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Novel Catalog
Chapter_246
The next morning, at Sagen.
A district famed for its luxury and coastal views sprawled along the sea, where nearly a hundred stately mansions and seventy thirty-story apartment towers stood like polished teeth in a wealthy smile. This prestigious area was known as Green Bamboo Manor—and nestled within it was the headquarters of the Green Bamboo Association.
True to its name, clusters of tall, verdant bamboo surrounded the villa grounds, swaying gently in the sea breeze. These bamboo stalks weren’t just aesthetic—they were symbolic. To the Association, they represented resilience, growth, and success that could weather any storm.
Inside the most magnificent of all the mansions, a gathering was taking place.
A circle of elderly men, each exuding a unique brand of seniority and menace, sat around a long, carved table. But none of them commanded attention quite like the man at the head.
His white beard and snow-colored hair betrayed his age, but his sharp gaze and proud posture showed no sign of weakness. In his hand rested a cane of gold, intricately carved with twin dragons chasing a flaming pearl. Embedded within the dragon’s mouth sat a ruby the size of a quail’s egg, glowing faintly in the morning light.
He was Dominic Carter, president of the Green Bamboo Association—and a name that struck fear in the hearts of underworld elites across the continent.
Dominic’s voice boomed with unyielding force, “The Green Bamboo Association has never suffered humiliation like this since the day of its founding! We must retaliate—wipe out anyone who dares spit on our name!”
A chorus of hoarse, angry voices echoed his sentiment.
“Nutcracker, Giant, and Unibrow were top-ranking juggernauts! We can’t let their deaths go unanswered!”
“That’s right! We must make an example out of Jonford!”
The wrinkled faces twisted with fury, some of them baring toothless gums as they barked their outrage.
“Silence.”
Dominic’s cane tapped the marble floor once—lightly, but it was enough. The room fell quiet, a grave hush descending as his commanding gaze swept over them. Each man, though powerful in his own right, shrank under the president’s weighty presence.
Turning to his left, Dominic addressed the Grim-Faced Juggernaut, a tall man clad in black with sunken eyes and a mouth that seemed permanently set in a frown. “Why haven’t the others returned?”
The Grim-Faced Juggernaut bowed his head. “They’ve chosen to remain in Jonford, Sir Dominic. They intend to remain until they can personally behead Nash Calcraft.”
Dominic let out a derisive snort. “He’s barely in his twenties, and yet you lost three juggernauts and over thirty men. What a glorious campaign. The entire city is likely laughing at you right now.”
The Green Bamboo Association’s reputation was sacred in Sagen. To lose juggernauts—let alone have them beheaded—wasn’t just a defeat. It was shame.
“Please, Sir Dominic,” came a calm yet firm voice. It belonged to the Gingerhead Juggernaut, his flaming red hair now tinged with streaks of grey, his build still imposing. “This isn’t the time to cast blame. If anything, this incident proves just how dangerous this young man really is.”
He wasn’t alone. The remaining four juggernauts who had stayed behind—Shadowblade, Gingerhead, Velvet-Thunder, and Hoodlum—had gathered to present a unified front.
Gingerhead continued, “Nash Calcraft may have entered the Profound Reality Realm… but Nutcracker was at the later stages of it. His strength was formidable. I don’t believe Nash was the one who killed him.”
The Grim-Faced Juggernaut frowned. “But… we can’t think of anyone else who could’ve done it!”
Their recon in Jonford had been extensive. There were fewer than a dozen great-grandmasters in the Jonford Martial Arts Association. The rest of the underground didn’t even come close in comparison. Only one other entity posed a serious threat—the Quiet Winds Church, home to the remaining Stage Eight and Nine masters.
Aside from Nash, only the Smiling Grim Reaper had the potential to eliminate someone like Nutcracker.
“But the Smiling Grim Reaper was seen at the Zabel estate that night,” Grim-Face reasoned. “That leaves Nash.”
Gingerhead leaned back, a sly smirk curling at his lips. “And what if that’s what they want us to believe?”
The Grim-Faced Juggernaut’s eyes widened with sudden realization.
What if… it wasn’t Nash after all?
Uncertainty spread through the room like a cold fog. Even Dominic’s grip on his dragon cane tightened as he considered the implications. If another force strong enough to kill Nutcracker was operating in the shadows of Jonford… they were now dealing with something far more dangerous than a hot-headed youth.
Something far more calculating.
And deadly.