Returning to the Mysterious Era-Chapter 356 - Time Flies

At first, many black market organizations heard rumors that the Duststorm, which had been aggressively expanding, had fought to a standstill with the long-established Ace of Spades. They planned to swoop in and pick up the scraps.

But when the truth came out, they discovered that the Ace of Spades had completely wiped out and absorbed Duststorm, demonstrating their formidable strength in Fengnan City. As a result, they withdrew, choosing to lie low for the time being.

However, just because they didn't make a move against the Ace of Spades didn't mean the Ace of Spades wouldn't make a move against them. After eliminating Duststorm, the Ace of Spades had no rivals left in Beiliu County. It was only natural for them to unify the county's underground world.

The Ace of Spades sent out a large number of gunmen, specifically targeting the larger black market groups in various cities. They didn't accept any threats or pleas for mercy—each raid was brutal, with a clear goal in mind.

Moreover, during these operations, a small group of people within Beiliu County's underground world noticed something unusual.

The gunmen sent by the Ace of Spades were all top-tier elites, as if they had been trained for ten or twenty years. Not only were their marksmanship skills precise, but their reflexes and close combat abilities were also first-rate. It was almost as if a group of ring champions from the Federation's five-stage martial arts system had joined the criminal underworld to work as mere foot soldiers. It was absurd.

From the start of the cleanup operations until they concluded in September, not a single gunman from the Ace of Spades had died. The worst casualties were a few unlucky ones who had suffered minor injuries.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

Over the course of a little more than a month, the Ace of Spades finished their training exercises. The result was that most medium-to-large black market groups in Beiliu County had been wiped out, leaving only small, persistent factions that were like weeds—impossible to fully eradicate. Throughout this period, the local police stations in Beiliu County seemed to cooperate inexplicably, only stepping in to clean up after the fact.

They reaped a heap of unearned merits along the way.

In addition, organizations involved in the antique trade throughout Beiliu County were infiltrated by a mysterious force. This force either took over ownership, inserted personnel, or made deals with these companies. Consequently, there was some disruption in the antique market.

Around the same time, training bases resembling martial arts gyms appeared in the outskirts of every city in Beiliu County. It was rumored that these bases belonged to the same mysterious force and were used exclusively for internal personnel, not open to the public. This caused some confusion among those in Beiliu County's Covert Martial Arts circles.

That was the situation in Beiliu County.

Meanwhile, in the coastal city of Anta in East Sea County.

In the neo-human circles, a major event recently occurred: one of the top powers in the neo-human world, the Psychokinesis Association, underwent a leadership change.

The Psychokinesis Association originated all the way back from the Black Rain Manor era, specifically the Mercury Sect.

After the disappearance of the manor, many neo-humans who awakened supernatural abilities were related to this sect, focusing on mind and psychokinetic powers. The Psychokinesis Association was the largest force within this group, boasting five A-rank psychokinetics.

Among these five, one individual named Ray went on a mission in July and disappeared for over a week. When he reappeared, it was as if he had encountered some fortuitous event, and his strength grew rapidly. Within a short time, he rose from being the weakest of the five to defeating each of the other A-rank psychokinetics one by one, becoming the undisputed strongest.

On the day Ray defeated the president of the Psychokinesis Association, he brought along several friends. Two were unfamiliar, but the third was someone that most forces recognized:

Shockwave, the captain of the White Skull organization's Number Five team, and a wanted criminal in the neo-human circles. He was an A-rank psychokinetic with a dark reputation.

Together, Ray and Shockwave managed to take down the primary forces of the Psychokinesis Association, defeating them two-on-four, and seized control of the organization.

Surprisingly, the four defeated psychokinetics didn't leave. For reasons unknown, they stayed on. This caused quite a stir.

However, since this was essentially an internal conflict, other top powers were reluctant to intervene. The only one who showed interest was Silver Gun Soro, as Shockwave had originally been part of the White Skull organization.

Soro investigated the situation and discovered connections between the new Psychokinesis Association and the White Skull organization. However, the situation wasn't as he expected—the Psychokinesis Association didn't seem to be collaborating with the White Skulls but rather appeared to be plotting against them.

