"What's wrong?" Chiharu Mitsui was stunned. She looked at the Mitsui clan retainers, whose faces had completely changed—no more flattery, just murderous intent. It was as if they wanted to devour her alive.
"Miss Chiharu, do you still think the Mitsui clan treats you as its princess? Let me tell you—the era of your branch is over! Now Harold Mitsui runs the family. You came back just to get yourself killed!" one of the Mitsui retainers jeered.
"How dare you! My parents are gone, so I am the Mitsui clan head now! My uncle is nothing—he was kicked out years ago. What right does he have to control the whole family? I want to see Harry! I want to see Jason!" Chiharu shouted.
"Ha! All your loyalists have already been executed. The whole Mitsui clan has been purged—we all answer to Harold now. You'd better come with us and let us have our way with you. Maybe, if we're generous, we'll spare your life and keep you as a slave!" another retainer laughed lewdly.
As he said this, the others all burst out laughing. Chiharu Mitsui wasn't just stunningly beautiful—she'd always been the clan's pampered princess, its future heir. To press such a woman beneath them would be a thrill beyond words; every Mitsui retainer was thinking exactly that.
"How dare you!" Chiharu felt utterly humiliated, almost exploding with rage. Her face twisted with fury, looking like a whole different person. She was meek and submissive to Ryan Ling, her "Master"—because she'd accepted him as her man. But to these Mitsui clan scum, she would never give in. She'd fight to the death!
"You think we don't dare? All your support is gone. You're just a plucked phoenix now—what can you do to us? Boys!" The first retainer shouted, and instantly dozens of thugs swarmed out from the side streets. Their faces were twisted, eyes full of perverse lust. Clearly, these were the Mitsui clan's filthiest, lowliest henchmen, and the idea of ravaging the princess had them utterly excited.
In no time, the whole crowd was roaring with laughter. Some even started unzipping their pants, others scratching themselves all over—crude beyond belief.
Seeing all this, Chiharu Mitsui was on the verge of breaking down. Her legs clamped together instinctively, terrified of being violated. At that moment, her gaze turned to Ryan Ling—he was her man now, and she desperately hoped he'd step in to save her.
The Mitsui retainers noticed this too. Someone sneered, "Miss Chiharu, you really think that pretty boy can turn things around for you? He probably just pissed himself from fear, haha!"
The others burst out laughing, clearly not taking Ryan Ling seriously at all.
But at that moment, Ryan Ling smirked coldly. Suddenly, the whole car roared to life, then slammed straight into one of the Mitsui clan's filthy thugs.
Bang bang bang—the car crashed again and again, sending more than a dozen people flying.
"Baka! Rashi Sho, you bastard, what kind of driving is that?!" someone outside screamed.
"I didn't touch anything! I swear I didn't! The car's moving on its own!" Rashi Sho had barely finished speaking before his head was blown apart—literally turned into a pile of mush.
"Master!" Seeing Ryan Ling act so decisively, Chiharu Mitsui was so moved she burst into tears. She spread her legs and hugged Ryan tightly.
Ryan nearly lost it. Chiharu Mitsui was already wet down there. Damn, these Japanese girls really are wild—she probably even half-hoped the crowd would have their way with her.
"It has to be that kid's doing!" The people in the car finally caught on, shouting angrily. But just as they grabbed steel pipes and weapons to attack Ryan, there was a series of deafening bangs—their bodies exploded on the spot.
Ryan struck fast and hard. Compared to him, these guys were nothing but ants—killing them was no different than squashing bugs.
But right after Ryan finished off the ones inside, the rest clambered onto the car roof, snarling like demons from hell. Some dug in their claws and ripped open the steel top—clearly, a few of them had some real strength.
"Miss Chiharu, let me play with you!"
"I want a turn with Miss Chiharu too!"
"Ah!" Faced with all those dirty hands, Chiharu Mitsui screamed again. Her clothes were torn open in an instant, bra straps exposed. Drool dripped from the mouths of the thugs above her, making her cry out even louder.
"Man, Japan is even more depraved than I thought!" Ryan Ling shook his head. With a thought, the car suddenly accelerated again, but Chiharu's allure was so strong that the thugs clinging to the roof refused to let go.
"That's the Chiba Bridge ahead! Block the car on the bridge!" one of the thugs shouted. Instantly, the bridge was packed with vehicles—the Mitsui clan's influence was massive. They could block a whole bridge at a word, and it was all heavy trucks. If you tried to force your way through, the car would be totaled.
