Two hundred martial arts students answered en masse. They were so loud that it felt like the ground trembled. They looked ferocious. One word from Dwight and they would wreck the stage, the venue, and even the entire building without hesitation. The martial arts students were more terrifying than street thugs. Street thugs knew the consequences of breaking the law and they were afraid of the law enforcers and those who had backgrounds. The students were still teenagers, some minors, and they would follow their principal’s orders without hesitation. They practiced martial arts and they always resolved things with violence. “Ms. Souffle, when Shangrila Group moved back to Lilyrose, you promised to help the city’s development and because of that, you got a lot of benefits and support from the city council. “Shouldn’t you be helping me in solving my students’ problems? Don’t tell me you are breaking the promise now that James is gone. I might not be able to hold my students
Dwight looked down on Kaze and raised the price on the spot. Kaze said, “Shangrila Group is trying to form a specialized and professional security team. If the students of Tensor Martial Arts School are capable, I can afford five billion a year. But your students…” He scanned over the students. Not one of them looked strong or disciplined, most of them were just underaged thugs. He chuckled and said, “Since they are still students, I can pay them five hundred per month.” He insulted Dwight in his face. “You piece of shit! I’ll break you!” The students were furious and agitated. They all shouted at Kaze fiercely. “Jesse White, I will tell my students to wreck this place and see if they are worth five billion!” Dwight’s expression turned grim. Then, he ordered his students to spread out to wreck the building. It was then another strong voice sounded. “Dwight Tensor, if you wreck Shangrila Group, I will erase the Tensor Martial Art School from the face of the city!” Th
As Kaze had no intention of letting Dwight leave, Alan furrowed his brows. The bodyguard behind Alan said coldly, “Chairman White, Dwight is walking away from this on Mr. Cummingham’s request. You should quit while you’re ahead.” In the bodyguard’s opinion, Alan had already told Dwight to get lost. Dwight was glad to let the whole thing go since Alan asked. That should be the end of the matter. However, Kaze was insistent that Dwight stay. His behavior was a slap in Alan’s face. The local government and Lilyrose underworld; the rich and the filthy would do nothing to undermine Alan’s authority. “Don’t tell others what to do unless you have walked a mile in their shoes. Mr. Cummingham, your people don’t seem to see the sense in that.” Without looking at the bodyguard, Kaze talked to Alan indifferently, “Dwight brought his men to stir trouble at the renaming ceremony. He insulted my deceased buddy. Things are not over because you say so.” “Don’t take it there, Jesse!”
“I have two hundred students with me, Jesse. If you want to make an example out of me, you should at least have six hundred soldiers on your side.” Dwight did not see the army of soldiers as a threat. These men might be able to stand at attention, but that ability was not a testament to their combat competence. Kaze was delusional to think that a hundred men could put a dent on him. Could Kaze round up six hundred soldiers? Dwight did not think so. Unless Kaze could deploy troops from the military. It was impossible. Ignoring Dwight, Kaze asked without looking back, “How many of you to sort these martial arts students?” “30, sir!” The veteran soldier standing in front of fifty men on the left reported. His name was Wyatt Bernett. He was the squadron leader of the Garo Special Ops Team before he retired. Wyatt had a good job lined up as a personal bodyguard to a multibillionaire after he retired from the military.When Kaze wanted to put together a professional secu
Dwight could throw a tantrum and stomp his foot all he wanted, but he could do nothing to turn the tide. Thirty veterans charged toward the group of 170 martial arts students. Like a pack of wolves, they rushed into a herd of sheep. These veterans had trained to draw blood. The group of students, fueled by reckless fervor and a craving for combat, were no match for these veterans who had been to the battlefield. Dwight watched as his students were knocked out one after another. His expression was grim. Wham! In the end, the last dozen students who were still standing were knocked down. The clash between 30 and 200 ended in one minute and 40 seconds. The students scattered across the venue in a lying position. “It’s a mission accomplished, Mr. Chairman.” The thirty veterans regrouped without the need to catch their breath. “Good job. You have passed the pre-employment assessment.” Kaze nodded and looked at Dwight who was in distress. “Mr. Tensor, have I prove
“Huh? What’s that?” “Someone threw a person out.” As gasps filled the air, the figure crashed onto the stage, dropping to his knees where Winnie was. The platform trembled. Startled, Winnie and a few staff members backed away. “Principal Tensor!” They were in for another surprise once they got a good look at the person. “It’s Dwight Tensor. What happened to him? He was hurled out. Where are his students? How could they do nothing when their principal was in trouble?” Clamor erupted beyond the platform. The crowd wondered what was going on and questioned what happened to Dwight. The soldiers in security officer uniforms appeared at the entrance of Shangrila Group. They each carried two martial arts students and tossed them out like they were trash. The shocking scene lasted a whole minute. Everybody stared numbly as the martial arts students and their principal were hurled out of the office building. Two hundred students sprawled across the entrance of Shangril
