“I don’t think you made the right choice by showing up here with your current status and identity.”Erin paled. She didn’t expect Darius to say such harsh things to her, and she couldn’t bring herself to accept it. However, she soon regained her composure at the thought of the things she’d done before. A determined look flashed in her eyes, and she said, “Mr. Reid, I know I made a major mistake before this, but you have no idea how worried I was about you when I saw those rumors on the internet. I think they’re extremely averse to your image, and there’s a chance that the people around you haven’t been doing their level best to handle the matter. Otherwise, things wouldn’t have snowballed so quickly. In fact, these rumors shouldn’t even have appeared!”To her surprise, Darius didn’t even blink. He looked at her and said, “I already know about the rumors you’ve mentioned, but I only want to say that I don’t want to see a repeat of your current behavior. Otherwise, I might not be able
Darius enjoyed some much-needed peace and quiet in these two hours. Edward knocked on the door just as the clock rang, and Darius opened his eyes. He knew it was time. Perhaps they’d all get answers tonight… and perhaps not.Darius got to his feet, feeling expectant. He opened the door to see Edward standing there. Edward was already suited up and looked like a perfect gentleman. “Mr. Reid, the banquet’s starting soon. I’ll stick to you like glue tonight to protect you.”Darius nodded. “Okay. Deal with it as you see fit.”Edward smiled. “Some of the guests are already starting to arrive, and they’ve gathered at the hotel’s courtyard. Should we start giving out the party favors?” His voice was a little shaky toward the end of his sentence, and Darius knew it was because he was excited. He smiled as well and nodded. “Yeah, go ahead. In fact, you can give them out personally if you want to—you’ll get to see their reactions up close.”Edward’s eyes lit up at his suggestion. Soon, however
They probably all thought since he was standing here, he was probably the host of the banquet rather than just a lackey. Edward heard them whispering among themselves about this. Still, he didn’t bother explaining because he felt it was an excellent way to protect Darius by having the guests misunderstand his true identity. He couldn’t tell Darius about this, though, because he knew Darius wouldn’t agree to it. He revealed his true identity after keeping the guests guessing for long enough. After all, he wouldn’t be able to keep it under wraps for long. Once Darius was to make his entrance, the cat would be out of the bag, and there was a chance the guests would feel that Darius had arranged for Edward to fool them into thinking he was the host. Edward didn’t want them to use this as a way to tarnish Darius’ reputation further, so he had to let everyone know who he was, even if he didn’t think it was for the best.His calm gaze swept over everyone present, and he took in the looks
“As I mentioned, the things she said were unreasonable and nonsensical. You sound very much like her, though.” Edward’s eyes slowly turned icy. He leaned back a little and tapped lightly on the party favors. “And you sound very sure of yourself… it’s as if you already know what’s going to happen.” He kept scrutinizing the old woman.“There’s no need to wonder, Edward. They’re one and the same.” Darius’ voice suddenly rang out from the entrance, and Edward quickly turned to look at him. “Mr. Reid!” Suddenly, everyone turned to look at Darius, standing there with both his hands behind his back. He nodded, his face devoid of emotion as he said, “Good evening, everyone. Welcome to my banquet. Rest assured that you’re safe here, and I guarantee that anything you guys take away from here—with my permission, of course—will not harm you in the slightest.”Everyone calmed down at his words, but the old woman scowled. She didn’t expect these people to be so stupid. She’d been badmouthing Dariu
Darius said, “You may be right about some things, but I don’t think things will turn out the way you expect them to.” He sounded so unruffled that it made the old woman feel a little anxious. So, she stretched out her arms, and miniature tornadoes formed on her palms, which she sent in his direction.Darius’ eyes widened, and he quickly channeled his energy toward her. It was too weak compared to hers and wasn’t even visible. He could only vaguely sense it in his palms, but the old woman narrowed her eyes at him. She looked wary, and there was a hint of murderous intent as she said, “You know, you’ve caught me by surprise. It’s too bad that we’re on opposing sides. Otherwise, I’d love to have you as my fellow apprentice. When we first heard about you, you were just a regular martial artist who had yet to awaken. Yet, you became enlightened when we appeared before you, and you even learned how to control your energy! There’s no way we can allow you to continue like this.”As she spok
“Otherwise, I’d take you on as an apprentice and teach you everything I know. I’d even give you my energy.” The old woman shook her head. However, her murderous intent grew beneath her pity.“You’ve advanced so quickly that it’s scary. It hasn’t even been two months since you became enlightened, yet you already found the shortcut to meditating. In fact, that’s a strange method you’ve discovered. Normally, such methods come with evil connotations, but I don’t sense anything evil in you. I have to admit that you’re a powerful character.” She smiled, but it wasn’t a kind one. “I honestly feel it’s a pity that you’re going to die—you would’ve become an extremely powerful existence. I doubt any of the people I know would’ve been your match; your current level is one that many people strive and fail to achieve in their lifetime.”She sounded conflicted as she spoke, but Darius was sure that her murderous intent had never disappeared. Since she hadn’t changed her mind about killing him, he
Darius didn’t voice his opinions. Instead, he focused on the man. “You did a great job concealing your presence—I almost didn’t recognize you. Also, I’m shocked by the fact that you can adjust your appearance at will!” He smiled. “Now, I can understand why your leader feels it’s a pity for us to be on opposing sides. I, too, feel it’s a pity that we’re opponents and not allies.”Darius’ arms were still outstretched, and he was still making circling motions. He did not stop channeling his energy while constantly absorbing more from the people around him. Because of this, he didn’t mind chatting with these people, even if there was no point in this conversation.Unexpectedly, someone else seemed to be more worried about the situation than him—it was the man who looked burly but actually had a small stature. “Cut the crap and just ask whatever questions you have. If you keep this up, I won’t hold myself back anymore.” Darius was surprised by two things. Firstly, the man’s words weren’t
The man’s face darkened, and he stopped attacking.Darius raised an eyebrow, feeling that he was up to something. He took the opportunity to lunge at the man, but in the next second, he was enveloped in complete darkness. He immediately skidded to a stop because he couldn’t even see his opponent. He was sure of one thing—if he were to continue with his attack, he could injure anyone, whether they were enlightened martial artists or normal, innocent bystanders. He couldn’t act rashly when he wasn’t sure what he was up against, and his actions would accomplish nothing aside from depleting his energy.He bit his lip and tried to find a way out of this. He felt pissed off by the fact that he hadn’t landed a single blow on his opponent since the start of this duel, and this was a first for him. He couldn’t accept this outcome, but his opponent obviously didn’t care. The man’s voice was as rough as sandpaper, and it seemed to be coming from all around Darius as he said, “Darius, you’ve al