"Master, what do we do?" Chiharu Mitsui knew how powerful her family was. Blocking the bridge with trucks was nothing—if they wanted, they could roll out tanks in minutes.
"Chill!" Ryan Ling focused his will again, and a surge of Golden Core power swept out. What happened next was jaw-dropping—the car shot off the bridge, heading straight for the raging river.
In a flash, all the Mitsui clan thugs clinging to the roof screamed in terror. Then, in an even crazier twist, the whole car flipped upside down at high speed, sending the thugs plunging into the river below. The car itself sped along the water like a magic vehicle.
"Mom, look! There's a car flying on the river—is a magician visiting Japan?" a Japanese boy shouted excitedly.
And it wasn't just his mother—everyone on the bridge stopped their cars, staring in shock. Every single person was left speechless!
"Master!" Chiharu Mitsui was tossed around until she collapsed into Ryan Ling's arms, deliberately pressing her chest against him.
"Enough! Stop acting so wild. What now? Where do we go?" Ryan Ling shoved Chiharu away, anxious.
Chiharu froze for a moment, quickly tidied her messy hair, and steadied herself. "My uncle's taken over the Mitsui clan. With their power in Chiba Prefecture, we'll be found no matter where we go. There's only one place left!"
"Spit it out—where?" Ryan Ling demanded impatiently.
"My aunt Wendy Chiba's place. The Chiba family is also a big name here—if we go to her, they shouldn't dare mess with us. But my aunt's been living alone since her husband died, and she's not that close to her own family!" Chiharu explained quickly.
"A widow?" Ryan muttered, instinctively wanting nothing to do with widows—especially Japanese ones.
"That's right. My uncle died just a few months ago. My aunt's had a tough life—always left alone, suffering through loneliness." Chiharu started to explain, but Ryan cut her off.
"Enough, enough. Besides your aunt's place, is there anywhere else we can hide out?" Ryan was getting exasperated. If push came to shove, he could just storm the Mitsui clan himself—their strongest fighters were only Middle Saint at best, and wiping out the whole clan would be easy. But that would make a huge scene, and Ryan's real goal in Chiba Prefecture was to use the Mitsui clan's spot at Chiba Shrine to get inside and find the Primeval Heavenwood. Everything else was secondary.
So for now, he couldn't risk alarming the whole prefecture. If Chiba—the heart of Japan's ghost-worship—fell into chaos, every top fighter in the country would rush in. Then getting the Primeval Heavenwood would be impossible!
"There's nowhere else for now. We could go deep into the mountains, but they're full of wild beasts and snakes—nobody lives out there!" Chiharu said helplessly.
"Alright, we'll stay at your aunt's for now!" Ryan Ling said, resigned. He didn't know anyone in Chiba Prefecture, so Wendy Chiba's place was the only option.
Hearing this, Chiharu Mitsui clapped her hands in delight. "My aunt will be thrilled—she hasn't seen a man as handsome as Master in ages!"
Ryan nearly spat blood. He was speechless!
After flying dozens of miles through the air, the car finally landed safely. Wendy Chiba lived in northern Chiba Prefecture—a sparsely populated, scenic area, perfect for laying low.
"Master, see that little villa up ahead? That's my aunt Wendy's place!" Chiharu Mitsui said happily, pointing excitedly at a pink villa.
"This place? It's actually pretty nice!" Ryan Ling looked around—the whole area was bursting with flowers and greenery. Clearly, Wendy Chiba had some serious skills with plants.
"Ryan, if I'm right, Wendy Chiba probably practices wood-type arts—and she's no slouch. Not just the plants in her yard, but almost every tree on the mountain is under her control!" the Ghost Elder said from inside Ryan.
"A fellow traveler!" Ryan was surprised, quietly impressed.
"Exactly. And Wendy Chiba might even be connected to the Heavenwood!" the Ghost Elder continued.
"Really? That's awesome!" Ryan was even more surprised—coming to Wendy's place was clearly the right move.
"She probably is, though it's not clear how yet. Spend more time with Wendy Chiba, and things might go twice as smoothly!" the Ghost Elder said, yawning as he faded away.
"Auntie!" Chiharu Mitsui called out, not knowing what Ryan was thinking.
"Chiharu, is that you? What are you doing here? I'm taking a bath, so it's not convenient—just come in!" came a sweet voice from inside. It was clearly Wendy Chiba.
"Okay, I'm coming!" Chiharu said, grabbing Ryan Ling's hand.
"Wait—your aunt's in the bath, and I'm just going to walk in..." Ryan started to protest, but Chiharu had already dragged him inside.