“The veterans weren’t pleased that the martial arts students were eager to snatch jobs from them, so they taught the students a humbling lesson.” After the Chapmans’ butler reported back with the police’s response, Belarus smashed his expensive teapot in anger. Generally, matters involving the military were pretty sensitive, and the local authorities were reluctant to get involved. The martial arts students took a beating for nothing. The three family heads could do nothing about the matter. “Is Jesse a clairvoyant? How did he know that we would send a martial arts school to him? He was able to defuse whatever we threw at him.” They were frustrated. “Maybe we should send a drone to take a photo of Jesse. We can see who he really is.” Belarus hissed through clenched teeth. He ordered eyes on Shangrila Group’s event through a drone. The trio fixated on the screen. However, it went black when the drone was about to fly into the office building. Why did the screen go bl
The renaming ceremony was a success. News that Shangrila Group waged war with the top three families spread. The Novoelite Alliance formed by Perfect World Group, the local government, and Lefteria Group had challenged the authority of the top three families too. The public realized in shock that the top three families did not rank high in the popularity contest. Things were about to change in Lilyrose. Upon learning the news, the top three families kept a low profile for once. The three family heads had long seen it coming. They felt the pressure, but pinning their hopes on Albert as Lilyrose’s chief commander was their only recourse.The two hundred martial arts students and their principal, Dwight, were removed from the entrance of Shangrila Group by the police. They were not there to arrest Dwight and the others. However, their presence in front of a place of business was a disturbance. “Come on, darling. Let’s go. It’s a pity we didn’t get to see Jesse in person
“How dare those men hijack the plane and take Kaze. They must be punished…” Despite her grumbles, Snow grew anxious. “Given Mr. Lee’s capabilities, he won’t be hurt.” The agents around her tried to comfort her. They believed she was being too nervous. “I know, but we as subordinates have failed him by allowing this to happen. We have to do our best to make up for the mistake, and not rely on Mr. Lee to get out because he can.” Snow drowned in self-blame and regretted not being able to help. It was her negligence that allowed the hijacking to happen. “But there’s nothing you can do now. It’s late. Even the hijackers need to rest. They won’t do anything yet.” “It’s because the hijackers need to rest that we have to hurry and beat them to it. That’s the only way to solve this matter!” “But we’ve searched high and low and didn’t find anything. No one knows where they have gone. Even if they transported the passengers via buses, we didn’t see any tracks.” The agents discu
Kaze breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly went over to Miguel and pressed his hands with the gun down so that it would not misfire. “Good job.” “Thanks.” Miguel curled his lips into a nervous smile. He frequently trained in the gym and mixed martial arts but had never encountered any real-life incident before, thus being inexperienced. Fortunately, his mentality was stronger than the others and allowed him to act accordingly. “I’ll be taking the gun. This is self-defense, you won’t be charged and you won’t need to take responsibility,” Kaze said. Miguel’s pale face looked relieved. “What should we do now? Are there more of them?” Miguel dared not let go of the gun, worried there might be more enemies. “I’ve counted the numbers and this guy here should be the last one.” He then took the gun from Miguel’s hands. “Really? Gosh! That was crazy! I was so terrified!” Miguel finally loosened up and let his instinct take over. His heart was pounding so fast that it
Manson came over and saw the mercenaries lying in their own puddle of blood. The gore shocked him and made him sick. He tried his best to hold back the urge to throw up as it would attract attention. “Don’t look if you can’t take it! Don’t make things worse!” “Yeah! Professor! Grow a pair of balls!” “I have never seen dead bodies like this before!” he explained with a flush of embarrassment on his face. “Can we go out now and run away?” The hostages were eager to leave as things had settled down outside. They thought the danger was over. A dead mercenary was inside the container with them and they were still horrified. Once the others found out about this, the hostages would be shot to death. “If you want to die, be my guest. The moment you step out, you’ll be shot!” Callahan said as he looked at the others scornfully. One of the hostages had already put his hand on the handle of the door and was ready to dash out, but he quickly pulled his hand back after listening
