Chapter 58: Sudden Explosion

Vanessa stood in the command room, staring at her communication device.

“He didn’t sound interested.”

As a manager, Vanessa had developed an above-average ability to read people. It came naturally with leadership, especially in a position where one mistake could cost lives.

From Adam’s tone alone, that low, nonchalant calm, she could tell he genuinely didn’t care about the Water Lily.

She exhaled softly.

That shouldn’t be surprising.

After all, he already possesses a special talent, and not just any talent. A powerful one.

Vanessa didn’t know exactly what Adam’s special talent did, but she knew he had one. It was obvious from the way he fought without having stepped into the official ranks of a martial artist.

And beyond that, it was right there in his martial license.

An open detail.

It’s still unbelievable what a re-awakened talent can do.

Just like the manager back in Adam’s sector, Vanessa believed Adam had re-awakened his talent.

It was the only explanation she could come up with for his sudden and explosive rise in strength.

She let that thought go.

Even if he isn’t after it… that doesn’t mean the Mission Hall isn’t.

The Water Lily was an extremely important resource to anyone below the Expert rank. And Vanessa herself was a Martial Warrior, well within the range of those who could use it.

When she said the Mission Hall needed it, she was really referring to herself.

After all, She was the Mission Hall.

Vanessa turned sharply to the nearest acolyte.

“Gather a group,” she ordered. “We’re heading in.”

The acolyte snapped to attention.

“Yes, ma’am.”

He rushed off immediately to carry out her command.

Vanessa walked to the small window of the command room and stared out at the steel-wired fence surrounding the incursion.

The swamp beyond was hazy, alive with danger and opportunity.

Her reflection stared back faintly in the glass.

Her mind drifted, calculations forming one after another.

****

Abigail, Dickson, and the remaining followers pushed deeper toward the center of the incursion, hoping the water lily would be there.

They moved carefully.

Stagnant bodies of water dotted their path, their dark surfaces unnervingly still. Swamp trees rose around them at irregular intervals, yet in this area they were strangely compact, their twisted trunks crowding close together as if closing in. Visibility was poor. Sound felt muted.

Their guards were up.

Hands hovered inches from their conduits, every step measured, every breath controlled, ready for an ambush at the slightest disturbance.

Dickson’s eyes swept the area before he spoke, his voice low.

“Is it just me, or has it gotten a little too quiet?”

Abigail raised a hand immediately causing the rest to stop.

She then slowly scanned the surroundings through her sunglasses, senses stretched thin. After a brief pause, she nodded.

“You’re right,” she said.

“It has.”

Clap!

The sound cracked through the swamp like a gunshot.

In an instant, the group reacted. Conduits were drawn. Abigail snapped her battle fan open with a sharp flick, essence stirring around her.

Dickson slid into a battle stance, feet planted, breath steady.

Then…

Figures emerged.

One after another, people stepped out from behind the trees, their movements deliberately coordinated.

They spread out quickly, forming a loose encirclement.

Their numbers far exceeded Abigail’s group.

One of the newcomers stepped forward, clearly the leader. His gaze lingered on Abigail as a grin crept onto his face.

“Well, look what we have here, another group to take out. I wond—”

“Leader, can we have fun with the Kelvin heir first before we do anything?”

A voice cut in from his side.

The leader turned his head slowly to the speaker with a smile on his face.

The follower who’d spoken smiled back, encouraged.

Around them, the others began to grin as well, soft chuckles spreading, growing louder, until it turned into full-blown laughter.

Then…

SPLUSH!

A dagger buried itself straight into the follower’s head.

The laughter died instantly.

The man froze, eyes wide with shock. Blood trickled down from the wound, dripping slowly before his body toppled forward and hit the ground with a dull thud.

Dead.

The leader lowered his arm.

The smile was gone.

His expression twisted into a foul scowl as he looked at the rest of his men.

“Don’t interrupt me when I’m talking.”

The gulps of the man’s followers were audible.

One by one.

As his gaze swept over them, none of them looked shocked. Only afraid. That alone said everything, this wasn’t the first time they’d witnessed one of his sudden outbursts.

On a normal day, he might have laughed off what the now-dead follower had said. Today, however, wasn’t a normal day.

And the follower had paid for it.

Seeing that none of his remaining followers dared to speak, the clan heir turned back to Abigail and her group. A smooth and practiced smile returned to his face.

“No hard feelings, we simply need to eliminate every possible competitor for the Water Lily. Unfortunately… that means you’re on the list.”

Abigail’s expression didn’t change.

Her sunglasses hid her eyes, her battle fan already poised in her hand as her martial spirit began to partially manifest behind her.

Dickson, on the other hand, didn’t bother hiding his anger.

“Are you brain-dead?”

“Instead of actually searching for the damn thing, you’re wasting time picking fights? That’s the stupidest thing I’ve heard all day, and that’s coming from me.”

For the first time, Abigail’s lips twitched upward slightly.

Her remaining followers didn’t even try to hide their amusement. A few laughed outright, mocking the clan heir to his face.

A dagger suddenly flashed through the air, flying straight toward Dickson’s head.

Before he could even react…

Abigail moved.

Her five-star profound martial spirit fully manifested in an instant.

A blue, feminine apparition appeared behind her, wielding twin fans identical to her own. With a sharp, fluid gesture, the spirit snapped its fans outward.

Clang!

The dagger was deflected mid-air, sent spinning harmlessly into the mud.

The clan heir’s face twisted with fury.

“Bring me their heads!”

But before anyone could move,

BOOM!

An explosion tore across the sky.

The shockwave rippled outward, the air trembling violently as everyone instinctively looked up, the sudden blast cutting the confrontation short in an instant.

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