While Fyren was collecting Iron King, Otto wasn't idle.
"Tactician, what the hell did you send me? Hmmm!!! That bastard misidentified me multiple times and beat me to death... Forget about that part - of course he couldn't actually harm me - but that five billion dollars in cash? He fucking donated it to Fyren's charity!"
"Could this be a mistake? Iron King used to handle things quite securely."
"Of course it's a mistake! He got the wrong person and transferred to the wrong account!" Otto was furious: "I don't care, this financial loss is on you. Send someone with another five billion immediately. Time is running out - whether we can take down the Leng family depends on these crucial days!"
"Understood, but five billion isn't a small amount. Could we... reduce the sum slightly?"
"Since when do the amounts matter to me?" Otto snapped. "That five billion was squandered by your people. And from what I see, Iron King is probably about to defect from the sect."
"He wouldn't dare."
"Wouldn't dare? What choice does he have now? Hurry up and clean up this mess yourselves - surely you don't expect me to intervene over such trivial matters? I can't afford to make waves publicly right now. I need to maintain my elite expert persona to take down those major families!"
"Understood. I'll dispatch Copper King immediately to reallocate funds for Young Lord and handle the cleanup operation. Should we eliminate Fyren directly?"
Otto grew exasperated, "Why bother with Fyren? He can't die yet! His death will come eventually - by my hands, but not now! Stop getting sidetracked - my objective is the Leng family! Their hundreds of billions in assets! Fyren is merely an afterthought!"
"Understood. Please calm yourself, Young Lord. My team will be in position shortly."
"You'd better hurry. If we miss this window of opportunity, the plan will be ruined!"
"Rest assured, Young Lord."
"Rest assured my ass..." Otto hung up, still fuming: "What a fucking disaster - the money goes to Fyren's account, Iron King's whole crew defects to Fyren; I get beaten multiple times, then tossed off a cliff; Thought I'd met some grandmaster who could teach me rare techniques, but no - just fucking Fyren! Now I can't even kill him personally! This is infuriating! Absolutely infuriating!"
Sherry added resentfully, "He even kissed me twice! Sure, it was to save me, and the kisses were... not unpleasant, but still unforgivable!"
Otto shot her a look and said gloomily, "That's the least of our problems! Five billion dollars! That bastard cost me five billion! If word of this gets out, I'll be a laughingstock!"
"However," Sherry suggested, "since Young Lord now shares the same master with him, have you considered recruiting him into your organization?"
Otto froze. "That's something to consider."
He paced back and forth. "Fyren… well, he's not much of a martial artist, but there's something sinister about him. I don't know why, but whenever I cross paths with him, things go wrong. If we can make him work for us, the situation could change dramatically!"
At that moment, there was a faint sound of footsteps at the door. Though barely audible, Otto's sharp hearing caught it.
"Who's there?"
"Your subordinate, Sabrina, greets the Young Lord."
Otto laughed. "Sabrina's here! Come in!"
The door opened, and Sabrina entered with a gentle smile. "I was still miles away when I heard the Young Lord throwing a tantrum."
Otto strode over and eagerly took Sabrina's hands. "Sabrina, I've missed you! What took you so long?"
Sabrina smiled and lightly tapped Otto's nose. "I was delayed by some trouble on the way. What's this? Has the Young Lord run into difficulties?"
"Exactly."
Otto sighed. "I've had a terrible start. So many girls were snatched away by Fyren. Iron King beat me up and gave all my money to Fyren. I fell off a cliff, thinking I'd have some miraculous encounter, but instead, Fyren chased me down too. Then that old lunatic forced us to bow as fellow disciples. Now the money's gone, the women are gone, and I still don't know how to handle the Leng family. I'm really—"
Sabrina's lips twitched. What's wrong with our Young Lord?
Who can make sense of this jumbled mess?
"Young Lord, slow down. There's no rush. This 'Fyren' you keep mentioning—who is he?"
Sherry gritted her teeth. "A scumbag! Lustful, arrogant, and shameless! He kissed me twice and groped my breasts!"
"Is that the issue here?" Otto snapped. "He's the Zhang family's heir, the head of Dasheng Group. He's been a thorn in my side—if not for him, I'd have taken Eliza long ago. Anyway, help me deal with Fyren!"
Sabrina smiled. "Does he need to be dead or alive?"
"Alive. Fyren can't die yet—not until I've dealt with the remaining three. If he dies now, the Zhang family's assets will shrink, and the consequences would be severe."
"What would the Young Lord have me do?"
"Seduce him!" Otto declared. "Use your charm and illusions to make him obsessed with you. Once he's under your spell, he'll obey me without question."
Sabrina nodded. "No man under heaven can resist my allure. Don't worry, Young Lord. Once I've clouded his mind, everything will be yours to command."
"Good!"
Sabrina sighed. "Ah, I can ensnare any man in the world—except for you, Young Lord. My tricks don't work on you at all. But that's exactly why I adore you."