“Tsk. Hold on.” Vexed, the man clicked his tongue and then waved at his colleague. “Come here. Someone fainted. Help me get him out.” The man wanted to take the professor out of the container. Manson’s heart pounded as he listened to the man. He was afraid he might be exposed, but there was no turning back now—he had to play along. Kaze stood behind the door, calming his breath down to lower his presence. “Get back. Stay away from the door. If anyone gets close, don’t blame me for being rough,” said the man as he unlocked the container. He opened the door and saw a number of hostages still sleeping. He then looked at the professor on the floor. He went closer to nudge him but did not get a response. It seemed like the professor needed medical attention. “Come on. Help me get him out.” The other man outside the container was on edge, looking as if he would pull the trigger at the slightest movement. “Why don’t we do it?” Callahan and Miguel volunteered. “You two
“It’s freaking troublesome.” “Boss, don’t worry about it. We’ll get an update tomorrow.” “Yeah. It’s late. Get some rest.” Tiguan’s men told him to get some rest and not worry so much. A few of them were already snoring on the chair. Tiguan sighed and killed the cigarette. He then closed his eyes to get some rest, too. The container that Kaze was in fell into silence once more. No one dared to make any noise but they all looked at Kaze, hoping to find out about his plans. Kaze’s eyes remained fixed on the window and showed no intention of revealing his thoughts. Miguel and Callahan were annoyed by the other hostages. “If you people want to get out of here alive, you better cooperate or come up with your own idea. No one is responsible for saving you.”“Yeah. I don’t want you guys to turn on us after we do all the heavy lifting. It will cost us our lives and you people won’t even be grateful.” Miguel’s tone was sarcastic because he disliked how the others looked at t
Kaze read the hostages’ minds and refused to be used. He wanted to leave but not under such circumstances. “That’s not true. We just don’t have the skills for this kind of situation. You guys are stronger, of course, you should be in the front,” said the man in glasses and a suit. A hint of sharpness gleamed in his eyes. Miguel knew what the man was planning, either. “That’s some plan you have there. You are just trying to use us to escape this place and no matter what happens, you’ll win.” “That’s not it! I just want everyone to stand together and get out of this place. I’ve never thought of using anyone!” the man argued, trying to look innocent. Even a monkey knew what he was planning, yet no one dared to speak up because they would benefit from it too. “Why don’t you guys think of something? If you need our help, we’ll help,” said another middle-aged gentleman who looked more just and fair, as if he could lead the group. “Then what is your plan?” Kaze suddenly wante
The hostages were locked up in the containers. Some of them were elites in their own field while some were ordinary people with average income, yet all of them got into trouble when they boarded the plane. Most of them could not accept their fate. Yet they dared not defy or resist the mercenaries. When things started to calm down, they broke down in tears, weeping in silence as resentment consumed them. Kaze sat down at a clean corner that allowed him to look outside the window. The window was dirty but at least he could see outside. The space inside the container was filled with people sitting closely, offering comfort to one another. They were aware they were just temporarily safe in this container. No one knew what the mercenaries would do to them at the next moment. “My parents must be worried. I said I would call them when I land but now I can’t even get in touch,” Barney muttered as he sat beside Kaze. He too looked outside the window, his feelings mixed. He watc
Kaze thought of what he had overheard in the toilet. If he told the hostages about that, they would probably panic. “It’s nothing. They are just going to separate us into different rooms or containers. They said the buses would be disposed of,” he said. He did not want to reveal too much because it would cause panic. Once the hostages knew their lives were on the line, things might spiral out of control. The mercenaries could kill a few of them to make an example, and none of the hostages would dare to cause problems anymore. Kaze kept it a secret because he wanted to protect the people. “That’s it?” “Is there anything else? How many men are there? What is their plan? Who are they looking for?” “We want to know because we want to survive. This isn't our problem—we just got caught up in it.” The hostages looked at Kaze, their eyes filled with worry. They felt aggrieved because they should not be caught in such a huge problem. “I don’t know either.” No matter how m
“There’s a room there. Get in.” The mercenary pointed his gun at the mother and son, which led them to look at Kaze nervously, seemingly asking for help. “What do you want?” The mother was nervous. She clutched her son’s hand tightly, nearly making him cry, but she reacted quickly enough to cover her son’s mouth to prevent him from doing so. “All women must go into that room. You go in now,” the mercenary explained. He did not want the woman to get the wrong idea. “You people won’t hurt me, right?” the mother asked, worried that she might be ravaged. “We are not into MILF,” said the other mercenary who was escorting Kaze, indirectly assuring the mother. Kaze shot a glance at the mother and nodded at her. “They told us they were going to separate us, so there’s nothing to worry about,” he said, worried that the mother and son would not cooperate. The mother then carried her son and followed the other mercenary into the room. It was called a room but it was actually ju