The following day, Rowan placed a call to Gary Yan, asking him to arrange an elite squad to protect Luo Feng's family.
Gary did not hesitate. Without asking further questions, he immediately agreed and began making arrangements the moment he hung up.
Three hours later, a five-man elite team appeared outside the Luo family villa in Mingyue District. The squad was led by a senior warlord-class fighter, a man with the bearing of a seasoned commander.
When Rowan heard the news, he smiled faintly. One day, Gary would thank him for this decision.
Luo Feng himself, upon learning of the protection detail, felt his heart ease for the first time. Gratitude toward Rowan welled up in him, along with a newfound trust in the military's resolve.
With such a team standing guard, so long as Leo and his wife Venina did not act personally, Luo Feng's family would be safe.
But his worries had not been groundless.
Leo and Venina were no ordinary couple.
Leo, known by the moniker "The Vulture," was infamous for his ruthlessness, while Venina's codename, "The Scorpion," was whispered with dread. Both were sharp-minded, calculating predators who never acted rashly.
From the moment their son Li Wei had died, they had launched a sweeping investigation, combing through every god of war and advanced warlord within a hundred kilometers of the scene.
When those searches yielded nothing, they turned their attention to mid- and lower-level warlords.
After a sleepless night, bloodshot eyes and relentless deduction, they finally eliminated the possibility that Li Wei had been slain by a lord-class beast.
The evidence pointed to two possibilities: either a god of war had acted, or a psychic had struck.
It did not take long before their suspicions locked firmly onto Luo Feng.
Through covert means, they confirmed the truth: Luo Feng was indeed a psychic a mid-level warlord-class psychic.
That sealed it. Luo Feng became their prime suspect.
Only a psychic could move with such impossible speed.
"Leo, it must have been Luo Feng who killed our son!" Venina's shrill voice rang with fury, her emerald eyes blazing.
The Vulture's face darkened with venomous killing intent.
Someone had dared to kill their only son. For that, no heaven or earth was broad enough to contain them together.
"I know," Leo growled, his voice like a volcano holding back eruption. "But we have no proof."
For someone so young to already be a mid-level psychic warlord, Luo Feng was clearly a prized genius under the Extreme Dojo's protection. Killing him without evidence would be difficult.
"Proof?" Venina spat. "We'll wait until he sets foot in the wilderness again then we strike!"
Her beauty twisted into savagery, and Leo's fists clenched tight in silent assent.
Their creed was simple: better to kill the wrong person than let the guilty slip away.
But Leo also knew the truth. "He won't set foot outside the city anytime soon."
"Then we kill him here, in the base city!" Venina hissed.
She was no ordinary woman. As the HR Alliance's executive director for the Huaxia region, she commanded vast resources. Leo, a god of war clad in Black God battle gear, was just as formidable. Together, they could erase a warlord within the city's walls without leaving a trace.
With no evidence, even the Security Bureau would be powerless against them.
Leo's eyes glinted with malice. His moniker, "The Vulture," was not for show.
Yet just as the couple resolved to act, a message arrived from their butler.
"Luo Feng has been admitted to the Elite Training Camp."
The news froze them where they stood.
Their faces turned ashen, their bodies trembling with rage.
The Elite Training Camp was untouchable. Even with ten times their courage, they would never dare to assassinate one of its students. Not under Hong's watch.
For the next several years, at least, Luo Feng would remain beyond their reach.
"What do we do, Leo?" Venina's breath came in ragged bursts. Fury threatened to tear her apart.
Leo's killing aura spread outward like a storm, sending beasts across kilometers fleeing in panic.
"Then we target his family. If Luo Feng can hide in the Elite Training Camp, let's see how he likes watching his parents and brother fall one by one."
Venina's lips curled in vicious agreement. "Good. I'll make the arrangements."
She had more than enough ways to destroy mortals like the Luo family.
…
Unaware that Leo and Venina had condemned him in their hearts, Luo Feng focused on Yang Hui's assessment.
When Yang Hui confirmed Luo Feng's true strength, he was elated and immediately reported to headquarters. The response came swiftly: bring Luo Feng into the Elite Training Camp.
"Rowan, I'll be leaving for the Elite Training Camp."
At the moment of farewell, Luo Feng bowed gratefully to Rowan.
"Go without worry," Rowan said with a reassuring smile. "Your parents and brother will be safe."
To him, Leo and Venina were nothing more than ants. Should they dare overstep, a single word from him would be enough for the HR Alliance itself to crush them.
Luo Feng nodded deeply, gratitude written across his face, before departing with Yang Hui.