They seemed intent on taking over the White Skulls and acquiring all their channels, information, technology, and knowledge regarding Pure Black Demonic Water.

All the signs suggested that the Psychokinesis Association had sinister intentions and was simply biding its time.

This discovery left Soro feeling uneasy. Despite his reputation and strength as the Silver Gun, and his long-standing opposition to the White Skulls, he was fully aware of the White Skulls' terrifying power.

There were ten captains in total. Aside from the support-focused Number Ten, the other nine were all Class A neo-humans, making them one of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the neo-human world, especially in their pursuit of advanced demonic water.

The leader, Captain Number One, was particularly feared—likely above Class A—and was one of the top figures among the neo-human elites. For decades, his hands had been soaked in blood, earning him the terrifying nickname, "The Demon."

If the Psychokinesis Association was truly planning to move against the White Skulls, they were either incredibly foolish, or... there was a more terrifying force behind the scenes, one that had set its sights on the entire neo-human world!

Now, let's shift focus again, this time to the Shadowless Clan. This group was formed by a bunch of desperate individuals, all former hosts of Shadow Demons. They were struggling to survive, trying to resist being assimilated by the Shadow Demons, while also recruiting new members.

They called themselves a force opposing the Shadow Demons, but in reality, they were nothing more than a small group formed out of fear for their lives. When Cassius encountered them, he was shocked by their weakness.

The strength of the Shadowless Clan in the Eastern Hongli Federation was shockingly minimal, with only two Red Eye-level Shadow Demons and ten Sharp Claw-level Shadow Demons. This was equivalent to having just two pugilists and ten fistfighters, which felt rather underwhelming. By this calculation, the total strength of the Shadowless Clan across the entire Hongli Federation amounted to no more than seven or eight pugilists, perhaps even fewer, as the Eastern region was more prosperous, implying more forces would be stationed there. Comparing the entire Shadowless Clan to the Wind Elephant Sect, excluding the combat artist-level sect master, the clan seemed pitifully weak.

How could such limited strength allow them to develop smoothly under the looming pressure of the Shadow Demons? Cassius lent them a hand, taking control of the organization. He also inherited the Shadowless Clan's extensive research into the Shadow Demon species, gaining valuable intelligence. This laid the groundwork for his upcoming scheme, a long-term infiltration plan against the Shadow Demons.

Additionally, Cassius became intrigued by the Shadowless Clan itself. He seemed intent on replicating the process he had used to refine and control Shadow Demons in those who were parasitized by the demons. Through a series of cautious experiments, Cassius began to make progress, observing some remarkable phenomena. His own method involved refining Shadow Demons by using the golem's life magnetic field to assimilate the Shadow Demons' life magnetic field, erasing their consciousness. He then injected life vibration energy as an isolator and fuel, while using Qi as his sub-consciousness to control the Shadow Demon's body, thereby transforming the demon into a controlled proxy. This process was not only groundbreaking but also reproducible.

Cassius's golem Covert Martial Arts allowed him to condense the Golem Seed, a unique ability. The Golem Seed could emit a miniature golem's Qi to train the body, and the seed itself was a form of Qi. If the parasitized hosts in the Shadowless Clan could master the use of Demon Seeds, with Cassius's help, perhaps they could crudely replicate his process from a month ago. In theory, this seemed feasible.

Over the next one or two months of experiments, under Cassius's curious supervision, several semi-successful results emerged. Some parasitized hosts of the Shadow Demons managed to reverse the assimilation process, slowly integrating the Shadow Demons using the Demon Seeds. Though the process was slow, bit by bit, they succeeded. Once the assimilation was complete, life vibration energy was infused into the demon, allowing the experimental hosts to attempt controlling the demon using Qi. While they initially failed, Cassius stepped in and completed the process. The Shadow Demons were refined into true proxies!

The human hosts gained partial control over the Demon Seeds, enabling them to barely drive the Shadow Demons, though they were far from Cassius's level of mastery. Nevertheless, the plan to reverse control over the Shadow Demons succeeded. Despite its limitations, this method was far superior to simply killing the demons—it could even allow ordinary people to harness their strength!

