Chapter 7

"Don't touch me!" Sophia jerked her hand away from Clio's grip.

She took a deep breath, tilted her head back to force the tears back into her eyes, and when she looked down again, her gaze was ice-cold.

"Milo, Clio, from today on, I, Sophia, have nothing to do with you," Sophia said each word deliberately. "I don't have relatives like you. The Brown family—I can't reach that high!"

Seeing that everything was exposed, Milo stopped pretending.

He stood up and pointed at Sophia, cursing, "Who do you think you are? You got pregnant before marriage, ruined the Brown family's reputation, and forced us to leave New York and move to San Francisco. What's wrong with me trading you for some money? Do you think you're safe with this man? He killed Ronnie! The people backing the Ford family will never let you go!"

Damien's eyes turned sharp.

Without saying a word, he lifted his right leg and kicked Milo squarely in the chest.

Milo's entire body flew through the air with the crisp sound of breaking bones. He crashed heavily into a marble pillar in the banquet hall, slid to the ground, coughed up several mouthfuls of blood, and passed out cold.

Clio screamed in terror. Her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed to the ground.

Damien turned around and looked at Paxton, who had been sitting in the main seat without moving.

All of the Ford family's bodyguards had fallen, yet Paxton showed no sign of begging for mercy. Instead, he stared hard at Damien, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

"Well kicked, well killed," Paxton's voice was low as he slowly stood up.

He pulled a pure black metal token out of his inner pocket. It was carved with a skull.

"Your fighting skills are impressive, but do you really believe that the Ford family rules San Francisco with only a few hundred bodyguards?" Paxton held up the token, his eyes flashing with madness.

"The Ford family merely represents the 'Celestial Temple' in the real world. Today, you destroyed the Celestial Temple's offering and killed its people. The Celestial Temple's fury will burn your family of three to ashes!"

When he heard "Celestial Temple," Ironclaw, who was standing behind Damien, suddenly changed expression.

Damien stared at the black token; the killing intent in his eyes grew stronger.

"The Celestial Temple's messenger is already on the way," Paxton laughed wildly. "You won't make it out of San Francisco!"

Before he finished speaking, a huge roar suddenly came from the night sky outside the banquet hall.

Several heavily armed helicopters tore through the night. The pale beams of searchlights shone through the shattered floor-to-ceiling windows and landed directly on Damien.

Strong winds blew into the banquet hall. Several heavily armed helicopters hovered outside the windows, their searchlight beams crossing over Damien's body.

Paxton held up the pure black token and laughed wildly.

"Do you see? Celestial Temple's messenger has arrived!" Paxton pointed outside the window. "No matter how good you are at fighting, can you fight against regular armed forces? You must die here today!"

Milo had already passed out, but was awakened by the roar of the helicopters. Hearing Paxton's words, a light of survival burst from his eyes. He dragged his broken ribs and desperately crawled toward Paxton's feet.

"Mr. Ford, save me! I'm related to the Ford family by marriage. I have nothing to do with this man!" Milo wailed loudly.

Damien stood in place without even turning his head. He raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

The helicopter cabin doors outside the windows opened simultaneously, and dozens of tactical ropes dropped down.

Fully armed men slid down the ropes one after another, leaping into the banquet hall through the broken floor-to-ceiling windows. They all had an eagle with spread wings embroidered on their chests.

The lead man was nearly six feet tall with a scar running across his entire left face. He carried a dripping black canvas bag in his hand and strode up to Damien.

The man knelt on one knee and struck his left chest hard with his right hand.

"Eagle Watch Squad Commander Falcon, reporting to my King!"

Dozens of special forces members knelt on one knee simultaneously, their voices shaking the entire hall, "Reporting to my King!"

Paxton's laughter stopped abruptly. He opened his mouth wide, staring hard at Falcon on the ground, his hand holding the token trembling uncontrollably.

"This is impossible..." Paxton's voice was hoarse.

Falcon stood up and threw the black canvas bag at Paxton's feet. He pulled open the bag, revealing a headless corpse wearing a white robe with gold trim.

"Lord, this is the so-called Celestial Temple messenger," Falcon's tone was contemptuous. "His private plane had just landed at San Francisco airport when we intercepted and killed him. His head is already hanging on the airport control tower."

Paxton's whole body went soft. The pure black token slipped from his hand and made a clear clinking sound.

The backing he was so proud of didn't even have a chance to appear before this man.

Milo lay on the ground, looking at the headless corpse, his mind completely blank. He finally understood what kind of person he had provoked.

Damien turned around, his gaze falling on Milo and Clio.

Clio was so scared she wet herself. Paralyzed on the ground, she desperately kowtowed, "We were wrong. Please spare us. We'll never dare again."

"Killing you would dirty my hands," Damien's tone had no warmth whatsoever.

He looked at Ironclaw.

"Break his legs. Notify all global underground lending institutions and all banks to permanently freeze all Brown family assets. Throw them into the lowest slums of San Francisco. I want them alive, to spend the rest of their lives watching my daughter rule the world," Damien pointed at Milo.

"Yes!"

Ironclaw stepped forward, lifted his combat boot, and stomped hard on both of Milo's kneecaps.

Milo let out a shrill scream, his eyes rolled back, and he passed out from pain again. Clio threw herself on Milo's body, wailing. Death was easy—stripping them of all their wealth and making them live as cripples in the slums for the rest of their lives was the cruelest punishment.

Damien took off his blood-stained jacket and put on a clean black trench coat that Falcon handed him. He walked to the corner and took Faye from Sophia's arms.

Faye obediently wrapped her arms around Damien's neck and buried her head in his shoulder.

"Ironclaw, take fifty Iron Bear members and escort Sophia and Faye to Safe House Number One. It's absolutely safe there. I'll come get you after I finish dealing with the rest," Damien looked at Sophia.

Sophia stood up and reached out to grab the hem of Damien's trench coat, a trace of worry flashing in her eyes.

"Be careful yourself," Sophia said in a low voice.

"Don't worry," Damien reached out and rubbed her hair.

Ironclaw escorted the mother and daughter into the private elevator. Damien watched the elevator doors close, then turned around, his gaze locking onto Paxton on the ground.

Paxton suddenly jumped up. He pressed a hidden switch under the chair's armrest.

Large amounts of white tear gas instantly sprayed from the ventilation openings around the banquet hall. With vision blocked, Paxton took advantage of the chaos to crash through a hidden door behind him and escaped into the hotel's secret passage.