…
Three days later, Luo Feng arrived at the Elite Training Camp and moved into Jiangnan Pavilion.
"You're from Jiangnan Base City too? From Yian District of Yangzhou City?"
When Luo Feng introduced himself, Shi Jiang and Zhao Ruo exchanged looks of disbelief.
What was going on with Yian District? Was it a dragon's nest?
They remembered just last year, Rowan had walked in with the same unassuming smile. Who could have guessed he'd rise from the bottom of the Black Dragon Rankings to number one in a single year, then ascend to a god of war and even a council member?
And now, another one from Yian District?
They struggled to believe it, but unease gnawed at them nonetheless.
Meanwhile, back in Mingyue District, trouble had already found the Luo family.
A string of suspicious "accidents" plagued them. Were it not for the elite squad's vigilance, Luo Feng's parents and brother would already be dead or crippled.
Rowan listened to the squad leader's report with calm gravity.
"We traced the incidents to higher orders, but the perpetrators covered their tracks well. Identifying the mastermind won't be easy."
"I understand. Keep guarding them," Rowan ordered, dismissing the man before stepping out onto the terrace.
He placed a call.
Within moments, the screen lit up, revealing a tall, poised woman in her forties, short platinum hair framing elegant features. Dressed in a golden evening gown, she exuded grace and authority.
"Lord Rowan, greetings."
"Isadora," Rowan said with a nod.
This was none other than Isadora, Chairwoman of the HR Alliance a woman whose influence spanned continents.
"You rarely call, Lord Rowan. May I ask the reason?"
Her tone was polite, even curious. Rowan had long been famed for his aloofness. The world's great powers had courted him without success.
"You people have crossed me," Rowan said coolly, "and I do not like being crossed."
Isadora's composure faltered. Her heart tightened.
Rowan was not someone the HR Alliance or any power could afford to offend. A man destined to stand beside Hong and Thor as one of the world's supreme.
"Please tell me who in the Alliance has offended you," she said firmly. "I will see to their punishment."
"Venina of the Bolenas family. And her husband, Leo."
Isadora inhaled sharply. The Bolenas family wielded great influence, and Venina was none other than the clan leader's sister.
But she dared not hesitate. "Rest assured, Lord Rowan. We will apprehend the couple and deliver them to you ourselves."
Rowan shook his head. "Not necessary. Just have them come to me in person and apologize."
He had no interest in killing them outright. His concern was Luo Feng's safety a warning would suffice.
Isadora exhaled in relief. At least the situation hadn't turned catastrophic.
She moved quickly, stripping Venina of her executive position and convening the Alliance to sanction the Bolenas clan.
By that afternoon, councilor Faer arrived at the couple's home with an ultimatum.
"You are to travel to Yangzhou at once and beg Rowan's forgiveness," he ordered coldly. "Refuse, and I will take your heads to him instead."
Faced with no choice, Leo and Venina obeyed.
But when they arrived in Mingyue District and realized Rowan lived barely a hundred meters from Luo Feng's family, unease struck them like lightning.
Could it be that Rowan's wrath was connected to Luo Feng?
Neither dared voice the thought aloud, but as they approached Rowan's villa, the truth became undeniable.
Kneeling at the gate, Leo cried out: "Lord Rowan, we have come to beg forgiveness!"
"Enter," Rowan's calm voice answered from within a command carried on invisible psychic force.
They entered, bowed to the ground, and asked what they had done wrong.
"You've been targeting Luo Feng's family," Rowan said without preamble.
Their bodies stiffened. It was true, then. Rowan was standing behind Luo Feng.
Leo's hands clenched so tight his knuckles whitened. Venina's eyes brimmed with tears of humiliation.
"Yes," Leo admitted hoarsely. "Because Luo Feng killed our son."
Rowan's gaze was icy. "So you would kill Luo Feng in return?"
The pressure in the room was suffocating. To Leo and Venina, Rowan seemed less a man than a predator king, a beast above all others.
Then Rowan said the words that shattered their last hope.
"Did you not know? Luo Feng is my friend."
The couple's faces drained of all color. Despair swallowed them whole.
Leo bowed low, sweat dripping from his brow. "We understand. We will never move against him again."
Venina bit her lip until it bled, her emerald eyes clouded with grief and rage.
Rowan's smile returned, faint and inscrutable.
But he had one more twist in store.
"I am not finished," he said. "Leo, you may leave. The rest I will discuss with your wife."
Leo's head snapped up, disbelief flooding his face.
Alone with Venina?
His heart pounded like a drum. He could read between the lines and there was nothing he could do.
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