"How many of these azure jade pendants does your sect currently possess?" Jason suddenly asked."I don't know the exact number, but at least two or three, I believe. I remember, five years ago in Emerald City, one was found by one of the Four Dread Preceptors, that madman Evil Doctor, who brought it back," Black Sheep grew increasingly feeble."Evil Doctor?" Jason's eyes lit up. So it was that depraved medical deviant who harmed Natalie, chasing after the jade fragments!"What do you know about him? Tell me everything, where is he now?" A chilling glint flickered in Jason's eyes.However, Black Sheep's breathing grew labored, his face, lips, and complexion turning deathly pale as his eyelids drooped, the strength in his hands waning as if struck by a grave illness."You...cough cough, you may defeat me, but you cannot best the deviants and madmen of the sect. Wait and see, they will come for you, and that will be your death sentence. No matter your identity, there is no escape!""You.

Yet Susan trembled with rage, appalled that her mother could debase herself so shamelessly for status and wealth, an utter disappointment. A moment's thought should make it clear that nothing of worth comes without cost. Even gaining entry to a noble house, what then? Was Ashley's plight something to envy?Fred Price's arrogant demeanor clearly revealed his intent to take advantage.At that moment, Jason regarded Fred Price with a mix of anger and amusement, "A mere lackey, yet you carry yourself with such lofty airs. Do you even qualify to claim nobility? You're nothing more than a dog kept by the Turner family!""Let alone you, even Matt Turner wouldn't dare utter such grandiose, narcissistic words in my presence!"He was truly infuriated and amused. For a lackey to behave with such outrageous arrogance, issuing commands so shamelessly - it was pure insolence enabled by association."Well said!" Susan and Grace Diaz cheered approvingly.They could scarcely fathom such shamelessness

Outside, Mary Martinez watched James Brown emerge, her face twisted with smug satisfaction. Hmph! You think you can defy me? I have ways to torment you both. Even if no matchmaking occurs, I won't let you be at peace.She clutched a set of keys - duplicates she had secretly made of Jason's room. Locks would avail them nothing."Hmph, dare threaten me? Dream on if you think you can lay a hand on my daughter..."On the other side, Grace Diaz sighed heavily. She had witnessed everything, but it was not her place to interfere in the couple's affairs. Mary Martinez's tactics were truly lacking in virtue.She could not fathom why Mary Martinez insisted on opposing Jason, on suppressing him at every turn.In her eyes, Jason surpassed that Fred Price by countless times, at least in character and demeanor - qualities difficult to find. To have such a son-in-law would be a dream come true."Alas, blind to the blessings before you, so foolish..."The next day, after a night of disturbances, Mary

Her depravity, however, remained unaltered. As night fell, the restless Mary prowled about, a veritable beacon in the darkness. Unsurprisingly, her antics culminated in swollen cheeks and feverish affliction the next day, her inflamed visage impervious even to ice packs.Jason shook his head, unwilling to dwell on her plight. For the day had arrived - the long-awaited clash between him and Albert, the illustrious Northern Faction Martial Arts Master, a battle that had set the martial arts world abuzz.Serene amidst the swirling maelstrom, Jason's sole intent was to validate his prowess. Albert would prove a formidable adversary, and the impending contest beckoned.The clash had sent shockwaves through Emerald City, aristocratic families and financial titans converging in droves. An unforeseen boon, the city's GDP soaring higher than any celebrity could propel it.Yet opinions on the outcome were near-unanimous: the Martial Saint's impetuous disciple, overestimating his abilities, had

"So swift!" Jason's pupils contracted as two hurtling fists rapidly expanded in his vision. The fist techniques were hauntingly familiar - the very Arm Fist Boxing style Jeremy had mastered to such deadly effect.The same art that had set the dominoes toppling toward this very fateful clash, when Jason had been forced to extinguish that malignant life.Ah, so that explained Albert's zeal to represent the Arm Fist lineage in avenging its scion. For one of his Three Supreme Techniques was itself the Arm Fist Boxing style. Having assimilated their ultimate skills, he doubtless considered himself a member of that sect, honor-bound to retaliate.Yet Albert's mastery of Arm Fist Boxing eclipsed Jeremy's by a hundredfold in speed and ferocity. He truly lived up to his genius renown."Boom! Boom!" "Swish...swish...swish..."The audience cried out as the two combatants instantly erupted into a whirlwind of blurring strikes, an electrifying conflagration of close-quarters carnage. So this was