The sedan had just passed through the iron gate monitored by infrared sensors when Ethan Brooks burst out of the car, stumbling as he rushed into the villa.

The lights in the hall were dazzling. On the snow-white Italian marble floor, a coffin made of purple sandalwood lay shockingly across the room. An old man, his face so ruddy it seemed almost unnatural, lay quietly in the coffin, his mouth and nose long since ceased to breathe.

“Father!”

A look of terror suddenly appeared on Ethan Brooks’s face. His lips trembled uncontrollably, as if he had seen a ghost.

The old man’s face was as red as a blazing fire, as if the blood beneath his skin was about to seep out drop by drop. There was not a single wound on his body, but countless densely packed, multicolored insects crawled all over his corpse, their plump bodies writhing ceaselessly, making one’s skin crawl.

Ethan Brooks cried out in anguish, “What happened? How did Father end up like this? Who did this?”

“Second Young Master, you’re finally back.”

A middle-aged man standing in the hall with his hands behind his back spoke coldly. He wore a bizarre, old-fashioned black robe. His face was gaunt, and his eyes glowed with a strange light, like two ghostly green flames.

Ethan Brooks choked out, “Mr. Harris, w-what exactly happened?”

“Second Brother, get up first.”

A tall, handsome young man with a dignified bearing helped Ethan Brooks up. His eyes were swollen and red, and his voice was choked with emotion. “Father drove to Causeway Bay at midnight today to negotiate territory division with Samuel Clark. On the way back, nothing seemed out of the ordinary—they were chatting and laughing. Who could have expected that as soon as he walked in the door, he would suddenly collapse and die?”

Mr. Harris, dressed in a black robe, said grimly, “The boss may have been secretly targeted with a Gu curse. The person who cast it must be a terrifyingly skilled Gu master, timing it so that the curse took effect the moment the boss returned home.”

A fierce light flashed in Henry Brooks’s eyes. “It must have been Samuel Clark. His chief bodyguard is a Thai sorcerer, Walter. There must have been a disagreement during tonight’s negotiations, so he took revenge with this vicious act.”

Samuel Clark was also one of the four major triad family heads in Hong Kong, notorious for his cruelty and ruthlessness. He was rumored to be involved in the drug trade, something even the underworld usually avoided. The power of the Duan family had been expanding rapidly, directly threatening the neighboring Feng household.

“I really should have gone with the boss to meet Samuel Clark, just in case.”

Mr. Harris sighed. He was a man with supernatural abilities, hired at great expense from the mainland by Feng Tian ten years ago. It was said he was skilled in Maoshan Taoist arts, able to kill without a trace.

The four major triad families had long been engaged in both open and covert struggles, each hiring their own extraordinary talents to serve them.

For example, Walter, whose mastery of sorcery was so terrifying that he once turned one of Samuel Clark’s enemies into a puddle of foul-smelling pus in just half an hour.

Henry Brooks gritted his teeth. “I’ll gather our men right away. I must kill Samuel Clark and avenge Father!”

Ethan Brooks stared blankly at his father’s corpse, tears streaming down his face, his mind a complete blank. Accustomed to a life of privilege and having others worry about everything, he was unable to accept such a cruel reality all at once.

“Please reconsider, Young Master. In my opinion, this matter requires careful planning. We can’t act rashly.”

Mr. Harris spoke slowly. Compared to Ethan Brooks, there was a greater note of respect in his tone toward Henry Brooks. “At present, we have no solid evidence that Samuel Clark was behind this. According to the agreement made by the four families twenty-two years ago, any party that initiates conflict will be jointly suppressed by the other three families.”

Suddenly, Ethan Brooks cried out hoarsely, “Are we just going to let Father’s blood feud go unavenged?”

Mr. Harris replied coldly, “Second Young Master has never concerned himself with underworld affairs, so perhaps you don’t understand. A single wrong decision could wipe out the Feng family, turning the lives of thousands of our brothers to ashes. We must be extremely cautious.”

Ethan Brooks clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deep into his palms. A trickle of blood oozed from his lip, bitten through by his teeth, and hung weakly at the corner of his mouth.

Henry Brooks was silent for a moment. His calm, bright gaze rested on Ethan Brooks’s face. “Second Brother, Mr. Harris is right. We must stay calm and not act recklessly.”

Ethan Brooks said in grief, “I don’t care. I must avenge Father!”

A trace of mockery appeared in Mr. Harris’s eyes. “Does Second Young Master intend to take revenge himself? But you’ve always been obsessed with music and books, haven’t you? I don’t think you even know how to use a gun.”

Henry Brooks said in a deep voice, “Second Brother, don’t be so impulsive. Wait until I convene a meeting of the Feng household’s society, then we’ll decide.”

Ethan Brooks stared blankly at Henry Brooks, feeling for the first time his own weakness and incompetence. In everyone’s eyes, he was probably just a good-for-nothing playboy who only knew how to eat, drink, and have fun.

“Where’s Emily Brooks? Why haven’t I seen her?”

After a moment in a daze, Ethan Brooks suddenly remembered his younger sister.

A trace of worry appeared in Henry Brooks’s eyes. “As soon as Third Sister saw Father’s body, she fainted from crying. I had the doctor give her a sedative—she should be asleep now. You should go rest too. Big Brother will take care of everything.”