become so keen on achieving the enlightened stage as a martial artist?”While it sounded like Darius was genuinely curious, that could not be further from the truth; in fact, he flashed a cold smirk at the man, taunting the latter. Not a word came from Darius, yet the man could not stop trembling. He feared he would die at any moment just from Darius’ glares. Eventually, he gulped and willed himself to speak in a small voice. “I-I don’t understand what you’re getting at.”

Darius turned to look at the door where Bridget stood and beckoned her over with a wave. She appeared beside him so swiftly that no one even saw her move. Darius smiled and looked at the elderly man, saying, “This gentleman tells me he’s kind and has never done anything to harm anyone; I’m surprised by him lying through his teeth.”Bridget smiled and looked at the elderly man as well, making him bristle. An ugly look crept onto his face, but he knew he couldn’t say anything in retort. Who knew whether Darius and Bridget would take his life? To the elderly man, the worst part about this was how he felt like Darius could see right through him whenever he laid his eyes on him—it made him feel utterly useless.He bit his lip while giving Darius a bitter look. He sensed the younger, 30-year-old man’s gaze on him, silently urging him to say something, but he also knew there was a high chance of him offending Darius if he were to utter a word. To make matters worse, he knew very well he co