Tome of Troubled Times - Chapter 57: Weve Been Deceived

The big director of the Jiaye film company was widely known as the Ghost Talent. In the eyes of everyone, he was a famous workaholic who was rumored to be sexually cold. Even so, from the time he became a director until now, there were already many overblown s*x scandals attached to his name.

Then, one day, he suddenly got married.

Yi Ran thought that she married such a man. In any case, she had nothing to lose. Until the wedding night, when they suddenly rolled the sheets and she discovered that…her thinking was too simple.

Have you ever loved someone who turned out to be so different from what you expected? This incomprehensible relationship became an opportunity to change your life, making you unable to forget. Life will be filled with flowers, making you want to cling to his side and never let go.

A lifetime of care is the most long-lasting feeling;

Life with him became a journey that will forever be imprinted in your memory.

Facing extinction, humanity seeks salvation in the Astral Verge, a dangerous dimension accessed via portals that threatened to wipe out the entire planet.Few years later, aspiring recruit Daniel Vance enters the Verge for his final assessment, hoping to Awaken a Talent and secure his future. While others gain common abilities, Daniel secretly Awakens the mythical SSS-Grade Talent: [Soul Assimilation]. This allows him to absorb essence, enhancing gear, gaining stats and EXP from slain creatures, and crucially, absorbing attributes and skills from fallen Awakened.Witnessing the swift death of the arrogant Jaxon Rex, Daniel makes a grim choice: he assimilates Jaxon, gaining his first skill, [Kinetic Pulse]. This sets his path: scavenging the aftermath of others’ battles. He enhances gear and, after achieving his first kill on an injured beast, waits patiently to assimilate two more fallen recruits, acquiring [Quick Step] and the invaluable passive [Aura Sense].Starting as average, Daniel rapidly gains power in secret, enhanced gear, multiple skills, and boosted stats , far exceeding his peers while remaining outwardly unremarkable. He navigates the lethal Verge alone, using its inherent dangers to fuel his growth, wrestling with the moral cost of his unique, overwhelming power.

I belong to a good sect that has never turned its back on me for my poor potential, has never forced me to study martial arts, and even helped arrange a betrothal for me when I was young.

Octavius, misled by friends, embarks on a quest to clear his father's name, ultimately facing a tragic end with his sister.Their journey results in devastating loss, leaving him powerless and yearning for revenge against those who harmed his family. Spirits offer him a chance to reincarnate, but he refuses, saying;“What’s the point of a new life if I keep running from my problems”The entities are taken aback by his unwavering decision, having never encountered a spirit who refuses to escape their troubled past. They warn him about the evil being that now resides in his old body, but that only motivates him. He believed In the saying - to defeat a monster, you have to be twice as monstrous.Embracing his fate as The Phantom's Gambit, they traverse the shadowy path of retribution, their identities blur, secrets unravel, and the line between savior and monster fades.This is a tale of darkness and redemption, where justice is a blade, and revenge is the only way forward.