Marquis Lesath kept his eyelids lowered, but a cold glint flashed deep in his pupils.
He truly couldn’t do anything about those men.
But a woman?
Could he really not handle one woman?
Feigning weakness and docility, he drawled out numbers representing his wealth while secretly tensing his muscles and gathering power.
The instant Jessica froze slightly upon hearing “fifty billion,” he lunged at her violently!
*Thwack!*
A heavy fist smashed into his face, sending him flying backward like a cannonball.
He slammed headfirst straight into the ground, leaving only his legs dangling in the air.
Jessica shook out her wrist and sneered.
“Ha, think a girl is an easy target?”
In a villa in the Upper East Side.
Luke Lane leaned back on the sofa, running his fingertips across a glowing screen as he tallied his gains over the past few days.
[Shock Value: 54,630.5]
“Tsk. After slaving away for days, I’ve only gathered ten thousand or so points. Looks like I need to pull off a really big stunt.”
He shook his head and sank deeper into the sofa.
Since he had nothing better to do anyway, he figured he might as well try opening some loot boxes.
However, with his Shock Value barely over fifty thousand, he was still far short of the hundred-thousand threshold needed for a Silver Loot Box.
He could only choose between Bronze and Black Iron.
“I haven’t opened a Black Iron Loot Box yet. Why not give it a shot?”
After a moment’s thought, he looked up and said, “System, give me a 1,000-point Black Iron Loot Box first to test my luck.”
The moment the words left his mouth, white light flashed.
[Item: Master Chef’s Secret Sauce Packet] [Effect: Ultimate Umami and Fragrance] [Description: Originating from Cooking Master Boy, a single drop in the pot elevates a hundred flavors.
Any dish becomes a delicacy fit for royalty.] [Note: Have you ever tasted braised pork that glows with golden light?]
…
[E-Rank 7-Star Character Card: Hannibal] [Skills: Deep Psychological Deduction, Universal Knowledge] [Description: A psychiatrist with supreme intelligence and extraordinary insight, able to pinpoint emotional fissures and cognitive blind spots in others.
Astronomy, geography, classical music theory, and advanced mathematics come effortlessly to him; his demeanor is elegant, his speech composed.
Yet his hidden dark side is cold and deadly.
He is accustomed to pairing a victim’s most cherished parts with top-tier culinary technique for refined tasting.] [Note: I have always been demanding when it comes to fine dining.]
“Black Iron boxes aren’t bad at all.”
Luke Lane raised an eyebrow with a smile and pressed the Hannibal card into his palm.
Instantly, a torrent of psychological models, behavioral prediction logic, and precise rhetoric structures flooded his mind.
His previous crude scheme for causing trouble was scrapped and rewritten on the spot, replaced by a new, intricately linked, step-by-step master plan.
“This feeling… is fantastic.”
He opened his eyes, his gaze clear and sharp.
Though Hannibal possessed no superpowers, he was a true mastermind.
After integrating the card, Luke Lane’s tactical thinking immediately became airtight and incisive.
“Luck’s good today. Let me keep going.”
Without hesitation, he opened a Bronze Loot Box next.
[Item: Blood Orchid × 3] [Effect: Activates cellular regeneration mechanisms, slows down aging] [Description: From Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid, a rare red flower growing deep within the rainforests of Borneo.
Its sap can reverse cellular aging, earning it the folk moniker ‘Elixir of Youth.’] [Note: Short blooming season, fast snake mouths—reach out early if you want one.]
…
[D-Rank 9-Star Character Card: Albert Wesker] [Skills: Progenitor Virus Complete Compatibility Host] [Description: Former Chief Researcher of Umbrella Corporation, later achieved deep symbiosis with the original virus, gaining reaction speed, physical strength, and self-healing abilities far beyond ordinary humans.] [Note: Insiders call him Uncle Wesker, while others call him Uncle Wes.]
“Oho, today really is my lucky day.”
Luke Lane’s eyes lit up.
Albert Wesker, paired with the Red Queen motherboard he had previously acquired, gave him enough to lay down the framework for the Umbrella Corporation.
“This has real potential.”
He formed a hand seal and split off another shadow clone.
Before equipping a card, the clone was completely identical to his main body.
As the Albert Wesker card merged into him, the clone instantly transformed: blond hair combed immaculately, a sharp, cold jawline, and a calm gaze radiating unquestionable authority.
Luke Lane pulled out the Red Queen motherboard and handed it over.
“Understood.”
“Wesker” nodded, took the motherboard, turned on his heel, and strode out.
…
On the other side of town.
In a temporary hideout inside an abandoned warehouse, Jessica stared at the small mountain of cash, gold bars, and jewelry piled in front of her, her eyes turning into bright dollar signs.
“Frank, you’re amazing!”
This time, she was genuinely impressed.
“Nothing to it,” Frank Castle said neutrally, wiping blood from between his fingers with a towel.
“That marquis looked tough, but his spine was spineless. A little interrogation pressure and he spilled everything.”
“However, the bulk of his assets are tied up in stocks and real estate. The cash and liquid assets are just what’s right here—about two to three hundred million US dollars total.”
“That’s more than enough!”
Jessica grinned foolishly.
“I was such an idiot before. If I’d known vampires were this loaded, I wouldn’t have spent my days drinking watered-down cheap red wine.”
“That’s a dangerous train of thought.”
Frank shook his head.
“They live in the lap of luxury and might not be all that strong individually, but most occupy high positions with deeply entrenched networks. They’re not easy targets.”
“Alright, fine, fine.”
Jessica sighed, feeling a bit regretful.
But looking down at the pile of cash covering the floor, her mood brightened right up.
