Th1s chapter is updated by n)ovel/\bin/\
The once wild and evergreen garden was now filled with rotten stench of corpses of beasts and humans. Leaves and petals stained with blood floated in the air.
In the center of the garden, the unnamed, well-framed and strong-looking man was lying on the floor. His face was pale while foam coursed out of his mouth, nonstop. Never in his worst nightmare, he expected to feel the burning sensation he was feeling. This pain swept from his balls and rampaged throughout his body.
Just minutes ago, his mood couldn’t have been better. He was thanking God for giving him the happiness of seeing a gorgeous beauty like Ashlyn discarding her ’lover’ for him. When she said she wants him to rock her world, he was so excited that he started unhooking his pant. He just couldn’t wait to take her in front of her lover - Kiba. He was so looking forward to witnessing the reaction her lover would have.
Unfortunately for him - Man Proposes, God Disposes.
The woman he has ’conquered’ ruthlessly kicked him in the balls when he was excitedly opening the belt of his pant. He was completely caught off guard. Much less kick, he didn’t even see her making any movement. All he felt was cold wind breezing past, and the next moment, he was on the ground...smelling the decaying scent of the people he has killed not so long ago.
He gritted his teeth amidst the unbearable pain and slightly raised his head to observe the woman he so loved (even if it was just for a moment). What he saw made him up cough up blood in rage.
That woman was giving the Vermillion Moon Fruit to her ’discarded’ lover!
Fuck!
What a bitch!
She is now going back in the arms of her old lover?!
The poor man’s veins were trembling in anger. Here he was suffering through unimaginable torment, while that woman was submitting his spoils to her lover!
This felt like another kick in the balls to him. He grimaced in agony and held his balls more firmly.
How could that woman be so cold?!
Did she never truly discarded her lover?! Was everything just a part of the play?
The pitiful man was thinking this when he heard a few lines of conversation between the woman and her lover.
"I was not bad, right?"
"You were good."
Motherfucker!
The man cursed the lover nonstop in his heart. He wouldn’t have been fooled if not for the ’genuine’ reaction of that lover. When the woman discarded the lover, he has seen the reaction. The lover was in an utter sense of disbelief and looked at everything with shock.
But now?!
The conversation made it pretty clear!
The lover was a part of the scheme all along!
The ill-fated man felt deep, unforgivable hatred for the lover. After all, he wouldn’t have lost guards if he was not looking forward to seeing the look of despair on the lover’s face.
"That bitch and that motherfucker... they are a black-bellied couple!"
He swore to warn the others of this black-bellied couple. He didn’t want other men to suffer under their hands.
Wait...
Wouldn’t it be great if others suffer as well? After all, misery loves company!
He was in the middle of thinking when the pain took over his consciousness and he passed out.
Some distance away, Kiba put the fruit in his storage dimension while wiping the tears streaming down his face.
"Why are you crying?" Ashlyn noticed his tears.
"Nothing...just dust." Kiba made an excuse.
He couldn’t tell the true reason was her learning something he never wanted her to learn from him!
Just how can his teaching result in her being an expert in nutcracking art?!
This question was like a knife piercing in his heart.
"I should not pass any more wisdom!" Kiba decided. He knew he has skills in fooling others with his words, but on Ashlyn, it was taking a drastic effect he never wanted.
"Let’s go."
Ashlyn said before leaping on a branch of a tree and then jumping on another. Kiba nodded and he joined her in the journey.
Behind, the unlucky man lay unconscious while dreaming about a sinister couple...
Kiba and Ashlyn were leaping from one tree to another. This was far better than walking or running on the ground. The chances of meeting others were low and so were the chances of falling in a trap. Not like they were truly afraid or anything. They just wanted to avoid complications.
Ashlyn was in midair when she took out the storage bracelet she took from the unfortunate man. Such storage items were branded with the owner’s mental energy and wouldn’t open in the hands of a third party. If the owner was killed, the bracelet would be like a lock to a treasury with no key. In some storage items, there was even a self-destruction mechanism. Such a mechanism would become active if the storage items didn’t regularly sense the mental energy of the owner.
While costly, such features were preferred in storage items. After all, the owner wouldn’t want others to enjoy their wealth. Of course, in certain cases, the owner could leave behind a trace of mental energy for the posterity so that the storage item could be opened. But such cases were rarest of rare.
Ashlyn didn’t ask the man to open since he was in no state. Also, even if she waited for him to recover, there was a chance he might activate some traps inside.
Based on the knowledge she had, the bracelet was a low-grade item. As such, it has no automatic self-destruction mechanism. She knew someone back in her ’home’ who could open this type of items. This was the reason why she took the bracelet from that man.
"Let me check."
Kiba’s voice entered her ears. She turned her head towards him before taking another leap in the air. She nodded and handed him the bracelet.
Kiba’s eyes flashed with golden radiance. The circuits embedded on the surface of the bracelet became clear to him. He didn’t have any storage device but he has researched about them when he was creating the underground facilities in his house.