Otto laughed. "Sabrina, I am the Child of Fortune, blessed with Regal Majesty. Your little tricks won't affect me. But Fyren? He's definitely a lustful fool. If you can control him, you'll have done me a great service. Don't worry—you'll be mine eventually. Once I break through to Upper Quadportal, I'll officially claim you, Sherry, and the others."
"This subordinate eagerly awaits that day."
"Hmph."
Fyren opened the door to find Xena standing in the doorway. "The hotel manager said you got a room here. I thought you were with some girl - why is it a bunch of guys? And why is this floor so messy?"
Fyren turned to Iron King and the others. "You guys stay here today. The rest can come tomorrow." Then, pulling Xena outside, he exhaled heavily and kept rubbing his face.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Almost died," Fyren said.
"That bad?"
"Uh-huh. How did you find me here?"
"I missed you, so I came looking for you."
Fyren shook his head. "No, no one knows I'm here except Zaring, Chloe, and a couple drivers and assistants."
Xena laughed.
Fyren understood and gritted his teeth. "Zaring! You're fucking dead, aren't you? You dare to just give away my whereabouts?"
"Ugh, don't yell at him - I forced him."
Zaring stood to the side, aggrieved: "Fyren, you didn't come back all night. Xena kept interrogating me about your whereabouts. She said she's your fiancée and will be the Zhang family's young madam in the future. When I didn't tell her, she threatened to badmouth me to you every day. How... how could I dare to offend her?"
Xena said, "Zaring, you're dismissed here. Fyren, come with me!"
"What for?"
"To talk about something!"
"About what?"
Sitting in Xena's car, she crossed her legs and smiled at Fyren.
"What the hell are you doing?"
"Making out with you!"
Fyren stared at her for several seconds. "Seriously, are you sick? We haven't been in touch for years, we've just been hanging out for the past few days, and suddenly we're getting laid?"
"We destroyed hundreds of millions in substandard drugs together, invested in the shantytown remodeling project together, played along to crush Otto's obsession, and tricked him into getting beaten up by that Iron whatever-his-name-is... We also drank until dawn, and accompanied our aunts and uncles to breakfast..."
Fyren interrupted, "Breakfast wasn't my idea! You all were eating while I was kneeling there watching you act! My dad beat me so hard he broke three brooms!"
"Hahaha! Yes, yes, yes! Oh my god, why are you so petty! You still remember such a small thing!"
Fyren's eyes widened. "Is this a small matter? This is a matter of principle! If you lie about small things now, what will you do later? You might go commit fraud!"
"My family has money - why would I need to scam people? Being a doctor is much more profitable than fraud, don't you know?"
"I'm warning you, Xena - don't push people too far! Your little tricks won't always work. My father is wise and perceptive, my mother is kind and sharp - they'll soon see through what kind of person you really are. Once they figure you out, your act won't hold up."
"So I suggest you quit while you're ahead, before this ends ugly for you!"
Fyren leaned back against the seat. "Don't say I didn't warn you - our Zhang family hates liars most of all! And we're the best at spotting them! You know why? Because we're smart! My father and mother are the smartest of the smart!"
Fyren was still in the middle of his angry outburst when Xena's phone rang.
Xena picked it up, "Auntie! Oh my god, I'm so happy you called! I've been thinking about what to get for you and uncle since that day, but you elders don't need anything, so I've been worried to death. I'm so glad you liked it!"
"Yes, yes, yes. Well, Fyren... he... please don't be angry, but actually Fyren has been quite good to me... No, no, no! He hasn't scolded me or hit me... he... rarely hits me these days."
Fyren stared at Xena. "Are you... ugh, are you kidding me?"
Fyren grabbed Xena and gritted his teeth. "You better explain this properly! I'll kill you, you hear me?!"
Then, glancing at the phone screen, Xena tapped the speakerphone button.
Fyren's mom's furious voice blasted out: "Fyren! You really are a dog that can't change its dirty ways! Xena is so filial to us and treats you so well - how could you bully her? And threaten to kill her? Get your ass back here right now! Let's see you try to kill her - you might as well kill me first!"
Fyren tearfully grabbed the phone. "Mom, it's not like that! You've all been fooled by her! She's a liar! I have nothing to do with her..."
"Nothing?! You dunked her in the middle of the night for nothing? You've been occupying her body for over a year for nothing? Giving her 'body checks' for nothing? Wearing her underwear around your neck for nothing? Why did I give birth to such an animal like you! Get home now! Right now! If you're not here in twenty minutes, I'll come to your company tomorrow and beat you up myself!"
The call ended abruptly.
Fyren stood dumbfounded.
Xena curled up on the seat, smirking. "Fyren, your mother is so sweet~ You can't bully me anymore, okay? Otherwise daddy-in-law and mommy-in-law will beat you to death~"
Fyren cried without tears. "I can't live like this anymore!"