Chapter 169: The Bald Man’s Search and Elon’s Ambition

The light screen inside Ethan’s Survival Space displayed the interior of Victoria’s villa.

Ethan and Victoria had only just returned when the front door was suddenly kicked open.

A bald young man stormed inside, followed by several armed subordinates carrying submachine guns. Their boots thudded against the floor as they spread through the living room, sweeping their weapons across the furniture and dark corners.

The bald man looked around.

There was nobody.

"Damn it! Didn’t Chairman Elon say someone was here?"

He kicked the coffee table in frustration.

It toppled over with a crash, sending a few decorative items scattering across the floor.

"There’s not even a trace of anyone!"

One of his subordinates cautiously scanned the room with his weapon.

"Maybe they’re hiding somewhere?"

"Hiding?" The bald man spun toward him. "We’ve searched this place three times already! We turned the basement upside down, checked every room, and searched every damn corner. If someone were here, we’d have found them by now!"

He spat on the floor.

"Chairman Elon’s perception must have been wrong."

The others exchanged uneasy glances but said nothing. They had no intention of arguing with him.

After another brief search, the group finally filed out of the villa.

On the other side of the light screen, Victoria’s expression darkened.

"Chairman Elon..."

Ethan glanced at her.

"You know him?"

"Could it be Elon Rusk?"

Ethan raised an eyebrow.

"The billionaire who developed this entire villa district?"

Victoria nodded slowly.

"He’s one of the wealthiest men in Silvermont City. He was involved in several major construction projects, including Crestview Villa District."

She looked back at the light screen, her expression growing increasingly grim.

Ethan narrowed his eyes.

"Then the mysterious powerhouse living in the mansion at the center of the district is probably him."

Victoria didn’t answer immediately.

But from the look on her face, Ethan could tell she had reached the same conclusion.

If Elon Rusk was indeed the person behind the strange Spiritual Power fluctuations, then they had a serious problem.

At the luxurious mansion in the heart of Crestview Villa District, crystal chandeliers illuminated an extravagant living room.

The polished marble floor reflected the warm light, while expensive paintings and imported furniture filled the enormous space.

Elon Rusk was stretched out on a massage chair, enjoying the attention of two beautiful women.

Both were adults, dressed in little more than what was necessary, and were carefully massaging his shoulders and back with scented oils.

He looked no older than thirty.

His skin was smooth, his features youthful, and his body far more athletic than the overweight frame he had possessed before the Apocalypse.

The transformation was almost unbelievable.

Before the Red Fog appeared, Elon had been a man in his fifties. Years of wealth and indulgence had left him with a heavy build and the unmistakable appearance of someone approaching old age.

Now, he looked like an entirely different person.

Only one feature ruined his otherwise handsome appearance.

A strange blue mark stretched across the left side of his face.

It resembled a centipede crawling beneath his skin, its twisted shape extending from his cheek toward his jaw. Even more disturbing was the way it occasionally seemed to move.

That mark was why Elon rarely appeared in public without his silver mask.

"Boss."

The bald young man entered and stopped a few steps away.

He lowered his head, careful not to disturb the man on the massage chair.

"We searched Victoria’s villa. There was nobody inside. We checked every room and even searched the basement, but we couldn’t find anyone."

Elon slowly opened his eyes.

A sharp glint flashed through them.

He raised one hand, dismissing the two women.

They immediately stepped away and left the room.

Once they were gone, Elon sat up. His bare upper body was lean and muscular, and the strange blue mark on his face shifted faintly beneath the chandelier light.

"Nobody?"

He rested one hand against the armrest, tapping his fingers thoughtfully.

"Interesting."

The bald man remained silent.

Elon stroked his chin.

"It seems Ethan’s Space Ability is more impressive than I expected. If he can disappear from one location and reappear somewhere else without leaving a trace, his Teleportation range must be considerable."

A flicker of greed appeared in his eyes.