Years ago, during his expedition in BSE79, he has actually seen a top grade storage ring. It was wielded by Castor Damon. Alas, when Zed became Kiba for the first time in the meteorite, and the golden lightning phenomenon arrived... the ring turned into dust. Later on, when he experimented with his newfound abilities, he realized he has no need for a storage device. So he didn’t really have any regrets.
In the present, he checked the ring for some time. He discovered no traps, so he concentrated his mental energy.
His psychic force has turned stronger after he copied Akshobhya’s ability. Akshobhya was a Psychic Hunter but Kiba wasn’t even close to that stage. He didn’t really face any enemies to practice his ability so at best he could be considered a newbie in the psychic department.
For the time being, that didn’t matter. He was not trying to read a mind or hypnotize someone. All he wanted was to open the bracelet.
"In the worst case, the bracelet would explode."
Kiba mused as he recalled the poor man’s aura and mental energy. Slowly, his own mental energy camouflaged into that man’s and entered the bracelet.
A dazzling brightness emitted from the bracelet along with the sound of a lock being unlocked.
Success!
Kiba’s lips curled up while Ashlyn was dumbfounded. She was so astonished that she didn’t see a branch ahead and crashed against it.
The full body black suit prevented any injury and she somersaulted through the air before landing on the ground. She was not hurt but her cold eyes were filled with shock.
"He didn’t even take a minute!"
Ashlyn looked at Kiba in disbelief.
When did opening storage devices become so easy?!
Spatial items costed a fortune. This was why very few could actually afford them. One of the major reason for the high cost was the security feature.
Now...
The person Ashlyn knew in her ’home’ would have to rely on sophisticated technology to unlock the bracelet. Yet Kiba did without using any technology or tool.
Is that bracelet defective?
No!
She noticed no such defects when the bracelet was in her hands. And even if there were defects, how can they be exploited in less than a minute?!
Ashlyn found this hard to comprehend. She obviously knew he was strong but this has nothing do with strength.
Ashlyn shook her head and composed herself. While shocked, she believed it was none of her concern on how he did what he did.
"Here."
Kiba tossed her the bracelet. Ashlyn caught it and closed her eyes to observe the contents inside.
The storage space was 5m*5m*5m. Most of it was filled with flowers, herbs, flowers, pills, and other mutated plants. They were rather costly and rare. Of course, the core region was an exception, but nevertheless, Ashlyn was impressed.
After becoming acquainted with Kiba, she has learned the art of appreciating others’ wealth.
Now, just like Kiba, she believed stealing was the smarter way of getting rich.
She looked further and noticed six red crystal cards. Each card has an emblem - Earth with two royal swords crossed in diagonal.
This was the emblem of world government. The swords denoted authority and also the pledge of serving the masses with honor.
Ashlyn ignored the emblem and read the below the emblem: In the name of the esteemed sovereigns - the World Bank issue $100000. Below was a sign of the governor of the World Bank.
Ashlyn retrieved the cards from the bracelet and handed them to Kiba. She would obviously share the other loot with him but not for the time being.
"Hmm?" Kiba checked the cards and was surprised.
The cards were actually similar to a demand draft. Such cards were impossible to forge so the money was guaranteed. They can be exchanged in any bank for the issued amount.
"Why would he carry them?" Kiba asked. Kiba didn’t carry such cards for two reasons: money was useless in the forest and in the digital era, wire transfer was the best way. In the forest, due to lack of signal, even wire transfer was impossible. The same was true for the cards since there was no bank here. So he didn’t see the need for carrying such cards.
"The Fair," Ashlyn answered.
"The Fair?" Kiba looked at her in puzzlement.
Meanwhile, back in the wild garden.
On the hard floor, the hapless man opened his eyes and coughed up blood mixed with foam. With great difficulty, he got on his feet.
The pain was killing him but since he was a level IV mutant, he could still live. He brought his right hand on his left wrist to open the storage bracelet and take out pills.
The next moment, he was struck on the spot. He only felt his fine hairs and nothing else.
No!
The ill-fated man brought his eyes on his wrist and didn’t find the bracelet.
Earlier, Ashlyn took out the bracelet just after kicking him in the balls. The tormenting sensation made his mind a mess and he didn’t notice Ashlyn’s activity. When he gained enough clarity, he only saw Ashlyn handing over the fruit to Kiba. A part of him reasoned she wouldn’t have noticed his bracelet since storage items were very rare and she wouldn’t know about them.
Now...
"My treasures!"
The doomed man collapsed on the floor again. His eyes were bloodshot and filled with tears. The six bank cards were an assured sum he already has. Then there were the herbs which could guarantee him more than 50 million.
Yet everything he earned after shedding so much blood and sweat were stolen.
He could grudingly accept the loss.
But how can he handle the fact that all his efforts have benefitted a notorius pair that shattered his jewels!
"Black-bellied couple! You are shameless!"