“Even if we can’t target them again in the future, this single job turns our lives completely around.”
Robbing the rich to help the poor?
She didn’t feel an ounce of guilt.
Superheroes had to eat, too, didn’t they?
“Yeah.”
Frank nodded.
“This is a team effort, split five ways. Do you want to divide it now, or wait until we liquidate the gold bars and fence the jewelry?”
“We can talk about splitting the money later.”
Just as Jessica was about to complain about being so poor she couldn’t even afford instant noodles, Matt and “Lu Xiaofeng” rushed inside.
*Puff… puff…*
The two pulled off their masks, taking several sharp breaths.
Matt spoke in a heavy voice, “Chevalier has been taken by The Hand. We need to move immediately.”
“How did I get dragged into this!”
At an abandoned dock somewhere, Chevalier was tied up tight, his brow furrowed into a tight knot.
He had barely escaped a fatal predicament, without even a moment to catch his breath, when Lesath—who always loved finding fault with him—had fallen too…
Logically, this should have been a double relief!
Yet, as luck would have it, he had been caught red-handed by The Hand.
Every time he remembered the murder-crazed Hand ninjas who had stormed the estate not long ago, he couldn’t help sighing heavily.
His heart beat like a drum:
This time, he really had no way out.
The news of The Hand launching a large-scale hunt for pureblood vampires had already reached the ears of the Vampire Clan’s upper echelon long ago.
Nobody could figure out what had gotten into their heads…
However, Chevalier’s father, the Grand Elder of the Vampire Clan, had already mobilized all his political leverage to pressure the NYPD and the FBI.
And the result?
Practically useless.
The Hand was clearly going all out this time, willing to scrap the drug trade they had painstakingly cultivated for years just to clash head-on with the Vampire Clan.
As far as Chevalier knew, dozens of pureblood descendants had already fallen into their hands.
Don’t underestimate that number.
Every pureblood was an ancestor who had lived for hundreds or even thousands of years.
In all of New York, although the total vampire population reached twenty thousand, less than a hundred could truly be called purebloods, each holding prominent titles and distinguished status.
“It’s over, completely over.”
The more Chevalier mulled it over, the colder his heart grew.
His face crumpled completely, and he sat blankly on the ground, his eyes hollow.
*BOOM!*
Suddenly, the ground shook violently as heavy, explosive detonations erupted in succession from a distance.
“Could it be… Father sent people to rescue me?”
His eyes widened abruptly, a surge of warmth swelling in his chest.
…
He was mistaken.
The newcomers weren’t vampire reinforcements, but Lu Xiaofeng and The Defenders.
The abandoned dock appeared loosely guarded on the surface, but it was brimming with hidden killing intent: local gang members handled the outer perimeter lookouts while Hand ninjas monitored the inner grounds, keeping the defense airtight.
Sneaking in unnoticed?
Completely impossible.
After a brief discussion, Lu Xiaofeng and the others decided to drop all pretense and launch a direct, head-on assault.
Thus, at this moment, explosions rocked the dock continuously, and flames surged everywhere.
The one taking action was The Punisher!
A moniker never lied.
When dealing with criminals, Frank Castle never left any quarter.
He raised an MK-48 light machine gun, expressionlessly pouring out a full twenty-one-pound belt of ammunition.
Immediately after, he grabbed an M320 grenade launcher, coldly wiping out the remaining enemies.
By the time he lowered his weapon and stopped, the gang hitmen on the perimeter were already blown to pieces, a shocking carnage of mangled flesh and blood.
*Gulp!*
Even Jessica, usually so carefree, couldn’t help gulping.
It wasn’t out of fear, but simply because her stomach was churning—it was too bloody for her to handle physically.
“You’ll get used to it slowly. That’s just Frank’s style.”
Matt patted her shoulder, letting out a quiet sigh.
He was ruthless enough himself, routinely dislocating limbs, but compared to Frank, he looked like he was practicing Tai Chi.
According to Frank: he only eradicated evil without preaching reform, because human vice was an insatiable hunger.
Matt agreed with the logic, yet he always felt that methods didn’t need to be so uncompromisingly brutal.
*Whoosh… whoosh…*
An extremely faint rustle of wind cutting through the air reached Matt’s ears.
His expression suddenly darkened.
Instantly focusing his mind, he barked out, “Watch out! The Hand ninjas are here!”
“I saw them already!”
Perhaps embarrassed by her momentary hesitation earlier, Jessica was the first to charge forward.
Her fist looked fair and soft, but a single swing carried several tons of force.
A ninja slashed at her with a katana; she countered with a backhand punch, sending both man and blade flying backward.
*Bang!*
The man didn’t die; instead, he turned into a plume of white smoke and dissolved in an instant.
“That’s their trait. They seem to be killed, but they actually escape as white smoke, capable of coming back to life.”
As Matt explained, he pulled out his cane and swiftly joined the fray.
By the time Luke Cage digested the explanation, Lu Xiaofeng and the others had already rushed past, plunging deeper into the facility.
…
Unlike the rabble on the outer perimeter, The Hand ninjas wielded fierce blade techniques, possessed seasoned teamwork, and harbored no fear whatsoever, making the fight exceptionally tough.
It took a full five minutes for Lu Xiaofeng and The Defenders to completely crush this wave of ninjas.
“Finally cleared them out.”
Jessica glanced down at her torn clothes, her lip twitching.
If she weren’t so tough and durable, she would have been diced into mincemeat by those suicidal zealots.
And she wasn’t the only unlucky one.
Except for “Lu Xiaofeng,” whose movement was like lightning, easily dodging every suicidal lethal maneuver, everyone else had taken knife cuts.