"Someone with that kind of Ability is too valuable to leave alone."

His fingers stopped tapping.

"If I can get my hands on his Space Ability, I might finally have what I need to reach SS-Rank."

He leaned back, a faint smile forming on his lips.

"Then Silvermont City will belong to me."

"Understood, Boss!"

The bald man immediately straightened.

"I’寧 arrange for men to watch Victoria’s villa around the clock. The moment Ethan appears, we’ll report it."

"Good. Make sure they don’t do anything stupid. I want him alive."

"Yes, Boss."

The young man turned and headed for the door.

He had barely reached it when two familiar figures appeared outside.

Max and Blaze.

Both looked terrible.

Their clothes were torn and stained with blood. Max’s face was pale, and he was breathing heavily. Blaze’s mechanical arm sparked intermittently, and one of its fingers was missing.

They looked as though they had barely escaped a disaster.

The bald man stepped aside to let them through.

"Boss!"

Max hurried forward, removing the bone flute from his waist.

His breathing was still uneven.

"We’ve been screwed over by Ethan!"

Elon raised an eyebrow.

"Have you?"

Blaze stepped forward, her expression twisted with anger.

"That bastard deliberately led a King-Rank Blackscale Drake straight to us!"

She clenched her damaged mechanical hand. A few sparks jumped between its exposed components.

"If that monster hadn’t been chasing him, Max and I would’ve been killed back there!"

Elon’s expression changed.

"A King-Rank Blackscale Drake?"

Both of them nodded.

He slowly stood up.

"Tell me exactly what happened."

Max took a moment to catch his breath before explaining how Ethan had appeared in the middle of their battle, stolen the Red-Haired Golden Snub-Nosed Monkey, and vanished just as the Blackscale Drake arrived.

Elon listened without interrupting.

But as the details became clearer, the excitement in his eyes grew.

Ethan had been in the southern part of the city earlier.

Now he had appeared in the east.

That was an astonishing distance to cover in such a short time.

’More than twenty kilometers...’

Elon narrowed his eyes.

’So his Teleportation can cover that kind of distance.’

His interest in Ethan’s Space Ability deepened.

The ability to teleport over long distances was already extraordinary. But Ethan’s Survival Space was even more valuable. A space capable of storing supplies and sheltering living people was something Elon could hardly imagine putting a price on.

He wanted it.

He wanted it badly.

"Excellent."

Elon rose from his chair.

The blue mark on his face seemed to writhe as his excitement grew.

"You two will help search for Ethan’s whereabouts. Keep your eyes open and report anything unusual."

He paused, allowing his gaze to settle on them.

"And listen carefully. Whoever captures him will receive a piece of the flesh from the creature in my basement."

Max and Blaze froze.

Then their expressions changed.

Their breathing grew noticeably heavier.

They both knew what Elon was talking about.

Before the Apocalypse, Elon had suffered a devastating injury. Ordinary medicine had been useless, and even his newly awakened Ability hadn’t been enough to save him.

It was only after consuming a piece of the mysterious creature’s flesh that his condition began to improve.

His wounds healed at an astonishing rate.

More importantly, his strength increased dramatically.

The creature’s flesh was unlike anything they had encountered.

If a small piece could produce such a transformation, what would happen if they consumed it themselves?

Max and Blaze were already at the peak of A-Rank.

A chance to break through to Quasi-S-Rank was almost too tempting to resist.

"Are you serious, Boss?" Max asked.

Elon gave him a cold smile.

"Do I look like I’m joking?"

The two exchanged a glance.

Their earlier frustration disappeared, replaced by an almost feverish determination.

"Understood!"

"We’ll find him!"

Elon nodded.

"Then get moving."

Max and Blaze turned and left, their minds already occupied with the reward.

Elon watched them disappear through the doorway.

Then his gaze drifted toward the basement.

A strange smile appeared beneath the silver mask resting on the nearby table.

’Ethan...’

’You have no idea how valuable you are.’