Another noteworthy aspect was that the experimental hosts seemed capable of training in the Black Demon's Hand Covert Martial Arts. This technique required no special qualifications and was simple enough for anyone with the intelligence and physical ability of a seven- or eight-year-old child. The only price for practicing it was one's lifespan—but what did that matter to the hosts? The ones practicing the Black Demon's Hand were the Shadow Demons, and it was their lifeforce being drained. Dark creatures like the Shadow Demons had exceptionally long lifespans, and giving them the Black Demon's Hand to train with was a perfect match.

Since the hosts didn't feel any loss, they could push the demons to their limits. Once the Black Demon's Hand grew stronger, it would compensate for the stiff and mechanical shortcomings of the Shadow Demons under host control. The combat style of the Black Demon's Hand didn't require much flexibility; as long as the demons' hands could touch their enemies, they could drain their lifeforce. Moreover, the Shadow Demons' arms were naturally gifted, making it difficult for enemies to avoid their grasp.

Over the past month, Cassius had been closely monitoring the experiments, feeling a sense of achievement from creating this new power system—even if it was somewhat bizarre. The fact that it merged elements from both friend and foe made it a strange, patched-together force. Yet, awkwardness aside, it worked well, and that was what mattered. He even started imagining the Shadowless Clan's hundreds of members all becoming Shadow Demon proxy users. Furthermore, this system could continue expanding, recruiting new parasitized individuals, even developing into a kind of "farming" operation, where Shadow Demons were deliberately planted into bodies. Then, at the right time, they would be refined into proxies.

The more he thought about it, the more Cassius felt he had a talent for piecing together new ideas, forging strange new paths in unprecedented ways. Who knew—maybe one day, he would create some monstrous hybrid with his own hands.

These were Cassius's primary achievements over this period. He returned to Baichuan City to handle some previous matters, including those involving the Connan Company, with which he had connections through Phil's family. Outwardly, he maintained friendly ties, while secretly directing the Ace of Spades organization to assist the Connan Company, giving them more opportunities to expand and earn money.

Additionally, Cassius continued his official role at the Gray Seal Martial Arts Hall. However, the martial arts gym had already become a covert property of the Ace of Spades organization. Every week, Cassius would spend one or two sessions teaching the three young students, focusing on the Wind Elephant Covert Martial Arts. He wasn't withholding more advanced techniques; rather, the Wind Elephant technique was already more than enough for beginners of their age. It offered a stronger foundation than the Demon Blood Killing Technique he had created for the Ace of Spades organization. When they grew stronger, it wouldn't be too late for them to learn more advanced techniques.

Cassius also had his own personal motives—he wanted the martial arts of the Wind Elephant Sect to be passed down in modern times. He hadn't forgotten what his instructor, Lisa, had once told him.

During his spare time, Cassius worked on perfecting the Azure Wind Flow, attempting to push the technique to the fifth level. He even aimed to enrich its framework, gradually building it up to the level of a Covert Martial Art. Of course, this would take some time.

On the 20th of September, in the 156th year of the Hongli Federation calendar, a sunny day, a black, boxy Fotte vehicle drove along the road, slowly turning into a warehouse district in Baichuan City. The location wasn't remote, but rather close to the city center. Building a warehouse in such an expensive area indicated that the company behind it was quite wealthy—likely a major enterprise.

The Fotte vehicle entered through the gates and parked in an open area. Ahead was a large, rectangular warehouse, its size casting a shadow that blocked out the sunlight. Several workers dressed in black emerged from both sides. Some approached the Fotte, while others opened the warehouse doors, revealing a vast collection of antiques inside. The shelves were numerous and densely packed, resembling a forest of ancient items.

The workers entered the warehouse, bringing out a large cart laden with crates. Together, they began unloading the antiques from the Fotte and placing them in the cart, which was then moved to a designated area inside the warehouse.

One of the key personnel in black walked to a corner of the warehouse, where there was a brass telephone that connected directly to an internal office. After a series of clicking sounds from the dial and a ringing tone, the call was connected.

"Sir, the fifth batch of antiques for this month has arrived. They've been placed in the designated area. A total of sixty-nine items, all accounted for."

The other end of the line was silent for a moment. Then, a brief, low, and authoritative voice responded, "Understood. I'll be there in one minute."